THE STRONGEST THUNDER SWORD, VOLUME 5 - Season 8 Episode 83

When the Zero Wing team heard Shi Feng’s decision, they were confused.

The Cursemancer was a magical class, so it would be at a disadvantage against a Ranger. At the very least, they should send a Ranger like Minor Wind to negate the class advantage or an Assassin or Berserker, which countered Rangers.

“Guild Leader, let me take him on instead. My class is particularly effective against Rangers. This match will be ours,” Fire Dance suggested.

The others agreed with her proposal.

There were a total of five matches in this competition, but they only needed to win three to emerge victorious. If they could win the first match, it would increase their chances of winning and the team’s morale. Moreover, during their journey to the Dark Arena, the team had noticed a change to Fire Dance’s weapons.

Fire Dance, who had never replaced her Truefire Blades before, had replaced both of them.

The Truefire Blades were Set Weapons. Both were also top-tier Dark-Gold Weapons. Even on their own, they were only slightly weaker than Level 35 Dark-Gold Weapons. However, even two Level 35 Dark-Gold Weapon could not compete against the Truefire Blades’ set effects. Yet, Fire Dance had still replaced them. This told them that the new weapons’ Attributes must far surpass the Truefire Blades.

Now that Fire Dance had gained a boost to her Attributes, with her combat techniques, she should be able to defeat the Ranger easily.

“No. Aqua is the best choice here. You have more important matters to deal with.” Shi Feng shook his head. His decision was firm.

Shi Feng knew quite a bit about the Ranger named Thousand Blades. After all, he had been one of the Glorious Lions Battle Team’s members in the past. Thousand Blades also often took part in the Dark Arena battles.

In these top-tier competitions, Attributes meant very little. Even if Minor Wind wore a Tier 1 Set Equipment and was slightly stronger than those wearing Level 35 Dark-Gold Equipment in terms of Attributes, the Tier 1 Set Equipment only consisted of five pieces. Minor Wind’s other equipment would not give him an advantage against Thousand Blades. Both Rangers were also fully equipped with Tier 3 Gemstones. To put it simply, Minor Wind did not have much of an advantage with his Attributes at all. In the end, the fight would come down to techniques.

Based on Shi Feng’s estimations, if Minor Wind had an equipment score of 2,000 points, then Thousand Blades would have around 1,800 points. Although there was a gap, techniques could easily close that gap. This was commonplace in the Dark Arena. Moreover, tools were not allowed in Dark Arena battles.

This meant that the fight would come down to techniques and equipment.

Minor Wind had yet to reach the Half-step Refinement Realm. He could only exert his body to its limits. How could he possibly challenge a Refinement Realm expert like Thousand Blades, someone who could control his body’s power freely?

After Shi Feng made his decision, the fighters’ names appeared above the dueling ring, which had an area of 300*300 yards.

Thousand Blades versus Aqua Rose!

“The Asura Battle Team is pretty pitiful. They’re actually sending Aqua Rose, the most famous player on their team, into the first match. It seems they really don’t have anybody who will be a challenge.” the Assassin Long Rainbow laughed. “Unfortunately, even she is no match for Thousand. They would’ve been better off sending cannon fodder. They’ve just lost their only chance to win.”

“Based on our reports, the Sword King, Black Flame, is the only capable player in Zero Wing. I really wish I could fight him. That way, I could take the title of Sword King for myself,” Blood Sun, the blue-armored Swordsman, said. He could not help his sigh as he looked over the Asura Battle Team roster.

The Glorious Lions’ other members nodded their agreement. This first match told them everything they needed to know.

The Asura Battle Team stood no chance of victory.

If Aqua Rose were a Refinement Realm expert, even with a class disadvantage, she could put up a good fight against Thousand Blades. Unfortunately, she was not. Even though she was only a thread away from the threshold, without actually setting foot into the Refinement Realm, there would be a massive gap between her skills and Thousand Blades’.

—

“Big Sis Rain, what is going on with Ye Feng? He sent Aqua Rose up. Can’t he judge Thousand Blades’ strength?” Previously, Blue Phoenix had come to admire Shi Feng. Now, however, Shi Feng’s choice had disappointed her. Thousand Blades had not bothered hiding his combat power at all. His actions were so smooth and natural, without any excess movement; it was obvious he had already reached the Refinement Realm. “No matter how I look at it, Thousand Blades should have reached the Refinement Realm. Even if Ye Feng doesn’t face the Ranger himself, at the very least, he should send Fire Dance, right?”

Fire Dance was Zero Wing’s number one Assassin. In terms of techniques, she was on par with Aqua Rose. Moreover, the Assassin class, more or less, countered the Ranger class. Although Fire Dance had not reached the Refinement Realm either, with her Attributes, it was not impossible to secure a win. Giving up the match without even trying was a waste.

Phoenix Rain simply shook her head. She, too, did not understand Shi Feng’s decision.

If the weak wanted to take down the strong, they needed to grasp and strike at the enemy’s weakness. Currently, it was obvious that the Glorious Lions did not take the Asura Battle Team seriously at all. It was the perfect advantage. Yet, Shi Feng had chosen to give up the match.

Aqua Rose did not give Shi Feng’s decision much thought. A one-on-one fight against such a powerful expert was a rare opportunity. Although she did not know what was going through Shi Feng’s mind, she was very happy to face Thousand Blades, even though her odds of winning were low.

“Aqua, hold on a second.” Shi Feng suddenly stopped Aqua Rose, who was about to enter to the dueling ring. He then retrieved an emerald staff from his bag and handed it to Aqua Rose. “No need to rush the battle. Take this chance to hone your skills.”

“Guild Leader, this is…!” Aqua Rose was ecstatic when she saw the emerald staff. She then said, “Guild Leader, rest assured; I’ll toy with him with everything I’ve got!”

Saying so, Aqua Rose approached the stage confidently.

“Your leader is a fool. He sent you to your death. Well, whatever. It’s been too long since I killed a beauty like you. Don’t blame me for being ruthless.” Thousand Blades was arrogant, his lips curling into a cruel smile. He retrieved the copper-colored longbow from his back and took out five green steel arrows from his quiver.

He had prepared these arrows himself. They were called Scorpion Arrows, each costing 10 Silver to produce. They were extremely expensive. He wouldn’t normally use them, but in this competition, he could not be frugal.

Even a slight graze from these arrows would cause massive damage. They would also poison the target when they struck, reducing their Movement Speed and Attack Speed as well as inflicting damage every five seconds.

Magical classes already had low Movement Speed. If the Scorpion Arrows hit Aqua Rose, she wouldn’t be able to dodge any follow-up attacks. She would become a sitting duck.

Moreover, Cursemancers were different from Elementalists. Elementalists were human-shaped cannons with powerful burst damage. Cursemancers, on the other hand, focused on crowd control and debuffs. Their instantaneous firepower was subpar at best and was no match for Rangers.

Aqua Rose ignored Thousand Blades’ provocation. She was utterly focused on her new staff, looking like a little girl with a new toy.

“You!” Thousand Blades was instantly indignant when he realized he had been ignored. “I’ll teach you the meaning of despair!”

The countdown finally reached zero. With the sound of the bell, the match officially began.

“Scatter!”

Thousand Blades fired an arrow towards the sky and executed the Tier 1 AOE Skill, Falling Rain. The descending Scorpion Arrows cast a massive shadow over Aqua Rose.