Chapter 4414 — The Plan for Self-Preservation
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
To be honest, Wei Zhao had not been with the Qingtian Escort Agency long, but given his outrageous exploits and the dazzling array of titles that hung about him—above all the honorary escort chief's post that Chief Escort Qi Mingyuan had personally promised—the four of them held him in genuine awe and did not dare disobey his instructions.
Still, they were risking their lives in this fight. For their own sake and for the agency's, they had to win this match. Without that resolve, given the brutality of a life-and-death battle like this, stepping onto the field would only mean dying faster.
That was precisely why they worried: what if time ran short and they failed to seize the escort? What then?
A failed raid meant not a single point. Even if they survived, how could they face the agency? How could they face taking that fifty thousand spirit jades?
After all, they would have to keep making their way in the agency for years to come. Everyone wanted to save face; the sting of being gossiped about behind one's back—or worse, pointed at to one's face—was truly hard to bear...
"No, there's time enough," Wei Zhao said with a confident shake of his head, then laid it out for them. "Don't misunderstand. This kind of match looks like a fight to the death, but the key is not in killing—it's in that chest of escort goods."
"Huh? Aren't we fighting for the headcount points?" The four exchanged looks. The first match was nominally a raid-and-response, but anyone who had read the rules knew it was plainly a scramble for points by headcount—the escort goods were just a symbolic gimmick.
"Heh. If it were just a plain brawl, wouldn't you say it lacks all technique? That sort of crude strategy works well when you hold absolute superiority—but look at their strength. If you really fought that way, how many chances would you give yourselves of walking out alive?" Wei Zhao countered.
"That..." The four were silenced at once. They were no fools; with the two sides so evenly matched, once the match turned brutal, total annihilation was not out of the question. If two of them survived in the end, that would already be a fine result.
"Remember, this match is not a simple brawl. What you must do is not only wound the enemy but, more importantly, preserve yourselves—and the key to that lies in that chest of escort goods." Wei Zhao instructed them gravely. "By the rules, whichever side takes the goods holds the initiative, and whoever holds the initiative controls the flow of the match, letting you secure your points while walking away whole."
At this, the four's eyes lit up. They had indeed stepped onto the field resolved to die—but if they could score and still come away alive, who in truth was so tired of living?
"Escort Chief Ling, just tell us what to do. We'll follow your lead," the Golden Core Great Perfection escort declared first.
"Yes, yes—whatever you say, we'll do it!" The other three nodded vigorously in turn. (To be continued...)
...R861