After the second match, Feng Xiaotian went to the registration desk to record his score as usual. The receptionist made another entry in the " Nameless Team " column—Second match, won, two points. She put down her pen and, without waiting for Feng Xiaotian to speak, pushed the match card for the third match over to him.
"Round 4, Class C, in 15 minutes. Our opponents are the Iron Wall Team, with an average level of 35. Here is their basic information."
Feng Xiaotian took the paper and the game cards, but didn't look at them immediately. He nodded to the receptionist and turned to walk down the corridor.
Back in the corridor, the whole team waited in place. As usual, Su Ran took out a handful of wind- Shi Yan Wind Grain Ears and distributed them one by one. Shi Yan took the rice ear but didn't put it in his mouth. He held it in his hand, his eyes fixed on the piece of paper in Feng Xiaotian's hand. Feng Lingtian also came over.
Feng Xiaotian spread the paper out in front of everyone and said, " Iron Wall Team, average level 35. Captain Tie Zhen, Defense System, Martial Soul Iron Wall Shield. Vice Captain Shi Quan, Power Attack System, Martial Soul Rock Fist. Sun Suo, Control System, Martial Soul Iron Shackles. Wei Ling, Agility Attack System, Martial Soul Iron Feather. Zhong Man, Support System, Martial Soul Echo Bell. Tian Feng, Food System, Martial Soul Iron Grain. Wei Kun, Defense System, Martial Soul Steel Bone."
He paused, then pushed the piece of paper forward again. "I won't analyze this match. You can decide for yourselves which lineup to use."
Jiang Lin was the first to take the slip of paper, his eyes scanning the seven lines of information line by line. After a moment, he looked up.
" The Iron Wall Team is clearly a double-defense setup—a standard ironclad formation. But they have a fatal weakness." Jiang Lin pointed to the row of Power Attack System- Power Attack System Soul Master, Shi Quan. His Martial Soul is a close-combat burst type with a short attack range. If Shi Quan is contained head-on, the Iron Wall will only have a barrel, not a spear."
Cheng Luo leaned over for a look and continued, " Sun Suo's Martial Soul is a single-target control type, while Zhong Man's Martial Soul is most likely an area-of-effect healing type. It's a standard attrition warfare setup—first, use Iron Shackles to lock down our key positions, use double defenses to buy time and block the front, Support System to slowly heal from the rear, and use Food System to replenish Soul Power, grinding us down round after round until we can't keep up."
Cheng Luo paused for a moment, then continued, "To counter a team that relies on attrition warfare, it's best to focus on breaking through one point at a time. As long as their key positions aren't locked down by the Iron Shackles, their rhythm will be disrupted."
Zhong Yue, arms crossed, hadn't spoken until now, then chimed in. "The formation isn't hard to guess. Tie Zhen Anvil will definitely be at the very front, facing the enemy head-on; Wei Kun will cover the flanks; Sun Suo be in the center controlling the field; Wei Ling will be on the flanks waiting for an opportunity to take off. It's a standard defensive formation, nothing will change."
Bai Yu stood next to Ye Qingyu and whispered, " Echo Bell is an area-of-effect heal, so the amount of healing per person is inherently small. If you launch a frontal assault and focus fire on only one point, the effect of Echo Bell won't be as strong, and you won't be able to quickly recover."
Lu Hanxiao glanced at the piece of paper and spoke, unusually, " Wei Ling is taking a long-range harassment approach. If the falcon is fast enough, Wei Ling Wei Ling's Martial Soul won't be effective unless he takes off and creates distance."
After listening, Feng Xiaotian's gaze lingered on Jiang Lin and Cheng Luo for a moment, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
"Alright, let's play as you say." Feng Xiaotian glanced at the whole team. "Lian, you'll focus on a frontal assault, pressuring the Tie Zhen. Ying will flank and provide support, keeping an eye on Wei Kun. Hu will lock down Sun Suo, and Jun will pressure Wei Ling. Yue will defend the central axis, Qin will amplify the area, and Ling will precisely enhance Lian's defense."
The seven people nodded. A flash of blue light appeared in Lu Qing's palm, and the Wind Scythe spun around between his fingers before retracting. Ji Ning looked down at his fingers—the sensation from Tie Peng's nape with his bare hands in the last match was still lingering on his fingertips. This match required him to cooperate with Lu Qing in a double defense, as the opponent was tougher, and his strength needed to be more precise.
When the group arrived at Field No. 4 (C) they discovered that the venue was larger than the previous two. There were already four or five hundred people sitting in the stands.
The seven members of the Iron Wall Team were already standing on the right side of the field. Feng Xiaotian glanced at them— Tie Zhen was in the front row, Wei Kun was protecting the flanks, Sun Suo was in the center, and Wei Ling was on the flanks. It was exactly as Zhong Yue had predicted.
After the referee introduced both sides, Tie Zhen's gaze fell on Lu Qing. This person stood at the front of the opposing formation, two cyan Wind Scythe slowly rotating in his hands, the airflow on the blades swirling rapidly, emitting a low hum. Tie Zhen patted his Iron Wall Shield —he had seen too many Power Attack System, and this wasn't the first time he'd seen someone wielding scythes. No one could break through his shield head-on.
The referee raised his flag.
"Start!"
Lu Qing gave Tie Zhen no chance to adjust his balance. The moment the flag fell, his Soul Ring lit up, and two Wind Scythe unfolded simultaneously in his hands—longer than usual, with the airflow from their blades rotating twice as fast, emitting a sharp whistling sound. The two scythes struck together, crossing and smashing into Tie Zhen's Iron Wall Shield. It wasn't a chop, it was a smash—the backs of the Wind Scythe slammed into the shield simultaneously, the enormous impact causing Tie Zhen's feet to leave two shallow marks on the ground. For the first time in the head-on collision, the Iron Wall Shield was forced to move back half a step.
"What immense force!" Tie Zhen Anvil gritted his teeth and poured three-tenths of his Soul Power into the shield, barely managing to stabilize it. But before he could catch his breath, Lu Qing's second attack came—his right-hand scythe flew out of his hand, bypassing the side of Tie Zhen's shield, and slashed at Wei Kun from the right.
Wei Kun raised his shield to block, Wind Scythe, producing a dull thud. The Wind Scythe did not fly back, but deformed at the moment of impact—it wasn't knocked away, but Lu Qing actively changed its flight trajectory. With a pull of his Soul Power, the Wind Scythe bounced off Wei Kun's bone shield and deflected towards the Echo Bell aimed at Zhong Man.
Zhong Man was concentrating on maintaining the echo range amplification when she caught a glimpse of a streak of blue light flying towards her. She quickly put away her bell and retreated. With the Echo Amplification interrupted, the Soul Power recovery rhythm of the entire back row of the Iron Wall Team was completely disrupted.
"Don't panic!" Tie Zhen shouted. But before he could finish speaking, a figure had already slipped in from behind Lu Qing — Ji Ning.
The Soul Ring beneath his feet lit up, and Hummingbird Sting condensed at his fingertips. Ji Ning didn't attack Sun Suo or Shi Quan —he went directly to Wei Kun's side. Wei Kun had just been forced to the right by Lu Qing's Wind Scythe, revealing a gap less than two palms wide on his left. Ji Ning's fingertips precisely passed through the gap and struck Wei Kun's left wrist joint.
Wei Kun's wrist jerked, and his left-hand bone shield nearly slipped from his grasp. He gritted his teeth and steadied the shield, but his center of gravity had already shifted. Lu Qing didn't let this opportunity pass. The Wind Scythe bounced off Wei Kun's bone shield but didn't fly back— Lu Qing pulled with his left hand, channeling his Soul Power, and the Wind Scythe swerved in mid-air, slashing back from behind. A pincer attack from both sides. Wei Kun's bone shield finally couldn't hold on, and the combination of a bare-handed wrist break and the double scythe attack from both sides sent him staggering to the side, kneeling on one knee. One of the pillars of the Iron Wall Team's double defense had fallen.
Tie Zhen's eyes widened in fury as he roared and slammed his Iron Wall Shield forward—not as a defense, but as an attack. He used all his strength to push the shield towards Lu Qing. But Lu Qing didn't retreat. His Soul Ring lit up again, and his left hand swung the Wind Scythe upwards— Wind Scythe Slash. The scythe blade precisely hooked the edge of the shield and pulled it to the side, deflecting Tie Zhen Anvil's charge. The shield grazed Lu Qing's shoulder. The immense momentum caused Tie Zhen to lean forward, creating a gap a person's width wide in his frontal defense.
Lu Qing's Soul Ring lit up, and his right hand slashed in from the side with Wind Scythe, the blade stopping three inches in front of the Tie Zhen's throat. The wind pressure from the blade made the Tie Zhen's collar flutter, but it didn't advance even a fraction further.
Tie Zhen Anvil glanced down at the Wind Scythe on his throat, then looked behind him— Wei Kun was still kneeling on one knee, Sun Suo was shackled by Su Mei'er's Wind Lightning Chain and Iron Shackles, Wei Ling was being suppressed by Feng Lingtian and couldn't take off at all, and Zhong Man's Echo Bell hadn't been reactivated yet.
"We concede." The Tie Zhen's voice was deeper than his shield's.
The referee blows the whistle. " Nameless Team wins!"
There was a two-second silence in the stands, followed by cheers even louder than the previous two matches. The ironclad formation was breached head-on— the Iron Wall Shield was pushed back from the front, the Bone Shield was rendered unable to stand by the combination of hand-to-hand wrist breaking and double scythe attacks, the Iron Shackles failed to restrain anyone from start to finish, Echo Bell was forced to refrain from using its amplification ability by the Wind Scythe. From the front to the back row, it was a complete rout.
Feng Xiaotian walked onto the field from the sidelines and glanced at Lu Qing and Ji Ning. "One strong attacker and one agile attacker, if they coordinate well, the effect will be more flexible than two strong attackers. In the future, when encountering a solid defensive formation, use this configuration—the scythe for frontal suppression, and the shadow for flanking attacks."
Lu Qing nodded. Ji Ning looked down at the finger that had just tapped Wei Kun's wrist; the fingertip still retained a slight tingling sensation from the bone shield's rebound.
Bai Yu remained standing in the back row, motionless. She glanced down at her wrist—her palms were drenched in sweat. Lu Qing's attacks were always rhythmic; his shield-slamming strikes were powerful and spaced far apart, while his spinning slashes were light and short-lived. Bai Yu had to constantly adjust the frequency of her bell to match Lu Qing's attack rhythm so that the amplification would land precisely at the moment of each strike. Only when Lu Qing's Wind Scythe pressed against the Tie Zhen's throat did Bai Yu realize that her wrist was trembling slightly.
But her eyes shone brightly. In the three matches, she simultaneously faced Lu Hanxiao's fast-paced offense and Lu Qing's head-on confrontation, two completely different rhythms, and she never lost her rhythm.
"Let's go." Ye Qingyu gently tugged at her sleeve. Bai Yu then came to her senses and followed the group out.
Once their figures disappeared into the aisle, two people dressed in dark cloaks stood up in the corner of the uppermost section of the stands. One of them pulled his hood down further.
"The third match. Again, a different lineup, different players."
The person next to him didn't respond. He mentally reviewed the three matches—each match had a different lineup and a different playing style, but the teamwork was always precise. This wasn't a hastily put-together tactic; it was a pre-prepared lineup being tested in real matches.
"They're using team battles to refine their formation."
"The captain hasn't played at all. He's been watching from the sidelines—not waiting for his chance, but observing."
"So this isn't a team here to rack up points."
The other person was silent for a few moments, then pulled down the brim of his cloak. "Keep watching."