Chapter 215: Chapter 170: Naturally Evil Little Brat

The game "Messenger" has a feature, or design, whereby all tokens and job traits obtained between levels 10-39 mostly enhance the player’s own strength, with few skills to weaken the enemy’s abilities, let alone strengthen allies.

This design is actually just to make it easier for new players to get started. After all, the "buffing" and "debuffing" requirements do pose a little barrier to newbies. It’s better to let new players focus solely on their own cycles during battles without needing to pay attention to "vulnerability" or "group support" information.

However, after Foundation Establishment, things can’t be so casual. This game concentrates most mechanisms during the Foundation Establishment phase, naturally including various support and weakening mechanisms.

Hit rate reduced by 15%-50%. Even in Yan Qing’s eyes, who is an outsider to online games, this seems like a rather redundant skill. Although the maximum reduction is 50%, when do players ever kill lower-level monsters across tiers? Most of the time, they are fighting same-level or even higher-level demons, and a 20% effect is considered good.

Moreover, it’s just hit rate. It has no effect on bosses’ wide-range attacks, and the deadliest thing about difficult secret realms is that bosses have screen-wide skills that can wipe out the team, which must be weakened to a level players can accept through damage reduction. Reducing the hit rate effect can only slightly reduce the healing pressure on tank players (those who attract the boss’s hate).

Yan Qing never expected that the hit-rate reduction mechanism, which is very common in games, would have such a surprising effect in reality. Even the young Pharmacist’s Wish and the three Great Guardians who have dominated Shu Dao Mountain for years turned pale with fright.

But these guys talk too exaggeratedly, altering thoughts, distorting senses, interfering with limbs, making Yan Qing think these peculiar abilities only appear in extraordinary books. In the end, it’s just hit-rate reduction, which is slightly disappointing...

But when you think about it, the hit-rate reduction effect that is easily achieved in games is indeed a bit bizarre in reality.

After all, hitting is hitting, missing is missing. What is a 50% hit-rate reduction?

Thinking you can hit but can’t, it’s just a matter of wrong prediction, seeing wrong, exerting the wrong force—these reasons, Yan Qing deeply understands when playing badminton, always feeling like he can smash, but ending up swinging in the air.

Yan Qing’s daily biggest physical activity was running to the cafeteria; it’s natural for him to make mistakes, but the three Great Guardians are Third-Turn Messengers, each with strong Qi Blood, skilled techniques, calm minds. Reducing their hit rate by 50% equals forcibly turning them into an error-prone Yan Qing in badminton.

Not just once or twice, but continually failing throughout the process, making the wrong judgments every time, seeing wrong every time, exerting the wrong force every time, it’s no wonder they’re terrified.

"Uncle, haven’t you hit even once, or only hit once in four attempts?" Rabbit Heroine asked strangely, hands on her chest. "It logically shouldn’t be like this. Is it because you guys aren’t trying hard enough?"

"Damn brat—" Blood Phase gritted his teeth, about to curse.

Prajna stopped him, nodded: "Donor Rabbit is right. Although it’s tough within, with long-term training inside, the attack accuracy should improve but..."

This scarred, fierce monk showed bitterness: "I’m not afraid of pain or hardship or injury, but facing such bizarre Foundation Establishment means, it’s indeed hard to muster the courage to adapt."

Ah, understood.

Compared to game characters who are in an optimal condition forever, reality messengers are more susceptible to negative effects.

Like the Hundred Poison Hands Ye Kai and Little Poison Hand Chen Afu encountered before, their poisoning effects were just that, only causing HP loss without other negative effects, yet even Pharmacist’s Wish was affected, although she endured it. For ordinary messengers, they might not perform half as well due to poisoning pain.

For game characters, reducing the hit rate is like letting them move under heavy weights; even if severely affected, they still act flawlessly. For reality messengers, as soon as the weights are on their backs, they’re already pressed onto the ground, having never experienced such situations before, requiring practice even to stand up, not to mention acting.

Weight is a nice term. According to their description, experiencing a 50% hit-rate reduction is nearly like being possessed by ghosts, which anyone would fear.

"How about archery?" Rabbit Heroine asked: "Since they won’t leave the central courtyard, have you tried attacking remotely from outside?"

"Nonsense." Blood Phase said irritably: "Do you think Foundation Establishment methods are so easy to break? Even if shooting arrows from outside, the arrows deflect as soon as they enter, as if blown by wind. To hit, one must have arrows with locking powers."

Huh? You don’t have arrow tokens?

Just using ordinary arrows to shoot!?

Even though he has been in this world for a long time, Yan Qing still struggles to get used to their occasional displays of poverty, though he himself hasn’t become that wealthy.

"But uncle, weren’t you able to hit occasionally? You could keep grinding to kill those demons slowly." Rabbit Heroine said: "Could it be that you’re too lazy to do it?"

"Though it’s not as exaggerated as Skull Tower, most demons have some recovery capability." Prajna said: "Unless Blood Phase stays awake and attacks continuously for days until killing a single demon, otherwise, as soon as he sleeps, the demons will heal up to seventy or eighty percent of their injuries."

"Oh!" Rabbit Heroine clapped her hands in sudden realization: "So it’s because uncle is weak."

"I’ve said already, even we can’t do it. How can these long-haired, short-sighted girls have a way?" Blood Phase snorted coldly, "In the end, we can only slowly adapt to the changes here, whether they are here or not makes no difference."

"It’s different. Five people will naturally be faster than three. Don’t forget, there’s an elite demon here," Beiyou pointed at the Red-clothed Demon Fiend and said, "I wouldn’t want to find out that even three of us together can’t take it down. Plus, there’s no sign of anything like a Lotus Platform right now, but do you really think Si Wuxie would let us pass so easily?"

Beiyou’s words sounded a bit strange. Even using Foundation Establishment techniques, he considered it easy? But compared to the main hall that had blocked countless people for nearly a hundred years, the central courtyard, which could be passed with some time to adapt, really was quite easy.

Blood Phase snorted but did not further oppose.

At that moment, a solitary yet childlike voice echoed in the central courtyard:

"Why make it so complicated? This heroine can charge through by herself."

With those words, the Rabbit Heroine dashed into the circular array. Yan Qing saw a debuff, "Primordial Confusion Array: Accuracy -50%," appear on her health bar, and at the same time, the demons turned their attention.

Si Wuxie sure had set up this array well, perfectly overlapping with the demons’ aggro range.

The nearest White-clothed Demon Fiend charged to attack, but the Rabbit Heroine dodged, triggering the Rainstorm Time. The brilliance of the Seven-Star Sword activated, and the Hand of Melting Hundred Forms struck directly. In an instant, she thrust out thirteen swords, six of which missed, but the remaining seven left starlight-shimmering sword marks on the White-clothed Demon Fiend.

Yan Qing didn’t intend to finish it in one go. As the Rainstorm Time ended, she immediately retreated to a safe area. Ten seconds later, the brilliance in the sword marks erupted, leaving countless wounds on the White-clothed Demon Fiend’s body. No blood flowed from the decayed remains, only wriggling maggots and putrid pus gushed from its wounds, halving the White-clothed Demon Fiend’s health.

But that was enough. The Rabbit Heroine turned her head, ready to receive the crowd’s shocked gazes. However, what appeared before her eyes was the back of the Pharmacist’s Wish and the flickering gazes of the three Great Guardians.

It seemed her performance was too exaggerated this time.

Yan Qing’s mind turned, realizing the subtlety of the situation: now that the Rabbit Heroine could inflict effective damage on the Corpse Bone Forest demons, the balance between them and the three Great Guardians had been completely shattered.

The three Great Guardians were the strongest and most powerful force of Shu Dao Mountain. Previously, the Pharmacist’s Wish and the Rabbit Heroine were both the weaker party and assistants, so they only received assistant-level rewards. The strong take more, the weak take less; everyone accepted that.

But now the Rabbit Heroine could completely clear the central courtyard alone, with no need for the three Great Guardians’ assistance. So how would the battle’s rewards be distributed in the central courtyard?

If the three Great Guardians just gave away the central courtyard’s rewards, they would likely feel bitter and resentful. But if they asked the Rabbit Heroine to share the spoils, they’d expect her to harbor resentment as well. This shaky alliance now added another layer of enmity.

Yan Qing wasn’t unfamiliar with this scenario, as Jiang Shi had experienced the same situation before. When you’re not strong enough, showing the capacity to take most of the rewards is inherently a source of conflict.

So, what choice would the Demon Dao make? Yan Qing gripped the hilt of Bingzi Pepper Forest’s knife, ready to lend aid to the Rabbit Heroine at any moment.

"Truly impressive," Beiyou suddenly chuckled. "Should we call it family heritage or something? Star Rain Heroine, you seem to have adapted to Si Wuxie’s bizarre array in an instant."

Upon hearing this, Prajna and Blood Phase’s fierce gazes turned hesitant.

Indeed, without prior training, how could the Rabbit Heroine resist the Cyan Light Array’s influences?

If she didn’t have an elder who was a Foundation Establishment Messenger, her family must have Foundation Establishment methods. Either way, driving her away would be the worst decision. If she leaves today, she could bring people to cause trouble tomorrow.

The Demonic Messenger feared no retaliation, but attacking is forbidden now due to the critical period of overcoming Si Wuxie’s legacy.

"Is it just my illusion," Prajna inquired, "or has the Red-clothed Demon Fiend really grown larger?"

The crowd turned to look and found that the Red-clothed Demon Fiend did seem slightly larger. Whereas it was initially only an inch taller than the White-clothed Demon Fiend, it now seemed a whole head taller.

Watching the screen, Yan Qing could see more clearly that the Red-clothed Demon Fiend’s health and karma bars had changed, sporadically extending a bit longer!

Originally, it had only 68% karma left, but now, with the bar extended to 105%, its karma rose to 73%!

"I’ve heard of this mechanism. Ordinary demons gaining injuries or dying will enhance the elite demons’ strength," the Pharmacist’s Wish calmly remarked. "I’m just not sure if this mechanism existed inherently in the Corpse Bone Forest or if it’s due to the Golden Light injuries on the Red-clothed Demon Fiend."

This mechanism bears an uncanny resemblance to the Skull Tower mechanic: if you don’t deal with it, endless small monsters will overrun you—here, if you don’t eliminate the Red-clothed elite demon first, you will end up nurturing an adversary akin to a Demon King.

"It seems like, just like with the Skull Tower, we must first tackle the Red-clothed Demon Fiend amidst the White-clothed demons’ siege in the central courtyard," said the Rabbit Heroine, turning to the three Great Guardians, "Uncles, rejoice, for now, you’re useful again—you won’t be killed off for your ineptitude at least!"

"How does a naturally evil brat like you manage to live this long...?" Blood Phase’s mouth twitched, his face contorted like he’d eaten something foul, but his tightly clenched hands behind his back slowly relaxed.