Silent Acacia readied his bow. He was just about to fire another arrow when he realised that CUwUty's skill had not ended yet. A wave rushed through the whip. It was like a dancing snake as it raised its head and slammed down again. Silent Acacia had no choice but to evade. However, he was determined not to be the only one to lose some stance. With a thought from him Zorn also attacked, forcing the wood elf to move.
While Silent Acacia was aiming for a trade, CUwUty disrupted his plan. She raised her whip again and where it had landed preciously, there were now a dozen strange flowers sprouting. From mere seeds to blooming in various colours it only took a second. The next moment the flowerheads separated from the rest and shot at the enemy, their heads spinning like sawblades.
Silent Acacia was taken aback by the strange scene. He got ready to dodge but to his shock only two of the colourful sawblades came for him. The rest shot at Zorn's tall body.
"Damn!"
The young man couldn't help but curse. His mind was reeling as he tried to control Zorn while trying to dodge the attacks aimed at his own body. The result was subpar. While Silent Acacia managed to avoid getting hit, four sawblades slashed at Zorn, cutting deep wounds into her thick hide. Silent Acacia could feel his loyal pet's pain. He gritted his teeth and turned towards the enemy, ready to take revenge.
"Acacia!"
"Careful!"
In the audience stands shocked cries rang out. But unfortunately, those didn't reach the arena. Silent Acacia was unaware that the two sawblades passing by his body previously, were now coming back like boomerangs.
This was a clever trick by CUwUty. She dismissed the sawblades missing Zorn on purpose in order to give Silent Acacia a false sense of security. However, the blades missing the player were not dismissed and now viciously struck his back.
"Ah!"
Silent Acacia was startled, staggering a few steps forward from the impact. Almost ten thousand HP were gone in an instant. And as if that wasn't enough, CUwUty healed herself for a third of the amount. Added to the healing she received from dealing damage to Zorn, the tall wood elf had recovered entirely.
Silent Acacia took a deep breath. The opponent was clever, powerful, could heal herself, and dealt a lot of damage. On top of that her STR increased with each heal, making her even stronger. Such an opponent was incredibly frustrating to fight.
Yet the beast master naturally wouldn't give up. The fight continued. It was an incredibly frustrating experience for Silent Acacia. He was soon forced to realize that CUwUty had another card up her sleeve. She even had multiple skills to ensnare the enemy. Once hit, she would summon plants to attack the victim from all sides.
Silent Acacia gave it his all but after he fell behind, CUwUty didn't grant him a chance to come back. She was relentlessly pursuing her victory. And after a few minutes Silent Acacia succumbed to the various means. His HP fell to zero. The battle had been lost.
"Haha refreshing! Not bad, not bad. You held on longer than my usual training partners!"
CUwUty laughed carefreely. She approached Silent Acacia and reached out her hand while the audience around them was going crazy. Somewhere, the faces of SpireX, Henragon, and the others twitched violently. The training partners CUwUty mentioned… it was them, wasn't it? Was that the way she saw them? Training Partners.
SpireX took a deep breath. Only talking about PvP CUwUty had the capital to be arrogant. Not a single member of the team could beat her. He was looking forward to seeing CUwUty fight against Bleary Mirage. Alas…
"She has used her ultimate skill. It's that thorn armour.", stated Liam matter-of-factly, drawing his friends' attention. Quickstep's expression was somewhat complicated. On one hand it was favourable for Hotpot that their strongest opponent had used her ultimate skill. On the other hand, Quickstep would have liked to face CUwUty at full power.
The players soon left the arena. Outside, the atmosphere had undergone subtle changes. GalanTen had finally shown prove that they could contend with Hotpot. Even Hotpot's fans were excited. They wanted to watch tense battles and not a one-sided beating.
"Who's next, who's next?"
"Will CUwUty fight again?"
"Do you think she can win against Quickstep? Or perhaps even against Bleary Mirage?"
"No way!"
Incessant discussions could be heard. Everyone looked towards CUwUty and Silent Acacia. But surprisingly the mood between them was not as tense as one would have thought. Liam and his friends realized this as well. They walked up to Silent Acacia, who waved at Quickstep.
"Quickstep! Do you recognize her? You will never believe it!"
It turned out that CUwUty was an old acquaintance of Silent Acacia and Quickstep. She also came from the Central Star System, going through a different school than the couple. Her name was Vivian. Back then she won a few game tournaments, shining brightly before suddenly disappearing. It was quite amazing to meet again in such a distant place.
However, CUwUty was somewhat evasive, refusing to reveal what she had been doing in the meantime. Thus, the conversation soon ended and both teams put their attention back on the battle.
After some back and forth the next matchup was decided. Henragon was about to face Quickstep. SpireX hoped to stall for time. If CUwUty's ultimate skill would come off cooldown, they might still have a chance. Hotpot still had Bleary Mirage. He didn't dare to underestimate the number one player.
"Don't worry. I got this!"
Henragon had toned down his usual arrogance by a notch. He might just be the one placing the most importance on this battle. His reputation was on the line. Simultaneously he could feel that his team didn't expect much from him. Defeating Quickstep would already be a favourable outcome. Henragon was not resigned. He was also a professional!
Brimming with fighting spirit Henragon organized the next match. Soon, everyone was back in the arena. The audience kept growing. The intense battles attracted more and more spectators. Whether it was just to cheer, or to learn from the top players, nearly three hundred thousand players watched excitedly. Journalists kept the outside world up to date.
With so much attention came a lot of pressure. Quickstep and Henragon stared at each other, their eyes focused and calm. A moment later the audience disappeared as the surroundings changed. A forest of towering, ancient trees appeared out of nowhere. Quickstep frowned faintly. The terrain was not exactly in her favour.
"Good luck."
"You too."
The two warriors acknowledged each other as the countdown hit zero. The match started and Quickstep instantly started running, building up her Storm. She didn't have a definite strategy in mind yet. It would be great if she could enter [Hurricane Mode], but if Henragon had means to threaten her before that, Quickstep would adapt on the spot.
Henragon knew what Quickstep was trying to do. He had been specifically preparing for the battle against Hotpot. He pestered his managers until they managed to acquire a skill able to counter Quickstep. He stomped his foot, tearing a few roots covering the ground apart. A murky, grey aura spread from him, covering a large area. Quickstep instantly felt as if her legs had turned into lead, becoming extremely heavy.
Up in the audience Silver Blade's eyes narrowed instantly. Her friends also felt something amiss. Cyclone turned towards the tank, asking hesitantly:
"Silver. Could it be… is this Aura of the Sloth?"
Silver Blade nodded slowly. Although the skill used by Henragon looked somewhat different, altered by his class, Silver Blade could still recognize it. Some concern crept on her face. [Aura of the Sloth] was indeed a good way to restrict Quickstep.
Down on the arena floor, Quickstep also quickly noticed what was happening. Her gathering of Storm slowed down by a lot. She had to leave the skill's range! Not only to gather Storm but also because [Aura of the Sloth] would stun her after five seconds. Thus, the warrior changed direction and sprinted away from Henragon. Her slowed-down actions appeared somewhat comical, but Quickstep couldn't care about that for the moment.
"You think I will let you leave?"
Suddenly Henragon's voice echoed through the forest. He waved his sword. Instantly a massive flame erupted from it, roaring towards the sky, adding a dangerous sheen to his red armour. The flame transformed into a hand which grabbed towards Quickstep, trying to pull her in.
Quickstep's chest tightened. She was too slow! How could she evade? Quickstep glanced towards her right. She was just about to pass a towering tree. Her eyes lit up. She urgently jumped to the right, pressing her body against the tree. The next moment the flaming hand arrived.
Boom!
The tree trembled. Hundreds of leaves rained down, branches broke. A heatwave caressed Quickstep's cheek. However, the tree remained standing like an indestructible pillar. Quickstep didn't take any damage.