Chapter 436: Chapter 422 How are you fighting with Fureya? (2nd update)

Rosh was drinking a bottle of milk sold in a glass bottle, a rarity in the Holy Spirit World, especially this flavored kind.

If Rosh were a qualified businessman, she would definitely sniff out a business opportunity in it, but Rosh was not… Her current status in Holy Spirit City was, rather than being a Chaser who had come to arrest Thorne,

more like… a slave?

If Rosh remembered correctly, some spirits had described her as such. “Slave” was not exactly a pleasant term, but “a part-slave” seemed quite fitting for Rosh’s current situation.

Like every NPC participating in the Holy Spirit Challenge, she was busy pairing up with spirits every day and climbing up the ranks on the competitive ladder.

Recently, Rosh encountered a huge bottleneck; her score was stuck at 2,900 points in the Supreme Grandmaster rank, and she was placed thirteenth on the competitive ladder.

What Rosh was doing now was using all her strength to push past 3,000 points and claim a spot in the top ten, or even first place, on the ladder.

But Rosh couldn’t do it. Over these fifteen days of battling, more and more spirits had mastered her combat habits and techniques and were even discussing strategies on how to beat her.

Now, when Rosh faced players at the Supreme Grandmaster rank, she had to be completely focused. She was 80 percent sure she could defeat her opponent, but the physical exhaustion and mental strain increased exponentially.

She was not a perfect Eternal, not like Thorne, who could defeat hundreds of high-level spirits in a day and just yawn about it.

Rosh too could feel tiredness, she had to eat when hungry, and her wounded body required treatment. She had been enduring back-to-back days of intense combat by gritting her teeth.

The result of this endurance was Rosh nearly making it into the top fifteen of the ladder, but she wasn’t satisfied with this achievement… The reason was her brother, Hilze’er, had already climbed to second place in the entire server!

She could lose to anyone in this Holy Spirit Challenge, but she absolutely could not lose to her own brother! She would not allow Thorne to fall into her brother’s hands.

Climb the ranks! She was determined to use every means possible to climb the ladder. Lately, Rosh had been using her time for sleep to compete and climb the competitive ladder. The current time was six in the morning.

Having not slept all night, she felt exceptionally weary. If Rosh looked in a mirror right then, her eyes would surely be full of bloodshot veins.

But what continually echoed in Rosh’s head was the calculation method for the ladder points. There were two methods for her to quickly make it into the top ten of the server: one was to specifically challenge the strongest Kings and players of the same Supreme Grandmaster rank, and the other was to win consecutively.

The more consecutive victories, the higher the points gained. Her brother had climbed to second place on the ladder by achieving a seventy-two-win streak, but Rosh’s winning streak had been broken by a spirit called “Joyful Gaming”!

The thought made Rosh so angry she almost crushed the bottle in her hand, but she managed to control her emotions.

While Rosh was pondering whether to rest for a little while, she felt the temperature around her drop slightly, drawing her gaze to the distant arena.

Fureya?

Rosh looked at the figure appearing on the distant platform, this character named Fureya by the spirits had just joined the challenge yesterday.

Fureya’s rank was now Platinum, posing no threat to Rosh…

She leaned against the wall, watching Fureya on the platform from afar. The first to challenge Fureya on the platform was a Supreme Grandmaster player ranked one hundred and twenty-seven on the ladder, with the ID “Leading the Sunset.”

This player was a Hunter, someone Rosh remembered having crossed paths with, who was very skillful with traps.

Rosh watched him ascend to the arena, watched him apply a combat BUFF to himself, and then watched him lie down on the ground to feign death.

What’s going on? Rosh frowned slightly; she and Spirit had gained some experience and knew what skills a Spirit of any profession would possess. Playing dead was a skill exclusive to Hunters.

But such a skill could only fool brainless beasts; Rosh would never fall for such a trick. The biggest issue was… this Hunter had played dead right in front of Fureya!

Was there some underhanded trap? While Rosh was pondering this, Fureya had the same thought.

Fureya, armed with the Frost Sky Battle Scythe, circled the Hunter, also vigilant for any sneaky tricks he might have up his sleeve.

However, Fureya didn’t have the patience, nor did she need to wait… A chilling frost gathered on her scythe, and as she swung it fiercely upward, a multitude of ice spikes burst forth from the ground.

The ice spikes spread to where the Hunter player lay, lifting him into the air. Seizing the opportunity, Fureya leapt up and struck the Hunter midair with her scythe.

The Hunter player’s health points were instantly reduced by a third. The struck Hunter player tried to stand and shoot an arrow but missed! Fureya took this chance to land a merciless and unrelenting combo, slaying the Hunter player.

What’s going on? Rosh took a sip of milk and watched the Hunter player being carried off the arena.

Although he had attempted to fight back, Rosh always felt the strength of his retaliation… was somewhat too light?

Was it her imagination? Just as Rosh thought this, Fureya quickly matched against the second player, a Shield Warrior.

This player, whose ID was “Defense Doesn’t Cost a Thing”, was also at a prideful grandmaster rank.

Upon entering the arena, the Shield Warrior player also immediately activated a Shield Wall state and waited with his great shield raised, ready for Fureya’s assault.

As Fureya swung her massive scythe and charged at the Shield Warrior, Rosh pondered how the Spirit would cope with Fureya’s frosty scythe when… he suddenly exclaimed…

“Ouch, twisted my ankle.”

This exclamation nearly made Rosh spit out her milk, but indeed, the Shield Warrior had severely twisted his ankle and collapsed to the ground, rolling in pain.

Fureya observed the rolling player, tilting her head as if to wait for his ankle to get better before continuing, but when the Shield Warrior saw Fureya wasn’t attacking him…

“I quit, I quit, I need to see a doctor.” Using that as an excuse, he surrendered on the spot.

Fureya had won two in a row.

What’s going on?

Rosh no longer felt like drinking milk. She eyed the third Spirit stepping into the arena, also a prideful grandmaster player ranking fourteenth–a Berserker with the ID “Believer in Blood”, a professional player from the guild Night Sprinters.

This Berserker was ranked just one above Rosh, and Fureya’s expression turned a bit more solemn when facing him.

Rosh fixed her gaze on Believer in Blood as he set foot on the stage, just like any other Berserker would.

“Blood Frenzy activated! Rage mode!” Believer in Blood erupted in a fierce red glow. Rosh knew that Berserker players sacrificed their health points for fighting power, but she only saw the Berserker, possibly the strongest on the server, suddenly clutch his bloodied right arm.

“Blood Frenzy… activate!”

The skill Blood Frenzy was precisely one where life points were exchanged for attack power.

A mass of blood gathered on his longsword, and in exchange, his life points rapidly declined; typically, Berserker players would only activate Blood Frenzy for a short while.

But this Berserker player had conserved the Blood Frenzy state and had actually invested all of his life points into it.

Eventually, the Berserker player fell to the ground, full of resentment…

“What a splendid fight, I’m dead,” said Xinxue Skyhawk as he tilted his head and lost consciousness.

Splendid my ass! You didn’t even use your skills properly!

Rosh, who was watching at the side, crushed the milk bottle in his hand! Why didn’t you activate Blood Frenzy like that when you were fighting me?

The milk that hadn’t been finished in the bottle dripped onto the ground through Rosh’s palm, and then Fureya faced another eight Holy Spirit Challengers.

These eight Holy Spirit Challengers were either instantly killed by Fureya or pretended to fall to the ground for various reasons, or they started off by harming themselves with a bunch of strange skills!

Rigged fight!

This word instantly surfaced in Rosh’s mind!

Someone is rigging the fight! All these Holy Spirits are rigging the fight!

I need to report this… but to whom should I report? Rosh watched as Fureya’s winning streak increased more and more, her ladder ranking points rose from Platinum all the way to Diamond, and when she successfully advanced to the rank of Supreme Grandmaster, Rosh felt something was off.

“This shouldn’t be considered a rigged fight,” suddenly Jiang Qiao’s voice rang in Rosh’s ear.

Rosh clutched his right ear and turned his head sharply, seeing a brilliant blue orb of light floating beside him.

“Those Holy Spirits deliberately let Fureya win, not even having the intention to fight, how can it not be considered a rigged fight!” Rosh’s voice sounded somewhat angry.

Over these fifteen days, she had sustained who knows how many injuries, stayed up who knows how many nights to finally make it to Supreme Grandmaster with difficulty, and all Fureya had to do was stand there. She just needed to stand there and a bunch of Holy Spirits would come and engage in rigged fights for her!

“The meaning of a rigged fight implies that Fureya has bought off those challengers, having them throw the match. That could be considered a rigged fight, but what could a weak, helpless, and pitiful automaton possibly have to bribe those Holy Spirits with?” Jiang Qiao’s words plunged Rosh into deep thought.

Seeing Rosh deep in thought, Jiang Qiao suddenly remembered that saying, ‘From the judges to the players, and even the spectators, they are all Fureya’s people. How can you fight against Fureya?’

“Out of affection,” Rosh pondered for a while before voicing the answer he was reluctant to believe. “Devouring God, over these fifteen days, I’ve also been investigating the social structure of the Holy Spirits, as well as their way of life. The name Fureya seems to be one that every Holy Spirit automated doll possesses.”

“It seems you’re not like the others, who only know how to fight blindly,” Jiang Qiao sounded somewhat relieved that Rosh could understand so quickly.

“Holy Spirits are a group that very easily develops affection for… beings other than Holy Spirits, gods, Magic Thieves, planar pirates; as long as one has a good appearance, there is a high chance to gain the Holy Spirits’ favor. But I didn’t expect they would go so far for the favor of an automaton…” Rosh watched the Holy Spirits performing their farcical falls in front of Fureya. She had thought their affection for her would only extend to helping her with various tasks.

“This is just the basics; you must have experienced the convenience of interacting with the Holy Spirits during this time as well, right?” Jiang Qiao said.

During this period, Rosh has become half a game NPC. The reason she is only half is that she might leave Holy Spirit City at any moment, but Rosh has also mastered how to be an NPC, which includes issuing all sorts of quests to the players.

Most of the quests Rosh is currently offering involve collecting various materials on Biland Island, with rewards in Divine Power Crystals and Holy Spirit currency, and just like a plush rabbit, Rosh can also prepare delicious meals.

Sometimes in the city… the thought would occur to her that opening a restaurant here after retiring might be a good choice?

But she quickly snuffed out this idea.

“Do you want to be welcomed by the Holy Spirits like Fureya?” Jiang Qiao asked.

“I just want to know how to make the Holy Spirits… not take the duels so seriously.”

Rosh is not a warrior who focuses on her own glory; she is more like a policeman with a strong sense of justice. To capture criminals, she also hoped that the Holy Spirits would go easy on her in the arena, throwing the fight or acting a bit.

“I can help you with that, including boosting your popularity and shaping your image, but the premise is… you are willing to settle permanently in this city.”

Jiang Qiao whispered this condition in Rosh’s ear, not forgetting that the initial purpose of the Holy Spirit challenge was to retain SSR-tier characters like Rosh.

Her Eternal bloodline was only part of her; the Holy Spirits valued more the God of Blazing Flame bloodline within her. That was the reason Rosh was rated as SSR-tier because the God of Blazing Flame bloodline within her has a large following of believers. Therefore, Rosh is actually a high-ranking deity, it’s just that she herself does not wish to accept that power.

“I… refuse. I came to this city only to chase Thorne! The Devouring God, as a disaster, is destined to be the target we must eliminate.”

Rosh still resisted Jiang Qiao’s temptation, devilish in its allure, and pushed away the orb of light that was close to her ear.

“Is that so? You’ve lived here for fifteen days… Do you still think the Holy Spirits are evil?”

“I…” Rosh didn’t know how to answer, but the orb of light Jiang Qiao had formed by her ear faded away.

“I’ll give you more time to think about it, and it’s okay if you can’t come up with an answer. By the way, if you want to establish an official organization, like the Rosh Gang or something, you can contact me.” After saying that, Jiang Qiao’s voice faded away.

Rosh Gang?

Her gaze shifted to beyond the arena where Fureya was located; two Holy Spirits who had completed the quest she assigned came looking for Rosh to claim their reward.

Rosh had eyes that could discern the good from the bad; the Holy Spirits were definitely not evil, no matter how strange their actions were.

However, what Rosh felt fortunate about was… she didn’t need to be enemies with the Holy Spirits for the time being. Her mission was to capture Thorne and bring him back; eliminating the descendants of the Devouring God was only of secondary importance.

She just needed to maintain her current way of life.

“Boss… Are you really not considering opening a shop?”

“I know the chairman of the Bubbles, he will be very willing to have you open a shop in the city.”

“My only goal now is to win the Holy Spirit challenge, and that is all,” Rosh told the surrounding Holy Spirits who were attracted by her charismatic personality… repeating a line she didn’t know how many times she had said before.