Chapter 289 - Group Dynamics "This is the south huh? I haven't been here much." Alex whistled as she walked. "Have any of you guys quested in this zone?" No one answered her. They were currently traveling in the middle of a high-level zone with the monsters around them being at least Level 40. Each and every single battle was a struggle and they were only just getting by. While a level 40 beast in itself was not that difficult to handle, most of the mobs in the area roamed around as groups and this made things difficult. The fights were hectic and they had to give it their all, repeatedly focussing with complete mental attention and their physical capabilities. So it was quite draining as well. Well, at least for most members of the group. Alex and Mia, whose abilities were head and shoulders above everyone else were simply breezing through the fights. Mei Mei and Shen Yue tried competing with the two but they severely lacked combat experience which put them slightly behind those two. Of course, with emergencies, they could always rely on the two golems. However, Mia strictly forbade using them unless the situation absolutely called for it. So almost everyone in the group was dead tired and no one had the energy to enjoy the walk like Alex did. But… there was one other person in the group who was completely relaxed and this was Liam, sleepily lying on the white tiger which accompanied the group, not participating in any fight. Liam as well was enjoying the scenery like Alex. He had a subtle smile on his face for undisclosed reasons and with his eyes closed, he enjoyed the breeze brushing past his face. Actually, he had been awake for a while now but he was still acting as if he was asleep. With so many new people added to the group, he wanted to observe everyone's combat abilities. They had been playing together with Alex and Mia so he did not doubt their standards but he still wanted to observe their condition personally, gauge their strong points and weak points. And this was a perfect opportunity to do so. Their path was full of wild beasts and big poisonous insects. They had to stop ever so often to deal with the mobs, fighting and clearing the path ahead. Just as the group was slowly chatting and walking, loud snorts sounded from the opposite direction, and a herd of two-headed rhinoceros surrounded them. The beasts were tall and thick and all of them had big ferocious blood-thirsty eyes. They were at least level 42 this time around, even stronger than the mobs they had previously faced. However, without any hesitation, Mia immediately jumped into action. She was the first one to take charge, despite Alex being the tank. And the latter as well was not lagging by that much. She took charge of the other half that spilled over Mia and also grabbed the overall momentum. For a priest to do the job of a tank was completely unheard of. However, Mia was special. Since Alex was the only tank in their group at the moment, she proactively took this job and filled the gap, playing three different roles at the same time. Even Liam who was observing everything with his one eye open couldn't help but be amazed at this. She was like a dazzling star, shining brightly. Not one beast was able to touch her or even graze her. She was completely invulnerable. [Divine Radiance] [Divine Domination] [Divine Retribution] [Divine Protection] She tossed one powerful skill after another, completely utilizing her SSS-divine affinity. She also had a huge repertoire of skills at her disposal. She used them in perfect sync, rotating the weak ones and the strong ones, economically managing her mana. Mia had always been exceptional but lately, it was as if her talent had suddenly exploded. Alex herself noticed this and chalked this to either Rey being sick or the fact that this game was not as simple. It could potentially affect their very lives. In fact, not potentially. Their future depended on this random strange game that had appeared out of nowhere. Knowing all this, how could anyone not take things seriously. The Mia before was different and the Mia now was completely different. Not wanting to be left behind and be helpless any longer, Alex also tried her best. She dealt with the beasts, the best she could, keeping them at bay with her numerous skills. [Shield Bash] [Block] [Divine Brilliance] [Divine Radiance] [Divine Wrath] The rhinos were extremely violent and rammed against her with full force. They were coming at her from all directions, but she skillfully dealt with the group without getting overwhelmed and run over. She bashed her shield against one beast, making it lose balance and stumble, falling on the side of the other beast, making it unstable as well. Before the two recovered again, she turned to face the other two ramming at her from her back. In this manner, she kept the beasts at bay and brawled with them with an equally fierce vigor, roaring even louder than the rhinos. The others were also not standing simply. Seeing the two MVPs at it like usual, the three mages in the team started casting a multitude of spells. Mei Mei summoned her totems and dealt a chunk of damage. Shen Yue silently appeared next to the beasts and targeted the weak wounded spots to deal critical damage. The other melee and long-range attackers were also above average and could easily become elites in top guilds. They had also been playing with Alex and Mia since the beginning and their respect towards the ice goddess was just short of worship. More importantly, every single one of these players was a heavy hitter. While Alex and Mia handled the tanking part, these guys thrashed the rhinos around, hardly breaking a sweat. The only group that was actually struggling to keep up was the group of Korean players. They also knew that their skills were subpar. Nevertheless, they had a good learning attitude and simply tried their best without being in anyone's way. Overall, the group had already played together in a few dungeons and dealt with a bunch of mobs so they had some sort of coordination and proceeded to deal with rhinos swiftly. Apart from their raw strength, these beasts also possessed a wind attribute and ever so often unleashed some wind blades which because of the sheer number of the beasts dealt massive AoE damage. Mia and the two other healers including Kang Mina took care of this burst damage quickly healed everyone back up. Because of their quick reaction speed and fast actions, most of the team's health was hovering around the halfway point. At the same time, the rhinos' health was slowly and steadily decreasing. Soon one after the other started dropping dead and this mob as well was easily taken care of. However, just as the last beast hit the ground, and everyone excitedly rushed forward to check the drops that were littered all around, Alex alone turned to the back and angrily harrumphed. "How long are you planning to simply lie there and watch the show?"