Chapter 6

The fierce assault of the wind snakes had momentarily eased, and the deck, which had been chaotic with shouts, roars, and screams, fell into a brief silence. Everyone looked at the young man with incredulous eyes, not knowing what to say.

Just a moment ago, almost everyone thought the young man was dead. They had never seen anyone survive an attack by dozens of wind snakes. Of course, high-level professionals or fully armored shield warriors might have been able to do it. But this young man didn't look very old, and apart from the white longsword in his hand, he had no protective gear at all.

But he had managed to do it.

At this moment, not only the mercenaries, but even Lijie and Carter were stunned, their hearts racing with uncertainty.

Who was this young man?

Perhaps intimidated by Rod's attack, the wind snakes that had been attacking the airship all scattered and retreated. For a moment, the deck was almost silent except for the howling wind. The mercenaries were shocked by Rod's performance, but Rod himself didn't seem to care about what he had done. Instead, he looked at the pile of corpses at his feet and inwardly sighed with relief.

Although wind snakes, as one of the weakest monsters, weren't particularly powerful, they relied on their numbers. Rod's summoner swordsman class was good at soloing, but not at handling large groups. The main reason this battle went so smoothly was the "Star Trace" sword in his hand, which had an initial +3 attribute bonus. This meant that while holding the sword, Rod's attributes were increased by three points, which was enough to reduce the danger level of a monster from red to green. Therefore, it wasn't particularly surprising that Rod had defeated the wind snakes.

However, Rod still found it strange. According to his human attributes, even with the "Star Trace," he shouldn't have been able to sweep through the wind snakes so easily. He had expected the "Shattered Blade" to only leave the wind snakes with low health, so he had prepared to finish them off. But the "Shattered Blade" had been far more powerful than he imagined, directly killing the wind snakes.

Could his attributes not be calculated based on human standards?

Thinking about this, Rod subconsciously tried to check his attribute panel, but unfortunately, his attributes were hidden until his race was determined. However, he was lucky to have gained 1900 experience points from this battle, which was quite surprising to him.

Of course, this only took a few seconds for Rod. To the others, it seemed like he was just staring at the pile of corpses for a moment before lifting his head again.

At this moment, Rod noticed the strange silence around him. It wasn't because of the shock of others, but because of a more dangerous and lethal presence.

Where were the wind snakes?

This thought flashed through Rod's mind, and then he seemed to remember something. He quickly turned around and shouted.

"Everyone, be careful...!"

At that moment, the airship suddenly shook violently.

The intense shaking caused many people to fall to the ground, and two unfortunate souls slipped and fell off the deck. At the same time, the deck at the bow of the ship made a crisp cracking sound, and a huge snake head emerged.

"Everyone, be careful, it's the Wind Snake Lord!"

Carter finally appeared, shouting as he drew his dual swords and charged towards the giant wind snake. The other mercenaries quickly stood up, though they were already battered and bruised, they gritted their teeth and followed their leader, trying to attack the massive creature.

However, Rod's actions were faster.

He crouched down, and system messages immediately appeared before his eyes.

[Experience Points 1900/200, Level Up, Skill Points 1, Level 2]

[Experience Points 1700/400, Level Up, Skill Points 2, Level 3]

[Experience Points 1300/600, Skill Points 3, Level 4]

[Experience Points 800/1000, Skill Points 4, Level 5]

[Consume 1 Skill Point, Enhance Moonshadow Swordsmanship 1/3, Proficiency E]

[Consume 1 Skill Point, Enhance Moonshadow Swordsmanship 2/3, Proficiency E]

[Consume 1 Skill Point, Enhance Moonshadow Swordsmanship 3/3, Proficiency E]

[Consume 1 Skill Point, Enhance Moonshadow Swordsmanship 1/4, Proficiency D—Shadow Flash Unlocked]

[Activate]

Rod leaped up.

In that instant, everyone only saw a blur, and the young man standing on the ground transformed into a black shadow, slicing through the sky like a sharp blade and charging forward. Even the giant Wind Snake Lord didn't have time to react. When Rod leaped up and faced it, the creature looked puzzled—clearly, it had never encountered prey that jumped up to its mouth.

Rod raised his longsword, and the starlight seemed to be drawn to the pristine blade. He aimed at the Wind Snake Lord's large, bell-like eyes and thrust with all his might.

"Shattered Blade!"

Faced with the incoming sword light, the Wind Snake Lord's first reaction was to dodge. After enhancing Moonshadow Swordsmanship to four levels, the "Shattered Blade" had become much more powerful. Dozens of silver light blades burst from the sword, swirling and shooting forward.

One, two, three...

At first, the Wind Snake Lord's tough scales barely held off the initial sword light, but even with its lord-level defense, it only lasted until the twentieth blade before its defense completely broke down. The subsequent sword light easily tore through its scales and flesh, piercing its body. Although the Wind Snake Lord was massive, Rod cleverly chose a single point of attack. Under his control, the light blades didn't scatter but concentrated on the creature's neck, successfully breaking through its defense.

"———!!"

The Wind Snake Lord let out a sharp hiss and fell heavily, but it didn't give up. Despite its left neck being a bloody mess, it raised its head and stared at Rod, then opened its massive mouth.

Rod's figure flickered, and he retreated as a shadow. As he retreated, a foul-smelling venom shot up, narrowly missing Rod's afterimage and spraying onto the rear mast. The mast, which was thick and sturdy, quickly melted and collapsed under the venom's corrosion.

A boss is still a boss.

Based on Rod's experience in the game, wind snakes were typically around level 3, and their leaders were around level 10. The current boss was likely no more than level 10. With the help of Carter and the mercenaries, defeating this boss wouldn't be difficult. However, after that one strike, Rod realized this wasn't an ordinary lord-level monster but an elite. If it were just a regular lord, his strike would have cut off its wings. But in reality, despite his best efforts, he only left a deep, bone-deep wound, which was telling.

"Attack its wings, be careful to stay away from its mouth! Attack from its sides!"

While commanding Carter and the other mercenaries, Rod engaged the Wind Snake Lord. Although he wasn't the main tank as a summoner swordsman, it seemed the others had no experience fighting the Wind Snake Lord. In the game, a team wipe could be restarted, but here, Rod didn't want to take that risk—his left chest wound, which had been healing, was now burning and seemed to have reopened. If he died here, it would be a ridiculous situation. Although he was only level 5, Rod was confident he could fight any opponent up to level 15. In the Dragon Soul Continent, three classes were known for over-leveling: mages, rangers, and summoner swordsmen. Mages were known for their unpredictable spells, rangers for their long-range "kite" tactics, and summoner swordsmen for their ability to fight multiple enemies at once. For these three classes, a five-level difference was as easy as eating and drinking, and they could handle non-elite bosses up to a ten-level difference with ease.

However, each of these classes had its weaknesses—mages were helpless without mana, rangers were doomed if caught, and summoner swordsmen had highly random and complex operations. This was why these classes didn't dominate the game. It was a more realistic setting in the Dragon Soul Continent—either take a risk and go a different path, or steadily progress. Players could choose their fate and future.

The current Wind Snake Lord was a level 10 elite boss, but with the "Star Trace" in his hand, its defense was at most level 6 or 7. So, Rod didn't worry about insufficient damage, but in terms of offense...

"Whoosh!!"

A fierce wind rose.

Rod's figure flickered, and he quickly dodged, narrowly avoiding the attack from the Wind Snake Lord's wing. The wing, missing its target, slammed into the deck, creating a large hole.

The attack of a level 10 elite was indeed formidable.

Rod wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He was only level 5 and had no equipment. If he were hit, even the heavens couldn't save him. Although he was worried about Carter and the others, fortunately, the Wind Snake Lord seemed to focus its hatred on him, likely because of the significant damage he had inflicted. For a non-tank class, the pressure was immense...

His soul power had dropped to a third, and Rod was feeling tired. He had anticipated a tough battle when he saw the Wind Snake Lord, but the current pressure was too great. He needed Shadow Flash to dodge attacks, as his current speed made it impossible to avoid the Wind Snake Lord's attacks. On the other hand, he also needed the "Shattered Blade" to deal damage and defeat this formidable enemy quickly.

But it wasn't easy.

The airship was slowly descending, but under the Wind Snake Lord's attacks, it swayed like a small boat in a storm, making everyone nervous. Two mercenaries had already been thrown off, and it was clear they wouldn't survive. Carter was still trying to drive away the Wind Snake Lord, his dual swords dancing and attacking the creature's sides, but with little effect. If not for Lijie's healing light, the mercenaries wouldn't have lasted this long.

They needed a plan, or the airship would be torn apart by this cursed snake before it landed.

Thinking about this, Rod bit his lip.

The Wind Snake Lord's attacks didn't weaken. Its wings were spread wide, and its sharp claws were firmly gripping the edge of the ship. Although Rod's attacks had inflicted significant damage, as a lord-level monster, it wouldn't retreat. Instead, the cunning Wind Snake Lord seemed to have identified the weakness of its opponents, using its claws to shake and pull the ship.

Although the airship's hull wasn't fragile, it was already damaged from the earlier battle with the wind snakes. The howling wind was causing it to twist and deform, and several alarming cracks had appeared on the deck, making ominous cracking sounds.

"Oh God!! Oh God!"

Crouched in a corner of the captain's cabin, the fat merchant trembled, staring at the terrifying Wind Snake Lord outside. His voice was distorted with fear and tension.

"That damn Richard!! If I ever see him, I'll kill him! To send me on such a route, it's murder!!" The fat merchant suddenly shuddered and glared at the captain beside him.

"And you! Why didn't you warn me about this terrifying thing!?"

The captain didn't respond to the fat merchant's angry outburst. He was gripping the steering wheel, eyes fixed ahead, inwardly cursing the damn fool. He had warned the merchant that this route was likely to attract wind snakes, but the merchant had dismissed it. Now, with death looming, the merchant blamed him! If he had known this would happen, he would never have taken this job!