Chapter 221 Top Player (Part 1)

Ye Ci bade farewell with the Gnomes and immediately left the party when the battle was over. She refused to remain in a free-win team.

She was immediately transported to the grand hall in the Golan Arena. There was a huge billboard in the hall, displaying parties that were looking for more members, and members in need of parties. Learning from her previous lesson, Ye Ci decided against searching for a random party with the help of NPCs. She stood in front of billboard, studying the details of each party. Despite attracting many attention from the players around her, Ye Ci opted to ignore the stares she received for the sake of finding a good party.

There were multiple battle modes available in the Golan Arena. Of course, players would have no need of searching for teammates in a 1v1 battle, while most of the players engaging in 2v2 battles have a fixed duo. Most of the parties that were in need of members were taking part in 3v3 and 5v5 battles. The rosters of these parties would constantly change as players come and go. It was almost impossible to form a party with a fixed roster under such condition. The 10v10 battle mode, on the other hand, were always made up of parties with members from the same guild. Recruitment messages for 10v10 battles would never appear on the billboard. Most of the recruiting parties were seeking to take part in 3v3 and 5v5 battles.

The best way to earn Battle Points in the Golan Arena was to take part in 1v1 battles. However, such battles would typically last for a short duration of 30 seconds, and the victor would then be decided with 2 criteria: The first player who was able to obtain three kills would win the battle even before the time was up. If none of the combatants were able to secure any kills, the player with the highest amount of damage dealt would be the victor.

1v1 battles rely heavily on individual strength. As long as a player was skillful enough, he or she would be able to secure a kill within the time limit, and be awarded with 300 Battle Points. If both combatants possess the same skill level, could only try their best to deal damage to their opponents before time runs out.

That was why most players would still opt for 2v2, 3v3, and 5v5 battles even when they could earn more Battle Points from 1v1 battles. Only players who were truly skillful would take part in this battle mode.

However, 2v2 battles require a high degree of teamwork. Many players who do not have a fixed partner would shun away from this battle mode, favoring the 3v3 or 5v5 battles. If a player was lucky enough, he or she would be paired with a decent team, and if things went well, they could earn a lot of points.

The opening of the Golan Arena served as an indicator. It foretold the beginning of the battle between the four continents. The battles would not be fought in stadiums or arena, but between players in cities and in the wild. This was also the core feature of Fate’s major patch called “A New Continent”. When the patch was released, the Middle Continent would be made available to players from all continents. With the exception of the major cities, every map in the Middle Continent was a potential battleground where players could engage each other in combat.

This was why the Golan Arena was introduced into the game. It would allow players to acquire PVP equipment while training their skills in actual combat. After all, nobody would willingly allow themselves to be slaughtered. Players would take part in battles in the Golan Arena to improve their combat capabilities.

Of course, it was a fact that still remained unknown to most of the players in the current stage of the game. They knew that the Battle Points they’ve acquired from the Golan Arena could be exchanged for PVP equipment. But… What are these equipment for? This was a question that was overlooked by many of the players, giving rise to the countless free-win teams in the arena.

Although it was apparent that the players would naturally have their own playstyle, Ye Ci still frowned upon the free-win teams. They were refused to work for what they want, and refused to work to improve their PVP skills. When the new patch was released, these players were swept aside by the new changes introduced into the game.

Ye Ci was able to gain exceptional PVP skills in her past life by immersing herself in 1v1 battles. Her best record in 1v1 battles was an astonishing 287 consecutive victories that was the envy of countless players, and this record was held by Ye Ci for a very long time. This was why Ye Ci was very confident in her PVP abilities, and was also why she did not choose to take part in 1v1 battles in her current life.

What she needed was to brush up on her teamwork, and not a display of her own combat prowess. That was why joining a random 5v5 team was her best choice. She would be able to face enemies of different classes in battle as well as a variety to different team compositions and strategies. She knew that even her strength was limited in a large scale battle, and the only way for her to get good was through practice.

There was a huge amount of parties looking for members on the billboard. However, it was quite easy to tell the fixed teams apart from the random teams. A fixed team that was in need of an additional players would have its name displayed, while a random team would appear as “Random” on the billboard. This made the process of looking for a party easier for players.

Ye Ci filtered away the random teams, and began sifting through the fixed teams.

: A skillful 5v5 party armed with Tier 8 equipment with a win streak of 34 battles in need of a DPS player! Don’t bother joining us if you’re not good.

<Naming’s So Hard> : 3v3 battles only! We need a Healer with great positioning and game sense!

: We’ve won 40 battles in a row yesterday! We need a good DPS with excellent positioning and gaming sense as well as Tier 8 and above gears. We only want players who are lvl 38 and above.

: 5v5 team looking for a DPS! We need a who is lvl 40 and has a good game sense, and can work with the team. Don’t come to us if you’re not confident in your PVP capabilities.

……

Even with the random teams filtered, the numbers of the fixed team was quite high as well. The game had a population of nearly 1 billion players. Even when those who were exploring dungeons, or were life players, and those who did not have sufficient level to take part in battles in the arena were not taken into account, there was still millions of players left in the arena.

Ye Ci was bedazzled by the sheer number of team names displayed on the billboard. As a player who had only took part in 1v1 battles, she was inexperienced when it came to searching for the right team. After long moments of hesitation, Ye Ci noticed a team that was looking for a lvl40+ player with Tier 8 equipment and good mechanical skills. The high requirements set by the group naturally meant that their members were rather capable players as well. It would be easier for Ye Ci to work with the party.

She immediately joined the party.

The team, which was named consisted of a Healer, a Mage, a Warrior, and a Rogue. With Ye Ci added into the mix, it was a very standard composition of 2 ranged characters, 2 melee characters, and a healer. A team like this could easily achieve victory if it did not have the misfortune to face off against a team with characters that were equipped with crowd control abilities.

However, Ye Ci was slightly dissatisfied with her choice. She had intended to join a team with a more unconventional team composition so that her teamwork would be pushed to the limit.

Despite that, Ye Ci did not have the habit of immediately abandoning a party that she joined. She was even able to bare with free-win team, not to mention her current decent-looking team.

But… A player like Gongzi You would always cause a small commotion with their appearance. Ye Ci was met with surprised gasps when she joined the party, “There must be something wrong with my eyes! The player who has just joined our team is called ‘Gongzi You’!”

“It can’t be that Gongzi You, right?”

“There’s only one Gongzi You in the Eastern Continent and the entire game…”

“Oh shit! We’re so lucky! Gongzi You joined our team! I’m gonna buy a lottery when this is over!”

Ye Ci could not muster up a response for the obvious enthusiasm of her teammates. She stood in a corner, silently studying the rest of her team. A Human male walked up to her and introduced himself, “I’m AppreciatingTheScenery, a Cleric, and the leader of this party.”

The three other members also begun introducing themselves to Ye Ci, “I’m Beauty’s Grave, a Warrior.”

“My name’s Glistening Moonlight, a Sorceress.”

“The name’s Returning Winds, I’m a Rogue.”

Ye Ci spoke up after they were done with their introductions, “Hi, I’m Gongzi You, a Huntress.”

“Are you that Gongzi You who frequently got First Blood? The one who killed Werebeast Shaman Buru?” as the only female player in the party other than Ye Ci, Glistening Moonlight appeared to be interested in gossip, “Are you that Gongzi You who left Steel-Blooded Battle Spear to join Upwards Ho!? Are you the Gongzi You who was accused of bad things by Steel-Blooded Battle Spear in the forums? The same Gongzi You who was called out by Customer Service No.094 at the Dragon Dance Competition? The Gongzi You who had a battle with Fleeting Time, the god-tier player of the Western Continent? The Gongzi You who had a scandal with Purity Essence? The Gongzi You who disappeared for an entire month?”

Glistening Moonlight was a very gorgeous Elf, and her ability to gossip was even greater than her looks. She bombarded Ye Ci with questions after questions without even skipping a breath.

The corner of Ye Ci’s mouth twitched. She was dumbfounded by the sudden torrent of questions, and was unable to come up with a response.

She was not as good a speaker as Glistening Moonlight, but it was not an ability that she was jealous of.

Glistening Moonlight was apparently a very impatient person as well, “So are you that Gongzi You? Are you?” asked the Elf when she received no answer from Ye Ci.

Despite their own curiosity, Beauty’s Grave, AppreciatingTheScenery, and Returning Winds were embarrassed by the actions of Glistening Moonlight. AppreciatingTheScenery nudged Glistening Moonlight with his elbow, hoping that she would stop her line of questioning. After all, the person standing before them was not just any ordinary player. She was the god-tier player who was also the best Hunter in Fate.

“Aiya, Mountains, why did you do that?” Glistening Moonlight, who was oblivious to AppreciatingTheScenery’s intention, directed a glare at the man. She then turned around and spoke to Ye Ci with a tone full of enthusiasm and excitement, “So are you really that Gongzi You?”

The corners of Ye Ci’s mouth twitched again. “Duplicated names are not allowed in the game.” replied Ye Ci stiffly under the expectant gaze of Glistening Moonlight.

The answer was a confirmation to Glistening Moonlight’s questions. Under normal circumstances, a simple “yes” would have suffice. But wouldn’t it mean that I’m admitting to all those things? thought Ye Ci to herself.

“In other words.. You’re Gongzi You! The real Gongzi You!” Glistening Moonlight squealed in delight. She ran up to Ye Ci and grabbed hold of her hands, staring at her with eyes burning with passion.

Such enthusiasm and passion was something that Ye Ci was not used to. She cowered back out of reflex, and subconsciously attempted to pull her hands back. However, Glistening Moonlight’s tight grip prevented her from doing just that.

“There’s a question that I’ve wanted to ask when I met the real Gongzi You.”

“What is it?” Ye Ci finally relented under the enthusiasm of her teammate. If she did not satisfy the curiosity of the gossipy mage, this battle would not proceed well.

Glistening Moonlight blinked her beautiful green eyes, and asked, ““So… When you and Fleeting Time got married… Will you go over to the Western Continent? Or will he move to the Eastern Continent?”

Ye Ci almost coughed up blood when she heard the question.

At that moment, Ye Ci could feel her blood gushing to her head, and her eyes turned red with anger. When she stared at the innocent face of Glistening Moonlight, Ye Ci could not bring herself to vent her anger on her teammate. She took in some deep breaths, trying her best to suppress her sudden surge of anger. She then withdrew her hand, and spoke to Glistening Moonlight with a cold voice, “I’m not that close with Fleeting Time.”

“Aiya, the celebrities will always use this line when asked about their love interest.” Glistening Moonlight nodded, and her unspoken words were written all over her face: I understand.

Ye Ci was nearly driven mad by Glistening Moonlight. “Are you guys going to start the battle, or are we continuing the gossip?”

Ye Ci’s words were laced with anger. Even an idiot could tell that the god-tier huntress was annoyed. AppreciatingTheScenery immediately nodded and forced out a laugh, “Alright, let’s cut the nonsense. I’m initiating the battle.”

With that, AppreciatingTheScenery immediately started the countdown, and the rest of the party immediately prepared for battle. Despite her talkative and gossipy nature, Glistening Moonlight was actually a decent player. Even Ye Ci who was a top-tier Sorceress was impressed by her positioning.

The party immediately headed to the basin at the center of the map when the battle started.

The Golan Arena offered more than 500 maps, and each map was distinct and unique in its own way. The players would be transported into a randomized map in each battle to a random spawn point that might or might not work to their advantage. It all depended on the luck of the players.

Ye Ci and her party were transported to a flat plain with a basin at its center. Both teams of combatants began moving to the center of the map to engage each other in combat. With the size of the terrain limited and flat, put the game sense and positioning of players would be pushed to the limit. The basin at the middle of the map was surrounded by platforms with glowing orbs. Each orb came with a distinct BUFF or DEBUFF that would only be made known to players when activated.

It was a common practice for Ye Ci to ignore the glowing orbs. While a BUFF would definitely be advantageous for her in battle, there was still a 50% chance that she might accidentally activate a DEBUFF. It was a risk that Ye Ci wanted to avoid.

She jumped into the basin when the rest of her party began activating the glowing orbs.

When Ye Ci entered stealth, her teammates were still busying themselves with the glowing orbs on the platform.

“Gongzi You, are you not activating the BUFFs?” said Glistening Moonlight when she noticed that Ye Ci has jumped into the basin without activating any BUFFs, “You can come up here with that pathway… over… there…..”

Before she could finish her sentence, a row of golden words appeared in her vision.

“Gongzi You has slain an enemy.”

The other members shared a confused look. They could not believe the scene that was unfolding before them. Ye Ci had already taken out an enemy not 10 seconds after leaping into the basin.

“Gongzi You has slain an enemy.”

Before the other party members could react, two lines of golden words appeared once agian in their vision. You’ve gotta be kidding me! That’s just too fast! They immediately jumped into the basin after Ye Ci.

Just at that moment, two lines of words appeared again in their vision. One of them was golden, and the other one was red.

“Gongzi You has slain an enemy.”

“AppretiatingTheScenery has been slain by Fleeting Time.

Hiya minna-san! Here's yet another awesome chapter of the awesomesauce novel translated by an awesomtacular translator (that is me, by the way!). Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

How's everybody doing today? How's life been treating you guys so far? I'm doing quite well if you ask me. Aside from the assignments and midterms of course ahaha... Life is still fun. Got to hang out with friends and stuff... We even got to enjoy some nice steamboat xDD Holy shit I think I binged on so much mutton that I finished half the restauran't supply of mutton hehe... Hey! Don't judge okay? It tasted REAL nice! And we got to sorta like fry it on our own? So it's fun!

And hey! I've discovered a pretty fun way to prank your friends if you ever go to a buffet... Macha ice cream, wasabi. Nuff said *wink wink*

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