Inside Happy Internet Café
Click, click, click, tap, tap…
A beautiful girl with short brown hair was sitting at the computer. Her nimble hands fluttered uncoordinated across the keyboard and mouse like an uncontrollable storm.
This person was Tang Rou. Seeing her in-game character in a desperate situation, little Tang tried her best to fight back, but being inexperienced in the game, it ended in futile resistance.
A streak of thin blood appeared on the screen after the male avatar performed a skill called "Dragon Tooth," a spear-thrust movement, ending her life in a one-sided beating.
GLORY!
She had seen this defeat many times, but Tang Rou wasn't discouraged—despite the number of losses based on the mound of money on the table.
"One more match! "
She said, and was about to place another 100-yuan bet but paused. Her purple eyes stared at her hands clutching the empty wallet. Little Tang couldn't go for another round; she had no money left.
"Finally ran out of money? Haha," Ye Xiu laughed.
This guy's waiting for me to run out of money? Tang Rou's fighting spirit burned even brighter. "Then wait for me to get more! " she said and left.
Running out of money? Go get more!
Money isn't a problem; if it takes a million to fight, so be it! It's not about money; it's all about winning and losing.
"Wait, Little Tang! " Chen Guo, the Internet café owner, chased after her. She knew Tang Rou's personality well after working with her for almost a year. Tang Rou wouldn't stop until she had successfully claimed victory over Ye Xiu. But the possibility of that happening was slim. The difference in their skills was clear. Ye Xiu was the number one expert in the online game GLORY, being called GLORY's encyclopedia and Battle God. He knew the ins and outs of the game, while Tang Rou was just a random newbie with good hand speed.
So what if he is a Battle God and number one in Glory? If I beat him, wouldn't that make me number one?
However, little Tang had a tendency to go against difficult situations; the harder the challenge, the more determined she became to overcome it. Knowing she didn't stand a chance only made her more eager to try—regardless of the outcome.
Ye Xiu knew this as well, which was why he waited until she ran out of money, but this girl was truly stubborn!
"What reckless behavior! "Ye Xiu wasn't a fan of this sort of recklessness.
Even Chen Guo didn't approve. If she let her continue, Tang Rou might lose all her savings and still fail to defeat Ye Xiu. As the one responsible for setting up the match, Chen Guo had to stop Little Tang at all costs.
Watching them leave in a hurry, Ye Xiu let out a tired sigh. To be honest, he wasn't after her money. Taking money from someone who barely knew how to play GLORY? If word got out, he would become a laughingstock.
"Finally… it's over…"
Ye Xiu planned to log out and head to the smoking area. As for his winnings, he would return them to Little Tang when she came back.
"For now, I should head to the smoking area," he mumbled. But before Ye Xiu could log out, someone interrupted his movement.
"Wait a minute, brother…" a voice said.
A slender and beautiful hand hovered over his GLORY card device, intercepting his hand before it could touch the card.
Ye Xiu turned his head and met a boy with messy, bob-cut brown hair in a black tracksuit outlined with red. His face was hidden by a white cap, showing only his pinkish lips and chin.
"…Do you need something? " Ye Xiu asked politely.
The boy's lips curved into a faint smile. He reached into his pocket and showed Ye Xiu a GLORY account card with his slender hand.
"How about fighting me instead? I won't take much of your time—just a single round. As for the bet, let's keep it the same as that woman: 100 yuan," he said, poking his cheek playfully.
This person was Tang Ron. When he entered the café earlier, he was overwhelmed by Chen Guo's shouting. Curious about the commotion, Ron checked the ongoing battle and was impressed by Ye Xiu's impeccable mechanics.
He had also seen Tang Rou's hand speed. It was incredible for most players, even earning Ye Xiu's praise, but Ron considered her APM mediocre. His attention was solely focused on Ye Xiu and his character, Lord Grim.
"You wanted to compare notes? "Ye Xiu was a bit taken aback and was about to refuse, but when he saw the first-generation card, he changed his mind.
"Sure, I'll create a fixed-field room," he said with a smile.
"Okay. I'll register at the counter first," Ron replied and left.
Once done, he returned to ask Ye Xiu for the room number and password. When everything was set, he headed to the same area near Ye Xiu.
Ye Xiu waited while checking his character until there was a prompt notification that someone had joined the room.
"He's here…" Ye Xiu looked at Ron's character, flabbergasted. Ron's in-game name was blank, and it was buck-naked. He didn't have any equipment other than a hooded cloak and a dagger.
"Is he some kind of pervert? " Ye Xiu mumbled, staring at the female avatar. It wasn't completely naked but had a default item as censorship. He had enough time to fix his gear showing up in birth clothes?
Perhaps knowing his thoughts, Ron explained himself. "I'm not a pervert. I just don't have any extra equipment."
Don't have any equipment? What was that? This reason shocks him.
"What about normal server equipment? " Ye Xiu inquired, furthering his doubts.
"I sold them all," Ron said flatly.
He sold them all? It doesn't seem unreasonable. Equipment in the normal server couldn't be taken into the heaven domain due to level differences; even silver equipment was no exception. Besides, it was his equipment; he can do whatever he wants.
"Okay…" Ye Xiu didn't bother with him; so many players had odd behavior that compared to them, he was normal.
"I'm going to start the match now. Which map do you want? " Ye Xiu asked.
"Random," Ron answered.
Ye Xiu started the game, and the map was randomly selected. It was a small open-area map divided into sea and blue-clouded sky, a map that nullified many disadvantages and advantages of respective classes—but not for an Unspecialized.
In fixed-field, every stat would be fixed regardless of what equipment they had and their skill points. But this didn't restrict what kind of skills they possessed. However, winning and losing here are determined by player skill.
Lord Grim's Thousand-Chance Umbrella morphed into a gun. Its muzzle aimed at No Name, and Lord Grim fired bullets.
"RA—TATATATA!"
This was a basic attack that could be cast infinitely. As for the damage? It depended on weapon stats.
Ron controlled his character to jump sideways, avoiding the Rapid Fire with ease. As Ye Xiu anticipated, he fired a low-level Sharpshooter skill, Floating Bullet, at the place where Ron would land. He planted a sneaky trap when he used Rapid Fire earlier, mixing the skill's animation and sound with Rapid Fire's mechanism to keep it hidden.
A standard tactic to trap a nimble opponent: attack them relentlessly and lead them to an escape route where you can implant a trap.
Many would've fallen for it, but Ron made a few taps and a mouse slide. He used an Assassin basic attack by stabbing the air at a certain angle, putting No Name into a state of animation—a simple duck and hip slash that moved his character's hitbox out of range, dodging the Floating Bullet by a paper-thin margin.
"This guy's got some skills! " Ye Xiu praised. He clearly knows what he is doing; the standard should be to force a double jump or use something different. To think he would choose a basic attack?
To execute that simple movement required impeccable timing and precision. Without a doubt, he was an expert.
No Name landed on the ground but didn't attack Lord Grim; instead, he darted around, keeping a fixed distance.