Chapter 147
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Northeast Asia League, the China match.
Most people predicted China's victory. Despite Seong Jihan's strong performance in the Russia match, the Chinese national team was considered a perfect team, ranking second in the world. With all professional sports in the world gone and every country concentrating its resources on BattleNet, China had focused its vast population of 1.2 billion and the world's second-largest economy to create the top Asian national team.
"The Northeast Asia League match is beginning."
"The first game is South Gate."
The map for the first game of the China match was South Gate.
- The game begins!
- The Republic of Korea's national team starts on the siege side.
- They've deployed a triangular formation from the Warrior camp. Seong Jihan is at the front.
- They seem to be relying on Seong Jihan for a breakthrough. This strategy is similar to the one they used against Russia.
The strategy of the Republic of Korea's national team was simple: an all-out strategy with Seong Jihan at the forefront. It was a style completely different from the usual strong Archer team of the Republic of Korea's national team, but against China, they had no other choice. There was no chance of winning in long-range battles.
"Eight Trigrams Overlap..."
A Chinese player on the city wall extended his hand into the air. Behind him, one of the Eight Trigrams symbols appeared.
"It's the Kun (坤) Trigram."
Eight Trigrams Overlap was an SSS-grade gift held by China's Mage player, Je Galheon. Depending on the drawn Trigram, it greatly enhanced the attributes of their spells.
Je Galheon, who laughed upon seeing the symbol for Earth, immediately used a spell.
"Earthquake!"
Kururur...!
A powerful earthquake shook the ground and rattled the Korean team's main base.
"Oh, of all the trigrams, Kun had to be drawn!"
"The power is insane!"
"Heal! I think I'm going to die!"
As the game began, the team was in disarray. Players with low health were already in critical condition, making it chaotic to order support magic.
In addition:
"The ground has split?"
"It's tough to rush like this."
"Ugh, Je Galheon, that crazy guy..."
The ground in front of the gate had completely split, and there were very few places to step. It became impossible for the entire Warrior team to charge.
"He really pulled it off properly this time, Je Galheon."
Je Galheon, who was known as China's Grand Mage, had a gift called Eight Trigrams Overlap. Depending on the drawn trigram, he was a player with varying highs and lows. When participating in the Space League as a representative of Earth, he often drew weird trigrams that didn't match the situation. However, today, he lucked out from the very first spell.
"What should we do about this?"
"Maintain formation to prevent the Trigram's effect from breaking."
"How are we supposed to charge in this situation?"
"But if we stay here, we're bound to lose."
Kim Dongwoo nodded in agreement with Seong Jihan's words. If Je Galheon's cooldown for Eight Trigrams Overlap came back and he used another super-strong spell, it would be even harder for the Korean national team to hold out.
"This is how it was in the China match..."
When the Sword King was present, they managed to hold their own with his abilities, but when the battlefield situation didn't develop favorably, they were helpless in long-range battles.
The situation was the same now. The Korean national team had no choice but to charge forward, whether they lived or died.
"Go and maintain the formation!"
Seong Jihan flew with Eclipse.
Flying through the air, Seong Jihan had a look that seemed to say they didn't need the ground, as if soaring through the sky.
"So fast... Let's maintain the formation as he said!"
"Got it!"
Following Seong Jihan's orders to keep the triangular formation intact, Kim Dong-woo encouraged the Warriors to advance.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
- The Chinese national team... Seong Jihan is their only target!
- They're not looking anywhere else!
Their Archer team, which was not much weaker than the Korean archer team, also had much more powerful Mages attacking Seong Jihan in unison.
Attacks coming from all directions were each powerful enough to be lethal.
"It seems that dominance in the Ascension of Black Shadow isn't enough."
Seong Jihan used his martial arts, Nameless Divine Arts, Dark Shadow Technique - Dark soul Vortex, creating a giant shadow whirlwind that absorbed the Chinese national team's attacks.
Zzzing!
Some powerful spells even pierced through the Dark Shadow vortex, but weakened by passing through the whirlwind, they were manageable by Seong Jihan.
The Chinese players looked at Seong Jihan as if they couldn't believe it.
"Wow... He's blocking everything? Is that even possible?"
"It's like watching the old Sword King."
"Is he really in Gold?"
Long-distance DPS was one of China's strong points, second only to the United States in the world. They had no idea their attacks would be completely blocked.
"This won't work. Target the others!"
"Break the triangular formation!"
"He'll be handled by Shinsong Il-ryong!"
First, they had to get rid of the formation buff. The Chinese national team changed their targets to other Warriors.
Boom! Boom!
The results were distinctly different from before.
"Ah, damn it!"
"These guys are so strong!"
Warriors, who had tried to maintain the formation at all costs, started falling one by one. The already fragile triangular formation was on the verge of collapsing.
Korean ranged class players were also engaged in combat to support the Warriors, but they couldn't compete in firepower.
- China is indeed strong. Very strong!
- China in this state is just too difficult to defeat!
"We need to hurry."
Continuing like this would result in a disastrous situation. Seong Jihan, who had been adjusting his speed to maintain the formation, made a silent decision and increased his speed.
It was certain that the triangular formation buff would disappear. Therefore, he decided to engage enemy Warriors before the effect completely vanished.
Even if the formation broke, the buff would still last for about a minute. That's why he chose to fight the enemy Warriors.
"Are you coming? Amitabha."
In front of the breached gate, a bald man dressed in yellow robes stood with an awkward command posture. Warrior Shinsong Il-ryong, the strongest in China.
His golden eyes sparkled.
"He even got the Huanglong buff."
The Chinese support the Huanglong Summon with an SSS-level gift. Shinsong Il-ryong's eyes had golden eyes, a unique effect when the Huanglong enhanced only one person.
"108 Arhat Formation."
As Shinsong Il-ryong chanted these words, a golden light shone from all eight of the Warriors except him.
"I shall test Seong Jihan."
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Flash! Flash!
All nine warriors, including Shinsong Il-ryong, turned into light and disappeared. The same light also shimmered from Seong Jihan's body.
[You are invited to the 108 Arhat Formation.]
[The total level and stats are lower than the total of the opposing players. You cannot resist Arhat's suppression.]
[Forced entry into 108 Arhat Formation..]
Seeing the conditions for forced summoning, Seong Jihan smiled bitterly. No matter how much Unhoned he had, how could he surpass the combined levels and stats of nine players at his current level?
"But, there are only nine of them..."
When he fought as a representative of the United States, there were definitely eighteen of them.
With a sense of doubt, Seong Jihan entered the formation.
* * *
-Wait. What's going on...! 108 Arhat Formation? Did China have something like this?
-Along with 108 Arhat Formation, another broadcasting screen has appeared!
-Is this... a temple? It's written as "Shaolinsa"!
Inside the 108 Arhat Formation.
This place was a completely separate map from the South Gate map.
In a large hall with "Shaolin Temple" written on it, Il-ryong was standing, and in the vast open space below, more than 100 warriors formed a formation, surrounding Seong Jihan.
-They're completely isolating a player! This is just outrageous...!
-The Chinese players have also been summoned to the 108 Arhat Formation. If you look at it in terms of numbers, it's an exchange of 9 Chinese players for 1 Korean player!
108 Arhat Formation.
A formation consisting of at least 9 players as the main force, when seen as an exchange of player numbers, it was clear that the side deploying the formation was at a disadvantage.
Capturing one player but having nine players trapped was a losing proposition.
However,
-Oh no! Considering that Seong Jihan is the center of South Korea's tactics, this exchange is clearly a loss!
In the case of the South Korean national team, the story was different.
In the current situation, where there was no one to trust except Seong Jihan, if he were to be trapped with 9 players, the advantage would be with China.
"Before using it on the 'Sword King,' I should test it on you. Amhitabha."
Shinsong Il-ryong took out his Pole as if he had already won, and then,
More than 100 avatars drew their Poles in the same posture, all pointing them at Seong Jihan.
Except for Shinsong Il-ryong, the other eight warriors had their own equipment on, and they were actually keeping their distance from Seong Jihan.
"The Ruler of the Orthodox Faction is Shaolin. If you use an Orthodox Technique, it is impossible to surpass Shaolin."
Thump!
When Shinsong drove his Pole into the ground,
A system message appeared in front of Seong Jihan.
[108 Arhat Formation forms a formation specializing in the Orthodox Technique.]
[The power of the Orthodox Faction martial art is restricted.]
'So that's why I've been asking so many questions.' Whether it's the Orthodox Faction, the Unorthodox Faction, or the Demonic Faction.
The reason for trying to find out the origins of martial arts was probably this.
It seemed that they specialized in the Orthodox Faction.
"I will start the test!"
Swoosh.
As all the monks aimed their Poles, a surge of energy poured toward Seong Jihan from all directions.
Gravity suddenly increased by dozens of times, and the pressure intensified as if the very air was restricted. If it were an ordinary player, just standing here would crush their body.
'...Weaker than last time?' Seong Jihan raised an eyebrow. Compared to when he experienced 108 Arhat Formation with the U.S. national team, the power here was much weaker.
'But my level and abilities should be similar to back then,' Seong Jihan thought, thanks to his Inherent skills. He had a strength equivalent to a Gold-rank, similar to his first full-strength class.
However...
'Maybe it's because there are nine of them, but the oppression feels much weaker.' The number of members forming the formation was quite less than during the U.S. match, there were 18 during that. So it was significantly weaker than what Seong Jihan remembered from his past experience.
Moreover...
"Players are visible." Unlike the 100 monks (Avatars), who all looked the same, eight players were making it clear they weren't monks. This was a noticeable difference from the previous 108 Arhat Formation, where everyone looked similar.
'For now, I'll take care of the players.' Seong Jihan rushed toward the player who was holding back.
Shhh!
At the same time, the Shaolin monks raised their Poles in unison towards Seong Jihan. Each of their attacks seemed stronger than a Diamond-tier player's single strike. It was all thanks to the 108 Arhat Formation's buff effect.
But...
"Gui Zha."
[Understood, Master.]
The shadow of a monk rose from behind and turned into a sheild, piercing itself but protecting it's master, Il-ryong.
Thud!
"I'll come back... again!"
The monk struck by the sword disappeared while uttering those words. And as soon as the death process was complete, new monks reappeared on the outskirts of the formation. The NPC-summoned monks respawned immediately, even if they were defeated.
"In the past, even taking on a single monk was tough due to the pressure of the formation, but..." Seong Jihan thought. The weakened 108 Arhat Formation was different. With this level of freedom, he felt he could use his powerful martial arts.
The shadows that composed Seong Jihan's Black Sword extended long and far. It shot up into the sky like it could swallow the sun, creating a massive shadow aura. Eclipse transformed into a gigantic sword in an instant.
"Uh..."
"Block it!"
Far away, Chinese players who had tried to escape shouted at the monks, but with a swift strike of the shadowy greatsword, including NPC monks, three Chinese players vanished into the sword.
Swoooosh...
However, instead of immediately generating new dead monks, they reappeared one by one with a time delay. It was a phenomenon caused by the collapse of one axis of 108 Arhat Formation.
"This... this crazy guy!" Shinsong Il-rong's face turned pale. How could he be in such perfect shape and exert full power in 108 Arhat Formation?
"Yeah, I said I was using this dirty old martial art!" Disregarding formal speech and bursting into profanity, he blamed China's information division and rushed at Seong Jihan.
"Great Strength Vajra Palm!"
A massive golden palm-shaped gust of wind flew toward Seong Jihan, but...
"Hey, why is the formation so weak?" Seong Jihan casually avoided the gust of wind and approached Il-ryong. "And after three of them died, it got even weaker. Don't I just need to take care of the remaining players?"
"You little... Instead of running your dirty mouth, fight me!"
"No thanks. You're not dying, are you?"
"What... How did you...?"
When Il-ryong squinted his eyes, Seong Jihan smiled sarcastically.
"Haha, I know everything~"
Inside 108 Arhat Formation, Il-ryong was invincible. No matter how much he was attacked, he wouldn't die, and his power kept increasing as the Head of the formation. The way to conquer 108 Arhat Formation was to ignore the invincible opponent and capture the other players making up the formation.
"You found a bit of hope and attacked me. But are you really not dying?" Seong Jihan asked him sarcastically.
"You...! You dared to attack...!"
"The fault lies with those who got hit. I'll go deal with the others."
"Stop right there!"
Il-ryong hurriedly followed Seong Jihan, but no matter how empowered he was, he couldn't stop Seong Jihan with his martial arts.
"No. How can this guy...?"
He followed behind Seong Jihan helplessly, watching as the other players were slaughtered.
When the eighth player died...
[All of 108 Arhat Formation's axes have collapsed.]
[108 Arhat Formation is disbanding.]
108 Arhat Formation, which made its debut in the world, disbanded helplessly. And then...
"Now I'll finish it."
As all eight players died.
Seong Jihan, the only one left, looked at the resurrected Il-ryong with a sly grin.
"Kyaaaah!"
The sword sliced through Il-ryong's neck.
"Nameless Divine arts, Annihilation God's Secret: Blood Cross."
In succession, Seong Jihan swept away the remaining Chinese warriors.
"Seong Jihan!"
"108 Arhat Formation is crumbling!"
"The national team was on the verge of annihilation, but he came at the right time!"
"He's the only one left and completely slaughtered the Chinese warrior formation!"
The first game, which seemed like it was going to end in Korea's defeat, turned around as Seong Jihan single-handedly lifted the Korean national team.
"South Korea wins the first game!"
"I can't believe it! How can one player have this much power?"
"The Chinese national team looks dazed!"
"That's right. We had already won! There are barely 30 survivors on the Korean national team! They were completely overwhelmed in the firepower battle!"
"Oh, the Chinese national team has requested a time delay! The next game will be delayed by 20 minutes!"
"What are they trying to do?"
Following the Chinese national team's 20-minute time request, there was a noticeable change in the two subsequent games.
"The Chinese national team's player lineup hasn't changed, but... huh?!"
"What's going on?! All Chinese warriors have shaved their heads!"
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