Chapter 45: Outsmarting and Slaying the Wolf King!
Su Yu led the [Moon-Howling Wolf King] toward the edge of the cliff.
However, kiting a monster is not just a simple matter of "turn around, cast a spell, and run away." Dealing with a boss possessing a certain level of intelligence is a task that requires an extremely high degree of skill.
When Su Yu had first entered the aggro range of the [Moon-Howling Wolf King], he noticed that the Wolf King did not attack him immediately; instead, it wore an anthropomorphic expression of "confusion."
Through this expression, Su Yu judged that the intelligence of the Wolf King was quite high.
For a boss with such intelligence, the moment it felt there was no hope of catching the enemy, or if its own health dropped too low and it realized the enemy could defeat it, it would leave without the slightest hesitation.
Therefore, as Su Yu lured the Wolf King toward the cliff, he had to display sufficient "acting skills."
On one hand, he had to make the Wolf King feel deeply humiliated, providing it with the drive to chase him; on the other hand, he had to create the illusion that "just a little more, just a tiny bit more and I can kill this detestable human," so that the Wolf King would pursue him relentlessly without giving up.
This was completely a test of nerve and acting ability.
...
And so, a thrilling chase unfolded in the Wolf Valley!
Su Yu's acting was exquisite.
The Wolf King's massive claws brushed past his body dozens of times, and on one occasion, even ripped the leather armor on his chest.
Yet, he always managed to survive by "a narrow margin" and "sheer luck."
The anger of the [Moon-Howling Wolf King] was almost tangible.
The contemptible human before him seemed as slippery as an eel.
It clearly had numerous opportunities to tear this human into pieces, but the human was simply too lucky, dodging out of the way every single time.
Coupled with the fact that its health bar was still at a healthy 75%, the Wolf King abandoned all other considerations, single-mindedly pursuing Su Yu and trying its absolute best to kill this human.
As for the ordinary [Moon-Howling Wolf] minions along the way, they simply could not keep up with the speed of these two and were easily left far behind.
...
The man and the wolf chased each other all the way up the slope behind the cliff, growing closer and closer to the summit.
On the surface, Su Yu looked panicked, his face painted with a despair bordering on collapse, and he even ran with a stumbling gait.
In reality, however, he was as steady as an old dog.
Every single attack from the Wolf King was precisely evaded, and he even managed to squeeze in a few spells and scrolls between movements.
Gradually, the Wolf King's health dropped below 50%.
In its intelligence, it began to sense that something was amiss.
Why was it that the longer they ran, the heavier its own injuries became, while the human in front of it refused to die?
Moreover, this human was leading it toward the peak of the mountain (it was unaware that a cliff lay ahead). Any wolf worth its salt knew that the summit offered limited room for evasion, and running uphill consumed stamina which was unfavorable for escape. How could this human make such a rookie mistake?
Thus, the [Moon-Howling Wolf King] stopped chasing Su Yu and slowly came to a halt.
It lowered its head and panted heavily, on one hand to recover its stamina, and on the other hand to consider whether it should retreat.
It had received the wolf god's revelation; half an hour later, it still had to go and destroy the human novice village!
...
But at that very moment.
Su Yu collapsed heavily to the ground like a camel broken by the final straw, his eyes tightly closed as if he had passed out cold.
At this point, however, Su Yu was only six or seven meters away from the cliff edge.
The Wolf King was overjoyed—this detestable human could finally hold on no longer!
It immediately triggered its [Pounce] skill, hurtling toward the prone Su Yu at maximum speed.
Surely, this time it would be able to kill this human?!
Yet, the exact moment the Wolf King launched its [Pounce], Su Yu's eyes snapped open.
Furthermore, a satisfied, Jiang Taigong-esque smile spread across his face.
The fish had taken the bait!
Su Yu cast [Blink] toward the direction of the cliff.
A flash of white light later, his figure appeared in mid-air a dozen meters beyond the cliff's edge.
The [Moon-Howling Wolf King] could not control its body mid-[Pounce] and lunged straight toward the spot where Su Yu had been before he blinked.
Hahahaha!
Awooooo—
Accompanied by Su Yu's loud laughter and the Wolf King's heart-wrenching howl, the man and the wolf plunged down from the high altitude.
...
What Su Yu had done was essentially exploit the game's internal rule mechanics.
[Pounce] and [Charge] belong to the same category of skills.
When a warrior uses [Charge] on a mage, if the mage casts [Blink] during the first half of the warrior's charge, the warrior will charge to the location where the mage blinked; if the mage casts [Blink] during the second half of the warrior's [Charge], the warrior will charge to the location where the mage was before the blink.
This judgment mechanism is primarily designed to nerf mage players.
If a mage player panics and casts [Blink] the moment they see a warrior use [Charge], that mage will still be hit by the charge. Only by executing the blink precisely during the latter half of the warrior's charge can the mage successfully create distance.
However, Su Yu perfectly weaponized this game mechanic, using [Blink] at the very first instant of the Wolf King's [Pounce], successfully dragging the Wolf King off the cliff.
This could truly be called a veteran gamer completely crushing a novice (the Wolf King)!
...
Of course, casting Blink didn't mean Su Yu could just sit back and do nothing.
Because of the Wolf King's pounce, it was still very close to him. If the Wolf King extended a claw right before its death, it could instantly obliterate him first!
He was, of course, well aware of this.
Therefore, as the Wolf King closed in, Su Yu first tore open a [Summon Rock Elemental] scroll, placing a sturdy rock elemental right between himself and the Wolf King to prevent the beast from directly attacking him.
Next, he unleashed [Cone of Cold].
Throughout the Wolf King's pursuit, he had deliberately withheld his Cone of Cold because crowd control effects on monsters suffer from diminishing returns.
He had held onto [Cone of Cold] until this exact moment, and it finally paid off!
A massive ring of ice exploded with Su Yu at its center, freezing the Wolf King and the rock elemental together.
The Wolf King glared fiercely at Su Yu, who was mere inches away, but bound by the frost ring, it couldn't even lift a paw.
Having frozen the Wolf King, Su Yu quickly pulled out an oversized leather bag from his inventory, unfurling it against the surging updraft with the opening facing downward.
The updraft instantly filled the leather bag, and with his falling speed suddenly slowing, it felt as though he had equipped a goblin glider.
The Wolf King, having no means of slowing its descent, could only plummet toward the forest below alongside the rock elemental under the pull of gravity.
Awooooo—
The Wolf King's howl echoed through the valley once more.
The wolf pups in the valley seemed to sense the impending doom of their alpha and joined in the howling.
...
The height of the cliff was approximately five hundred meters.
Falling from the summit would take the Wolf King about ten seconds.
Meanwhile, the cooldown for its [Pounce] was fifteen seconds, which meant it could not use [Pounce] on other nearby animals just before hitting the ground to save its life.
And since fall damage was calculated as a percentage of maximum health, falling from a height of five hundred meters meant certain death!
Consequently.
The Wolf King's body made firm and solid contact with the earth, and its health bar instantly emptied to zero.
Boom!
A sky-full of blue and green items burst from its body, soaring high into the air to form a gorgeous "equipment rain."
Mixed amongst them was even a faint trace of golden light, exceptionally eye-catching!