157: Chapter 157 I told you to bump into me

Stunned! It really was a Stunned status!

It was likely because the Black Wild Boar was far stronger than the Hungry Wild Dog in both size and strength, and compared to the Sharp-toothed Piglet, it was as massive as a small hill. Therefore, although the stun icon appeared above its head, it faded away after just a few blinks, lasting several times shorter than it had on the Wild Dog.

But this bit of time was already enough. While Hu Gualing's thoughts were racing, his body movements didn't lag. In that brief second Sharp Tooth had bought him, he had already rolled two body lengths, sliding directly out from under the Black Wild Boar's two front hooves. He grabbed the boar's pair of gleaming, large tusks growing from its lower jaw with both hands, pushing upward with all his might to prevent them from stabbing forward, while squeezing out two words from his throat: "Run quickly."

Tang Yao finally regained her senses, still a bit shaken. She quickly stood up and looked at the ugly, detestable pig face in front of her. Suddenly, she decided not to leave. Wielding her sword, she slashed at the missing chunk of flesh on the boar's cheek, shouting with Life Qi as she did so: "Told you to Charge me, told you to Charge me!"

-30! -35! With two sword strikes, two large, blood-red numbers popped up, totaling a massive 65 points of damage. Even though the Black Wild Boar had a total health pool of two or three hundred points, a huge chunk of its health bar dropped instantly.

When it launched its Charge at Tang Yao, it had already taken four consecutive punches from Hu Gualing. During the Charge, it had rammed Tang Yao's longsword into its own upper shoulder. On top of that, the [Bleeding] status had been causing its health to tick down by 1 point at a time. Although the damage each time wasn't much, it was all about the long game. From the moment it was hit in the cheek by the arrow and inflicted with the Bleeding status until now, the accumulated health loss had amounted to several dozen points. Thus, the [Fearless Black Wild Boar] had only been at half health earlier, and now, after losing another 65 points of health to Tang Yao's two sword strikes, its health bar plummeted to just over a quarter!

The reason Tang Yao was able to deal such high damage with two strikes was that she was hacking at the spot where Xiao Niao's wooden shaft steel arrow had scraped away a chunk of flesh. The boar's defense mainly relied on its hide—hardened by rubbing against rocks—and its stiff, sharp bristles. However, at the wound on its cheek, there was no flesh left, let alone the hide that served as its protective shell. So, rather than saying Tang Yao was hacking at the boar's cheek, it was more like she was hacking directly into the boar's mouth. No matter how Fearless this Black Wild Boar was, being struck directly into its unprotected mouth by a steel longsword with the Sharp trait caused significantly more damage than being struck on the back.

The [Fearless Black Wild Boar] might not have truly feared pain, but as a monster, its instincts made it realize the danger represented by its precarious health. It immediately let out a loud howl, and a more violent force erupted from its body, making Hu Gualing feel like he couldn't hold it back any longer.

He hadn't forgotten that when he first saw this Black Wild Boar, it was scratching an itch against a boulder as tall as a person, making the rock tremble. Therefore, its strength was definitely far greater than his. The reason he was able to hold the boar's tusks with both hands and seemingly keep it under control was that Sharp Tooth had just triggered a Stunned status. After recovering from the stun, the Black Wild Boar was still a bit disoriented and in a dazed state. However, after losing a massive chunk of health instantly from Tang Yao's two sword strikes, the Black Wild Boar, with only a quarter of its health left, sensed the mortal danger. It was no longer dazed. Unleashing its full strength, even while suffering from a [Minor Injury] status that reduced all attributes by 10%, it was not something Hu Gualing could withstand. Gritting his teeth, he used all his strength to shove the two tusks upward, quickly scrambled out from under the boar's body, grabbed Tang Yao, and dashed away. After running a distance, hearing the boar let out a flurry of frantic howls behind him, he hurriedly told Tang Yao to keep running with Sharp Tooth while he turned around to face the blurry-faced, terrifying, and nearly crazed Black Wild Boar.

Tang Yao had seen Hu Gualing's movement techniques before, so she didn't act coy and ran further away while holding Sharp Tooth.

Although the boar's aggro was currently highest towards Tang Yao, it seemed to have lost its composure after going berserk. Plus, with another quite detestable human standing right in front of it, it immediately kicked up its hooves and came rushing over in a Charge.

Facing the rushing Black Wild Boar, Hu Gualing felt a bit apprehensive. Because he had used [Lazy Donkey Roll] consecutively, his muscles were aching, and holding back the boar's tusks had also consumed a lot of energy. The stamina bar in his status window was bottoming out. Although he had a passive skill called Unyielding, which increased stamina recovery speed the less stamina he had, he could technically manage one more Lazy Donkey Roll to dodge the charging boar. However, he didn't dare to dodge. Tang Yao was standing a short distance behind him, holding Sharp Tooth. It wouldn't be hard for him to dodge the boar's Charge, but what if the crazed boar didn't hit him and continued forward to hit Tang Yao? He didn't have the confidence to save Tang Yao from under the boar's tusks again this time.

Thinking this, Hu Gualing assumed a blocking stance with bent knees and raised arms, trying his best to protect his vulnerable areas. He stared intently at the trajectory of the boar's Charge, hopping on one foot with small, quick steps to adjust his position at any moment, ensuring that the boar would hit him squarely.

With his careful preparations, soon enough, a bloodied, blurry black shadow suddenly filled his vision. With a muffled thud, Hu Gualing was sent flying and landed on the ground, feeling as if his bones were about to shatter. He checked his health: 119/143. Phew, thank goodness, his health was still in a healthy range.

While in pain, Hu Gualing inwardly rejoiced that he had accurately intercepted the boar. This way, Tang Yao's safety was temporarily guaranteed. Although everyone's life was a life, and dying once cost the same one revival coin, it didn't matter if he died a few more times—he had already experienced it several times when he first entered the game. Tang Yao was different; she was a benefactor to him and Xiao Niao. It could be said that Hu Gualing would rather Xiao Niao die ten or eight times than let Tang Yao die even once. Otherwise, if she became unhappy, she had land and a courtyard in the village; she could just go back to the village and play Fantasy Jianghu like a farming game. But he, a penniless wretch who even owed game points, could only watch helplessly...