Navigator: I have a double six-story house

The moment Su Qing stepped into the instance, her pupils contracted sharply.

A flash of silver light appeared in his peripheral vision and went straight for his temple.

The silver light was so thin and fast that ordinary people didn't have time to react.

Su Qing's mind reacted, but his body couldn't keep up; the tip of the sword was less than three inches from his left eye.

"Clang!"

A burst of light erupted in the darkness.

Wang Yao's iron shield slammed in, its surface precisely wedged between Su Qing's face and the tip of his sword.

The sword tip struck the iron shield with a sharp scraping sound, sending sparks flying.

The immense impact traveled along the shield to Wang Yao's arm, causing it to ache and go numb.

When the opponent's attack missed, the sword was withdrawn like a snake, and the person retreated backward and disappeared into the shadows.

The entire process took less than a second.

Su Qing moved closer to Wang Yao's protective circle, pointing her gun towards the shadows.

The sound of drums beating in my chest never stopped.

"Thanks," Su Qing said.

"Don't mention it." Wang Yao's voice was steady, but Su Qing noticed the bulging veins on the back of his hand.

The two gradually adjusted their vision to the dim light.

This level is no longer a cave.

Instead, it was the cabin of an abandoned sailboat, with rotten wooden beams overhead and a deck half-filled with water underfoot.

The puddles on the ground reflected the moonlight seeping in through the hole, swaying in the cold, drafty wind.

Su Qing advanced slowly, gun in hand, his gaze sweeping over every pillar and every dark corner.

A figure emerged from the shadows at the far end of the cabin.

Moonlight streamed through the hole in the ceiling, shining directly on the newcomer.

It was a woman, tall and slender, her smooth lines outlined in a dark purple, tight-fitting leather armor.

His face was covered by a black half-mask, revealing only his delicate chin and a pair of indifferent gray eyes. He held a Western-style rapier in his right hand, the tip of which was slightly drooping.

Nightmare Difficulty Boss: Ghost Swordswoman Vera

[Level: 8]

Level 8.

He was four levels higher than Wang Yao.

Su Qing's heart sank. The bosses on the first three levels were at most level five; with level advantage and superior equipment, they could easily be crushed. But level eight…

Wang Yao didn't pay attention to the ranking; his attention drifted elsewhere.

"Wow."

He whistled.

Su Qing: "..."

"You have a really nice figure," Wang Yao commented.

Su Qing stared intently at the enemy. "If you like her, stay and keep her company."

"Then forget it." Wang Yao shrugged. "I think she'd rather kill me than go on a date."

Before she could finish speaking, Vera moved.

Without any unnecessary movements, she simply touched the puddle with her toes and shot out like an arrow.

His entire figure left a trail of afterimages in the moonlight.

Wang Yao's face darkened, he held the iron shield horizontally in front of him, stepped forward with his left foot, and shouted loudly.

"【provocative】!"

An invisible energy wave exploded from his body, spreading out like ripples.

Vera's original trajectory shifted almost imperceptibly, and the direction of the rapier changed from Su Qing's chest to Wang Yao's shield.

Locking successful.

The rapier struck the center of the iron shield with a dull thud.

Wang Yao's boots left two streaks on the slippery deck, and he stumbled back three steps before regaining his balance.

He glanced down at the shield.

A dent that is visible to the naked eye.

The C-grade iron shield was dented by a single sword strike.

Wang Yao's playful smile completely vanished.

Su Qing had already seized this opportunity.

He raised the musket, aiming the muzzle at those beautiful eyes without any decorum.

"Bang--!"

The bullet tore through the air, heading straight for Vera's eyes.

But Vera's body spun half a circle to the side at the same time the gunshot rang out. The movement of pulling back the rapier caused her entire body to spin around, and the bullet grazed her side, only tearing a shallow mark on her leather armor.

She dodged it.

Su Qing cursed inwardly. The previous boss could even stumble while walking, but this one could hear gunshots and dodge bullets?

Reload!

Su Qing quickly stuffed gunpowder into the gun barrel, her movements at least 20% faster than the previous floors.

Wang Yao had already rushed forward.

He couldn't let Vera have time to go see Su Qing in the back row.

The provocation had a limited duration; he had to use his shield to block her rapier and maintain distance to draw her aggro.

Vera pushed the shield sideways and retreated.

Wang Yao caught up half a step and slashed down with the shield.

Vera shifted her feet, circled around to the side where Wang Yao's shield was blind, and thrust her rapier like a venomous snake, stabbing three times in quick succession.

The first strike landed at the shoulder joint of the chainmail. Two iron rings shattered, and the sword tip pierced half an inch into the flesh.

Wang Yao grunted, and with a backhand sweep of his iron shield, he forced back the next two sword strikes.

Blood seeped from his shoulder, trickling down his chainmail and dripping into the puddles, spreading out in a red blotch.

Su Qing saw the red mark and began grinding the medicine even faster.

"Hold on!" Wang Yao roared.

The moment the skill was activated, a faint yellowish-brown halo appeared on his body, and his feet seemed to be rooted to the ground, remaining motionless on the deck.

Vera's continuous thrusts all struck the iron shield, sending sparks flying.

Each sword strike was powerful enough to make a normal level 1 Iron Wall Guardian kneel on the spot, but Wang Yao, level 4, with his C-grade Iron Shield and the damage reduction bonus from the Steadfast skill, managed to withstand it.

The three-fold improvement brought by the barbecue made it all worth the price of admission at that moment.

Su Qing has finished loading.

"Lower your head!"

Without any hesitation, Wang Yao shrank his head behind the shield.

"Bang--!"

Su Qing didn't aim at his body with this shot; instead, he aimed at the ground.

The bullet struck the puddle half a foot in front of Vera's feet, splashing water and instantly covering her face with shards and mist.

Her view was blocked for less than half a second.

But half a second is enough.

Wang Yao suddenly stood up and rammed the iron shield head-on.

The shield struck Vera squarely in the chest, sending her flying.

Vera flipped in the air and landed kneeling in the water, her rapier supporting her weight, a crack appearing on the half-mask at the corner of her mouth.

Su Qing loaded the container for the third time.

This time, no one disturbed him, and he performed each movement with utmost precision.

Vera stood up, and finally, emotions flickered in her gray eyes.

That wasn't fear, that was anger.

Her rapier began to glow. Purple patterns appeared on the blade, and the water was shaken away by the energy.

"She's about to unleash her ultimate move!" Wang Yao shouted.

"Block it," Su Qing said.

Only two words.

Wang Yao didn't say anything more, he just raised the iron shield above his head.

Vera disappeared.

She wasn't just too fast to see; she truly vanished from her spot. The next instant, she appeared less than a foot in front of Wang Yao, her rapier already thrust out.

The glowing sword tip, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, pierced the center of the iron shield.

The dent that was poked out before.

"when--!"

Wang Yao felt like he had been hit by a truck.

His feet dug two furrows in the deck, the aura of perseverance shattered, and he crashed into the wooden pillar behind him.

The wooden pillar shattered.

But he didn't fall.

He braced himself against the iron shield with both hands.

The dent in the C-grade iron shield deepened, but it didn't break or penetrate.

Wang Yao peeked out from behind the shield, half his face visible, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, and grinned.

"this one?"

The skill timer for the provocation had long since expired, and Wang Yao managed to keep Vera's "hatred" through sheer verbal sparring.

Vera launched another surprise attack.

However, she didn't notice Su Qing rushing out from the shadows on the side.

This time, he was absolutely certain of hitting the target.

Get close and shoot, let's see how you dodge!

"Bang--!"

[Precision shot triggered! Critical hit!]

The bullet was fired at close range, exploding into a blood-red spider lily under the moonlight.

Vera's body froze on the spot, the rapier slipped from her hand and stuck in the water, the purple light on the blade slowly fading.

Her body slowly leaned forward, her knees sinking into the water, and then she fell face down into the puddles.

Water splashed up and then fell back down.

The cabin fell silent.

[Boss defeated: Ghost Swordswoman Vera, Nightmare difficulty cleared!]

The two men were panting heavily, their bodies trembling, but their eyes were filled with undisguised excitement.

It's time to collect the loot!