Chapter 632 - Gray Eagle
Above the wide and s.p.a.cious stone platform, s.h.i.+ Feng slowly sheathed the Abyssal Blade, not even bothering to look at the Level 30 Berserker who had fallen to the ground.
“Next,” s.h.i.+ Feng said calmly.
The rules of the amphitheater were set so that when a vital point was struck, death and defeat were certain. Even a s.h.i.+eld Warrior with high HP and Defense was no exception to this rule, not to mention a Berserker.
Seeing s.h.i.+ Feng’s calm expression, everyone who had felt insulted immediately shut their mouths, a hint of fear appearing in their eyes.
Although the Berserker cla.s.s was not a speed-based cla.s.s, it was not easily defeated. Not to mention, the Berserker that had served as s.h.i.+ Feng’s opponent was an expert who had experienced countless live battles.
Moreover, they were all companions, so they understood each other’s strengths quite well.
Although the Berserker s.h.i.+ Feng had defeated did not rank within the top five of their group, his combat power could still rank within the top ten. The fact that s.h.i.+ Feng had defeated the Berserker with a single attack, giving the Berserker no time to react, was simply inconceivable.
“As expected of someone chosen by the Pavilion Master; you indeed possess some ability. Let me, Gray Eagle, learn something from you, then.”
A middle-aged man with a lean body and eyes as sharp as an eagle’s stepped out from the crowd.
When the crowd saw the Berserker named Gray Eagle step forward, the shock from s.h.i.+ Feng’s one-sided victory immediately dissipated, their arrogance and confidence returning.
“Eagle, we’re counting on you! We can’t let him look down on us!” the others showed their support from the side.
Gray Eagle was the number one expert among their group. Although the man was already in his forties, his keen skills and bountiful combat experience were unmatched by ordinary, young players.
“I’ll do my best.” Gray Eagle nodded as he slowly walked up to s.h.i.+ Feng.
Meanwhile, Phoenix Rain smiled pleasantly as she watched from the stands.
“We didn’t have the chance to see Black Flames true strength in the previous match. Now that Gray Eagle has stepped forward, we should get to see his limits,” Phoenix Rain said, smiling as she watched a playback video of s.h.i.+ Feng’s prior battle.
“Miss, even in the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion, Gray Eagle is an expert who ranks at the very top. He has a good chance of defeating anyone among the younger generation, other than Martial Dragon. How could he not be a match for Black Flame?” Pure Fragrance could not help her surprise when she heard Phoenix Rain’s words.
Pure Fragrance believed that Phoenix Rain overestimated s.h.i.+ Feng’s strength.
She had not been paying attention, so she had not seen the moment when s.h.i.+ Feng had drawn his sword. However, after watching the battle’s recording, she could tell that his attack was not so fast that it was unblockable. Only, s.h.i.+ Feng’s attack was crafty, suddenly changing its trajectory to target his opponent’s blind spot. As a result, the Berserker was unable to react in time and received a hit to his vital point, dying.
However, Gray Eagle was different. The combat experience he possessed was several times greater compared to the other reserve members. Even if s.h.i.+ Feng abruptly changed the trajectory of his attack once more, it would be no threat to Gray Eagle.
“We’ll know once the battle begins.”
Naturally, Phoenix Rain knew how powerful Gray Eagle was. She had initially wanted Gray Eagle to lead the battle team. If Black Flame had not succeeded in conquering the h.e.l.l Mode Ruins of the Crow G.o.d, she would not be here today.
The moment Phoenix Rain finished speaking, the countdown timer above the stone platform also ended.
“Let me see just how strong you are.” Gray Eagle retrieved his two-handed saber. Suddenly, his eyes grew cold; even the surrounding temperature dropped. It seemed as if nothing could escape his frosty gaze.
Before s.h.i.+ Feng could move, Gray Eagle sent his saber slas.h.i.+ng at s.h.i.+ Feng’s shoulder.
Gray Eagle’s attack was not fast. On the contrary, it was very slow. Even an ordinary player could react to and block the attack. It was as if Gray Eagle’s attack were tempting his opponent to block it.
In addition, Gray Eagle’s saber targeted a vital point. Facing this attack, one would have no choice but to either block or dodge it.
If s.h.i.+ Feng did not defend against this attack, choosing to attack Gray Eagle’s vital point instead, the battle would end in mutual destruction.
One could say that this was a suicidal blow.
At this moment, those who were familiar with Gray Eagle laughed. They all knew that Gray Eagle was not trying to pit his life against his opponent’s. Rather, he was using this attack to probe for his opponent’s weaknesses.
Normally, experts rarely had any weak points when they were on guard. However, the instant they launched an attack, they would reveal their greatest weak point. Hence, Gray Eagle tempted s.h.i.+ Feng to expose his weak point of his own accord. Then, he would strike. Although Gray Eagle would also reveal his weak point, with his superior insight and abundant combat experience, he could easily suppress his opponent.
In other words, Gray Eagle lured s.h.i.+ Feng to fight within his comfort zone. Due to this ability, many top-tier experts in the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion were helpless against Gray Eagle.
“Going all-in?” s.h.i.+ Feng laughed. “You’ll regret it.”
In the next moment, s.h.i.+ Feng recklessly dove forward, towards Gray Eagle’s purple-black saber. He did not even bother using his sword to block the oncoming weapon.
Has he gone mad?! Gray Eagle was dumbfounded as he watched s.h.i.+ Feng’s insane behavior. Does he think I’ll show mercy? Or does he think he can avoid my saber at the last moment?
Gray Eagle was very experienced in combat. Seeing as s.h.i.+ Feng was not a lunatic, the only possibility for such reckless behavior was that s.h.i.+ Feng believed he could evade his attack at the very last moment and take the opportunity to strike at his weak point.
You underestimate me.
Gray Eagle’s expression chilled further as he used more of his arms’ strength. Suddenly, the speed of his saber increased. At such a close distance, it was simply impossible for anyone to avoid this attack.
Immediately after, Gray Eagle’s saber pa.s.sed through s.h.i.+ Feng’s body.
“This is...?!” Gray Eagle was dumbfounded as he saw his saber cut across s.h.i.+ Feng’s face, discovering that his weapon only struck an afterimage.
“What’s going on here?” Pure Fragrance gaped at this scene. No matter how she looked at it, Gray Eagle’s saber should have struck s.h.i.+ Feng. Yet, for some unknown reason, despite a short distance of one meter between the Berserker and Swordsman, the 1.3-meter-long two-handed saber had failed to reach its target.
Sitting beside Pure Fragrance, Phoenix Rain squinted her eyes at this scene. With a heavy expression, she said, “Treating retreat as advance. I didn’t imagine that Black Flame had already reached such a realm.”
“Treating retreat as an advance? How does he know that?” Pure Fragrance was shocked when she heard her superior’s comment.
Treating retreat as an advance was an attack technique. Against this technique, one would notice their opponent rush towards them, while in reality, their opponent was retreating. In actual combat, one would discover that they could not make contact with their opponent’s body despite their opponent remaining right in front of them. It was as if they were haunted by a ghost, and they could not get rid of this ghost no matter what they did. This was a technique that could mentally exhaust the other party.
Treating retreat as an advance was Martial Dragon’s specialty. However, the reason Martial Dragon could use such a technique was his Domain. He was only capable of using such a combat technique due to his absolute control over his surroundings.
Could he have learned it after his fight with Martial Dragon? How can that be?! Thinking up to this point, Pure Fragrance felt a chill crawl down her spine.
Following which, Gray Eagle brandished his sword over a dozen times at s.h.i.+ Feng. Every attack was swift and precise. Ordinary players could not defend against these attacks at all. Yet, no matter how hard the Berserker swung his saber, his weapon never struck the Swordsman before him. His attacks would always be off by a small thread. However, he could not stop his desperate and suicidal attacks. With such a short distance between them, if s.h.i.+ Feng attacked, he would not have enough time to react.
No wonder the Dragon-Phoenix Pavilion’s men were so confident when Gray Eagle stepped up. He’s an expert who has entered the Refinement Realm. If I had not gained some enlightenment from the Darkness Shrine, fighting him would have really been troublesome. At this moment, s.h.i.+ Feng already had a general grasp of Gray Eagle’s standard. Time to end things.