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Equipment change!

He An didn’t know how to react for a moment. It wasn’t like this was against the rules. Even in the Pro League, it was ok to switch your equipment out whenever, so long as it was in your inventory. With the freedom of switching equipment, it seemed to be very useful for differing situations, but the problem was that too much equipment caused your character’s weight to increase, affecting the character’s jumping and movement.

In the online game, it didn’t really matter. However, in the Pro League, this tiny difference could mean the difference between life and death. So if you wanted to bring equipment into the field, you couldn’t bring too much, or else you’d be dragged down by the weight of the equipment. Usually, characters would carry extra accessories, since accessories were relatively lighter so the weight wasn’t as evident.

But Lord Grim?

He An looked over the equipment on Lord Grim. He was completely different from head to toe. His headgear, shoulderpads, top, trousers, belt, shoes, which one was the same? They had all changed!

This sort of full reequip was obsolete in today’s Glory. You could only find this reckless playstyle in the early days, when players were still figuring out different strategies for Glory PVP.

This had to be Ye Qiu!

He An stared blankly at the completely rearmoured Lord Grim. He felt like only a God who had survived from those ancient times like Ye Qiu could think of a strategy like this. It was far too outdated!

Yet, was there anything impractical about this strategy?

No, none at all...

Lord Grim had already wiped out two members of Team Everlasting and had the upper hand all throughout his exchange with He An’s Go Forth. And this was done under the weight of all that equipment. Since it hadn’t had a visible effect on his performance at all, his strategy was completely viable.　What was the equipment on Lord Grim?

He An’s mouse moved rapidly.

Headgear… There was no need to click into that. This tall, pointy hat was the Great Witch’s Hat, right?

As for the top… There didn’t seem to be a need to look into either. Cloud Flow Battle Robe was something Qi Masters usually wore.

Pants, belt, shoulder pads, shoes, cloak, necklace, badge, etc.　Some were easily recognized, others He An had to move his mouse over them to make sure.

In reality, after seeing the equipment he could recognize, He An had already obtained a conclusion. He knew what the other equipment did without having to look.　Lord Grim’s attire consisted entirely of mana replenishing equipment to help a character endure for longer, especially those that He An recognized immediately; they were all reputable pieces of equipment in game.

After all, endurance was something needed in PvE, which could drag on. As for PvP, the lack of mana was a rare situation. No matter what class, one full bar of mana was more than enough to kill a character.

But now, Lord Grim was using these pieces of equipment that were rarely used in PvP.

It was because his character really was facing the awkwardness of running out of mana.

He had been prepared!

He An realized that now. Since the participating characters had to be prepared before they gave in the lineup, these pieces of equipment couldn’t have been added when Lord Grim realized he had to fight three people. From the individual competitions onwards, Lord Grim had been carrying the equipment and would continue to do so all the way through the team competition.

Yet, would there still be a team competition now?

Lord Grim’s mana was replenishing at a visible pace and he wasn’t impatient anymore at all. He An didn’t have his Go Forth attack either; he just stood there casually.　He couldn’t let this drag on!

He An suddenly returned to reality.　Even if he had a set of mana replenishing equipment, his mana would still be consumed faster than it could recover in a fast paced match. He should press on, keeping Lord Grim’s mana at the brink of being used up. If he didn’t hang onto this advantage, how else could he win this opponent.

Thinking of this, He An didn’t dare dawdle. Go Forth hurriedly charged forward, sending out Sword and Wave Formation skills. This time, he didn’t do it to show off the amount of mana he had, he really wanted to hurry and suppress Lord Grim.

The current Lord Grim wasn’t as strong as he was before! That was what He An told himself. Lord Grim currently only aimed for mana recovery, even having Purple equipment on him. As opposed to the combination of Silver and Orange he had before, the stats of his current equipment definitely weren’t as good as before.

But He An soon realized that he was still helpless against Lord Grim.

Lord Grim’s equipment may have fallen by a grade, but the player behind him was above He An by who knows how many grades.　He An thought that Lord Grim would use this set of equipment to restore some mana before switching back to the stronger set and mounting an offense. He hadn’t thought Lord Grim would actively attack with this set of equipment.

However, this wave of attacks wasn’t nearly as overwhelming as before. It seemed like he was casually sparring, so He An wasn’t losing too badly.

Yet, during this exchange of blows, He An’s heart ached when he saw the other’s mana keep rising. If this continued then it was all over! If he lost this round, Team Everlasting and the futures of their team members would be in jeopardy.

He couldn’t lose!

He An’s fighting spirit roared. His hand speed erupted. Grasping onto an opportunity, he let himself tank the damage and did a tri-wave attack, sending out three Sword skills at Lord Grim.

Lord Grim didn’t waste any time either, lifting his gun and shooting. Amidst the gunshots, his character leaped backwards. He was using Aerial Fire to retreat.

He An’s magnificent counterattack had only just started, when it ended with the opponent’s retreat. Lord Grim had Aerial Fire and Shadow Clone and Rotor Wing. His retreat was just as skillful as his combos.

He An really wanted to cry. His burning spirit petered out . He really didn’t know how to deal with this opponent anymore. Though he knew he had to keep close to Lord Grim, the other managed to get away so easily. This made him realize that keeping a hold of Lord Grim was just as difficult as escaping from his control.

How hard was it to get away from Lord Grim after he decided to stick to you? He An had experienced it in the last round, and after today, their Warlock and Qi Master could answer that question for everyone as well.

While He An was over here in a sticky situation, the audience had exploded.

Lord Grim had changed equipment under their eyes. Just the speed at which he switched out equipment could show how skilled he was. As for the equipment he had switched into, like He An, the audience knew what he was planning after a few glances.

What a dirty move, to have brought mana replenishing equipment from the start!

As the side that opposed Lord Grim, no one would think that Ye Xiu was sagacious for thinking of this strategy. He was just playing dirty.

The faceslappers were cursing all over the place in the chat channel, while Everlasting’s fans were terrified. They were the the ones who really cared about the results of this match. Seeing Lord Grim come up with this, they realized that Team Everlasting’s plan had become futile. Now how would He An deal with Lord Grim?

The scene in the match ruined their confidence in He An.

He couldn’t beat him or trap him. This match raised the hopes of Everlasting’s fans high and then smashed it against the ground.

He An hastily tried to get Go Forth to find a chance and attack. Everyone could see by now that he was a mess. Go Forth’s attacks still had a method to them, but they had lost their sense of direction. He An was improvising. As for Lord Grim? He was calmly dealing with He An’s attacks, occasionally counterattacking. His counterattacks weren’t fierce and everyone knew this was purposeful. Lord Grim’s mana bar was slowly filling up even as he fought. This sort of thing would rarely happen even if you wore a full set of mana replenishing equipment. Lord Grim was keeping a very slow pace for himself. Yet even at such a pace, He An couldn’t obtain any sort of advantage, It was as if he was a huge wave and Lord Grim was a piece of driftwood. No matter how tumultuous he got, that piece of driftwood would never sink.

Under this rhythm, Lord Grim’s mana was pulled back to half full. Everyone knew that Lord Grim wouldn’t draw this out for lo nger than he needed to. He was waiting for when he had enough mana to launch a counterattack.

Everyone knew this.

That included He An.

However, he had no way of dealing with this. Helplessness coiled around around him. He started to remember how he started playing Glory, how he worked so hard in improving his skills yet never had an opportunity to show them off, how he was discovered by the eliminated Team Everlasting. He had wanted to climb to the top, but was his journey about to end here?

Yes, it was.

As soon as his mana hit 50%, Lord Grim’s pace changed, turning to the offensive. He An, who was unable to compose himself any longer, was quickly and completely suppressed. It was Go Forth who became a tiny boat amidst the raging waves, but this boat wasn’t stable. The waves were smashing it, making it creak and bringing it onto the verge of being torn asunder.　　It was over...

He An’s complexion went pale. His hands were still moving, but his mind was blank; he didn’t even know what his hands were doing.

Glory!

As the word flashed on the screen, He An’s hands left his keypad and mouse and he buried his head into them. His palms felt wet; he was crying.

It’s not that I don’t want to try, but I really can’t win!