Back in Spirit of Grief, archers were pure shooters whose one job was to instakill the enemy from range. The top-tier archers at the time were Magic Cube of Fate, October Rain, and Transient Smoke and Clouds, while third-rate archers included the legendary Frivolous Scholar himself and more. However, the times were constantly changing, and games were no exception. Today, archers had enough arm strength to wield a giant blade. With good enough dagger mastery, an archer could turn into half an a.s.sa.s.sin in close range combat if necessary.

Beiming Xue was an expert who grew stronger under this new flexibility. Since the day she tried to ambush me at Floating Ice Forest, the intelligent girl had been searching for a way to turn the Archer cla.s.s into a G.o.dlike cla.s.s. When she met the Fruit Knife G.o.ddess and witnessed the power of the dagger, she finally found what she was looking for. She sparred constantly with Lin Yixin to hone her dagger-parrying skills, and today she was half a cla.s.s better than all the other top-tier archers in China.

Nangong Lexi one was one of the Twenty Four Snow Moon Cavalry, but her control was weaker than Magic Cube of Fate's. Today, most of Snow Moon's experts had retired, and there wasn't much she could do as a single person. That changed completely when Lin Yixin gave her her word, however. Nangong Lexi was one of the people who had witnessed Lin Yixin's heroic feat with her own eyes, so she knew full well just how strong she was. However, the real reason she joined Snowy Cathaya was because she had found a true companion in Lin Yixin.

Nangong Lexi had experienced boundless glory, so the number of people that were really up to her standards could be counted on one hand. Lin Yixin was one of them...

……

"OMG, did Beauty Lin just recruit Nangong Lexi?" Li Chengfeng swore before looking at me. "You should've gone to her first, Lu Chen. Nangong Lexi is a great archer!"

I pouted. "I don't have Yiyi's charm, okay?"

Li Chengfeng responded, "Beauty Lin sure is a woman of action. She's already making up for her team's loss in the WEL. Clear Perfume is Beauty Lin's cla.s.smate, but she's just a normal person and one of the reasons Snowy Cathaya was beaten by Soul Battle Robes. If Nangong Lexi had replaced her, improved her control by 10%, and gained the ability to protect herself at close range, this semi-final would've been very different."

"Mn." I nodded smilingly. "Yiyi has always been a smart girl. She knows how important it is to nurture her guild's best players. In the future, Snowy Cathaya will grow even stronger, and Yiyi will have three solid point securers in her team. I can already imagine the compet.i.tions she's going to terrorize…"

Our conversation was cut short when Beiming Xue glared at us and said, "h.e.l.lo? We're fighting Candle Dragon in a minute, so where is your tension, people?"

I gripped the Purple Ying Sword and hardened my gaze into steel. "You're right. It's time to teach Candle Dragon a lesson!"

A while later, the match-ups for the second battle of the semi-finals appeared on the big display—

1v1: Lian Xing LV-182 Phantasm of Stars VS G.o.d's Dance LV-182 Dark Flame Mage

1v1: Beiming Xue LV-183 Dark Archer VS Candlelight Shadow LV-182 Warrior

1v1: Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand LV-182 Undead Swordsman VS Blue Sky Scar LV-180 Wind Knight

1v1: From Water LV-180 Magic Knight VS Ye Yuse LV-181 Charm Master

2v2: Beiming Xue LV-183 Dark Archer & Broken Halberd Sinks Into Sand LV-182 Undead Swordsman VS Candlelight Shadow LV-182 Warrior & Ye Yuse LV-181 Charm Master

……

The actual match-ups were completely different from what we had expected. Ideally, I would be fighting Candlelight Shadow because I had the Purple Ying Sword and the Dragon G.o.d s.h.i.+eld, which boosted my chances of beating Candlelight Shadow to over 60%. It was a completely different story if it was Beiming Xue, however. Candlelight Shadow hadn't been called the Martial G.o.d for nothing; his swordsmans.h.i.+p was without a doubt one of the best in the entire country.

"OMG, these match-ups…" Lian Xin was quite surprised by how things had turned out. "The first match is me versus G.o.d's Dance?"

He Yi consoled her smilingly, "This isn't bad, is it? This is your chance to prove yourself. Go take out Candle Dragon's strongest mage and show them what true mage OP really looks like!"

"Mn! I'll be right back…"

One teleport later, Lian Xin appeared on a 100x100 yard gra.s.sy field. There was some shrubbery at the center of the arena that could be used to break line of sight, but it was a bit too small. High level of control would be needed to use it properly.

Swhoos.h.!.+

After G.o.d's Dance appeared on the battlefield, she watched Lian Xin calmly and said, "We met two years ago, didn't we? At the time, you were just a little girl I could one-shot with two instant Fireb.a.l.l.s. To think that even you have grown up so much…"

Lian Xin's beautiful face right now could only be described as frigid. "Hmph! If you think I'm still the same as I was two years ago, then you'll be very sorry! You'll learn with your death very soon just how strong the top-tier mages of Ancient Sword Dreaming Souls really are!"

The battle hadn't even started yet, and tension was sharp enough to cut through steel, and the smell of gunpowder permeated throughout the stage.

Mage versus mage battles basically boiled down to positioning and blasting each other's faces with spells. The player who managed to dish out more damage and receive less via good movement was the victor.

The countdown hit zero, and both girls moved just in time to dodge an explosion of Fireball and Wind Blade they had fired at the other party. Touch of the Dragonkiss was too wide to dodge out of the way though, and the spells destroyed the ground they were on and distorted their Magic s.h.i.+elds a little. So far, both combatants had managed to dodge over 50% of their enemy's spells through movement alone.

Bang!

A force field appeared right behind G.o.d's Dance. She tried to circle around it, but another force field blocked her way, and the magic circle representing Ice Spiral Matrix appeared beneath her feet. Ice Spiral Matrix did too much damage, so G.o.d's Dance had no choice but to Blink away to safety.

Lian Xin's Blinked at the same time G.o.d's Dance did and struck the ground with the shaft of her scepter, causing Touch of the Dragonkiss to burst out of the ground and engulf G.o.d's Dance Magic s.h.i.+eld immediately. The power gap between the two started to show at this moment. Cracks were appearing all over G.o.d's Dance Magic s.h.i.+eld, but Lian Xin's Telekinetic s.h.i.+eld still had over 70% durability.

G.o.d's Dance remained calm despite her dire situation. She waved her scepter lightly and cried, "Dark Flame h.e.l.l Ground!"

Boom!

The earth beneath Lian Xin split in half and turned into a sea of flames, eating away at her Telekinetic s.h.i.+eld. Worse, G.o.d's Dance gathered black energy around her scepter before yelling, "Black Dragon Roar!"

Swhoos.h.!.+

A magic blast shaped like a dragon burst out of her scepter and slammed straight into Lian Xin's Telekinetic s.h.i.+eld!

41923!

What a powerful spell! Not only did it almost one-shot Lian Xin, it had gone right through her Telekinetic s.h.i.+eld! G.o.d's Dance had definitely hidden some of her cla.s.s's skills for this moment. Black Dragon Roar had a rather inflexible straight-line trajectory, but if it landed, it would almost certainly instakill a fragile cla.s.s.

Lian Xin backed away from G.o.d's Dance and waved her Thunder G.o.d Scepter. The spell she chose to use as retaliation against the Dark Flame Mage was Dimensional Storm!

At this point, it was a matter of who kills who first. A terrifying storm descended upon the battlefield. Since G.o.d's Dance's Magic s.h.i.+eld had shattered already, she didn't have anything that could protect her from Lian Xin's powerful spell. When the dimensional blades deleted her last sliver of HP, she let out a soft cry and collapsed to the ground.

The score turned 1:0. As promised, Lian Xin had kicked off the battle with a victory!

……

The second round was just as fierce as the first. Duels between two high-level mages were always exciting to watch. At the end of the magical light show, G.o.d's Dance dropped to her knees once more before her superior, Lian Xin. Dark Flame Mage was a powerful cla.s.s that helped to close the gap between G.o.d's Dance and Lian Xin tremendously, but in the end it was just slightly behind the Phantasm of Stars. Also, Lian Xin's Origin Force Fields were always perfectly placed and timed, something that G.o.d's Dance ultimately wasn't able to overcome. Judging from the anger on the latter's face, I was sure that she knew this as well.

Lian Xin took the first match, and the overall score turned 1:0. Countless people cried out Lian Xin and the guild's name from the spectator stands.

……

"I'm going, big bro!" Beiming Xue said to me.

I nodded. "Mn. Just do your best!"

"Yeah!"

Beiming Xue's opponent was the strongest player in the entire enemy team and the Martial G.o.d, Candlelight Shadow. Almost a year had pa.s.sed since the launch of Heavenblessed, and during this time people such as me, Lin Yixin, Farewell Song, Li Chengfeng, Luo River G.o.d of the Capital and more were more than happy to issue him a challenge every now and then. This was an embarra.s.sing state of things for him, of course. Many players had lost their ambition and left the game for various reasons during the last two years of Spirit of Grief. It was why he and his guild's rule had gone unchallenged during that time. However, Heavenblessed was fresh, and countless old and new heroes had poured into the game seeking to dethrone the strongest person at the top, namely Candlelight Shadow. I dare say that he hadn't had a good night's sleep since the game began.

Swhoosh swhoos.h.!.+

Beiming Xue and Candlelight Shadow appeared in the arena at the same time. A soft breeze caused her red cape to flutter, and the dark gold Windchaser armor hugged her curves nicely. Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s weren't very big yet, but that didn't mean that the audience wasn't attracted to her. Her determined gaze and unyielding expression caused countless males in the audience to go crazy and scream on top of their lungs—

"I love you, Beiming Xue! Please be my girlfriend!"

"You are my G.o.ddess, Dark Archer!"

"Her b.r.e.a.s.t.s are a bit small though…"

"..."

……

Candlelight Shadow watched Beiming Xue coolly as he activated Great Earth Transformation without any fuss. He couldn't afford to lose this because his team had already lost the first point. However, the dark archer was both a Divine General and an incredibly skilled player in her own right. It wouldn't be an easy win no matter what.

Outside the arena, G.o.d's Dance said to Candlelight Shadow, "You must win this, Candlelight! The third match is Lu Chen versus Blue Sky Scar, and realistically speaking, we have no reason to believe that we'll win that match! You cannot lose no matter what, understand?"

Candlelight Shadow gritted his teeth as he responded, "I know!"

Blue Sky Scar's expression was frigid, but he didn't say anything.

……

The system began counting. The digitized voice seemed to resonate in everyone's heart—

3!

2!

1!

Fight!

Candlelight Shadow burst into action and traversed the battlefield with incredible speed. It was almost unthinkable that a normal warrior could be this swift.

Beiming Xue quickly raised her bow and fired Evil Spirit Volley and Spiraling Arrow Blade!

Thud!

Crus.h.i.+ng a piece of dead wood beneath his boots, Candlelight Shadow somehow ran even faster until he was just ten yards away from Beiming Xue. Then, he came to a halt and shouted, "Blazing Purgatory Slas.h.!.+"

Swhoosh swhoosh swhoos.h.!.+

Beiming Xue withdrew to the back to avoid the three sword auras. At the same time, she waved her arm and cried, "Well of the Abyss!"

The Divine General Skill appeared beneath Candlelight Shadow, but the warrior had predicted that she would use it. He Charged right before it could catch him!

Swhoos.h.!.+

He escaped the Divine General Skill like a ray of light escaping the attraction of a black hole. He swung his sword at Beiming Xue the moment he got within melee distance.

Beiming Xue watched his movement closely as she unsheathed her dagger. Three times she was able to parry his sword, but there was so much strength behind his attacks that she was sent skidding to the back. Then, Candlelight Shadow abruptly vanished from his position, reappeared at Beiming Xue's flanks and stabbed his sword right between her ribs!

Pu!

72838!

She was. .h.i.t. While she was staring at Candlelight Shadow in astonishment, Outer Flame descended from the sky and dealt almost 100k damage, ending her life.

The score turned 0:1, and this time it was Beiming Xue who lost the round first. It wasn't surprising to me though. If we looked at close-range skills alone, Candlelight Shadow was an ancestor-level monster at the same level as Lin Yixin, if not higher. On the other hand, Beiming Xue's close combat skills, movement and battle judgment were at most seventy percent of Lin Yixin's. It made sense that she would lose the moment Candlelight Shadow got close to her.