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"Does anyone have any objections to promoting Beiyue?" Dina scanned the crowd, attempting to exert some pressure, but her efforts were in vain. "Alright, let's confirm this. The mission now includes an additional Five-Star Card. If we fail this mission, we will receive a minimum of 30 base points. If we succeed, we can earn 50 base points. For every team member that dies, we will lose 5 base points, but we are guaranteed at least 30 points. Additionally, Beiyue will be promoted after passing the assessment."
Cui Ming sighed, "You've tricked me again." The minimum of 30 base points was useless; without reaching 50 points, they would have to play a third match, which meant the second half would be at least of medium difficulty. There were favorable conditions and beneficial terms that should not have been agreed upon just for Beiyue's promotion. Of course, they could still back out since nothing had been confirmed yet, but sometimes rational choices weren't necessarily the right ones. At least for Cui Ming and his three companions, the pressure was quite significant. They were accustomed to the lifestyle of Eastern Continent people and didn't pursue certain things as fervently. However, Beiyue was different; she had rigid requirements. Thus, agreeing to promote Beiyue was an objectively wrong choice but subjectively correct.
Beiyue reacted more slowly than Cui Ming, calculating the gains and losses naturally. Confident in Cui Ming's abilities, she did not interrupt him as he nodded in agreement. "Deal."
"Goodbye."
"Wait, who is the Five-Star Card?"
"Heh heh, you can go ahead and do other missions; she might not enter the arena so soon," Dina replied without elaborating before teleporting away from the arena. Ding Ze also returned to Labyrinth Mountain.
Li Qing said, "We must gang up on the Five-Star."
Cui Ming replied, "But we don't know when she will enter. We still have sixteen cards left; if we gather them together and tackle them one by one, time will be tight. How about this: you four go do the missions while I stay in town? I'm confident that even if I die, I can tell you who she is."
Beiyue questioned this: "Someone like Dina could kill in an instant; how could there be time?" A dagger thrown accurately would lead to a teleportation followed by a whirlwind slaughter. Even Li Qing's speed in escaping would likely be severely affected. However, if it were Li Qing facing Dina, he could choose not to flee and kick her away instead. Of course, making tactical decisions in such a short time frame would be quite challenging.
Cui Ming smiled confidently: "I believe I can get her to come out and talk with me for a few minutes."
...
Half an hour later, a sign was erected in the town square: "Hello Five-Star student! I won't hide; please don't evade me. For a newcomer who has been training in Force for less than two months, using assassination tactics is extremely shameless. I hope you can provide me with a fair stage for our duel. I'll be waiting right here." Cui Ming sat beside the empty sign. He considered that eliminating Force might yield better results, but if there was another unknown lurking in town that could take his life, it would be a huge loss.
Would the opponent show up? Cui Ming was 90% sure they would. The opponent was a Five-Star—someone whom Dina respected greatly. First of all, this indicated that their strength would at least not be lower than Dina's. Secondly, Dina had shown no disdain towards them; rather, there was a hint of respect, suggesting that this person had decent character. That alone was enough; anyone with even slightly higher morals than Dina would likely come forward to speak with him. Furthermore, being a Five-Star meant they held some status within the alliance; killing him—a newcomer—through stealth would be disgraceful and refusing to duel would tarnish their reputation even more. Cui Ming deliberately stated that he had been training for two months as a blatant lie to lower his threshold and make it harder for his opponent to launch a surprise attack on him.
The key point was not whether the opponent would show up to fight Cui Ming, but whether they would appear first to confront him. This was something Cui Ming was uncertain about. He was worried that the opponent would evade his provocation and launch a surprise attack on the other four. Conversely, the four of them together still possessed formidable combat power. If they couldn't handle a surprise attack, then his own involvement would be meaningless.
Just as Li Qing and the others arrived at Labyrinth Mountain and began their challenge with Ding Ze, a familiar figure appeared. A well-built woman draped in a black hooded cloak walked through the crowd and approached Cui Ming. "Cui Ming, do you still recognize me?"
Cui Ming stood up, clapped his hands, and pressed a button on his walkie-talkie. "Wei Wei."
"Impressive that you recognized me," Wei Wei said, shaking Cui Ming's hand. They had only met once before on a cruise ship when she was wearing a diving suit and sunglasses.
Cui Ming replied, "Your figure is definitely top-notch in the league; as a man, I have some skills in remembering things."
"Haha," Wei Wei laughed heartily, her personality bright and cheerful. "If you say it like that, how can I make a move?"
Cui Ming suggested, "How about this? You don't need to fight; we can play cards instead. If you win, I won't take on any missions or resist. If I win all ten rounds, then you can go back and rest."
Wei Wei shook her head and thought for a moment before saying, "How about this? I'll discuss it with them and give you one chance to revive. Then we can have a duel. If you die, you'll be teleported back to your companions, and then we can start our fair competition. How does that sound?"
Cui Ming looked at Wei Wei. "Sister, are you planning to kill me?"
Wei Wei nodded. "I have that confidence. Just a reminder: if I hit you with two arrows, my third arrow can break through Force and directly injure your essence. So relying on Force to protect yourself is basically impossible. Conversely, if you get hit by my third arrow, you're definitely dead. Additionally, I have a pair of Eagle Eyes that can locate practitioners who have dispelled their Force. Plus, I'm very fast; you won't be able to outrun me."
Cui Ming desperately asked, "How's your accuracy?"
"It has a certain Force correction effect; you basically can't escape." For instance, Li Qing could use flying kicks to dodge, while Mi Xiaonan could activate Lightning Ball to evade the correction effect first. Beiyue and Cui Ming wouldn't be able to outrun the correction effect. The so-called correction effect means that if the arrow's landing point is not far from the target's distance, it has the potential to automatically change direction due to Force sensing.
Cui Ming pulled out a deck of poker cards. "How about this? Let's play cards instead; if you win one out of ten games, I won't take on any missions or resist. If I win all ten rounds, then you go back and rest."
"Haha, I'll be back in five minutes," Wei Wei said as she sprang into the air and vanished from sight.
"Damn, she can even turn invisible. What the hell."
Cui Ming immediately contacted his teammates. Li Qing said, "I can't beat Wei Wei; there's no way I can win in a one-on-one."
"How do you know that?"
"Wei Wei and I are both students of the Alliance; we've fought before, so I know a bit about her abilities." Li Qing continued, "Wei Wei is least afraid of being ganged up on. She runs fast and can turn invisible. If there are many opponents, she shoots an arrow and then retreats. If someone chases her, they’ll get hit. If no one chases, she’ll come back for another shot. Her arrows are different from Mi Xiaonan's mark; within an hour, the third arrow is a guaranteed kill. However, this also has a weakness. For example, if I get hit by two arrows, the third arrow will still target me as a guaranteed kill, but others can block it."
Cui Ming asked, "If someone blocks it, does that mean it's not a guaranteed kill?"
"No, the third arrow aimed at me is still a guaranteed kill; whoever blocks it will die."
Cui Ming understood. "I see now."
Mi Xiaonan and Beiyue spoke into their walkie-talkies, "We don't understand."
Cui Ming replied, "You don't need to understand; it's too dark."
Li Qing smirked. "That's right. Also, Wei Wei has a very high moral value."
"That's not good; it ruins my image in her eyes," Cui Ming hesitated.
Li Qing countered, "Junior Brother, what kind of image do you think you have in her eyes?"
That made sense. Fine, as a test of courage, I'll step up myself.
...
On the roof of a farmhouse near the square, Wei Wei concealed herself behind the chimney, peeking out only to find herself at a loss for words. Cui Ming was still in the square, but now surrounded by a group of children, holding two infants in his arms. How was she supposed to strike? There was no doubt about Cui Ming's character; he would not hesitate to use the infants as shields when necessary. Otherwise, why would he have grabbed a few kids?
Damn that Li Qing, always talking too much. Wei Wei certainly wouldn’t allow herself to harm children, even during an assessment; that was simply her nature. Looking again, she saw Cui Ming waving at her. "Sister, these kids are so cute!"
He could even tell where she was? Cute my foot; they were stiff and couldn’t even cry or crawl. Wei Wei stepped out and moved to the edge of the roof, thirty-two meters away from Cui Ming. With a bow in hand, she looked around, unsure of how to make her move. Just as Cui Ming was smiling, Wei Wei decisively drew her bow. Sure enough, Cui Ming instinctively grabbed an infant to shield himself from the arrow. Fortunately, her shot was a blank; the arrow vanished after flying twenty meters.
Wei Wei leaped off the roof to the left and disappeared without a trace. Cui Ming was startled; this woman was impressive, knowing about his Fate Card. After his Fate Card's concealment wore off, she immediately went into hiding. Without hesitation, Cui Ming used his Force to pull several children closer around him for protection.
Wei Wei's voice echoed from all directions: "Cui Ming, why do you abandon your offense for defense?"
"Because—"
Just as Cui Ming began to speak, Wei Wei suddenly appeared before him, holding a Force arrow poised against his face. "What will you do when you can’t even free your hands?" As she spoke, she thrust another arrow forward. Cui Ming blocked it with a child; however, it was just a feint from Wei Wei—her left hand shot an arrow into his shoulder.
Without a word, Cui Ming turned and ran while simultaneously using a Yellow Card to lock onto Wei Wei. She remained calm: "Playing your card now is pointless."
"Don’t chase me! I have two infants!" Cui Ming sprinted away.
Wei Wei drew her bow again and released an arrow. Cui Ming was alarmed; this was ruthless! He turned around just as the arrow struck one of the bound infants. The infant remained unharmed, but the immense force sent Cui Ming flying backward until he crashed into a stone lion outside a shop and couldn’t move.
Wei Wei pulled back her bowstring once more: "That was the third arrow. I forgot to mention earlier that I don’t need to shoot consecutive arrows; I can mix in other things in between."
"Was that last arrow?"
"Holy Arrow—one that won’t cause death or injury." Wei Wei released the arrow like a shooting star. Cui Ming couldn’t defend himself with flesh shields; it pierced through his Force and penetrated his chest. The Life Stone dropped to zero instantly. In principle, as long as there was Force protecting him, his body wouldn’t suffer harm. But arrows like Wei Wei’s third shot and Zhao Wei’s fists could strike directly at his core. Even if he trained hard, his body remained fragile. The fist wasn’t so bad since it didn’t target vital areas; Force could quickly heal those wounds. But this arrow was different—it pierced through his heart and delivered a fatal blow. (To be continued.)
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