Chapter 43: They're Such Drama Queens
It was just another ordinary day out in the wilderness.
A gentle breeze swept across the fields, making the flowers and grass sway softly. Leaves rustled in the trees, with the occasional one drifting lazily to the ground. Nearby, a small river flowed at an unhurried pace, its crystal-clear water revealing several smooth, rounded stones on the riverbed.
An ordinary map.
Blue Sky Beyond posted the YY voice chat link, asking the healer they had matched with to join the channel.
Although the four members of Little Vegetable Guild were all skilled players, they had only recently formed a team. On top of that, Xiao Chi and Blue Sky Beyond rarely played battlefields, so their ratings were practically nonexistent. Their average matchmaking rating wasn't high, so the opponents and teammates they encountered at first were all low-rated players.
Their healer turned out to be a complete newbie. He had only started playing Quest for the Azure Heavens recently, and this was his very first battlefield. He'd never imagined he'd run into top-tier players on his first try.
The problem was... being new, he didn't recognize any of them. He didn't even recognize Divine Weapons.
[Team] Killbreaking Wolf: Wow, bro! Why is your weapon glowing? That's so freaking cool!!
[Team] Blue Sky Beyond: ...
[Team] Thousand Feathers: It's a Divine Weapon.
[Team] Killbreaking Wolf: Do you get that from battlefield points? Or does it drop from dungeons? Can healers get one too? I wanna get one just for fun.
[Team] Blue Sky Beyond: Best of luck.
On YY, Blue Sky Beyond said gravely, "I've got a bad feeling about this."
Thousand Feathers was blunt. "I think we still need to find ourselves a permanent healer."
Killbreaking Wolf joined the voice chat. He was obviously excited, talking nonstop. He sounded quite young.
"Whoa, it's my first battlefield, and it's this professional? We've even got a commander? Who's calling the shots? Is it the big bro carrying that glowing greatsword? Big bro, are you super strong? Can I become your disciple?!"
Endless Time replied, "...You're a healer. I'm a Sword Cultivator."
"Oh. Never mind."
Blue Sky Beyond burst out laughing. "Hahaha! Little bro, I like your spirit. Why don't you become my disciple instead?"
"But you're a Buddhist cultivator. I'm a healer."
"You weren't saying that to Endless Time just now."
"A pro told me not to take a master from a different class. I'll listen to the pro."
[Wait... is Killbreaking Wolf Blue Sky Beyond's long-lost apprentice? These two never stop talking.]
[Xiao Chi literally can't find a chance to get a word in.]
[Xiao Chi's been silent forever. With those two doing comedy routines, he's having the time of his life just coasting through the stream.]
They'd figured him out.
Xiao Chi turned on his stream mic, gave a strategic cough, and said, "I don't want to distract everyone during the battlefield, so I'll just focus on listening to the commander from here on."
Then he muted himself again.
Coasting really was wonderful.
After streaming all day, he was mentally exhausted.
Playing games wasn't tiring, but constantly thinking of things to say while playing was. Normally, streaming four hours in an evening was manageable, but these past two days he'd been making up missed hours by streaming twelve hours straight. He felt like he'd completely run out of things to talk about.
Now that Blue Sky Beyond and Killbreaking Wolf were performing a full-blown comedy act, he couldn't have been happier.
On top of that, Endless Time had started giving commands again, so there wasn't a dull moment on stream.
"The enemy lineup is two Ghost Cultivators, a Demon Cultivator, a Dao Cultivator, and a Healer. Hmm... two Ghost Cultivators is a difficult composition to play well. You only need one infiltrator—why bring two? Xiao Chi, with me. We'll deal with both Ghost Cultivators. Blue Sky Beyond, keep the Demon Cultivator occupied. Thousand Feathers, pin down the Dao Cultivator and cut off their route to support the Ghost Cultivators. Killbreaking Wolf, stay with Blue Sky Beyond and keep your distance. Don't let the Demon Cultivator get on top of you."
"This map's terrain is pretty straightforward. Killbreaking Wolf, remember to use the rocks and trees scattered across the grass for cover."
"Move."
The five of them charged forward.
The enemy team's strategy was obvious—they wanted to eliminate Killbreaking Wolf, the healer, first. The Demon Cultivator and Sword Cultivator flanked from opposite sides. The two Ghost Cultivators originally intended to attack from the front and rear to form a pincer, but before they could, Endless Time and Xiao Chi rushed straight at them instead, trapping them in a pincer.
Endless Time opened with a slash that sent one Ghost Cultivator flying into the other. The two crashed together and tumbled into a heap.
Without waiting for further instructions, Xiao Chi immediately cast an immobilization followed by a weakening debuff. Endless Time's ultimate came crashing down, instantly chopping away a full third of both Ghost Cultivators' health bars.
"That's awesome!" Killbreaking Wolf still had enough composure to watch the fight. Every now and then he'd toss Blue Sky Beyond a small heal, then run over to Thousand Feathers and apply a heal-over-time effect.
The enemy healer had originally been following behind the Demon Cultivator, but upon seeing the Ghost Cultivators in trouble, immediately rushed over to support them.
Endless Time gave another command. "Thousand Feathers, your top priority is to hold back the healer and Demon Cultivator. Watch your HP. Killbreaking Wolf, go heal Thousand Feathers."
Meanwhile, Endless Time and Xiao Chi worked together flawlessly, bringing down the two Ghost Cultivators in no time.
But when they turned around to reinforce Thousand Feathers… Thousand Feathers was hanging on by a thread.
The enemy healer and Demon Cultivator had realized things were going badly and desperately tried to force their way toward the Ghost Cultivators. Confident with healing backing him up, the Demon Cultivator recklessly charged straight at Thousand Feathers with every attack. Killbreaking Wolf, however, was still a beginner. As soon as the fight became chaotic, he completely lost his composure. First he hit the wrong hotkey and accidentally charged straight into the enemy formation, where the Demon Cultivator slashed him with a claw attack. Then the enemy healer launched him into the air with a knock-up skill, causing him to miss the crucial timing for Thousand Feathers's heal.
By the time Endless Time and Xiao Chi rushed over, Thousand Feathers was hanging on by a sliver of health.
Killbreaking Wolf, meanwhile, had lost half his HP and was still running around like a headless chicken.
Endless Time sighed. "...Stay calm, Killbreaking Wolf. Get your bearings."
Fortunately, Endless Time and Xiao Chi had arrived in time. The five of them regrouped and surrounded the remaining three members of the enemy team, wiping them out.
After the match, Killbreaking Wolf was still brimming with enthusiasm. "Another round?"
"Sure," Endless Time said. Before queuing again, though, he gave Killbreaking Wolf a crash course on the healer class, helping him familiarize himself with his healing skills.
The second map was much more complicated. It was an ancient battlefield, littered with discarded shields and enormous boulders, with uneven terrain rising and falling across the landscape.
This time, their opponents were more experienced. The moment they recognized Endless Time and The Light Boat Has Passed on the enemy team, they abandoned any thought of a head-on fight and instead began kiting them around the map.
Against a team like that, Killbreaking Wolf couldn't keep up with the healing. Before long, he was picked off by enemies hiding behind cover.
Without a healer, the remaining four had a difficult fight. They barely scraped out a victory with everyone left at critical health.
[Not gonna lie, Killbreaking Wolf really needs a mentor.]
[He's just not on the same level as Endless Time's group. The matches aren't nearly as satisfying to watch.]
[Can they get a different healer? Why drag a newbie along?]
[Go easy on the newcomer.]
[Endless Time has such a good temper. Seriously, his emotional stability is unreal. I queued with randoms once and got flamed to death]
[+1 Xiao Chi, you've got it good.]
After the second match ended and they exited the battlefield, Blue Sky Beyond spoke with a straight face. "Killbreaking Wolf, I really think you need a master. Also... can you seriously not position yourself at all?"
Killbreaking Wolf answered with complete confidence. "That's right! I've only been playing for three days! I just started during summer vacation! I even bought this account!"
Blue Sky Beyond: "..."
Thousand Feathers replied earnestly, "Then you should go read the beginner healer guides on the forums first."
"What forums?"
"Just search for the Quest for the Azure Heavens forums. Go to the Sect section. There are pinned beginner guides for every class."
Killbreaking Wolf obediently answered, "Got it! Thanks, bro! By the way... can I join your guild?"
As soon as he said it, he immediately quit his old guild and sent a guild application.
Looking at the application window, Xiao Chi felt obligated to explain. "Our Little Vegetable Guild is pretty small. We only have six members who log in regularly, and our guild's Sanctuary level isn't very high..."
Killbreaking Wolf looked completely unconcerned. "Oh. Does a low level matter? That's not important. The important thing is... do you have any healer players? Can I ask one of them to be my master? Although if you don't, that's okay too. I think Big Bro Endless Time is amazing. He's got such a nice temper. He didn't scold me once today. I've only been playing for three days, and people yell at me every single day."
...Endless Time really did have an exceptionally good temper.
Xiao Chi silently agreed to himself as he clicked Accept.
[Guild] Welcome, player [Killbreaking Wolf], to Little Vegetable Guild! Having joined our guild, we are now brothers and sisters of the same sect. Together we walk the great road beneath the azure sky.
[Guild] If A Dog Wants To Leave I Dont Stop It: ???
[Guild] Killbreaking Wolf: Hi everyone! I'm Killbreaking Wolf, a healer. I've only been playing for three days and don't know anything yet. I'm hoping to find a master who can teach me how to PvP. O(∩_∩)O~
[Guild] If A Dog Wants To Leave I Dont Stop It: You guys even managed to pick up a newbie while doing battlefields. Impressive.
[Guild] If A Dog Wants To Leave I Dont Stop It: Shame our guild doesn't have a PvP healer. We've only got one PvE healer.
Killbreaking Wolf didn't mind in the slightest. He quietly went off to read the beginner guides.
Meanwhile, the other four were discussing whether they should queue again and simply match with a random healer. Then Sister Dog suddenly shouted, "Holy crap! Quick! Look at World Chat!"
Her voice was so loud that not only did the four of them jump, but even the newcomer Killbreaking Wolf was startled.
"Aah! Miss! You scared me to death! My mom just rushed into my room and told me to turn my speakers down!"
Sister Dog ignored him. "Hurry, hurry! Misty Autumn Rain left Way of Heaven!"
The stream chat instantly exploded.
Xiao Chi opened World Chat and, sure enough, saw Misty Autumn Rain repeatedly posting the same message.
[World] Misty Autumn Rain: Healer looking for a guild. Available for both PvP and PvE. Experienced in all major dungeons. Very high battlefield rating.
[World] Flooding: 0.0
[World] Cake Master: 0.0
[World] Ink Glass: Sis, did Way of Heaven kick you out? What about that guild leader who's your in-game partner?
[World] Misty Autumn Rain: Healer looking for a guild. Available for both PvP and PvE. Experienced in all major dungeons. Very high battlefield rating.
[World] Cold Face: Heard she and Cold Sword Shadow had a falling-out, so she quit the guild. Counting on my fingers... weren't they game partners for less than a month?
World Chat was full of people gossiping, but Misty Autumn Rain ignored every single one of them, simply reposting her guild recruitment message every so often.
The four members of Little Vegetable Guild stood motionless in front of the battlefield NPC.
Blue Sky Beyond carefully broke the silence. "So..."
Thousand Feathers, on the other hand, was completely unabashed. "This is great! Misty Autumn Rain left Path of Heaven! Now we can invite her to join our team!"
Sister Dog sighed dramatically. "Thousand Feathers... I swear, you're really trying to destroy Little Vegetable Gang."
Killbreaking Wolf sounded confused. "...Why don't I understand any of this?"
Sister Dog replied, "Good boy, come here. I'll send you a YY link. Click it and read about the love-hate saga between our guild leader and the top players. Once you're done, you'll understand."
Killbreaking Wolf immediately fell silent. Clearly, he had obediently gone off to read the infamous "818" gossip thread.
Who knew which version of the story he'd end up reading.
For some reason, Xiao Chi suddenly felt a little nervous.
After saying, "I'll go ask one of my inside sources what happened," Sister Dog left.
The four remaining members stood outside the battlefield entrance. Endless Time asked, "Another queue?"
In other words, he wasn't planning on inviting Misty Autumn Rain.
Thousand Feathers asked, "Why? Because she confessed to you and got rejected?"
Xiao Chi immediately broke out in a cold sweat. He genuinely admired just how oblivious Thousand Feathers could be.
Thousand Feathers continued as if nothing had happened. "Brother Shi, didn't you say you wanted to build a championship-winning team this year? If we're going to win the championship, then we have to be determined enough to do whatever it takes. Next year I'll be busy preparing for my PhD applications, so I won't have nearly as much time to play. I want to win the championship this year."
Before Endless Time could answer, a graceful figure drifted through the crowd toward them.
The beautiful healer, dressed in flowing pink robes, spoke.
[Nearby] Misty Autumn Rain: Endless Time, didn't you invite me to join your battlefield team before?
[Nearby] Misty Autumn Rain: Well... now I can.
Xiao Chi's eyes widened.
The surrounding onlookers: ...
The viewers in the livestream: ...
Endless Time let out a helpless sigh. "Misty Autumn Rain's a good player. There's just one problem. She loves making a scene."
[Nearby] Endless Time: No.
[Nearby] Endless Time: I do whatever our guild leader, The Light Boat Has Passed, says.
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