103: Chapter 104 Bae Soo-hyun's Trump Card, Golden Entry, Deadly Trap!

With 8 Shapeshifters and 2 Dragon ready, Shen Mo wasn't intimidated by Bae Soo-hyun's current lineup. He swept a glance over the board. Bae Soo-hyun currently had: Soraka + Rumble + Bard + Jinx + Gwen + Zilean + Rakan + Fiora!

5 Sugar, 3 Revival, 2 Berserk!

The main carries were Gwen and Fiora, equipped with Steraks Gage, Warmogs Armor, and Bloodthirster!

"Not bad, but not quite enough."

"Sugar and Revival... he actually managed to figure out a bit of the strategy, but it's a shame he's missing a Sugar Emblem. Only 500 stacks at Stage 4? You could stack until you die and you still wouldn't reach 2200!"

Bae Soo-hyun seemed to know the issue with his lineup. He secretly rolled twice, keeping his economy steady at 30 gold, and managed to pick up another Fiora and another Gwen.

Is he trying to 3-star a 4-cost unit?

Shen Mo caught a glimpse of his opponent's subtle moves. Usually, he would hold onto those cards to deny the opponent, but today he couldn't be bothered. Just kidding, he was the guy aiming for 3-star 5-cost units this game!

What did it matter if he let him have Gwen and Fiora?

As for why it was transforming into a 3-star 5-cost unit rather than chasing one...

Naturally, it was because Shen Mo was preparing to gamble on Staffs!

With so many refresh opportunities, combined with the power of the Prismatic Ticket, Shen Mo estimated that if he reached Level 9 without spending gold, he could roll at least 80+ times!

That was equivalent to 160 gold worth of refreshes!

With the 20% probability of 4-cost units at Level 9, he could definitely go all-in on chasing a 3-star 4-cost unit. If he was lucky, he might even get more than one. Once the free refreshes were used up, he could simply continue using his shop gold to refresh for Staffs.

In the best-case scenario, if he could hold 70 gold, Shen Mo could get an additional 3 free refreshes every round.

It was basically like getting Staff refreshes for free; it was just too good to be true!

[Stage 4-2, match beginning!]

[Shen Mo vs. Bae Soo-hyun!]

Alodes' voice rang out, and Shen Mo pulled himself out of his thoughts to look at the field.

8 Shapeshifters vs. 5 Sugar Revival!

On the field, as the horn signaling the start of the match sounded, Bae Soo-hyun's pieces launched the first charge. Fiora slightly bent her hind legs, and a dazzling sword gleam instantly cut through the sky!

[Blade Waltz: Leap backward and prepare, briefly gaining 70% damage reduction, then sweep across enemies within 2 hexes, dealing 180% physical damage and 350% attack split damage to each enemy!]

The sword gleam flickered, and the moment the figure dashed forward, it left behind trails of afterimages.

It had to be said, Fiora's ultimate was quite cool.

It was just a pity... it was completely useless.

Fiora's skill mechanics determined the unit's positioning; ideally, it could tank and deal damage while also cutting to the backline. But where was the backline on Shen Mo's side?

Oh.

There was one, a two-star Nomsy.

Go ahead and cut.

Cut all you want.

Although Nomsy's skill damage calculation had been changed, Shen Mo wasn't using Nomsy as a carry this game. The true carry was Shyvana. Nomsy was just a 2-Dragon trait accessory, at best providing the true damage Synergy for Shyvana.

"This guy's lineup is so tanky?!"

Bae Soo-hyun frowned, seemingly realizing something was wrong.

He had been winning the whole time, and although Fiora was still one-star, she at least had three perfect items: Bloodthirster + Steraks Gage + Warmogs Armor. With such equipment, how could he not even dent the enemy's frontline health?

"What kind of broken lineup is this?!"

Bae Soo-hyun wanted to curse.

But it was useless.

The fact was... he couldn't break through!

The reworked 8 Shapeshifters had been buffed. Although the maximum health was reduced by 5%, it now added a 3% maximum health heal every 2 seconds!

Don't underestimate this heal every 2 seconds; having regeneration versus not having it were two completely different concepts. Moreover, the Shapeshifter Synergy itself provided a massive health bonus. With 3-star units, 3% was definitely a terrifying number.

Of course.

At this moment, Shen Mo's Shyvana was still two-star, so the health bonus provided wasn't that much. But it didn't matter; against Bae Soo-hyun's one-star Fiora and one-star Gwen, he could easily win!

Gwen rushed up, swinging her scissors, and unleashed her ultimate. Swain roared and stood firm in the frontline. Gwen's damage was basically tickling them. Nasus swung his big club, and Neeko transformed and healed like crazy.

This scene disgusted the audience.

"Is this lineup too tanky? Can they really not deal any damage at all? It seems only Jinx can output damage from the backline. Are these two main carries in the front just jokes?!"

"The Two Generals? Going up there to give the enemy a massage?"

"Pfft—hahaha, don't say that, now that you mention it, it really does look like it. One holding little scissors, the other holding a needle. I don't know about a massage, but this scratching damage is a lot like a pedicurist..."

"Funny, right?"

"I bet 30,000 points on that stick, and you're laughing so happily, you must not have bet much, right?"

The laughter stopped abruptly.

"...Damn! I bet 100,000!"

"8 Shapeshifters with healing is just awesome!"

Looking at the situation on the field, Shen Mo nodded with satisfaction. Gwen and Fiora had been KO'd; the true damage from 2 Dragons was simply unreasonable.

Under the burn, the Archangel's Staff on Shyvana made her hit harder the longer the fight went on. Halfway through the battle, Fiora was instantly killed by one of Shyvana's skills. It was all about god-slaying!

So what if it's a 4-cost unit? Can a one-star weakling really turn the tides?

"But speaking of this Shyvana... is she a bit too tanky? The healing frequency seems a bit fast..."

Something flashed through Shen Mo's mind.

But because it had been too long, he couldn't remember it clearly.

Forget it.

Whatever.

He won anyway!

[Stage 4-2 match ended!]

[Shen Mo vs. Bae Soo-hyun, Shen Mo wins!]

[Current HP:]

[Challenger: Bae Soo-hyun, HP: 86!]

[Defender: Shen Mo, HP: 42!]

"This kid..."

Bae Soo-hyun's face was gloomy. This guy's lineup was a bit troublesome. He had observed very carefully just now, especially that Shyvana; Jinx had been attacking from start to finish, yet she was still at full health when the match ended.

How was he supposed to play against this?

"Do I have to use that now?"

Bae Soo-hyun gritted his teeth, looking at his skill bar with some reluctance.

[Gold-tier Trait: Deadly Trap!]

[Effect: At the start of the match, reduce the health of the enemy's strongest 1-4 cost unit to 100 points. Can only be effective on one unit, lasts for 10 rounds, can only be used once per game!]

This was the trump card he had prepared!

Although the Gold-tier trait could only restrict 1-4 cost units, it was more than enough! After all, in most matches, the ceiling of units the opponent could bring out was a 3-star 4-cost.

Bae Soo-hyun was so arrogant naturally because this trait skill gave him confidence.

Once the Gold-tier Trap was triggered, it was equivalent to directly crippling the main carry card the opponent had worked the whole game to chase!

Turning surprise into despair!

Falling from heaven into hell!

Bae Soo-hyun had experienced this situation too many times. He loved watching his opponents get tortured by him until they cried and surrendered, and this time, Bae Soo-hyun believed Shen Mo would be no exception!

Therefore, the only problem now was the timing of releasing [Deadly Trap]!

Because this thing could only be effective once per game, and each activation lasted for 10 rounds, if he used the Deadly Trap now, the effect would end by Stage 5-4 at the latest.

Bae Soo-hyun's face was as gloomy as ink.

"Let you be smug for a while. Once my Fiora and Gwen are both two-star, your lineup might not be able to beat me."

"Besides... I can continue to chase for three-star!"

"Even if you hold my cards, it's useless. When the time comes, I'll use [Deadly Trap] to cripple one of your main carries. I don't believe you'll still be able to beat my dual 4-cost two-star units!"