More specifically, there were roughly six main reasons Wang Zhifan had been able to lop off the Lv4 Silverback Gorilla's head with a single slash.
First, his weapon was quite good: the Rare Tier Blade of the Wolf Fiend. This longsword came with an armor-piercing effect, was incredibly sharp, and had a blade sturdy enough to handle exceptionally tough targets.
Second, he had stacked his buffs beforehand. Before the Silverback Gorilla's final pounce, he had used his blade to strike tree branches and stacked three layers of Berserk and Rage, gaining a 12% boost to movement and attack speed, a 21% boost to physical damage, and 4 additional points of Strength.
Third, he was tremendously strong. His base Strength was already 20 points, and with Rage's bonus, it reached 24—nearly 2.5 times that of an ordinary person. When he put everything into it, the force he unleashed was astonishing.
Fourth, his blade technique was no slouch either. Lv3 Basic Blade Art made him a generally recognized expert with a blade, someone who knew how to bring out the full power of a strike.
Fifth, he had activated Tiger Fiend. Once activated, the ability granted by the Tiger Soul True Rune caused every one of his attacks to carry soul damage at the Lv5 Tiger Spirit level. Soul damage might not have helped him sever the Silverback Gorilla's head, but it could leave the gorilla stunned when struck, functioning as a form of crowd control.
Finally, Wang Zhifan wore the Chapter of Gloom pendant around his neck. Though it had never had much presence, it possessed a Gloom Aura that increased all damage taken by targets he attacked within 13 meters by 7%. Seven percent might not have looked like much, but since it was an all-damage bonus, it could not be underestimated or ignored.
Knowing full well that his ability to one-shot the BOSS was mainly thanks to his gear, Wang Zhifan began checking this round's reward list. He soon discovered that the reward options were somewhat unusual.
Please choose your dungeon rewards independently (up to 3 items) Normal Tier (98% drop chance): Staff (Normal Tier) X0–3... ... Fine Tier (1% drop chance): Staff (Fine Tier) X0–3, halberd (Fine Tier) X0–3, longsword (Fine Tier) X0–3... Ape King's Garb (Fine Tier) X0–3, Ape King's Belt (Fine Tier) X0–3, Ape King's Boots (Fine Tier) X0–3... Boxed pistol ammunition (Fine Tier) X0–3, boxed rifle ammunition (Fine Tier) X0–3, boxed sniper rifle ammunition (Fine Tier) X0–3... Strength Pill (Fine Tier) X0–3, Speed Pill (Fine Tier) X0–3, Stamina Pill (Fine Tier) X0–3... Warrior Skill Upgrade Scroll (Fine Tier) X0–3, Mage Skill Upgrade Scroll (Fine Tier) X0–3, Gunner Skill Upgrade Scroll (Fine Tier) X0–3... ... Rare Tier (0.01% drop chance): Ape King's Rage (Rare Tier) X0–1, Ape King's Hatred (Rare Tier) X0–1, Ape King's Resentment (Rare Tier) X0–1, Ape King's Sorrow (Rare Tier) X0–1, Ape King's Pain (Rare Tier) X0–1, Ape King's Wound (Rare Tier) X0–1.
"There's actually six kinds of Rare Tier rewards to choose from?!"
Wang Zhifan was immediately drawn to the six Rare Tier options on the reward list and quickly began reading their details. With six rare rewards available, the other categories had basically lost their competitive edge.
Ape King's Rage (Rare Tier) When worn by a Warrior-class player, this ring gives melee attacks an additional 15% chance to deal double damage. ... Ape King's Hatred (Rare Tier) When worn by a Mage-class player, this ring allows spell attacks to penetrate an additional 30% of the corresponding resistance. ... Ape King's Resentment (Rare Tier) When worn by a Summoner-class player, this ring increases summoned creatures' levels by 3. ... Ape King's Sorrow (Rare Tier) When worn by a Gunner-class player, this ring gives firing an additional 35% chance to enter a focused state. ... Ape King's Pain (Rare Tier) When worn by an Assassin-class player, this ring grants sneak attacks an additional 30% physical penetration. ... Ape King's Wound (Rare Tier) When worn by a Priest-class player, this ring increases the effects of all divine spells by an additional 30%.
"These are all class-restricted Rare Tier rings. The only one suitable for me is Ape King's Rage for Warriors. That makes things a little troublesome."
After reading the descriptions of the six Rare Tier items on the reward list, Wang Zhifan realized that things were not as ideal as he had imagined. Every one of these rings was class-restricted, each suitable for only one class. Worn by any other class, they would have absolutely no effect and would be no better than trash.
"I'll definitely choose Ape King's Rage, but what should I pick for the other two? Should I choose rare items as collectibles? Or sell them afterward? Or save them for a future class change?"
Given his current situation, Wang Zhifan actually wanted to forgo one or two Rare Tier items in favor of Fine Tier items. For example, he was rather short on Fine Tier pistol ammunition right now, and Fine Tier Warrior Skill Upgrade Scrolls were also tempting. Those things could improve his current combat power, making them far more useful than rings restricted to other classes that he could not use.
Of course, useful here referred to their impact on his current combat power. If he considered other aspects, he could also choose two restricted rings for other classes and sell them for money, trade them for equipment, or make preparations for a future class change.
However, Wang Zhifan already had a Rare Tier bear clan Mage Circlet that he could sell. As for changing classes, that was still far in the future. According to what he had learned on the forums, class changes were impossible before Lv30. By the time he reached Lv30, he would surely have cleared many higher-level dungeons, and whether these class-restricted Rare Tier rings would still retain any value was hard to say.
"Forget it... They're Rare Tier restricted equipment, after all. Maybe if I miss this chance, I'll never see them again. I'd better choose all rare items."
After a brief struggle, Wang Zhifan decided to choose three Rare Tier rings this time, even though two of them would inevitably be unusable to him.
As for which ones to choose besides the Warrior-restricted rare ring, he did not hesitate, since he could decide based on the class paths he currently favored.
Based on his experience running dungeons so far, the Gunner class seemed to be the strongest and most popular, and he was considering changing to it. The Mage class was also one he favored, because he had seen many veteran players say on the forums that high-level Mages were both powerful and highly sought after.
After making his selections, Wang Zhifan immediately placed the unopened treasure chest before him into his personal storage space, then chose to return and left the dungeon world.
After a brief mental haze, Wang Zhifan returned to his rented room, took the treasure chest back out of his personal storage space, and opened it, retrieving three rings from inside.
The three rings looked very similar. All were rather simple, antique brass gemstone rings. His Warrior-restricted ring, Ape King's Rage, was a brass ring set with a ruby; the Gunner-restricted ring was a brass ring set with an emerald; and the Mage-restricted ring was a brass ring set with a sapphire.
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