Chapter 189: Guide to the Red Cedar Tree Demon

The crimson tree trunks are entwined with black Demon Energy, and also laced with red flames…

I can't tell whether it's Li Wenwan's Phoenix Flame or Huan Jie's Burning Arrow Projectile, but they're essentially the same; fire is a heavenly counter to these wood-type monsters!

Su Sheng, arriving via Shield Rush, immediately flipped the bird, saying he'd draw the Hate Value first.

-1

Forcibly deduct 1 HP, massively attracting the monster's Hate Value.

This skill's Hate mechanism only works on monsters, since there is no Hate Value data between players; if used on a player, it only causes a single forced HP loss.

There are forced Taunt skills that make players attack you, but those come later and already count as forced Control Skills.

Su Sheng looks at the massive Red Cedar Tree Demon before him and can't help recalling the Wutong Tree Demon from the earlier Fengluo Wutong Dungeon.

Both are tree demons, but Su Sheng feels this Red Cedar Tree Demon can't match the Wutong Tree Demon.

After all, the Wutong Tree Demon holds a Demon God rank, infusing Demon Energy, and devouring Phoenix Blood.

If it weren't for the enchantment of Divine Phoenix True Blood, Su Sheng back then would have had no way to defeat the Wutong Tree Demon.

It was probably just right; the Wutong Tree Demon devoured Phoenix Blood, making it tightly restrained by Divine Phoenix True Blood.

Even though it's just a game, Su Sheng feels the game's timeline keeps moving forward; if his mother hadn't coincidentally triggered the quest—

That Demon God Wutong Tree, left to grow unchecked, who knows how terrifying it could become.

Alas, there are no "ifs". (Lin Junjie / Doghead)

Su Sheng's attention shifts back to the Red Cedar Tree Demon before him. Facing the lashing vines, Su Sheng raises his Shield and Blocks.

Although the Red Cedar Tree Demon's attack is only 1,200, Su Sheng's defense, boosted by Huang Mingxin's Buff, reaches 1,400—200 higher than the demon's attack.

Logically, a boss's normal attacks shouldn't break defense.

But Su Sheng knows these bosses can't be understood by ordinary logic.

Bang~

Sure enough!

-321!

Damn, this normal attack seems to be the Branch Pull described in the boss's skill list, also part of its skill system.

With a base of 1,200 plus skill multiplier, it can easily break Su Sheng's defense.

When the skill is treated as a normal attack, only a boss can do that.

Fang!

Restraining Blade!

Shield Strike!

Taking hits without retaliation isn't Su Sheng's style.

Only, what's still frustrating Su Sheng remains the same.

Such a huge Red Cedar Tree Demon, its weak point location is completely unknown.

And unlike the earlier red-and-black Wutong Tree Demon, whose weak points could be identified.

This Red Cedar Tree Demon has a layer of red cedar bark, entwined with invisible black energy; its attacks only deal normal damage.

Fortunately, wood-type bosses are countered by fire.

And the best part is, it can't move.

Lin Huan, Li Wenwan and others output at maximum range; at the first sign of trouble they retreat a step, instantly exiting the Red Cedar Tree Demon Boss's attack range.

Only Su Ba and Su Wenhao, though they also throw talismans as ranged attacks, don't have the range of Mages or archers, so they must get a bit closer.

Huang Mingxin can simply cast Healing Technique from the edge of range.

Su Sheng pairs with the Taunt skill, firmly controlling Hate.

It goes smoothly, in under ten minutes.

The boss's health drops to 91%.

"Dad, retreat!"

Su Sheng immediately commands.

Su Ba's main trait is obedience; now that he's older, listening to his son's orders isn't shameful.

He finally flings a talisman, then turns and runs.

Health 90%!

Puff puff puff~

The sharp leaves on the Red Cedar Tree Demon instantly turn into flying needles and shoot out.

Unfortunately, the moment the Red Cedar Tree Demon's health reaches 90%, the others all step back a few paces.

As for Su Ba, he's already waddling away out of the boss's attack range.

Thus, this time the boss's Health Axis-triggered burst Flying Leaf skill can only target Su Sheng.

Already in Defensive Stance, Su Sheng lifts his Shield, ready for battle.

Dodo~

Flying Leaf crashes onto Su Sheng's Shield.

-200

-212

-317

…

Each damage tick is low, but they come densely, and Su Sheng's health is rapidly dropping.

A total of twenty damage ticks!

With that hit, it dealt nearly seven thousand damage, and of course it could also be because Su Sheng absorbed all the Flying Leaf attacks.

If those Flying Leaf attacks had hit the rest of the party, they'd probably have been enough to stagger them; don't be fooled that the attacks on Su Sheng only caused two or three hundred damage.

That's the result of Su Sheng's roughly 1400+ Defense combined with the damage reduction from Defensive Stance and Shield.

Even so, a single burst from the BOSS almost emptied Su Sheng's health bar; Su Sheng's total HP is only about 7400+.

Fortunately, a second before withdrawing from the attack range, Huang Mingxin tossed a continuous Healing Technique onto Su Sheng.

So after the BOSS's attack ended, Su Sheng still had over two thousand HP, and Huang Mingxin immediately cast two Healing Techniques.

From then on, the current pace was maintained.

Healing? With Li Wenwan's and Lin Huan's Burning Arrow Projectiles, the Red Cedar Tree Demon never recovered health.

At 80% Health Axis, a War Stomp erupted, sending a shockwave centered on the Red Cedar Tree Demon outward in all directions.

But aside from Su Sheng taking some damage and losing four to five thousand HP, it had no effect.

And the Health Axis's explosion at % was either Flying Leaf or War Stomp.

Normal attacks are just the Branch Pull.

With the squad's coordinated teamwork, the Red Cedar Tree Demon's health bar dropped rapidly.

However, at 50% Health Axis, another skill was triggered.

Red Cedar Tree King!

Red Cedar saplings sprouted from the surroundings, quickly wrapping in black Demon Energy, turning into numerous small monsters.

A full twenty small monsters.

But Su Sheng soon found a corresponding solution.

Su Sheng directly abandoned the Red Cedar Tree Demon and pulled the twenty small monsters out of the safe zone.

As for the Red Cedar Tree Demon, it only requires Huan Jie to, every five seconds at maximum range, fire a Burning Arrow Projectile to suppress the BOSS's healing.

With over twenty arrows, plus one recovering every ten seconds, Huan Jie, using the Phoenix Feather Quiver's Burning Arrow, can suppress the BOSS's healing for a good while.

The others, cooperating with Su Sheng, quickly cleared all those small monsters.

Just as Lin Huan's Burning Arrow Projectiles ran out, the last tree demon monster was blasted into scraps by Li Wenwan's Fireball.

Then Su Sheng rushed forward with Shield Rush toward the Red Cedar Tree Demon, delivering a Deadly Lion Fang.

Luck was great; it actually triggered Rend.

It hadn't triggered for so long, yet at this crucial moment it triggered Rend.

It happened to link to abnormal status suppression.

Immediately after, Li Wenwan hurried to follow up with damage output.

The pace once again returned to the previous strategy rhythm.

Because there are no weak points, damage output is not fast, but fortunately the healing can be continuously suppressed.

After an hour, the Red Cedar Tree Demon's health had already dropped to 12%.

Final stage…

Su Ba deliberately tossed out two talismans, then turned and left.

Health, 10%!!