Chapter 184 Superior

No one possessed Gu Fei’s reaction speed and skill. Every player targeted by these projectiles was hit, except for one: Duanshui Jian.

*As expected, he’s got some skills.*

In the instant after pouncing out, Gu Fei didn’t miss the opportunity to observe Duanshui Jian. He saw Duanshui Jian deftly sidestep to avoid the incoming projectile. If he hadn’t been trying to save Jian Gui, Gu Fei probably would have chosen a similar evasion.

At the same time, Duanshui Jian's gaze also fell upon the two of them. Though they had fallen awkwardly, to Duanshui Jian, these two were the only players in the arena besides himself who hadn’t been hit by the attack.

“No need to panic, the attack doesn’t do much damage.” A figure slowly stood up from the bushes, looking at Gu Fei and Jian Gui. Although the messy face paint made it impossible to read his expression, everyone could hear the ease in his tone. One could imagine he wore a friendly and amiable smile, or perhaps, a pretentious one…

Yin Xing Cha. His voice was distinctly different from A Yi’s; it was easy to tell it was him. And the damage from the attack was, as he said, as insignificant as an itch. The hit players had already brushed off their alarm, and the fallen Gu Fei and Jian Gui were seen as symbols of excessive panic. Many people cast disdainful glances their way. Only Duanshui Jian’s gaze toward the two of them was different than before.

“A Yi, aren’t you coming out yet?” Yin Xing Cha continued in his relaxed tone, calling out.

The countdown had been interrupted by the attack, but three seconds had long passed, and the duel was over. If no one had been caught in a trap, it would be time to count who had been hit by the most arrows. But there didn't seem to be much suspense. Only three arrows had flown during the entire duel, and everyone had seen that they all missed. Yin Xing Cha certainly hadn't been hit, and this last wave of strange attacks was clearly Yin Xing Cha’s doing. Even the spectators on the outer circle hadn't been able to dodge, let alone A Yi, who was closer to the center.

Sure enough, A Yi stood up silently at the call, without saying a word. It would undoubtedly be a very enjoyable moment if one could appreciate the opponent’s expression, but unfortunately, the face paint was a good disguise. Yin Xing Cha couldn’t enjoy this pleasure and probably felt that it lacked a climax. In the end, he didn’t say much, just a simple, “There’s always someone better. Good luck to you.”

A Yi continued to remain silent, clearly disheartened by the loss. His little brothers were also like frost-bitten eggplants, each with their heads lowered.

“Wait!” To everyone’s surprise, including Gu Fei, Jian Gui suddenly spoke up.

Yin Xing Cha turned his head. Seeing it was Jian Gui, his face twitched. It probably meant he was smiling, but it looked like a spasm. After the twitch, he politely said, “This brother wasn’t hurt just now, was he…? My apologies.”

“What skill was that you just used?” Jian Gui asked.

“That doesn’t seem to be any of your business, does it?” Yin Xing Cha said dismissively.

Players usually had two attitudes toward unfamiliar skills. One was to show off, proclaiming the skill’s powerful effects, stats, and uses to the world, eliciting envy and worship from others. The other was to hide it, not wanting others to know too much about their skills, so they wouldn’t reveal the skill’s data or effects. Yin Xing Cha’s attitude at this time was clearly the latter, and Jian Gui was an experienced player who should have known this. Encountering the former type of person, they would boast even without being asked. Encountering the latter, they wouldn’t say anything even if asked. So Jian Gui was asking a question that he, as a veteran, shouldn’t have asked. The look in Yin Xing Cha’s eyes was like he was looking at an ignorant newbie.

“I don’t want to pry too much, but at least, that skill of yours should be a trap, right?” Jian Gui said.

“That’s also none of your business, is it?” Yin Xing Cha said.

“It’s not about telling me; it’s about explaining it to this duel. If it was a trap skill, then may I ask how you activated it? Can you demonstrate it for everyone?” Jian Gui said.

Yin Xing Cha fell silent.

“Did you step on your own trap, triggering its mechanism?” Jian Gui pressed, not giving him an inch.

A clamor erupted. Even A Yi suddenly realized and looked at Yin Xing Cha, saying, “You cheated?”

“Cheated? What cheat? Who says you can’t step on your own trap?” Yin Xing Cha retorted.

“You admit it? So that means you were the first to be caught in the trap, so you lost!” A Yi suddenly perked up.

“Tch, I stepped on my own trap, not yours. What are you so excited about?” Yin Xing Cha said.

“The rules only say that the first to step on a trap loses, it doesn’t say whose trap it has to be,” A Yi said.

“Nonsense. That’s because it doesn’t need to be said. Who would step on their own trap? Are you an idiot?” Yin Xing Cha exclaimed.

The forest suddenly fell silent. After a long while, a burst of laughter erupted, especially from A Yi’s group, who laughed particularly loudly. Yin Xing Cha’s group was very awkward. Yin Xing Cha only wanted to express that “stepping on your own trap doesn’t count, it’s a self-evident truth that everyone understands.” But he was too anxious, and in a slip of the tongue, he trapped himself.

Jian Gui didn’t laugh. He looked at Yin Xing Cha and continued, “According to your logic, stepping on your own trap doesn’t count, and that’s based on the premise that no one would step on their own trap. But you deliberately stepped on your own trap, which is still a violation of the rules.”

“Hmph, losers always have a lot of excuses,” Yin Xing Cha said disdainfully.

“You’re the one who lost!” A Yi shouted.

“You look very unconvinced. If you’re not convinced, then let’s have another match. Why all the nonsense?” Yin Xing Cha said with contempt.

“Let’s go, I’m afraid of you?” A Yi’s voice was very loud.

Gu Fei could only cover his forehead. *Young people, young people, you’re so inexperienced, you’d fall for such a simple provocation.* Although Yin Xing Cha wouldn’t admit it, victory and defeat were in people’s hearts. Everyone understood it themselves. A guy like Yin Xing Cha, who could shamelessly quibble after being exposed for cheating, was clearly an unrepentant deadbeat who wasn’t afraid of anything. Even if you fairly won against him, he would have a million reasons to deal with you. It was extremely difficult to convince someone like that. Moreover, in the duels just now, while Yin Xing Cha was cheating, A Yi didn’t show any strong means of winning. To rashly agree to another match with Yin Xing Cha was the typical case of not using his brain.

“Forget it.” Gu Fei stepped forward, pulling A Yi back, who was preparing to enter the arena again.

“Oh? Scared?” Yin Xing Cha sneered.

“Don’t stop me. I must make this guy lose convincingly,” A Yi said, agitated.

“Those words sound better coming from someone with real strength. Be honest, do you have a 100% certainty of defeating him?” Gu Fei said.

A Yi was silent. If he had that certainty, he would have already won just now. How could he have given Yin Xing Cha the opportunity to cheat in the last three seconds?

“If you don’t even have that certainty, what makes you think you can make him lose convincingly?” Gu Fei asked A Yi.

A Yi was silent.

“Alright, go back!” Gu Fei gestured for A Yi to return to his companions. A Yi walked away blankly, still seemingly pondering Gu Fei’s words. As a result, Gu Fei behind him had already rolled up his sleeves and said to Yin Xing Cha, “Come on, I’ll be the one to make you lose convincingly!”

“Damn it!” The entire arena booed, and everyone shouted. Even Jian Gui felt that this Gu Fei was too shameless. Yin Xing Cha laughed even more wildly, “Kid, you’re very arrogant!”

Gu Fei smiled, “You’ll know it’s not arrogance after we fight; it’s just a fact.” After saying that, he unbuttoned his camouflage uniform and reached into his inner pocket to pull out his sword. As a result, he heard someone behind him sternly shout, “Enough!”

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice, and there was only one person there: Duanshui Jian.

“This kind of duel is meaningless,” Duanshui Jian said.

“How can it be meaningless? It’s to improve individual PK skills!” Yin Xing Cha said.

“What’s the use of this kind of skill? On the battlefield, no one will give you such a large open space to show off. On the battlefield, you won’t only have one enemy. On the battlefield, every inch of land may be hiding a crisis. Your so-called duels are just boring games. If you want to win in future city wars, it’s best to think more about how to exert individual abilities in chaotic situations and win overall victory. What help does individual ranking provide for city wars?” Duanshui Jian said.

“Hmph, let’s go!” Yin Xing Cha, noncommittal to what Duanshui Jian said, led his group away, turning around.

A Yi’s group, however, showed more respect toward Duanshui Jian.

Gu Fei didn’t feel any regret over the disrupted fight. From the two groups’ attitudes toward Duanshui Jian, he felt that there were some interesting things going on.

“Did you see that?” Looking at Duanshui Jian’s departing figure, Gu Fei said to Jian Gui.

“What are you referring to?” Jian Gui asked.

“Yin Xing Cha and his group seem to think little of Duanshui Jian,” Gu Fei said.

“Yeah…” Jian Gui had of course seen this. “Although what Duanshui Jian said makes sense, I don’t quite agree with his method. This is just a game. Even if it’s the guild leader, they shouldn’t speak so rigidly. Everyone should be friends, brothers, completely equal. His attitude is really like a boss scolding his employees!”

“However, there seem to be quite a few guild leaders like that!” Gu Fei said.

“To win people over with virtue, to convince the masses with reason. As long as what’s said is right and the actions are just, even if the tone is heavy, many people will agree. I’m just saying that I personally don’t like this method,” Jian Gui said.

“Of course, you’re not the only one who doesn’t like it. Look, Yin Xing Cha and his group don’t like it very much,” Gu Fei said.

“Yeah, it looks like it…” Jian Gui said.

“Then what kind of guild leader do you think Shui Shen’s personality would be?” Gu Fei asked.

“Of course, the kind I described,” Jian Gui said.

“Birds of a feather flock together. If Shui Shen is that kind of leader, then most of the guild members he gathers will naturally be people who agree with his leadership style. But suddenly, a leader with a completely different style intervenes and gives strong commands. Do you think everyone would feel very uncomfortable?” Gu Fei said.

“What… what exactly are you trying to say?” Jian Gui suddenly felt a little alarmed.

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Next, we will discuss matters related to those in positions of authority. Cough… welcome everyone to actively post in the book review section