Chapter 82: The Azure Dragon’s Unexpected Demise

The atmosphere grew somewhat awkward, and a moment of deathly silence fell over the entire arena.

Huaji then broke the stillness with a cold voice.

“Are you looking down on me?”

Yingning had no intention of provoking him, yet recalling his real-world identity, she responded with a chilling tone.

“Acting as an accomplice to a tiger (TL Note: A Chinese idiom, ‘wèi hǔ zuò chāng,’ referring to someone who helps a villain do evil deeds), I truly do look down on you.”

Huaji pondered for a moment before letting out a sigh.

‘His own sister’s temperament had indeed been spoiled by their family’s indulgence,’ he mused.

‘Yet, no matter how many faults she possessed, she was still his sister, his family.

‘And no matter the circumstances, he would always stand by his family.’

“Forget it,” Huaji finally said. “Victors become kings, losers become bandits; let’s just see who’s more capable.”

He crouched, gathering his strength, poised to charge forward.

“Come,” Yingning replied, holding her sword level before her, her expression grim as she braced for the assault.

[Su Shunhua: No need to hold back this time. Cut him down and make him understand the gap between him and you.]

For some inexplicable reason, even amidst the tense battle, Huaji managed to spare a glance at Su Shunhua.

He then drew a deep breath, puffed out his chest, and his eyes suddenly gleamed with intense light, as if he had received some profound encouragement, erupting with an even stronger aura than before!

[Su Shunhua: …Hack him to death!]

“Take this… Azure Dragon Emerges from Water!” Huaji’s first move was a deadly one, as he unleashed the straight-line charge skill imbued in his equipment without hesitation.

This skill, much like Dragon Pouncing on the Moon, belonged to no existing class and currently only appeared as an equipment-specific ability.

The charge speed of Azure Dragon Emerges from Water utterly surpassed any known dash skill.

Both Su Shunhua and Yingning were witnessing this ability for the first time, leaving them somewhat unprepared.

While Frost Nova and Instant Flamestrike were familiar skills and tactics, even unexpected variations of them still resided within Su Shunhua’s mental database.

Moreover, mages typically had only a few archetypes, allowing one to deduce A’si’s intentions from his expression and hand movements.

However, this particular Azure Dragon Emerges from Water was a skill Su Shunhua had never even heard of.

To make matters more striking, the skill effect of Azure Dragon Emerges from Water was incredibly gorgeous!

Its entire aesthetic diverged sharply from the simple, unadorned skill animations found in *Pursuit II*, instantly eliciting a chorus of piercing screams from the crowd of fangirls.

Huaji himself transformed into a dazzling white streak, enveloped by a translucent phantom dragon, and lunged forward like a bolt of lightning, instantly appearing before Yingning.

By the time Yingning registered what had happened, the tip of his sword was already aimed at her throat!

The sudden appearance of Huaji startled Yingning profoundly.

Her hand twitched, and the tip of her sword inadvertently grazed Huaji’s waist.

Huaji smirked triumphantly, for this element of surprise was precisely what he sought!

Since his opponent hadn’t managed to raise her sword to parry, she would have to endure his vital-point thrust, a fatal blow that would surely follow.

The only price, he reasoned, was taking a single ordinary attack that hadn’t even struck a vital spot.

Trading a minor injury for a lethal blow was an undeniable gain!

‘Eh, what the hell… wait, why am I on the ground?’

[You have been killed by player Ning Beibei using a normal attack.]

Huaji felt his body suddenly go limp, all strength abandoning him.

The tip of his sword, just a centimeter from Yingning’s throat, could not advance another inch, no matter how desperately he willed it.

The world spun around him, his body swayed, and he toppled into the muddy ground.

Huaji, deceased.

****

Once again, deathly silence enveloped the entire arena.

Huaji’s death was so sudden, so unexpected, that it left the onlookers utterly bewildered and confused.

Where was the promised 멋진 entrance and powerful finish?

“What the hell?! How did he just die?!” Yan Quan exclaimed. “The other side must be cheating!”

“What happened, Huaji! What happened?! How did you die?!” Yan Quan shot to his feet, his face etched with horror, and connected to Huaji’s voice chat.

“I… I don’t know!” Huaji stood at the resurrection point, utterly dumbfounded. “I charged in, intending to trade blows, and the opponent just grazed me with her sword… then I died…”

‘Just died…’

Yan Quan fell silent, at a loss for words.

“Did her weapon trigger some ‘instant death’ effect?” Yan Quan finally managed to ask after a long silence, forcing down the horror and shock churning within him.

“…No, that normal attack only grazed me for 610 health,” Huaji replied, his voice strained.

Yan Quan lapsed into silence once more.

He was well aware of Huaji’s strength.

Huaji had allocated all his points to offense, making him a primary damage dealer for their guild, but at the cost of sacrificing health.

His total HP was less than 600… yet, that was still a significant amount!

Huaji was a Level 32 Warrior, after all!

Level 32! An elite team member, clad in top-tier blue equipment, ranked among the top three hundred on the Asian server!

And he was instantly obliterated just like that?!

Over 600 damage from a normal attack? What kind of normal attack could be so monstrously powerful?!

‘They must be cheating! The opponent absolutely must be cheating!’

But if they weren’t cheating… it was unfathomable!

What kind of attack power was that?! Was it even fair to play the game anymore?!

“Lihuanhuan,” Yan Quan said, his gaze turning frigid as he looked at her, his goodwill towards her plummeting almost instantly.

“I’m asking you again, who exactly is this opponent, and what are their capabilities? Don’t try to fob me off with talk of them being an ordinary player.

Someone with such terrifying PK awareness and powerful equipment cannot possibly be an unknown!”

Lihuanhuan was on the verge of tears from indignation.

Heaven knew what stroke of luck had allowed her opponent to suddenly turn her fortunes around!

She scrambled to explain, “No, Guild Leader, she really is just an ordinary player! I know her, I truly know her well! It’s just that, for some reason, she suddenly became strong…”

“Suddenly became strong?” Yan Quan’s eyes narrowed slightly, unconvinced.

While equipment could be improved overnight through a sudden windfall, PK awareness absolutely could not!

Their opponent’s PK awareness was so formidable that it could crush A’si and Leng Shisan!

Such a level would undoubtedly secure a spot among the top three in any warrior competition!

Regardless of what secrets the opponent truly harbored, the immediate problem was that Sword Sweeping the World was now in an untenable position!

A one-on-one duel would certainly be nothing more than suicide; to the opponent, it would be as effortless as slicing melons and dicing vegetables!

What was to be done? How should they resolve this issue? Should they concede?

No! Sword Sweeping the World would never yield to anyone!

Su Shunhua patted his backside, stood up, and looked towards Yingning, sending a message through the private chat channel.

[Su Shunhua: Prepare yourself, the true bitter battle begins now.]

Unbeknownst to them, hundreds of players had already gathered behind Yingning.

Roughly half had come to watch the spectacle after hearing the news, while the other half wore rose-shaped brooches pinned to their chests, the emblem of the Gunfire Rose guild.

Su Shunhua seized the moment to leave one last taunt on the forum.

[Skill Name: Azure Dragon Emerges from Water

Cast Cost: One life

Skill Effect: Startles the opponent!]

After sending the message, Su Shunhua no longer bothered to look at the furious fanboys whose sensitive spot had been poked.

He drew out his priest’s staff.

This would be a massacre!