Chapter 224 - Black clothes get dusty so easily
Gu Fei knew of many possible sequences for the Fighter’s skills, yet Gale Force only used one of those sequences. The look on Gale Force’s face seemed to suggest that he only knew of this combo attack and did not know of any other variations or follow-ups to it. While it might be enough to deal with any average players, it was far lacking when used against a fighting expert like Gu Fei who knew many counters for it.
As he shoved Gale Force, Gu Fei preemptively took a backstep to avoid the latter’s potential leg sweep. But when he saw Gale Force remain dazedly lying on the ground, Gu Fei could not help but sigh in disappointment.
Gu Fei did not deal Gale Force any damage for him to continue lying on the ground like this, which meant that the latter had only received psychological damage from being bullied by him. Gale Force lay stunned on the ground for quite a while before doing a kip up as he stared at Gu Fei.
Once he saw Gale Force stand up, Gu Fei suddenly stretched his arms to the front while he leaned his body forward. Forming an acute angle against the ground, he used his right hand to punch Gale Force right in the chest.
Is this… Spurring Meteor?! Gale Force felt so shocked that the color drained from his face. He would have used his Spurring Meteor to counter this if this had been a conventional PvP, generating Verdict to determine whose punch was stronger. Right now, he remained rooted to the spot. This was because the Mage’s execution of Spurring Meteor was definitely out of character.
It was impossible for different job classes to possess the same set of skills, be it in scrolls or in weapons. In fact, any skill would not be generated by the wrong job class.
This inexplicable occurrence caused Gale Force to momentarily forget about dealing with the attack. He only returned to his senses once Gu Fei’s attack was already upon him. Gale Force was an experienced combatant, so he naturally knew of ways to deal with this incoming Spurring Meteor. Gale Force decided to take the blow head on when he realized that he could not dodge it at this point.
Gale Force lifted his fists to grab Gu Fei’s shoulders just as the latter’s fists struck him squarely on the chest.
This was a risky move since Spurring Meteor could inflict the Dizzy status effect, which would leave the target unable to act once the skill connected. In which case, Gale Force’s counterattack would be rendered useless. An expert Fighter could easily begin a string of attacks after applying the Dizzy status effect, which was why many Fighters enjoyed starting a PvP with Spurring Meteor.
Still, at a measly 10% rate, the probability of a Fighter’s Spurring Meteor afflicting the Dizzy status effect to its target was far lower than a Warrior’s Charge. Skill proficiency would not significantly raise this proc chance, so Gale Force felt that this gamble was largely in his favor.
In actuality, the chances of his gamble succeeding were not just largely in his favor; it was pretty much entirely in his favor.
Where in the world would Gu Fei get the Spurring Meteor skill? He only used the same technique as Spurring Meteor to throw a punch squarely on Gale Force’s chest. Hence, Gale Force’s decision to not dodge his attack and to instead grab at Gu Fei’s shoulders immediately made Gu Fei cry foul.
He had suffered plenty of losses in the game… Oftentimes, Gu Fei would feel exasperated at these MMO players’ ability to execute a shameless combat style.
Gu Fei’s punch had no damage behind it, nor could it afflict the Dizzy status effect. As such, his shoulders ended up being firmly gripped by Gale Force. Gale Force did not think much about it and promptly shifted his arms to execute the level 30 Fighter skill, Seismic Toss.
The greatest feature of a Fighter’s skill was its quick execution and short cool-down time. These two factors were also why they mostly allocated their points to Spirit. With the cool-down time of Gale Force’s Seismic Toss ending, he used his arms to fling Gu Fei outward.
Seeing that Gu Fei’s punch had not dealt the slightest damage on him, Gale Force immediately realized that Gu Fei’s Spurring Meteor was nothing more than a mimicry of the skill.
Gale Force roared and activated his Spurring Meteor on Gu Fei. Gu Fei was hurtling in the air at the moment; under the system’s strict rules, he could only watch Gale Force’s fists land on his body in extreme aggravation.
Rushing the Toss! This was a simple combo that Fighters often used in the beginning of the game; at the current stage of the game, defeating their opponents with those two moves was no longer feasible. The probability of a Fighter chaining his attack after this combo depended entirely on the proccing of the Dizzy status effect via Spurring Meteor.
The skill itself only had a 10% proc rate, but Gale Force’s understanding of the importance of the Dizzy status effect to a Fighter made him splurge on items that increased this chance. In the end, he managed to bring up the proc rate of his Dizzy status effect to 34%.
This was already a high proc rate for the Dizzy status effect for any Fighter, but due to him focusing his gear on this particular aspect, his overall Attack Power suffered a decline.
Had Gale Force focused on increasing his Attack Power, that Seismic Toss and Spurring Meteor of his would have sent Gu Fei right to the Mage Academy to respawn.
Gu Fei was flung outward when he received Gale Force’s punch and tumbled a few times when he fell. Gale regretted using too much strength in that last punch, as there was a limit to how long the Dizzy status effect could last. Flinging Gu Fei for quite a distance effectively wasted these precious seconds and created the possibility of the Dizzy status effect to run its course by the time Gale Force reached Gu Fei’s location. Right now, Gale Force’s wish was to acquire a skill that would let him move from one spot to another instantly.
Gale Force quickly rushed toward Gu Fei, but in just a few steps, he saw the latter disappear from his sight. Gu Fei had tumbled outside the platform of Martial Field!
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Gale Force sighed deeply. He could only submit to the fact that it would be useless even if the Dizzy status effect procced there and then, as his punch had actually brought Gu Fei right outside the platform.
But since this duel was a deathmatch, tumbling outside the platform did not mean that the outcome of the match was decided. Gale Force quickly rushed to the edge of the platform and leaped off it to smash Gu Fei down. This was a level 36 Fighter skill, Swallow Dropkick. Originally, the user was supposed to leap in the sky and extend his leg out to strike down a target, but because Swallow Dropkick was extremely difficult to chain, many clever Fighters began using the skill to stamp on a fallen enemy, instead. Over time, players in Parallel World gave it an alternate name: Swallow Smash.
Striking an opponent down to the ground after a combo, Swallow Smash could send the target right back to his or her spawn point. This was currently the favorite fighting move of Fighters. Gale Force did not actually use the skill to look cool; it just so happened to be the most appropriate skill to land a hit on Gu Fei from the raised platform.
Who knew that his extended leg would actually smash nothing but dirt, as there was no one on the ground?!
Before Gale Force could even think about anything, something crashed into him from behind and he lost his balance once more. Moreover, his Swallow Smash posture had caused him to fall to the ground on his side rather awkwardly.
Gale Force lifted his head and saw Gu Fei retract his foot from the edge of the platform and shake his head, “You’re no good.”
“Translocation!” Gale Force was fuming. He had made all the necessary preparations for it, yet he had actually forgotten about it at the critical moment, allowing Gu Fei to appear right behind him and deliver a kick that caused him to tumble inelegantly.
“Alright, I’m off!” Gu Fei waved his hand dismissively.
“What! Stop right there!” Gale Force did another kip up and scrambled up the platform. Although he received quite the beating from his two falls, Gu Fei who had eaten his skills would have a significantly lower HP. As for him, he was definitely in an advantageous position right now as he barely took any damage from the two falls. Besides, Gu Fei’s Blink skill should currently be on cool-down after using it, so why would Gale Force let go of such an opportunity?
With that thought in mind, Gale Force did not speak with Gu Fei anymore and merely lifted his hand to score a punch on Gu Fei using the most basic Fighter skill: Heavy Punch.
Gu Fei slightly tilted his body to let the punch pass him and threw a lightning fast uppercut on Gale Force’s jaw. He proceeded to thrust a kick on to the stunned Gale Force’s shoulder, using the impetus to leap into the air and bring the soles of his dirty boots glancing over Gale Force’s cheeks in his downward roll. Using his falling momentum, Gu Fei grabbed a hold of Gale Force’s waist with his arms, but he soon shook his head with a sigh, “I can’t toss you!” Gu Fei let go of Gale Force’s waist, brushed the dust off the latter’s shoulder, and said, “You got what I was trying to do, though, right?!”
Gale Force was rendered speechless by what he had just witnessed.
Everything Gu Fei had just done incorporated the Fighter job class’s skills: Uppercut Punch, Thrusting Kick, Swallow Dropkick, and Seismic Toss.
Just like the Spurring Meteor skill that Gu Fei had used before, his attacks were merely for show and did not have a bit of damage in them. However, the sequencing of moves that Gu Fei had executed far outstripped those that were executed by other Fighters.
Uppercut Punch, Thrusting Kick, and Swallow Dropkick as a follow-up move to strike down an enemy from mid-air… This was a combo that many Fighters dreamed of but could not achieve. But this person… Although his Uppercut Punch and Thrusting Kick could not lift the target mid-air, Gale Force knew that if he truly had the actual skills, that follow-up Swallow Dropkick and finishing move Seismic Toss… If Spurring Meteor was added into that, he would be executing the full skill kit of a Fighter right now. The resulting damage from this combo would definitely be a sight to behold.
“This… How did you do it?” Gale Force hurriedly asked.
“Tempo. Watch your tempo. It needs to be faster,” Gu Fei explained.
“Tempo?” Gale Force pressed on, baffled.
“Mmm…” Gu Fei thought for a bit and figured he needed to speak in a language that this sort of people understood, “Watch the cancels of your skills.”
“Oh…” Gale Force instantly understood what he meant.
“The timing of the skill cancels decides if the combo can be executed in one smooth motion, so you need to practice more!” Gu Fei said this solemnly.
Gale Force nodded his head blankly. What was this? A Mage was actually pointing out to him, a Fighter, the proper way to sequence his attacks into that combo?
“Keep practicing!” Gu Fei said once more before patting his robe and leaving. He had taken a tumble outside of the raised platform, so Gu Fei’s robe had become dirty all over.
“Black clothes get dusty so easily...” Gale Force could vaguely hear Gu Fei saying this.