171: Puppet Master

Although Ye Xiao's speed had significantly decreased at this moment, his overpowered attributes meant he wasn't far behind the NPC Boxi.

So, even though Boxi noticed the movement behind him immediately and tried to dodge.

Ye Xiao's Dark Night Soul Erosion still struck him several times.

In an instant, Boxi's face changed dramatically, and his body seemed to freeze, making every step difficult.

In the blink of an eye, Ye Xiao had already arrived in front of Boxi.

At this moment, he finally saw Boxi's true appearance. Unlike Remi, whom Ye Xiao had met before, this NPC had blonde hair, blue eyes, and fair skin.

Ye Xiao had seen descriptions of NPCs in historical records, and Boxi's appearance was that of a common Meiya People.

At this time, Boxi saw Ye Xiao blocking his way, and a look of horror flashed in his eyes. However, he didn't give up; instead, he quickly formed a hand seal.

Immediately after, his body was completely enveloped in a strong red light.

The red light came and went quickly.

When the light dissipated, Boxi's figure was gone, replaced by a humanoid puppet about three meters tall.

The puppet was dark red all over, its surface covered with dense runes Ye Xiao didn't recognize.

Puppet Master?

Seeing the puppet appear, Ye Xiao was momentarily stunned, but he reacted the next second.

This Boxi was actually a Puppet Master.

Puppet Masters are a rather unique profession. Professionals can use different materials to create their own exclusive puppets, and then, through the Puppet Master's exclusive skills, imbue the puppets with powerful abilities to fight for them.

The higher the quality of the materials used to create the puppet, the stronger the puppet's combat power will be when empowered by the Puppet Master's exclusive skills.

According to historical records, someone once used a dragon bone to create a puppet dragon, and with this puppet dragon, successfully challenged and easily defeated opponents 30 levels higher.

This shows that the strength of a Puppet Master is indeed extraordinary.

There are naturally some Human Job Holders who have changed their profession to Puppet Master, but these Puppet Masters have either died or become powerful figures.

It is very difficult for ordinary people to encounter them in normal times.

Ye Xiao had only seen some pictures in historical records.

As for the reason, it was naturally related to the Extinguish Yuan Battle.

The Puppet Master profession is not like basic professions such as Warrior or Mage; one needs to complete an NPC's profession change quest in the later stages to become a Puppet Master.

Therefore, in the eighty years since the NPCs disappeared, no Puppet Masters have appeared among humans.

All Puppet Masters still alive in the human world today are, without exception, from 80 years ago, or even further back.

Ye Xiao didn't expect to encounter a Puppet Master here, and that Boxi would hide himself within a puppet.

It should be known that most Puppet Masters control their puppets remotely to fight for them.

Ye Xiao had never heard of anyone doing it like Boxi.

At this time, after Boxi entered the puppet's body, his body was also able to break free from the constraints of Ye Xiao's skill. Instantly, Boxi's previously panicked expression vanished, and a disdainful voice came from within the puppet.

"Human! Die!"

Before he finished speaking, Boxi manipulated the blood-colored puppet and charged at Ye Xiao.

Its speed was even a bit faster than before.

Ye Xiao couldn't help but be surprised.

He quickly retreated, avoiding the puppet's smashing iron fist, and cast Dark Night Soul Erosion again.

However, the next moment, Ye Xiao discovered that this puppet was immune to his debuffs.

"Hahaha! Foolish human, puppets are not living beings, so no debuff can affect them. Don't waste your energy, just obediently die."

Upon hearing this, Ye Xiao couldn't help but frown.

He hadn't known this, as the Puppet Master profession was too unfamiliar to current Human Job Holders.

For a moment, he couldn't help but marvel at the puppet's wonder.

After learning that the puppet was immune to all debuffs, Ye Xiao immediately changed his strategy, waiting for 10 seconds.

Then he closed in and struck with his staff.

Boxi had obviously just witnessed Ye Xiao's battle with the Curse Worm, and Ye Xiao's staff-smashing the Curse Worm's body had left a deep impression on him.

Therefore, as Ye Xiao swung his staff to attack, he couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

He wanted to dodge, but the puppet's fist had already been thrown, and there was no time.

The next moment, the staff and the iron fist collided, unleashing an invisible explosive shockwave.

Boxi's massive puppet also paused for a moment at this instant.

But in a flash, Boxi began to laugh triumphantly.

"Hahaha! It seems the battle with the Curse Worm just now consumed most of your strength."

Ye Xiao didn't respond, but instead observed the puppet's condition.

Indeed, a normal attack relying solely on strength was not enough to break this big guy.

And upon discovering that Ye Xiao's attack was ineffective, Boxi immediately launched an even more frenzied offensive.

Ye Xiao chose not to continue attacking, but instead activated Death Domain and three shields.

Under the enhancement of Divinity Speed, he continuously dodged Boxi.

He didn't dare to use Fireball; he had finally encountered another NPC, and he still had many questions he wanted to ask.

He was afraid that if he used Fireball, the opponent would not be able to withstand his excessive damage and would lose his life.

Therefore, with his normal attacks dealing little damage, Ye Xiao remained helpless against Boxi for the rest of the battle.

At this time, there were still about 20 minutes before the Heaven Sealing Demon Banning barrier disappeared.

After a brief calculation, Ye Xiao decided to stall the opponent.

Although a Puppet Master can display strength far beyond their own by using an overpowered puppet, constantly controlling such a massive puppet also consumes a huge amount of energy.

Indeed, just as Ye Xiao had guessed.

Only five minutes had passed in their entanglement, and Ye Xiao had already keenly noticed that Boxi's movements in controlling the puppet had slowed down.

Although the change was very subtle, Ye Xiao still detected it immediately, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Compared to Ye Xiao, Boxi, on the other hand, after continuously attacking without success, gradually became somewhat agitated.

"Human! Do you do nothing but run away?"

Ye Xiao chuckled and didn't answer, which angered Boxi even more.

"I thought you were so strong, but you're just a paper tiger. If you've got guts, don't run!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Xiao found this NPC a bit adorably foolish.

He naturally wouldn't fall for the opponent's trick.

As long as he maintained the current rhythm, Boxi would eventually be defeated.

However, a few more minutes passed in their battle.

Boxi, manipulating the massive puppet warrior, suddenly leaped backward without warning after another unsuccessful attack.

In mid-air, the huge, three-meter-tall body, unusually agile, made a nimble turn and then rushed off in another direction.

Is this... trying to escape?

"Hahaha! Idiot, since you don't dare to fight, I'll go deal with your three companions first. I want to see if you'll still hide then!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Xiao quickly gave chase.

He didn't care whether Zhou Wan and the other two lived or died.

But Zhou Wan was preparing to become the controller of the Forest of Curses, and if something happened to her, it would be a bit troublesome.

Ye Xiao naturally wouldn't let that happen.

However, it must be said that the puppet's speed was surprisingly fast.

Seeing the opponent getting further and further away, Ye Xiao had no choice but to activate Void Phantom again.

Soon, Ye Xiao, using the Void Dimension, instantly appeared beside Boxi.

However, he chose not to attack.

The truth was, he wasn't confident.

At this moment, he finally discovered a weakness of his Divine Talent.

It was that with the skill base being too vast, it was very difficult for him to control the damage to the minimum.

This made Ye Xiao a bit uncomfortable.

The two, one in front and one behind, soon returned to the location of the Curse Worm.

At this time, Zhou Wan and the other two were still lurking nearby.

This place was quite dangerous for them now.

Even without Ye Xiao's instructions, they didn't dare to wander around casually, while also keeping a wary eye on their surroundings.

It was at this moment, as Boxi's massive puppet body appeared, that Zhou Wan and the other two spotted his presence.

And because Ye Xiao was still in the Void Dimension at this time.

Therefore, the three of them did not discover his presence.

This, however, caused Zhou Wan and the other two's expressions to change dramatically.

"Xiao Wu, hold him off!"

As Zhou Wan let out a soft shout, Zhou Wu immediately pulled out a giant shield taller than himself.

With the shield held in front of the three, Zhou Ling, without needing Zhou Wan's instruction, immediately cast various status skills onto Zhou Wu.

Zhou Wan, meanwhile, drew her bow and charged an arrow, her gaze sharp as she stared intently at the approaching giant figure.

However, as an archer, her intuition told her that this suddenly appearing giant figure would likely be difficult to deal with.

In fact, the three of them were probably no match for the opponent.

But even so, Zhou Wan had no intention of giving up without a fight.

Just as the giant figure was less than a hundred meters away from them.

Zhou Wan's wrist suddenly flickered, and an energy arrow, imbued with immense explosive power, shot out from her hand.

The energy arrow cut through the air, creating a piercing sonic boom as it flew.

Boxi saw this, but his figure showed no intention of stopping, and he violently swung his two massive puppet arms.

The energy arrow was easily swatted away.

Zhou Wan and the other two were all greatly shocked to see this.

"Sister Wan'er, even your energy arrow can't harm this demon?"

However, Zhou Wan didn't have time to answer that question. She immediately turned around, shouting, "Run!"

"Hahaha! Do you think you can run? All of you stay here, I just happen to need some fertilizer."

Boxi's arrogant voice had just sounded when the massive puppet body had already arrived in front of the three, swinging its iron fist at Zhou Wu without a word.

Ye Xiao, observing this from the side, quickly weighed his options in his mind and ultimately held back from acting.

Although Boxi was an NPC, through the previous battle, he had discovered that the puppet's damage wasn't excessively outrageous.

Zhou Wu, after all, was a level 120 tank, so he probably wouldn't be instantly killed by one punch.

Ye Xiao could use Zhou Wu to observe how to deal with Boxi.

Over there, Zhou Wu, seeing that escape was no longer possible, didn't hesitate. He raised his giant shield high, attempting to withstand the sudden attack.

Boxi sneered in his heart at this sight.

Overestimating himself!

If I can't deal with that human just now, can't I deal with you three?

"Bang!"

The iron fist slammed into Zhou Wu's shield without any pause.

Only a "crunch" sound was heard.

The seemingly good quality shield cracked in response.

And the enormous penetrating force directly caused Zhou Wu's entire body to shake, and then blood splattered out as his entire body flew backward uncontrollably.

"Xiao Wu!"

Zhou Ling cried out while hastily casting a healing spell on Zhou Wu, barely managing to raise Zhou Wu's health bar a little.

Ye Xiao, still in the Void Dimension, watched Zhou Wu's situation, somewhat surprised.

It was at this moment.

"Whoosh!"

An energy arrow appeared in front of Boxi without warning.

This arrow was unexpected.

It somewhat surprised Ye Xiao, who was nearby.

If it were a battle between two evenly matched opponents, this exquisite arrow would certainly cause the opponent great trouble.

However, just as Ye Xiao guessed, although Boxi no longer had time to dodge the arrow, relying on his puppet's super strong defense.

Zhou Wan's clever arrow didn't cause him much damage.

Instead, after taking Zhou Wan's arrow, Boxi felt somewhat humiliated and looked at Zhou Wan with extreme ferocity.

"Woman, you have successfully aroused my anger. Die!"

Saying this, Boxi manipulated the puppet and furiously pounced on Zhou Wan.

The injured Zhou Wu and Zhou Ling, seeing this, were both greatly shocked.

"Sister Wan'er!"

"Sister Wan'er!"

Zhou Wan ignored them, her nimble figure quickly retreating as she drew her bow again.

Several energy arrows shot out in succession.

Boxi did not dodge or evade, allowing these energy attacks to strike the puppet, making clanging noises.

The next moment, Boxi had already appeared in front of Zhou Wan.

Zhou Wan saw the puppet approaching. At this point, she had nowhere to escape, and a sense of despair couldn't help but rise in her heart.

However, just as she was about to fall into despair.

Ye Xiao finally emerged from the Void Dimension.

Facing the unprepared Boxi, Ye Xiao swung his staff. When he just exited Void Phantom, his attack was amplified by 50%.

This staff strike immediately knocked Boxi's puppet back five or six meters.

Suffering such a heavy blow unexpectedly, Boxi, deep within the puppet's body, felt his insides churning, and his mind was momentarily disoriented.

With this moment of disorientation, the puppet's movements completely stopped.

It was at this moment that Ye Xiao's voice rang in Zhou Wan's ears.

"Don't just stand there, I'll provide cover, you deal the damage. Remember to follow my command, I want to keep him alive."

Zhou Wan was also in a daze at this moment, but fortunately, her rich combat experience meant that even though she was disoriented, her body instinctively drew her bow and continuously fired energy arrows at Boxi.

At this time, Boxi also recovered. Upon seeing that it was Ye Xiao who had struck him back, he was instantly furious.

Especially after hearing what Ye Xiao had just said.

What did he mean by 'keep him alive'?

He couldn't remember the last time he had been so humiliated by a human.

Over these past few decades, he had reaped the benefits in the Forest of Curses, and the number of humans who had died by his hand was no less than four digits.

In his eyes, humans were merely fertilizer for his refinement.

When did a mere fertilizer dare to step on his head and speak such arrogant words?