Hu Di burst out laughing. "Didn't expect you to be so funny."
Seeing that he did not believe him, Fang Heng shook his head. "I'm serious."
Hu Di simply did not believe him. Pushing up his glasses, he comforted Fang Heng. "Of course I know you're serious, buddy. But people have to face reality too. Even if you barely carve a path through the preliminaries, you still won't be a match for the chosen ones from Major Guilds."
Fang Heng found this defeatist attitude rather strange. Last time it had been Miya; though her words had been different, her meaning had been much the same. "Is the gap between ordinary chosen ones and those from clubs really that big?"
"Of course. Club chosen ones are all selected while they're trainees. Maybe not one in ten thousand, but at least one in a thousand. And with Major Guilds backing them, they have talent if they need talent and resources if they need resources. How can ordinary chosen ones compare?"
"But aren't there lone wolves in the Second World?" Fang Heng pressed. By lone wolves, he meant chosen ones without club or guild backgrounds. They were not necessarily solo adventurers; they might also be a small team or an adventuring party.
"How many lone wolves are there, anyway?" Hu Di shook his head. "At least I'm not that kind of genius. I know my own limits."
"But Hu Di, chosen ones should never abandon these two pursuits," Fang Heng said seriously, clearly disapproving of his attitude. "First, the curiosity to never stop exploring. Second, the drive to never give up pursuing victory."
These were two lines written on the title page of the Chosen Ones' Handbook, famous sayings widely circulated among the first generation of chosen ones. But Hu Di suddenly realized that his new friend was still very young. He could not help patting Fang Heng on the shoulder, shaking his head without saying anything.
Seeing that he still did not believe him, Fang Heng did not insist. Ahead stood a huge wooden crate filled with Clockwork Sprites issued uniformly by the organizers, lined up neatly in rows. Their brass shells reflected beautiful light beneath the lamps.
Clockwork Sprite Type II.
Fang Heng could not help thinking, The organizers really are rich— But considering that the organizers were the Kaolin Merchant Alliance and the Elpaxin Artificer Guild, it was not surprising. Unfortunately, these Clockwork Sprites had to be returned after use.
Otherwise, this crate alone would have been worth a fortune.
After receiving his Clockwork Sprite and linking it to his main crystal, Fang Heng tried moving the copper wings inside. He discovered that the wing surfaces were remarkably responsive. As expected, they were much easier to control than the older sprites.
Hu Di watched him test it from the side, surprise filling his face. He could not help asking suspiciously, "You've never used one of these before?"
The answer was definitely yes. Fang Heng had indeed never used something this advanced before.
So he nodded instinctively.
But Hu Di had clearly misunderstood. Patting him on the shoulder, he said, "It's fine. I can tell you've got talent from the way you control the wing surfaces. First time or not, just follow me when we fly later."
His tone was extremely sincere.
So sincere that when Fang Heng realized what he meant, he could only stare at the guy speechlessly, not knowing what to say for a moment.
Fortunately, the organizers began the drawing of lots then, dissolving the awkwardness. Since there were too many contestants and limited space, they had to divide the more than forty participants into four groups. Fang Heng happened to be among the first to draw. He stepped forward, and a little goblin holding a wooden box looked at him somewhat fearfully.
He gave the little fellow a friendly smile, then reached into the box. The goblin deliberately tilted it slightly, its dark eyes rolling around as though it were plotting something.
In the end, Fang Heng fished out a slip of paper. Written on it was: D12.
"Group D, number twelve," the gnome announced.
Only then did Fang Heng understand what the little goblin had been doing earlier. Legend had it that they possessed certain minor special abilities, presumably useful in situations like this. Seeing the goblin blink its big eyes at him, Fang Heng could not help laughing, but he shook his head at it.
The little goblin immediately looked a little disappointed.
Hu Di drew lots with the third batch, ending up in Group B. He returned with a gloomy expression, holding his slip as he said to Fang Heng, "Damn it. Looks like you'll have to rely on yourself now."
"I'll be fine," Fang Heng said with a smile.
"Of course you'll be fine," Hudi said dejectedly. "But Group B is full of hidden talents. Eternal Worm is in there."
"Eternal Worm?"
"Don't ask. It's just the ID of an annoying fat bastard. Annoying as he is, though, his skills are outstanding among ordinary chosen ones."
Fang Heng reassured him. "Don't worry. The first round isn't an actual competitive match anyway."
"But the second round is," Hu Di answered gloomily. "The winners of Groups A and B will face the winners of Groups C and D in the second round. In theory, there are only four spots total. I was originally hoping to make it into the second round."
"Wait, didn't you say your goal was just the first round?" Fang Heng asked strangely.
Unexpectedly, Hu Di pushed up his glasses and answered with complete confidence, "But didn't you say it? The drive to never give up pursuing victory." He chuckled. "Heh heh, I think you made a lot of sense."
Fang Heng looked at this shameless fellow and found himself speechless.
Still, he realized that talking to this thick-skinned guy had eased some of the tension in his heart. He was nervous too, after all. He had no idea what the Combat Artificers of the First World were really like.
At least in his impression, the term Combat Artificer in the Second World was synonymous with ferocity. For those people, controlling multiple constructs was as natural as breathing or drinking water.
If you could not operate on multiple lines at once, what kind of Combat Artificer were you?
Fang Heng had some confidence in his own skills—after all, he had learned from all kinds of experts online. What he truly worried about was his level. This competition was limited to chosen ones below Tier 2, and there was a full fifteen-level gap between a Tier 1 profession and a Tier 2 profession.
Just as his thoughts were running wild, the competition finally began.
The gnome referee puffed out his cheeks and blew a shrill whistle. Eleven Clockwork Sprites flew out at once.
The first round's course was very simple. First came an artificial obstacle zone, followed by a curved aerial corridor formed from iron hoops, and finally an artificial turbulent airflow zone created by Magic Devices.
The rules merely required contestants not to touch the obstacles, not to land midway, and not to collide with one another. There were no ranking requirements and no time limit. It could be said to be extremely lenient.
Fang Heng found this rather strange.
In his view, only the final stage posed even the slightest difficulty, testing the operators' basic understanding of airflow. But most Combat Artificers would not release Clockwork Sprites in bad weather anyway.
And that was all there was to it. Fang Heng could not help thinking, Can a test like this really stump anyone?
Yet it really could stump people.
Right at the start, two people were eliminated after colliding with each other. Then two more fell at the first stage—they crashed into obstacles. The second stage was even worse. Only four people made it through, and one of them had barely flown out of the curved corridor and into the turbulence zone when insufficient preparation caused their Clockwork Sprite to be blown away.
The Clockwork Sprite traced a beautiful arc through the air and slammed straight into the gnome referee's forehead, unexpectedly knocking him off the table in one blow. The others hurried in that direction, and the scene immediately descended into chaos.
Watching this, Fang Heng stared wide-eyed. This Clockwork Sprite Type II really is impressive... It's even better than the old sprites at hitting people.
It took the gnome quite a while to climb back up. He was not seriously hurt, but he shouted furiously, "Eliminated! Eliminated!"
The operator then walked away dejectedly.
In the end, only one of the final three contestants completed the course relatively smoothly. The other two stumbled their way to the finish line. Fang Heng noticed that the first-place finisher was a woman around twenty-seven or twenty-eight, with long, voluminous wavy hair and fairly striking features. After completing the flight, the beauty even had her Clockwork Sprite circle around her once, drawing a wave of amazed exclamations from the spectators.
Hu Di whispered to Fang Heng, "That woman is called Blood Night Demon Moon. She used to be a famous Combat Artificer around Elpaxin. Later, she found true love in the First World, returned to the real world, got married, had children, and took two years off to recover. Now that she's back, she's rusty and her condition has declined. The others joke that pregnancy makes you stupid for three years—"
Fang Heng found the rumor rather amusing, but chosen ones really could temporarily leave Aethelria and return to reality after paying a certain price. He just did not know what someone like him, a stowaway, was supposed to do.
He actually missed his uncle's family a little. He had grown up without parents, and his uncle's family had treated him as one of their own. Other than opposing his becoming a chosen one, that place had been as much his home as anywhere else.
At that moment, the first round was declared over. Only three of the eleven contestants had passed, an elimination rate that honestly exceeded Fang Heng's expectations.
He could not help looking at the Clockwork Sprite in his hands. Is controlling this thing really that difficult?
Hu Di patted him on the shoulder and stood up as well.
"My turn," he said, pushing up his glasses. "Watch me teach that fat bastard a lesson. You need to do your best later too."
Fang Heng nodded.
The second round, Group B, had even more contestants than the first: thirteen in total. As soon as the match began, Fang Heng realized that Hu Di had not been exaggerating. This group was indeed far more reliable than Group A. Not a single person was eliminated before the second stage, and as many as nine made it through it.
Naturally, Fang Heng watched Hu Di first. After one look, he relaxed. Hu Di's control skills were actually not bad. Though he was a little clumsy, he still made it through the third stage.
Then there was the "fat bastard" Hu Di had mentioned. Fang Heng spotted the guy immediately, a fellow nearly a full size larger than everyone else. Whoa, Fang Heng thought, this guy's equipment is really good. First, there was a Central Nervous System AE type Magic Furnace. Attached to its specialized port was a tetrahedral shield generator.
Porter Small Shield Recharge Booster Type B—
What a rich guy. Fang Heng was practically drooling. That thing was no cheaper than his own Magic Furnace. Not to mention the Flexible Construct control enhancement module on the main port, a rare and excellent C-grade item.
But the man's skill truly matched his equipment. His control was exquisite, clearly a cut above both Hu Di and the woman called Blood Night Demon Moon.
But in Fang Heng's eyes, it was nothing special.
Watching the Clockwork Sprites these people controlled, he instead recalled the Combat Artificer from the Jefflitte Redcoats whom he had encountered in the Elven Ruins. Judging by this, that person had to have been quite an expert.
At the very least, far stronger than these people by an unknown margin.
As he was thinking this, the second round soon ended as well. Three people were eliminated at the third stage, leaving six qualifiers in total, including Hu Di.
A passing rate of nearly half was enough to show this group's level.
Hu Di returned beaming and said to Fang Heng, "How was that? Not bad, right? Now it's up to you. Don't get nervous. I watched your fundamentals earlier, and they're actually excellent!"
Fang Heng looked at him, unable to decide whether to laugh or cry.
After passing the first test, this guy seemed like a completely different person. His tail was practically pointing at the sky. Putting on the air of a wise teacher, he had clearly begun treating himself as some experienced senior.
Still, Fang Heng knew Hu Di meant well, so he nodded.
Seeing that Fang Heng was teachable, Hu Di was delighted. He was just about to impart some more life experience to this "newcomer" when a strange, mocking voice suddenly drifted over.
"Is this your new little lackey, our pathetic Combat Artificer?"
Hu Di's expression changed, and he turned around.
Fang Heng had actually already seen the fat man packing up his equipment and walking over. The man stopped nearby with ill intent written all over his face.
"What bullshit are you here to spout now?" Hu Di turned back and said coldly.
The fat man gave Fang Heng's gloves a mocking look and could not help laughing. "Just look at you two. Birds of a feather really do flock together. Where did you pick up this little treasure? Hahaha, those gloves are killing me. Buddy, how did you come up with such a piece of trash?"
Hu Di's face turned crimson as he snapped, "Shut your filthy mouth, you damn fat pig!"
The fat man's expression changed too. "What did you say?"
"Fat pig," Hu Di replied, enunciating each word.
The fat man's face darkened terribly. "Fine. Just wait until the next round." Then he gave Fang Heng another gloomy look and sneered, "Don't piss your pants from fright later and embarrass your Big Brother Hu."
Fang Heng stared at the guy with a face full of question marks.
What did I ever do to offend him? Is there something wrong with this guy's head?
Only after the other man left did he turn to Hu Di and say, "I think I understand now why you call him a fat bastard."
"Good that you understand," Hu Di said, deeply agreeing.
By then, the third round had ended as well. Fang Heng looked over and saw that four people had passed. The gnome referee picked up his loudspeaker again and called for the contestants of the next round to enter.
Fang Heng understood that it was his turn.
He took a deep breath and stood up. Hu Di came over and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't be nervous. It's simple." Fang Heng nodded, picked up his Clockwork Sprite, and walked forward.
The contestants' positions were marked in order by white circles on the ground. He was contestant number twelve of Group D, the very last one. He stepped into his circle, lifted the Clockwork Sprite, and revealed his control gloves like the other contestants.
Unexpectedly, that action triggered a burst of laughter.
"Damn, this guy's gloves are amazing."
"Hahaha, is this the legendary beggar gear?"
"A begging-style Combat Artificer."
"This brother has created an entirely new school."
The fat man called Eternal Worm laughed especially loudly, making Fang Heng rather annoyed. But he felt a little embarrassed too. His equipment really was absurdly shabby.
He could not help rubbing his face out of habit. But at that exact moment, the gnome referee blew the whistle—
Fang Heng had not reacted yet, so he lost a moment immediately.
The laughter around him grew even louder. This young Combat Artificer was simply too entertaining. The match had started, yet he was still zoning out. The fat man was laughing so hard that tears were nearly coming out.
Seeing this, Hu Di could not help stomping and beating his chest. His newly made little brother and friend was still too young, too inexperienced.
But at that moment, Fang Heng instead calmed down. With one exceedingly crisp motion, he pulled down his goggles and adjusted the lens depth.
Seeing that motion, Hu Di instinctively fell silent. Very professional, a strange thought flashed through his mind.
Fang Heng raised his hand.
With a soft hum, the four pairs of copper wings on the Clockwork Sprite Type II beat at once. Four intertwined spiraling lines traced a beautiful golden path as the Clockwork Sprite gave a slight shudder.
It took flight, pausing lightly in midair for only an instant before suddenly transforming into an arrow and shooting forward.
In an instant, it overtook three or four Clockwork Sprites.
The entire process flowed as smoothly as clouds and water, without the slightest flaw.
The surroundings abruptly fell silent—
Faintly, there came a wave of low, sharp breaths.
Short-path takeoff.
Four-Winged Dance—
When an expert made a move, everyone could tell the real thing at once. This simple takeoff maneuver had already conquered every person present. Even Blood Night Demon Moon shot up from her seat, knocking over her chair.
The Clockwork Sprite in Hu Di's hand fell to the ground with a bang, and his mouth hung wide open.
What had he just seen? That was the control level of a professional chosen one.
You might not believe it, but the word count started it first. It just wouldn't stop, Editor. It really isn't my fault... Also, please send recommendation votes and add this to your collection.
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