Imagining the scene of herself streaking before hundreds, if not thousands, of players in the新手村 (TL Note: newbie village) shortly, Bai Xia’s face instantly blanched. Yet, she quickly snapped back to reality, saying, “‘No… what the heck am I thinking? What’s this ‘can’t get married’ nonsense!'”
The man cast an exasperated glance at the young woman not far away, wondering if she was simply too carefree or a bit dim-witted to be zoning out at such a critical moment.
He wanted to speak, but realized there was no time; the overwhelming flame storm was already upon them, threatening to engulf them both in the next instant.
Without a moment to spare, Tian Zheng plunged his greatsword into the ground, and boundless frost spread outwards, swiftly forming an icy shield that perfectly protected him and Bai Xia within its embrace.
The skill imbued within the Greatsword of Frost was remarkably versatile, capable not only of trapping enemies but also of creating a defense to shield oneself and allies for a limited duration.
However, the moment the fiery storm collided with the icy shield, massive cracks instantly spiderwebbed across its surface. It endured for barely a second before the flames shattered it completely!
Though the shield’s protection was brief, Bai Xia had not wasted the opportunity. She and Tian Zheng swiftly retreated further, creating additional distance.
“You still haven’t answered me! What are you doing running over here? Run in the opposite direction, you idiot!” Bai Xia couldn’t help but shout at the man beside her as they continued to fall back.
Tian Zheng, however, did not look at her, merely speaking with equal urgency, “‘You intend to sacrifice yourself, allowing me to gain distance and defeat it to complete the mission, don’t you?'”
“If you know, then run the other way, you bastard!”
“‘I’m sorry, I can’t do that.'” Tian Zheng shook his head. “‘Friends should face life and death together. Besides, I can’t bear to watch a girl be killed by a monster.'”
‘Face life and death together, my foot! You might face life and death together, but I’ll be streaking in front of who knows how many people! And you can’t bear it? Will you bear it when you watch me streaking?’
Well, to be fair, Tian Zheng really shouldn’t be blamed for this. He was unaware of the ‘punishment’ Bai Xia would face if the trial failed; to him, it was merely a failed mission.
Furthermore, if victory hinged upon Bai Xia sacrificing herself, then even if it were the only path to success, Tian Zheng would disdain to take it.
After all, when had he ever played a game where a girl had to die for him to win? Losing was acceptable; at the very least, he couldn’t abandon a companion and choose to survive ignobly.
Of course, a more significant reason was that without the young woman’s magical output, Tian Zheng truly lacked confidence in his ability to defeat the Lava Giant. Its physical defense was simply too formidable!
If he had to hack at it slowly, he’d probably break his sword.
If Bai Xia knew his thoughts, she would undoubtedly give him a huge thumbs-up, and then… fiercely kick him!
‘Great God, can’t your will to survive be a little stronger? My entire latter half of life is tied to you!’
‘Alright, thinking about these things now seems rather useless.’
Watching the swirling inferno, which would dissipate in another five or six seconds but was more than enough to incinerate both her and Tian Zheng before then, Bai Xia suddenly felt a sense of resignation.
‘Let whatever happens, happen. If all else fails, I’ll just revive, log off immediately, and never play this trashy game again.’
Of course, in the end, she decided to make one last struggle. With a sudden burst of strength, just before the flames could engulf her, she delivered a powerful kick to the man’s backside, sending him sprawling a considerable distance, utterly caught off guard!
Finally, Bai Xia gazed at Tian Zheng, who had face-planted in the mud, and offered a pure, almost saint-like expression.
“‘Brother, this is all I can do. Live with my heartfelt wishes… huh?'”
The words were still on her lips when she was swallowed by the surging flames. Yet, in the next moment, what echoed in her ears was not the system’s death notification, nor the prompt for the end of the trial.
More precisely, Bai Xia had not been killed by the flame storm, nor had she suffered even a tiny bit of damage.
Just as the flames touched her body, or rather, touched 修罗绝命 (TL Note: Shura’s Fated End, the name of her uniform), the previously docile sailor uniform seemed to awaken like an ancient beast, abruptly erupting with a viscous black radiance!
It was said that black could not possibly be the color of light, yet what enveloped Bai Xia at that moment truly resembled a black light.
The black radiance split open like a mouth, transforming into a vortex that devoured all approaching flames. The Lava Giant’s flame whirlwind, which should have continued for several more seconds, was instantly sucked dry by the black light.
Yet, this was not the end. As the Lava Giant stood dumbfounded, the viscous black light suddenly expanded rapidly, and then the colossal flame storm, which had vanished, swiftly reformed directly in front of Bai Xia!
However, once fully formed, it abruptly reversed direction and slammed heavily into the unsuspecting Lava Giant.
The Lava Giant’s body was once again submerged in flames, but this time it was accompanied by its utterly tragic roars. The ten-second duration of the flame scorching added a significant blank section to its already depleted health bar, which had lost nearly a third!
Simultaneously, 修罗绝命 (Shura’s Fated End) seemed to have completed its task, reverting once more to its original appearance as an ordinary sailor uniform.
“‘What in the world was that?'”
Bai Xia stared blankly at the clothes on her body. While she was overjoyed to have been saved and no longer had to streak, she found herself momentarily unable to process what had just happened.
Then, she inadvertently glanced at one of the attributes of 修罗绝命 (Shura’s Fated End): “‘…When attacked, there is a 10% chance of perfect evasion and a 5% chance of double reflection? Did this save me?!'”
She had initially thought it was an attribute difficult to trigger, as it was more suited for tank-like characters such as shield guards. Bai Xia was simply too squishy and dared not gamble on a 10% or 5% chance.
However, she never expected that this very attribute, which she had almost overlooked, would pull her back from the brink of the abyss at the last possible moment!
Even with the Lava Giant’s inherent resistance, it could not withstand the damage from a double-reflected ultimate skill. It now had less than half its health remaining, and more importantly, it had temporarily lost its炎力 (TL Note: flame power) for the next half hour!
This meant it could not use lava projectiles, would not cause scorching damage upon proximity, and its ultimate skill was unusable.
“‘We won.'”
Indeed, the outcome was now all but certain.
At this point, even if Bai Xia disliked skirts and sailor uniforms, she longed to embrace 修罗绝命 (Shura’s Fated End) and plant two forceful kisses upon it.
‘It’s too powerful!’
If one were to ask who was feeling the most ‘sore’ right now, it would undoubtedly be Tian Zheng, who was gingerly holding his waist as he slowly picked himself up.