Farming Games are All About Grinding

Not sure if it's because of the pesticide, but out of seven Molten Lava Fireflies, only two items dropped.

[Lava Stone Slab]

[Use: Material]

[Special Effect - Combustion Boost: Enemies hit by the Lava Stone Slab will take an additional 20% damage for the next five seconds]

[Note: Only those fleeing in armorless panic will drop Lava Stone Slabs]

The appearance of the Lava Stone Slab looks a lot like the molten lava carapace discarded by the last Molten Lava Firefly, except flatter and covered in strange patterns.

"Perfect for restoring the Paralysis Thorn," Han Qiwu nodded with satisfaction, then turned to look at the next drop.

[Lava Needle]

[Special Effect - Fire Toxin: Causes minor damage on hit, while applying a layer of Fire Toxin Mark. When the mark reaches three layers, it detonates, triggering burn damage and additional harm]

[Note: A rare item from the Molten Lava Firefly]

The Lava Needle looks a lot like the red glow shot by the Molten Lava Firefly earlier, but it's much larger—bright crimson, about 40 cm long, 2 cm in diameter, and remarkably heavy to hold.

Han Qiwu glanced at its attributes and thought to himself, "This thing's type is kinda similar to the Spider Venom Fang. Might as well attach them both to the Paralysis Thorn."

This feels like a cycle of life, doesn't it?

The Paralysis Thorn perished because of the Molten Lava Firefly; maybe it can thrive again thanks to the Molten Lava Firefly.

Such mysteries—who can explain them?

Stowing away the loot, Han Qiwu ventured toward the mining district on the eighty-second layer of the mine, hoping to claim another mining area.

Auto-mining is life!

One hard effort! Eternal enjoyment!

Let's go, let's go, let's go!

Pumped up, Han Qiwu soon reached the Flame Iron Ore Mine on this layer.

Upon arriving near the mine, he heightened his vigilance and cautiously sneaked closer.

"Too bad I didn't bring Little Electric this time. Otherwise, I wouldn't need to scout in person," Han Qiwu sighed while checking out the passageways.

After scoping out his surroundings, Han Qiwu was stunned.

What's going on?

Where's the Metal Bighead?

Inside this vast Flame Iron Ore Mining Area, there was only a towering half-body stone statue standing all alone near the center, guarding the area. Nothing else was nearby.

"How's this statue surviving? Not even a single underling to call its own." Han Qiwu clicked his tongue twice, picked up his Ice Slingshot, and lobbed a Snowball Bomb at it.

Let's check its attributes first.

The explosive snowball hit the statue square in the chest and burst into a perfect snowflake shape.

The statue's eyes suddenly lit up as it was struck, followed by a glowing red dot on its chest. Its body started moving with a series of creaking noises.

[Lava Statue]

[Level: 85]

[Attack Methods: Devastating Ray, Ground-Up Strike]

[Trait - Lava Body: Defensive power doubled]

[Note: True strength stands alone!]

Looking at the Lava Statue's attributes, Han Qiwu couldn't help but groan: "Does it need to be this tough?"

The statue already has high defensive power, and they had to add a trait that doubles it.

And it's level 85.

How am I supposed to beat this thing?

The awakened Lava Statue didn't care about Han Qiwu's inner despair.

It had one thing: waking-up aggression.

The moment it locked its eyes on Han Qiwu, those eyes emitted a beam of intense red light, darting straight at him.

Prepared ahead, Han Qiwu quickly dodged the red beam with a sidestep.

Too fast.

Maybe I should just… run?

But just then, the red beam from the Lava Statue's eyes didn't fade!

A few seconds passed.

It turned a corner!

Han Qiwu could only watch as the constant red beam systematically blocked his escapes, relentlessly closing in on him.

It felt like one of those sci-fi movie scenes where the protagonist entered a laser-filled hallway.

Han Qiwu's mentality was on the verge of breaking.

WDNMD!

This Devastating Ray can curve?!

Where's Grandpa Niu?!

No, wait, who's responsible for balancing this thing again?

Screw it, foreign inventions are unreliable. It's gotta be the good ol' ancestral tools!

Han Qiwu's eyes lit up as he thought of a solution: the ancient compass!

The upgraded, semi-dysfunctional compass has a special feature called Weakness Detection!

Time to use it!

Han Qiwu took out the semi-dysfunctional compass and marked the distant Lava Statue.

[Lava Statue successfully marked]

[Weakness Target refreshed]

Han Qiwu looked closely, spotting a circular glowing spot on the Lava Statue's right shoulder. The spot was fairly large, roughly the size of a fist.

"Hit it, and it'll lose 10% of its max health. Weakness refreshes every five minutes. Survive for fifty minutes, and this thing is toast!" Han Qiwu muttered while dodging the Devastating Ray, pulling out his rarely-used Mystical Crossbow, loaded it with a Mystical Crossbow Arrow, and aimed at the weak spot.

"Whoosh!"

The Mystical Crossbow Arrow flew straight to the weak spot, landing a hit and dealing an immense five-digit damage!

This was a colossal 10% of its max health!

Simultaneously, thin cracks appeared across the Lava Statue's surface, and the intensity of the Devastating Ray slightly diminished.

"It's doable!"

Han Qiwu dodged the incoming rays with renewed determination.

Four minutes later, the circular weak spot refreshed on the statue's side, its position slightly awkward.

But now, Han Qiwu noticed the weak spot had shrunk compared to before, making it harder to hit.

"Wait, does the weak spot shrink over time?" Han Qiwu frowned. "If that's the case, hitting it later is gonna be even tougher."

Not only that, but from observing the weak spot's positions, sooner or later it would refresh somewhere on the Lava Statue's back, beyond the Mystical Crossbow's reach.

Melee combat is inevitable!

Alright, let's go!

Han Qiwu gripped his Ice Bat, donned his Snow Armor, and stepped onto his Fire-Wind Wheel, charging at the Lava Statue with fiery energy.

After hitting the refreshed weak spot, he tested by striking the statue directly.

The impact confirmed his doubts.

Two-digit damage felt like the statue was mocking him!

Better stick to the weak spots.

Minute by minute, the cracks on the Lava Statue grew deeper. Although its Devastating Ray dimmed further, its speed and frequency of curving increased drastically, occasionally hitting Han Qiwu for a dozen points of damage.

"Huff, huff."

Han Qiwu nibbled on a strawberry, focusing on dodging the incoming rays.

Just a few dozen more seconds, then the final weak spot will refresh!

One solid hit, and this fight is over.

But just as the weak spot was about to refresh, Han Qiwu suddenly heard a rumbling sound near his ears. The lava beneath him began quaking violently, and the red rays around him jittered erratically before fading away.

"What's going on?"

Han Qiwu immediately turned to look.

Wait.

Are you kidding me??

The half-body Lava Statue just jumped out of the ground??

Its lower half wasn't legs but a massive stone block, yet that wasn't stopping it from hopping around like crazy!

Three feet per jump, incredibly fast.

"After all my effort, you're just gonna bail like that?!"

Do you think I'm okay with this?!

Stop right there!