Farming Games are All About Grinding

The rumbling echoed within the mine layers for five or six minutes before gradually fading away.

Of course, Han Qiwu didn't waste this time. He took advantage of his heightened speed to dash over to the ruby's location and gleefully pick it up.

This time, I admit, I made the first move!

It wasn't just Han Qiwu suffering from the ringing in his ears; even Little Zap, who had been hovering in the air, descended to the ground after enduring the deafening noise.

When Xiao Lai noticed Little Zap about to fall, he hastily shuffled his chubby little body over to catch it, narrowly preventing it from crashing and becoming a paralyzed bird.

After the rumbling subsided, Han Qiwu returned to the Flame Iron Ore deposit to assess the situation.

"Could it all have exploded already?" Han Qiwu rubbed his hands together in anticipation and approached cautiously on his flaming windwheel.

"Rumble rumble."

As the thick smoke cleared from the Flame Iron Ore deposit, a colossal metal giant, composed of over a dozen Metal Bigheads fused together, came charging furiously at Han Qiwu.

The metallic giant stood a towering three meters tall, with a metallic outer shell glowing in golden-red hues. However, the circular dent in its center revealed the significant damage inflicted by the fireball, and the scorch marks on its right leg made its sprint unsteady.

Just as Han Qiwu began to let his guard down, the metallic giant suddenly shifted its body sideways and charged at Han Qiwu at an incredible speed.

"Rattle-rattle-rattle!"

In less than a second, the metallic giant was right in front of Han Qiwu.

"Phoenix Shield!"

Realizing he had no time to evade, Han Qiwu didn't dare risk it and quickly activated his invincibility skill to block the strike.

The decision proved to be the right one.

When the metallic giant collided with Han Qiwu, it generated waves of metallic ripples, creating immense force. Nearby scattered Flame Iron Ore fragments were ground into powder from the impact.

"Is this thing a giant metal rolling pin? One roll, and I'd be flattened like a pancake." Han Qiwu heightened his vigilance and, taking advantage of his invincibility effect, swung his ice blade at its injured leg.

But post-fusion, even its legs were covered with a thin layer of iron plating, significantly increasing its defensive power. If Han Qiwu wanted to trigger a bleeding effect, he'd have to target the exposed five centimeters of its ankle.

"Swish swish swish!"

During the duration of his invincibility, Han Qiwu arduously slashed its ankle three times.

"It's too tough to deal with."

After retreating to a safe distance, Han Qiwu finally had the chance to glance at its stats.

[Colossal Metal Bighead]

[Level: 83]

[Attack Methods: Ram, Roll, Throw, Metal Healing]

[Characteristics: Immune to knockback, doubles defensive power]

[Note: A fusion of twelve Metal Bigheads. Its strength is immense, but it consumes a lot of energy.]

"Only twelve? If it fused eighteen, wouldn't it be even stronger?" Han Qiwu thanked his lucky stars for unleashing a big attack right at the start.

If he had waited until its fusion was complete and its defense doubled, the fireball's effectiveness would have been vastly reduced.

"Rattle-rattle-rattle!"

Seeing Han Qiwu create some distance, the metallic giant pivoted 60 degrees and charged at him once again.

"Such a strong metallic giant must have a weakness. Let's stall it first." Han Qiwu had no intention of fighting it head-on. He switched to his Frost Slingshot, keeping his distance while bombarding it with explosive snowballs.

He couldn't give it time to consume Flame Iron Ore for recovery!

When the enemy advances, I retreat. When the enemy tires, I strike!

After two to three minutes of maneuvering, the metallic giant, repeatedly failing to catch him, grew agitated. Suddenly, it flipped over, spun in place a dozen times, and fiercely launched something at Han Qiwu's location!

The speed was extraordinary.

Han Qiwu focused his gaze and saw that what it had thrown was a lightly injured Metal Bighead.

"So its throw skill is just chucking a Metal Bighead? Something's off. I'm clearly the one struggling, so why is it getting desperate? Could it be that its fused state has a time limit?" Han Qiwu immediately retreated, planning to deal with the Metal Bighead after it landed by using his speed boost to turn it into Flame Iron Essence.

Another minute of stalling later, Han Qiwu grinned.

With his sharp eyesight, he noticed fine cracks forming across the metallic giant's body, and its mobility and reactions had slowed.

This thing might be close to falling apart!

But Han Qiwu didn't want to wait for complete disintegration.

Who knows? Defeating the metallic giant might yield some special items.

"Little Zap, wake up! This one's the last; after this, you can rest," Han Qiwu said, pouring White Reed Root Water to rouse Little Zap.

In its dazed state, Little Zap flapped its wings in refusal, its eyes bleary.

Can't drink anymore, bro. Let me rest.

One more sip, and I'll puke.

Xiao Lai was no better, shaking his little head like a drum rattle.

"Alright then, just watch and learn." Han Qiwu switched to his ice blade, stepped on the flaming windwheel, and charged forward, wielding his Fire Crystal!

He aimed at its ankle!

"Unleash the flames!"

The tiny blue flames of the Blue Firebird shot out one after another from the Fire Crystal. Under the surrounding high temperatures, their blue hue glowed brighter.

"Whoosh!"

As soon as the small blue flames landed on the metallic giant's ankle, they immediately climbed upward, relentlessly burning its stubby legs beneath the iron plating.

"Aargh!!!"

The metallic giant let out a muffled cry of agony, rolling furiously toward Han Qiwu in anger.

"Is it really this effective?" Han Qiwu's eyes lit up. This blue fire wasn't explosive but clinging—burning steadily and spreading further.

After releasing fifteen small blue flames, the metallic giant could no longer control itself. Its cracks widened, and it stood trembling in place.

Strike while it's vulnerable!

Han Qiwu put away the Fire Crystal and quickly slashed away with the tip of his ice sword. He avoided striking the cracks directly, worried that shattering it might spoil the rewards.

Better stick to hitting its ankle.

Play it safe!

"Swish swish swish!"

Twenty seconds later, the metallic giant, on the verge of disintegration, finally burst into a massive beam of white light under Han Qiwu's relentless assault.

The good news was, even upon its demise, it remained intact.

"May the white light carry no flames." Han Qiwu waved at the fading light and plopped onto the ground with a thud.

Exhausted.

Fighting these congregated creatures was so much harder than the scattered mine-dwelling beasts.

Hopefully, the rewards are worth it!

The white light lingered for over ten seconds before dissipating, leaving several glowing items behind in the Flame Iron Ore deposit.

After resting for a moment, Han Qiwu walked over and gathered them one by one, his excitement mounting with each find.

All top-quality loot!

[Crimson Flame Iron Essence]

[Usage: Crafting Material]

[Special Effect - Crimson Magnetism: Possesses strong magnetic properties]

[Note: Only dropped by Colossal Metal Bigheads]

[Metal Bighead's Bane]

[Level: 83]

[Special Effect - Repel: When equipped, it can repel Metal Bighead clusters of fewer than fifteen individuals]

[Note: Saves time for everyone involved]

[Metal Roller]

[Usage: Accessory]

[Special Effect - Crush: The head of the Colossal Metal Bighead greatly enhances crushing efficiency]

[Note: Indestructible!]