Chapter 979: The Mechanism of the Fallen Angels
Bone cut.
The meat is broken.
The Fallen Angel who has completed his incarnation is no longer a hollow energy body, but has a real physical body.
Therefore, it is only natural that its limbs can be separated.
“Uhhhhhhhhhhhh—”
The unfamiliar pain caused the Fallen Angel to roar and snarl like a wild beast.
Violent and disordered dark power erupted from his body, directly blowing Helechin and Siegfried around him away!
That wasn't an attack—otherwise, the two of them wouldn't have been simply "blown away."
It was obvious that his own magic power had been exhausted after releasing Paradise Lost, and he couldn't even get rid of Siegfried's entanglement... It was precisely because of this that he had one arm cut off by these two people.
When his mana was abundant, he could even influence the entire world through rituals and spells; he could crush an apostle with a single punch, and with a single blow, he could bring the strongest and most vigorous "main tank" Ligeia to the brink of death. He could even shatter the artifacts bestowed by the Candle Master and the Candle Heaven Master at will...
If the Fallen Angels still had extra strength now, they would never have fallen into such a predicament just now!
"...It's just an arm that was cut off."
The Fallen Angel's roar was so painful that even the Great Guardian couldn't help but frown and complain.
He was just blown to pieces by more than a dozen energy balls!
That wasn't even a spell, just a release of power. Almost any mage could use this ability... it simply came from the "Elemental Affinity" attribute of the Tao!
The third level of Storm Affinity allows one to assimilate with the atmosphere, breaking the speed of sound without breaking the sound barrier. The third level of Lightning Affinity allows one to unleash the might of thunder with a single gesture—this is knowledge known to the Great Guardian. And the energy ball that attacked him earlier was at least the sixth level of "Affinity"!
It's just elemental affinity, and even if it reaches the limit, it will be so strong!
The Great Guardian's proud body, capable of withstanding a dragon's head-on charge, seemed so fragile before the purest force. It was no better than the fate of an ordinary person dancing in a minefield. The remaining parts of the mangled body could be covered entirely with just a towel.
No need for white sheets.
——Even so, he didn't let out a single howl or whine.
He wasn't knocked unconscious... He was conscious at the time and faced death with great clarity.
It was simply because Paradise Lost hadn't begun at that time, and the "live broadcast" hadn't ended yet—he didn't want his defeated appearance to be seen by others, inducing fear and despair. He also didn't want his teammates to worry about him and reveal their weaknesses.
So he held back.
Even until he completely lost consciousness, his gaze that was looking straight at the sky was still bright and sharp, without any wavering or fear!
But the Fallen Angels now only had a broken arm, yet they screamed so loudly...
"wrong."
Aiwass's voice rang out.
Flapping his six white wings, Aiwass flew to their side.
He said solemnly, "Stand down, Mr. George. You will not be able to participate in the battle that follows. Please take Cardinal Fafner, Cardinal Galatea, and Master Chongbo away."
"……good."
There was no politeness or hesitation.
Although he was unwilling, the Great Guardian still accepted the order without hesitation and began to execute it immediately.
"I'll stay here."
Cardinal Galatea raised his head and spoke seriously.
Aiwass didn't ask "why" but simply nodded and said, "Okay."
He was still staring at the Fallen Angel who was howling miserably and emitting terrifying power.
That was a decadent aura that even Heleqin couldn't bear.
No doubt about it.
That is a power that exceeds the "limits of the world".
"——That is the power of the law of Tiansi. The reason why Tiansi is called Tiansi..."
Saint John spoke softly, "'The Authority of the Celestial Master'... As a Celestial Master, yet wounded by a mortal without divine power, it probably no longer recognizes the Fallen Celestial Master. Or perhaps, the Celestial Master fragment, belonging to the path of transcendence, has itself chosen 'transcendence.'
“—He’s starting to lose control.”
The power of the Law of Corruption sought to possess the body of the Fallen Angel; however, it was ultimately a power that should not exist in this world, and the Sand Clock's wall of balance constantly suppressed it. The more it struggled, the more pain the Fallen Angel suffered.
Two forces far beyond the material realm formed a millstone between heaven and earth... The pain was likely enough to wear away sanity. Lucifer, once a gentle character, was far less brave and strong than the Winged Angel, and unlike the Winged Angel, he had not experienced desperate battles with powerful enemies... This gradually damaged and shattered the Fallen Angel's consciousness.
This also means another thing...
——The Fallen Angels have entered their final stage.
Although the power displayed by the Fallen Angels was far higher than Aiwass had expected...but the skillset of the Fallen Angels so far was within Aiwass's expectations.
In the game, the first stage of the Fallen Angel is a spellcaster wearing golden armor.
It would cycle through purple lightning sweeps that covered half the map, purple lasers that descended from the sky like space-based weapons, rotating and spreading from the inside out, and purple spheres that slowly descended from the sky. So far, it was all normal "sports mechanics," and you just had to run around and you'd be fine.
The unique mechanism of the Fallen Angels is that they will periodically impose the "Mark of Sin".
This skill activates every 30 seconds, targeting each player for eight seconds, in order of highest attack, highest damage taken, and highest healing. The targeted player loses all control and becomes an enemy if killed by any other skill of the Fallen Angel, requiring re-killing and resurrection to return to the team.
If both healers with resurrection abilities are "corrupted", the game is declared a failure.
When the health of the Fallen Angel reaches half, he will release "Falling Sun" and switch forms.
This is a "headcount check".
This skill cannot be dodged, and requires concentration and the use of eight group damage reduction skills to withstand it - and in the game "Ouroboros", each player can only configure one stackable group damage reduction skill.
Therefore, one less person means the whole team is destroyed.
"Liberated Form: Fallen Angel" is the second stage, known as the "King of Fighters Form".
As the "laser" and "falling ball" mechanics persist and the pace gets faster, he will teleport to the nearest player every three seconds and deliver a punch, knocking them back to the edge of the map.
If the first punch doesn't knock back the target for any reason, or if it's still within range after knocking back, the Fallen Angel will immediately deliver two more punches. Each punch deals about 80% damage to an average class, while a defender will take 30% to 40% off their health. This cycle of eight punches occurs, and the eighth punch is a guaranteed kill for non-tanks, forcing tanks to rely on single-target damage reduction skills to survive.
Whenever two or more players approach the Fallen Angel at the same time, he will immediately use an ability similar to "Return of Heaven" to knock all the people around him to the edge of the map. The cooldown of this ability is only fifteen seconds.
For the first-time group, it was a picture of hell. People were flying everywhere and it was a complete chaos.
This mechanism is also known as "gym teacher teaching math." If you miscount the eighth punch, you will be killed by a punch.
But according to the fool-proof strategy video released by the UP host of Bilibili, the movement trajectory of the Fallen Angel at this stage is actually controllable - in the absence of melee professions, all you need to do is stand on one side to avoid other mechanisms, and two tanks stand on both sides of the other end, and run forward immediately after being repelled.
When health drops to 20%, the "Sinful Brand" mechanic reactivates, locking down two players at once, and the lock cooldown is reduced to 15 seconds. Because the rooted player loses distance and becomes immobile once cornered, the other tank will inevitably be cornered and hammered to death... After that, you'll have to act accordingly.
From this stage onwards, basically even the best coordinated team will begin to slowly collapse.
But fortunately, you just need to get through this stage—when the Fallen Angel's health drops to 10%, the scene will transition and enter the third stage. There is enough transition time to revive teammates and replenish health, and as long as there is a nurse left, the team will not be wiped out.
After the transition is complete, the Fallen Angel's name will no longer be "Sealed Form·Fallen Angel" or "Liberated Form·Fallen Angel".
It's a two-character name.
——【Fall】.
Just like the Fallen Angel in front of him.
Some consider this the most difficult stage, others the easiest. However, regardless of which viewpoint is true, the Fallen Angels at this stage will not allow anyone with a weak will to approach them.
The Fallen Angel's roar gradually faded, and he gradually stopped struggling.
His left arm, which had just been severed, grew out again - or rather, it was reorganized into a terrifying and hideous demonic hand out of pure dark energy.
The eyes of the Fallen Angel turned into two pure black holes, with black lightning pulsating in them.
"Snake..."
The Fallen Angel stared at Aiwass intently, and his expression gradually calmed down.
He had no expression on his face and whispered dreamily, "I want to see you..."
His hands hung low, seemingly offering no resistance.
——But they couldn't get any closer.
Now the decadent aura emanating from him like a tide was no longer the previous "purple", but gradually turned into pure, desperate black without a trace of other colors.
The "Fallen Angel"'s feet left the ground and his whole body gradually floated up.
He spread his hands out naturally with his palms facing upwards.
And above His head rose a dark sun—
It looked like an illusory crown, or like a halo hanging behind the head.
It beat like a heart—with each beat, it emitted an invisible, unavoidable ray of corrupted light, and its own volume expanded.
The roaring, surging force of pure depravity made it impossible for anyone to approach—like someone with a fear of heights stepping onto a single-plank bridge over a cliff. The body would instinctively resist moving forward, unable to budge no matter what.
If you take a step forward, a myriad of malicious intentions will emerge in your heart.
Even Heleqin, the King of the Wild Hunt, had his eyes faintly blood-red. Evil thoughts permeated his body, and his entire body froze, seemingly about to transform into an evil spirit once again.
The invisible and intangible breath of corruption spread in all directions with "corruption" as its center!
Unable to look directly at it, unable to approach it. Simply sensing its presence, simply recognizing the existence of this "fallen" archetype, would give rise to evil thoughts that were previously impossible to exist!
"——Come behind me!"
Aiwass spoke without hesitation.
He spread out his six white wings and stood in front of everyone.
Although it was impossible to move forward, it was possible to move backward - people came to their senses and staggered backward.
If there is even one person standing in front of me, my brain will immediately become clear.
As the next dark halo spread, the malice boiling in Aiwas' heart caused the bottom of his pupils to quickly turn red.
Although Aiwass had realized during the previous "Second Phase" that the difficulty of the dungeons in the game had definitely dropped significantly... and now that he was actually fighting against [Degenerate], Aiwass felt it was even more outrageous -
He knew that during this phase, the boss would charge up a long, unconditional, full-screen instant kill skill, while also periodically unleashing a low-damage, knockback-inflicting, and potentially deflectable blast of air. Meanwhile, it would still maintain its previous "laser" and "falling ball" mechanics, but this time, it required players to avoid being hit.
Whether it's the Corrupted Aura or some other mechanism... as long as damage is dealt, a layer of Corrupted Aura will be added. You will randomly gain one of eight negative states: "Fainted," "Crazy," "Silent," "Weak," or "Slow."
Only when any three of these negative states are present at the same time can the full damage be caused to "Fall", otherwise it can only cause one-third of the damage; but if eight layers of "Fall" are present at the same time, it will directly "fall" and turn into a demon - this means that control cannot be released through resurrection.
Therefore, this mechanism actually only requires you to dodge the two most basic mechanisms while constantly switching people to block the ball. If each person blocks once and does not make a mistake, you will have passed it by the time everyone reaches the fifth level.
——Five is the sacred number of balance.
You can also sacrifice two healers after three stacks to block the attack without switching... At this stage, you don't need a healer anymore. The demons healers transform into don't have much attack power, and two healers won't be able to kill a tank that's just been healed to full health. If all healers are sacrificed but the attack isn't over yet, you can still sacrifice the tank.
...But now it seems that in order to corrupt someone, why would one need to gather all eight levels?!
Aiwass endured only the first wave of "degeneration" before he felt waves of darkness descend upon his vision. His vision was shattered, and endless desire, hatred, rage, laziness, lust, and other corrupted desires surged from within. His body remained frozen, rather than attempting to lose control, because the multitude of voices in his head pulled at him, creating a balance.
It was as if there were countless voices whispering in my head, like a "brainwashing song" that kept echoing in my head, and I couldn't help but recall it... Only it was a hundred times, a thousand times stronger than that! To the point that even normal "thinking" was instinctively rejected by my brain...
"—I'll do it."
Then the gentle yet firm voice of Saint John rang out.
(End of this chapter)
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