Chapter 24: Nightmare King, Don't Be Impulsive
After observing for a moment, Su Xiao decided to make a move. Although the Nightmare King was tough, he wouldn't be able to hold out forever. He was likely relying on the special properties of the Nightmare World to endure.
Originally, the Nightmare King was qualified to fight four-on-one, meaning he could simultaneously battle Su Xiao + Wood + Zuiyasi + the Great Knight. But that was under the condition that Nightmare Town hadn't been destroyed. If that were the case, the Nightmare King would be a super big boss.
After losing the support of Nightmare Town, the Nightmare King lacked many attack methods and couldn't use his domain ability for the time being.
At this moment, being able to face the combined siege of Zuiyasi + Wood + the Great Knight was due not only to his considerable strength but also to his armor and weapons.
Su Xiao took a sniper cannon over three meters long from his storage space. This was the [Jaunty·Demon +11], abbreviated as J·Demon.
[J·Demon] had a heavy, iron-black appearance, and its feel was the same—heavy, stable. When this weapon overheated, due to its unique metallic material, high-temperature patterns resembling magma veins would appear on the gun's surface, hence its name [J·Demon].
Su Xiao couldn't use this firearm originally. Its prerequisites were: Firearm Grandmaster Lv.30, True Strength 225 points, True Stamina 225 points, True Intelligence 210 points, Body Energy over 29,000 points, and Charm Attribute 5 points.
He met the first five requirements, and the last one had already been resolved.
Equipment Effect 1, Malevolent Soul in the Gun (Passive): This weapon contains a malicious soul. As long as you continuously pay Soul Crystals (Medium), it can help you lock onto a target.
This was the thing that caused the Charm Attribute requirement. Su Xiao commissioned the Mechanical Sister to kill the malevolent soul inside [J·Demon].
The reason this sniper cannon only had iron sights was precisely because of Equipment Effect 1. The biggest feature of this weapon was that the user would synchronize with the malevolent soul inside, then lock onto a target from an ultra-long distance.
Su Xiao didn't need this ability. For aiming, the Mechanical Sister had installed an 8-65x adaptive scope on this gun. Iron sights were too difficult; it was better to honestly use the scope for assistance.
Setting the attached gun mount on the ground, Su Xiao fixed [J·Demon] onto the mount, then crouched down and assumed an aiming posture.
Click-clack-clack-clack~
The adaptive scope began to adjust. Soon, Su Xiao saw the Nightmare King through the scope.
This scope didn't have crosshairs; instead, it had a light red circle. This circle would enlarge or shrink based on the gun's stability. When the gun was completely stable, the red circle would shrink into a small dot.
Su Xiao took eight bullets from his storage space and placed four of them on the rack beside him. The 14.77mm Uranium Flame Bullets for [J·Demon] cost 203 Soul Coins each. Su Xiao had bought a total of 10.
Please note, this wasn't the exchange price within Reincarnation Paradise. Exchanging there, each 14.77mm Uranium Flame Bullet cost 372 Soul Coins. Su Xiao bought them from the Mechanical Sister.
The Mechanical Sister was exceptionally happy at that time, looking at him like a long-term customer. According to her introduction, the 14.77mm Uranium Flame Bullet was the most practical ammunition, but not the strongest. She even had bullets costing over 1,000 Soul Coins each. If needed, he should tell her in advance; those things required custom orders.
Su Xiao had no interest in those kinds of bullets. Buying ten 14.77mm Uranium Flame Bullets was only because they were the cheapest ammunition compatible with [J·Demon].
Su Xiao had been puzzled before. This Immortal Rank +11 weapon, plus three embedded Immortal Rank gems, cost only 14,500 Soul Coins. That was a huge bargain.
Now, it seemed that wasn't the case. The reason this weapon was sold cheaply wasn't just its high usage requirements, but also because its ammunition was too expensive.
Su Xiao looked at the four bullets in his hand. [J·Demon]'s maximum magazine capacity was 4 rounds. Even if the bullets were expensive, the magazine had to be loaded.
Cyan Steel Shadow Energy surged around Su Xiao's hand. He concentrated, using the abilities granted by his Firearm Grandmaster skill to enchant the bullets. Soon, the surface of the four bullets in his hand was covered with fine blue lines; the enchantment was complete.
After completing the bullet enchantment, the 14.77mm Uranium Flame Bullets could deal an additional 1,278 points of True Damage, along with effects of Rapid, High Penetration, and Probability Paralysis.
Loading all four bullets into the magazine, Su Xiao activated the Liquid Cooling Device. After confirming the parameters in the scope, he pulled the bolt to chamber a round.
Using [J·Demon] to shoot was interesting. This gun had an ability called:
Equipment Effect 4, Overload Accumulation (Active): Activating this ability for one shot increases bullet attack power by 20%. After completing this shot, the firearm will overheat for 5 minutes. If forced to fire during the overheating period, the weapon's durability consumption increases by 12 times.
It seemed like it was just one shot and then waiting for the barrel to cool down, but that wasn't the case. This gun needed to be constantly temperature-overloaded.
Whether it was the supernatural characteristics of the gun or the supernatural materials used for the bullets, they all had properties like magma, flame, hellfire, and heat.
This also resulted in a hidden characteristic of this gun: the higher the temperature, the more astonishing the attack power. The increased bullet attack power from Overload Accumulation (Active) relied on temperature.
Of course, if the temperature wasn't controlled well, this gun wouldn't just explode; it would blow up entirely. The increase in gun attack power from the overload temperature had already been calculated for Su Xiao by the Mechanical Sister.
Temperature Overload 30%, total lethality increased by 5%.
Temperature Overload 50%, total lethality increased by 19.7%.
Temperature Overload 80%, total lethality increased by 62.39%.
Temperature Overload 100%, immediate explosion.
Su Xiao's fourth shot would have a terrifying attack power. He held his breath and concentrated, entering a long-range sniping state.
The red circle in his sight, which originally expanded and contracted with his breathing, condensed into a translucent small cross, precisely aimed at the Nightmare King's head.
Hum~
Magma veins appeared on the surface of [J·Demon], and the Overload Accumulation (Active) ability was activated.
Two kilometers away, the Nightmare King was smashing down with his long-handled warhammer at the surging black tentacles. His attacks were powerful and heavy, but fighting one against three was starting to overwhelm him.
With a clang, a knight's great sword slashed onto the Nightmare King's back. The ground beneath its feet cracked, and the shockwave scattered in all directions.
The sound of the slash made ears ring, but it failed to break through the Nightmare King's defense. The defense of his heavy armor was too strong. If not for that, he would have been pinned to the ground and beaten.
Crack, crack!
The fine-toothed chains on the tentacles sawed across the Nightmare King's armor. Not only did the armor suffer little damage, but many of the saw teeth on the tentacles broke off.
Seeing this, Zuiyasi's eyes lit up. This armor was a good thing. The energy contained within it made him very eager.
Compared to the Great Knight and Zuiyasi, the Nightmare King hated Wood more. Wood always stood dozens of meters away, a wisp of black smoke swirling around him. This black smoke extended for tens of meters, seeping into the gaps of the Nightmare King's armor, constantly causing damage.
The Nightmare King didn't know what this black smoke was. It could ignore the energy defense characteristics of [Nether Armor] and directly harm him.
"My duel with the Great Knight, and you two actually ambushed me. Despicable. Great Knight, do you permit this?"
The Nightmare King spoke, hoping to make the Great Knight hesitate with these words. After all, to a knight, a duel was sacred.
Clang!
The Great Knight slashed his sword across the Nightmare King's neck. From the moment he started seizing the [Scroll Fragment], he had already lost the honor of being a knight. The people of his homeland were waiting for him to return, to bring back the [Scroll Fragment].
"You despicable... people!"
The Nightmare King roared, gripping his long-handled warhammer with both hands, preparing to smash it down with full force. This seemed like an attack to kill the enemy, but it was actually the starting move for a retreat. It wasn't that the Nightmare King was a coward; it was that he really couldn't win.
"All of you... die!"
The Nightmare King slammed down his warhammer. He had already calculated that as long as he broke free from the current encirclement, he would hide and flee within the Nightmare World. The dignity of the Nightmare King? That had never existed. Survival was more important.
Just as the warhammer was about to hit the ground, a sound of something breaking through the air arrived.
Boom!!
The Nightmare King felt something hit the side of his head. His mind went blank, and his body began to spin.