In the Long City Arena, everyone looked on in excitement at the display screen as in it the whip came down on the crouched figure of Cheng Xiu.
"A'Xiu!"
" Sister Cheng!"
"Watch out!" Gu Shu and Chu Ying screamed.
The dust settled.
The only thing left behind was a pool of lightning.
Lotus froze, confused.
Her violet gaze searched the clearing.
A few steps away from the striking range sat Cheng Xiu, on her knees, her eyes squeezed shut.
The Immortals in the clearing jumped to their feet in shock.
"How did you get there, Rookie?" Lotus asked.
Cheng Xiu panted. "Now why would I tell you that, senior?"
"Because I asked nicely?"
Cheng Xiu smirked. "I don't think so."
Lotus glared. "Fine then!"
She raised the whip high above her head and brought it down again.
Cheng Xiu jumped away from its trajectory.
She barely missed her step and stepped on the lightning pool next to her.
Cheng Xiu breathed heavily. Her eyes went to the lightning Pools around them. They had changed colours, becoming more purple.
Did that mean something?
Lotus whipped Cheng Xiu again, but Cheng Xiu ran towards the left, escaping the whip's vicious sting.
This continued for some time, Cheng Xiu escaped the attacks from Lotus multiple times getting hit only twice in the fifteen minutes since the battle began.
"How is she doing that?" Long, the green-clad Immortal asked Immortal Frost. "She is able to escape sister Lotus's attacks easier now! In fact, I think her escapes are becoming smoother, and faster!"
"Is that what you want to know about?" Yue asked him. "Don't you want to know about what she did to escape Lotus's attack near the trees?"
"Now that you mention it, I do actually!" he gave her a goofy grin.
"Qi Burst," Frost said to him.
Long looked at her sceptically. "Little Frost, they are at level 10 in Qi capacity right now. That girl should not even be able to walk let alone pull Lotus into a cat and mouse game if she did use a Qi Burst."
"Oh?" Frost looked at him with disdain. "Then what do you think she did?"
"Probably used an item? I hate paid players, they always get away with things we wouldn't," Long said with a sigh. Then he looked at Yue who was smiling at him sweetly. "Except for you, Sister Yue! How can I hate you! How can anyone hate you!"
Matchstick, the yellow-robed man, patted Long on the shoulder. "Nice save, bro."
Long's eyebrow twitched. "It's not a nice save! I meant it!"
Matchstick raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Long glared at him. "Why do you sound so sceptical?!"
Matchstick backed away nervously. "I'm just curious if you meant it, bro. Chill out, dude!"
"Matchstick," Yue called.
The yellow-robed man turned towards her cautiously. "Yeah?"
"I told you to not talk for three days."
Matchstick slumped. "Oh. Right. I forgot. Sorry."
Yue smiled. "It's okay. Don't repeat it."
"Sure man."
Yue's smile became plastic.
"I mean, um, sure thing, sister Yue," Matchstick said with a nervous smile.
"And I agree with Frost," Yue said to them. "She definitely used Qi Burst. My shoes can sense it."
The Immortals looked at her in understanding and then turned to the clearing where the whips were hitting the ground repeatedly, raising more and more dust, grass and debris.
"Are your shoes etched with Sensing spells then?" San Zhe asked curiously.
Yue's face blanked. She looked at him with a cold gaze. "Yes."
San Zhe shivered. Why did he have to ask that question? Was he stupid?
San Zhe wanted to cry. He didn't really want to bring the attention of the experts on to him but he had always been a curious person, especially about things in VR games.
His eyes went to the clearing where Cheng Xiu and Lotus were. And his curiosity was really high about sister Xiu. A Qiless woman with an S-Ranked Mental Power.
But it was true that the more you stand out the more people would crush you.
He didn't envy her position. The enemies she gained were just too astronomical in reputation.
"So how is she gaining so much speed?" Long asked them.
"She is improving as she goes," Star Phoenix said to him.
Long blinked. "Huh?"
"The Rookie is gaining experience from fighting with Lotus," Frost said to him, her eyes challenging his intelligence.
"She is learning from her fight with Lotus," WuQi, the woman with the indigo hair said to him. "Her mind is constantly finding ways to corner Lotus and find an opening to strike."
"She better do it quickly then," EverHill said with a sneer. "The lightning Pools are all becoming violet."
"What would they becoming violet do?" San Zhe asked in a whisper.
The Immortals stared at him.
Star Phoenix laughed. "You are a curious one aren't you? Then listen to me carefully, little San, if the pools become violet before your friend can come up with a plan she is doomed."
"Why?"
Star Phoenix sighed. "Because it would mean that Phase two of Lotus's attack would begin."
San Zhe froze. Though he didn't know much of the individual powers of the Immortals he knew what Phase two of Immortal Lotus's attack meant.
"Linking? Bu-Bu-But they are both at Level 10, there is no way she can do linking, right?"
Star Phoenix rolled his eyes. "The lightning used in Lotus's attacks are sustained by using the natural Qi in the atmosphere. It's going to be a long time before the pools lose their potency. Once the linkage happens it will be even more difficult. Your girlfriend is struggling so much already, I feel sorry for her."
"Not my girlfriend," San Zhe said with a blush on his face.
"But you want her to be," Star Phoenix teased him.
San Zhe had a self-deprecating smile on his lips. "I'm afraid you are wrong. I have never seen sister Xiu in that way, and I hope I never will! I can't afford to develop feelings for her!"
Star Phoenix observed Cheng Xiu for some time. "She is becoming faster."
"How is she doing that!" Long asked in confusion.
Star Phoenix turned to San Zhe. "Can you guess?"
San Zhe gave him a side glance and then looked at Sister Xiu's figure that danced around the Immortal.
Lotus's movements were getting faster as well as though both had hit some kind of a speed button hidden in the game.
San Zhe frowned. "They are both speeding up."
"Hmm…so it would seem."
San Zhe looked at Star Phoenix in confusion. "Aren't they?"
Star Phoenix smirked. "Why do you think they are speeding up."
San Zhe thought for a moment. He looked at the circling girls in realization. "They are getting used to the level difference!"
Star Phoenix laughed and ruffled San Zhe's hair. "Such a smart boy! Long Hei! Learn from him!"
Long glared at Star Phoenix. "It still doesn't explain why the Rookie is gaining so much momentum."
Star Phoenix put his arm around San Zhe's shoulder and brought him closer to him. "You know why don't you San Zhe?"
"Um…"
Star Phoenix looked at him. "Don't you?"
San Zhe sweatdropped. If San Zhe had to take a guess he would say that it was her S-Ranked Mental Power that was coming into effect. In a world that did not limit the extent of her Physical prowess beyond level caps, Sister Xiu's level 10 would be different from those of the same level.
It could also explain how she did the Qi Burst. Her higher mental capacity meant that she would have a larger Qi Pool and control over her Qi as well.
San Zhe couldn't help looking at Cheng Xiu in admiration. The Other World really showed the difference between those with potential and those without.
"Little San!" Star Phoenix called him. "I'm waiting for an explanation!"
San Zhe grinned. "Sister Xiu is just that awesome!"
Star Phoenix wrinkled his nose and threw the younger man into the arms of WuQi. "Ew. Fanboy. Take him."
The indigo haired woman glared at him. "And why are you giving him to me?"
"Didn't you always want a boyfriend?"
WuQi glared. She threw San Zhe towards Long Hei who looked at the young man in his arms in confusion.
"Brother Star! Let me tell you one thing! My heart belongs to Brother WenXian! No one else can take his place in my heart and you know it! What did you mean by throwing that boy at me! Tell me!"
Long Hei and San Zhe backed away from the livid woman.
"A'Xian will never like you. He already rejected you, didn't he?"
"You!"
"Brother Star," Lu WenXian called in annoyance. "Was there a need to drag me into your argument?"
Star Phoenix grinned and gave WuQi a smug look. "Well done, WuQi. Now you have gone and annoyed your precious WenXian. He will never accept you as his bride now."
Lu WenXian looked at Star Phoenix with betrayed eyes as WuQi slammed into his body and hugged him.
"Brother Xian! Tell me it's not true! Please!" WuQi cried.
Lu WenXian looked at Yue with puppy-dog eyes.
Yue turned her face away and coughed into her hands.
Lu WenXian looked at the Rainbow clad girl in annoyance.
San Zhe tried to sneak away from the Immortals while they were distracted only to find himself in the stronghold of Long Hei who was too busy watching the show to even realize that San Zhe had tried to escape.
That was just embarrassing.
San Zhe's eyes filled with tears at his desperate situation. He really didn't like being the bait that made sister Xiu fight with these people.
Matchstick looked at San Zhe's tear-filled eyes in horror.
He mouthed San Zhe a few words of comfort. 'I will report it.'
San Zhe looked at Matchstick in confusion. Did he understand him wrong? Report what?
With a sigh, Lu WenXian extricated himself from WuQi's strong embrace and pushed her away gently.
WuQi broke down into tears.
Long Hei burst into laughter. "Well done, little Xian! You made a beautiful girl cry!"
Lu WenXian raised an eyebrow at the man. "What did you do to make the Rookie cry Long Hei? I think that is something we should discuss more."
Long Hei froze. He looked down at the young man in his arms who looked like he was about to cry. "Um…junior...why are you crying? People will think I did something perverted to you!"
"Didn't you?" Lu WenXian asked in a teasing voice.
"I really thought you did," Matchstick admitted. "I was wondering if I should report you to the System."
Long Hei looked at him in betrayal. "I didn't do anything! I'm not that kind of a guy! I like melons damn it!"
Matchstick shrugged. "Doesn't mean anything. You can also like both for all I know. And you are still holding him."
Long Hei threw San Zhe away like he was burned.
Lu WenXian stabilized San Zhe before he could fall on the ground. "Are you okay?"
"Fine, fine," San Zhe said bitterly. So that was what Matchstick meant by he would report it.
"We are a colourful bunch aren't we?" Lu WenXian said with a self-deprecating laugh.
San Zhe grinned and nodded. "Like sister Xiu said. A Rainbow Squad."
"So what's the secret?"
"Huh?"
Lu WenXian smirked. "You never said why your friend seems to have such a fast improvement."
"I don't know."
"You don't know? Or you don't want to say it?"
San Zhe pursed his lips.
Lu WenXian laughed. "It's alright if you don't want to say it. But I'm sure she won't be able to hide whatever advantage it is that she has."
"What I want to know is, how did she figure out how to do Qi Burst," EverHill said to them. "I'm pretty sure that is the reason she was able to hold my RynHeart too!"
"I'm pretty sure that was because of your incompetence," Long Hei said to him. "Right, Rookie?"
San Zhe shrugged and looked back at Cheng Xiu.
Did being an S-Ranked also mean she could replicate powerful magic in the game?