Chapter 121: They Never Come Down!
The wisps had already scouted the orc's position. The Demon Hunter headed straight for the orc's leveling spot, greeted them with a Mana Burn on sight, and then started chasing down the Grunts.
goph frowned. He could, of course, use his Blademaster to chop at the Demon Hunter, but that was pointless. Even if he crippled it, so what? The Demon Hunter would just run home, drink some Moon Well water, and be back to full health. It would only delay his own creep-jacking rhythm.
"You don't want to level, and you think you can drag me down so I can't level either? Not happening."
goph didn't take the bait. His Blademaster and Grunts continued clearing neutral creeps, leveling up quickly.
He had considered sending the Blademaster into the Night Elf base to kill wisps, but after one look, he saw the pathing was flawlessly blocked off and left. The base layout was sealed tight; the Blademaster couldn't get in.
Meanwhile, after building one Archer, the Night Elf player didn't build any more units. He immediately upgraded to Tier 2, then seamlessly upgraded to Tier 3.
The spectators were stunned. Wasn't this too risky?
"Rushing straight to Tier 3? Is he planning to go straight for high-tier units to fight the orc?"
"Seems unlikely. The Demon Hunter hasn't even leveled yet—he's still level 1. The orc's main army comes out at Tier 2. Once they get enough Wind Riders, they can base-race really fast. The Night Elf won't get a chance!"
"The Night Elf summoned a Beastmaster. He's still babysitting the orc!"
"Wow, what is this silent trying to do? I don't get it!"
The Beastmaster learned Summon Quilbeast. He and the Demon Hunter, like two brothers, specifically targeted the orc's low-health Grunts. Every time goph slapped a Healing Salve on one, it got knocked off immediately, frustrating him to no end.
"It's fine. This is normal. If he did nothing and let me level in peace, he wouldn't be silent. Once my army is ready and his Demon Hunter is still level 1, he won't stand a chance against me."
goph was a top player after all. He had patience.
Finally, the Night Elf's Tier 3 completed. silent immediately placed two Wind Ancient of Wonders in his base, raised the supply cap to 50, and started producing Faerie Dragons.
"What the hell? He's building Faerie Dragons?!"
"What use are those? In human form, they hit like wet noodles. When they turn into birds, they can only attack air, not ground. Won't the Blademaster one-shot them?"
"Is he trying to use the Cyclone skill to counter the Blademaster?"
"With the mana pool of a Faerie Dragon, they can only Cyclone twice at most. The orc has Spirit Walkers for Dispel!"
"So that's why silent is mass-producing Faerie Dragons from two Wind Ancients? Winning through numbers?"
"Feels like wishful thinking. Cyclone only lifts the Blademaster into the air; it doesn't deal damage. As soon as the Blademaster lands, it'll be easy for him to chop down those Faerie Dragons!"
"It's over. I think silent has outsmarted himself! His win streak is about to end!"
...
Faerie Dragons were cheap and took up little supply. The Night Elf army formed very quickly. silent bought a few Mercenaries and summoned his third hero, the Goblin Tinker. Soon, he had a 50-supply army and went off to level.
goph's scouting Blademaster spotted the Night Elf's main force and was startled. What the hell was this?
Three level 1 heroes, followed by a motley crew of Mercenaries, and some weird thing he didn't recognize.
A Goblin Tinker? What use was that thing? Was this guy just feeding experience to my Blademaster?
Without any hesitation, goph's Blademaster decloaked and started hacking at the Goblin Tinker.
But after just two swings, a Faerie Dragon from the Night Elf army raised its hand and Cycloned the Blademaster into the air.
The moment he landed, another Faerie Dragon raised its hand and Cycloned him again.
goph was speechless. What the hell was this?!
He knew the Night Elf had this unit, but few people used it because of its low health and damage. One or two were useless. Their only purpose was to lift units into the air, but they couldn't deal damage while doing it, and they ran out of mana after two casts.
Now goph realized: a swarm of these Faerie Dragons was incredibly annoying! If a team fight broke out and his Blademaster was stuck flying around the whole time, that would be disastrous!
goph broke out in a cold sweat. As soon as his Blademaster landed, he quickly used Wind Walk and fled.
The Night Elf was focused on leveling. Although Faerie Fire could reveal the invisible Blademaster, they were busy and didn't have the leisure to keep Cycloning a lone Blademaster, so they let him escape.
goph didn't dare slack off. He quickly upgraded to Tier 3 and summoned his third hero, the Tauren Chieftain. The Tauren Chieftain's Shockwave was an excellent area-of-effect skill, perfect for dealing with squishy Faerie Dragons.
The orc's Spirit Walkers were also in training. The Spirit Walker's official name was Spirit Walker. Its main use was to use Spirit Link to share damage among orc units, and against Faerie Dragons, its Dispel skill could effectively remove the Cyclone effect.
But just as goph's army reached around 50 supply, the Night Elf's main force attacked!
Both sides had 50 supply, but the Night Elf had far more units, since Faerie Dragons were cheap and took up little supply. The swarm of Faerie Dragons charged forward and immediately Cycloned the Blademaster into the air!
goph wanted to counterattack, to use his Wind Rider's Ensnare to net the enemy Demon Hunter. But silent's micro was meticulous. He kited while moving, and the Goblin Tinker placed down a Pocket Factory, perfectly blocking the path. The orc army couldn't cut in easily. On top of that, everything was tagged with Faerie Fire, and several key units were Cycloned!
goph used his Spirit Walkers to Dispel, but every time he did, he also removed his own Spirit Link. And even if he dispelled it, the next second, the unit would be Cycloned again. The orc only had three or four Spirit Walkers, while the Night Elf had an entire squad of Faerie Dragons!
The Night Elf also had two Faerie Dragons in the air, turning into eggs. Every time a Spirit Walker cast a spell, they lost a lot of health.
With the three heroes, summoned creatures, and constant focus fire from the Faerie Dragons, the orc's Wind Riders quickly died one by one. goph wanted to save them, but his Shadow Hunter was still flying in the air!
goph finally managed to get his Tauren Chieftain on the ground and threw a Shockwave at the Night Elf army. But a flash of light passed, and silent immediately used a Group Heal Scroll, restoring everyone to full health instantly!
goph was in despair!
The defeat was certain, but goph refused to give up. His Tauren Chieftain still had mana. He would throw one more Shockwave, at least to salvage some dignity!
The Tauren Chieftain landed and unleashed another Shockwave!
But this time, an entire row of Faerie Dragons simultaneously transformed into crows and flew into the air, dodging the Shockwave completely!
"Pfft!!"
goph felt like he was spitting blood. What did that mean? He was about to GG, and this guy was still showing off? Unbearable!
In reality, transforming Faerie Dragons into crows cost a lot of mana. Using that to dodge a Shockwave was purely for visual flair. In a close match, such a move could easily backfire.
But silent was already assured of victory, so he could play however he wanted. This move was purely for style.
goph's mental state completely collapsed. The orc's units were dwindling. Only the three heroes were left flying in the air, and soon they would die one by one.
goph had no choice. He reluctantly typed "GG."
In various livestreams, the screens were flooded with "6666."
"Holy crap, the Night Elf can fight the orc like this? I've learned something new!"
"Wow, that Blademaster had a full set of high-tier gear, but it was useless. He didn't land a single swing from start to finish..."
"This silent really just blew goph to death..."
"I'm convinced! From today on, I'm a silent fanboy!"
"He's reached the top! Undefeated at the top! A historic moment!"
As the chat messages scrolled wildly, a meme also spread across Weibo.
"The four races are comparing who has the most air units. Human says, 'We have Flying Machines, Gryphon Riders, and Dragonhawk Riders!' Undead says, 'We have Gargoyles, Destroyers, and Frost Wyrms!' Night Elf says, 'We have Hippogryphs, Faerie Dragons, Dragonhawks, and Chimeras!' Then the orc says, 'That's nothing. When we fight the Night Elf, all our units are in the air!'"