Chapter 1228: A Risky Move
Translator: Nomyummi Editor: Nomyummi
Li Xun's shock couldn't described with just words. Speaking of which, only Team Void's six players didn't know about the four Happy players hiding. Even the Team Void players sitting at their bench had seen Happy's movements through the viewers' omniscient view. Unfortunately, they couldn't inform their teammates on stage. They could only run around in circles anxiously like cats on a hot tin roof.
As for the crowd?
They didn't feel shocked like Li Xun. They could only wait expectantly for Team Void to rush forward and run into an unexpected situation. And now, the time had finally come.
This was the climax of the script!
When Li Xun's Ghost Lantern ran past the watchtower and came across Happy's four players, the crowd fired up.
Li Xun only needed a glance to understand what had just happened because the four characters waiting here were Lord Grim, Boundless Sea, Soft Mist and Steamed Bun Invasion.
Yes, no healer. They had no one slowing them down. Happy came up full force. It wasn't just Su Mucheng's Dancing Rain, but everyone. As for Little Cold Hands? He had probably switched with Steamed Bun Invasion as soon as the match started… the starting spawn point was also the support zone.
1v4?
Li Xun wasn't that naive, but what should he do now? He had run here as fast as he could, so his movement skills were all on cooldown. He couldn't escape nor could he beat them. He had to hurry and inform his teammates of his situation.
"Trapped!"
Li Xun chose to use the most concise way possible to notify his teammates as Happy's four character threw themselves at him.
Trapped? Did they need a reminder? Team Void's four other players weren't far from Li Xun's Ghost Lantern, so they saw the ambush from Happy's four players. Everyone was stunned.
Ghost Lantern was surrounded in an instant. Team Void was now at a huge disadvantage.
How did this happen?
Li Xuan wasn't famous for his tactical skill, and he didn't like to take risks. He quickly felt the difference between the two team's tactical levels.
The difference was "risk"!
When the match started, Void could have sent their Launcher, Yang Haoxuan, to fight for this position, but because they didn't want to risk it, fearing that Yang Haoxuan would be suppressed by Su Mucheng. Thus, the team spread out further to be safer.
As for Happy? They directly abandoned their healer and made a beeline towards this position to get there as fast as possible. Without Void knowing, Happy arrived, while having Su Mucheng's Dancing Rain make a feint towards the high grounds. Happy had played extremely risky. If Void hadn't impatiently tried to take down Dancing Rain and continued their advance forward, even if Dancing Rain held the high grounds, being without a healer wasn't something that a skilled support character could make up for. In fierce close combat, Launchers could not stop a relentless offensive.
Unfortunately, Void didn't do this.
They did not dare risk it, but they did not steadily advance forward either. When they saw Su Mucheng take the high grounds, they viewed it as their opportunity to victory, so they started moving full speed ahead, even switching out their healer for a damage dealer midway.
The risk they took had been after seeking for stability. Compared to Happy, who risked it all at the start, their risk had been much smaller.
Ghost Lantern was instantly surrounded. Void's other four players immediately understood the situation too.
What should they do?
"Rescue!"
Li Xuan typed a single word in chat.
They had no choice but to save him. Li Xun alone probably had no chance of escaping a 4v1 situation. If he died, it would become a 5v6. Although Void could have their sixth player sub in, it would still be a 5v5. However, Happy would have an extra player as a backup, allowing them to play more forcefully to take the initiative. Forcing the two sides to trade would be disadvantageous for Void.
Thus, at this moment, Li Xuan didn't choose to retreat, instead calling for everyone to hurry over. After all, the rest of Void wasn't that far from him. With a ghost boundary placed down, Li Xuan felt like he should be able to quickly find an opening for Li Xun to get away.
Ice Soul!
Li Xuan's character was the number one Phantom Demon in Glory, Crying Devil. The Silver weapon in his hands Four Heavenly Wheels strengthened three elements, Fire, Ice, and Darkness. The glittering ice crystals swept over the darkness of Ghostblades. The cast time was extremely short too; the Ice Boundary was set down almost instantly.
However, almost instant meant it wasn't instant. The moment the Ice Boundary started to form, Li Xuan saw a grenade at his feet.
The grenade exploded. Crying Devil dodged it, but the Ice Boundary failed to be placed down. Li Xuan looked upwards and saw Dancing Rain's long hair and clothing fluttering in the wind at the top of the watchtower.
She really is our nemesis! Li Xuan sighed, but...
A shadow flickered past Crying Devil, practically the instant the grenade exploded. Ice crystals flowed from the tachi in his hands; it just wasn't as dazzling as Four Heavenly Wheels.
Carved Ghost's weapon, Heavenly Crimson Lotus strengthened fire element skills. His Ice Boundary wasn't skilled very high either, so the ice crystals swirling around Heavenly Crimson Lotus didn't look as glamorous. Moreover, compared to Crying Devil, Carved Ghost's cast time was a bit slower. But at this moment, the phantom soul from Heavenly Crimson Lotus flew out, forming the Ice Boundary. The area surrounding Ghost Lantern froze into ice.
Who could be more skilled at coordinating with boundaries than Void's Ghostblade duo? Whether it was each other's thoughts, habits, or characters, the two had reached the point of perfection. They no longer needed to speak to communicate.
Crying Devil, the number one Phantom Demon, had just been cover. The one to actually lay down the Ice Boundary was Carved Ghost. In that instant, Void completed an extremely beautiful display of teamwork.
How could Happy not retreat from an Ice Boundary?
The threat of Carved Ghost's Ice Boundary might be slightly lower, but its effects couldn't be ignored.
However, Happy didn't retreat.
Fang Rui's Boundless Sea swung both his arms, creating a Qi Guard. This Ice Boundary had been blocked by it. The two opponents who fought intensely in the group arena once once again clashed in the team competition.
The ice energy struck the Qi Guard, but the power of Carved Ghost's Ice Boundary was limited. It evidently could not break through Boundless Sea's Qi Guard. The skill used to try and save Ghost Lantern as soon as possible was blocked.
Missing this opportunity, Ghost Lantern took more damage. Li Xuan's Crying Devil charged forward to place down another boundary, when he heard the whistle of missiles flying above his head. Dancing Rain let out all of her firepower towards the two Ghostblades.
The two dodged, one to the left and the other to the right. They ignored Dancing Rain and continued to charge towards the encirclement. Ge Caijie's Blue Exorcist waved his hands and took out his scythe. Lightning descended from the sky and gathered on the scythe. He had clearly placed a Lightning Talisman on it.
Qi Guard was unable to completely block this attack. A Soul Guidanced weapon had very high priority. It couldn't be blocked by a normal attack, but among the ones that could, another Soul Guidance was naturally included!
Inside the encirclement, Lord Grim's Myriad Manifestations Umbrella left his hands and spun towards the scythe.
The two skills collided. It could be seen that Lord Grim's Soul Guidance priority was slightly weaker. After all, he wasn't an Exorcist. However, this collision stopped Blue Exorcist's attack from reaching its desired location. Although it didn't completely block it, it helped the others in Happy dodge this attack.
After this collision, the Myriad Manifestations Umbrella was recalled back by Lord Grim and started hitting Ghost Lantern's head again. Along with a Fling, Ghost Lantern was thrown out. However, before Void could be happy about it, they saw that the others in Happy had prepared in advance for this toss and were already heading towards there. Ghost Lantern wasn't even able to land on the ground before Steamed Bun Invasion grabbed him with a Strangle.
Happy focused their attacks, while moving with their target. Turning around the watchtower dumbfounded Void's Launcher. Yang Haoxuan had just been about to launch a Satellite Beam, but with this turn, he no longer had any vision of them. However, he wasn't able to stop himself in time and the Satellite Beam was still completed. In the end, it awkwardly landed on Carved Ghost's head, who was chasing after them. On the watchtower, Su Mucheng took advantage of this Satellite Beam and shot him tumbling with a Laser Beam.
Carved Ghost and Crying Devil crossed each other and switched positions, while also using Ghost Step, which had gone off cooldown. The two characters sprinted, leaving afterimages behind them, but Happy suddenly caught them off guard.
Shatter the Lands!
Tang Rou's Soft Mist leapt high into the air and let loose a high-level skill.
Who dared to take this skill head on? The two Ghostblades could only retreat. Soft Mist didn't continue fighting, after her attack got rid of them, she immediately went back to attack Ghost Lantern. Ta ta ta ta, Lord Grim fired a Gatling Gun to follow up. A shower of bullets spilled out happily.
Void was having a headache!
They thought that their Ghostblades, who specialised in controlling the field, would be able to quickly let Li Xun escape. Who would have thought that they would be forced into such a pitiful position. As a result, not only did they fail to rescue their teammate, they fell into a trap. They wouldn't be able to get a healer to support them in a short amount of time, but Happy? It was already Round 14. Everyone had seen Lord Grim suddenly wave his umbrella and cast a few heals before. No one would disregard his healing.
"Retreat!"
They had just yelled "Rescue!" and in the blink of an eye, it had turned into a "Retreat!" It couldn't be said that this was Li Xuan hesitating. The circumstances had changed. Seeing that rescuing wasn't working and fighting would be difficult, they could only let go of one of their players and save their own lives so they could fight another battle.
Who would have thought that while Void had given up, Happy hadn't. Sensing Void's intentions, Happy abandoned Ghost Lantern and chased after them.
Chapter 1229: Team Void’s Launcher
Translator: Nomyummi Editor: Nomyummi
Team Void was still a pro team; even in retreat, there was strategy. They could not ignore the enemy as they backed away, and saw Lord Grim and Boundless Sea standing nearly mirrored, opening their palms with almost identical stances...
Cloud Grasping Fist!
And it was two at the same time!
Of Team Void's four players, besides Yang Haoxuan's Translucent, everyone else was within range of these two grabs. Luckily, they noticed their movements in time and hastily scrambled around frantically. If Cloud Grasping Fist could not be interrupted, the only other way to escape from it was to run around constantly so the enemy couldn't pinpoint them. The qi released by Cloud Grasping Fist was completely invisible.
The attention of these three players were entirely focused on the two Cloud Grasping Fists, when they saw Yang Haoxuan roar in chat: "ABOVE!"
Above?
The moment they saw the message, they felt an abnormality in the lighting of their field of view, but it was already too late do anything. A Satellite Beam descended from the sky.
The three had only been focused on the two Cloud Grasping Fists, so for a moment, they forgot about Dancing Rain, who was above them. And the price for their mistake was painful. The central Satellite Beam struck Crying Devil, and the following smaller beams thoroughly disrupted their rhythm.
Dragon Breaks the Ranks!
Tang Hao's Soft Mist seized this opportunity to force her way into their ranks. Although her charge didn't hit anyone, her follow-up Tyrant's Destruction sent Blue Exorcist, who was busy dodging the rotating beams of light, flying away.
Blue Exorcist lost his balance. However, Tyrant's Destruction wasn't a grab skill that locked the body. As Blue Exorcist flew in the air, Ge Caijie hastily regained his balance. In this instant, Ge Caijie's calmness showed. The Soul Guidanced scythe flew out, not towards Soft Mist, nor was it to stop Happy's counterattack. Instead, it was thrown to its max distance, towards Steamed Bun Invasion, who had pinned Ghost Lantern to the ground was beating him up.
Lock Talisman!
A Talisman, which could help Li Xun break out from the assault, was attached to the scythe.
Li Xun and Ghost Lantern had already been abandoned, but because of the change in circumstances, Ge Caijie calmly made this decision. With Team Void's rhythm disrupted, this was a decision to disrupt Happy's rhythm. If Li Xun was saved, he could form a pincer attack with the rest of Void and again open up the enemy's formation. This was the best case scenario for Void's current situation.
Suddenly, a "biu" sounded. Ge Caijie looked up and saw a beam of light fire from Dancing Rain's cannon and accurately strike the scythe.
Soul Guidance had high priority, but the burst from Laser Beam was not weak either. This Laser Beam was unable to completely stop the scythe dead on its tracks, but it knocked it towards the ground. With a hum, the scythe stuck into the ground about half a unit away from Steamed Bun Invasion. The talisman on the scythe activated, but it didn't do anything. As for Steamed Bun Invasion? He didn't react until now. If Su Mucheng hadn't shot down the scythe, Steamed Bun, who was in the middle of beating up Ghost Lantern, would have most likely been hit.
If the attack had connected, the Lock Talisman would have taken effect. Void would briefly have a 5v4 situation, and the tides would turn. Ge Caijie's calm, swift decision was truly terrifying, however...
Looking up at that Launcher at the top of the watchtower, Ge Caijie was filled with awe.
He had joined the Alliance last season, just when Excellent Era had been relegated from the league. As a result, he had never fought against Su Mucheng's Launcher. Although there was quite some controversy over Su Mucheng in the public eye, Team Void had suffered under her hands and had nothing but praise for her. When Li Xuan and Wu Yuce, his two seniors, had heard about Team Excellent Era getting relegated, Ge Caijie clearly heard them let out a "sigh of relief". The person who had given these two All-Stars such pressure was Su Mucheng.
What type of player is she?
Ge Caijie had always been curious about Su Mucheng?
And now, after personally going into battle against her, Ge Caijie could finally feel just how unbearable of an existence this top supportive player was. Li Xuan and Wu Yuce probably had the strongest feeling of this unbearableness.
Ge Caijie had nearly reverse the situation with Soul Guidance, but because of Su Mucheng's Laser Beam, his attack had been blocked. Team Void had scattered like sand. Right now, Yang Haoxuan, who had been picked for the team competition specifically to counter Su Mucheng, felt very ashamed of himself.
His purpose was to restrict Su Mucheng, but what had he done so far?
When the match started, Team Void had not sent him out to fight for the high grounds. Yang Haoxuan knew what the team had been worried about, but he didn't have the confidence to stand out and take the initiative to express that he could do it. If he had displayed this kind of courage and confidence, Yang Haoxuan knew that the team would have certainly given him the chance to prove himself. However, he hadn't. He had even felt glad that the team hadn't forced him to carry out this task. This was Yang Haoxuan himself not confident in himself, but at the same time, it was the shadow that Su Mucheng had placed in their hearts.
After the two sides started fighting, Su Mucheng occupied the high grounds and had an amazing field of view and position. However, it wasn't like Yang Haoxuan was sitting there doing nothing. He could also utilize his long-ranged attacks to suppress Su Mucheng. But from the looks of it, it seemed like he wasn't doing anything. At least, in the crucial moments, he hadn't displayed any usefulness. On the other hand, Su Mucheng had repeatedly disrupted Team Void several times.
It shouldn't be like this. What should I do?
Yang Haoxuan told himself that, but in this chaotic situation that he could read clearly, he wasn't able to make a precise and effective judgement. In the end, he was just a long ranged attacker, standing at the farthest and safest position, a decoration for their team's offensive prowess. Change the tides? Yang Haoxuan had neither the courage nor the confidence. Even if he had the ability to make a difference, the probability of it happening was unlikely.
Yang Haoxuan's Translucent stood there far far away as if he were truly translucent. Sometimes, he would throw some AoE attacks towards where the Ghost Duo were attacking. Sometimes, he would nervously look upwards to observe Su Mucheng's actions and then send a few attacks towards her.
"Yang Haoxuan, what exactly are you doing!"
Finally, Wu Yuce yelled out in the chat. This enduring vice-captain very rarely gave any orders or directions, perhaps he was intentionally avoiding it. After all, Team Void's Ghost Duo was a pair with debate over who was better. Wu Yuce didn't want to exceed his place and disrupt the balance by meddling in other people's matters. He very carefully kept a certain distance away from captain Li Xuan. His voice was oftentimes even less heard than the regular team members during a match.
But now, this vice captain had done what he rarely ever did. He spoke. Let alone, Yang Haoxuan, even the others felt a shiver in surprise.
"Focus on Su Mucheng. Don't bother with anything else!" Wu Yuce said with unwavering certainty.
Yang Haoxuan tensed up. He looked upwards with practically zero thought behind it and saw Dancing Rain aiming at a target from the edge of the watchtower. Yang Haoxuan didn't even think and shot a Laser Beam towards her.
An involuntary action was the fastest. Yang Haoxuan lifting up his head and Laser Beam was practically simultaneous because he had done it without any thinking at all.
When Su Mucheng saw Translucent look towards her, she didn't think the attack would be so fast. Laser Beam's speed was extremely fast too, flashing in front of her in the blink of an eye. Even if Su Mucheng wanted to dodge, it was too late. The Laser Beam struck her ferociously, pushing her off the watchtower.
"Beautiful!" Their captain Li Xuan was busy, but he took the time to praise Yang Haoxuan. Picking Yang Haoxuan to counter Su Mucheng was proof of his capabilities. Everyone approved of him. The problem was that he lacked the courage and confidence to face Su Mucheng.
Su Mucheng was said to be Li Xuan's and Wu Yuce's nemesis, and when they faced Su Mucheng, they cowered at times. How could the other players not show fear for Su Mucheng in this kind of atmosphere? What's more, Yang Haoxuan was a Launcher, while Su Mucheng was an All-Star Launcher. All Stars were chosen out of popular vote, but where did popularity come from? The foundation came from skill, so it was also a form of of recognition towards a player's skill. Thus, Yang Haoxuan always felt like he couldn't compare to Su Mucheng. That was in addition to Team Void's atmosphere. Putting him to face Su Mucheng? Not having confidence or courage couldn't entirely blamed on him. So the team tried to encourage him. When they saw this attack, their team captain immediately went out of his way to praise him.
Sure enough, this Laser Beam woke up Yang Haoxuan. Even though it didn't instantly make him feel like he was invincible,he had to do what he needed to do. His mind suddenly cleared up.
Wu Yuce roared at him to focus on Su Mucheng on nothing else, but this was just to point out how important it was. How could pro players only single mindedly work on one task? As a result, the instant Dancing Rain was blasted away, Translucent shifted his attention back to the other battles, providing support for his team. From time to time, he would pay attention to Dancing Rain.
Dancing Rain was pushed out of the watchtower, but Su Mucheng reacted extremely fast. She fired several cannon shots to counteract the knockback from the Laser Beam and slow her descent. Then, she used the Launcher's Rotor Wing, putting her back on top of the watchtower.
In Glory, character skill trees could be reset as long as you spent the money. Normal players might try to avoid doing so to save money, but pro teams wouldn't care about this bit of money. Whether it was to test out new skill setups or picking skills specifically to counter opponents, resetting skill trees was a common practice. Sometimes, it was possible to make surprising changes to one's playstyle. Li Xuan's Crying Devil was as Phantom Demon, but it wasn't like he had never reset his points and reallocated it as a Sword Demon. This sort of situation wouldn't happen too often though. After all, his Phantom Demon was his best character.
Su Mucheng had probably reset her skills to learn Rotor Wings specifically for this match! As Yang Haoxuan guessed, Translucent's cannon once again aimed towards the air.