Chapter 100: Quick Victory

Pecking Chicken, a Qingcheng Disciple, Level 30.

Yijian Kurong, a Qingcheng Disciple, Level 31.

As they stepped onto the dueling stage, a round mirror lit up, displaying both players’ level information clearly on its surface.

Looking at all the Qingcheng players who had reached the top 128, Ye Rong’s level was only around the middle of the pack, not particularly outstanding. After all, the players who made it to the top 128 were all Qingcheng elites, with skills far surpassing ordinary players.

Someone like Manzhu Lver was already Level 39, placing her among the very top in Qingcheng, but she was still far behind Ni Shui Han, who held the top spot on the Far Shore Level Ranking. He was already Level 49, just one step away from breaking through the major barrier of Level 50.

Pecking Chicken looked very young, with a few pimples on his face and a trace of immaturity that suggested he hadn’t yet entered society—probably a student.

Ye Rong didn’t waste words. As soon as he made his move, he sent two streaks of sword light, one black and one white, flying out. One after the other, the two swords knocked Pecking Chicken’s flying sword aside, and then the Black Phoenix Sword came down, causing him to turn into a beam of white light without a single sound.

He passed the round in just three sword strikes!

Whoa!

Ye Rong was already very famous in Qingcheng, his reputation even surpassing that of the leaders of several major factions. Naturally, his matches drew a lot of attention, and countless eyes were fixed on him the moment he stepped onto the stage.

Seeing him defeat Pecking Chicken in just three sword strikes, the crowd was stunned. Some shouted in disbelief, some clapped and cheered, while others wore grim, serious expressions.

There were no weak players left at this stage. This wasn’t like facing a novice; defeating someone in three sword strikes was no small feat. With such a performance from Ye Rong, did it mean his strength had truly far surpassed everyone else’s?

“Red Dust, what do you think? Are we really going to let this Yijian Kurong snatch the top spot in the Sect Minor Competition?”

Houdao Xiaosheng’s eyes flickered with shock. His relationship with Ye Rong was like fire and water; they had clashed before, and there was a deep-seated grudge between them that couldn’t be easily resolved. Therefore, he was the most fearful and worried about Ye Rong’s display of formidable strength.

“He’s strong, very strong. None of us here can beat him,” said the man beside Houdao Xiaosheng, who had shoulder-length white hair and deep-set features. He added after a moment, “At least, no one can beat him right now.”

Red Dust White Hair commanded over two thousand players and was basically on par with Houdao Xiaosheng as one of the two largest player factions in Qingcheng currently—

After the big chaotic battle with the Emei Tianshui Division that day, several factions had quickly fallen apart, with players rapidly leaving.

“Not even you? How is that possible?”

“You told me Yijian Kurong was just a lucky noob, but does his technique look like a noob’s to you? Even if you had the exact same equipment as him, how many of his sword strikes could you withstand?”

Red Dust White Hair raised his voice, shouting at Houdao Xiaosheng. His own frustration was no less than the other’s; he had also prepared extensively for the Sect Minor Competition. Yet now, before even stepping onto the stage, he had already lost more than half of his confidence in winning.

“If I lend you this thing, you should be able to beat him, right? I only want one-third of the final reward. How about it? Not too much to ask, is it?”

Houdao Xiaosheng’s face showed a troubled expression. After a long time, he finally steeled himself and took out a magic treasure that was pointed at both ends and oval in the middle. Red Dust White Hair was strong enough—even stronger than himself—and with this magic treasure, he would have a chance against Yijian Kurong.

“Zi Wu…”

“That’s right!”

“Fine, it’s a deal then!”

Houdao Xiaosheng set the magic treasure in his hand to the lend state for Red Dust White Hair, with the time limit set to six hours. Once the time was up, the magic treasure would automatically return to him—this setting helped avoid a lot of unpleasantness between friends over borrowing equipment, such as not returning borrowed items, effectively preventing such issues.

The minimum lending fee was one copper coin, the shortest lending period was one hour, and there was no upper limit for either.

…

In the next two matches, Ye Rong adopted the same strategy of quick battles, using the most aggressive means to defeat his opponents.

Any one of these players might possess a powerful magic treasure. If they managed to use it, it would surely cost him some effort to deal with, and he might even be forced to reveal his trump cards earlier than planned.

So he simply used both swords at once, pushing the power of his Sword Art Form to its maximum. He defeated his opponents within three to five sword strikes, not giving them any chance to fight back.

He smoothly advanced into the top 16. Just as he stepped off the dueling stage, Ye Rong saw Pecking Chicken, whom he had defeated earlier, waiting for him below.

“Is there something you need?”

Ye Rong frowned. He had never met this person before and had no dealings with him; their only interaction had been on the dueling stage during the minor competition. Did he feel embarrassed after being defeated in three sword strikes and, blinded by anger, want to pick a quarrel or exchange harsh words?

“Boss Yijian, do you remember me?”

Pecking Chicken’s face was full of excitement, as if he had met his idol, unable to contain himself.

“It’s me, Chicken, Boss Yijian! In Shushan Sword Heroes, I was a peripheral member of the Otherworld Adventure Group. I did two missions with you.”

“Chicken, Pecking Chicken? So it’s you. I have some impression.”

Ye Rong was pleasantly surprised. He hadn’t expected to meet an old acquaintance from a previous game here in Far Shore.

The Otherworld Adventure Group was a faction that Ye Rong created together with a few friends from the game. They were all players with outstanding skills and compatible personalities, and the group’s numbers stayed around ten or so. There were also players who admired their reputation and wanted to join but weren’t strong enough; these became peripheral members of the Otherworld Adventure Group. At its peak, there were over two hundred peripheral members, which was why Ye Rong hadn’t immediately remembered Pecking Chicken.

“Haha, what a coincidence! I never thought Boss Yijian and I would join the same sect. When you create a faction here, you can’t relegate me to a peripheral member again!”

“Establishing a faction in Far Shore and keeping it going isn’t that simple.”

Ye Rong shook his head slightly. Dongliu Cangshui had vaguely mentioned something about creating a faction to him before. Whether it was the faction creation quest, building a base, or the regular faction tasks and wars with other factions afterward, everything was extremely complex and difficult. You couldn’t just gather a few people and start a faction.

“Don’t worry, I have a few classmates and friends who also moved from Shushan Sword Heroes to Far Shore—about thirty people altogether. Plus, with your reputation, Boss Yijian, if you announced in Qingcheng that you were starting a faction, wouldn’t a large number of players be willing to join?”