“San San!”
Hearing its Beast Tamer's command, the Three-Headed Bee let out a strange cry.
Three of the four yellow streaks of light suddenly shot toward Lubao from three different angles.
The remaining streak stopped in mid-air, allowing its appearance to be seen clearly.
It had three heads, each with two antennae; its hands possessed large, thick white needles, and the wings on its back featured exceptionally complex yellow patterns.
Seeing this, the spectators began sharing their opinions.
“I get it, Tian Xiaoyun is using a war of attrition strategy in this match.”
“It's obvious. The Three-Headed Bee spent a long time moving at high speed without attacking, specifically waiting until Ice-Kshiru started casting Rain to launch its offensive.”
“I noticed that too. The main body is hiding so far away, sending only clones forward. What damage can clones possibly do? It's clearly intended to interrupt the casting of Rain.”
“There's nothing wrong with this strategy. If they clashed head-on, how could the Three-Headed Bee possibly beat Ice-Kshiru? Since this is being broadcast nationwide, she has to drag out the match time as much as possible.”
Amidst the crowd's discussion, the three yellow streaks of light had already appeared within a one-meter range of Lubao.
At that moment, a massive amount of frigid air surged wildly from Lubao's mouth in all directions. The rain that Tian Xiaoyun had imagined did not fall.
*Freezing Wind! I was tricked! Ice-Kshiru didn't cast Rain...* Tian Xiaoyun's expression changed, and she quickly shouted
“Dodge!”
Rain is a high-tier skill and requires a certain amount of time to cast, but Freezing Wind is different. For a high-level pet, casting a mid-tier skill is almost instantaneous.
Logically, if Ice-Kshiru wanted to use Freezing Wind, it should have done so long ago. Yet, it waited until the Three-Headed Bee's attack was almost upon it to release the skill. This was completely intentional!
*How on earth did she figure out that the main body was among the attacking Three-Headed Bees...* Tian Xiaoyun's heart sank.
She had studied Qiao Sang's matches and knew that Ice-Kshiru would sometimes rather stand still and take damage just to finish casting a skill.
In that case, the attacks from clones would be like mere scratches, and Ice-Kshiru would likely continue casting Rain.
Only an attack from the main body had the potential to interrupt the casting of Rain.
Therefore, the main body of the Three-Headed Bee had to be among the three attacking ones.
To confuse the opponent, she had specifically arranged a tactic before the match to leave one clone stationary in the distance, making the opponent believe that was the main body, thereby ignoring the other Three-Headed Bees and attacking the wrong target. She hadn't expected it to be seen through at a glance.
In a match like this, it was impossible for a pet to act contrary to its Beast Tamer's instructions.
Since Qiao Sang had commanded Rain, but Ice-Kshiru executed Freezing Wind, there was only one explanation: it had been pre-arranged.
*As expected of a monster who bred three high-level pets at the age of fifteen. Their brain just works differently from normal people; they even arrange tactics to deal with a single mid-level pet...* Along with her mental exhaustion, Tian Xiaoyun couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration.
*Lubao's reaction time has improved; the skill transition was quite fast. I thought it would take the damage to cast Rain like before...* A flash of surprise crossed Qiao Sang's eyes, which quickly turned into satisfaction.
Although the three clones couldn't cause much damage, but... Qiao Sang's train of thought was suddenly interrupted.
*Oh, the main body was actually hiding among the three attacking Three-Headed Bees!*
The three attacking yellow streaks of light suddenly pivoted.
Despite their high speed, they were simply too close to Lubao. The frigid air raged, and they were overtaken almost in the blink of an eye.
Two of the yellow streaks stalled, revealing their original forms before vanishing instantly.
The other yellow streak's speed plummeted, and an ice shell could be clearly seen freezing half of its wing.
Simultaneously, the Three-Headed Bee in mid-air also vanished.
At this point, it was obvious which one was the main body.
The spectators who had previously concluded that the stationary Three-Headed Bee in mid-air was the main body suddenly felt a stinging sense of embarrassment.
*Freezing Wind is actually this fast...* Seeing the situation turn sour, Tian Xiaoyun immediately shouted
“High-Speed Movement!”
Upon hearing this, the other wing of the Three-Headed Bee, which wasn't frozen, instantly increased its flapping frequency frantically.
High-Speed Movement, a mid-tier skill, allows the body to relax and become light, greatly increasing speed... But with half a wing frozen, did it really think it could use High-Speed Movement to create distance? Qiao Sang spoke
“Water Gun.”
Lubao quickly opened its mouth, and a blue ripple of water appeared before it.
At the same time, a powerful white light erupted from the Three-Headed Bee, and the ice shell on its left wing showed faint signs of cracking.
Although Lubao's proficiency with Freezing Wind wasn't high, it wasn't that easy for a mid-level pet to break through.
Due to the restriction of the ice shell on its left wing, the Three-Headed Bee's High-Speed Movement did not result in an immediate burst of speed to fly away.
Because it was a split-second too slow, the thick blue stream of water from behind roared in, striking the Three-Headed Bee directly.
*Bang!*
The Three-Headed Bee was sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the ground.
“San San...”
The left and right heads of the Three-Headed Bee had already closed their eyes; only the middle head remained conscious, attempting to struggle back up.
At that moment, another Water Gun blasted forward.
The Three-Headed Bee finally lost consciousness completely.
“Qu!”
The mechanical-type pet wearing the referee's badge floated over, took a look, and blew the whistle.
The discussion in the spectator stands suddenly grew loud.
“Qiao Sang is just on another level. If it were me, I'd have been played to death; I wouldn't even be able to tell the clones from the main body.”
“Brother, you can't be blamed for that. That Three-Headed Bee left a clone stationary, clearly intending to mislead people into thinking it was the main body.”
“Being played to death by Qiao Sang is a different story! The command given was clearly Rain, but it turned out to be Freezing Wind. With three high-level pets, they're still using this kind of scheme against a mid-level pet. It's truly terrifying.”
“Those who make it to the national tournament... their hearts are so dirty...”
...
On the field, two pets wearing white coats placed the Three-Headed Bee on a stretcher and silently carried it away.
“Bing Ke.”
Lubao maintained a cold expression and a pristine appearance, as if it had just been summoned and hadn't even moved a muscle.
The spectators from the Ancient Mist region were full of excitement and thrill, immersed in Ice-Kshiru's dreamlike silhouette.
Tian Xiaoyun took a deep breath on the spot to calm her emotions.
The Three-Headed Bee had lost faster than she imagined, and Ice-Kshiru hadn't consumed much energy. It seemed the next part would be a fierce battle...
Soon, the referee gave the command to summon the next pet.
Tian Xiaoyun formed hand seals.
A grey star array lit up.
A deep blue pet with tiny eyes and a massive lower jaw appeared within the star array.
*Big-Mouthed Ai, a high-level Psychic-type pet. The alpha waves it emits cause headaches in creatures that get close...* Related data flashed through Qiao Sang's mind, and he thought to himself that he would have to be careful to maintain distance from the opponent throughout this match...
“Qu!”
The whistle signaling the start of the match blew.
In the next second, Big-Mouthed Ai appeared right in front of Lubao.
(End of Chapter)