32: Demonic possession

From the moment he entered the Village Chief's house, Lin Yue had been pondering the real reason why the player in his previous life abandoned the game.

It wasn't until the old Village Chief slowly revealed the secret from ten years ago that Lin Yue guessed the outcome: the player in his previous life failed to help the old Village Chief repel the Apothecary.

This led to inner depression and the abandonment of the game.

Helping the Apothecary kill all the NPCs in the village would also allow one to successfully obtain the treasure of the gods; after all, the rules of the quest were clear. But obviously, this method would leave a knot in one's heart.

Slaughtering unarmed villagers—unless one was a psychopath—very few normal people could accept this with a clear conscience.

Thus, Lin Yue thought of a second approach: to help the Village Chief repel the Apothecary instead.

A Righteous Path with no psychological burden.

"Village Chief, please speak freely. What is your evidence?"

Lin Yue asked curiously. At this moment, his quest had changed.

"Ding! Failed to assist the Apothecary in killing all the NPCs in the village. Quest penalty: The Apothecary's pursuit."

"Ding! You have received a new quest."

"Quest Objective: Protect the old Village Chief, kill the Apothecary."

"Quest Penalty: None."

"Quest Reward: treasure of the gods."

Very good. Lin Yue watched the quest change with satisfaction. As for the Apothecary's pursuit, he simply ignored it. Even if he stood still and let the Apothecary attack, the opponent might not even be able to kill him.

The Village Chief tremblingly pulled out an old piece of paper from his embrace.

"Dear Dake, by the time you read this letter, I will already be dead."

"The Demon God's Envoys are truly too powerful. They stop at nothing to obtain the treasure of the gods. To help the remaining villagers, I have unilaterally decided to hide the Treasure Trove. Only I can hold them off. When reinforcements arrive, everyone will be saved."

"I hope that you, who read this letter, will not be sad. Live well for me—Xier."

After the old Village Chief breathlessly read out the contents of the paper, Apothecary Dake's eyes were bloodshot, and he clutched his head, letting out a beast-like howl.

"No... this isn't real... you're lying to me!"

Lin Yue directly took the note and threw it onto the Apothecary.

"Whether it's real or not, see for yourself, lest you accuse me wrongly."

The Apothecary frantically caught the note and cautiously looked at its contents. The next moment, he froze, his eyes wide.

"This is Xier's handwriting, I couldn't possibly mistake it. How could this be...?"

He muttered to himself, his face filled with disbelief, as if his worldview had been shattered.

"It seems actions speak louder than words. You were wrong, Apothecary!"

Lin Yue felt that this Apothecary was truly pitiful.

"I was wrong... Could I really have been wrong?"

The Apothecary's hands trembled, his eyes still filled with doubt. However, the next second, the paper in his hand was torn to shreds, and Apothecary Dake's expression completely changed.

"I was wrong? No, I couldn't have been wrong! Damn old man, you must be using a Spell to trick me!"

"And you, Adventurer, how dare you betray me!"

Apothecary Dake's eyes were extremely dark. He stared intently at the three people in front of him, and his body began to undergo strange changes.

First, his eyes: the blood-red whites were directly stained with ink-black, becoming completely dark.

Immediately after, wisps of black mist began to emanate from all over his body, constantly being inhaled and exhaled through his pores.

"Hahahaha, today, all of you shall die!"

Manic and evil laughter filled the room. The Apothecary was completely enveloped by black mist, his figure no longer discernible.

Lin Yue's gaze narrowed slightly. This scene was very familiar; in Novice Village 2222, he had encountered something similar.

Evil God Emissary!

That's right, the black mist covering the Apothecary's entire body was identical to the black mist on the Evil God Emissary.

Eye of Insight!

The cooldown had already reset, so Lin Yue directly used the skill to investigate.

"Apothecary Dake (Demonic Transformation): Level 12 BOSS"

"health: 1.18 million / 1.18 million"

"Attack Power: 2000"

"Skills: Deadly Poison Curse, Poison Blade Stab, Venom Darts, Magic Shield."

Seeing the Magic Shield skill, Lin Yue's pupils contracted slightly. Clearly, the Apothecary's strength was no weaker than the Evil God Emissary; in fact, with his poison attacks, it was hard to say he wasn't even stronger.

The key was that the Magic Shield skill was truly disgusting. In the early stages, it was impossible to break through, and before the shield was broken, one could only passively take hits.

"Old Village Chief, you two stand back. I might not be able to look after you later."

Currently, the old Village Chief and the Village Chief's wife were both in a weakened state from the venom. A slight mishap could lead to them being killed by the Apothecary, which would easily result in quest failure.

"Alright, Young Man, if you can just hold on for five minutes, we'll regain our strength and can fight the enemy with you."

The old Village Chief nodded, pulling his wife and running into the bedroom, fearing that if they ran too slowly, they would be killed by the Apothecary.

"Five minutes. No wonder the player in the previous life failed the quest."

Apothecary Dake in his Demonic Transformation state was very powerful. At level ten, even a highly skilled player would find it difficult to withstand him.

"Good. If I kill you, no one can stop me from killing that old geezer."

Apothecary Dake wasn't foolish. The most threatening person right now was the Adventurer, so he directly targeted Lin Yue.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Venom Darts!

In a flash, the Apothecary suddenly attacked. Six black-green glowing flying blades appeared out of nowhere, whistling as they flew towards Lin Yue from various angles.

So fast!

Lin Yue was startled and quickly dodged with a roll.

The virulent flying blades struck the wooden table and chairs, instantly corroding large holes, from which wisps of green smoke rose.

That was close. If that hit, not only would the damage be high, but it would also come with corrosive and Virulent Effects. Most people couldn't withstand it.

Chain Fireball!

Before the opponent could activate his Magic Shield, Lin Yue quickly cast a Spell, planning to deplete a wave of his health first.

Critical Hit!

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Spell Combo effect triggered.

-Lightning Spell!

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Explosive Flame!

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Boom! As if the Goddess of Luck had possessed him, Lin Yue's Chain Fireball triggered all passive effects, dealing an explosive damage of over forty thousand health!

"I underestimated you, White Emperor!"

Under the immense damage, the Apothecary was forced back two steps, his body Burning Effect, his face filled with pain. He had never expected this Adventurer, who was supposed to be a tool, to be so incredibly strong.

Magic Shield!

The next second, before Lin Yue could even celebrate, the Apothecary immediately activated his life-saving shield.

Immediately after, an obscure and incomprehensible language sounded. He was chanting a Spell!

Deadly Poison Curse!

"Bang!"

The Apothecary's body violently expanded, and green poisonous gas, swirling with black mist, quickly filled the entire living room.

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..."Ding! You have been affected by the Virulent Effect. You are in a weakened state: spell power -50%, movement speed -50%, Casting Speed -50%."

Damn it!

Lin Yue was so angry he wanted to curse. The situation instantly turned passive!