“Shua!”
I appeared at a place familiar to me. It was my 17th time here today. My opponent was a refined expert, clad in a set of leather armor; in his hands held a frosted floral bow. Bai Li Ruofeng gazed at me and laughed, “I knew that advancing from the top 64 into the top 32 would mean that I would have to duel against an expert. However, I didn’t expect to meet [Zhan Long]’s Guild Master, revered as the man who turned Ba Huang City upside down – Xiao Yao Zi Zai. I’m really in luck!”
I peered at him silently. Bai Li Ruofeng’s gaze made me feel uncomfortable. It was the kind of look the strong would give toward someone who was weaker. He probably didn’t even think of me as a worthy opponent. But then again, I was only among the top few hundreds on the CBN Battlemaster Ranking Charts half a year ago and have only just achieved a ranking of 22. Especially in the Master category, climbing the ranks was a very difficult feat. The difference between the 4th and 22nd rank was too great. Someone like me would not be considered strong to him at all.
Quietly, I summoned Flaming Tiger God. The little tiger purred softly next to me while activating its buffs from [Dragon’s Whistle of Thunder and Lightning]: attack and defense +40% for 30 minutes. All the buffs would be used to face this Guild Master of [House of Prestige]!
He licked his lips and laughed, “Don’t be so nervous. It’s only the Rise of the Heroes Tournament. Our friendship comes before the tournament’s results. No matter who wins or who loses, we can still be friends.”
I lowered my sword and smiled as well, “Ah, you’re right. Friendship is always number one. Well, I hope you don’t hold back at all, or else you’ll regret it.”
“Of course!”
Bai Li Ruofeng waved his hands, and his bow appeared. At the same time, he summoned his pet; a giant engulfed in flames: Flame Beast. It had both high defense and health. I’d heard rumors about this pet, but had never seen one before. It had been mentioned on the forums before that this was an Emperor Tier BOSS pet; I didn’t think that it would be in Bai Li Ruofeng’s hands.
The air around us seemed to freeze as I scanned the area. On the south side of the battle field, stood a stern NPC soldier clothed in bright armor. In the distance, was a huge, towering tree. The autumn breeze brushed past as leaves danced around the arena. Bai Li Ruofeng stood sternly on the other side of the arena; not a single muscle on his face twitched but I could feel him concentrating on every movement in the vicinity. It was to the point where he would even notice the flow of every leaf. This Archer must have had shockingly good insight or he wouldn’t be recognized as an expert Archer!
The system started the countdown, making my heart race in excitement. This was the real deal; the most important battle thus far——
“3!”
“2!”
“1!”
As soon as the battle started, Bai Li Ruofeng came at me!
I retreated immediately, backing out of Bai Li Ruofeng’s attack range. We were 40 yards apart from each other; this was both our lifelines that had to be cherished otherwise I would die a miserable death. the contenders in the top 64 were not weak at all, thus relying on my 2800 defense wasn’t feasible; especially against an Archer which was considered an assassination class. Experts in this class would usually pursue equipment that ignored defenses. My 2800 defense was practically nothing against a master Archer.
“Shasha…..”
My Divine Battle boots smoothly stepped across the stone floor of the game’s battle arena. Bai Li Ruofeng pulled his longbow. “Pa.” A cold gust of wind followed the arrow as it flew toward my chest.
“Bang”
I sensed the danger and immediately stopped in my tracks, causing his attack to MISS. My heart inwardly screamed danger; that arrow had just barely grazed past my nose, it was really too dangerous!
“Heh!”
Bai Li Ruofeng laughed and lifted his bow again. “PaPaPa”. Three arrows shot out, [Triple Arrow]!
He knew that it was not probable that all the arrows would hit, so he shot them from three different angles. I knew this as well, so I did not retreat, but rushed forward instead. I dodged the arrow flying toward my head and allowed the other two to hit. Activating [Haste], I rushed in to attack!
MISS!
734!
801!
Looking at the damage, even an idiot could tell that Bai Li Ruofeng could easily break my defense!
Flaming Tiger God let out a roar as it separated from my side and changed it’s direction. Together, we effectively flanked the enemy from both sides.
However, Bai Li Ruofeng commanded his Flame Beast and it rushed toward Flaming Tiger God. I began to grow anxious; he clearly intended to kill Flaming Tiger God first so I’d have to fight alone.
[Burstfire Raid]!
The tiger’s body suddenly grew larger!
But Bai Li Ruofeng was unaffected, and easily shot the escaping Flaming Tiger God with a “Pa!”. It was [Scattered Shot]! The angle of release and the speed of the arrow was perfect. There was absolutely no way the F