"Stop spacing out, we need to find that shield!" Misty Rain was the first to react, calling out to the others.
She finally remembered that she wasn't here just to watch someone show off their skills. Bai Mu seemed to be handling the situation with ease, but he couldn't inflict any effective damage on the armor either. If this dragged on, things would inevitably go wrong, and the armor's target would eventually shift to someone else.
They needed to make the most of the time Bai Mu was buying them and find a way to break the stalemate.
"Brother Bai, hang in there! We'll be right back as soon as we find the shield!" Great Northern Wilderness shouted.
"Let's split up. My brother and I will head to the second floor, and you guys go to the basement," Nancheng Port added.
Meanwhile, as Bai Mu continued to distract the animated armor, he used the Guard Mushroom stuck to Misty Rain's shoulder to monitor the entire hall.
After scanning the area, he confirmed that there was nothing left in the hall worth chopping open. He then called out to the other four, "Hold on a second! Firefly, hit its knee with a Fireball Spell!"
This shout snapped the four of them back to reality. Scattered Fireflies, who had been staring blankly, was stunned for a moment. However, as a Player who had reached D-grade, she possessed the basic combat awareness required; otherwise, she would never have survived this long past the novice stage.
"Oh, got it!"
She quickly realized that Bai Mu needed her to help buy some time. Although a Fireball Spell couldn't destroy this tin can, it could briefly disrupt its movements. Without hesitation, she began gathering a fireball at the tip of her staff.
However, the armor monster was busy chasing Bai Mu, running wildly all over the place. She was just starting to worry that her Fireball Spell might miss when Bai Mu, as if anticipating her thoughts, suddenly stopped in his tracks. He unleashed a Quick Draw on the spot, perfectly parrying the armor's massive axe.
The impact forced the armor to stall for a brief moment. Scattered Fireflies did not miss this golden opportunity and immediately unleashed her Fireball Spell.
A cluster of fiery orange flames struck the armor squarely on its right knee. The connection between the iron boot and the greave instantly shattered, causing the massive figure to tilt and crash heavily onto its right side.
Naturally, this was not enough to kill it. An invisible mist quickly surged in to repair the damage, and within a few seconds, it hauled itself back up. Yet, the precious time it wasted allowed Bai Mu to successfully widen the distance between them.
Because of that strike, the armor's aggro shifted back to Scattered Fireflies. The hollow visor of its helmet turned to lock onto her. There was absolutely nothing inside, yet the dark abyss gave off a suffocating sense of dread.
Scattered Fireflies's pulse and breathing quickened once more as the memory of her recent brush with death flashed through her mind.
She subconsciously thought, 'Bai Mu must be reaching his limit. He wants me to draw the aggro away.'
Instead, Bai Mu came walking back carrying a massive wooden board. It was the oil painting. He had used the brief window Scattered Fireflies bought to take down the large oil painting hanging on the wall.
He then approached the armor, which had just regained its balance, and attached the oil painting to its empty left hand.
There was already a metal hanging ring attached to the back of the picture frame. He hooked this ring over the armor's left hand, and immediately, the creature hoisted the heavy frame into the air, wielding it exactly like a shield.
The dimensions of the oil painting were roughly the same as a standard shield. Remarkably, this makeshift replacement actually made the armored monster stop in its tracks. It no longer swung its axe in a frenzied rampage; instead, it turned around and began trudging back toward the heavy doors it had chopped to splinters earlier.
Soon enough, it returned to its original post. Holding the long axe in its right hand and the oil painting in its left, it stood perfectly straight like a diligent guard. As it turned out, the bloody words on the wall had provided a genuine clue: finding its "shield" really was all it took to calm the armor down.
Glancing down the corridor, Bai Mu walked over to the cabinet that had been split open. He picked up "The Witch's Diary" and dusted off the sawdust and grime covering its cover.
Before he even had the chance to examine the diary's contents, his four teammates gathered around him.
"Brother Bai, so the shield you were talking about was actually that painting all along," Great Northern Wilderness said, finally realizing what had happened.
"That armor doesn't have eyes, so it probably can't see a thing," Bai Mu explained. "So I figured we didn't necessarily have to find its original shield. Grabbing something roughly the same size might just be enough to fool it."
"Big Brother Bai, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?" Scattered Fireflies asked with genuine concern. "I still have a basic healing skill. I can help restore your Health."
"I'm fine, no need to heal me. Save your Mana for now. I've got my own healing items if my Health drops," Bai Mu replied.
His Health had only suffered a tiny scratch. The armor monster hadn't managed to land a single direct hit on him. However, its raw physical strength was so overwhelming that during their weapon clashes, Bai Mu had inevitably taken some impact damage, losing about five percent of his health—which was practically negligible.
His Stamina, on the other hand, had dropped by ten percent. This was primarily because he had led the armor on a wild goose chase around the entire hall. If he hadn't been trying to unearth hidden items, he could have used the oil painting to pacify the armor much earlier.
Even if the oil painting hadn't worked, it wouldn't have been a huge problem. Although this thing couldn't be killed, its attack methods were very limited. He could have just had Scattered Fireflies knock its axe away and then snatch its weapon.
It clearly lacked the capacity for complex thought. Without a weapon, its threat level would plummet, and they could likely just find an isolated room and lock it inside.
The only downside was that before they managed to lock it up, it would buzz around the party like an annoying mosquito, constantly interfering with their exploration.
Regardless, the problem was now solved. The Ancient Manor had returned to a state of eerie tranquility, though the massive pile of splintered furniture scattered across the hall made the place look like the aftermath of a violent robbery.
"I noticed you were intentionally avoiding leading that thing toward the oil painting, so I kind of guessed what you were planning." Misty Rain swept her gaze over the pulverized furniture. "But did you seriously just use its axe as a giant can opener?"
"There is a saying: only magic can defeat magic. Its axe could smash through doors, isn't that a huge hint right there?" Bai Mu pointed out. Misty Rain was speechless. It made sense in theory, but putting it into practice was a completely different story. Regardless, she would never be willing to risk her life drawing aggro like that. She could only chalk it up to a master's sheer audacity—she would never understand how top-tier experts operated.
"So, did you actually manage to find any hidden items?" Misty Rain asked.
Bai Mu raised the book in his hand, allowing the bold words on the cover—"The Witch's Diary"—to catch the eyes of the four Players.
"Let's see what's written inside first." Bai Mu opened the cover of the diary. On the yellowed pages, handwritten text was inscribed in black ink. "I have always been sick, and no one is willing to play with me.
Even Mommy and Daddy don't want to love me.
My illness was present from birth.
Ever since I was born, the skin on my face and feet has been ulcerated and rotting.
The joints in my feet also seem abnormal; it hurts even to walk.
The cause is unknown.
Let alone a cure.
There isn't a single decent doctor in this area, nor could we afford the medical fees.
This child's illness stems from the sins of her ancestors, and she is bound to endure eternal suffering.
I still remember those words from the fortune-teller."