https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-597-A-Few-Things-About-the-1v1-Mode/13548840/
https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-599-The-Expert-of-a-Lifetime-Middle-/13548842/
Chapter 598: A Peerless Expert's Tale (Part 1)
Chapter 598: A Peerless Expert's Tale (Part 1)
[Important Notice: Your item slot has been locked; your psionic weapon has been locked. Until this scenario ends, the only weapon you may use is the sword in your hand. All active skills outside of martial arts/skills will be inaccessible.]
"What?!" Feng Bu Jue had barely finished listening to the bizarre opening message when another absurd rule appeared.
And... this setting wasn't even finished yet...
[Secondary Notice: This scenario introduces a special stat, currently displayed in your game menu. Changes to this stat will directly influence your combat performance.]
Before the message faded, Feng Bu Jue had already opened his game menu. Below his Life, Body, and Spirit bars, he spotted the mysterious new stat.
"It's actually... Chic Value?!" Feng Bu Jue stared at the [Chic Value: +10] text in his menu, utterly stunned. The absurdity of this setting was off the charts—rivaling even the infamous "Protagonist's Grace" system.
[Main Quest Triggered]
[Kill all members of the opposing team]
Once the briefing and notifications ended, the mission prompt automatically appeared.
And with that, the battle officially began.
"Hey... if I can only use martial arts/skills and melee weapons..." Feng Bu Jue thought grimly, "this is seriously stacking the odds against me... That opponent's literally a top-tier expert in this field..."
Someone Feng Bu Jue acknowledged as a "top-tier expert" naturally possessed extraordinary abilities.
Standing atop the ridge of the roof at this very moment was precisely such a person...
Her figure was tall and graceful, her beauty ethereal. Under the moonlight, her pale skin radiated an almost hypnotic allure.
Her long white robes bore vivid crimson sakura patterns. A breeze stirred the fabric, making her seem like a drifting celestial being.
Today, Xu Huai Shang wielded her signature twin blades.
As for Feng Bu Jue... he held a newly acquired sword.
The gap in their familiarity with their respective weapons was astronomical—one factor alone that completely neutralized their technical skill difference.
In short... the advantage Feng Bu Jue had built through experience, level, and equipment vanished the moment he entered this scenario.
"Tch... This is unfair in every way", Feng Bu Jue grumbled mentally. "No wonder she's a goddess—does the system specially favor you or something?"
"Mad Bu Jue", Xu Huai Shang suddenly spoke, her tone cold and calm. "I've long awaited this rematch. I just didn't expect it to come so soon."
Feng Bu Jue remained silent for a moment after hearing this.
After about ten seconds, he finally replied, "Must we fight?"
Xu Huai Shang chuckled lightly. "Hmph... Why wouldn't we? This isn't a competition, and there's no audience. Are you afraid of losing?"
Unsurprisingly, the Xù goddess misinterpreted Feng Bu Jue's intent—prompting her to reply with utmost seriousness.
Sighing deeply, Feng Bu Jue slowly turned sideways, wedged the unsheathed sword between his arm and chest, then crossed his arms in a deliberately stylish pose.
"Amidst the drifting willow fluff beneath a hazy sky,
The azaleas bloom while their namesakes cry.
Why must you stay away when the year ends?
Who bears these moonlit sorrows and broken winds?"
After reciting a poem for no apparent reason, he glanced sideways at his opponent. "Xu Huai Shang... As the saying goes, falling petals have intent while flowing water remains indifferent. Why force yourself upon me so relentlessly?"
"Huh?!" Xu Huai Shang's face flushed crimson. Surprise, suspicion, annoyance, and amusement churned inside her. "What's wrong with you today?! Who do you think you're impressing with that cheesy act? Why does it sound like I'm throwing myself at you?!"
Before her words finished echoing, Xu Huai Shang suddenly realized something.
"Oh~ I get it..." Though slightly delayed, her sharp mind caught on. "You're trying to grind your Chic Value, aren't you?"
To her shock... as soon as those words left her mouth, her Chic Value plummeted by twenty points, dropping to -10.
"Damn it..." Her expression shifted instantly. "That absurd stat turned negative... Guess I shouldn't say anything serious anymore..." Her eyes flicked toward Feng Bu Jue in the distance. "But... doing middle school-level antics like him to raise this stat is just too humiliating!"
Indeed... profoundly humiliating. But... Feng Bu Jue didn't care one bit.
This was where the system maintained fairness. Since Xu Huai Shang gained the upper hand in straightforward combat, the system naturally provided Feng Bu Jue with a countermeasure—the Chic Value mechanic.
"Ah... The wind sure is noisy tonight..." Feng Bu Jue continued making idle conversation as he gazed at the moon, delivering another cringe-worthy line.
Xu Huai Shang couldn't retort, because every rebuttal she made cost her Chic Value...
"Hmph..." She flushed deeper, "Is the wind... crying out?"
"Huh?" Feng Bu Jue's eyes sharpened as he locked gazes with Xu Huai Shang. Mentally, he mused, "She actually played along! I thought someone like her wouldn't get it, but she really went with it!"
Meanwhile, Xu Huai Shang inwardly screamed, "No... no no no! This is unbearable! I thought saying it once would be fine, but it's still so shameful!"
Neither knowing the other's thoughts, both maintained their composed, icy exteriors.
"I can fight you..." Feng Bu Jue waited two seconds before speaking again. "But... can you truly handle my sword?"
"Why not?" Xu Huai Shang immediately replied.
"Because your heart hasn't stilled." Feng Bu Jue finished, then immediately thought, "What the hell was that excuse?!"
"How would you know?" Xu Huai Shang coldly asked.
"I just know." Feng Bu Jue shot back equally coldly.
Simultaneously, both mentally facepalmed. "Two raving lunatics!"
"Perhaps... an unsteady heart might actually be better", Xu Huai Shang tried redirecting the conversation, eager to start the fight. "After all, your sword hasn't stilled either."
"My sword..." Feng Bu Jue raised his blade one-handed, never drawing it from the sheath. "Yes, it trembles..." He paused. "But my heart... has long perished."
"Die already! Just go die! How shameless can you be?! I can barely look at myself anymore playing along with this nonsense!" Xu Huai Shang inwardly raged.
Though seething, she couldn't lash out, forced to keep up appearances. "Is that so? When exactly did it die?"
Feng Bu Jue snorted coldly, flipping his bangs back. "Hmph... Naturally from the moment I mastered 'That Move.'"
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
