149: The whisper of the wind god, the shattered crown

"Roar!!!" The long-suppressed fury of the melee classes transformed into the most primal roar at this moment.

Like a breaching flood or a fierce tiger descending a mountain, dozens of heavily armored Warriors and Berserkers wielding sharp blades instantly overwhelmed the Wind Elemental Lord, who had just struggled free from the stun.

Charge!

Hamstring!

Armor Break!

Mortal Strike!

Countless control and damage skills rained down on Hilas as if they cost nothing.

-35481! (Critical Hit)

-28990!

-40112! (Armor Break)

...A dense string of damage numbers cascaded over the BOSS's head like a waterfall—a sight that made the Ranged DPS in the back tremble with fear.

"Too... too brutal!" murmured an Oracle Guild Mage. "I can feel the Warriors' resentment pouring off the screen."

"How could they not be resentful? He flew around for so long, treating us like monkeys. Now that we finally have a chance, we have to beat him to death!" a nearby Hunter said, laughing gleefully.

From this moment on, the battle had completely lost its suspense.

Hilas, pinned firmly to the ground by the [Weight Increase] effect, was like a tiger with its teeth pulled. He possessed immense elemental power but could no longer fly into the sky, having lost his greatest advantage.

His proud [Roar of the Wind], when released on the ground, had its range and power severely reduced and was easily tanked by the MT group led by Iron Wall.

The Wind Elementals he summoned were instantly focused down and killed by the Rogues and Mages on the periphery the moment they landed, not even getting a chance to heal the BOSS.

The entire battle turned into a one-sided, thoroughly satisfying beating.

Hilas's HP plummeted at a visible speed.

80%... 50%... 20%... "You ants... I... the Sky's Fury... will never..."

When his HP dropped below 10%, Hilas let out a final mournful cry, and his massive body began to flash with dangerous red light, clearly preparing to unleash some sort of mutual destruction ultimate ability.

"Trying to self-destruct? Too late!" A cold light flashed in Lin Mo's eyes. This was the moment he had been waiting for!

Since the start of the battle, he had been quietly stacking layers of Endless Poison Source on Hilas.

Now, beneath the dense damage numbers, an inconspicuous but constantly rising poison stack debuff had quietly reached a terrifying value.

[Deadly Poison Erosion]: 9587 Stacks!

"Taste... despair." Lin Mo's voice was like the whisper of the God of Death.

"Poison Burst!"

Boom—!!! An indescribable, dark green energy torrent suddenly erupted from within Hilas!

It wasn't an explosion; it was more like... annihilation.

Where the green light passed, the wind elements that constituted Hilas's body were instantly corroded, disintegrated, and broken down into their most primitive particles.

-21,081,400!

An eight-digit damage number that choked everyone slowly floated above Hilas's head, instantly clearing his final nearly 11% of HP.

"No..." Hilas only managed to let out a desperate wail before his massive elemental body burst apart like a popped balloon, transforming into a sky full of azure light particles that scattered and drifted down.

[Server-Wide Announcement]: Congratulations to the team led by player [Anonymous] for successfully killing the Level 60 Elemental Lord [Sky's Fury · Hilas], achieving the World First Kill! Rewards: Team Reputation +50000, Gold +10000, and the special title [Conqueror of the Wind]!

Another server-wide announcement that shook the skies!

When the ID "Anonymous" appeared on the First Kill announcement for the third time, players across the entire epoch had already grown numb.

"It's him again... that termination of Strategy!"

"The Four Elements Corridor! That's a Level 60 top-tier dungeon area! How long has it been open? And he's already cleared the third one?"

"I suspect this guy is the game company's favored child, otherwise how could he be so monstrous!"

"Stop talking, all I want to know now is, does the Anonymous big shot need a hanger-on? One who can shout '666'!"

The World Channel and major forums were once again buzzing because of Lin Mo, but the team members at the center of the storm had no time to pay attention to them.

Everyone's eyes were fixed intently on the center where the light particles converged after Hilas's death.

Pieces of equipment shining with the light of the legendary grade burst forth like raindrops, covering the entire platform.

A massive drop!

As a Level 60 top-tier Lord, Hilas's generosity far exceeded the previous two BOSSes.

A full five pieces of legendary grade equipment, over a dozen Epic grade items, along with various rare materials and skill books, dazzled everyone.

But the most eye-catching were the three items quietly suspended in the center of the loot.

The first was a gem emitting a soft azure light, similar to the previous [Lava Core] and tear of the tide. It was clearly the elemental source crystal of the Wind Element—the Eye of the Storm.

The second was a skill book shimmering with golden light.

[Wind Mastery (legendary grade · Passive)]: Allows you to harness the power of the wind, permanently increasing movement speed by 20%, permanently increasing attack speed by 10%, and granting a 5% chance to evade any physical attack. Class Requirement: None.

"Hiss!" Seeing the attributes of this skill book, everyone gasped.

A legendary grade passive skill with no class requirement!

Just the two attributes of permanently increasing movement speed by 20% and attack speed by 10% were enough to make any class go crazy! Not to mention the heaven-defying 5% physical evasion!

This was simply a divine skill!

The third item was the most peculiar.

It was a crown crafted from azure metal, ancient and majestic in appearance, but with a noticeable crack down the middle, as if it had been forcefully split by some immense power.

[Shattered Elemental Crown (Head · Quest Item)] Quality: ??? Equipment Effect: ??? Item Description: An ancient crown that has lost its power, with faint traces of the four elements—earth, water, fire, and wind—remaining on it. Perhaps when the cores of the four elements are reassembled, it will reveal its true form. Current Progress: Lava Core (1/1), tear of the tide (1/1), Eye of the Storm (1/1), ??? (0/1).

"Quest item?" Lin Mo picked up the shattered crown, raising an eyebrow slightly.

The instant his fingertip touched the crown, an ethereal and ancient voice, seemingly crossing through countless epochs, rang out directly in his mind.

"When the sky... loses balance..."

"When the earth... falls into silence..."

"When the flame... extinguishes its light..."

"When the tide... ceases to sing..."

"The shackles... of the world... will be... undone..."

The voice was intermittent, full of sorrow and helplessness, as if recounting an ancient tragedy.

Lin Mo's heart stirred. He immediately realized that this crown was likely more than just a dungeon clear reward; it might be related to the core secret of the entire Lost Temple, or even the "Ancient Gods" epic quest line!

"The final trial is the Earth Elemental Lord."

Luo Li's voice pulled Lin Mo back from his contemplation.

She looked at the crown in Lin Mo's hand, her expression complex. "It seems only by gathering all four elemental cores can we uncover the secrets behind this."

Lin Mo nodded, put away the crown and the Eye of the Storm, and then looked at the [Wind Mastery] skill book.

"This skill book..."

Without a doubt, the value of this skill book even exceeded all the legendary grade equipment present.

According to the previous agreement, such priceless, non-distributable items were usually auctioned internally (DKP).

However, this time, before Lin Mo could speak.

"Guild Leader Lin Mo, this skill book rightfully belongs to you."

The Vice Guild Leader of the Oracle Guild, a steady Shield Warrior, was the first to step forward, speaking with sincerity.

"That's right!" Iron Wall of the Shadowless Hall echoed gruffly. "Without Guild Leader Lin Mo, we wouldn't even have entered the labyrinth, let alone gotten the rewards!" "I second that!" "I second that!"

For a moment, members of both major guilds unanimously expressed their intention to hand this divine skill directly over to Lin Mo.

This time, it was genuine recognition and submission.

From burning the camps, to polluting the Divine Spring, to lighting up the labyrinth, and grounding the sky... Lin Mo had completely conquered these arrogant top players with one mind-blowing maneuver after another.

They understood that following a "termination of Strategy" like him was a stroke of luck in itself. What was a mere skill book compared to that?

Seeing the genuine gaze of the crowd, a warm feeling flickered in Lin Mo's heart.

He didn't feign humility and decline but accepted the skill book openly.

"Thank you, everyone. In that case, this legendary grade armor will be prioritized for Oracle's MT."

He returned the favor, distributing a piece of Warrior armor with excellent attributes to them, demonstrating his generosity.

The atmosphere in the team became unprecedentedly harmonious at this moment.

After dividing all the spoils, everyone rested briefly before stepping onto the teleportation gate leading to the final Elemental Corridor.

A flash of light passed, and a heavy, oppressive aura rushed toward them.

Beneath their feet were no longer suspended platforms, but solid, heavy black-brown rocks.

Surrounding them were towering stone walls; the sky was invisible, and only faintly glowing crystals provided weak illumination.

The air was thick with the smell of dust and sulfur, making breathing somewhat difficult.

The Earth Corridor.

However, unlike the previous three corridors, this place... was completely empty.

There was no lava, no lake, and no labyrinth.

There was only a straight, wide road paved with obsidian, leading into the darkness in the distance.

"Something... seems off," Iron Wall said, holding his shield and walking cautiously at the very front, his brow furrowed.

It was too quiet.

Quiet enough to cause panic.

Unusual occurrences always indicate trouble.

"Everyone be careful, maintain formation!" Luo Li also sensed something wrong and immediately called out a warning.

The team slowly advanced along the obsidian road, everyone raising their vigilance to the maximum.

After walking several hundred meters, a giant silhouette finally appeared in the darkness ahead.

It was a massive, primitive, and savage-looking throne built from enormous rocks.

And upon the throne, a figure as massive as a hill sat quietly, resting one hand on its chin, as if it had been sleeping for millennia.

Its entire body was composed of the hardest granite, covered in deep fissures through which golden lava flowed, like its bloodstream.

Merely sitting there, a suffocating, terrifying pressure, like Mount Tai pressing down, enveloped the entire space.

[Earth Sovereign Titan (Elemental Lord)] Level: 60 Life: ???

"Question marks?" Seeing the BOSS's Life, everyone was stunned.

This was the first time they had encountered a BOSS whose Life could not be scouted!

Just then, the hill-like stone giant slowly... opened its eyes.