40: Chapter 40 Trial

"Sky Breaker!"

Chen Ergou slashed out with his sword, a faint cyan light shimmering along the blade as his attack power instantly increased by 300%.

This strike carried a sharp sword aura, aimed straight at the Guardian's chest.

[-450!]

A damage number floated above the Guardian's head, but its HP barely decreased.

"Such high defense!" Chen Ergou exclaimed in surprise.

With his current attack power, combined with the 300% bonus from [Sky Breaker], he could only deal 450 damage.

And since the Guardian had a massive 5000 HP, this meant he would need to land over a dozen hits to kill it.

"Watch out!" Ye Liuli's voice rang out.

The Guardian raised its stone sword and brought it crashing down towards Chen Ergou's head.

The stone sword sliced through the air with a whistling sound, carrying terrifying force.

Chen Ergou hurriedly sidestepped, barely dodging the blow.

The stone sword smashed into the ground with a loud boom, creating a large crater and sending debris flying.

"If that had hit me, I'd probably be sent straight back to town," Chen Ergou thought, still feeling a lingering fear.

"[Frost Bind]!" Ye Liuli waved her staff, and a force of frost wrapped around the Guardian, slowing its movements by 30%.

"Good chance!" Chen Ergou seized the opportunity to rush forward and slash with his sword again.

[-320!]

The damage was slightly lower than before because the Guardian's defense changed under the frost status.

The Guardian let out a roar, broke free from the Frost Bind, and swung its sword in a horizontal sweep.

[Sweeping Strike]!

A wave of sword aura spread outward, centered on the Guardian.

The sword aura was tangible, carving deep furrows into the ground wherever it passed.

Chen Ergou and Ye Liuli jumped backward simultaneously, avoiding the strike.

"This guy is too strong!" Chen Ergou panted heavily. "Fighting head-on isn't working; we need to find its weak point!"

He carefully observed the Guardian's movements, trying to find an opening.

Although the Guardian's attacks were powerful, its movements were relatively slow, and there was a long recovery time after each attack.

Suddenly, he noticed a stone on the Guardian's chest that was different in color from the rest of its body, emitting a dark red glow; it seemed to be its core.

"Guild Leader Xiguang, attack its chest!" Chen Ergou shouted. "That might be its weak point!"

Ye Liuli nodded and pointed her staff at the Guardian's chest: "[Frost Arrow]!"

An ice arrow shot out and precisely struck the dark red stone on the Guardian's chest.

[-800!]

A huge damage number floated up, more than double the previous damage!

"It really is the weak point!" Chen Ergou's eyes lit up. "Keep attacking there!"

The two began to focus their fire on the Guardian's chest.

Chen Ergou was responsible for drawing the Guardian's attention, using his agile footwork to dodge constantly while looking for opportunities to strike the weak point.

Ye Liuli stood at a distance, using ranged attacks to precisely strike the dark red stone on the Guardian's chest.

The battle was exceptionally difficult.

The Guardian's attack power was extremely high; every single strike was enough to kill Chen Ergou instantly.

He had to focus entirely on dodging, as the slightest carelessness would cost him his life.

Fortunately, with Ye Liuli's support, [Healing Spell] and [Shield] were constantly cast on Chen Ergou, allowing him to hold on.

Finally, after the battle had lasted for nearly twenty minutes, the Guardian's HP dropped to 10%.

"Final blow!" Chen Ergou shouted. "Sky Breaker!"

He activated [Sky Breaker], concentrating all his power at the tip of his sword, and slashed towards the Guardian's chest.

[-1200!]

The Guardian let out a roar of unwillingness as its massive body collapsed with a crash, turning into a pile of rubble.

[System Notification: Congratulations to player Chen Ergou for defeating the Guardian!]

[Experience Gained: 10000]

[Level Up! Current Level: 19]

[Obtained insight into [Sword Saints Three Styles]: Deeper understanding of the first style, "Sky Breaker"]

[Unlocked new skill: Sky Breaker - Modified (Can add armor-piercing effect to attacks)]

Chen Ergou looked at the system notification, so excited he almost jumped up.

Not only did he reach level 19, but he also unlocked an advanced version of [Sky Breaker]! This was a huge profit!