Chapter 317: Tit For Tat
If Wang Tong\'s defense was able to infuriate his opponent, his attack was capable of sending his opponent straight into despair. His attacks obliterated Flash\'s defense units and set the entire base ablaze.
When Flash noticed that Wang Tong had rolled out stealth units, he conceded defeat and typed in "gg."
The arena fell into a reverential silence.
Wang Tong\'s execution of the Art of Soaring Heaven was as flawless as that of Einherjar Wannabe. Beautiful control and perfect timing. It was...impeccable.
Everyone conceded that this was the most potent early rush they had ever seen.
Flash was caught off guard by the sudden change in Wang Tong\'s switch from defense to aggression. Flash had been preparing himself for an early attack, but he didn\'t expect that the Art of the Soaring Heaven would be knocking on his gate, since it seemed out of Wang Tong\'s conservative character.
The Kaedeians looked at each other in disbelief. They had been trying hard and failed to counter the Art of Soaring Heaven, and had since convinced that once the Art of Soaring Heaven was deployed in its full intent, it was invincible.
KKK and his Ivantian cohort had turned pale as they were shocked by the freakish power of both Flash and Wang Tong.
Everyone knew Wang Tong as the turtle king, but then it seemed like they might have to pick another nickname for him.
In less than ten minutes, Wang Tong had turned Flash\'s base into ashes and forced the so-called perfect commander to surrender. Wang Tong\'s victory had increased the pressure on Flash, and made him ponder on his next move.
The problem Flash had was this: Knowing that an early rush was possible, Flash had to sacrifice some economy to build up his defense. However, if he lost the bet and Wang Tong started the fight with defense in mind, he would have lost the precious time to build up an invading army. He conceded that even if he could think of a proper solution to this conundrum, he might still not be able to win, because his opponent was no one other than Wang Tong.
Wang Tong was eager to see how Flash would be able to counter his Art of the Soaring Heaven to help him improve his skill further. Wang Tong had come up with the combination of the two tactics, thinking that it would be invincible. However, he was still not satisfied, as he hoped that someone, someday would be able to find the flaws that had eluded his eyes.
Wang Tong was convinced that only Flash was able to do that.
Flash requested a timeout. He needed some time to think about his next move, since if he lost the next fight, the gate of the final match would deny his entry.
The audiences sizzled. This had been the most suspenseful game they had ever watched, as both players possessed unique skills and power.
The Perfect Commander versus the Ultimate Weapon…Who would prevail?
The moment Wang Tong had mastered the Art of the Souring Heaven, he had become invulnerable.
"Go, Boss! Go!" Karl shouted from the audience seat. Zhou Sisi noticed that he wore a brace on his arm, and she immediately became worried.
Cao Yi exchanged a glance with Zhou Sisi, and then he shook his head slightly.
"Let\'s worry about Wang Tong for now. I will explain it later."
"The Art of Soaring Heaven!I knew it was him!"
"...You mean... This Wang Tong is Einherjar Wannabe?" Porten asked incredulously.
Li Shiming nodded.
"I have his profile; he is a nobody. Are you sure?" Porten still held his doubts as he found it too fast to draw a conclusion based on only the fighting style.
"Doesn\'t matter anymore. Let\'s see if he would be able to win this round." Li Shiming didn\'t want to bother arguing with Porten, so he brushed away the question.
Porten registered Li Shiming\'s conviction and realized that he had been holding back his opinion all the while.
Zhang Jin sipped on her juice while enjoying the excellent show unfold. Rarely anything would be able to pique Zhang Jin\'s interest as Wang Tong could. She always wondered what this boy would bring to the world with his power.
Ma Xiaoru hopped up and down in excitement, while Li Ruoer was trying to hold back her excitement after seeing Wang Tong\'s Art of the Soaring Heaven. It was clear to her that both Wang Tong and Flash had already reached the pinnacle of the fleet combat.
Although the fleet combat was not as visceral as METAL combat, watching it was no less entertaining nor less suspenseful to the viewers.
For the first time, Li Ruoer found that Wang Tong\'s manliness was attractive.
Ma Xiaoru waited for Wang Tong\'s third victory in joyful anticipation; one more round and she would be able to see Wang-lovely-Tong in person.
Meanwhile, Flash shut himself inside the resting room, eyes closed. He knew he had arrived at the most critical moment, and without a calm mind, he would lose all that he had earned.
He simply could not afford to lose at this stage.
Everyone knew him as the genius of the fleet combat, but no one knew his story.
His mother\'s illness had struck a devastating blow to his family. To pay the medical bill, Flash had worked part-time, but that wasn\'t enough. So eventually, he got involved in more risky business: underground gambling, so that he could barely make ends meet.
When Capth decided to recruit him, everyone thought it was a good thing for the boy. However, the first thought that popped into his mind were questions such as how he would be able to afford the tuition, and who would take care of his bed-bound mother.
He dreamed of studying at Capth. However, students were forbidden to partake in any underground activities.
When Flash was about to reject Capth\'s offer, someone he thought he would never be associated with had shown up and turned his situation around.
That person never asked Flash for anything in return, until recently, when he had suggested Flash repay his doubt by winning the tournament. That had been the first time he ever made a request, and it was a request that Flash found hard pressed to leave unfulfilled.
The resting room remained silent as Flash scrapped his mind for any method of defeating Wang Tong.
"There must be a weak link, must be!" He reminded himself.
In an urgent care unit of an A class hospital somewhere on Earth, a middle-aged woman watched the TV screen expectantly.
The referee announced the start of the fourth round. Winning this round meant that Wang Tong would be able to see Ma Xiaoru.
Seeing that Wang Tong had mastered both the defensive and the offensive tactics, everyone thought that Flash stood no chance against the Ultimate Weapon of Earthlings.
Flash showed up just in time. He seemed calm as usual, although some had noticed a glint flicker in his eyes.
"Battle ... Start!"
People noticed that Wang Tong\'s opening tactic was still the Art of the Souring Heaven.
What would Flash do? The suspense was unbearable.
Wang Tong laid his strategy under plain view, and wished that Flash would be able to catch the flaw in his tactics that he had failed to notice.
"Wang Tong has used the Art of Soaring Heaven again. And Flash...Ah ... Flash... Flash has also used the Art of the Soaring Heaven! Am I really seeing this? Is he going to keep up with Wang Tong\'s micro?"
Everyone\'s breath was caught in their throats. It was well known that the Art of the Soaring Heaven was extremely difficult to pull off, as it required flawless execution and an insane amount of AMP, something that Flash was not well known for.
"I have to say that Flash\'s choice does make some sense."
In a few moments, both Wang Tong and Flash had popped an assault ship from their star ports simultaneously. Knowing that he would lose a confrontation in a heartbeat, Flash circled his ship around Wang Tong\'s base, as if he were trying to drag out the early phase of the game.