Chapter 2364 – Overwhelming Strength

“A Grand Lord?”

“She’s lost her mind! That’s a Level 100 Grand Lord we’re talking about!”

“What arrogance! Has she never witnessed a Level 100 Grand Lord’s strength before? Even Domain Realm experts would have to flee from such a monster!”

When they heard Silent Wonder’s decision, everyone felt that she had gone mad and was hopelessly optimistic. Why else would she make such a foolish, insane choice?

Even the various superpowers’ expert teams had trouble with Level 100 monsters at this stage of the game. No player could solo a Level 100 Great Lord, much less a Grand Lord.

“Wonder is being too impulsive.” Long Xianglong could only shake his head and sigh at his niece’s decision.

Although Hermit had presented four choices for the competition, as someone who had fought in Level 100 neutral maps, he knew that there were really only two viable difficulties.

The bit about surviving for 10 minutes was a joke. Level 100 peak experts wouldn’t even survive more than 3 minutes against a Level 100 Great Lord, much less against a Grand Lord. Moreover, Silent Wonder and the others were Lifestyle players, who rarely engaged in combat.

“What is Wonder thinking? Even if she’s trying to improve Zero Wing’s prestige, does she really need to choose a Grand Lord to do it?” Cold Memory muttered, baffled.

Cold Memory understood the reason behind Silent Wonder’s decision. Many of the spectators here lamented over the fact that Zero Wing, not a superpower, backed her. She must’ve found these opinions offensive and chose to challenge a Grand Lord to prove Zero Wing’s strength.

However, Cold Memory was confused that Silent Wonder had chosen the Grand Lord instead of the Great Lord. She had better chances against the Great Lord, even if they were still quite slim, than she had against a Grand Lord. Now, she was simply making a fool of herself.

“Are you certain that you wish to challenge the Grand Lord, Wonder?” Hermit, who was just as surprised by the girl’s decision, asked for confirmation.

Before the trial, Azure’s Grand Elders had tested the challenge’s viability. They had come to the conclusion that the highest-difficulty challenge would be utterly impossible for current players.

“That’s right. I choose to challenge a Grand Lord,” Silent Wonder declared.

Both Silk Moon and Yan Xiaoqian gave Silent Wonder strange looks. They had never thought that her choice was a serious one.

“It seems you’ll never change, Wonder. It’s a pity that you’ll only find yourself in a dead-end,” Yan Xiaoqian said. She understood that Silent Wonder was attempting to save herself from a hopeless situation, but her opponent wasn’t aware of how terrifying a Level 100 Grand Lord really was. She, on the other hand, had encountered such a monster personally when she had accompanied her Guild’s main force on an expedition.

“Alright. Since you three have chosen, we’ll begin the competition according to the original order,” Hermit said. He could see Silent Wonder’s determination, so he didn’t try to dissuade her.

A group of players then brought a four-meter-tall cage into the venue. As the cage opened, a Three-tailed Flaming Tiger burst forth. As it did, Azure’s members activated the magic array they had set up earlier, trapping the Flaming Tiger within. Not only did this magic barrier prevent the Flaming Tiger from escaping, but it also suppressed the Flaming Tiger’s recovery speed. It was considered a bonus to the challengers.

[Three-tailed Flaming Tiger] (Wild Beast, High Lord) Level 100

HP 42,000,000/42,000,000

The moment the Flaming Tiger emerged from its cage, every player in the venue felt an intense pressure bear down on them. Moreover, the temperature within the magic barrier rose due to the Flaming Tiger’s body. It caused steam to rise, obscuring the space inside the barrier.

However, Yan Xiaoqian, the competition’s first challenger, was unfazed by the monster, and she slowly and steadily walked toward it.

Roar!

The instant Yan Xiaoqian entered the barrier, the Flaming Tiger roared and pounced, displaying such incredible speed that it made many of the Tier 2 experts in the venue nervous. The Flaming Tiger’s Movement Speed was easily higher than that of a Tier 2 Assassin.

The Flaming Tiger swiped a paw at Yan Xiaoqian, and in response, she lifted her staff, summoning a thick Ice Wall between her and the High Lord. Even when the Flaming Tiger struck the Ice Wall, it suffered hardly any damage.

“What powerful Attributes! Is this the might of the Elven Light Set?”

Everyone watched in astonishment as Yan Xiaoqian effortlessly blocked the Flaming Tiger’s attack.

They were all aware of how powerful a Level 100 High Lord was. Even a Level 100, Tier 2 MT would struggle to tank one; the task would usually require two MTs. Yan Xiaoqian, however, had stopped the Flaming Tiger’s assault with a simple Spell.

“What amazing Tier 2 silent casting!” Yan Xiaoqian’s Ice Wall even surprised Cold Memory.

The young woman hadn’t cast the ordinary Tier 1 Ice Wall. Rather, Yan Xiaoqian had cast the Tier 2 Spell Enchanted Ice Wall, a magically enhanced version of the Tier 1 Ice Wall. Of course, due to how complex Tier 2 Spells were, they were difficult to cast without a chant. Even if an Elementalist succeeded to do so without a chant, their Completion Rate would suffer, reducing the Spell’s power in turn.

And yet, despite casting the spell without a chant, Yan Xiaoqian’s Ice Wall was strong enough to stop the Flaming Tiger. Her success was a testament to her high Spell Completion Rate. Seeing this, Cold Memory couldn’t help but feel inferior when it came to mental fortitude and control over Mana.

Seeing that its attack had failed, the Flaming Tiger circled the Ice Wall, but Yan Xiaoqian didn’t give it the opportunity. She immediately summoned several more Ice Walls, surrounding the Flame Tiger. She then double speed-cast her Tier 2 Spells, Earthen Spike and Frostwheel Arrows.

With nowhere to run, both attacks slammed into the Flaming Tiger, and damages of over -100,000 appeared above the High Lord’s head, one after another.

The Flaming Tiger tried to break through the Ice Walls, but Yan Xiaoqian replaced the destroyed Ice Walls almost instantly. When the Flaming Tiger did manage to break free and attack Yan Xiaoqian, she activated Blink and teleported to a safe distance. She would then create another line of Ice Walls, steadily draining the High Lord’s HP.

The young Elementalist’s performance stunned the various superpowers’ experts. They had never dreamed that a player could toy with a Level 100 High Lord like this. The way she smoothly transitioned from Spell to Spell was particularly impressive. It almost looked like she gracefully danced across the battlefield as she attacked and evaded. Many of the peak experts felt their scalps tingle as they watched.

In the end, Yan Xiaoqian killed the Three-tailed Flaming Tiger in less than 15 minutes.

After Yan Xiaoqian emerged from the barrier, it was Silk Moon’s turn. She also had to face a Three-tailed Flaming Tiger, but since she was a Cursemancer, her Attack Power wasn’t as high as Yan Xiaoqian’s, an Elementalist. Even so, Silk Moon’s performance stunned the crowd as well.

During her battle with the Flaming Tiger, she cast a variety of Spells to reduce the High Lord’s mobility, reaction speed, Strength, and Agility. To everyone’s surprise, Silk Moon was also a Domain Realm expert. Once she had weakened the Flaming Tiger, the Cursemancer toyed with it as if she were playing with a kitten...

Although Silk Moon’s fight had lasted five minutes longer than Yan Xiaoqian’s, she had seemed far more relaxed than her opponent.

After the battle, the spectators burst into a heated discussion.

Shortly after Silk Moon’s fight, Azure’s members brought in a ten-meter-tall cage, which attracted everyone’s attention immediately. Before they opened the cage, Azure’s members strengthened the magic array, which became so powerful that the Mana density around it increased slightly.

As the cage opened, a nine-meter-tall bear walked onto the battlefield. It was covered in pitch-black fur, and runes hovered around its body. When the crowd felt the bear’s frightening aura, they felt chills crawl down their spines.

[Darkmoon Bear] (Wild Beast, Grand Lord)

Level 100

HP 210,000,000/210,000,000

“It’s so strong! So, this is a Level 100 Grand Lord?”

“How is this supposed to be a fair fight? That thing can likely kill peak MTs with a single slap!”

Few of these experts had ever seen a Level 100 Grand Lord, and they couldn’t help but gasp when they saw the Darkmoon Bear. If not for the magic array that trapped the wild beast, they might have fled from the venue.

“Wonder, it’s your turn now, but it’s not too late to give up,” Hermit gently told Silent Wonder.

No individual player could deal with a creature as strong as the Darkmoon Bear. Not only would players have to fight as a team to defeat this monstrosity, but they’d also have to rely on a magic array to suppress it. Trying to survive against the unsuppressed Darkmoon Bear for 10 minutes was utterly impossible for a Level 99, Tier 2 player.

However, Silent Wonder ignored Hermit’s advice as she approached the magic barrier.

“She’s insane.”

“I wonder how many hits she’ll last?”

“Hits? You think she can last more than one? That’s a Level 100 Grand Lord we’re talking about. My Guild’s Chief MT underestimated a Level 100 Grand Lord once, and he died after two hits. The team’s healers didn’t even have a chance to heal him. What can an Elementalist like her possibly do?”

As everyone watched Silent Wonder walk toward the barrier, they were certain that she had some mental issues. As far as they were concerned, trying to fight such a powerful beast was suicidal.

“Guild Leader Black Flame, will Miss Wonder really be alright against the Darkmoon Bear?” White Autumn asked as he watched.

He knew that Shi Feng was a Tier 3 player, but Silent Wonder wasn’t. White Autumn wouldn’t even be confident of lasting more than 10 minutes against the Grand Lord if he hadn’t obtained the Sea God’s blessing. Meanwhile, Silent Wonder’s life aura wasn’t particularly powerful, which proved that she only had an ordinary Legacy. White Autumn doubted she’d even last one minute, much less ten.

“Relax. She knows what she’s doing,” Shi Feng said, chuckling.

As soon as Shi Feng said that, Silent Wonder crossed the magic barrier. Almost simultaneously, the Darkmoon Bear charged at her, its frightening aura startling some of the apex experts watching the fight.

However, Silent Wonder held her composure. She simply removed her Black Cloak, revealing her crimson robes, and retrieved a resplendent staff from her bag, equipping it. As soon as she did, all of the Mana within the barrier swarmed toward her as if she were this space’s true queen.

Before the Darkmoon Bear could reach Silent Wonder, she lightly swung her staff. Answering her call, Mana surged toward the tip of her staff, transforming into a flaming spear that shot toward the Grand Lord.

The fire spear was so fast that not even the Darkmoon Bear had time to react.

Boom!

As the fiery weapon and the pitch-black bear collided, a flaming pillar enveloped the Darkmoon Bear, its flames so powerful that it shook the magic barrier.

When the flames subsided, the Darkmoon Bear slid to an abrupt halt...