His hair seemed to crackle with energy, standing on end as his eyes hardened into chips of gold. A radiant aura enveloped him, majestic and terrifying. In this state, he was nigh-invincible.

  Before the transformation, Kael had noticed that his [Fenris's Blessed Water] buff was different from the others. Instead of bonus health or mana, his granted:

  +10,000 Attack, +5,000 Strength, +5,000 Agility, +5,000 Defense, and 10% Ranged Lifesteal.

  That last attribute was the game-changer. Lifesteal was an exceedingly rare stat. Melee lifesteal could occasionally be found on Ascendant-tier gear, but ranged lifesteal was almost unheard of, a white whale even for those with full Mythic sets. To have it granted as a quest buff was the system’s only concession to the insane difficulty of the task ahead.

  Before, Kael had over forty thousand health and dealt around fifty thousand damage per shot. Now, his power had exploded.

  [Apollo's Descent] was his ultimate skill. It flooded his body with the divine power of a god, but at a steep price.

  Upon activation, all his primary stats—health, strength, agility, attack, defense, attack speed, and movement speed—were increased by 100%. His attack range increased by 50 yards, and his passive, [Arrow of Dawn], was automatically triggered. The state lasted for ten minutes.

  Afterward, however, he would enter a "Weakened State," with all stats reduced to a mere 10% for a full hour. It was a true all-or-nothing ability, with a twenty-four-hour cooldown.

  In an instant, Kael’s health swelled to eighty thousand, his attack power to one hundred thousand, and his defense to thirty thousand. His attack speed was now a blistering 0.4 seconds per shot. With the 20% damage boost from [Arrow of Dawn], each of his arrows now hit for over one hundred and twenty thousand damage.

  BOOM!

  The Gilded Juggernaut, the first to reach him, slammed into him with a devastating headbutt.

  -1 (Shield Absorbed)

  His armor hadn't even been scratched. The other two bosses unleashed their own attacks.

  -1 (Shield Absorbed)

  -1095 (Critical Hit, Shield Absorbed)

  Their basic attacks were utterly useless. But Kael had no time to revel in his power. He had ten minutes. The clock was ticking.

  He drew his bow and loosed an arrow at the Trinity Vixen.

  -348,321 (Critical Hit)

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  +34,832 (Lifesteal)

  The [Splintering Arrow] effect chained to the other two bosses.

  -101,977

  +10,197 (Lifesteal)

  -98,831

  +9,883 (Lifesteal)

  In just over a minute of relentless fire, each boss had already lost twenty million health. The only time Kael’s health bar moved at all was when a lucky critical hit landed, dealing a few thousand damage—which was instantly replenished by the torrent of health he leeched back with every shot.

  From the safety of the east gate, Hazel and the others watched with their jaws on the floor.

  “Is… is that golden figure really Dawnbreaker?” Hazel stammered.

  “Of course it is!” Rena replied, her voice filled with awe. “Look at the [Splintering Arrow] effect! That’s his signature skill!”

  “He looks… he looks like a real god,” Hazel whispered.

  The Overlords, possessing advanced AI, weren't about to stand by and be executed. The Adamantite Dreadshell acted first. It retracted its head and limbs, and its massive shell began to spin, turning from a deep green to a metallic black.

  When it stopped, its physical defense had permanently increased, and a gray aura now surrounded it, granting a shared buff to all three bosses: [Aegis of the Dreadshell], which added another 5,000 physical defense.

  Next, the Trinity Vixen wrapped itself in its three long tails as a cascade of magical energy erupted from its core. Its ears grew long and pointed, and its fur grew wild. With a piercing shriek, it unfurled its tails to reveal a fourth, shimmering tail composed of pure magic.

  Its nameplate changed: [Avatar of the Four-Tails]. Its magic attack rose, and it projected a shimmering barrier, [Vixen's Ward], granting itself and the other two bosses an additional 5,000 magic defense.

  Finally, the Gilded Juggernaut’s horn blazed with light, which then flowed over its entire body. Its hide transformed from gray to shimmering gold. Its physical attack spiked, and a golden halo appeared at its feet, granting the final shared buff: [Gilded Rage], which boosted physical attack by 5,000.

  For any normal raid party, this sudden, massive increase in the bosses’ stats would have meant a guaranteed wipe.

  But Kael, empowered by [Apollo's Descent], had [Arrow of Dawn] active. The passive skill allowed his attacks to ignore all enemy buffs and damage reduction effects.

  The only thing that mattered was the bosses’ increase in their base stats. Now, on a critical hit, the Vixen and Juggernaut could deal around twenty thousand damage to him.

  It was still nothing. Kael was healing for over fifty thousand health per shot, firing two or three times a second.

  The bosses threw out a few more large-scale abilities, but they had no more tricks. One by one, Kael shot them down.

  As the last one fell, a shower of loot exploded across the battlefield, glittering like a field of fallen stars thanks to Kael's monumental luck stat.

  Rena, Orion, and Hazel ran out cheering. Kael began sifting through the equipment, stunned by the sheer volume. In total, the bosses had dropped ten Level 35 Ascendant items, twenty-two Level 35 Legendary items, and a sea of epics and rares.

  Orion ignored the gear, instead greedily gathering the unique crafting materials. He tried to claim the Adamantite Dreadshell’s carapace, but Kael stopped him.

  "No way," Kael said, grabbing the massive piece. "This is a top-tier material for crafting shields and armor. You're not wasting it on glyphs."

  Kael quickly sorted the rest of the materials and gear for later distribution. A few minutes later, the golden aura around him faded. The ten minutes were up. [Apollo's Descent] had ended, and the crushing weakness set in.

  Just as they were waiting for the quest completion notice, a frantic shout came from the watchtower.

  It was Lila.

  “Below us! Minions of the Warchief are coming! Hundreds of them!”

  Everyone froze. There’s more?

  Kael was at ten percent of his normal stats, too weak to even break a basic monster’s defense.

  What were they going to do?