Chapter 169
Chapter 169: The Activity at Night
Wildfire Bro was a Beastblood Berserker with considerable strength. His entire set of equipment did not lack Magic Defense and Vitality in the least and his HP had exceeded 1,500 HP which was by no means a simple feat achievable by just anyone. He specialized in dealing with magic-type monsters and Elementalists. Never would he have thought he would be on the losing end when Qin Ruo suggested a one-on-one.
With the battlefield being just a small circle surrounded by multiple players, Elementalists should not have many places to run or hide. By his estimation, activating his Berserk skill and defending himself from his opponent’s Warrior attacks would be sufficient in defeating his enemy.
Little did he know, things would not go as planned. What with Qin Ruo only executing Tier 1 Elementalism, the combined attack of Frostburst and Frost Arrows, and the resulting ice and snow effect caused by the Frostburst, Wildfire Bro’s attacks had been limited to merely defense and his melee attacks seen through by his rival. Qin Ruo had so easily caused his HP to drop by 300 HP.
Plus, the Darkfrost Sting that followed caused him a further 270 HP…
Despite getting the opportunity to gulp down a bottle of HP Potion (L), it did not take its full effect due him already being frozen by the Darkfrost Sting. With that, his HP was completely depleted!
As an ending, a snow eagle soared through the sky and proceeded to swoop down to attack Wildfire Bro, hence securing Qin Ruo’s victory!
***
*Thud!*
A muffled sound was heard.
Wildfire Bro’s corpse fell helplessly to the ground. His throat had been punctured and a few bloody holes can be seen. The dull sound of his falling body was deafening to the spectators as they witness it all happening right before their eyes.
On the left side of the crowd, the ten players who had been preparing themselves previously, with murderous intent, to retaliate against Qin Ruo now stood rooted to the ground, their breath caught in their throats. They could not believe their eyes as they stared at the dead body sprawled on the ground before them. He, who was just fighting. He, who was just in such high spirits. He, who was just there looking all confident. He, who now lied motionless on the battlefield. Their eyes shifted to Qin Ruo as they felt a chill down their spines.
‘F*ck you and your Honor Points! Who the hell are these people?!’
It was all too sudden and random.
Each one from that group had been using their Honor Points like it was nothing. Not one of them belonged to a clan. And the battle capability of this Tier 4 Aquamancer was way off the charts! Before the battle commenced, Qin Ruo and Wildfire Bro had exchanged information about their equipment and skills. Judging by that alone, it would have seemed that Qin Ruo did not stand a chance against his opponent. Wildfire Bro was equipped with Violet Equipment that draped him from head to toe. That very equipment possessed Magic Defense and other attributes that enhanced the player’s Vitality. Just by activating his Berserk alone should have been enough to make him the archenemy of any Elementalist!
But what a turn the battle took! It had ended in a mere fifteen seconds with the Tier 4 Aquamancer the decided winner!
A huge section of the crowd kept their eyes on the loser’s corpse, their minds coming to a blank as they thought about what just happened. The power of Qin Ruo’s Water Elementalism matched with his speed in casting his magic was absolutely humbling to watch. His was a style they had never seen before.
In fact, it was not just them who thought that way. The rest of the crowd appeared to be in agreement that it was a first for them to witness an Aquamancer design his battle style in such a bold manner.
Not once since the beginning of the battle did he activate his Tier 4 defense magic, neither did he move more than thirty meters. He paid no heed to the usual methods of attack and defense. He even opted to chat with his opponent in the middle of the battle. It was as if he was an absolute amateur!
Thinking about it now, Qin Ruo had been that way the whole time he attacked Wildfire Bro. He gave him no chance at fighting back by constantly firing his attacks.
What took the observers by surprise the most was the Elementalist charging directly into the range of the exploding Frostburst with a blurred, near to no, vision, with all the intention to get close enough to his enemy and strike him with a deadly attack. That move absolutely shook the many other Elementalists in the audience. It was not just them. The rest of the players were equally unnerved by the undeniable confidence Qin Ruo exuded.
***
With just the first battle!
The remaining ten players on the opposition who had planned to take on Qin Ruo one by one in a row were now discouraged by what they just saw, and appeared to be backing down.
To those on Qin Ruo’s side, it was all very clear. ‘Let’s ignore how Qin Ruo had executed his battle methods first and focus on him intimidating the enemy so that they would put a stop to their previous taunting attacks.’ It was obvious they did not have the ability to one up him. Since the defeat of Wildfire Bro, not one from his team had volunteered to go next.
By that time, the audience was getting impatient.
“Hey! Get a move on! Who is the second player? How about that guy over there? He still has a lot of MP left!”
“Yeah! Stop dilly-dallying and start the next battle already!”
After having discovered how much of an advantage the Tier 4 Aquamancer had despite appearing the opposite before it all started, the spectators tried turning up the heat by making a ruckus and pushing the ten challengers to quickly select the next in line to fight.
At that moment!
A section of the crowd suddenly split in half, paving a way for two strangers to walk through. They were a man and a woman, both wearing the insignia of Bauhinia League on their chests. The moment the onlookers caught sight of the badges, they softened down to a whisper…
“Bauhinia League?”
“Why are they here? Are they going to join the battle?” A number of players frowned, doubtful and uneasy by the sudden events.
A small group of people secretly got excited on their own as they knew the purpose of the League’s members’ presence.
“Whoa, this is getting big! Did you know that that Aquamancer is one of them? Didn’t you see the channel a few days ago? There was news about a Tier 3 Aquamancer killing an official member of Netherspirit’s Claw. If you knew, what are you still asking? That Aquamancer is that brat over there!”
“That’s him?”
For the first time, everyone out of the battle circle looked at Qin Ruo in a different light.
Slayer’s Heart and Violet Orchid walked up to Qin Ruo. Players with nothing to be embarrassed about feeling light-hearted and excited about the whole situation as they saw the two newcomers’ faces.
“What the… This is awesome! So he’s an unofficial member of Bauhinia League.”
“That must it! Damn! He picked Wildfire Bro’s bones clean! That brat was pretending all along to be just a simple player with nothing. No wonder Wildfire Bro lost!”
“Boss, please tell him that I no longer want to battle him. F*ck! I wouldn’t know what to do if I really died.”
“…”
***
On Qin Ruo’s end, he only managed to get in a word or two with Slayer’s Heart and Violet Orchid before they were promptly interrupted. Two players from the opposition had stepped out to state their battle retraction while indirectly admitting their loss. They also vaguely hinted that they would like to forget about the incident that happened back at Snow Domain.
Knowing that the arrival of Slayer’s Heart and Violet Orchid would come in handy in getting the enemy party to leave the site, Qin Ruo was not in the least bothered by their words. In fact, seeing that he could save himself from a lot of trouble, he decided that holding back one’s self would bring more good than harm in the long run.
Slayer’s Heart and Violet Orchid held the same sentiments as they shared their thoughts to him via voice messages. There was no point in keeping grudges. Letting go would be the wise thing to do, and that could potentially reduce his enemies.
Upon agreement to let bygones be bygones, the opposition team left while getting called out by the dissatisfied audience.
During the whole shenanigan, many players that were present became interested in Qin Ruo’s prowess and were inclined to offer him a spot in their respective clans. But the appearance of the two Bauhinia League members discouraged them from taking any action. No one knew for sure whether or not he was a member of their clan, although it would not be surprising if he were as he seemed to have quite a close relationship with the two. He probably would not take fancy of other Clans especially if he deemed them as mediocre.
Eventually, the crowd dispersed, and in no time, only nine players including Qin Ruo remained.
After some quick introductions, Slayer’s Heart said, “Aren’t you hungry? You haven’t had your dinner, right? Get going then. Hurry or you’ll miss the activity happening later at night.”
“Activity? Aricus?”
The first thing the came to mind was the secret chamber in the Aricus Underground Ruins. Just thinking about it gave Qin Ruo goosebumps.
Slayer’s Heart shook his head.
“We were planning on that, but the Pet System has just started, so that takes precedence.”
Qin Ruo let out a disappointing sigh.
“Ah, not yet?”
He had been committing himself to earn more money as he had been worrying about paying for Xin Yu’s operation. The wealth he could potentially be rewarded with at the Aricus Underground Ruins was extremely tempting. Hearing that they would not be going so soon brought his tension down.
Violet Orchid looked at him with a smile.
“Don’t be hasty. We’ve already collected three sets of maps that will trigger the quest. Let’s be patient and wait till everyone has bonded with a pet. Then you can have all the fun you want.” Pausing for a moment, she continued, “You should get a move on and bond with a pet. The earlier you do that, the greater the support we will obtain in the future. Aren’t you worried about it?”
“Why should I worry about pets? I’ve already done it two days ago,” Qin Ruo muttered under his breath. Before he could say anything else, Violetmoon Devilite cut in.
“Sister Orchid, have you all not bonded with a Pet?”
“That’s right, we haven’t.”
Violet Orchid nodded with a smile. She quite liked Violetmoon Devilite.
“Well, I have. Why don’t you have Brother Qin pick one for you? He has done some research on the combination of Pets.”
Cough cough.
Qin Ruo blushed at her words, faking a cough.
‘Little devil! I was just trying to show off a little in front of you guys. Don’t go spouting things like that to Sister Orchid and the others. What knowledge I have is so tiny and insignificant when displayed in front of them, the real experts.’
Slayer’s Heart and Violet Orchid were highly respected members of Bauhinia League. Their knowledge and understanding of the game were unrivaled.
Violet Orchid and Slayer’s Heart exchanged looks before smiling at Violetmoon Devilite.
“You picked your Pet Eggs from the pet shop, right?”
“Yes.” She nodded in response.
“The highest level of the pets available at the pet shop is only Level 42 monsters. Their Attributes are just average. Should they face a Boss-tier Pet, they are next to nothing.”
Listening to Burning Rose’s words, Violetmoon Devilite, Grandiose Dragon, and Blue Princess’s jaws dropped.
“Boss-tier Pet?!”
‘Awesome!’
Qin Ruo had predicted that Slayer’s Heart and the rest would not have followed the easy route the majority of the players took by simply buying a pet from the Pet Shop. Never did he expect though, that they would be aiming so high that they were targeting a Boss-tier Pet Egg.