Chapter 35: Taking a Beating

Chu Ge was utterly baffled.

He hadn't fully grasped what had happened when the entire mission instance reset to its starting point. After getting punched to the point of dizziness, he finally started to get back on his feet, with his buzzing head gradually clearing.

"So... I've died once already?

"If the instance hadn't reset, I probably wouldn't have even realized I was out.

"Seriously, is this boss a little too overpowered? One punch and I was down!

"If this were a regular game, the devs in charge of balancing would probably have their horses confiscated by the players.

"Alright, if I must justify it, I suppose that punch was his full-force attack, which could be seen as his ultimate move. I didn't react in time, took a direct hit to the head, and got KO'd instantly, which makes sense.

"But still, the boss AI is ridiculous. Who starts with an ultimate move right off the bat? It's like someone playing poker and immediately dropping a trump card!

"Okay... calm down. I just got the 'Master of Fist' skill.

"Think through the muscle memory techniques: dodging, blocking… basically, meet his moves with counters. This is just a game, after all. Getting KO'd on first contact is normal."

Indeed, even with a combat skill, overconfidence is a mistake.

Otherwise, the first boss will teach you a lesson.

Although he's now boosted his combat stats with a skill, there are still significant gaps that the combat skill alone can't cover.

For example, judgment and actual combat experience.

After taking a fighting stance, there was still quite a distance between Chu Ge and Xue Tianba, so he imagined Xue Tianba would approach cautiously, like in martial arts movies, probing as he moved slowly, only making a sudden move when he got within range.

Naturally, this caused him to relax his guard a bit.

But Xue Tianba did the opposite, charging at high speed and landing a heavy punch before Chu Ge was mentally prepared, leaving his mind blank without time to block or dodge.

This is similar to action games.

Any player can press the attack button, but a novice will be beaten senseless by the boss, whereas a skilled player can turn the tables, even with similar characters. The difference lies in judgment and experience.

Chu Ge, who had already cleared the scholar instance, now approached this game with a purely experiential mindset, so a minor setback wasn't going to break his spirit.

After mentally adjusting, he moved forward once again.

Xue Tianba took his stance, looking at him with mockery and disdain.

This time, Chu Ge didn't dare let his guard down. He prepared his stance, eyes fixed on Xue Tianba's movements, ready to block or dodge at any moment. With the "Master of Fist" skill, these actions were embedded in muscle memory and would only need precise timing.

But Xue Tianba seemed to notice his alertness and, rather than rushing forward, began moving toward him slowly, seemingly at ease.

Chu Ge was momentarily puzzled—was he changing tactics this time?

Right as he started to ease up slightly, Xue Tianba spotted his opportunity, surging forward in an instant!

Internally, Chu Ge cursed but was only slightly off guard. Though he didn't react immediately, he managed to raise his arms to block in time.

But Xue Tianba's right fist was a feint; he pulled back before touching Chu Ge's arm, then shifted his weight and swept low, kicking Chu Ge's shin!

Chu Ge felt himself spinning, falling flat on his back.

Before he could process what was happening, Xue Tianba's elbow was already crashing down onto his face.

"Wham!"

Chu Ge felt as if a mountain had come crashing down, like his head was being driven into the ground by that brutal elbow strike.

Out.

The instance reset to its starting point again.

Chu Ge lay on the ground, stunned for nearly half a minute before slowly getting back up.

His body had technically recovered the moment the instance reset, but he'd stayed down that long because he was genuinely confused by the game.

"This boss's AI is just too high!

"He spots when I let my guard down and immediately goes for a sneak attack, but when I'm fully focused, he waits patiently, circling me, looking for an opening.

"Plus, he seems to anticipate my intentions. If I focus on his upper body, he targets my lower body.

"I didn't even get to show off any of my martial skills before he KO'd me.

"Alright, let's go again!

"I don't believe it! How many tricks can you have? Once I can fully block your three moves, it'll finally be my turn!"

Chu Ge braced himself and charged again.

After several more minutes…

Chu Ge picked himself up again, staring at the instance reset with a hint of self-doubt.

Luckily, the game mercifully dulled the pain, otherwise, getting beaten like this repeatedly would seriously wear down his morale.

Chu Ge could clearly feel the hits and the pain, but it was manageable and didn't cloud his mind, so he could still think straight, without being overwhelmed by pain to the point of losing all will to resist.

Still, getting tossed around like a punching bag didn't make for an enjoyable experience.

Chu Ge's initial thought was simple: this boss seemed to have only a few main attacks, so if he blocked them, he could counterattack afterward.

He was partly correct.

At first, Xue Tianba did only use those main attacks, and blocking them indeed created counter opportunities, but the catch was that Xue Tianba could also block or evade.

Chu Ge's confident punch was easily deflected, and Xue Tianba's counter sent him stumbling back several steps. The boss immediately followed up with a sweep, knocking him down again.

So, this game could indeed be played in turns—block Xue Tianba's attacks, then counter. The problem, however, was that each turn was too short and fast, and to deal any real damage, Chu Ge would need to go through a dozen, if not dozens, of rounds.

For a beginner, Xue Tianba was unbeatable.

He was fast, hit hard, defended well, and could counter as if he had a built-in script, with no visible health bar to show progress.

In the scholar instance, ten minutes was more than enough for Chu Ge to analyze many details and advance significantly in the game's progression.

But in the rogue instance, all Chu Ge had done was take hits.

"Alright, it seems I'm just not cut out to be a rogue.

"I'll wait for a walkthrough video to come out and follow that.

"Meanwhile, I'd be better off replaying the scholar instance to see if I can find any more efficient strategies."

Chu Ge wasn't stubborn. He knew when to retreat.

If he were a hardcore player like Zhao Haiping, he might grind away at the rogue instance until he passed, but that wasn't him. His strengths lay in analysis and puzzle-solving.

So, he decided to leave the rogue instance for players who were better suited for it.