Entering Phase Three.
Mu Yang's normal attacks and Sword Intent range have increased, with faster attack speed.
The targeted attack has also changed from single-target to a terrifying full-screen instant kill.
If players fail to interact with the statues in time, it's an immediate team wipe.
During this phase, a blizzard also begins falling from the sky.
While it doesn't accumulate Cold like Qiqi's ability,
it drops large ice chunks that inflict Cryo application on hit.
At first glance, Cryo application doesn't seem like a big deal—Mu Yang doesn't have other elemental attacks.
But the Koi does.
Like the White Snake, the Koi has three different skills:
「Bubble」: Spits a large bubble at a location, imprisoning anyone hit (can be broken by rapidly pressing spacebar).
「Water Pillar」: Summons a geyser at a designated spot. If not dodged in time, it launches players into the air for a duration. The pillar remains after activation.
「Torrent」: (A mini-version of "O Tide, I Have Returned"—simple and intuitive, right?).
[My head itches… feels like playing this game is giving me brain cells.]
[Shh, I'm busy spraying water.]
[Charge! Charge me up!]
Silver Wolf had already prepared a strategy—since the Koi's attacks alter the battlefield,
they couldn't lock it near the statue pedestal like the Whit Snake. Instead, they had to pull it farther away.
This time, they switched to controlling Mu Yang.
Silver Wolf and Kafka pulled Mu Yang to fight between the two statues,
while Guinaifen and Sparkle lured the Koi away.
They took turns tanking its skills, maintaining a steady rhythm.
When Mu Yang began charging his instant-kill attack, Guinaifen handled the dodging to prevent the Koi from switching targets,
making it easier for Sparkle to interact with the statue pedestal.
[Little Gui's so focused, I feel bad disturbing her.]
[One mistake wipes the whole team—you'd be nervous too.]
[I'd call this the "Friendship-Ender Event."]
[Four-player co-op, three hours later, and the voice chat's dead silent, huh?]
[It's all my fault, for staying silent when I should've spoken~♪]
This time, the streamers didn't mess up—everyone was on edge.
They successfully brought Mu Yang's HP down to a quarter,
triggering another cutscene...
Unlike the White Snake, the Koi didn't turn to stone. Instead, it leaped high into the air,
before a massive whirlpool formed on the ground.
this wasn't a tiger, but a 「Beast of Li」.
The Beast's eyes glowed red as it bared its claws and fangs, howling at the sky...
——————
Guinaifen dodged away from the massive whirlpool in the corner.
"Good thing Little Wolf played this before—imagine if this whirlpool stayed in the middle of the arena!"
As she said, this wasn't just a cutscene—
the whirlpool left on the battlefield had a restrictive effect.
The closer you got to the center, the harder it was to escape.
[Reminds me of Hearthstone's "Deathrattle" effect.]
[Wait, bro, I've never played Hearthstone, but "Deathrattle" sounds ominous (knife emoji).]
[This blue Beast of Li looks majestic.]
[That's a snow leopard. Trust me.]
[Mu Yang and His Animal Friends.]
The final phase had no fancy gimmicks—just pure combat.
Mu Yang's enrage leveled up, and the instant-kill mechanic required even faster reactions.
The Beast of Li also had three skills:
「Gale」: Targets a character with a chasing tornado until it switches to another.
「Pounce」: A long-range, wide-area charge attack.
「Bite」: Restrains a character and mauls them—rapidly pressing dodge can break free early.
[Reminds me of Kushala Daora.]
[Ah, the beloved "dragon dash" of us Sapphire Stars (laughs).]
[Monster Hunter, is it?]
[More like Monster Torturer—the streamer's about to cry.]
The final phase was brutal, mainly because the tornado targeted randomly,
and someone always had to kite it while watching for the Beast's pounce.
Naturally, the streamer team wiped.
Their voice chat fell into stunned silence—
only managing to lament how absurdly hard this was. Is this even meant for humans?!
But sometimes, for clout and cash, you gotta tough it out.
So they queued up again...
——————
Mu Yang exited to check Bilibili, curious if more players had cleared by now.
Instead, trending was: —"The Legend of Mu Yang's Sword Challenge: A Grand Documentary"
The video began with a familiar voice:
"It's not that 5-star characters aren't worth it—but upgrade materials offer better value."
"Give him one event, and he'll break the entire playerbase with sheer difficulty."
"Turning lively voice chats into mute wastelands."
"This is Genshin Impact's latest event—Yujing Terrace Sword Challenge."
"The story goes: After battling Osial, Mu Yang mastered a new sword technique."
"To celebrate, he hosted a sword challenge, inviting warriors worldwide."
"Dubbed a 'challenge,' it was really a sneaky way to hand out freebies."
"After a breezy storyline, players got 10M Mora and a 5 star Sword."
"But the very next day, the difficulty curb-stomped every player."
"Big boss numbers to the face, mechanics galore—endless skill checks."
"Even harder than the boss? Understanding your teammates' sudden deaths..."
"Most players never even saw Mu Yang, let alone challenged him..."
"Famous Genshin player MacArthur commented: 'F2P 5-stars? You're all pride. Matchmaking? Now it's do or die.'"
"The Grand Documentary 'The Legend of Mu Yang's Sword Challenge' continues..."
The video ended.
Mu Yang couldn't help but laugh.
Classic MacArthur and his speeches.
Still, the difficulty had served its purpose.
Compared to just handing out rewards,
this "some get, some don't" approach sparked way more discussion.
——————
Mu Yang switched back to Guinaifen's stream.
The team had reached Phase Four...
What followed was a montage of their suffering—
providing clip-worthy moments for days.
Highlights included:
Losing to Mu Yang's final slash at 1 HP, nearly giving Silver Wolf a heart attack (viewers crowdfunded an oxygen tank).
Kafka, the ever-patient "team mom," finally snapping—shattering her gentle image and breaking simps' hearts.
Guinaifen descending into madness, claiming she could solo Mu Yang even if her team died.
Only Sparkle enjoyed the pain, lowkey revealing masochistic tendencies...
After a full day of torment, they finally cleared it.
Watching the Beast of Li turn back to stone, Mu Yang sheathed his sword and congratulated them.
The four felt… complicated.
"That's the best thing I've heard all day..."
Mu Yang sent them one last round of gifts before exiting the stream.
The system notified him that the outrage had skyrocketed his popularity—
enough for another simulation.
Mu Yang asked, "Another one-minute run?"
System: "Ten hours."
Mu Yang: "Fine. Let them suffer first—we'll talk after I'm done."
"The event's still running, and feedback takes time anyway."
He lay down, activated the system's barrier, and began his second simulation...