Water and Fire

Previously.

Lu Xiu collected a bunch of Variant Monster biological materials at the front line and gave them to the head of the Smithy, intending to have him design another piece of equipment, whether it was armor or a weapon.

However, there is a condition: materials obtained from the New World Monster Hunter must be included.

The foreman of the Smithy told him to think it over carefully.

Lu Xiu then stopped paying attention to it.

This seems to have finally been designed.

By the way.

To this day, no one has ever beaten Monster Hunter.

The equipment was prepared first.

"What kind of equipment?"

Lu Xiu stood up and looked at the foreman of the Smithy in front of her.

Please come with me.

The foreman of the Smithy led Lu Xiu to the workshop area on the second floor of the Astera. Then, he went behind the counter, spread out a parchment, and began to explain, "I plan to use the Ink Crow Feathers as the core, the materials from the Thousand-Pound Tiger and the Khorne Monster as supplements, and add the Great Horn of the New World Nergigante to make a pair of Dual Blades."

Lu Xiu glanced down at the parchment, not quite understanding. "---- Dual Blades, right? Just list out the materials."

"Good."

The foreman of the Smithy immediately placed the materials on the table; they were all sorts of strange and unusual items.

Lu Xiu activated her [Deconstruction] skill and began adding main materials and auxiliary materials in the order instructed by the Smithy leader.

soon.

[Bite!]

[Compatibility calculation in progress----]

[Calculation complete.]

[Compatibility: 90%]

It's still very high.

They really are capable.

Lu Xiu glanced at the foreman of the Smithy, then pressed confirm.

[Consume the above materials to reshape into a new creation?]

[whether]

Lu Xiu clicked "Yes" directly and then chose to reshape it into Dual Blades.

The selected materials began to slowly rise into the air under the influence of the skill.

The instant it rose into the air.

The light suddenly shone brightly!

At the same time, the material suspended in mid-air began to rapidly melt away in the dazzling light.

The first thing to change was the two Nergigante horns; they shed their impurities in the light and transformed into blades.

Next, the bones of the Thousand-Pound Tiger and the Khorne Monster melted into liquid under the light of the Deconstruction skill. They meandered and climbed along the blades that the Nergigante had transformed into, beginning to shape the blades of the Dual Blades.

Finally, there was a large handful of light, Ink Crow Feathers, which transformed into countless flowing shadows, swirling and washing over the newly formed dark red blade.

Sizzle!!!

A sound like quenching suddenly rang out.

The blinding light gradually subsided.

Two menacing Dual Blades, yet exuding a wild beauty, slowly descended from the air into Lu Xiu's hands.

The Dual Blades are about seventy centimeters long, with a dark black body overall, but a hint of dark red subtly flows along the sharp edges.

The back of the blade perfectly retains the spiky structure of Nergigante, resembling a row of sharp fangs, which is quite intimidating just to look at.

"This is—"

The foreman of the Smithy looked at the weapon he had designed alone, which Lu Xiu had perfectly brought to life in her hands, and exclaimed with excitement, "It actually came to be!"

Lu Xiu lightly swung her Dual Blades, briefly assessing their feel.

Surprisingly, it wasn't very heavy.

Of course, it could also be that her attributes are too high; overall, she is very agile.

Next.

Lu Xiu then curiously checked the attributes.

[Item Name: Unnamed]

[Rating: S]

[Type: Dual Blades]

[Attribute Bonuses: Agility +2, Constitution +1]

[Special Effects:]

[1. Blood Devouring: A ferocious blade forged from various ferocious beasts, it craves blood and can easily tear flesh apart. Every attack that hits a physical entity (a creature with blood) will cause a minor bleeding effect.]

If you continuously attack the same bleeding target, the Nergigante Bone Spikes on the back of your blade will grow rapidly, gradually increasing your physical damage (up to an additional 25% to your final damage).

The bone spikes recede after 5 seconds of cessation of attack.

[2. Ghost Sacrifice: After every 20 hits or after killing a target, the blade will continuously absorb the target's blood and life essence, transforming it into a layer of ghost fire that surrounds the blade, up to a maximum of 10 layers.

Each stack of Will-o'-the-Wisp provides 1% physical lifesteal.

If no damage is dealt to the enemy within 30 seconds, the will-o'-the-wisp will automatically dissipate.

[3. Crosscut: Actively activated, the user can instantly consume all Ghost Fire layers (at least 1 layer), and swing the Dual Blades in a cross shape to unleash a crescent-shaped blood-red sword aura in a fan-shaped area in front.]

It deals massive physical damage, with the damage coefficient increasing linearly with the number of Ghost Fire stacks consumed.

If the attack consumes 10 stacks of Ghost Fire, it will ignore 20% of the target's physical resistance and inflict a critically injured status on all hit targets, reducing their healing received by 50% for 10 seconds.

After release, it automatically enters a cooling state, which lasts for 3 minutes.

During the cooldown period, this weapon cannot trigger the Ghost Sacrifice effect.

[Equipment Requirements: Agility ≥ 25, Strength ≥ 20, Constitution ≥ 15]

[Note: The day a crow's feather falls is the day its flesh and blood wither away.]

"----It's pretty good."

Lu Xiu brandished her Dual Blades again. The main advantages of the Yama -type swords were their built-in sustain, built-in hard crowd control, 10% armor penetration when combined with physical arrows, and ranged safety.

However, its drawbacks are also obvious. It is highly dependent on the user's Mental Strength, and the cooldown of the ultimate move is too long, which makes Yama |Type more like a basic attack tool in regular battles, with the ultimate move only being used as a trump card.

The main advantages of this new weapon are stacking bleed and stacking combos. Bleeding provides a damage bonus of up to 25%, while combos provide 10% physical lifesteal. The ultimate skill burst also comes with 20% armor penetration and healing reduction.

The drawbacks are also obvious: it requires close-quarters combat, which is extremely risky, and once you use your ultimate skill, you won't even have any lifesteal left.

Overall, however, the new weapon appears to be slightly more powerful.

However, this doesn't necessarily mean that the Yama type is weak.

Ranged attacks have their own advantages; ranged damage output and melee damage output have completely different roles.

Thinking of this...

Lu Xiu extended her fair fingertip and gently tapped the System Panel.

[Naming successful.]

[Item name has been updated to: Yaksha |Type]

She just picked a name randomly.

Since the first bow is called Yama, let's call the second weapon Yaksha.

Let's make a series about the underworld—the focus will be on the netherworld.

"Great design."

After naming the Dual Blades, Lu Xiu didn't hold back her praise, and handed the Dual Blades to the eagerly awaiting foreman of the Smithy: "If I tried it alone, I definitely wouldn't have been able to create such weapons."

"It's my duty—but even having witnessed it firsthand, your methods of weapon making are still unbelievable!"

The foreman of the Smithy took the Dual Blades, set one down, and then ran his rough fingers along the menacing thorns on the back of the blade, feeling the vitality within it. He said, "It will only take another week for me to figure out the relevant technology, and then we can start mass production."

"Good."

Lu Xiu picked up the knife again. "But before that, let me record the attributes."

After it was done.

Lu Xiu put down the knife and then asked curiously, "But you only make weapons, can't you make armor?"

The materials are unsuitable.

The foreman of the Smithy looked troubled. "I've carefully reviewed the materials you provided, and almost none of them are suitable for making armor. Even if there are, they lack the necessary materials. I really have no ideas."

"I see."

Lu Xiu seemed lost in thought, unsure whether this was a system limitation or if the materials were truly unsuitable.

If it's the former, then there's not much that can be done.

If it's the latter—it seems there's not much of a solution.

Lu Xiu has already killed all the Variant Monster that spawn on the Jade Capital front.

There really aren't any other types.

There are no suitable materials.

There really weren't any suitable ones.

At least not at the moment.

But whatever the case.

Another weapon has been made, which is a good thing.

As for protective gear.

She should just do it herself using her Deconstruction skills.

"Alright, there should be a steady stream of materials arriving, but not from me, but from other Hunter. You can see if you have any ideas then."

Lu Xiu concluded by saying, "If you have any, tell me immediately."

At the same time.

Jade Capital, the frontline command center.

Zhou Zhenyue sat behind his desk, looking at the report that had just been submitted. It recorded the success rate of the first batch of soldiers entering the Left 4 Dead dungeon, as well as their feelings.

"Call----"

Zhou Zhenyue breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the report stating that the dungeon could indeed be cleared without a guide, and that the two skills could indeed be obtained after clearing it.

My heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Even if only a small number of the most elite members have cleared the dungeon first, it means that this dungeon is indeed as Lu Xiu said, with no learning cost, which is enough to excite him.

After reading the report, Zhou Zhenyue looked at Chu Huai beside him and said, "If they can clear the level within three attempts—if they really can do that, the overall strength of the frontline troops will definitely rise several levels!"

"It's definitely achievable, but—although the dungeon performed as expected."

Standing beside the desk, Chu Huai chuckled, "But it seems that these soldiers who cleared the dungeon all developed quite a bit of psychological trauma from it."

"Psychological trauma?"

Zhou Zhenyue was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, then asked curiously, "Didn't you say that you could beat the game without a guide, that the mechanics were very simple, just fighting Zombie? You still find it torturous? Aren't the scenes in there all small-scale? Which soldier on the front lines hasn't crawled out of the Corpse Mountain, Blood Sea? What kind of scenes haven't they seen? How could this leave you with psychological trauma?"

"----We've never seen anything like this in a dungeon."

Chu Huai smiled and said, "Even with the Memory Blur mechanism, I still feel lingering fear when I recall the dungeon experience. Moreover, a simple mechanism doesn't mean it's easy. All the soldiers who cleared the dungeon, including myself, felt that Lu Xiu really made the simple mechanism shine this time."

Zhou Zhenyue recalled the Zombie Horde and Special Infected mentioned in the report, "You mean the Zombie Horde and special Infected?"

"Yes, but that's only one aspect."

Chu Huai nodded. "There are also environmental interferences, unpredictable performances, the difficulty of real-time adjustments, and so on—it's hard to describe that feeling. If I had to describe it, it would be like there's never a moment to rest. Apart from being able to take a short break in the Safe Room, every few steps you take in other places will bring new surprises and all sorts of unpredictable situations."

For example, the report mentioned using music festival stage lights to attract rescue efforts.

It was just a few words.

But actually being inside the instance feels completely different----

Of course, while the soldiers are currently traumatized, it's only with the Lu Xiu instance; it's not a major problem, as most players would be in the same boat.

Not only is it not a big problem, it might even be a good learning experience.

After all, while the scenarios in the dungeons are fantastical, they are indeed complex enough. I believe that once the soldiers emerge, they will be able to handle any harsh battle situation on the front lines with ease.

After hearing these words...

A hint of interest flashed in Zhou Zhenyue's eyes.

He smiled and said, "Now that you mention it, even I'm curious and want to see the imagination of our Nine Provinces's chief Architect."

"Why don't you give it a try?"

Chu Huai joked, "I'm sure it will leave a deep impression on you as well."

5

Zhou Zhenyue smiled and was about to speak.

Suddenly, a communication window popped up in front of both of them at the same time—and the person who sent the message was none other than Lu Xiu.

I saw the sender's name.

The two instantly lost their joking mood and immediately opened the message.

What Lu Xiu sent were the attributes of the Yaksha weapon----

As Zhou Zhenyue's gaze moved downwards, scanning line after line of the weapon's description, his eyes widened immediately.

Chu Huai wasn't much better off.

Then, the two looked at each other.

"----The vanguard legions are armed!!!"

"The Patrollers are armed now!"

They spoke almost simultaneously, both seeing excitement in each other's eyes.

Immediately afterwards.

Zhou Zhenyue suddenly stood up, so excited that he couldn't help but pace back and forth behind his desk. "----There's a second one! There's a weapon even more unreasonable than Yama!"

"Moreover—the mechanics of this weapon actually work perfectly with the rewards for Left 4 Dead."

Zhou Zhenyue suddenly stopped, grabbed the report on the table, and looked at the dungeon rewards recorded on it.

[Skill Name: Deadly Fireline]

[Effect Description: During skill activation, all ranged attacks deal 50% increased base damage and ignore 20% of the target's total defense.]

[Special Skill: Bloodied Survival]

[Effect Description: Within a 30-meter radius centered on you, for each hostile creature, you will gain 1% total damage reduction, stacking up to a maximum of 20%.]

For each enemy unit that dies, you recover 0.5% of your maximum health.

"----The combination of Yama and [Deadly Fireline] provides a 50% damage bonus and ignores defense, absolutely capable of tearing through any defense. And this newly released Yaksha, with its combo-based bleeding effect, combined with [Bloodied Survival]'s high damage reduction and kill-based health regeneration in hordes of monsters, Zhou Zhenyue said excitedly, "It's simply a match made in heaven! Melee and ranged combat are both available! As long as all soldiers can clear the Left 4 Dead dungeon, and with Yama and Yaksha, their combat power will immediately rise several levels!"

This is truly... genius!

Speaking of which...

Zhou Zhenyue suddenly turned to look at Chu Huai, his gaze intense. "Do you think Lu Xiu planned this from the beginning? When she designed the Left 4 Dead instance, did she already plan to use it in conjunction with the new weapon?"

"My rational mind tells me that this is unlikely. If it were anyone else, I would also say it's a coincidence."

Chu Huai hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, then shook his head with a wry smile, "But if it's Lu Xiu, judging from her past behavior—it's quite possible."

Zhou Zhenyue was silent for a moment, then couldn't help but say, "He's truly a monster—"

This statement is completely unambiguous.

This is merely Zhou Zhenyue's feeling at this moment.

"General, wait, the materials needed to craft this weapon—some of them are from Monster Hunter."

Chu Huai reminded her, "Lu Xiu specifically marked the Great Horn of the Nergigante."

Zhou Zhenyue was stunned for a moment, then realized what he meant. After glancing at it, he frowned and said, "----So, to mass-produce this Yaksha, we need a continuous supply of materials from Monster Hunter dungeons?"

Chu Huai said, "----Indeed, someone needs to clear the Monster Hunter dungeon first."

"..

Zhou Zhenyue thought for a moment after hearing this, then suddenly grabbed the military jacket draped over the back of the chair. "Then it depends on the Strategy Group. I'm going back to Chen Capital right now to put some pressure on them. I want to ask them! Why is it taking so long? The dungeon is still not cleared! Lu Xiu's new dungeon has already come out!"

Besides, this is a huge deal.

I need to speak with my superiors and also convene a meeting with the other frontline commanders. You'll temporarily assume my duties at the Jade Capital front. Any questions?

Chu Huai immediately stood at attention and saluted. "No problem!"

"Good!"

Zhou Zhenyue nodded in satisfaction, then strode towards the door. Just before he left, his voice drifted back, like a declaration. "The days of being passively attacked at the front are over. She truly—has saved us from dire straits!"

A few hours later.

Chen Capital.

Coordination Bureau, Strategy Group.

Currently, Wei Yidong and other members of the Strategy Group are still in dire straits.

Ever since they defeated the Xeno'jiiva and officially entered the Iceborne, they have developed a murderous intent towards Lu Xiu!

The same dungeon can have its difficulty evolved twice!

It's impressive that they can even come up with a new system!

They struggled immensely just to adapt to the Hoarfrost Reach.

Fortunately, the heavy monsters they fought before entering the Iceborne weren't entirely useless; at least they became familiar with their weapons.

After familiarizing themselves with the monsters on the new map for two days, they were able to barely keep up.

Although it's still very torturous----

After all, there were just too many monsters tormenting the Iceborne Plains. Fortunately, the dungeon had a time limit for clearing it, otherwise Wei Yidong and the others would have really wanted to run into Lu Xiu and die.

As for why the grace period was extended—that's right, because Left 4 Dead has emerged.

Actually, Wei Yidong was quite curious about Lu Xiu's new storyline, mainly because he wanted to calm down, but----

"I want to complete Left 4 Dead! But Yan Fushou won't allow it!"

Wei Yidong sat on the sofa in the rest area, grumbling, "So you're forcing us to fight Monster Hunter even though you don't need him to fight, huh?"

one""

"That's true."

beside.

Fan Lixin, sporting an afro, picked at his ear. "If I didn't say he was the leader, you'd be a nobody."

Cheng Xiu slumped helplessly on the sofa. "Come on, you should be grateful that Yan Fushou hasn't pressured us. Do you even know what the situation is like at the front lines right now?"

Almost High Sequence players in Nine Provinces have rushed to the front lines to join in the festivities. The soldiers on the front lines are incredibly bored right now. If it weren't for Lu Xiu releasing the Left 4 Dead dungeon, you'd be in trouble.

"Yan Fushou could just stand here with a whip and let us pass the level faster."

Wei Yidong's eyes widened slightly upon hearing this. "Are you mistaken? Should I thank Lu Xiu for saving us from dire straits?"

"That's right."

Where did the water and fire come from?

"Mind your own business! That's a pretty girl's concern."

"Then I'll hate pretty girls for the rest of my life! Especially pretty girls who bring water and fire! Besides, bringing water and fire and then saving me from it, that's totally PUA!"

"----You're right, it's true."

Cheng Xiu reached up and touched his chin. "A beautiful girl with a terrible personality? That's interesting! Let's go! Let's enter the dungeon."

"----What kind of pervert is this?!"

Wei Yidong's eyes widened in shock.

I'm seventeen this year.

I witnessed firsthand the most despicable side of adults, which is—XP.

He was about to say something more.

Bang!

The door to the lounge was suddenly pushed open with such force that the door frame shook three times.

The three people on the sofa turned their heads in unison.

Yan Fushou appeared at the door, sporting his signature shiny bald head.

Yan Fushou saw the three people in the lounge and his eyes widened slightly. "What are you doing here?"

"If we're not here, where are we?"

Wei Yidong said irritably, "Living on the streets? Or are you on the front lines, joining other High Sequence players in this grand undertaking?"

Yan Fushou said, "I'm asking why you're not in the instance?"

"Director, didn't we say there was no rush?"

Cheng Xiu put away his joking mood and looked at Yan Fushou curiously. "We should be close to clearing the game."

However, the final monster in the Iceborne is even more troublesome. Even following Jian Li's advice not to touch the Fatalis, it's still going to be tough for a while. Everyone is exhausted and just finished fighting, planning to rest. Has something unexpected happened?"

Upon hearing this, Yan Fushou remained silent for a moment, then immediately began to curse, "Damn it—all the generals at the front lines just now sent me on communications!"

Wei Yidong blinked blankly. "Huh? What? Something happened at the front? Are we sending members of our Strategy Group to provide relief?"

Wait a minute, you should have said, "Luckily you're not in a dungeon," instead of "How did you end up here?"

Yan Fushou looked at Wei Yidong, who had suddenly become so intelligent, and felt a pang of heartache. "They didn't come to ask for help—"

They've come to take our lives.

Cheng Xiu was even more puzzled upon hearing this. "Rushing? Because of the progress in clearing the Monster Hunter dungeon? Wasn't Lu Xiu's new dungeon supposed to be very difficult—"

"She is very capable, but this time it was also because of Lu Xiu— "

Yan Fushou summoned the System Panel and directly showed the attributes of the Yaksha Dual Blades to the group, then said, "This is a new weapon designed by Lu Xiu. One of the crafting materials comes from the Monster Hunter dungeon—the Great Nergigante."

Wei Yidong and the other two looked at the weapon's attributes, their eyes slowly widening.

"Also, this is a reward from the Left 4 Dead."

Yan Fushou then showed the three the two skills given by the Left 4 Dead, before waving away the window in front of them. "These weapons and the rewards from Lu Xiu's new dungeon can complement each other, and may even form a distinct playstyle."

Cheng Xiu gasped, then asked, "So—"

"So today, several frontline generals took turns pressuring me, committee members put pressure on me, bureau chiefs put pressure on me, and even elders put pressure on me!"

Yan Fushou a deep breath. "That's why I plan to put pressure on you too! Why aren't you in the dungeon? Why aren't you clearing the dungeon faster?"

Wei Yidong, Fan Lixin, and Cheng Xiu all fell silent.

Damn it!

So, it's a system of layering down, right?!

Yan Fushou continued, "One week! Within one week! The Strategy Group must produce a strategy guide! There's no room for discussion! Moreover, considering that a lot of materials may be needed, everyone will have to run the dungeon three times, including our Strategy Group members. There's no room for discussion on that either."

Three people: "----"

Damn it!

"But there are advantages too."

Seeing the expressions on the three people's faces, Yan Fushou softened his tone. "The materials you get from clearing the dungeon can be used to make the two pieces of equipment produced in this Astera, or you can have Lu Xiu make armor. Think about the Nergigante Set, think about the Odogaron Set."

Have you forgotten how powerful those set bonuses are? Currently, Astera can only craft weapons, not armor. The only way to get armor is through Lu Xiu, which means you're my leader! I'll discuss with Lu Xiu and prioritize crafting for you! But you'll have to provide the materials yourself!

"And if you want the materials, you must first clear the Monster Hunter dungeon. Do you understand what I mean?"

Yan Fushou began to utilize the art of language.

really.

Upon hearing this...

I thought of the weapon I had just seen, and the suit I had seen before.

A look of excitement appeared in Cheng Xiu's and the others' eyes; they were getting excited.

----Who wouldn't want this!

Until Wei Yidong suddenly realized what was happening.

He jumped up from the sofa. "Wait! Isn't this still the theory of water and fire?!"

Yan Fushou was startled by his sudden shout and frowned, "What water and fire?"

"She saved us from fire and water, but she brought fire and water upon us!"

Wei Yidong angrily said, "First, she created an insanely difficult dungeon to torture us, then she used insanely powerful equipment as bait to force us to go back and continue being tortured—isn't this all just the same thing, a pretty girl manipulating us?!"

Yan Fushou: "----"

call----

I thought I'd been discovered.

"----Not only does she have a terrible personality, but she also constantly teases and manipulates others, making everyone feel like she's a high and mighty Demon beauty?"

In the corner.

Cheng Xiu stroked his chin again. "Wow, that's awesome! Let's go to the dungeon!"

Fan Lixin: "----"

Wei Yidong: "I advise you to find him a psychologist as soon as possible!"

Wei Yidong pointed at Cheng Xiu: "Otherwise, it'll be too late—"

Fan Lixin glanced at Cheng Xiu with awe, then lit a cigarette. "Looks like my choice of such an ugly hairstyle as the afro and my motto of staying away from women were definitely right—a wise man doesn't fall in love, nor does he enter the world of anime and manga."

"What utter nonsense."

Yan Fushou waved his hand, interrupting the group's banter. "Anyway, you don't have a choice now, so tell me if you want the equipment or not? And don't you want the rewards for clearing the Monster Hunter dungeon?"

"Of course I want it!"

Wei Yidong immediately replied, "But the problem is we have to get it first! Who knows what kind of twisted monster Lu Xiu is hiding behind this—"

He hadn't finished speaking.

A communication panel suddenly popped up in front of Yan Fushou.

He glanced at it subconsciously, then suddenly froze.

A moment later.

Yan Fushou raised his head again and looked at the three of them. "Jian Li and Shen Nian have completed Monster Hunter."

"Really?!"

Wei Yidong immediately perked up and asked, "How did they do that? How many monsters are there after the Seething Bazelgeuse? By the way, what's the first-clear reward like? With this insane difficulty, no matter what the reward is, the minimum rating should be an SS, right?"

Yan Fushou looked at him, shook his head, and then slowly said, "----It's SSS."

Wei Yidong's expression froze instantly.

Fan Lixin's fingers, which were holding the cigarette, trembled, and a piece of ash fell directly onto his thigh.

Cheng Xiu also instantly snapped to his senses and was stunned for a moment.

SSS?

I don't know if it's too torturous, but even the system can't stand it anymore. The rewards from the Lu Xiu dungeon, even those of the same rating, are generally better than those from the system dungeons.

For example, the Loathing Halberd and the Nameless Blade are worlds apart in rating, one is SSS and the other is S.

However, the latter is a reward from the Lu Xiu dungeon, and it's even similar to the Loathing Halberd given in the system dungeon.

Yan Fushou looked at the three people who were stunned.

I was also a little dazed.

He had wondered before, given Lu Xiu's terrifying talent and her habit of constantly pushing players to their limits when Constructed Instance —could she one day truly raise the overall combat power ceiling of the entire Nine Provinces? Could she really give every player in Nine Provinces an SSS-rated skill?

Yan Fushou once thought this idea was too outrageous and impossible.

But after reading the messages sent by Jian Li and Shen Nian...

He suddenly realized—this really could happen!!!