"I killed you in less than ten seconds," Ron said flatly, giving her a sidelong glance.
"How is that possible? My health was still full!" Tang Rou asked in disbelief.
Realizing she was an actual noob who didn't understand a thing, Ron decided to explain. "I used an instant-kill skill to eliminate you. It's an awakened class skill called Vital Strike. I traded a chunk of my HP to take yours," he said.
"Assassins have a passive skill that increases their damage by 20%. My HP was higher than yours, so… never mind. Here, take a look at this."
While talking, Ron navigated to his saved recording and played the replay where he instantly killed Tang Rou.
"Excuse me then..." Little Tang leaned forward to peek at Ron's screen. After pressing a few keys, he forwarded the replay to the frame where his character killed Chasing Haze.
"Here, can you see this?" Ron asked, pointing at his character's HP bar, which was barely at 5% after executing Vital Strike.
That meant Ron had exchanged about 80% of his health to kill Tang Rou—a high-risk, high-reward move. Normally, the damage wouldn't be enough for a trade since he took the hit from a heat-seeking missile, so Chasing Haze should've had a sliver of HP left. But there was a secret behind that. Ron didn't explain it; after all, it was his trump card.
"I see..." Tang Rou returned to her seat and stared blankly at the screen. She still found it unbelievable.
"Do you want another match?" Ron asked politely.
Tang Rou simply shook her head. Although she was tempted, she remembered the lesson she learned from Ye Xiu. "No, I'm good. Thanks."
"Alright, I'll be leaving then." Ron stood up and bowed politely before heading back to his rental room on the second floor.
Once he was gone, Chen Guo turned to Ye Xiu. He had predicted that the match would end in less than ten seconds, so she expected him to give an explanation.
Sensing her gaze, he looked back. "What is it, boss?"
"What is it, my ass! You said it'd be over in ten seconds, and it actually happened! I want an explanation," Chen Guo protested.
But Ye Xiu just smiled. "What's there to explain? He already said almost everything."
"You said almost, so there's more to it, right? Tell me!" she demanded.
Ye Xiu sighed helplessly. "Alright then, let's check the replay," he said.
Tang Rou moved aside, giving Ye Xiu control of her computer. Chen Guo stood behind her to watch.
After checking the frames in the replay, Ye Xiu paused the video where No Name used Vital Strike to instantly kill Chasing Haze—the same frame Ron used in his explanation earlier.
"Did you two notice anything strange here?" Ye Xiu asked, pointing at No Name, specifically at Chasing Haze's chest—the spot where Ron's dagger struck her heart.
The two girls exchanged glances. Tang Rou was a newbie; it was understandable that she'd seek Guo Guo's guidance. But even Chen Guo didn't notice anything unusual.
She felt a bit embarrassed as a five-year veteran player. She swore Ye Xiu would get a beating later.
Ye Xiu didn't pry into their thoughts any further and continued his explanation. He zoomed in and focused on the dagger. "It's a silver weapon."
"Silver weapon!?" Chen Guo blurted out. It was her turn to be surprised. She narrowed her eyes at the dagger, recalling every weapon available in the Heavenly Domain's assassin shop, comparing them one by one—but none matched. She had to admit it was truly a silver weapon—a self-made weapon!
In Glory, they had a saying: A self-made weapon isn't necessarily the best, but the best weapon must be self-made.
Silver weapons were created using the equipment editor and rare materials. Although the editor was available to every player, only a few could actually use it. Self-made weapons were considered late-game content—the best part being that players could design them to match their preferences and playstyle. They were often seen in pro matches.
"Wasn't he a trainee? How could he have a silver weapon!?" Chen Guo exclaimed. "Could he be an Excellent Era ace player!?"
Hearing her wild guess, Ye Xiu asked calmly, "What are you talking about, boss? A new ace player from Excellent Era?"
Guo Guo glared at him. "Hmph! You don't understand! Wasn't he a trainee from Team Excellent Era?"
Realizing her misunderstanding, Ye Xiu chuckled, which only irritated her more. "Haha! Boss, I think you misunderstood something," he said.
"Misunderstood what?" she asked, puzzled.
"Take a look at this first," he said, pointing at Ron's character. "His silver gear isn't limited to weapons. Every piece of his equipment is self-made."
"What did you say!?" Chen Guo was shocked; her eyes widened in disbelief, and her jaw nearly dropped. She grabbed the monitor and leaned close to inspect No Name's equipment.
Sure enough, everything was silver—not just the weapon, but the entire set.
"What is this? Isn't this basically a God-level account?" she said, staring at the screen in awe. "Trainee my ass! Maybe he's a secret weapon!"
"Tsk, tsk."
Hearing the clicking of a tongue, Guo Guo turned and glared at Ye Xiu.
"What!?" she grumbled.
"I told you, boss—you misunderstood," Ye Xiu said. "He's neither a trainee nor a secret weapon. In fact, he's not even a pro player."
"What? Then how does he have a complete set of silver equipment?" she demanded. It seemed impossible for an ordinary player to have that kind of god-tier account without a sponsor.
Ye Xiu only looked at her as if she were a clueless child.
Seeing his mocking gaze, Chen Guo felt both insulted and embarrassed. "What is it?"
But Ye Xiu simply shook his head. "It's nothing," he said. He wanted to mention that his One Autumn Leaf—who nearly had a full set of silver gear (minus the badge)—also started from scratch. Besides, Ron's account was from Server 1, so it didn't surprise him.