Translator: AtlasStudios Editor: AtlasStudios
Mobis couldn’t avoid Rhode’s attack. The Dead Soul Blade pierced deep into his soul and weakened his strength. Rhode used this opportunity to activate Storm Slaughter and overwhelm Mobis’ last hopes.
This feeling was unprecedented for Mobis.
After Rhode activated Storm Slaughter, that was the first time Mobis felt a real sense of danger. Although it seemed overwhelming, every Master Swordsmen knew that these were only afterimages from the brandished swords and the threatening attacks were hidden within.
However, Rhode’s Storm Slaughter caught Mobis by surprise because he realised that every sword was an actual presence!
No matter if the swords slashed from above, sliced from left or right, or struck out like a ambushing viper, every attack was the real deal. However, this wasn’t logical because there was only one actual Rhode and he couldn’t possibly attack from different positions.
But Rhode did it.
When Mobis brandished his sword and blocked the sword aiming for his shoulder, he felt another blade aim for his stomach. However, this strike didn’t come after the strike to his shoulder failed. Instead, they came simultaneously.
This took Mobis by surprise. All he could do was to instinctively awaken the powers of the Chrysoprase Sword. Soon enough, the hexagonal crystal barrier once again emerged before him and defended against the attack that shouldn’t have appeared.
However, this was also Mobis’ limit.
As the whizzing sword pierced into his shoulder, he lost all other ideas. Even as a Master Swordsman, he was still a human, after all.
Accompanying pain was a sense of strange coldness and numbness. At this moment, Mobis couldn’t hold it in any longer. He backed down and collapsed to the ground. At this moment, he let out an inward sigh as he lifted his head and looked to Rhode.
Rhode stared at him without any expression and sheathed his sword. Then, he stepped down the arena.
How did he do it?
Mobis couldn’t figure it out. He was sure that Rhode’s aggression was over the charts. No, maybe he exceeded the “laws” of boundary. He had broken the logic of ‘a normal person can’t possibly attack from various positions at the same time’. But, this was impossible, just like flames burning in water and stones growing like plants.
Could it be that he…
Mobis’s heart sank.
Unlike Mobis, Rhode felt much more relieved and delighted.
The experiment went smoothly.
Mobis didn’t know that when Rhode activated Storm Slaughter, he had also awakened the Composition Adornment’s set effect and borrowed the attributes of enhancing his nimbleness: Spatial Displacement.
[Spatial Displacement: When the holder’s nimble attribute exceeds the limit, he can defy “laws” and engage in multiple attacks in one location for five seconds.]
The instant Storm Slaughter was activated, Rhode’s nimble attributes exceeded its original limits. “Spatial Displacement” was triggered and assisted Rhode in getting rid of the “laws” while giving him the crucial opportunity for the win. Of course, a huge part of the win was also credited to the Dead Soul Blade that struck Mobis, which depleted his spiritual energy. If Mobis had enough remaining strength and if he was unable to withstand all of Rhode’s attack, he would still be able to dodge. Although [Spatial Displacement] broke Rhode’s nimble limits, it wasn’t perfect. It could only pinpoint one location. In other words, no matter how many attacks Rhode launched, he couldn’t use it on another location if his enemy dodged. This was its flaw.
However, this was good enough for Rhode. He didn’t have to summon any spirits and only relied on his sword skills and equipment win, which was a crucial part of his plans.
Everything went well.
A cold smile glinted in his eyes. Then, he swept a glance at the audience before stepping down from the arena.
No one spoke.
After Mobis fell off the arena, the whole place went dead silent.
Everyone opened their eyes wide in disbelief. No one expected such an ending when they first stepped into this place. Before the competition started, they thought that the results of this matchups was predictable: the Sky Sword Guild would easily run over the whatever mercenary group. In fact, the truth was the complete opposite. All they saw were failures and failures and in the end, even the Sky Sword guild leader was defeated. They didn’t know how Mobis was defeated, but they knew that the goddess of victory didn’t go to their side.
The whole arena was in complete silence with many covering their heads and staring blankly at the black-haired young man. It wasn’t who they anticipated to see. The truth was always cruel. Some of them shut their eyes hopelessly and hoped that it was nothing but a nightmare or just their eyes playing tricks on them. When they opened their eyes, it should be Mobis standing on the arena with both hands raised and soaking in cheers and honor. On the other hand, those country bumpkins would be lowering their heads, trying to sneak away in defeat. This was the scene that they wished for, but no matter how many times they blinked their eyes, that scene never appeared. The man slowly walked off the arena and only at this moment, the judge standing by the sides returned to his senses and announced the victor of this match.
“Three wins in five matches; Starlight is victorious!”
The deep bungle horns sounded. Celebratory petals fell from the skies and announced the emergence of a victor. At this moment, the winners should have stepped onto the arena and accepted the cheers and blessings from the audience. However, there wasn’t such a scene this time. Other than the bungle horns and fluttering petals, the entire arena was as dead as a graveyard. The speechless audience covered their heads with both hands. At this moment, the silence seemed to have become a virus that mercilessly infected everyone present. No one felt delighted at the sight of fluttering petals and the sound of bungle horns.
Mobis stood up and cupped his hand over his shoulder wound. Golan rushed to his side and supported him. However, Mobis gestured and rejected Golan’s intentions. Then, he sighed helplessly and returned to the tunnel.
This time, they had lost utterly and completely.
The Sky Sword Guild had been eliminated.
This news spread across the entire Golden City almost immediately. From the start, due to the huge difference in strength in both sides, many mercenaries had disregarded the match because the verdict had already been decided for them. Most of them were more concerned about the upcoming match tomorrow between Sky Sword and Purple Lily; they had sentenced Starlight to the death penalty.
And because of this, it was imaginable how shocked the mercenaries looked when they heard this piece of news. Not every mercenaries could enter the arena, so they weren’t able to understand the exact details of the matchups. However, just the facts were enough to astonish them. Starlight won three out of five matches and eliminated the Sky Swords. That was totally impossible and according to them, the Sky Sword Guild should have won three matches in a row, kicking Starlight out immediately. This would have been normal, no?
But now, Starlight won and Sky Sword lost!
In an instant, everyone discussed this topic. Not just ordinary mercenaries—even the mercenaries joining the sub-event also talked about it. Previously, they didn’t have any good impression of Starlight and just as Rhode predicted, they had to fight for their rights to battle against the four guilds. But how could this mercenary group that was formed less than half a year ago step on the arena without the need to fight their way through? Of course, they were upset with this arrangement. However, when the results of the competition were announced, the mercenaries shut their mouths instantly because they knew it was impossible for them to defeat the Sky Sword Guild themselves. But since Starlight did it, it proved that they were indeed capable.
However, this didn’t mean that there wasn’t any topic for them to talk about. Just like the supporters of the Sky Swords expected, the mockery and sarcasm targeting them and Sky Sword was immediately omnipresent. Originally, the guild was the representative of the conflicts between regions and now that Sky Sword had lost the competition, people of other regions would surely grab this opportunity to humiliate them. “You Southern bums actually lost to a mercenary group? How embarassing can you get? Are you even considered men?”
Facing such mockeries, the Southerners wouldn’t tolerate them. However, it was the truth that their pillar of support had lost, and no matter how they retorted, it wouldn’t change the fact. Therefore, some of them chose to not speak and paid no attention to this matter. Some reacted violently, but within Golden City, acts that disrupted order wouldn’t be overlooked by the Angels. After capturing dozens of Southerners who tried to protect their reputation, the rest finally learnt to be peaceful.
Everyone turned their attention to a more serious question: how did a small mercenary group like Starlight defeat Sky Sword?
No one could figure it out. Although some weren’t present to witness the whole matchup, those who observed from the start to end failed to figure out what was wrong too. Logically speaking, they shouldn’t have lost, so did they lose due to bad luck?
Some said that Starlight was extremely lucky to eliminate Sky Sword, but not many maintained this view because the difference in strength was there. Just like no matter how good a sparrow’s luck was, it couldn’t possibly snatch food from an eagle. That was nonsensical. And from the matchups, the first two matches that Starlight won weren’t won on luck at all. Starlight defeated their opponents with true strength and under the attacks of Marlene and Gillian, two members of Sky Sword Guild were blasted out of the arena before they had a chance to retaliate. Was that considered lucky?
But, if one were to say that a small mercenary group like Starlight was stronger than the Sky Sword Guild, some of them couldn’t accept such an explanation. After all, many members in Sky Sword were experienced and well known. However, apart from Marlene, the rest of Starlight was unpopular and even though strength and reputation couldn’t be used in comparison, most people still wanted to think of it in that way.
So then, what was the most reasonable explanation?
Many had splitting views. However, just as they debated endlessly, a new perspective emerged out of nowhere.
Starlight’s victory wasn’t based on luck, but was still inseparable from luck because Marlene and Gillian’s performances were outstanding without a doubt. However, the other three performed mediocrely. It could be seen from Anne’s performance that she was in a disadvantageous position. There weren’t many problems with these matches so the only one worth discussing was the battle between Rhode and Mobis.
According to this perspective, Mobis was much stronger than Rhode and if he faced Rhode seriously, Rhode definitely wouldn’t stand a chance. However, Mobis didn’t expect Rhode to have a secret technique; the transforming sword that broke Mobis’ rhythm. After all, he was getting old and even though he was a Master Swordsman, his reaction would still be more or less sluggish. On the other hand, Rhode was much younger and had a lot of energy. Furthermore, he seized the chance to initiate quick attacks to gain the upperhand. Also, based on the later part of Mobis’s performance, that sly young man had even smeared poison on his sword blade to limit Mobis’ movements and won using this scheming tactic.
This was why Starlight defeated Sky Sword—strength and luck.
After this explanation spread, many people immediately accepted it because this suited their views on this matchups. A mercenary group like Starlight defeating Sky Sword definitely wasn’t a sign of strength. This statement had become the most acceptable reason.
However, no one knew that when they were debating this hot topic in the bar, Old Walker stood in the shadows of the small alley outside Starlight’s campsite. He knitted his brows and looked at Rhode in dissatisfaction.
“Kid, I have done what you instructed and many people have agreed to this explanation… Hey, what are you up to?”
Rubbing his hands, Old Walker looked at Rhode in dissatisfaction. This victory raised Walker’s eyebrows and he had intended to announce it to the mercenaries. However, after the competition ended, Rhode looked for him and got him to secretly spread word that “Starlight’s victory was mainly based on luck.”
Old Walker was discontent because no matter how Starlight won against Sky Sword, it was a huge success! Starlight was only a mercenary group that was formed less than half a year, and they defeated the Sky Swords that had protected the South for decades!
Old Walker couldn’t help but feel excited over this news. What’s wrong with luck? Luck is also part of strength, right?
However, Old Walker didn’t expect Rhode to instruct him to do such a thing. Now, the mercenaries who revealed their respect for Starlight returned to their proud manners saying, “I knew it. If a mercenary group like Starlight didn’t scheme, how could they defeat Sky Sword?”
Old Walker couldn’t wait to teach those punks a lesson.
“Of course I have my ideas; you just need to follow my instructions.”
Rhode answered without a change in expression.
“All you have to know is that everything is for the sake of victory.”
