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Chapter 306 – Hopelessly Worried

Phantom Demons and Sword Demons were two different types of styles. Their skills were chosen based on whether the Ghostblade wanted to mainly use Sword Skills or Ghost Boundaries. In terms of PvE, Phantom Demons were actually better than Sword Demons. But in terms of PvP, Sword Demons were clearly the winner. This was especially true in a 1v1 PK, where Phantom Demons were publicly accepted as a weaker class. Even for Li Xuan, the user of the number one Phantom Demon Sobbing Ghost, he rarely came out during the Individual or Group Competition.

This wasn’t an issue of mechanics. It was simply because the class wasn’t set up for duels. Anyone who was able to join the pro scene wouldn’t be bullied easily by anyone, which was why, even for a Phantom Demon master like Li Xuan, even he wouldn’t play a 1v1 match against one.

But the Rookie Challenge Competition was, after all, only a show. Winning or losing didn’t matter too much. Normally, Li Xuan would use his Phantom Demon to do battle. But today, with Gao Yingjie and Wang Jiexi’s previous battle looming over him, Li Xuan was too afraid to think of this match as just a show match. Moreover, he wasn’t sure whether or not the other side had wanted to lure him into playing his Phantom Demon and then use his Sword Demon to suppress him. As a result, Li Xuan cautiously put in his points into making a Sword Demon.

In the end, Qiao Yifan actually chose to use a Phantom Demon. Li Xuan had figured this out when he made his first move.

Apart from the difference in skills for Sword Demons and Phantom Demons, they also chose different equipment.

Sword Demons mainly used Sword Skills, which were all instant casts, so they sought after attack speed. On the other hand, Phantom Demons mainly used Ghost Boundaries, which were all cast abilities, so they sought after cast speed like mages did. After the two Ghostblades chose their equipment, one of them would have a faster attack speed, while the other would have a faster cast speed.

When the two contested with Ghost Slashes and attacked at the same time, the Sword Demon had the advantage, which was why Qiao Yifan’s Phantom Demon had been hit.

In a duel between Phantom Demons, the players contested against decision making and wretchedness. It could be said that Qiao Yifan couldn’t compare to Li Xuan. That guy had wretchedly chosen to create a Sword Demon instead of a Phantom Demon.

His hit had connected. But in Li Xuan’s mind, even though he knew that the other side was a Phantom Demon, he couldn’t relax just yet. Not just him, but these fundamental combos were already reflexes to him. When the Ghost Slash hit, the follow-up Moonlight Slash was practically done without any thought.

As for Qiao Yifan? He had studied the Ghostblade recently and knew about this. The instant his attack hit, he realized that Li Xuan was unexpectedly using a Sword Demon. Qiao Yifan was still a rookie, after all. A lot of his thinking wasn’t as deep as those veterans. He had originally thought that the other side would definitely pick a Phantom Demon against him. This sudden change instantly messed up his plans and he had made a mistake because of it. It was also his very first time being on such a large stage and he had initially been very nervous. The sudden difference between reality and what he had imagined caused his mind to turn blank.

Moonlight Slash, Full Moon Slash. Ghost Claw into a Sword Boundary into an Upward Slash, a Gore Cross, and then another Moonlight Slash.

Li Xuan was incomparably skilled with this combo. Sword Demons mainly focused on Sword Skills and only learned a few skills from other Swordsman classes, such as the Blade Master’s Upward Slash, the Berserker’s Gore Cross, etc. These low-leveled skills weren’t learned for damage, but rather as links for combos to allow cooldowns to come off.

Li Xuan didn’t let up while comboing. This player wasn’t a monster so it wouldn’t just passively take a beating while it was in the air. This was especially true for pro players, who practiced thoroughly in escaping from mid-air predicaments. But for Phantom Demons, no one was more clear than Li Xuan on what methods could be used in mid-air. He watched very closely and set up plans for dealing with whatever movements the opponent would make. However, in the end, he had done all that thinking for nothing. After being launched into the air, his opponent was just like an NPC. He didn’t respond in any way and just flopped around, taking a beating. Li Xuan had even been able to complete the full combo.

The audience went into an uproar. The long combo had caught everyone’s attention, but the pro players were all looking at each other. A pro player being hit by a full combo was something that was completely unheard of. Was Tiny Herb’s rookie that bad? It looked like he didn’t even attempt to escape. Could he even be called a pro player? Even a normal Glory player would randomly hit their keyboards and struggle, no?

Uncertain, bewildered, and disdaining…… all sorts of gazes were sent towards Tiny Herb’s players. Tiny Herb’s players were all uneasy, too. Liang Fang, who had a more explosive personality, had already jumped up: “What is Qiao Yifan doing? His play is too embarrassing, no?”

It was true that the Rookie Challenge was just for show and it was true that no rookie truly wanted to beat their senior, but going up there to act like a sponge really was too embarrassing.

“Sit.”

Liang Fang had only just vented his anxiousness, when he heard his captain Wang Jiexi coldly order him. Liang Fang immediately quieted down and sat down. He had a lot of words he wanted to say, but he didn’t dare to speak now.

Others who wanted to speak also quieted down. They also thought that Wang Jiexi must be in a very bad mood right now. No one cared as much about Tiny Herb as their captain. If Qiao Yifan really did lose like this, then it would definitely leave a black mark on Tiny Herb.

The outsiders all cheered, while the insiders were puzzled. Li Xuan was one of the insiders. After completing his combo, the other side’s health bar had dropped to half, but he was confused now.

He had originally thought that his opponent would be like Gao Yingjie with a fierce and godly skill, which was why he had made a Sword Demon to defend against him. But how could he have known that he was facing such a noob? The rookie didn’t even know about such a fundamental skill like escaping from a mid-air situation. Against such a noob, no matter how brilliantly he won, his victory wouldn’t look good. Yet he had actually been so wretched at the start. Right now, Li Xuan was starting to regret what he had done and was doubting that this Tiny Herb rookie had specially come out to defame him. But he also couldn’t figure out why his opponent was acting like this and being so incomprehensible.

Li Xuan was feeling a bit embarrassed, so he didn’t follow up.

After Qiao Yifan’s Phantom Demon was hit by the combo, he finally woke up. He Quick Recovered and then heard the applause from all around. His life had dropped to half, while his opponent was far away, as if he didn’t intend on following up.

What am I doing!!!

Wide awake now, Qiao Yifan was somewhat angry. This was a battle that he had put careful thought into. His goal was very simple: to use the stage to show his ability. It wasn’t just for Tiny Herb to see. He hoped that there would be someone, in any of the teams watching, who was like God Ye Qiu watching him, would see his ability and then let him continue playing in the pro scene.

But the result? With just a small, unexpected change, he was immediately at a loss. Why was he such a lost cause?

Sword Demon? So what? Was he so amazing that he’d be able to beat Li Xuan if he had picked a Phantom Demon? All he had to do was perform. Why did it matter whether the opponent went Phantom Demon or not?

After clearing his head, Qiao Yifan discovered that he had been hopelessly worried. He had been anxious about things that weren’t worth paying attention to. What he had to do was show his ability. That was it.

He looked at his health bar and saw only half of it was remaining. However, he had finally cooled down.

‘There’s still hope!’ Qiao Yifan quietly reminded himself. His Phantom Demon began to move.

Li Xuan’s Sword Demon didn’t move, though. Against a rookie who didn’t even know how to get out of an aerial combo, he felt too embarrassed to act first. He was still puzzled. How was such a rookie scouted by a Champion team like Tiny Herb? What was so special about him?

Li Xuan’s attitude had completely changed.

He had previously been worried over whether or not his opponent would eat him, but now he was only curious to see what the rookie had in him. Seeing that his opponent was moving again, he stood still and began looking forward to see what was to come. This type of attitude was normal for a Rookie Challenge.

Qiao Yifan’s Phantom Demon rushed forward and when he reached a certain distance, he let out a purple slash.

Li Xuan smiled and raised his sword to do the same.

Even though he had acted slower, he already grasped the two sides’ attack speeds. He was slow, but his attack still reached his opponent first.

He hadn’t expected his opponent to suddenly cancel his Ghost Slash. His opponent rolled forward, dodging Li Xuan’s Ghost Slash, and was going to take advantage of Li Xuan’s not-yet-finished Ghost Slash animation to close in two positions.

Following right after, the tip of his sword glowed, but it wasn’t a sword attack. White-blue ice crystals formed on his blade. He was preparing to cast an Ice Boundary.

“Oh!” Li Xuan understood Qiao Yifan’s intent, but he didn’t panic. After finishing his Ghost Slash, he immediately jumped. The Ice Boundary had already begun to condense. The Sword Demon raised his sword with both hands and swung down with the Blade Master skill “Falling Light Blade.”

This attack wouldn’t arrive in time to interrupt Qiao Yifan’s Ice Boundary. However, if Qiao Yifan finished the cast, he wouldn’t have enough time to dodge the attack, either.

What was he going to do?

They didn’t have to wait long to see Qiao Yifan’s decision.

He didn’t dodge. He continued to finish his Ice Boundary. The Boundary congealed, but his Phantom Demon had already been knocked down by Li Xuan’s Falling Light Blade.

Qiao Yifan immediately Quick Recovered.

Then, Qiao Yifan heard a “bo” sound and he suddenly felt delighted.

“He’s been frozen!” Qiao Yifan thought as he turned his camera. Sure enough, Li Xuan’s Sword Demon had turned into an ice cube. Qiao Yifan didn’t delay and immediately sent a slash.

“Bo!”

Another sound came the same time the slash was released. The ice cube shattered and it looked as if Qiao Yifan’s Phantom Demon had broken it.

Li Xuan’s Sword Demon seemed to have anticipated this. The ice shattered and his character shot out, leaping backwards, while unleashing a Berserker’s Gore Cross towards the Phantom Demon.

A blood red cross. Qiao Yifan had to dodge to the side. Even if he took the hit, he still wouldn’t have been able to close in on his opponent, because the Gore Cross had a slight knockback effect.