Steve's words were meant to dress Grayfist in glory. After all, Steve knew he was destined to lose.
When the time came, Grayfist could stand in the spotlight. This was Steve's last kindness to Grayfist inside the Trial Grounds. (A kind of end-of-life care, really.)
But what Steve never expected was, Grayfist refused.
"No need."
"I don't want your brothers to have their morale scattered because of this."
"Because I will definitely win this match."
Just from these few words, it was enough to prove that in front of Steve, Grayfist had completely picked back up his confidence.
In terms of mechanics, Steve and Grayfist's operating skill was actually about the same.
If the two of them fought, the outcome basically always depended on outside factors.
Things like the supplies inside their backpacks, their condition at the time, external environmental factors, and so on.
This was something both Grayfist and Steve actually knew very clearly in their hearts.
So if they really had to fight, neither of them would feel they could definitely win.
But at this moment, for Grayfist to speak such bold words was enough to prove that his confidence had already fully returned.
After all, Grayfist specialized in studying PVP, and his sparring partners had always been players. His actual combat experience was definitely far more than Steve's.
When he fought Steve earlier, Grayfist completely felt in his heart that he might not be as good as Steve.
That was why in battle he was always holding back, never fully letting loose.
Even while being so cautious, he was still able to fight Steve to a draw the entire time, enough to show just how strong his PVP skill was.
So those words he just spoke weren't because of arrogance. It was because he knew very clearly that the obsession which had bound him before was gone, and he would definitely be able to defeat Steve.
Falling into Steve's ears, Grayfist's words weren't very pleasant to hear, but Steve didn't mind. On the contrary, Steve was actually happy.
The Grayfist now was already completely different from before.
In this state, Grayfist would surely be able to properly develop inside the Trial Grounds, becoming yet another trump card of Xu Yuan's camp.
Naturally, Steve wasn't worried that Grayfist would immediately fall out with Rainforest and cause him trouble.
Grayfist would no longer act impulsively. What was certain was that he would definitely meet Black Blade, but only after he had developed himself enough would he go see Black Blade.
Steve looked at Black Blade with relief on his face. After thinking for a moment, he said, "You must also know very clearly, in our previous few matches there were always all kinds of external factors mixed in."
"We really never decided the outcome under completely fair conditions."
"This duel can be considered as giving an explanation for those earlier bouts."
Saying this, Steve looked toward a patch of open grassland in the distance with no cover, pointed over there and said, "Use stones to enclose that place."
"You, me, bringing no equipment, no items."
"We decide the outcome inside there."
"How about it?"
Even though Steve knew very clearly that in this match he was bound to lose.
He could have proposed some conditions that weren't too obvious but still tilted things slightly in Grayfist's favor.
But Steve didn't do that. He didn't want to half-heartedly deal with Grayfist.
He still valued this match, because he valued Grayfist as a person.
And he also knew very well, what Grayfist had always wanted was an absolutely fair match.
Only Steve's proposal could count as absolutely fair.
Both sides with no equipment or supplies in their hands, confined to a smaller area to fight.
No external factors interfering.
Whether one could win or not depended entirely on basic skill and reflexes in the moment.
In this absolutely fair match, there would be no such thing as luck in victory or defeat.
Hearing Steve's proposal, Grayfist was actually a little surprised.
In Grayfist's eyes, this kind of absolutely fair mode was without doubt to his advantage.
Grayfist was originally a PVP master. There's a saying, those who play PVP well all have a dirty heart. (Not really.)
For this kind of trapped-beast-fight duel, Grayfist was extremely good at it.
From just an opponent's glance or a tiny move, Grayfist could already guess what he was about to do.
Even if the opponent was Steve, Grayfist could still handle it with ease.
Thinking of this, Grayfist looked at Steve and said, "This is indeed fair enough."
"But your research direction from the beginning was different from mine. You only later began studying PVP."
"If I agree to this proposal, it's really taking too much advantage of you."
Hearing Grayfist's words, Steve laughed and said, "You're being too confident about yourself, aren't you?"
"I may have only started studying PVP later, but me, this person who only started studying later, haven't I always fought you evenly back and forth each time?"
"If I had studied PVP from the beginning like you, would you even still have a place on the PVP rankings?"
Hearing Steve's words, Grayfist couldn't help rolling his eyes.
"Fine."
"Then we'll go with your way."
"I really want to see, which is harder, your fists or your mouth."
"But ugly words first."
"These conditions were your proposal. When you lose, don't say I took advantage of you."
Though there was no expression on Grayfist's face, from his words one could hear a joking tone.
This state he was in now was truly his best state.
Because he trusted himself enough, because in this moment his heart was strong enough, he didn't need anyone else to prove anything.
Precisely because of this, his current state could be so relaxed and at ease.
Seeing Grayfist's mood gradually improve, Steve also felt a lot more at ease. He smiled and waved his hand.
"Alright, then it's settled."
"I'll first go explain things to my brothers."
Of course Steve hadn't forgotten that he needed to explain to his men, since he would soon no longer be in the Trial Grounds.
Hearing Steve's words, Grayfist also waved his hand.
"You really should properly explain, maybe even give them some psychological counseling, so when I beat you down they won't get upset and refuse to listen."
"I'll also go explain things to my brothers, tell them to get along well with your group of brothers."
———
[Inside the Rainforest]
"So this is the person you insisted I had to meet?"
"You should know he is my enemy!"
"You've betrayed the trust I had in you!"
Mustard looked at Barbecue Sauce, his eyes full of anger and disappointment.
Just as Xu Yuan had guessed, Mustard had originally been unwilling to come to the Rainforest. But after Barbecue Sauce gave him that coordinate, Mustard still came.
The coordinate Xu Yuan gave was actually the coordinate of the Villager Kingdom.
This was also the reason he was certain that once Mustard knew this coordinate, he would definitely show up.
But unexpectedly, after arriving in the Rainforest, they ran into Blue Demon and the Pillager King, who had gotten there ahead of them.
Although at the start of the transaction, Mustard had already faintly guessed in his heart that the emeralds came from the Pillagers
But with the situation pressing, he had no choice but to pretend not to know.
Naturally, he wasn't willing to be the one to pierce through this thin layer of window paper.
But now, with the reality laid out right in front of him, Mustard of course had to firmly declare his stance.
And at this moment, seeing Mustard appear in the Rainforest, the Pillager King at Blue Demon's side reacted in exactly the same way.
"This is the person you wanted me to meet?"
"Look at the eyes he gives us when he sees us."
"I don't intend to stir up conflict."
"But if he makes the first move, I definitely won't stand by!!"
Mustard and the Pillager King actually both already had an idea in their hearts about that trade they did.
But what they hadn't expected was that this thin window paper would be pierced today.
When Barbecue Sauce and Blue Demon had told Mustard and the Pillager King, what they both said was that they were going to meet an important person.
And precisely because Mustard and the Pillager King trusted Barbecue Sauce and Blue Demon, they came.
They never thought that this so-called important person would actually be an enemy.
Barbecue Sauce and Blue Demon were just about to explain, when Xu Yuan's voice came from not far away.
"Though the atmosphere here looks like swords drawn and bows bent."
"In reality, there isn't even the slightest whiff of gunpowder."
Xu Yuan could have appeared in front of Mustard and the Pillager King right away. But he didn't do that.
Instead, he let Mustard and the Pillager King meet first.
It was in order to confirm once again Mustard and the Pillager King's attitude.
Though the two of them looked like they were on edge, they had only muttered a few words to Barbecue Sauce and Blue Demon.
That was enough to show that deep down, they weren't really so hostile to each other. Or rather, their sense of the bigger picture was still very strong.
That meant there was a large space for negotiation ahead.
If there really hadn't been any room for talk, the two sides would have already started fighting by now.
The moment Xu Yuan's deep voice appeared, it drew everyone's attention.
Everyone looked toward the direction of the sound, and saw Xu Yuan slowly walk out from behind a large tree.
He stepped forward slowly, coming to stand in front of Mustard and the Pillager King.
Mustard and the Pillager King had never seen HIM, so of course they didn't know Xu Yuan's identity.
While they were confused, Barbecue Sauce and Blue Demon quickly told them Xu Yuan's identity.
Hearing his identity, the Pillager King wasn't very surprised.
He wasn't stupid. Blue Demon had previously tested him. Though Blue Demon had been very careful in that probing, the Pillager King had still sensed something, only he wasn't certain at the time.
Just as Blue Demon had said, the Pillager King didn't dislike Xu Yuan, and didn't have any special thoughts about him.
After all, whether Xu Yuan or his subordinates, they basically hadn't had much contact with the Pillager King and his people.
So for the Pillager King, Xu Yuan was just another leader belonging to the monster camp whom he hadn't encountered before.
Once he knew Xu Yuan's identity, the Pillager King looked at Xu Yuan and gave a nod, which counted as a greeting. His face had no extra expression, and naturally no malice either.
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through Patreon.