novelThe Decisive Battle (1)
| ← Ch.292 | Ch.294 → |
Once Fennel finished speaking, Quiet And Steadfast felt thankful for his foresight. Otherwise, the position of Lead Disciple might really have fallen into Crying Fish's hands. Although she could be a little idiotic at times, her strength was nothing to scoff at.
"Everyone knows that in order to combat the Shinra Sect, we need to band together and work as one, so our ability to cooperate with one another is vital. For that to happen, we need to have a good understanding of one another. And, the best way to familiarize ourselves with the tactics and habits of other people is through battle. To that end, I've decided that the finals will proceed as follows: each of the three finalists will take on the other five Lead Disciples. The person with the most number of victories will be crowned the winner. I hope that the other five Lead Disciples can assist us in this matter."
Looks of astonishment appeared on everyone's faces after Leisurely Viewing Nanshan made her announcement.
Shen Jingbin and company were surprised for a brief moment before their expressions were replaced with joy, while Crying Fish broke into a frown.
The five Lead Disciples were on that ugly monster's side. With things as they are, they'd definitely give her a hard time, and no amount of levels or equipment would help her!
Crying Fish hated Leisurely Viewing Nanshan so much that she was crying tears of blood.
Amongst the representative spectators, two of them hailed from Life At First Sight. Crying Fish cast a meaningful glance at her guild members, and they immediately stepped out to protest.
"Hey, this isn't right. Isn't this an internal issue amongst the Nymphs? Why're you dragging other people into this? To top it off, they might not even accept this arrangement."
After the player from Life And First Sight spoke up, The Winds Of Ximen immediately chimed in, "Not really; we're more than happy to help out."
F*ck! Where the hell did that come from?!
If looks could kill, who knows who many times the Winds Of Ximen would have died at the hands of Crying Fish's death glare.
Pure Crane nodded."I think that having a match now to get know one another better is a pretty good idea. I'll cooperate."
"I have no objections, " Qi Mu said.
Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly nodded his agreement.
Shen Jingbin cupped her chin and added, "I don't have any objections either."
Crying Fish continued to cast meaningful looks at her guild members, while the person who spoke up racked his brain to think of a rebuttal. Unfortunately, Fennel spoke up before he could offer a retort."I think this is a good idea too. It looks like I've picked the right person, so let's do it like this then. We'll be troubling the five Lead Disciples."
"You're too kind, Sect Leader, " Pure Crane replied.
"The battle for the position of the Nymph Abode's Lead Disciple will now begin. Competitors, please get ready, " Just as Crying Fish was about to issue her final struggle, the referee NPC whose eyes were hidden by a white veil appeared in the center of the courtyard and emotionlessly announced the commencement of the final round. With that, the matter was laid to rest.
Crying Fish glanced dejectedly at Leisurely Viewing Nanshan and concentrated all of her dissatisfaction into it.
Alright, she's remembered Leisurely Viewing Nanshan's face. She was going to hunt her down if she didn't manage to get the position of Lead Disciple.
Once the commencement of the finals was announced, an enormous circle appeared at the center of the courtyard. The five Lead Disciples stood on the left of the circle, while the three Nymphs stood on the right. Leisurely Viewing Nanshan, Fennel, and the veiled referee stood on top of the circle itself, and the spectators stood beneath it.
"The order in which the three of you will compete will be left to you to decide. Who will be the first to fight?" Leisurely Viewing Nanshan asked.
Blooming Flower and Sentimental Musings exchanged a glance with one another before revealing a friendly smile."I'm tired after a day of fighting. The sooner I die, the sooner I'll respawn, so I'll be going first. Do the two of you have any objections?"
"That's fine, I have no objections, " Blooming Flower said.
Sentimental Musings then turned her attention to Crying Fish who hadn't even once looked her in the eye this entire time and asked, "What about you?"
"Do whatever you want."
Sentimental Musings pulled out a recovery pill from her inventory and swallowed it before she stepped into the circle. She clasped her hands in greeting and said, "My name is Sentimental Musings. I request your guidance."
Surprise flashed across Quiet And Steadfast's face when he noticed Sentimental Musings consume the pill. It turns out that she'd had a Soul Returning Pill too. It looks like there was more to this guildless player than meets the eye.
These pills - Soul Returning Pills - sounded very terrifying, but in truth, it was their refining process that was difficult. The minimum proficiency required to refine them was a Grandmaster Apothecary. Furthermore, the main ingredient, the rozelle plant, only grew in Eternal Island which was filled with aggressive high-levelled monsters that boasted strong attacks. While making the plant, there was even a chance of running into a guardian that was only slightly weaker than a world BOSS, making even the process of gathering the plant a tall order.
He held back Shen Jingbin who wanted to make for the stage, stepping forward as he said, "Let me handle the first round. She's likely a high profile individual too. I'll go probe her."
Shen Jingbin backed off and watched Quiet And Steadfast step onto the stage. Both competitors exchanged a bow before jumping straight to fighting. As his objective was to sound Sentimental Musings out, Quiet And Steadfast fought in a very conservative manner.
Noticing Shen Jingbin focusing intently on Sentimental Musings, Pure Crane broke into an explanation from behind her."Sentimental Musings was previously the top Nymph in Sovereign's Descent, so her battle sense and combat process are both formidable. However, she had some issues in real life that prevented her from playing. It's been a while, but she's recently made a return. I myself was surprised when I saw her in Matchless City."
"Eh? Sovereign's Descent?"
"Mm. Back then, she left the guild due to the conflicts she had with Neverending Journey's wife. When she left, she removed all of the guild members from her friend list as well. I used to frequently run dungeons and fight in battlegrounds with her. We were on good terms, so she didn't remove me from her friend list."
"Looks like there's going to be a nice show to watch then."
"Maybe. I don't know the exact details since I don't concern myself with these things."
While the two of them were speaking, the battle on the stage concluded. Quiet And Steadfast had continued to fight conservatively, but there was too much of a difference in power between them. Sentimental Musings gradually fell into a disadvantageous position and was eventually pushed off the stage by Quiet And Steadfast.
"You're strong. I admit defeat, " Sentimental Musings calmly said after she was pushed out of the stage.
Quiet And Steadfast wordlessly nodded, folded his hands behind his back, and walked off the stage.
"The victor of round one is the Lich Palace's Quiet And Steadfast. Will the next competitor please come forward."
Pure Crane patted Shen Jingbin's shoulder and stepped past her onto the stage.
Chapter 298: The Decisive Battle (2)
At the end of the five rounds, Sentimental Musings had beaten Qi Mu and nearly won against Shen Jingbin. Unfortunately, Shen Jingbin had managed to wrap her horsetail whisk around Sentimental Musings and pull her off the stage just before Shen Jingbin herself was rung out, leading to an unfortunate defeat.
The second to step up was Blooming Flower. Naturally, nothing needed to be said about her combat prowess. Apart from losing to Quiet And Steadfast and fighting Pure Crane to a draw, she easily won her other three matches.
Crying Fish's expression was extremely unsightly when Blooming Flower descended from the stage.
Since Blooming Flower had won three rounds, it meant that she had to win at least four. Fighting against Quiet And Steadfast was a guaranteed loss; no one in the game could beat him. Putting him aside, out of the remaining four Lead Disciples, three of them were difficult for her to deal with. Even trying to win three battles was a challenge for her.
After Blooming Flower walked off the stage, the veiled referee announced, "In the second battle, player Blooming Flower has three victories, one draw, and one loss. Will the next competitor please step forward."
Crying Fish took several deep breaths before she slowly stepped onto the stage.
The first person she was up against was Quiet And Steadfast.
"Ah Ning, we've known each other for so long now, you..." Crying Fish gazed lovingly at the tall and well-built man in front of her, the apprehension evident on her face.
Before she had the chance to finish speaking her mind, I'm Not A Monster suddenly interjected."Who's friends with you?! Can you stop spouting nonsense, Quarrelsome Fish? Stop mincing your words! It's like you're going through menopause!"
The rest of what Crying Fish wanted to say found itself stuck in her throat. She glared hatefully at I'm Not A Monster, while the players beside him cast admiring gazes at him.
This was the first time that Quiet And Steadfast had openly approved of I'm Not A Monster's actions in public. He then turned his attention back to Crying Fish."Let's begin."
Since things turned out like this, there was nothing else for her to say. All she could do was look at him with grief-ridden eyes before she reluctantly leapt into action.
The result was a foregone conclusion. Quiet And Steadfast mercilessly defeated Crying Fish in less than a minute.
"Quiet And Steadfast, you!" Crying Fish glared at the man on the stage the instant she was knocked out. Quiet And Steadfast was the picture of calm as he glanced at her and said, "I've already wasted a day's worth of time, I just wanted to get this over and done with a little quicker."
"Tsk tsk tsk, this person has no gentlemanly air about him at all, " Shen Jingbin said with a sigh as she repeatedly shook her head."But, I like it!"
"Hehe, people who display public shows of affection should get lost!" The Winds Of Ximen said.
Pure Crane and The Winds Of Ximen fought in the second and third rounds. Although both of them didn't say anything, their attacks were just as merciless as Quiet And Steadfast's, giving Crying Fish no opportunity to strike back.
Truth be told, Shen Jingbin found it a little hard to watch the later rounds. When they were up against Blooming Flower, these men still held onto their gentlemanly spirit, ensuring that even if she lost, she didn't do so in an unsightly manner. But, when it came to Crying Fish, they acted like they were tearing open the seal on an envelope.
After being brutally beaten in her earlier three matches, the light finally returned to Crying Fish's eyes when Shen Jingbin stepped onto the stage."It's finally your turn. I'm going to use this chance to settle the debts between us."
Even if she couldn't beat Shen Jingbin, at the very least, she wouldn't lose too badly. At this point, she'd realised that there was no chance of her becoming a Lead Disciple. Since that was the case, she wanted to throw some shade at this ugly monster!
"I'm the only one who has a score to settle with you, not the other way around. If any debts are being settled, I should be the one doing it, " Shen Jingbin corrected Crying Fish without the slightest change in her expression.
"Heh, whatever you say then. In the past, you had a Divine Beast by your side so I couldn't beat you. But now, without it around, the victor is no longer certain. Do you have what it takes to make a bet with me? If you lose, you'll..."
While Crying Fish was still going on and on about her bet, the referee unexpectedly appeared and delivered a deadpan warning."Please begin fighting as soon as possible. It will be viewed as the challenger giving up if the battle doesn't commence within the next ten seconds."
"Pfft!"
"Hahahahaha!"
"Lololololololol!"
All of the spectators burst into laughter.
Crying Fish's face went from surprised to angry. When the referee counted down to'2', her eyes hardened, and she rushed forward. At the same time, an underhanded attack flew towards Shen Jingbin.
| ← Ch. 292 | Ch. 294 → |