Chapter 541: Battleground

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Prince Desnio's mansion was located in the metropolis of Su City, where every inch of land was priceless. Even with his wealth and power, it was impossible to have a battleground here in the capital. The Prince had a battleground about 30 kilometers from the capital, however. The distance was not an issue for the excited nobles.

As the guests all head towards the battleground, Ye Chong naturally went in the King's vehicle, accompanied also by three important figures of the government. This honour given to him was a chilling statement to the other nobles.

"I regret to inform that the battleground was only last used when His Majesty was young and staying with me. It had been neglected since. However, not to worry, everyone, the facilities in this place are definitely the best available in Eastern Cloud. Of course, the available terrain options are not as advanced as in professional battle rings. Your understanding is much appreciated," Prince Desnio introduced his place, relaxed in his role.

It was a huge battleground, with an area of about five or size square kilometres. Desnio and his guests were now entering the audience chamber. Here was a huge screen that showed the actual battleground. If Ye Chong were here, he would have been greatly surprised. The feed lacked the resolution offered by 3D holographic imaging, but it was still impressive. The audience chamber was luxuriously decorated. There were plush sofas for everyone, and the servants had already prepared finger food and drinks for the guests. The live feed on the screen was only 2D, but it was still very clear. Besides, they had used more cameras to provide the audience with more viewing angles of the match.

The nobles took their places, leaving the front seat for His Majesty. The King was present at this duel hosted by Prince Desnio, accompanied by both Duke Warren and Sir Ming Xiao. The nobles quickly realized that this was probably the grandest match ever organized in the history of Eastern Cloud. Many of them looked very excited, for they had chanced to be present in this occasion too by pure good luck.

As the host of this match, Prince Desnio stepped up to the speaking podium. He sat down and drank some water, preparing himself.

"The battleground is now set for Option One of the available terrains, in what we know as the Hills. I believe that you're all very familiar with this one. However, ours is not the standard Option One, but a slightly modified version of it. Ah, I believe you know why. This is a terrain that many people are familiar with. To ramp up the suspense, we have made some alterations to the terrain. If anyone thought that being familiar with the terrain would serve as an advantage, they would be seriously mistaken."

Sun Sieha studied the familiar battleground on the screen, his expression softening as he felt nostalgia creeping into him. He had loved to play here when he was younger. As he grew older, it became an important place for him to train himself in combat. This was a place full of memories.

Prince Desnio continued chattily, "This is a medium sized battleground that can accommodate up to 40 shooters. Since the lands are hilly, it serves as a test for not only a shooter's aiming and parapsychic skills, but also their ability to assess their environment and strategize accordingly.

"Hah, I believe you can't wait for it to begin now!

"I'll be brief. To make things interesting, Master Ye Chong and the 12 shooters will draw lots and enter the terrain from two different entrances. This means that they won't know where the other side is. Each side must try to locate and defeat the other in this complicated terrain.

"The 12 shooters are all armed with professional V shaped fluorescent guns used for matches. The shots will leave a fluorescent mark on the target, which will only fade away after three days. To date, no one has been able to remove this fluorescence, so there will be no issues on fairness. Alright, our mod team has already made some minor modifications to the guns of the 12 shooters. The shooters have checked their weapons, and there are no issues to report.

"A gun is like an extended limb of a shooter. Hence, every shooter must be very familiar with their weapon, as every qualified shooter would be. Old Ming once told me that his soldiers must all be very familiar with their guns, even if it means being less familiar with their wives. But if you want to do that, hehe, you have to sleep with your gun instead of your wife for three years. All of you here who work under Old Ming, better watch it, don't just huddle close with your wife and forget about your gun, or else, hehe …"

A few snickers came from the guests. Ming Xiao was Legate of the 1st Legion in name, but as the second most important figure in the government next to the King, he also had many nobles backing him. Ming Xiao was not offended, but grinned widely at the tease. Beside him, Duke Warren only humped coldly, unimpressed with the joke.

Sun Sieha looked at the two rivals and smiled without comment.

"Alright, back to the match. Well, our Master Ye is a man of character. Hmm, of strong character, I suppose! I don't know about his weapon building skills, but seeing Master Ye's moves earlier, I think no one doubts his combat abilities. Master Ye Chong was able to throw a butter knife made of silvercore wood and pin the fast moving snowhound on the ground. My servant reported to me nervously that the butter knife had embedded itself five centimeters into the ground after it went through the snowhound. You can imagine how much strength it takes to do that. An accurate and powerful shot. We look forward to Master Ye's performance."

Pince Desnio looked up at his guests and continued slowly but confidently, "Master Ye Chong has demonstrated to us another form of combat – close range combat. There are no parapsychic waves, no guns involved. Master Ye Chong has overhauled everything we've come to understand about battle. If Master Ye Chong can win against these 12 Level 6 shooters, then …" Prince Desnio paused and looked around at his guests solemnly, "A new form of combat will be presented to us. It does not rely on parapsychic sense or guns, but only on physical strength and techniques. This is what I think I believe Master Ye can break the dominance that shooters have in our world."

The people listening from below, especially the military men like Ming Xiao, began to feel the gravity of the situation. Their expression turned serious. Despite the incredulity of it, what would happen if Ye Chong really won this match?

Anyone who could win against a dozen Level 6 shooters would be strong enough to be called a master in his trade. Even in Eastern Cloud, such a person was not easy to find.

They must consider the possibility of Ye Chong's form of combat and its implications in their line of expertise.

"Fortunately, we will witness this importance match live on screen. Moreover, Master Ye is of Eastern Cloud, and our Chief Weaponsmith. No matter what happens due to Master Ye's demonstration in combat, we, Eastern Cloud country, will be the first to realize it, and the first to respond to it. Once we succeed, we will be leading the world into this new age!"

Prince Desnio's speech had invigorating. Moreover, it managed to intrigue even the nobles who were not interested in shooters or the like. Even Sun Sieha's eyes were gleaming with anticipation. Making Eastern Cloud stronger was an ambition that he thought about day and night.

"Master Ye does not have any weapons with him. I'm curious, how will he fight against the shooters? However, Master Ye does not look nervous at all. He'd not worried about himself, but we'll see about that. I think that this is going to be a very memorable battle.

"Both sides are now making their final preparations. In the meantime, let me talk more about this terrain. As I mentioned earlier, the battleground is based on our standard Option One, the Hills, but with slight modifications. Option One is a hilly terrain, known for its complicated landscape. Mine, in particular, has mountains built with actual mountain rocks, making the area even harder to navigate. The terrain is extremely complicated. Parapsychic waves will be affected greatly, since the feedback will be less accurate than usual. Only an experienced shooter can decipher useful information from inaccurate parapsychic feedback. Besides, a shooter needs to be physically fit enough to navigate the terrain, since there is a lot of climbing involved.

"Alright, that's all for introduction of the terrain. Our combatants have all entered the battleground."

Everyone, including Sun Sieha, shifted their gaze towards the huge screen.

"Aha, Master Ye and the other 12 shooters are entering from entrances that are directly opposite to each other. This means that they will need some time to locate the other side. For now, let's relax and take a drink," Prince Desnio narrated lightly, but no one looked away from the screen.

"Let's start with our 12 young shooters. Hmm, not bad, they're maintaining a neat formation. In fact, the best place to be right now is somewhere high enough for vantage point, where their parapsychic waves will not be too severely affected. However, in this terrain, climbing is going to be difficult no matter where you are. Ah, Mang looked like he's trying to climb, but he's given up quickly. Without the right tools, it's hard to scale up the mountains here.

"Our beautiful Miss Man'er looks fantastic in her combat uniform. I think many of our young men here must feel even more drawn to her now. Despite her meek outlook, Ms Man'er is actually a Level 6 shooter. Truly a surprise to us. But from the way she conducted herself steadily in the battleground, I think we're all convinced that she's the real deal."

Prince Desnio knew the taste of his audience. The camera panned and zoomed towards Shu Man'er. The guests responded immediately with some whistles from the younger crowd.

Sun Sieha looked at Shu Man'er on the screen and suddenly thought of something. A cold look flashed in his eyes. He signalled for one of the nearby servants to approach him and whispered some orders to the servant. The servant bowed and listened, then rushed out to see to the task he was entrusted with. No one but Duke Warren and Ming Xiao, who were sitting beside the King, noticed this little exchange.

On stage, Prince Desnio was continuing, "Personally, I think that this battle will end up with both sides meeting each other without expecting it."

"Alright, let's move on to our Master Ye, the man of surprises. What kind of surprise are we in for now?"

The screen shifted towards Ye Chong.

"Master Ye is not in a hurry. He seems to be used to this kind of environment. Oh, just to keep everyone from second guessing, let me make some clarifications here," Prince Desnio affected an air of seriousness, "this is the first time I've seen Master Ye. The man has never been to my battleground before."

Some of the noble ladies hid their smiles at the Prince's act.

The night was turning out to be quite enjoyable. The women settled comfortably in a warm room, sitting on plush sofa cushions with their pet dogs on their laps as they listened to the Prince's narration. It was a cosy experience. The younger noble ladies could not help looking at the young King, sitting at the front, as they tried to devise ways to get closer to him.

"Master Ye seems to be quite relaxed, or at least he looks relaxed. Oh, looks like Master Ye is thinking of going to a higher point. The hills are quite difficult to climb. Hmm, Master Ye did not bring any tools with him. In fact, Master Ye continues to surprise me. I have no idea what he's about to do next. Let us wait and see."

Suddenly, the Prince gasped audibly in the audience chamber. The audience cried out in surprise at nearly the same time. "Ah! Master Ye has begun climbing! Heaven, he's fast, very fast! He's just like a monkey, no, he's even better than a monkey. Without any tools, the man is scaling up the nearly vertical cliff. It's incredible! It's just incredible!"

The audience could not help but stood up to watch Ye Chong on the screen. He had truly shocked them all. Ye Chong was climbing a rocky hill that was over 30 meters high, with an almost vertical ascent. Despite this, Ye Chong was scaling up the hill with apparent ease.

To the audience, this was an impossible feat. They would not have believed it possible without seeing it for themselves. Since Ye Chong was moving too quickly, they could not see how Ye Chong could scale up the cliff without the aid of any tools.

"Ohh!" Prince Desnio was wild with excitement. With his huge build, he looked like a huge chimpanzee in frenzy, "This is amazing! Master Ye has brought to us a surprise like no other. Heavens, this is not humanly possible. Even with the right tools, I'm sure that no one can climb the hill so quickly. Now that he's reached the peak, Master Ye has an advantage in the match. If he was a shooter and with a laser gun in hand, I'm sure that we can already announce him as the winner."

"However, the crux of the matter is, our Master Ye is not, in fact, a shooter, and he has no weapons with him. Right now, I'm thinking about our shooters, who always thought that physical fitness is not important. If they were to watch this match, I'm sure that they will realize their mistake. If a shooter is physically strong, well, not to the point of Master Ye here, but if the shooter can at least climb up to a high enough vantage point, then the advantage gained from it, hmm, need I say more?"

The audience considered Prince Desnio's words, especially military personnel like Ming Xiao. This frequently ignored problem was now brought to surface. It was because they were witnessing Ye Chong's extreme way of combat that they were able to reflect on their thought bias with seriousness.

A thin smile appeared on Sun Sieha's face. No matter the outcome of the actual match, he had won where it mattered. Perhaps the match was enough to convince people that it was wrong for shooters to neglect physical strength in favour of parapsychic control, but he could already see their conviction wavering.

Just then, the servant who left earlier returned to the audience chamber. He presented himself before the King and whispered something by his ear. He spoke quietly enough that even Duke Warren and Ming Xiao, who were sitting beside the King, could not hear him. Even so, both men sat facing the screen, pretending to be absorbed in the match.

After the servant was finished, Sun Sieha's smile turned a touch colder. He waved away the servant and directed his attention back to the huge screen. Now, both Duke Warren and Ming Xiao noticed the ghastly look that flashed in the King's eyes. They were both chilled by what they saw, but pretended to see nothing at all.