The mountain rain wasn't just threatening, it had truly arrived.

At both ends of the canyon, from the restricted zones of the player characters, groups of NPCs surged out like a tide. The shouts of battle and the sound of footsteps reverberated together, and dust quickly flew in the canyon, converging towards the center. At the same time, the hidden ambush troops on the cliff faces on both sides also began to take action, paying attention to the situation below while gathering towards the central section of the canyon.

All of this was clearly visible to everyone outside the arena, but Ye Xiu and Sun Xiang were still unaware. The two continued to remain still. It wasn't until the two ends approached closer and closer, sounds were heard, and flickering figures gradually began to appear in the corner of their vision.

The two still didn't move.

At this moment, it was no longer just a competition of patience, or even concentration, but also a test of composure.

With the interference of these NPCs, the two would have to make a move sooner or later, but now, it depended on who could endure until the very last moment before moving.

In a typical match, players would eagerly compete to be the first, afraid that their actions wouldn't be fast enough to get ahead of their opponent. But today, in this match between Ye Xiu and Sun Xiang, the two had suppressed the situation to such an extent that it seemed like whoever moved first would lose.

In reality, of course, it wasn't that absolute. Moving first at this time might even allow one to seize the initiative. But neither of them was willing to take that risk.

Yes, a risk.

What was clearly just a simple situation of starting an attack from a stationary position was actually being treated as a risk by the two of them. The degree of caution and prudence displayed by the two in this match could only be described as insane. If it weren't for this, they would never have been able to achieve such a stalemate.

But while it was one thing for Ye Xiu to act this way, what surprised the pro players even more was Sun Xiang. Could this arrogant, impatient young man actually suppress his emotions and compete with his opponent in patience and composure?

In their opinion, this was simply using one's weaknesses to attack the other's strengths. This kind of stalemate wasn't just a matter of throwing the mouse and keyboard aside and sitting there in a daze. It required a high degree of concentration and a constant maintenance of a calm and peaceful state of mind.

Anyone could do this for a short period, but it was difficult to maintain this kind of emotional stability for a long time, especially given that it didn't match Sun Xiang's usual personality. Not many people were optimistic that he could control this style.

And right now, he was about to face a major test. The event had refreshed, and the NPC teams were closing in. The already narrow canyon was blocked by the two groups of NPCs, making it impossible to pass through. The next thing to consider was no longer just the opponent's problem.

Time was counting down, and the distance was shrinking. The NPCs on both ends had formed their ranks, displaying their battle formations. In Glory, NPCs were also divided according to the player character's class system, but their skill trees were much simpler. Ordinary NPCs usually only had one or two skills, while Boss-level NPCs generally had three to five. Very few had complete skill trees. However, cross-class hybrids were quite common.

And the charge after the event refresh had been briefly shown during the previous introduction. If one was attentive enough, they should have taken note of the NPC team's class composition and combat style at that time.

Neither Happy nor Samsara had ignored this point, and at this time, the formations spread out by the two groups of NPCs were exactly the same as those shown during the previous demonstration.

The first rank seemed to be of the Knight class. After approaching to a certain distance, they all raised their shields, and immediately both ends were only shields and no people. Lord Grim and One Autumn Leaf seemed to be sealed in a square box.

Then, booming sounds of cannons rang out. Hidden behind the Knight's shield formations, the gun-wielding classes of both teams launched their attacks first, using the exact same skill: Cluster Shot.

Cluster Shot, ten each!

This was also something that both teams had noticed during the previous introduction. At this time, it was indeed this number. In addition, the timing of the launch was also completely consistent. As for the flight trajectory, everyone had originally been guessing whether it would be adjusted due to the presence of the two player characters in the middle, but it now seemed that it still retained the rhythm of the previous introduction. In other words, so far, the two NPC teams were still ignoring Lord Grim and One Autumn Leaf, and the Cluster Shots were not targeting the two of them as the main targets.

Bang bang bang bang bang...

Immediately afterwards, the Cluster Shots bloomed in the air like fireworks. Each Cluster Shot contained eight sub-projectiles, for a total of one hundred and sixty. The extent of the spread meant that although Lord Grim and One Autumn Leaf had not changed the NPCs' attack rhythm, they had ultimately been enveloped in the area.

These two, have they really been holding back to this extent? They're not moving even though the sub-projectiles are about to hit them?

They moved!

The first to move was actually Lord Grim. In the end, was it Ye Xiu who couldn't hold back first?

Ordinary viewers who didn't understand the subtleties of this situation didn't think much of it. Many might have even thought that Ye Xiu's reaction was fast. But the pro players were all greatly surprised. They never thought that Sun Xiang would be even more composed than Ye Xiu?

Now that Lord Grim had moved first, Sun Xiang could finally aim and attack from behind. But then he saw Lord Grim raise his arms, his hands dancing in a dazzling blur.

Sun Xiang was crying...

Shadow Clone Technique!

Lord Grim had used this skill. Confrontation, patience, both sides were waiting for the best time to strike, and had waited until the NPCs had surrounded them. Ye Xiu couldn't hold back any longer, he made the first move, Lord Grim moved, and ran away...

Dragon Breaks the Ranks!

Having already realized that something was wrong, Sun Xiang instantly reacted with the fastest response and the fastest hand speed. One Autumn Leaf lifted his spear, Evil Annihilation, and charged forward, instantly shattering Lord Grim.

Sun Xiang's heart sank.

Shattered, meaning it was a Shadow Clone. The Shadow Clone Technique had been used, and Lord Grim had left this position.

Where?

Sun Xiang raised One Autumn Leaf's perspective. The first thing he saw was a sub-projectile landing right on his face. There was no time to dodge.

Boom!

The explosive power of the sub-projectile wasn't that great, but it was no problem to cover a head. At this moment, One Autumn Leaf's head seemed to explode.

Through the blurry vision of the flames, Sun Xiang saw that Lord Grim was now squatting on a protrusion on the mountain wall. But to prevent any accidents, his right-hand ninja blade had been firmly inserted into the mountain wall. Sun Xiang had only taken one glance, and Lord Grim had already swung out, skillfully using the ninja blade to climb the mountain wall.

Confrontation? Patience? Waiting for the best time to strike? Whoever moves first loses?

Sun Xiang really didn't know if Ye Xiu had ever had this kind of thought in mind. Perhaps it was like this at the beginning, but it changed with the changing situation. Or perhaps all of this was a fabricated illusion from the beginning, simply a trap to draw him into the current situation...

After the Cluster Shot's covering bombardment, the two NPC teams continued to move forward. In the pre-match introduction and demonstration, the next step was the Knights' charge, followed by the fierce collision of the shields on both ends.

The current situation was the same. The Knights in the left and right rows had charged out with their shields, but this time they had an extra One Autumn Leaf among them. Sun Xiang was like a dab of cream in a sandwich.

Clang clang clang clang...

The shields collided with each other in succession, emitting heavy and piercing friction sounds. One Autumn Leaf was finally not squeezed into cream. The Dragon Breaks the Ranks from before allowed him to charge to the foot of the mountain wall. At this time, he jumped up, stepped on the mountain wall, and the height of the second-stage Folded Cloud allowed him to jump above the colliding shields at the critical moment.

Dragon Tooth, Twin Stab, plus a thrust from a normal attack.

Floating four consecutive stabs were completed in an instant, stabbing into the mountain wall, and accurately stabbing into the same position. The sharp Evil Annihilation battle spear finally pierced through. One Autumn Leaf was suspended in mid-air like this, his lower body curled up, his legs tucked in mid-air, in order to avoid being hit by the NPCs below.

"Not bad at all!" Ye Xiu's praise immediately appeared in the chat. Sun Xiang raised his perspective and saw that Ye Xiu had found another protrusion on the mountain wall. Lord Grim was sitting steadily on it. This time, the ninja blade was put away, and the Myriad Manifestations Umbrella was held flat in his right hand, the tip of the umbrella was dark and hollow, revealing the muzzle. His left hand pinched a grenade. As soon as Sun Xiang raised One Autumn Leaf's head, the grenade was thrown down, followed by boom boom boom, three Anti-Tank Missiles fired.

Hanging in mid-air with difficulty, clutching Evil Annihilation and curling his legs, One Autumn Leaf was already in a mess. How could he dodge such an attack? But at the moment the grenade landed and the Anti-Tank Missiles hit, One Autumn Leaf's figure suddenly shrunk, as if he was squeezed out of the void.

Instant Shift!

In the previous round of the competition, the skill that Sun Xiang had chosen for One Autumn Leaf's weapon modification was Instant Shift. This round, it was still the same.

The attack was avoided, and One Autumn Leaf seemed to be able to use this Instant Shift to find a temporary foothold.

But Lord Grim had already raised his right leg at this time and kicked out.

Forward Kick!

Then, a figure pulled out of the void was seen, crashing right into this kick. One Autumn Leaf was kicked away.

The spectating pro players shook their heads and sighed. When it comes to playing mind games, even ten Sun Xiangs tied together are probably no match for Ye Xiu!