The Level 90 Bronze-Tier Lord loomed like a fortress of rotted bone and dark spite. Three million Health Points. Thirty thousand Defense. For most players in the Skystrider Guild, attacking it was like throwing pebbles at a mountain; over half the raid couldn't even bypass its damage threshold.
Even Ash Valor, despite his terrifying burst potential, felt the weight of the gap. His base DPS was barely enough to outpace the boss’s natural health regeneration.
"Keep the line! Stone, hold that aggro!" Orion’s voice barked over the chaos.
Stone was a rock in more than just name. At Level 90, his shield was the only thing preventing a total wipe. Ash adjusted his stance, his fingers blurring as he unleashed Ninefold Shot. He diverted a single arrow toward the boss while the rest cleared the surrounding trash. He didn't need to do much—just stay within the two-hundred-meter radius and save his Blink for the boss’s screen-clearing AoE.
The battlefield was a meat grinder. Ranged DPS players were sweating, their mana pools dipping dangerously low.
"We’ve been at this for ten minutes and barely shaved off three percent," someone cursed over the team channel. "One mistake and this thing wipes the Level 60s in a single hit. We’re going to be here for hours."
Ash felt the same frustration mounting. Then, it happened.
A flash of impossible crimson light erupted from his bow, followed by a pillar of golden radiance that engulfed his body.
[Death Strike Triggered: -2,730,000 HP!]
[You have slain a Bronze-Tier Lord!]
[Gold +900, Guild Contribution Points +10,000]
[Level Up!]
Ash stood frozen. The massive boss simply… evaporated. The team channel went dead silent before a flood of system notifications shattered the peace.
[Team Announcement: Ash Valor has slain a Level 90 Bronze-Tier Lord. All team members receive +2 to All Stats.]
His name shot up the guild’s DPS rankings, landing squarely in the top ten. His loot window exploded with notifications: the Undying Scepter, Undying Plate, Undying Sacred Flame, and a Gold-Tier Universal Skill book: Undying Calamity.
He realized with a jolt that his debts were practically settled. Without a word, he dumped everything except the Sacred Flame into Orion’s trade window. The flame alone was worth 200,000 Gold—half the total haul. He needed it for Chitin, but the rest of the gear would better serve the guild’s frontliners immediately.
"Boss, I’m keeping the Flame. Everything else is yours," Ash messaged Orion.
The guild leader was staring at the spot where the boss had been, then at Ash. "Ash… how? What kind of Awakening did you pull?"
In the past, Ash would have played it off with a joke. Now, seeing the carnage around them, he chose honesty.
"I Awakened a 'One-Hit Kill' passive, Orion."
Orion’s face went through three different stages of shock before settling on a manic grin. "You idiot! Why didn't you lead with that? You’ve been out there solo-grinding and getting yourself killed while we have this? Do you have any idea what the loss to the guild is every second you aren't shooting?"
"I like to keep a low profile," Ash muttered.
"Low profile? To hell with that! I’m getting you every Agility-stacking item in the vault. We need to crank your attack speed until you’re a gatling gun of instant death."
The gears of the guild machine shifted instantly. Ash was no longer just an Archer; he was the Skystrider’s strategic nuclear option.
[You have received the Aqua Barrier buff.]
[Dorian Wren has applied Sacrificial Cover: 50% of damage taken will be transferred.]
[You have received Blessing of the Gale: Movement Speed +3.]
High-grade potions and rare Agility-boosting consumables were shoved into his hands. Orion didn't care about the cost—not when a literal god of death was on their payroll. Within minutes, Ash felt his veins humming with power. His Agility stat had spiked by two thousand points.
"Want a better bow? I can get you a Gold-Tier weapon right now," Orion offered.
"Keep the bow," Ash said firmly. His Soulbound weapon was the source of his Death Strike. Even a legendary artifact couldn't replace that 0.01% chance.
"Fine. Move up a hundred meters," Orion commanded. "I’m giving you nine dedicated Tanks and three healers. Don't worry about anything else. Just shoot."
The scene that followed was absurd. Nine Level 90 Tanks were pulling nine separate Bronze-Tier bosses into a semi-circle around Ash. They weren't trying to kill them; they were just holding the threat, acting as living target dummies.
With Ninefold Shot, Ash was firing nine times per volley. Statistically, he was now looking at a 0.09% trigger rate per second. If he fired three times a second, a boss was dying every six minutes.
The grind turned into a massacre.
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
[Level Up!]
By the time the sun began to dip, Ash had hit Level 70. His attack speed increased, further shortening the window between 'Death Strikes.' He was a whirlwind of loot and experience, fueling the entire guild’s growth.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over him. A man appeared out of thin air, his presence so heavy it felt like the gravity had shifted.
[Caden Marlowe: Level 110]
A true apex predator.
"Ash Valor," Marlowe said, skipping the pleasantries. "What’s your Spirit stat?"
"2,916," Ash replied.
Marlowe whistled. "Over two thousand? Kid, your Willpower is almost as high as mine. Good. You might actually survive this."
Before Ash could ask what 'this' was, Marlowe grabbed him by the collar. Ash’s vision blurred. Marlowe wasn't just fast; he was folding space. They bypassed the front lines, soaring over Level 100 mobs that looked like giants.
"Where are we going?" Ash yelled over the wind.
"To kill something big," Marlowe grinned. "Don't worry, I’ll keep you alive. You should've told someone sooner about that Awakening of yours. It’s a game-changer."
They skidded to a halt in a desolate crater. Above them, the sky was torn asunder by a gargantuan silhouette.
[Undead Wyvern: Silver-Tier Boss - LV 110]
[HP: 6,000,000 | ATK: 68,000 | DEF: 12,100]
"That’s a Silver-Tier," Ash whispered, his heart hammering. "It’ll one-shot me."
"It has to hit you first," Marlowe said, hoisting Ash onto his shoulders like a human turret. "I’ll handle the movement. You just keep those arrows flying. We’re going in!"
What followed was a nauseating masterclass in high-level evasion. Marlowe Blinked through the air, dodging necrotic flames and bone-shattering tail swipes by mere inches. Ash was being jerked around so hard he could barely see, but he didn't need to aim—the Wyvern was three hundred meters long. It was impossible to miss.
The Wyvern roared, a sound that carried a psychic shockwave.
[-4,096 Mental Damage!]
"Insects! You dare mock a commander of the Wraith-kin?" the Wyvern boomed, its voice a grating cacophony of dying breaths.
"Commander?" Marlowe taunted as he spiraled through the air. "You look like an oversized pigeon to me. Does the Undying Realm only send its runts to fight us?"
"You are nothing but fuel for the pyre," the Wyvern hissed. "The Plane will fall. Your souls will serve as our foot soldiers."
"Keep talking, big guy," Marlowe laughed. "My friend here has a very short temper."
Ash ignored the banter, focusing entirely on his rhythm. After forty minutes of frantic dodging and thousands of arrows, a jagged bolt of black lightning finally struck the Wyvern’s heart.
[Death Strike Triggered: -6,000,000 HP!]
The Wyvern’s massive body stiffened before disintegrating into a rain of obsidian ash.
[You have slain a Silver-Tier Undead Creature!]
[All Stats +100 (Permanent Reward)]
[Level Up!]
The loot was legendary. Two Epic-Tier Undying Sacred Flames, an Epic-Tier Wraith Dagger, and several Gold-Tier pieces. Ash handed the dagger and gear to Marlowe—the man had basically carried him through the fire.
"An Epic dagger," Marlowe breathed, his eyes wide. "Kid, I’m going to be a god with this. Let’s get you back. I have some Level 100 bosses to hunt, and my blade is hungry."
Marlowe dropped Ash back at the safe zone and vanished.
Ash stood alone for a moment, breathing in the cold air. In less than twenty-four hours, he had jumped twenty levels. He was now Level 82. But more importantly, he had the materials.
He summoned his skeletal companion.
[System: Consume 2x Undying Sacred Flame (Epic-Tier) to evolve Phantom Summon: Chitin?]
"Do it."
Golden light erupted. Chitin’s bones turned from dull gray to a polished, obsidian sheen laced with silver runes.
[Chitin: Level 82 (Epic-Tier)]
[HP: 600,000 | ATK: 38,001 | DEF: 22,352]
His summon was now a mini-boss in its own right.
The defense was entering its final hour. Across the world, the tide was turning. Ash looked at the global leaderboard. He had been proud of his progress, but the top spot was held by a name that sent a chill down his spine: Evan Valor, Level 160.
While Ash was killing bosses with a gimmick, Evan Valor was out there terraforming the Mortis Realm itself, summoning armies of Level 150 elementals to hold the line for the entire Azure Prime plane.
"One day," Ash muttered, his eyes narrowing.
The sky finally began to clear as the 24-hour mark hit.
[Planar Broadcast: Defense Successful.]
[Remaining Undying Creatures are being purged by World Law.]
[Azure Prime is a Star of Hope. Level 100 reached within three years will grant an Epic-Tier Stat Elixir.]
Ash was teleported back to the ruins of Southhaven. The city was a graveyard. The Skystrider Guild had lost half its members. Other guilds were wiped out entirely.
It was a victory, but it tasted like ash.
After settling his accounts, Ash walked away with 120,000 Gold in his pocket, a Silver-Tier Soulbound weapon, and an Epic-Tier summon. He had survived the first wave. But as he looked at the shattered horizon, he knew the real war hadn't even started.