057 Trap!
“So what if you cheated? You still lost!”
Morning Breeze activated the Wind Step skill, instantly boosting his movement speed. He leaped forward, closing the distance to three meters from Yu Qingyun, and slashed with both Brotherhood Swords. This was a Rage Slash—if it struck Yu Qingyun, it would kill him in an instant.
Switch to shield! Shield Wall!
Yu Qingyun didn’t dare to take the hit head-on; this time he immediately switched to his shield and activated Shield Wall to defend himself. Yu Qingyun wasn’t a tank—his parrying and dodging skills weren’t high enough. He couldn’t withstand attacks like Morning Breeze.
—362
—167
With Shield Wall activated, Morning Breeze’s attacks couldn’t break through, even the Rage Slash didn’t inflict much damage. After landing the Rage Slash, Morning Breeze didn’t pause; he followed up with a Thunder Strike, dealing more damage, then unleashed a flurry of rapid blows, steadily whittling away Yu Qingyun’s dwindling health.
“He knows his opponent’s activated Shield Wall, but he keeps attacking! Duan Morning Breeze is trying to brute-force a kill!” From the shadows, a pair of eyes widened in disbelief, watching Morning Breeze’s relentless assault. Even with Shield Wall up, Morning Breeze was determined to kill Yu Qingyun.
“This guy is even fiercer than Qingyun!” Xi Tianpeng was surprised as well. He hadn’t expected Yu Qingyun to hit such a wall; facing someone so strong, Morning Breeze was even more ruthless and aggressive than him. Usually, a warrior with Shield Wall is nearly impossible to kill, but Morning Breeze, in god mode, didn’t care—he was determined to force a kill.
“How could this happen?” Lin Shanshan watched her cousin Yu Qingyun’s health drop in disbelief. She’d brought Yu Qingyun to drive Morning Breeze away, but Morning Breeze was so powerful that even the top player from the Military District was no match for him.
Yu Qingyun was being beaten with no chance to fight back. If he tried to counterattack, Morning Breeze would kill him instantly. Morning Breeze’s health was far higher; even if he took a couple of hits, it wouldn’t matter, but Yu Qingyun was different. Without his shield, a single attack from Morning Breeze could end him.
Bloodlust!
Gale Strike!
Bloodlust triggered a free Gale Strike, and Morning Breeze unleashed three attacks without mercy. Yu Qingyun’s health fell below two percent; one more hit and he was done for. Desperate, Yu Qingyun tried a heroic leap to counterattack, but Morning Breeze gave him no chance. As Yu Qingyun jumped, Morning Breeze struck with a Rage Slash, killing him instantly.
With his health depleted, Yu Qingyun collapsed weakly to his knees, then fell flat on the ground. He’d grown used to seeing players kneel before him in the Military District’s dueling grounds, but now he’d lost—after using his abilities, no less. This was a humiliating defeat.
“Trash!” Seeing Yu Qingyun resurrect, Morning Breeze sheathed his twin swords and strode out of the arena.
“You…” Yu Qingyun had never suffered such humiliation. He couldn’t believe he’d been beaten so badly in his specialty, competitive dueling. But a loss was a loss, and Yu Qingyun had nothing to say. He’d left the Military District to kill Blood Dragon, and Lin Shanshan had brought him to deal with Morning Breeze. In the end, he hadn’t even killed Blood Dragon before losing.
---
“So you’re supposed to be a Military District player with abilities? Don’t tell me you’re the so-called top player of the Military District! If that’s true, I’ve really overestimated those losers!” Morning Breeze was utterly contemptuous of Yu Qingyun. The Military District players were strong, but now Morning Breeze had matching gear and more tricks up his sleeve; he no longer feared them.
Morning Breeze had fought Military District players many times before, usually losing because he’d joined the game two years late. Even with better gear later, he was at a disadvantage. But things were different now—he was starting from the same line as them, and had game knowledge from his previous life, allowing him to advance even faster.
“You’re so arrogant!” Xi Tianpeng hadn’t expected Morning Breeze to be so brazen, dismissing Military District players after one win. Yu Qingyun truly was the top player, his strength formidable, but against Morning Breeze, he couldn’t find his rhythm. Even with abilities, Yu Qingyun had lost—the gap in strength was obvious.
“So what if I am? Want to fight?” Now, even top foreign players avoided Morning Breeze; how could Military District players pose any threat? Standing at the forefront of the game, Morning Breeze feared no challenge. If he used the Magic Ring, he could dominate the China server for a while.
Xi Tianpeng knew he was no match for Morning Breeze, especially since Morning Breeze hadn’t even used the Magic Ring yet. If he did, he’d be even stronger, and fighting him would only be self-humiliation.
“If you don’t have the strength, don’t bark at me like a stray dog!” Morning Breeze snapped at Xi Tianpeng, then left the arena with Shadow Behind. He also sent Lin Shanshan a text: “I’ll be waiting for you tonight!”
Seeing Morning Breeze’s arrogance, Lin Shanshan bit her lip. When Yu Qingyun came down, she scolded him, “Cousin, aren’t you supposed to be amazing? How did you lose so humiliatingly? You’ve ruined my reputation!”
“I underestimated him this time!” Yu Qingyun admitted he’d underestimated Morning Breeze, but that wasn’t the only reason he’d lost. Even after using abilities, he’d been defeated. Besides, he knew Morning Breeze hadn’t worn the Magic Ring; he simply wasn’t Morning Breeze’s match now.
Yu Qingyun had boasted he’d defeat Morning Breeze, but ended up losing. Lin Shanshan had made a bet with Morning Breeze, and now she didn’t know what to do. Thinking about tonight, Lin Shanshan felt a nightmare approaching.
Morning Breeze didn’t care about offending Military District players; he actually wished for more formidable opponents. The people from Divine War Guild were hardly a real threat to him—one Space Teleport Banner could cripple them. Only truly skilled players could keep Morning Breeze vigilant.
After saying goodbye to Shadow Behind, Morning Breeze went to the Eternal Auction House to collect rare materials, then began selecting components to synthesize rings combining magnetic and gravitational effects. His two excellent ring models had been crafted with the help of Eternal Song’s alchemists; now all that was left was matching the materials—sixteen for magnetic, sixteen for gravity, two of which were epic purple-grade and already found. Only the remaining materials and final fusion remained.
The two ring models had preserved their attribute effects well. Morning Breeze rented an alchemy synthesis furnace from the Alchemy Guild to fuse the rings. Unlike other gear, rings didn’t require players to perform special moves during synthesis since their small size made manufacturing difficult; at best, one could alter their appearance. The main process relied on the alchemy furnace’s automated synthesis; the preparatory step was carefully selecting and arranging the materials. If the materials were right but the pairing was wrong, the final effect wouldn’t be great. Morning Breeze meticulously arranged the components and scheduled the fusion time.
System: Ring synthesis has begun. Please wait patiently.
Gear synthesis, especially rings, required waiting for the fusion process. Generally, the longer the time, the better the chance of producing a superior item, as more material effects could be integrated.
“What are you up to?” Bored while waiting, Morning Breeze messaged Martial Maniac, hoping to drag him to the arena for a few rounds to practice the new racial skill enhancements. The influence of race on class wasn’t huge, but the boost was still worthwhile, since racial upgrades were hard to come by. Morning Breeze just wanted to master the new racial skills, and dueling in the arena was the best way.
“Killing!” Martial Maniac replied simply.
“What’s up? Murder? You should’ve called me!” Morning Breeze was afraid the game would get boring; any chance for a fight, he wanted in. He had the Magic Ring, and rumor had it its hidden effects required killing to activate. Morning Breeze was eager to test this, even knowing it would attract endless enemies.
---
“Divine War Guild found Hidden, sent people to surround him, and I’m playing cat-and-mouse with them in Green Dragon Highlands with Monk!” Martial Maniac slowed his reply this time, probably having found a safe spot to hide.
“I’ll be right there—wait for me!” Since the alchemy furnace was still working, Morning Breeze might as well go join them for some action. This time, he didn’t switch to his Shapeshifter alt; he used the Space Teleport Banner to jump to the Chaos Zone, then headed toward Green Dragon Highlands.
Green Dragon Highlands was a level 30 training area, with monsters ranging from level 30 to 35. Martial Maniac and his crew were using hit-and-run tactics, which worked well there. Morning Breeze pulled Monk along as he went; Monk was notoriously sly in outdoor PvP, and he’d be a valuable asset fighting Divine War Guild.
“Scoundrel Breeze, you know I’m an enlightened monk—unless it’s necessary, I don’t break my vows to kill!” Monk refused to be dragged along as a free hired hand.
Enlightened monk? More like a lecherous monk! Morning Breeze wanted nothing more than to kick him, and said, “Monk, if you get bullied on the big map, don’t come crying to me!”
“What are you talking about? With my skills, who’d dare bully me?” Monk was unfazed; as a top player, he didn’t fear others. But thinking it over, the big map was tough—players from all over the world congregated there, and going solo would be tricky. “Fine! I’ve been itching for action anyway. I’ll join you! But just killing is dull—I have a fun suggestion!”
Monk invited Hidden and Martial Maniac to the party, then said, “Hidden, Martial Maniac, once Scoundrel Breeze and I arrive, let’s have a showdown with Divine War’s players. To boost enthusiasm, I suggest a contest: whoever gets the most kills wins, fifty gold per head, world kill mode!”
Monk’s world kill mode meant the lowest scorer lost to everyone. For example, Monk had 100 kills, Morning Breeze 80, Martial Maniac 50, Hidden 30. Everyone paid Monk except Martial Maniac and Hidden, who also paid Morning Breeze, and Hidden, who paid Martial Maniac. If you were at the bottom, you’d lose to all three—a painful loss. Monk clearly thought the other three weren’t his match and was aiming to rake in some gold.
“Monk, I’m just worried you won’t have enough gold!” Morning Breeze loved this kind of kill contest, especially with extra gold to stash or buy materials. Besides, Divine War Guild had a bounty on him; it was time to teach them a lesson.
“Haha, gold is the one thing I don’t lack!” Monk bragged; he’d recently sold some excellent gear for a tidy profit and was feeling flush.
“I don’t have much gold, but I won’t mind if you give me some!” Martial Maniac felt the counter-kill contest was dull; Divine War’s players seemed endless, and there was little excitement. If you didn’t hide and play guerrilla, you’d get ambushed while leveling outside, so he was bored.
“Each of you prepare twenty thousand gold for me!” Hidden hadn’t expected his pursuers to become their prey. Suddenly, he felt being hunted wasn’t so boring after all—it might be Divine War Guild’s nightmare!
Just as the four gathered in Green Dragon Highlands to start their game, they noticed something was off. The number of players nearby had suddenly multiplied. Besides Divine War Guild, there were also Dark Night Guild, Stormcloud Guild, and even teams from Windrunners Guild and Totem Guild with competitive backgrounds.
“Damn! Scoundrel Breeze, this large-scale hunt for Hidden seems like it’s really just bait to lure you out and get your Magic Ring!” Monk had come for fun, but now it seemed impossible. Monk was even considering fleeing Green Valley Hills; in that zone, no teleport items could be used, and you couldn’t hearthstone back to town.
They want my Magic Ring? Morning Breeze had forgotten he’d exposed the ring during a dungeon run. Last time, Totem Underworld couldn’t snatch the Brotherhood Sword and knew Morning Breeze and Hidden were friends. Now, using Divine War Guild to hunt Hidden, they’d lured Morning Breeze to Green Forest Hills.