046 Duan Chenfeng vs. The Dark Night Demon King!

Any player who dares to step into the arena is certainly no amateur. The challenger was Dark Demon, a player of the special class "Dark Night Monarch." He possessed a Dark Magic Ring and had already consumed three other magic rings. Unlike the wealthy backgrounds of players like Outlas and Stan, Dark Demon was the leader of a gaming guild. He knew that if things continued this way, his own magic ring would eventually be seized by others. Now, his only option was to gamble and see if he could snatch Morning Wind’s magic ring.

"Betting on a magic ring!" Arena battles were far superior to playing dirty in the wild—at least for Dark Demon, who felt he had an advantage in the arena, whereas in the open world, he would struggle to compete against the likes of Outlas and Morning Wind.

"Your ring has consumed two magic rings, and the one I just won has also consumed two. Let’s bet this way: if you win this ring, you can bet my Blood Magic Ring." Since Morning Wind had decided to wager his ring, he hadn’t rushed to let his own ring consume others earlier, keeping it held back to see if any other ring-bearers would step up. He hadn’t expected the challenger to be Dark Demon.

"Dark Demon, why don’t you fight me instead? I’ll even let you choose the map!" Outlas felt like cursing; why were so many idiots looking for Morning Wind instead of him?

Dark Demon glanced at Outlas but ignored him, entering the random map first. He felt confident against Morning Wind, but had zero hope against Outlas. Setting aside the fact that Outlas had talents in all three specializations, he also possessed "Hand of Protection," "Divine Shield," and "Holy Light"—meaning he had a survival skill available every minute, making it nearly impossible to burst him down. Dark Demon preferred facing the more aggressive Morning Wind over a Paladin with such high survivability.

"Is this guy using a special race or class? 'Dark Demon'?" Seeing Dark Demon enter the random map, many spectators found him unique; he certainly didn’t look like one of the four main races: Human, Elf, Dwarf, or Barbarian. There were always special races and classes in the game, and while this player was somewhat known, no one knew how powerful this special class was compared to traditional ones.

"Special classes shouldn't be too overpowered; the main issue is that no one recognizes his skills." Some veteran players knew that even with special classes, the effects weren't necessarily overwhelming—perhaps just slightly stronger than average. These classes were formidable primarily due to their mystery; with no one knowing how their skills worked, it was difficult to devise countermeasures.

"Dark Demon dared to show up at this time because he knew his class would inevitably be exposed, so he’s seizing the chance to build fame and win a magic ring." Someone guessed his motive. As a guild leader, he understood the importance of reputation. With Morning Wind gathering so many players in District 23, it was the perfect opportunity to showcase his strength. At the same time, there was a high chance of acquiring a magic ring, which Dark Demon considered a very sound investment.

The map was "Savage Wilderness." It was a simple, barren landscape with only a few scattered rocks and trees to obstruct vision. Occasionally, wild beasts would spawn, which could be troublesome if not handled properly. Unlike standard wilderness maps, due to the characteristics of the Dark Night Monarch class, this map featured a day-night cycle that shifted every five minutes.

The advantage of the Dark Night Monarch was that the fight began in the night phase, lasting for five minutes. This meant that even if Morning Wind entered stealth, it would be useless; the Dark Night Monarch could see through invisibility and stealth during the night. Morning Wind had lost his initiative and was even at risk of being bombarded.

As for the Dark Demon class, had he erupted during the chaotic battle in the Dark Desert, Morning Wind might have been afraid, as his techniques were indeed unknown to most back then. However, to acquire magic rings, he had appeared frequently of late, and many of his tricks had already been revealed. Furthermore, Morning Wind had been bored lately and had taken the time to study the characteristics of players holding magic rings, with Dark Demon being one of his primary subjects.

The Dark Night Monarch was much like a Berserker: once they used their "God Mode," they were essentially spent. The class had little threat after exhausting its initial wave of skills, though the "Nightfall" ability was concerning. If "Nightfall" was activated during the night phase, the black hole would absorb all light, leaving the arena in total darkness. The Dark Night Monarch could then easily pull off Rogue-like ambushes. Simply put, the Dark Night Monarch combined the burst potential of a Berserker with the stealth and assassination capabilities of a Rogue. In truth, it was a solid special class—it all depended on whether Dark Demon could use it well.

Contrary to everyone's expectations, Morning Wind did not switch to a shield to wait out the five-minute night phase; he remained with his two single-handed swords. With one orange-tier weapon and one purple-tier weapon, why would he fear a Dark Night Monarch? If that were the case, he might as well delete his account.

The Dark Night Monarch lacked stealth skills and wasn't an Elf; it would be very difficult for him to sneak up on Morning Wind. Even in the dark, with Morning Wind's visual range reduced to 100 meters, the Dark Night Monarch was a large enough target that Morning Wind would spot him the moment he closed in.

The audience, possessing the "God’s Eye" view, knew Dark Demon was already closing in on Morning Wind. Yet, they saw Morning Wind standing calmly in place, not even turning around to scan for his opponent.

"Crow is getting better at playing dirty. Why did this Dark Demon come here to gift him a magic ring?" Outlas already knew the outcome. That idiot Dark Demon thought he could ambush Morning Wind, but he was surely going to be counter-ambushed.

Morning Wind didn't need to pace around; standing in one spot was enough. This forced Dark Demon to attack from behind. Having been an "Esper Killer" for so long, Morning Wind was well-accustomed to detecting ambushes. He wasn't afraid of a sneak attack from behind; in fact, he was waiting for Dark Demon to reveal himself.

*Charge!* (Accompanied by Battle Shout to increase strength and gain Rage).

*Bloodthirst!*

As Dark Demon crept closer and entered the 40-meter Charge range, Morning Wind spun around and charged, dealing damage and immediately using Bloodthirst to gain Rage. Just as Morning Wind was about to burst, he suddenly found that—aside from his god-tier skill "Lich Body"—all his skills were blacked out, and his trinket abilities were unusable. He had been silenced for six seconds. To make matters worse, his melee attacks now had a 40% chance to miss...

*Run!*

Even silenced, Morning Wind could maintain damage with basic attacks. With his powerful weapons, he was usually formidable, but with his attacks missing, he felt desperate. It was time to retreat and wait for the five seconds to pass. He switched to his "Shield of No Light" to block Dark Demon’s rapid strikes, but Dark Demon was moving too fast, darting around him like a Rogue. With only one shield, it was difficult for Morning Wind to block everything.

"Fake, it's so fake! Crow’s acting is so transparent, yet he actually fooled Dark Demon... sigh..." Seeing Morning Wind's panicked reaction to being surrounded, Outlas knew that the scoundrel was just putting on a show. As someone accustomed to playing dirty, Outlas could easily see through it; with Morning Wind’s personality, he would never be this flustered.

"Fake acting? What do you mean?" Shadow Corner, usually well-versed in these matters, was completely confused by Outlas’s comment. Morning Wind was silenced and being overwhelmed—what was so suspicious about that? Did he even need to act?

"Corner, and you call yourself the Fourth Leader of an assassination organization? You can’t even see through such simple acting; it’s embarrassing!" Outlas couldn't fathom how Shadow Corner had reached his position. "For players like me and Crow, winning isn't always about gear and technique; sometimes, brains and acting matter just as much!"

Outlas had been fooled by Morning Wind’s acting on the southern coast of Ghana Sea. The guy was clearly powerful but had played the fool to secretly steal his fourth treasure cache. Once he realized Morning Wind’s true nature, Outlas understood that brains weren't always as important as acting—and Morning Wind was a master thespian.

Just as Morning Wind’s HP dropped to 37%, the silence effect was about to fade. Dark Demon didn't let up, intending to chip away more HP before finishing him off with an ultimate skill. But as he circled to Morning Wind's back, he suddenly tripped over something and stumbled due to his own high speed.

*Colossus Smash!*

*Anger Slash!*

*Thunder Strike!*

*Tiger Strike!*

The moment Dark Demon fell, Morning Wind spun around and unleashed four rapid-fire skills in an instant, followed by a flurry of frantic basic attacks. In moments, Dark Demon’s HP plummeted by 60%. Dark Demon had started so fiercely, opening with a silence, but once those six seconds ended, he was immediately counter-killed by Morning Wind.

*Dark Flash!*

Stunned by the sudden burst, Dark Demon had no choice but to flee. He never imagined Morning Wind’s earlier panic had been an act. That subtle trip was no accident; Morning Wind had been confident he could tank the damage just long enough to unleash a counter-burst.

"It really was..." Shadow Corner’s eyes widened. He hadn't realized Morning Wind was just pretending.

"Such pathetic acting..." Outlas felt there was nothing left to watch. If Dark Demon couldn't see through such simple acting, how could he compete? "If Dark Demon uses 'Nightfall' right now to burst Crow down, he’s finished!"

"Why?" Shadow Corner really didn't understand, as he didn't know Morning Wind well.

Outlas shrugged. Seeing the entire map turn black, he knew the battle would end soon. "Since Crow knows he has the 'Nightfall' ultimate, he knows he shouldn't let his own HP drop too low. Yet, he let the opponent whittle him down—it was intentional. He wanted to bait Dark Demon into using his ultimate. As long as Dark Demon uses 'Nightfall' and fails to kill Crow, he’s a dead man!"

"He let Dark Demon drop his HP that low on purpose?" Shadow Corner was baffled.

Beside them, Hidden sighed, "The fact that Morning Wind didn't immediately use 'Blood Strike' to recover HP when he tripped Dark Demon is the best proof."

"Shadow, can your IQ keep up? I'm starting to think we should kick you out of the team!" Outlas exited the map; there was no point in watching since he couldn't see anything anyway. Once "Nightfall" was cast, the battle was as good as decided.