"Well, well, well, if it isn't Hemet! How did you get so pathetic in just a few minutes?"
Al's teasing voice reached the old dwarf slumped on the ground, and light returned to those lifeless eyes.
"You... you... you're not dead! I'm so... so happy."
The old dwarf struggled to contain his joy, but the emotions surging within him battered his expression. Tears mixed with snot dripped onto his beautiful beard. Hemet laughed and cried, completely oblivious to the stone guardian drawing closer.
"Honestly, I'm starting to think you're a fake hunter. Look at that ridiculous expression. You look just like the Darkmoon Faire's star clown..."
As Al sneered at the emotionally overwhelmed dwarf, he remembered to cancel [Alter Time]. After all, a forbidden art originating from the bronze dragons was best used sparingly.
"Hey, big guy! What's so impressive about picking on a helpless, lonely old man? Come at me!"
Old, weak, sick, and disabled Hemet: What the hell.
Al casually tossed a small fireball at the stone guardian's head.
The little fireball struck its enormous head lightly, leaving a shallow scorch mark.
Less than five meters from the old dwarf, the stone guardian abruptly turned and charged toward Al.
The ground rumbled, but Al leisurely picked his ear without making any other move. The sight nearly gave the old dwarf, who had only just calmed down, a heart attack.
The stone guardian was like a speeding train. Its immense momentum blew Al's hair into disarray, revealing his finely sculpted face.
A hint of violet fluorescence entered the boy's crystalline blue eyes. Hyperthymesia activated, followed by Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
Under their combined effects, the stone guardian's movements became incredibly slow, and Al could see every opening in its body.
"Extraordinary physical defense. Hmm, its spell resistance isn't bad either. Zero to a hundred kilometers per hour in three seconds-that's already faster than a Ferrari LaFerrari. Ah, no choice. I can only..."
Bullet time ended. Al turned sideways, and the stone guardian flashed past, brushing against the boy as though its timing had been rehearsed.
[Elimination mission failed. Activating flamethrowers.]
Just then, a flat metallic voice sounded. The stone guardian turned around, and two small holes opened in its fists, each the size of a clay pot. Blazing flames gushed out.
The flames stretched a full three meters and nearly singed Al's eyebrows.
"Fuck, playing dirty now? You've got quite a few tricks."
Al stumbled back two steps, his face angry.
[Freedom's Protector] in his hand radiated blue Arcane light. Al pointed at the distant stone guardian, instantly triggering the legendary staff's permanent affix. The enormous creature immediately slowed.
[Freedom's Protector extraordinary affix] - Instant mass slow
That was not all. Shimmering with crystalline light, [Freedom's Protector] continued to exert its power.
Al's robes stirred without wind, and his flowing hair streamed backward.
The abundant mana within the staff poured into the boy at tremendous speed. His azure eyes, beautiful as seawater, instantly vanished, replaced by a blank, luminous white.
[Freedom's Protector extraordinary affix]: Power Infusion.
Then the boy applied one enhancement spell after another to himself. The multicolored lights were beautiful.
Paladin: You can have the best actor award!
Boom!
First, an enormous flaming projectile exploded against the stone guardian, followed closely by dozens of explosive missiles.
[Freedom's Protector extraordinary affix]: Multicast
It still was not over. The elven boy began chanting. With Icy Veins and [Freedom's Protector] enhancing him, the normally long and complex incantation took less than a fifth of its original casting time.
[Freedom's Protector extraordinary affix]: Quickened Spellcasting
A flash of icy blue crossed the gloomy sky. Then ice comets fell one after another in a continuous line, bombarding the tottering stone guardian without pause.
A permanently imbued sixth-circle Archmage epic spell: [Comet Storm].
The old dwarf rubbed his bell-sized eyes, oblivious to the drool spilling from his mouth and soaking a large patch of clothing over his chest.
Broken, unintelligible murmurs escaped his mouth. Anyone who drew closer would have heard things like:
"Too terrifying."
"Wouldn't it be better to stay home with a wife, kids, and a warm bed?"
"Why did I come out adventuring?"
The smoke dispersed, footsteps approached, and a pair of tall leather boots in a distinctly Quel'Thalas style entered Hemet's view.
"Isn't the ground cold? Or do you just like sitting in that sissy pose?"
The boy's distinctive, resonant voice rang out. Hemet shuddered, and his two short legs instantly sprang out of their W-shaped sitting position.
Embarrassed, Hemet took the hand the boy offered and stood up.
"Your pants are wet."
"Ah!"
The old dwarf jumped three feet into the air and hurriedly checked his crotch.
"Haha, see? You've got plenty of energy. Why keep looking so miserable?"
Al laughed heartily, ignored the old dwarf puffing out his beard and glaring at him, and walked straight toward the stone guardian that lay "shattered all over the ground."
In a sense, it really was shattered all over the ground. Al bent down and began searching through the pile of stone fragments.
"Found it."
Al picked up a complex device radiating golden light and examined it closely.
"What is that? I feel... like it's beating."
Hemet leaned closer to inspect it too.
"A low-grade Titan construct core. This is a treasure."
As he spoke, Al carefully placed the construct core in his spatial backpack.
Thanks to the precise calculations of Hyperthymesia and Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, Al's barrage of spells had only looked haphazard. In fact, every spell had avoided this construct core.
"Let's go. This stinking rock from the latrine won't be moving again."
Al stood and led the way toward the cave.
Hemet looked at his ruined double-barreled hunting rifle and hesitated.
"Wait for me, Lord Al! I'm afraid of the dark."
Seeing the elven boy about to enter the cave, Hemet forgot his fear and hurried after him.
The pitch-black cave seemed endless. Under the illumination of the light spell, wave after wave of bats flew from the ceiling.
Hemet clutched the hem of Al's clothes. The burly dwarf held the stone guardian's broken arm as a weapon for self-defense, but no matter how one looked at him, his terrified expression made him resemble a bullied wretch scared out of his wits.
As the two quickened their pace, light gradually appeared at the end of the cave. A few dozen steps farther on, the view suddenly opened up.
An enormous artificial "sun" hovered beneath a vast dome. The orange-red sphere was radiating brilliant light.
Below their feet stretched an endless tropical rainforest, its luxuriant trees obstructing their view.
A triceratops as tall as a three- or four-story building drank leisurely beside a lake. A brontosaurus with a huge hammer-shaped mass on its tail stretched its neck, feasting on ancient eucalyptus trees dozens of meters tall.
Farther away, a group of little raptors hopped about, up to no good, preparing to steal the eggs of Pterrordaxes foraging in the sky.
Hemet stared speechlessly at the scene before him. In all his years roaming Un'Goro Crater, he had only seen scattered dinosaurs. He had never witnessed anything so spectacular.
"This... this is practically a dinosaur paradise," Hemet murmured to himself.
"No, this is a Titan species laboratory..."
The elven boy frowned and tightened his grip on his staff, preparing to face a new round of challenges.
PS: Three chapters totaling 6,000 Chinese characters delivered! This humble author is on his knees begging for monthly tickets and recommendation votes~ If you haven't added the book to your favorites yet, remember to do so. You can also use your three free investments each month now. This book will definitely be completed, so it's guaranteed profit with no losses. Let's make some money together, fam~