17. The Greater the Responsibility, the Greater the Burden

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Many thanks to the Embarrassing Witch for correcting Jiang Heyi’s narrow perception of inferior low-tier magical potions through her work.

Severe reactions, rapid combustion, and explosive properties combined—who in their right mind would casually put such a thing up for sale?

The Embarrassing Witch dares to, and even tempts you to buy with the excuse of struggling to make ends meet, supporting impoverished witches...

Such a dangerous item carries no warning label, and the instructions are distilled into a single sentence:

“Just aim at the enemy and throw it.”

Is this truly a proper witch, or some unknown cult sorcerer in this world’s lore?

Jiang Heyi’s whole body ached. From being blasted away to forcing his battered frame upright, he had already cursed the Embarrassing Witch countless times in his mind.

Just wait—I’ll overturn your stall when I get back and yank off your witch’s hat!

The center of the garden blazed fiercely. Within the bombing radius of the Unstable Combustion Potion, the flames shimmered in strange black-and-white hues. Fire spat out, consuming the sea of flowers. A stark black-and-white boundary of fire silently spread outward from the explosion’s center.

The burning flame paths intertwined with a creature bathed in fire, roaring and thrashing against the black-and-white flames—a discordant ink painting seemingly poised to stain everything within this space in shades of black and white.

A grotesque giant frog’s head, slender pale humanoid arms, a mermaid or sea witch’s scaled torso, and long, flexible octopus tentacles.

This was the full appearance of the monster that instantly annihilated the entire Virtual-Real Boundary team.

Perhaps it shouldn’t even be called a monster. Anyone who glimpsed it felt an intense sense of dissonance, as if parts cut from different creatures had been stitched together.

The four survivors of the Virtual-Real Boundary continued watching from the sidelines. Original Fries clenched his teeth against a chill and muttered, “Frankenstein’s monster.”

The frog’s head, occupying nearly a third of the monster’s body, caused it to lean forward slightly.

It hunched, screaming loudly, its voice childlike—fragmented and piercing—pushing everyone’s discomfort to a peak.

Jiang Heyi staggered into a run.

The real game feedback made his body unbearably heavy after the shock, and the buzzing ringing in his ears affected his balance. Instinct alone coordinated his battered frame.

He had only one chance. Even severely wounded, a monster of this caliber would not grant him a second strike. Those powerful tentacles could obliterate him with a mere flick, turning him into a splash of blood and bubbles.

He must avoid a single hit and deliver a fatal blow.

No margin for error—conditions were brutally exacting.

Under immense pressure, adrenaline flooded his system, heightening brain and body. He could hear his heart pounding like war drums and feel his muscles trembling uncontrollably.

Most people’s brains would overload and their movements distort.

Fortunately, Jiang Heyi was not that kind of person.

Ripples formed in the void; a pitch-black vortex spat out fine purple-black threads, slicing through the air.

Watching from a god’s-eye view, Orange Tea’s eyes widened. Jiang Heyi’s reflexes were unbelievably swift. As he plunged his blade into the ground to brake abruptly, narrowly dodging several nearly invisible spiderweb-like magical cutting rays, his astonishment peaked.

The attack came from above—he hadn’t even lifted his head to look!

“This, this, this…”

“When Potato plays FPS games, his endgame stats are absurd,” Zhong Zemuo explained. “In his words, the worse the situation, the more excited he gets.”

“That’s why I always go head-to-head with him at the start, giving him the stage,” Original Fries retorted.

“You can’t win a gunfight; excuses are plentiful,” he added.

The Embarrassing Witch’s potion effect was far more terrifying than expected. Bathing in flames, Jiang Heyi’s entire body throbbed with pain.

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“Back Against the Wall,” Jiang Heyi’s favorite skill—this ability to abandon all retreat and fight to the death perfectly matched his combat style.

“Immerse yourself, embody it…”

Jiang Heyi leapt high into the air.

He and Original Fries were the same kind of players—fully immersing themselves in their characters when gaming.

Demonic invasion, temple destroyed, squad wiped out, only one survivor...

This was a strike woven with anger and sorrow, infused with a desire for vengeance.

His blade plunged into the giant frog’s soft, swollen eyeball. Using the momentum of his descent, Jiang Heyi twisted the blade fiercely, stirring it!

“Die, ugly freak!” he shouted hoarsely, exerting maximum force.

The aftershock of “Back Against the Wall” pierced through the creature’s shell. The giant frog’s head, like an overinflated balloon, exploded with a thunderous blast.

The tentacles, scorched and reddened by the flames, finally arrived. They curled around Jiang Heyi, using the neural signals sent out before death to slam forcefully on the ground.

The shield potion activated, then shattered instantly. Riding the momentum of the tentacle strike, Jiang Heyi rolled on the ground, smoke rising, escaping beyond the monster’s attack range.

“Wow, even a death counterattack was anticipated? He even used that to create distance.”

“Stop whining and pay attention! Learn properly!” Original Fries sneered at Jailor Bro. “Embarrassing Mage.”

“Why embarrassing? If it weren’t for my elemental shield earlier, you’d have been killed instantly. Am I not crucial?”

More “wows” and “wows” followed.

“Feels like we’re not even playing the same game,” Zhong Zemuo sighed as he watched the exhausted Jiang Heyi rise, wiping sweat from his brow.

At the blazing center of the flower sea, the headless Frankenstein monster wildly thrashed its tentacles, pounding the ground in frustration, its movements weakening.

At last, azure light particles drifted from its motionless body, floating gently toward Jiang Heyi, merging into him.

“This…” Zhong Zemuo could hardly contain his joy. “Victory?”

“Experience has been tallied. We’re champions, we’re champions, we’re always champions!”

Jailor Bro’s spirit circled Jiang Heyi. “As expected of you, the greater the responsibility, the greater the responsibility, the Responsible God Potato!”

“What does that mean?” Orange Tea looked bewildered.

Zhong Zemuo thought for a moment and explained in layman’s terms: “Basically, when teammates don’t carry their weight, the sole leader shoulders the burden and drags everyone forward—and still wins.”

Original Fries felt the monster’s displayed strength didn’t match its instant-kill threat. Though Jiang Heyi’s endgame performance was impressive, something felt off.

“Could there still be a twist?”

“The experience is already counted. What twist? If there’s one, I’ll eat this.” Jailor Bro was quick to judge.

Jiang Heyi couldn’t hear their voices now. He was deeply puzzled.

Experience tallied, but no loot.

Such a powerful mid-level boss—shouldn’t there be some thrilling reward for victory?

He scratched his head. Since Orange Tea joined, the team’s luck had been unbroken. Had their fortune been drained?

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

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Amidst the black-and-white flames, the headless smoking corpse of the Frankenstein monster twitched.

To everyone’s astonishment, the octopus tentacles, slightly reddened and fragrant with roasted scent, regained strength and swung powerfully.

The frail humanoid arms, severed, were drawn together by the swirling black-and-white flames like threads, converging as if shaped by an invisible force. Slowly, a giant werewolf claw materialized.

Elemental energy coalesced the shell!

“It can still move without a head…”

“Hey, hey, hey, how can it still change phases?”

“Who said there’d be twists and that they’d ‘eat’ if wrong—what are you eating? Hurry up and decide.”

Jiang Heyi was utterly drained, his stamina at its limit.

A mere single-layer monster guard possessed such strength and tactics. The Clear Sanctuary had twelve layers in total...

Surprisingly, Jiang Heyi could sense the monster’s raging fury.

Was it anger at being killed, or from Jiang Heyi’s shouted insult of “ugly freak” as he struck?

The monster’s ink-wash-paint-colored, fiercely burning elemental arms rose high to the sky. Anticipating what was to come, Jiang Heyi smiled wryly.

“Hey, can we settle this peacefully?”

The monster dissipated like mist. Moments later, Jiang Heyi’s vision darkened as he successfully joined the others’ voice channel.

“What’s its invisibility mechanism? Vanishing into the void with no physical form? That’s insane.”

“Could it be a game mechanic? If we don’t trigger it, we can’t kill it?”

Everyone was engaged in lively discussion, debating strategies to defeat the Frankenstein monster.

Collaborating to uncover the approach, voices chirping with opinions—it had been a long time since they’d enjoyed such lively camaraderie.

The most thrilling aspect of many games was the initial exploration—the challenge of unknown mechanics always stirred the spirit.

Yet, with busy lives, the time needed for “early raids” had gradually become a relic of the past.

With this in mind, Jiang Heyi shed his burdens and laughed: “Looks like we’re heading for a rematch.”

“Will we win?” Jailor Bro asked earnestly.

“We will,” Zhong Zemuo answered.

Their exchange made Original Fries blush, struggling to hold back laughter.

When, oh when, would hearing such words no longer make him laugh?

“What’s next, Responsible God?” Orange Tea put his learning to use, immediately addressing Jiang Heyi thus.

At this rate, how long before adorable Orange Tea gets corrupted by Jailor Bro…

“Back to Windpod City for supplies,” Jiang Heyi said. “I plan to have a chat with the Embarrassing Witch.”

“Your XP system is tuned to witches?”

“You, with your nun tag, don’t judge others by yourself,” Jiang Heyi clicked his tongue. “I want to restock from her.”