Close Combat Mage
chapter-178

Chapter 178 – By Any Means: Fair or Foul Pt. 2

Duo Mei didn’t take Suo Jia’s attack lying down. With the cry of a phoenix, the war blade increased in speed and dauntlessly danced through the air as it headed towards Suo Jia.

“Dong!” A soft sound resounded as Duo Mei once again softly broke through the Space Shield. Her blade lit up once more, and she tossed it towards Suo Jia with all her power. This time, Duo Mei swore to watch closely and see exactly how he was dodging!

“Diamond Charge!” Just when Duo Mei thought that Suo Jia would retreat again, he didn’t, and instead an explosive sound resounded. A blue light burst out from Suo Jia as he instantly activated Diamond Charge to wildly attack her.

“Bang! Bang! Bang!” Three sounds rang out through the air as Duo Mei’s body was hit by three waves of the Diamond Charge. Even with the Fire Phoenix Protection, she couldn’t avoid the instant freezing power of the attack!

Although Duo Mei’s entire body was wrapped in ice, Suo Jia wasn’t going to naively think she had been completely frozen. In reality, she was only temporarily sealed by the ice. As long as she exerted power, she’d be able to break from it. Suo Jia knew that the result of the battle would come from this moment. If the victor wasn’t determined from this attack, then this technique would no longer be of any use even if utilized again!

Suo Jia didn’t dare waste any time. He quickly used his hands to make an ice stream materialize, and it firmly wrapped itself around the sealed Duo Mei. As his right hand tightly grasped the tail of the ice stream, Suo Jia activated a full power Freezing Touch! At the same time, Duo Mei had begun to erupt in flaming battle qi. The ice surrounding her became a brilliant red, and the inner walls of the ice layer quickly began to melt.

Suo Jia smiled darkly. He knew that this fight was his victory. He activated Freezing Touch one after another, replacing the layers as soon as they melted. At the same time, the thickness and sturdiness of the ice walls increased as well.

It could be said that at the moment, the two were fiercely competing their battle qi and magic power. However…Duo Mei had been completely sealed by the ice, so she couldn’t drink any potions. On the other hand, Suo Jia was completely free to drink Magic Potions whenever he wanted, and could continue attacking without end. Everyone knew that Duo Mei had lost. If Suo Jia didn’t stop, Duo Mei would be destined to be unable to escape the ice cube once her battle qi was exhausted.

After activating the magic a few times in succession, Suo Jia finally stopped, as he could already see Duo Mei helplessly stop releasing her battle qi from within the layers of ice. It was clear to see that she had also already understood that it was her loss.

Smiling, Suo Jia dispersed the ice layers releasing Duo Mei’s body. She looked at Suo Jia with admiration as she sincerely said, “I definitely lost this time. Moreover, it was a complete loss. However…it won’t be long before I will definitely surpass you!”

“Haha…” Suo Jia nodded with a smile. He knew that she wasn’t just saying empty words; with her talent and intelligence,she could surpass anyone as long as she worked hard. It definitely wasn’t just a dream. However…Suo Jia wasn’t a pushover either.

Suo Jia had already realized that although it wasn’t like he had no defensive abilities, it could only be used against long range attacks. Against a warrior’s close range attacks, Suo Jia wouldn’t be able to put up any resistance. As long as he found a way to resolve this weakness, Duo Mei would have to stake her all in order to surpass him.

Suo Jia’s eyes lit up. Making up for this weakness wasn’t impossible. What he needed to do next was…to find the Atlantis armor. That would be the best solution!

Suo Jia declared, “Alright. We’ll be training here for a month. After that, we can head out.”

Suo Jia paused for a moment before he continued in a serious voice, “Based on Duo Mei’s outstanding performance this past year, I hereby announce that Duo Mei has been specially appointed as the captain of the Angelic Six-Winged Phoenixes, and bestow her a part of an Epic ranked equipment set: the Fire Phoenix Earrings!”

“Wa!” All the girls cried out after hearing Suo Jia’s words. Although they knew the Young Master was extremely wealthy, they hadn’t imagined that he would casually give away even a piece of a peak grade Epic ranked set. Following a boss like him was really amazing!

At the same time, Duo Mei was inwardly rejoicing that Suo Jia had appointed her a role and bestowed a reward. In her eyes, this was just another way of Suo Jia trying to win over her heart. Giving away presents would officially seal her. Suo Jia’s intentions were abundantly clear!

Duo Mei sweetly accepted the case that Suo Jia passed to her, and after bashfully thanking him, she opened it in front of everyone. A bright red glow blinded all of the girls’ eyes. Seeing the delicate and exquisite earrings, the girls were envious to death. When would they be able to get rewarded by the Young Master? It looked like…they’d have to work harder, and make sure that Duo Mei wasn’t the only one hogging it all.

Suo Jia continued to declare, “Also, I made a new Emerald Angels adventure group. Based on Duo Mei’s performance, I’ve decided that…she will join it!”

“Wa!” The girls jumped up. This adventure group couldn’t even be compared to the mercenary group; aside from the captain of the adventure group, only six members could join. Less people was possible, but more wasn’t allowed! Now, one of the spots was already taken by Duo Mei. That meant there were only 5 more places to fight over. If they didn’t hurry up and work harder, they would lose their chance.

Everyone knew that although the Emerald Angels adventure group was the smallest of the four corps that Suo Jia had established, it had the highest position. The seven experts in the Emerald Angels adventure group were the real elites and the backbone of the group. These people were core members that Suo Jia strongly believed would be stronger than anyone that challenged them.

During the next month, the 36 Angelic Six-Winged Phoenixes, as well as Suo Jia, Aimi, and Aila, fully immersed themselves into training. They were extremely busy fighting against each other every day in the valley. Only after the month had completely passed did they leave the area, and begin to head towards their objective.

…

Soaring Dragon City. Inside the Soaring Dragon Villa, a purple-faced, middle-aged man sat with his brows tightly knit together. He looked at the letter in his hand with a grave expression. Although it only contained a few words, these words were enough to make it impossible for him to relax.

“No matter what, I need to obtain the Atlantis armor. How much does it cost, name your price! If you don’t exchange it, I’ll come and retrieve it myself.” This was what the letter said. It was simple and clear-cut. It was also difficult to refuse, as it contained a threat as well.

As the treasure that guarded the Soaring Dragon Villa, it absolutely couldn’t be sold or exchanged. No matter what, this armor couldn’t be transacted in any way!

However, although the Soaring Dragon Villa’s military fame couldn’t be said to have a power that could shake the empire, it was still quite powerful. For the opposite party to dare say these kinds of words, it meant that he most likely had some kind of assurance behind him.

The purple-faced man gently placed the letter down on the table, and slowly stood up from the lord’s seat. He loudly ordered, “Men, spread my orders. For the next few days, strengthen the garrison!”

After receiving the purple-faced elder’s commands, the entire Soaring Dragon Villa sprung into action. At the same time, the elder immediately replied to the letter, rejecting the transaction. The Soaring Dragon Villa definitely wouldn’t hand over their guardian treasure just because of a threatening letter. If the other party wanted it, they’d have to rely on their strength to come retrieve it!

It was midnight. The full moon shone brightly, and the sound of wind could be heard outside. A group of figures in red cloaks suddenly appeared in the training area located outside the Soaring Dragon Villa’s entrance. Seeing the figures mysteriously appear, the guards first started, and then immediately shouted for men to surround the group. The alarms rang through the air as the entire Soaring Dragon Villa lit up. People flowed in like water from all directions, gathering in that same area.

Soon, the 30 some figures in red cloaks were surrounded by three inner layers and three outer layers comprising of over a thousand Soaring Dragon Villa guards. Afterwards…the guards split apart as the lord of the Soaring Dragon Villa, the purple-faced man, walked out with an imposing air.

He swept his gaze over the group of red cloaks and said in a deep voice, “The letter from earlier was sent by you guys, right? However, I must apologize. The Atlantis armor was passed down from our ancestors, and it definitely cannot be exchanged for any price!”

One of the red cloaks slowly walked over and said in a lovely voice, “Sire, may I offer your esteemed self some advice? It’s still best if you hand it over. No matter how valuable the Atlantis armor is, it isn’t as important as human lives. If you give it to us now, we can satisfy any price or conditions you desire!”

“Hmph!” The lord sneered and firmly replied, “Don’t speak any further. My intention has already been expressed very clearly. The Atlantis armor won’t be exchanged for any price or condition!”

The red cloak coldly responded, “You’d better think this through clearly. Don’t just refuse a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit. If we act and forcibly take it from you, you will not only gain no benefits, you will also be losing a large number of your people’s lives in vain!”

Having received the red cloak’s provocation, if the lord continued to hold back, he wouldn’t be worthy of his position. He fiercely waved his hand and roared, “Seize them!”

Following his command, the surrounding guards all unsheathed their weapons, and shouted as they charged at the 30 some figures. At the same time, the purple-faced lord also took out the staff on his back, preparing to join the assault at any moment.