Reign of the Hunters

Chapter 144

There was a unique chill in the Blitz Cavern. It was unlike the cold in any other dungeon. The cold air in the Blitz Cavern was something that would chill players to their bones. It was so cold that it induced pain. The source of this coldness was the Frost Gem hanging right above the boss. The cold would not deal damage to players, nor would it cause any debuffs. However, for such a highly realistic game like Fate, staying in a cold place for such a long time would cause some discomfort to the players.

For example, having cold feet or hands.

Right at this moment, Ye Ci's fingers were very cold. They were so pale and rigid that it was as if they were icicles. She could no longer feel her fingers. Ye Ci took in a deep breath and sucked in a lungful of air so cold that it could almost freeze her very thoughts.

Ye Ci and Fleeting Time faced each other in a stalemate.

They were separated only by a small distance, slightly more than 8 yards. Whoever that took a small step forward would enter the danger zone for Hunters, which was 8 yards.

8 yards was a very dangerous distance for the Hunter class. As long as a target was beyond 8 yards, a Hunter could engage the target using bow and arrows, but once the target had managed to close in on the Hunter up to the range of 8 yards, the Hunter would be forced to engage the enemy using only melee weapons. Although the Hunter class could equip similar weapons as the Warrior class, they were not good in melee combat. The traits of the Hunter class meant that they were unable to deal high amount of damage in melee, and they did not have high amounts of HP or defense.

That was why there had been a saying among players: If you were able to get within 8 yards of a Hunter, then the Hunter was as good as dead.

This was why the distance of 8 yards from a Hunter was also dubbed as the "Death Zone" for the Hunter Class.

However, that condition applied only to the rest of the melee classes and did not include Fleeting Time, who was also a Hunter. Although Ye Ci remained wary, she was not overly worried. The only thing that alarmed her was the fact that she had never fought in close quarters against Fleeting Time.

She had never done it in her last life, nor had she done it in her current life.

The only knowledge Ye Ci had of Fleeting Time was of the ferocity of his ranged attacks. As for how he would perform in a melee fight... She knew nothing.

In actuality, the Hunter class was a physical damage output class armed with a wide array of means to deal damage to their enemies. They could engage their enemies in ranged combat and fight them up close and personal as well. Despite having few melee combat abilities, they could be used to deal staggering amounts of damage to enemies. However, 99% of the Hunter class players tend to focus more on developing their ranged combat prowess while totally ignoring their ability in melee combat.

The reason was none other than the Hunter class' lack of damage in melee combat. Hunters made the worst melee fighters in the game. But if two Hunters engaged each other in melee combat, the outcome would be uncertain.

Ye Ci studied Fleeting Time intently, fearing that she would miss any detail. Fleeting Time did the same as well.

With each passing second, Fleeting Time knew that the battle would be lost if he did not act. And "losing" was not in his dictionary. Fleeting Time let out a breath and narrowed his eyes. He was not mistaken, Gongzi You was on high alert. She would definitely notice even the slightest of his movements.

After a brief pause, he lowered his body slightly and began moving to his left.

The time was now.

Ye Ci began to move as well, dashing towards Fleeting Time's right. But in the blink of an eye, Ye Ci was startled when Fleeting Time disappeared from her view.

That's right. Fleeting Time had disappeared.

It was definitely not the effect of Fleeting Time entering stealth. He had disappeared into thin air in the blink of an eye. This was something Ye Ci had not expected. Although Ye Ci was a skillful player, she was still a human being. She could still be startled by something that was totally out of her expectations. However, she took in a breath, calmed herself down and jumped backwards.

Before she landed, Ye Ci realized her mistake.

You should never show your back to the enemy. Although Ye Ci could not see Fleeting Time, activating backwards jump enabled her to jump back a considerable distance, but rendered her unable to turn around. This meant that her back was exposed. If Fleeting Time showed up behind her as she landed, it would be the end of her.

There were 15 seconds left until the end of the battle.

Ye Ci had never felt such unease. She was even afraid that the duel between her and Fleeting Time would come to an end right when she landed.

Sometimes, life's a bitch. The thing that you're afraid of the most would happen to you.

Ye Ci's right arm was twisted and pinned to her back the moment she landed. Her left hand was also pinned as well. She lost the ability to fight back. Ye Ci's heart was gripped by coldness. Had she lost?

"There's just been too many distractions in these 5 minutes. Do you want to fight for another 5 minutes?" Fleeting Time stood behind Ye Ci, pinning her hands to her back. There was a hint of delight in his voice.

Ye Ci glanced at the timer. There were 10 seconds left. She could not accept it. 10 seconds. 10 more seconds. In the end, she had lost.

"If you remain silent, I'll just take it as a yes then." Fleeting Time then grabbed the flag on Ye Ci's back and pushed her away.

Ye Ci staggered forward. The crazed roars of Black Plum Guild and Awing the Heavens members filled her ears. She then heard the icy cold voice of the system notification, "You have lost the flag. If you are able to reacquire the flag, the countdown timer will continue. The battlefield will reset if you fail to secure the flag within 5 seconds."

5 second left.

Ye Ci immediately turned around dashed towards Fleeting Time. She drew her dagger as she approached Fleeting Time.

Fleeting Time however, had no intention of defending himself or fighting back. He merely backed away from Ye Ci. He was agile, dodging left and right, always staying ahead of Ye Ci. All of her skills landed on thin air.

1 second left.

Ye Ci's eyes had almost redded. She let out a loud shout and pounced forward at Fleeting Time, aiming her dagger at his throat.

Fleeting Time smiled as he looked at Ye Ci. He opened his mouth to speak, but...

Ye Ci realized that her target had disappeared. Unable to stop her forward momentum, Ye Ci fell hard onto the ground.

She then heard a system notification, "Your target is no longer online."

Ye Ci was puzzled...

In such a crucial moment, Fleeting Time was disconnected from the game.

Are you kidding me? Are you f*cking kidding me?