Chapter 143 Various Encounters

The moment the system prompt sounded, all of the players except for Brother Jue instinctively opened their game menus.

...

"The first to die... it's actually Bei Ling..." Qi Sha thought to himself, "Among the shooting-type players I know, she's definitely one of the top three, and she's incredibly intelligent. Who on earth killed her... an NPC... or..."

...

"No way?" Hua Jian was also deeply surprised. "Little Ling actually got taken out so early... What did she run into?"

...

"Phew..." Xiao Tan, on the other hand, breathed a sigh of relief, his heart blooming with joy. "Great... I don't have to face Little Ling head-on, la la la~"

...

"Hmm..." Ruo Yu's face was as dark as water as she thought to herself, "Little Ling is definitely not the type to provoke an NPC and get killed out of the script. To be able to kill her so quickly... could it be Unawakened?"

Actually, her reasoning was a bit extreme. After all, there were many strong players in this script. If a player wasn't careful, they could still be instantly killed. But... her conclusion just happened to coincide with the truth.

...

On the other hand...

"Ah... I've finally recovered." When Feng Bujue stood up from the ground, his hands had already been restored. "Good thing I had Qi Xu Ru Lin (as swift as the woods) with me, or I would have been in trouble..."

In the past few minutes, he first endured the intense pain and reached into his bag with his festering arm, painstakingly retrieving a bottle of Survival Value replenishment and drinking it down. Then, after restoring a certain amount of health, he did it again... at the cost of scraping off a layer of flesh, he spent more than ten seconds taking out the "Lin" bead from the five beads and activating its special effect.

After the instructions of Zhuanjiezun and Dianhe Wang, Brother Jue already knew... the "unknown" special effect of this bead, which "contained the power of rhythm," was actually 【Instantly heals the target's injuries (cooldown time: twenty-four hours; only for external wound healing and limb repair; cannot remove debuffs such as disease, curses, or poisonings)】

Overall, this was a reinforced version of a hemostatic agent that could be used repeatedly. In terms of removing debuff abilities, it was inferior to 【***-500】, and in terms of healing ability, it was inferior to 【Senzu Bean】, but it was still a reliable auxiliary item, better than nothing.

For example, in the current situation, 【Qi Xu Ru Lin】 really saved Brother Jue's life. If he didn't have this item on him, he would have had to continue the game with two injured arms, constantly losing Survival Value...

"Phew... that little brat is really hard to deal with..." Only then did Feng Bujue have the leisure to lament the previous battle with Xiao Ling. "If she had been around during the Peak Showdown S1, Lute's level three or four subordinates would have probably all fallen into her hands alone..."

His sentiments were not without reason. In the Peak Showdown S1, there were very few shooting-type players who made it to the finals, and there was not a single "pure shooting-type" player. Because in the later stages, with experts as numerous as clouds, it was difficult to advance using a pure shooting-type playstyle, which was helpless once someone got close. Even 【Honghu】, a dual-cultivation type of shooting and spiritual arts, only barely made it to the finals.

"Oh well... it's worth paying some price to get rid of this formidable opponent who can kill people from a thousand meters away." Feng Bujue pondered. "But... I always feel like... all the opponents in this script, except for Hua Jian, are hard to deal with... Ruo Yu, Xiao Tan, Qi Sha... each of them has a chance of beating me. Not to mention the strength of the NPCs... without either side going all-out, even a mob character like Jiao can fight Jianjun Twelve Hate to a draw, or even slightly gain the upper hand... Then those peerless demon generals like Ping Qing Sheng and Daji must be at least 'Three Celestials' level..."

Thinking of this, Feng Bujue felt the situation become even more serious. While continuing on his way, he couldn't help but start planning some insidious strategies in his mind...

...

Let's split the narrative and look at the other side.

Miss An Da, the chief medical specialist of the Hell Frontline, 【Shi Shang Hua Jian】, who had just reached level forty, had also arrived at a suspension bridge.

The three guards on this bridge were 【Itsumade】, 【Jiangshi】, and 【Yatagarasu】.

It was still the same trio of short and fat, thin and tall, and gigantic.

"Ah... it's you three." Itsumade muttered lazily after seeing the newcomer.

The "you three" he was referring to was naturally not Hua Jian, but the three people accompanying her.

All three of those people were peerless martial generals, and... all of them were young, upright, handsome, powerful, and a bit "foolish."

The first one, "Justice-Obsessed" – Ma Chao.

He wore a frosted antler helmet, with a white tassel attached to the back; he wore a set of iron leaf armor, tied with a white brocade belt; he wore a white silk robe, with a green velvet ribbon hanging down; he wore a pair of thin copper boots, and held a dragon-riding spear in his hand.

In terms of appearance... his face was like powdered, his eyes were like shooting stars, he had the body of a tiger and the arms of an ape, and the waist of a wolf.

One of the Five Tiger Generals, worthy of his name.

The second one, "Moron of Righteousness" – Naoe Kanetsugu.

He wore a white Onmyoji robe, with a Sengoku samurai armor underneath, a special horned helmet, with a large metal "Ai" (Love) character in front, a Mizuha no Mitama sword in his right hand, and a stack of paper talismans in his left hand.

In terms of appearance, it was said that... a pair of eyes shot out cold stars, and his eyebrows were as thick as if they had been painted with lacquer.

Accomplished in both literary and military arts, intelligent and brave.

The third one, "Trustworthiness Pretty Boy" – Azai Nagamasa.

He wore a pointed, refined steel, golden-horned helmet; a green and blue silk battle robe, with dark armor covering his limbs; a purple and white belt around his waist; a pair of metal boots, and a Japanese king's eight-thousand halberd in his hand.

He had a fair and beardless face, white teeth and red lips, a strong body, and long flowing hair.

A winner in life, with a house full of children and grandchildren.

These three were the famous "Love and Justice Trio" in the Musou Orochi series, gathered under the banner of "righteousness," punishing evil and promoting good, and respecting the old and loving the young, three idolized righteous men.

Of course... their strength was not bad either. Just take Ma Mengqi, who dared to duel with Xu Chu and Zhang Fei, a straightforward young man who was definitely a first-line powerhouse among the peerless martial generals.

"Orochi's lackeys, make way!" Facing Itsumade, who stepped forward, Naoe Kanetsugu took the lead and shouted loudly.

"It's okay to let you three pass..." Itsumade said, turning his gaze to Hua Jian. "Who is this guy? I don't recognize her, and her outfit is so strange..."

Indeed, the "Jackal Doctor's" black suit and long coat were quite rare in this world. Feng Bujue's long suit and Xiao Ling's special forces attire were similar, both too "modern." Relatively speaking, Ruo Yu and Xiao Tan's clothes were not so out of place, because there were many characters in the Musou martial generals who wore such ancient Western-style strange clothes.

"This gentleman is also going to participate in the martial arts tournament." Before Hua Jian could reply, Ma Chao said first.

Azai Nagamasa also said, "Lord Hua Jian is an unparalleled warrior with extraordinary strength. With just a wave of his hand, he healed Brother Ma Chao's foot injury, which is much more brilliant than the magic of you demons."

"Uh... even if you tell me all this..." Itsumade squinted and responded weakly, "I haven't seen it with my own eyes... Besides, those who play healing magic may not have much fighting ability..."

Although Itsumade, Jiao, and Tetsuza all looked and sounded the same, their personalities were different. Obviously, Itsumade was a demon general with a better temper. He didn't have Jiao's domineering aura or Tetsuza's sinister nature. He was just a lazy fat man.

"Impudence!" Ma Chao stepped forward with his spear, glared with thick eyebrows and big eyes, and shouted, "Do you want to turn your swords against my benefactor? Then pass my test first!"

"No need, Mengqi." Azai Nagamasa also took a stance. "I will defeat this kind of guy!"

"Ah! This... this is 'righteousness'! I'm burning too!" Naoe Kanetsugu also became energetic. "Let us also join the battle with you, my lords!"

"I say..." At this time, Jiangshi (the thin and agile one) moved to Itsumade's side in a flash step and whispered in his ear, "Let them pass..." He raised his head and scanned the others with his one eye. "...These three justice idiots are quite strong... and... fighting with them... feels so embarrassing..."

"Hmm... that's true..." Itsumade responded in a low voice, then raised his head and looked at the four in front of him. "Sigh... Okay, since you've all said so, please..."

...

At the same time, on the other side of the Musou Plain, by the Fire River.

"Who are you?" 【Xiutuo】 (another guy who looked like Jiao) sized up Qi Sha and asked.

Wearing the "Blade" uniform, Qi Sha looked like a passerby. Their guild's uniform was very simple, a set of moderately thick, dark-colored clothes, the material of which was very tough and easy to move around in. In short... everything was for the sake of being low-key and practical.

"I told you, I'm called Qi Sha." Qi Sha looked at the other person calmly, without being arrogant or humble.

His mentality was good—if I can avoid fighting, I will. If I really have to fight, I'm not afraid of you.

"So I'm asking you... who are you?" Xiutuo said again. "I've never heard of you." He looked back at the other two demon generals behind him. "Do you guys know this guy called 'Qi Sha'?"

A second later, the two of them denied it.

"See, no one knows you." Xiutuo shrugged and looked at Qi Sha. "Judging by your appearance... you're probably just a grunt..." There was nothing wrong with his logic, but as a mob character, he didn't seem qualified to say that to others. "I advise you, if you can't even beat a kyoten (base) commander, you should just go back."

"Heh..." Qi Sha smiled slightly. "I think I can still beat a kyoten commander."

"Is that so..." Xiutuo continued. "Then how about this, let's exchange a few moves. If you're lucky enough to not die, I'll let you pass."

"Sure." Qi Sha said. "You attack first."

"What did you say?" Xiutuo was stunned for a moment, then laughed. "Ha... hahaha... are you kidding me? You use gauntlets as a weapon, and you're telling me, who uses a spear, to 'attack first'?" He shook his head and swayed as he said, "An inch longer, an inch stronger, have you heard of that saying? My kamae (effective attack range) is much longer than yours. Attacking first isn't the same as bullying people?"

"You seem to be quite moral." Qi Sha also laughed.

"Hehe... that's right~" Xiutuo said smugly. "Who do you think I am? Who in Orochi's army doesn't know that I, Lord Xiutuo, am a true man?"

"Then I'll impolitely take you up on that." Qi Sha replied.

When he said this... his tone gradually cooled down, and his eyes had already changed.

Xiutuo also keenly noticed this and immediately adopted a defensive stance. "Oh? You've got quite the nerve..."

In an instant, the surrounding atmosphere... changed dramatically!

Even the demon soldiers and demon generals behind Xiutuo felt this change.

On the wasteland, along the Fire River, evil clouds surged, and the intent to battle soared to the heavens.

Qi Sha's eyes burned as he focused his mind, and his fighting spirit burst forth, launching a sudden attack with a swift and fierce fist technique.

Xiutuo held his breath and gathered his senses, his demonic energy burning high, as he swung his spear to parry the powerful fist wind.

"Hundred and Fourteenth Style. Aragami!"

"Serious Guard!"

In an instant, fist and spear crossed, sparking a strange glow of dual energies...

【Name: Hundred and Fourteenth Style. Aragami】

【Skill Card Attribute: Active Skill, Permanently Mastered】

【Skill Category: Fighting】

【Effect: The left leg is flexed and rotated outward, the upper body is rotated, and a side hook punch is delivered forward (cooldown time: thirty seconds)】

【Consumption: Stamina Value 100】

【Learning Condition: Fighting Specialization B】

【Note: A basic style of the Kusanagi-ryu Ancient Dance, which can be linked to Hundred and Twenty-fifth Style. Nanase, Hundred and Twenty-seventh Style. Yatsukase, Hundred and Twenty-eighth Style. Kugikizuchi, and Outer Style. Kamitsubaki.】

This was a very simple move, and its power was not even comparable to the 【South Star Soaring Dragon Fist】, which could be learned with a C-level fighting specialization (of course... the stamina consumption of the Soaring Dragon Fist was eight times that of the Aragami), and its speed was only moderate.

But the reason why it was defined as a B-level skill was because of its rich follow-up variations...

Those who were proficient in fighting games understood that if you wanted to fight beautifully, you would use a Super Special Move, but if you wanted to win... you still had to rely on the "combos" made up of many ordinary moves. For a character with a lot of health, getting hit by a Super Special Move wasn't scary, but getting hit by an Aragami... then you had to sweat, because by the time you could move next time, you might only have a sliver of health left.

Boom—

An explosive sound erupted, and the two figures paused.

Qi Sha's right fist hit the spear shaft. His right hand was trembling slightly, and Xiutuo's hands, which were holding the spear, were also trembling slightly.

"Can I cross the bridge?" Qi Sha asked in a deep voice.

"Hmm..." Xiutuo groaned, extended his arm to push the spear, and jumped back. "Please..."

"Thank you." Qi Sha was polite to the other party and then shook his hands and strode forward.

The demon soldiers at the front of the bridge saw him coming and retreated one after another, making way.

"He's a good man..." Xiutuo watched Qi Sha's back and uttered a line full of BL undertones.

The exchange just now seemed to have no beginning or end, but the outcome had actually been decided.

At the moment when the Aragami's fist hit the spear shaft, if Xiutuo had not gained more than 30% advantage in strength, then he had lost. Because... next, as long as Qi Sha was willing, he could use his left fist to connect a move at any time, and then another move... and another move... Within five moves, Xiutuo's stance would be unloaded, his physical condition would be destroyed, and finally, he would be hit with a solid blow.

Although taking this blow didn't mean losing the entire battle (Xiutuo could still reverse the disadvantage through Musou Awakening and other means), he had undoubtedly suffered a loss in this first round of exchange.

Of course... the actual situation was that Qi Sha did not finish the combo.

Under the circumstances where both parties knew it, there was no need to push things too far. After one punch, asking the question... "Can I cross the bridge?" This way, you can also get off the stage, I can achieve my goal, and I can save some stamina... a win-win situation.

"Phew... another powerful guy has come..." When Qi Sha's figure gradually moved away, Xiutuo thought again, "This time's martial arts tournament... will be a good show to watch."

...

On the other side, Wang Tanzhi, Jianjun Twelve Hates, and Zhao Yun finally arrived at a suspension bridge.

Whether it was lucky or unlucky, this suspension bridge was rather special. Because it was the entrance facing the main gate of Gu Zhi Castle, Daji (Orochi didn't participate in trivial matters like this) had arranged for a Peerless Demon General to guard it.

This person wore a black full-coverage Sengoku samurai armor, with a huge golden crescent moon horn embedded in the front of his helmet, a strange Western-style long sword at his waist, which was like a sword and a knife, and a pair of flintlocks hidden under the cloak behind him.

And perhaps the most prominent feature on his body was—an eyepatch embroidered with a crest over his right eye.

"What a joke!" When he saw Xiao Tan, Date used a voice and tone that was very close to "shouting." "Who is this guy? This young master won't let some unknown trash disturb Orochi!"

"Ah... you're calling me 'trash' right in front of my face..." Xiao Tan had a good temper and wasn't too angry. He was just complaining there. "Although I want to refute it, I don't think I have a chance of winning if we fight..."

"You one-eyed dragon who is willing to be the devil king's lackey... is the power of the demon lord also blinding your only remaining eye?" Jianjun Twelve Hates said in a questioning tone.

"Shut up!" Date said, "You outsiders don't understand Orochi at all, don't judge rashly!"

"Hmph..." Jianjun snorted coldly. "Alright... I won't argue with you about this." He pointed at Xiao Tan. "I'm asking you, can't you see... that this little brother's foundations are extraordinary?"

"Huh?" Date was stunned for a moment. "He... what?"

In fact, Jianjun couldn't see anything "extraordinary" about Xiao Tan's "foundations." He was just relying on the fact that he was more cultured and trying to put on a show of mystery. "It doesn't matter if you can't see it... just let us pass."

"Huh?" Date belonged to the type... who wasn't necessarily very smart, but was difficult to fool, and his temper was very fiery. "What are you talking about? This young master doesn't understand!" As he said that, he drew his sword. "You." He pointed his sword at Xiao Tan. "You want to participate in the martial arts tournament, right? Okay... then let this young master test your mettle first!"