Shua!
Right as I logged on, I received a system message: âHello, Xiao Yao Zi Zai. Because you are a participant in the ãRise of Heroesãâs top 32 tournament, you can enter the arena for free. Do you wish to enter?â
â¦â¦
I made sure to check on the condition of my equipment so that it wouldnât break in the tournament, and that I had enough potions. Since the tournament restricted the use of God Army Cards, I didnât need to check on those, and I entered the arena. Rays of light began rising from the ground and wrapped around my body as the magic teleported me to another map. A panorama suddenly unfolded before my eyes. It was a stately and serene arena with white marble covering the ground. In the center of the massive plaza was a battle arena surrounded with hundreds of spectators. It was like a Roman Colosseum, only without the feel of death; it was more like the atmosphere of a competitive game.
At around 11:45, there were only 15 minutes left until the top 32 started competing. I came a bit late; Yue Qing Qian, Song Han, and Old K were already inside the plaza. In the distance, Yue Qing Qian raised her arm and shouted, âBrother Xiao Yao, weâre over here! Hurry up!â
I quickly jogged over. Not far from me, Wan Er and Dong Cheng Yue also appeared. Our entire group had been teleported to the nearest contestant stage, whereas the spectators were all sitting outside in the audience. The entire stadium had at least 10,000 people there to watch; they were all players from the three big cities.
Everyone was gathered together. I looked toward the center and said, âThereâs only one area. Looks like the top 32 fights are going to occur one by one, not at the same time.â
Wan Er nodded and said, âYup! In total, thereâll only be 16 rounds since itâs a best of three knock-out competition. This way itâll be more fair.â
Yue Qing Qian smiled and said, âThere are so many spectators. I heard that if you want to enter the arena, you have to pay at least 100Gâ¦â¦ Otherwise, you can only watch it live from the NPCâs in the main cities, where the atmosphere is not as great. But the 100G is too expensive; thatâs like 500RMBâ¦â
Dong Cheng Yue held up her staff and said, âNo worries. Thereâs quite a number of people who have that kind of money in the three great cities⦠Ugh, an annoying person is coming overâ¦â
In the distance, a Knight clad in armor and holding a long spear was walking over. It was Wang Ze Cheng, ID Cang Cheng. He calmly walked over with his Transparent Spear and smiled at Wan Er, âWan Er, here you were. Congratulations on getting into the top 32. I had originally wanted to invite you to eat dinner with me to celebrate, but you didnât pick up last night. I guess you just didnât see itâ¦â¦â
Wan Er pursed her lips and bluntly said, âNo, I saw it, I just didnât want to pick up. I donât even know you that well, so donât call me again, or else Iâll put you on the blacklist.â
Wang Ze Cheng stared blankly at her and said, âThat⦠Wan Er, did I do something to offend you?â
Wan Er smiled and said, âYou didnât offend me, but you used [Heroâs Mound: First Division] to invade Ba Huang City. Now, even Q-Sword canât reclaim his power over the First Division. He doesnât talk about it, but that doesnât mean it didnât happen. Wang Ze Cheng, I really donât understand what you want to do. Did you invest 4M into [Heroâs Mound] just so you could buy our First Division?â
Wang Ze Cheng furrowed his eyebrows and said, âItâs not what you think it is. I was justâ¦â
âWhat isnât?â
Wan Er arched a delicate eyebrow and said, âAfter [Heroâs Mound: First Division] left Fan Shu City, youâve switched out a total of 43 people, from the Vice Guild Master to even the flag bearers. We all know that theyâre your people, your trusted aides. Hehe, Wang Ze Cheng, youâve truly made a great investment. You managed to buy a super guild with 4M. In addition, you can use [Heroâs Mound]âs reputation everywhere to intimidate the average small guilds and earn some meager sensibilities, right?â
Wang Ze Cheng looked like he was beginning to struggle, âWan Er, itâs really not what you think it is. Iâm not that kind of a person. There must be some misunderstanding. Donât trust other peopleâs rumors so easilyâ¦â¦â
As he said, that he reached out to grab Wan Erâs wrist.
âShua!â
I quickly slid in front of Wan Er and with the shake of my right shoulder, the Emperor Qinâs Sword slid out of its sheath and knocked away Wang Ze Chengâs arm. As we were, my defense was slightly lower than his, but my attack was far greater. It was impossible for him to force his way past me in the game.
âLi Xiao Yao?â
Wang Ze Cheng retreated a few steps, slightly embarrassed. He raised his spear and said, âWhatâs the meaning of this? Why are you fighting against me?ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
My eyes flashed as I coldly said, âWang Ze Cheng, keep your distance from Wan Er, or else Iâll rip you apart!â
Wang Ze Cheng gave me a cold glare and said, âLi Xiao Yao, I have not done anything to offend you, so why are you doing this? I have a strong alliance with Tian Xin Corporation. Uncle Lin would never allow you to do this. Hmph, donât mistake my patience with you as weakness. If you werenât Wan Erâs friend, then I wouldnât show you so much mercy!â
I couldnât help but smile. and with a âKengâ my sword completely slid out of its sheath. I gripped it in my hand and said, âCome on, let me see just how capable Ba Huang Cityâs number one Knight really is. Iâve been waiting for you to say this for a while now, Wang Ze Cheng. It must be tiring wearing that fake mask all the time. Come, come, come, letâs heartily fight it out. Whoever loses must withdraw from the Rise of the Heroes Tournament!â
âYou!â
Wang Ze Cheng was speechless with fury, and could only raise his spear and turn around to leave, âItâs impossible to reason with youâ¦â
Yue Qing Qian smiled at the sight of Wang Ze Cheng leaving and said, âOh, Brother Xiao Yao, you just made Guild Master Cang Cheng rage quit. Careful, [Heroâs Mound: First Division] might try to annihilate our [Zhan Long]â¦â¦â
Old K laughed out loud and said, âIâll be waiting for that group of trash to come at usâ¦â¦â
â¦â¦
At that moment, a handful of people also came walking over. It was the people from [Legend]! Leading them was a youth clad completely in white, and his battle robes elegantly danced in the wind. In his hand he held a paper fan, and he walked with an elegant demeanor. On top of his head there was a line of words, showing everyone his home city and IDââ
Fang Ge Que Lv 73 Sacred Mage
City: Jiu Li City
Guild: Legend
Guild Position: Guild Master
â¦â¦
Behind Fang Ge Que, Lu Chun Yang and Xuan Yuan Feng closely followed. Their arrival quickly became the focus of everyone in the arena. Everyone was looking toward Fang Ge Que like he was the Son of Heaven. He was the Guild Master of [Destinyâs] number one guild, number one on CBNâs ranking, as well as the top player in the Chinese servers, and perhaps even the number one player in the world!
Fang Ge Queâs eyes scanned the entire area, devoid of all emotion. Soon he found a bench on the side of the contestant stage and calmly sat down, his posture elegant and his clothes perfectly placed.
âWhat a strong presence, this Fang Ge Queâ¦â Yue Qing Qian whispered.
âMhmâ¦â¦â
I tightly gripped my sword and said, âThis person is in the same upper group as me. If I want to make it to the finals, then I must defeat Fang Ge Queâ¦â
Dong Cheng Yue patted my shoulder and chuckled, âDonât worry too much. Think about getting into the top 4 first. Oh, look over there, itâs your first opponent. Oh, sheâs probably coming here for youâ¦â¦â
In front of us, a beautiful Mage was unhurriedly walking over with her staff. Her equipment was exceptionally full of sex appeal; her skintight battle robes revealed a mesmerizing body. A good half of her D-sized twin peaks were revealed, as well as her slender waistline, while her skirt fluttered in the wind, showing off a pair of long legs that caught the stares of everyone. On top of that amazing body, she also had a charming face, making Old K, Song Han, Wang Jian and Li all gasp, âDamn, this woman reallyâ¦â¦ really takes the breath awayâ¦â¦â
Mu Xuan, a.k.a. Queen Mu Xuan, perhaps because she had the traits of a ruler, had founded [Appearance Alliance] and made it into one of the top ten guilds. This woman was an alluring legend, and almost every man admired her. Even women were moved by her beauty, not to mention men.
Mu Xuan walked over to me and curled her lips into a lovely and alluring smile, âXiao Yao Zi Zai, [Zhan Long]âs Guild Master, Ba Huang Cityâs number one close-combat specialist. These days, you even hold an extremely high win rate against Jian Feng Han. Hm, you even look pretty nice⦠This, Xiao Yao Zi Zai, do you want to change guilds? I can make an exception if you want, and you can join [Appearance Alliance]. Iâll even give you the position of Vice Guild Master, how about it? If you enter [Appearance Alliance], youâll become a legend. On top of that⦠youâll have an endless amount of beautiesâ¦â¦â
âKeng!â
I stabbed my Emperor Qinâs Sword into the ground and wryly smiled, âThank you for the offer, Guild Master Mu Xuan. However, even if I donât enter [Appearance Alliance], I believe that I can make [Zhan Long] a legend. As for beautiful womenâ¦â
I glanced at Wan Er and Dong Cheng Yue at my side and said, âFan Shu Cityâs number one and number two beautiful women, Cang Yue and Cang Tong, are mine. I donât think I need to look for any moreâ¦â
Wan Er blushed and said, âAsshole, youâre using me as an excuse againâ¦â
Dong Cheng Yue, on the other hand, gladly said, âAiya, youâre finally admitting to my existence. What a happy feelingâ¦â
Mu Xuan tilted her head and looked at me, then lightly smiled and said, âAlright, Xiao Yao Zi Zai. Since youâve declined my offer, I can only send you on your way in the top 32 fight. Donât blame Sister if I donât show any mercy. Hehe, also, weâre the first round in Group A, so weâll be the opening fight. The most important part isnât winning or losing, but having an entertaining fight!â
I nodded and smiled, âDonât worry! Itâll definitely be an exciting fight!â
âAlright, Iâll be waiting!â
â¦â¦
At that moment, there were only 5 minutes until the tournament began. Everyone started to focus on the stage as the lights began to shine on the center. Suddenly, a summoning hexagon began to spin, and a beautiful figure appeared on the stage. It was a graceful Archer beauty. She carried a bow of light and with the sway of her slender hips, she walked to the side of the stage. Multiple eyes stared at her body and at the same time, a line of words appeared under the hem of her short skirtââZGTV!
âWhat? Why does she look so familiar?â I rubbed my eyes.
Wan Er chuckled and said, âDid you forget? That is ZGTV Game Sectorâs reporter, Sun Fei Er. Last time, she came over to interview the two of us.â
âOh, itâs herâ¦â I slapped my thigh.
Yue Qing Qianâs eyes fluttered a few times and she said, âZGTVâs Fei Er, I heard that sheâs the best anchor in all areas of [Destiny]. Itâs amazing how she was even recruited by [Destiny] to introduce the top 32 in the Rise of the Heroes Tournamentâ¦â