“Are you saying that we should give up on our assassination attempt on Gongzi You, sister Blossom?” asked a short Human Rogue with the name Honey Barbie. Despite her appearance of a little loli, she was one of the core members of the assassination group. Not a single target had slipped from her grasp since the day she joined the group.
“Of course not, don’t be silly.” Death Blossom shook her head. She was able to raise her level to lvl22 with the help of Golden Era’s higher level players, but there was still a huge gap between her and Gongzi You.
She wanted to have a showdown with Gongzi You when their strength was on par, but she knew that her decision would ultimately affect the growth of her guild. Their main aim was to test out the strength of the top players of all four continents so that they could have a clearer picture of the strength of players on these continents. The guild would then make their move against the weaker continent first before working their way through the other continents.
When her personal interest was in conflict with the interest of her guild, Death Blossom knew which choice to make.
Her eyes had never left Gongzi You displayed on the screen. She did her best to acquire videos of Gongzi You, but the player was simply too elusive, and had been laying very low. Even videos of dungeon clearing involving Gongzi You were rare materials to come across.
Death Blossom could not have a good grasp of Gongzi You’s capabilities. She had fought against many formidable opponents, and all of them ended up lying dead under her feet. Gongzi You was her next target.
“Sister Blossom, you seem to be very interested in Gongzi You.” Honey Barbie knew Death Blossom could tell what Death Blossom was thinking just from her gaze.
Death Blossom responded with a smile. She did not deny the statement, “It’s just temporary. How long it last depends on the result of your battle.”
Honey Barbie nodded and turned towards another of the assassination group’s core member, March Spring, “Spring, you ‘re one of the first to enter the game, and has been staying in the Eastern Continent. What do you know about Gongzi You?”
March Spring was a young man with an unremarkable appearance that suited his class as a Rogue very well. His face was not something that one could remember well. He was exactly like the sort of person someone would least expect to stab a person in the back. He studied Gongzi You silently for a short while before giving his reply, “She’s a great Huntress.”
Honey Barbie pricked up her ears to listen to what March Spring had to say about Gongzi You, but that was the end of his sentence, “That’s all you have to say? Don’t you have anything more useful for us?”
“I’ve not actually met her before.” March Spring sighed when he saw the frown on Honey Barbie’s face, “There are 300 million players in the Eastern Continent. Do you think it’s that easy to run into a person like that? Gongzi You had always been laying low despite all the high profile things she did, and she’s very elusive. Even the members of her guild do not know where she is at times. I can only give you my most objective observation about her based on what I’ve heard about her. And in conclusion, she’s a great player.”
“That’s not saying much.” Honey Barbie snorted.
But Death Blossom disagreed, “What did the other players say about her?” She was interested in finding out the players’ opinion of Gongzi You.
“Her mechanical skills are great, her moves are very grandiose, and she would always go for the vitals when she attacks.” March Spring’s answer was something that would commonly be seen in the forum.
And Death Blossom was not interested in that information, “Is there anything else?” she raised an eyebrow.
March Spring lowered his head and thought for a long while before coming up with an answer, “I was in Tang Dynasty, and was good friends with a Rogue under their Vice Leader, Wandering Clouds. He fought against her before, and had also worked with her to fight off the Western Continent’s invasion. And he told me one thing.”
“What is it?” Death Blososm’s interest was piqued. She had finally found something more useful than the commentaries and videos of Gongzi You. It was the first hand account of someone who fought against her.
“He told me that he could not even see her movements before she struck his windpipe with a fatal blow.” March Spring stood up to reconstruct the fight that had happened a long time ago, “There were here and here. He was charging towards Gongzi You along with Wandering Clouds. She dashed between them, and he attacked her. He thought his attack landed, but Gongzi You was left standing while he died. He never figured out how Gongzi You landed that hit.”
“What was their level back then?” Death Blossom was shocked.
“I don’t think it’s anywhere above lvl20.” March Spring himself was unsure, “It happened so long ago.”
“High speed…” Death Blossom began summarizing the guild’s intelligence on Gongzi You as she mumbled to herself, “High perception… And she had won against opponents far more capable than the ones we’ve faced before. What a tough nut to crack.”
“Well, there’s someone who knows Gongzi You more than all of us combined, but…” March Spring shrugged.
“If you’re talking about Fleeting Time then you might as well shut up.” Honey Barbie rolled her eyes at March Spring, “Everybody knows that Fleeting Time had the most experience fighting against Gongzi You. Do you think you can find him right now? And even if you can, do you think he’ll just tell you?”
March Spring could only rub the bridge of his nose in silence.
“Honey, Spring, we’re still going to send 15 against Gongzi You, but changes must be made to the team.”
Honey Barbie and March Spring began to listen to Death Blossom’s instruction, “Take 2 Hunters and a Ranger with you this time. The rest of the team will still be Rogues. Pick who you want to take and show me the roster.”
“Why do we need the extra Hunters and Rogue? We did not bring them along when we fought Fleeting Time.” Honey Barbie was confused.
“Gongzi You is a Huntress. Have you forgotten the troubles that damn bat of Fleeting Time caused you? It was strong enough to kill 3 Rogues on its own! With 2 Hunters tagging along, their pets will be able to solve that problem. Make sure that one of them has a panther. That thing has the highest Perception among pets. It’s the best anti-stealth option you have if Gongzi You go into stealth. And the Ranger that you take along with you should be able to heal. It might not be much, but it can help conserve our combat strength when things go bad.” Death Blossom analyzed her strategy to Honey Barbie and March Spring, “We’ve lost to 3 of the 4 top players. We can’t afford to lose again!”
“Didn’t the last one end with a draw? That Spotless Autumn guy didn’t kill any of us…” Honey Barbie pursed her lips.
Death Blossom glanced at her, “If you are able to escape unscatched under the attack of 15 enemies from classes that counter yours, do you call it a victory or a draw? We outnumber him 15 to 1, and we failed to kill him. Don’t you think this is a form of failure?”
Honey Barbie lowered her head in silence.
Death Blossom patted her on the head, “A top player might sound like they’re not far off from a skilled player, but that’s not the case. Don’t underestimate them just because we’ve killed many of the skilled players in the game. Arrogance is the root for many defeats.”
“I understand, Sister Blossom.” Honey Barbie had always held Death Blossom with the highest regard. She nodded her head, but the decision was already made in her mind to defeat Gongzi You and achieve victory no matter the cost.
Ye Ci did not detect any movements after finishing her meal in her hiding spot. Well, I might as well continue leveling up. But she sensed a presence that was unfamiliar to her when she stood up.
She immediately lowered herself into a crouch and drank the Perception-enhancing potion she received from Spotless Autumn. Her sense of sight, smell, and sound was instantly enhanced. She took in a deep breath, closed her eyes, and began sensing her surroundings.
Something was definitely different.
She could feel the presence of more than 10 players. The closest of the players were 150 yards away from her, and the one who was at the furthest was barely 200 yards away. She could not tell the composition of the group. I guess I’ll have to have a look to find out.
