Earlier when Zhen Liu was aiming his ice ball at the Wolfe cart with his cousins, he came to the realization that he probably wouldn't have enough power to do any noticable damage even if he did hit dead-on, or more realistically, it was going to get countered in some way.
'They got the skinny one driving the cart, leaving the defenses to Donovan and that big brute with the hammer. If I want this to actually do anything effective, I'm gonna have to go for a tricky angle and not just pure force,' Zhen Liu thought to himself as he aimed. He had to get closer, but he wasn't sure how he'd do so in a timely manner.
But then he remembered he had a giant mammoth centaur viking on his side with a prehensile trunk that was probably stronger than the average catapult. A devious plan formed in his mind as he threw a sideways glance at Frosttusk.
[I need you to throw me.]
[O...k...wait... what...?]
[You heard me, just do it.]
After that, while Zhen Hai and Zhen Yue were focused on preparing their ice balls, Frosttusk reached his trunk backwards to grab Zhen Liu by his arm crook. All Zhen Liu had to do then was give the command.
At the same time his cousins let loose their ice balls, Zhen Liu was already airborne. All he had to do now was not mess up the timing.
'TOO LATE FOR REGRETS, I JUST NEED TO THROW IT!'
And that leads to now...
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"SLAM DUNK MOTHER FUCKERS!," Zhen Liu shouted in jubilation as his ice ball smashed the cart into pieces, kicking up a lot of dust, sand and pebbles and sent the Wolfe team flying about in random directions. Well to be more accurate, the force of his blow didn't destroy the cart and stone bull puppet, rather it forced it to go back into it's easy to carry statue mode. Zhen Liu made a mental note to try and steal that thing or at least find his own version of that puppet.
'Yeah, I'm gonna need some actual aether puppets if I'm going to pretend to be an aether puppet master...waitaminute, is that Donovan guy somehow getting closer to me?'
Evidently, when Zhen Liu planned to go on the offensive, he forgot about the possibility of his targets being able to counterattack.
Before his bewildered eyes, Zhen Liu watched as Donovan Wolfe inexplicably began to ascend and maneuver through the air towards his own falling form. This made no sense to him because only Aether Grandmasters, like his grandfather, should be able to do that...unless they employed a movement art.
In this case, he forgot that the Wolfe Family was infamous for one other art on top of their weapon arts obsession: their family specific movement art, [Hunter's Step.]
[Hunter's Step] was a major Ethereal aether art which was created by the first patriarch of the Wolfe Family. Supposedly, he was major big game hunter and found it absolutely intolerable that he had to plan hours in advance in order to get the right angle necessary to take down certain beasts. He created [Hunter's Step] as a means to make use of everything and anything as a way to get the right angle regardless of the environment.
Kicked up dust, falling leaves, falling rain, literal sweat, blood and tears it did not matter. As long as it wasn't just air, it could be used as a stepping stone for [Hunter's Step].
While the Wolfe Family wasn't so big on the hunting anymore, they still used the art as a means to get their blades into blind spots, regardless of the opponent.
"You fucking piss drinker, I'll kill you!," Donovan shouted as he deftly used the debris caused by Zhen Liu's action to quickly step up to the aforementioned debris kicker. Making matters worst, Jeremiah and Richter managed to get their bearings in time and also used [Hunter's Step] in order to join their leader for a team attack.
'Oh shit,' Zhen Liu thought to himself as he saw the incoming trio. He knew he could probably take one Aether Acotlye's attack to the face, three at the same time would probably hurt a lot.
The only thing he could do now was attempt to block, pray for a deus ex machina, or...
Zhen Liu quickly glanced to Nepherage's bracelet and thought of dismissing Frosttusk to call her out for defense. But when he thought about the sled and what happens when the thing controlling it gets loose... yeah, that would've been bad.
With no other good plans in his head, Zhen Liu hastily threw up his arms in an attempt to guard at least some of the damage.
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"Holy shit, he actually did it! He smashed the cart and sent the Wolfes flying!," Zhen Hai shouted excitedly.
Zhen Hai and Zhen Yue were rather dumbstruck as to why their cousin suddenly flung himself like a projectile at the enemy's cart, until they saw him throw down his ice ball like a heavenly hammer. The only issue now was that Zhen Liu was about to get ganked.
"Oh no!," Zhen Yue cried in alarm, "looks like the Wolfes recovered and they're about to attack Zhen Liu. We gotta help him!"
"How? There's no way we can get over there in time to-huh?"
But before Zhen Hai could express his views, he felt a tapping on his shoulder before he felt something wrap around his arm. As he turned to see what it was, realization hit him like a brick.
"Oh! Well....if it worked for him..."
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"All together boys! Let's tear him apart!"
The Wolfe team was just about to rip Zhen Liu a new one, when an unexpected message came to him from Frosttusk.
[Help...on...the way...]
"Hands off our cousin you mutts!"
Out of nowhere, Zhen Hai and Zhen Yue came flying to Zhen Liu's rescue, aether roaring, as they released some truly vicious attacks against the Wolfe team fighters that slammed them into the ground and forced them to lock blades with the young heirs.
Unfortunately, they didn't manage to get there in time to stop Donovan.
The Wolfe Family heir was now in striking distance.
[Dust Devil Piercer!]
As Donovan extended his claws, swirling dust devils formed around them, forming terrible spears of wind that threatened to pierce Zhen Liu's gut.
Out of some mix of instinct and desperation, Zhen Liu drew the bone club, the one he got from the ruins, from his hip in an attempt to block the attack.
As he did, something in his mind suddenly...clicked.
{Are you seriously using my tool like that?}