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Chapter 1718: Screensaver Coordination

He broke through!

The two characters dashed past each other. By the time Sun Xiang cancelled Dragon Breaks the Ranks and turned around, Ye Xiu had already run quite far. Lord Grim didn’t wait for the Colliding Stab to finish before switching to a different skill.

Slide Kick!

It was also a movement skill. Although it was slower than Charge and Colliding Stab, Slide Kick was a Gunner skill, meaning that he could start shooting from afar with his Myriad Manifestations Umbrella in its gun form.

Floating Bullet, Stun Bullet.

Both skills could disrupt a target’s offensive tempo, and couldn’t be ignored. Zhou Zekai had noticed Lord Grim’s movements, however. Both shots were dodged by Cloud Piercer.

Now that Lord Grim was closer, Zhou Zekai prepared himself for a fight with him. Then, he saw Lord Grim shoot upward, jumping while in the middle of Slide Kick.

Using a skill to its completion made it easy for the opponent to predict. Cancelling a skill was a technique that every pro player was adept at. It was necessary to create mix-ups.

Ye Xiu cancelled the Slide Kick ahead of time. The airborne Lord Grim swung his arms.

Ninja Tool – Smoke Bomb.

A cloud of purple smoke quickly spread, enveloping Cloud Piercer inside and blinding him. Zhou Zekai had Cloud Piercer hastily escape from the Smoke Bomb’s range. But by the time he got out, Lord Grim had disappeared.

He’s inside the Smoke Bomb…

Zhou Zekai didn’t need to ask to know the answer. Cloud Piercer immediately started firing at the smoke cloud. However, Ye Xiu clearly didn’t have any grand or complicated plans for this Smoke Bomb. He simply used it as cover so that he could continue forward without interference.

His target was Cruel Silence!

Lord Grim’s target was obvious. He dashed into the Smoke Bomb from one end and dashed out from the other end. His Myriad Manifestations Umbrella transformed into its gun form, firing two shots towards Jiang Botao’s Empty Waves. A message popped up in Happy’s chat at the same time: “Steamed Bun, follow me!”

Not just him, but Steamed Bun as well. The entirety of Happy was going to focus Cruel Silence.

Happy’s intentions were clear. Next, Samsara would need to respond. Zhou Zekai and Jiang Botao didn’t immediately rush over. They moved to the left and right, keeping their distance as they continued to attack. Sun Xiang’s One Autumn Leaf had been shaken off by Lord Grim earlier. He had already turned around, and was now giving chase. However, Smoke Bomb covered a large area. Would Ye Xiu not have done anything to it? Lord Grim had low-level skills from all classes. It was likely that he placed down a few Thief traps or Ninja Caltrops.

But Sun Xiang didn’t hesitate. One Autumn Leaf rushed into the smoke, and then out of it.

He didn’t meet any obstacles as he dashed through the Smoke Bomb. Sun Xiang didn’t know whether he was just lucky, or if Ye Xiu hadn’t placed any traps. He only knew that circling around the Smoke Bomb would delay him, widening the distance between One Autumn Leaf and Lord Grim even further. This was what Ye Xiu wanted.

If that was what the enemy wanted, then he had to do his utmost to do the opposite. It was a very simple but effective principle to follow in a competitive match. The fastest way to catch up was to directly charge through the Smoke Bomb, so that’s what Sun Xiang did even if it did mean charging into the unknown.

I’m out!

As soon as he got out from the Smoke Bomb, his vision cleared. Sun Xiang’s heart pounded. Ahead, Wu Qi’s Cruel Silence was ready for what was to come. He was heading towards Sun Xiang to meet up with him. Zhou Zekai and Jiang Botao were flanking from the left and right. It was a classic offensive cross formation. This was Samsara’s response. Right now, they weren’t afraid of a clash with Happy because they had an extra player over them.

Charge!

One Autumn Leaf didn’t slow down. Sun Xiang felt regretful that he had just used Dragon Breaks the Ranks, otherwise, his opener would have been even fiercer. But his other option was no weaker than Dragon Breaks the Ranks.

Rising Dragon Soars the Sky!

One Autumn Leaf used Soft Mist’s final move before her death. The magic dragon formed from Evil Annihilation was black as it roared and rushed out.

Whether it was Lord Grim or Steamed Bun Invasion, neither of them could afford taking the hit. Sun Xiang wasn’t hoping for the attack to land. His goal was to tear apart Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion’s suppression of Cruel Silence. Cruel Silence didn’t have much health to begin with. If Happy’s three characters focused him, it wouldn’t take long for him to die, and Samsara needed to maintain their numbers advantage. If Samsara lost their numbers advantage so easily, their health disadvantage would be much more apparent.

Zhou Zekai and Jiang Botao upped their aggression. Maintaining their numbers advantage was the priority, but lowering the enemy’s health was extremely important as well. It would serve as a foundation for future changes.

The attacks from different areas converged towards the center.

Cloud Piercer and Empty Waves were long-ranged. Happy couldn’t do much to stop them. Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion had originally planned on pinning down Cruel Silence and then quickly killing him, but One Autumn Leaf’s Rising Dragon Soars the Sky couldn’t be ignored. One left, one right, the two dodged. An opening appeared. Wu Qi had been waiting for this opening, and immediately seized it. He moved in the opposite direction of the Rising Dragon Soars the Sky to break past Happy.

Dragon Raises Its Head, or even Dragon Turns Its Head?

When Samsara’s fans saw Sun Xiang’s One Autumn Leaf use Rising Dragon Soars the Sky, they had a feeling of hope.

But their hopes were extinguished.

After rescuing Cruel Silence, Sun Xiang unexpectedly cancelled the Rising Dragon Soars the Sky. The Level 70 skill had failed to hit its target, so he gave up on it.

Much of the crowd felt that it was a pity, but the pro players knew that Sun Xiang cancelling the skill was the most effective usage of it. His goal wasn’t to attack the enemy, but to protect Cruel Silence.

By cancelling the skill, the ending lag wouldn’t be as long. One Autumn Leaf leapt forward.

Despite being caught in the pincer from Cloud Piercer and Empty Waves, Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion had no choice but to turn around and continue chasing after Cloud Piercer. It didn’t seem like they had any better options.

Double Stab!

One Autumn Leaf attacked both targets simultaneously. Cruel Silence took this opportunity to get behind One Autumn Leaf. Wu Qi was planning on resetting the tempo and re-establishing his offense. He wasn’t as reckless as Tang Rou. He wanted to establish himself a support behind One Autumn Leaf.

Dodge!

One left, one right. Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion refused to let go of Cruel Silence. One chased from behind, while the other tried to circle to the front. One Autumn Leaf looked like he was being treated as a wall. Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion didn’t seem to pay too much attention to Cloud Piercer’s and Empty Waves’ attacks either.

Samsara had the numbers advantage, but Happy had their own advantage: more health.

Because they had more health, they were willing to trade their health for a more impactful outcome. As a result, they were willing to take the damage.

I don’t think so!

Ye Xiu had gotten past Sun Xiang once. This time, Sun Xiang would need to stop both Ye Xiu and Steamed Bun from getting past him. There was Su Mucheng interfering as well. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to consider this a 1v3.

But Sun Xiang’s conviction was firm. He was going to be this unbreakable wall, and let Wu Qi finish switching to his new role.

He placed Evil Annihilation in front of him. Suddenly, Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion switched places.

Switch places?

Sun Xiang was confused.

Why?

To dodge? With this switch, the two dodged the attacks from Cloud Piercer and Empty Waves.

But…

Do you think I’m nothing but air? Switching places in front of me. Do you think I’m dead?

One Autumn Leaf acted.

But Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion acted even faster.

They weren’t switching places, but attacking!

Their target: One Autumn Leaf!

Trade health to hold them off?

The thought crossed Sun Xiang’s mind. After all, his One Autumn Leaf was relatively healthy. He could hold them off for a bit.

But he quickly threw the thought aside. Lord Grim and Steamed Bun both had control skills. Relying on trading his health to hold them off wouldn’t work.

He needed to attack to hold them off. He needed to attack to stall for time. Weren’t Lord Grim and Steamed Bun trading their health? In that case, he would attack to consume even more of their health.

Dragon Rises from the Sea!

With a tremble, magic splashed around Evil Annihilation like water.

Lord Grim’s Myriad Manifestations Umbrella immediately opened with a whoosh. He was going to face Dragon Rises from the Sea with the umbrella’s shield form. At the same time, the canopy crashed towards One Autumn Leaf.

Shield Strike?

The skill could inflict Dizzy. It had to be dodged. One Autumn Leaf hastily retreated.

The umbrella canopy immediately retracted, and a hand reached out.

Steamed Bun Invasion, Strangle.

“Careful!” Sun Xiang’s teammate warned him in the team chat.

Sun Xiang didn’t panic. It was a Shield Strike. He had noticed it, and had been ready for it. One Autumn Leaf dodged to the side.

Steamed Bun Invasion’s outstretched hand grabbed nothing but air, but One Autumn Leaf was still held by the throat. Lord Grim’s Strangle…

After retracting the canopy, Lord Grim transformed the umbrella into its tonfa form. Lord Grim’s hand seemed to follow the length of the tonfa. It wasn’t as if Sun Xiang wasn’t wary of Lord Grim making an attack after the Shield Strike, but he hadn’t expected this sort of coordination.

One Autumn Leaf was grabbed by the throat, but Steamed Bun Invasion didn’t stop. His hand was still stretched out.

Not good!

Sun Xiang suddenly realized.

Lord Grim had lifted his umbrella, using its shield form as cover to grab One Autumn Leaf by the throat. And now, Steamed Bun Invasion was also using a shield to grab Cruel Silence’s throat. In his case, his shield was One Autumn Leaf.

Hit!

Cruel Silence had been sticking close to One Autumn Leaf, so most of his vision was covered by One Autumn Leaf’s back. Right when he made the realization, a hand reached out towards him.

No matter how fast Wu Qi reacted, he would be too late. Cruel Silence had been moving too fast. Whether he tried to stop or use a skill, he would run right into Steamed Bun Invasion’s grasp.

Boom!

A Satellite Beam descended from the sky.

Dancing Rain had no good opportunities to act, so Samsara had been relatively lax towards her. As a result, Su Mucheng was given the freedom to coordinate with Happy’s offense. A powerful high-level skill at the perfect moment, engulfing both One Autumn Leaf and Cruel Silence. Under the effects of Strangle, both their characters had their defense reduced by 50%.

As Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion Strangled their opponents, they punched and kicked as well.

Zhou Zekai and Jiang Botao immediately tried to separate them, but both Lord Grim and Steamed Bun Invasion had activated Reinforced Iron Bones. There was no way to interrupt them. The battle had turned into a contest of DPS.

Translator/Author’s note

Ten chapters until the end! The last chapter will be posted on Sunday 🙂 Just as a note, the chapters tomorrow will either be posted early or very late.