The man ensnared by the serpent's tail screamed in agony, frantically casting skills to attack the serpent.
However, this only enraged the creature further.
Soon, he was completely crushed, turning into white light and vanishing from the secret realm.
"Who else wants to try?"
The sight of the gruesome death sent chills down everyone's spines.
John could have killed him with a single blow, but he chose this brutal method to make a point.
It was a clear message to anyone considering an attack: think carefully about whether you can handle the consequences.
"Brothers, let's go! He can't fight all of us at once! With our numbers, we can definitely take him down."
"Exactly, guys! He's the top of the leaderboard now. If we kill him, we become the new number one!"
A few voices tried to rally the crowd, and people started feeling emboldened again.
Although John's actions had indeed been terrifying, they still wanted to give it a shot.
Fortune favors the bold! If they managed to kill John, all the loot from the boss would be theirs, and they would gain a massive amount of points!
Just as the crowd was about to surge forward, several people in the back were suddenly struck down by skills!
Surprised, they turned to see that it was Isabella and Amelia who had attacked.
Both women held their weapons, coldly eyeing the group in front of them.
"Only cowards take advantage of others," Isabella said, her voice icy and devoid of emotion, but her words hit like a slap across their faces.
Their expressions turned ashen, resembling a chaotic palette of colors.
"Since when do opportunistic cowards qualify to apply to Star Cluster Academy?"
Amelia's lips curled into a slight smile, though her eyes held no warmth.
"Are you planning to help him?" one of the men asked, puzzled, as he looked at the two women.
"You two are ranked second and third on the leaderboard. If you kill him, you could be number one!"
"We won't compete for points. We'll share the loot equally," another suggested tentatively to the women.
But in the next moment, he felt the air around him grow intensely hot!
A fiery dragon coiled from Isabella's hand, wrapping around the man's ankle and climbing up his body!
In an instant, he turned into white light and vanished.
No chance to resist, just gone?
The others were stunned.
That man wasn't in the top ten, but he was among the top twenty players. Yet against Isabella, he stood no chance, disintegrating with a single move.
Isabella's power was terrifying!
Seeing that the two women were determined to protect John, the others gritted their teeth.
They wanted to back off but were reluctant!
This was the top-ranked player.
And he must be heavily exhausted right now.
Opportunities like this didn't come often.
They might not get such a lucky chance again!
"If I were you, I'd be out there grinding on other monsters to level up," Amelia said calmly.
"After all, your points aren't that high yet."
Amelia didn't want to escalate the conflict, so she offered a way out for both sides.
Some instantly understood.
With the top three players on the leaderboard present, even if they managed to take down John, the odds of profiting were slim.
And who could guarantee they'd be the one to get the final hit?
Although he had a four-piece set, the attributes were utterly terrible.
They were even worse than what he currently wore.
Not only was the equipment subpar, but there wasn't even a single skill book!
John couldn't help but roll his eyes.
All that effort, nearly killing himself, for no significant improvement at all.
The only gains were attribute points and a massive amount of experience.
The millions of experience points boosted him to level 41!
And nearly 20,000 points secured his position at the top of the leaderboard!
Bored, he continued to sift through the loot on the ground until a blood-red gem caught his eye.
[Equipment]: Dragonblood Stone
[Type]: Gem
[Level]: lv40
[Tier]: Platinum
[Quality]: Perfect
[Attributes]: Constitution +58
[Skill]: Conversion (Active)
[Description]: Embed in a weapon to convert 0.8% of damage dealt into HP!
Wow...
A life-stealing gem?
It can convert 0.8% of damage dealt into HP?
This attribute was truly impressive.
John's eyes lit up!
This was exactly what he needed right now.
His Spring of Soul and Mana Recovery were mostly focused on restoring mana.
He was slightly lacking in the HP recovery department.
Being a lone wolf by nature, John never liked teaming up with priests.
On occasion, he would bring a few extra health potions, and that was already a stretch for him.
But if he could embed the Dragonblood Stone in his Bloodthirsty Blade, he would essentially become a perpetual motion machine!
With the skill's existence, he would never run out of MP, and converting a portion of his damage into HP would mean he could self-sustain!
Even though it was only 0.8%, his damage output was in the tens or hundreds of thousands per hit.
Even at 0.8%, the amount of HP recovered would be significant.
The higher his damage, the stronger his healing! He would never have to fear running out of HP at critical moments again.
John's face lit up with joy, though he regretted that he couldn't embed the gem right away.
He would have to wait until he got out.
Lying back on the ground, he stared at the sky, feeling that all the effort had been worth it.
While the equipment and skills hadn't improved, this gem alone was worth all the trouble.
It addressed a crucial weakness.
He chuckled softly.
This reaction made the audience even more curious.
What exactly did he get that made him so happy? What kind of attributes did that gem have?