March 7th: "Eh? Ah Guang? What's up? Did you notice something?"
Pei Guang nodded. "Yeah. Let's go—we've finished collecting Aether Spirits here, now it's time to play against some of the others. I've got a strategy I want to test. It just might work."
Pei Guang reviewed his chips and Aether Spirits, then equipped the Silvermane Lieutenant with a chip that reduced Ultimate Energy cost, boosted taunt-based shielding, and increased attack during turns it wasn't actively attacking.
The Silvermane Cannoneer was equipped with two chips: one that increased energy at the start of battle, and another that boosted all allies' overall stats by 0.4%—stacking up to sixty times—each time an ally landed an attack.
Watching Pei Guang's actions, March 7th was a little confused. She remembered clearly that, according to guides, all Silvermane Guard–type Aether Spirits were considered very weak.
Online veterans had commented:
"These Aether Spirits are laughably weak. I personally recommend using Aether Spirits from the Xianzhou Luofu. Whether it's the Aurumatons or the reviver-healer, they're all a much better investment than wasting resources on these. That said, chip recommendations here are worth grabbing—the 'boost all stats with every action' chip is god-tier on the Aurumatons!"
Aether Spirits needed resources to upgrade, and the only way to get those was through battle: win and you'd gain resources, lose and you'd get nothing.
And with how many people were playing Aetherium Wars, if you picked weak Aether Spirits, you just couldn't win. If you couldn't win, you couldn't level up—and once you fell behind, catching up was basically impossible.
Still, March 7th figured that if Pei Guang said it would work, then it would work. He'd even taken down that huge Phantylia, so a little Aetherium Wars should be nothing for him, right?
In fact, she was right: Pei Guang had already found another player and was about to challenge them.
This was a Belobog miner who, after several days, had collected a nearly unstoppable lineup: four Imaginary Weavers. This Aether Spirit increased its action value by 99% after every attack, once per turn.
With those four Weavers, the miner had won countless matches. When he saw Pei Guang, he immediately issued a challenge. "Trailblazer? You play Aetherium Wars too? Let's battle with Aether Spirits!"
Pei Guang smiled. "Of course. I came here just to challenge you. Let's go, Silvermane Lieutenant!"
He summoned his Aether Spirit using the coin. His team consisted of Piggy Hero as the lead, with Silvermane Lieutenant and Silvermane Cannoneer as the core, and an Imaginary Weaver as filler—a four-member lineup.
Seeing Pei Guang bring out a Silvermane Lieutenant, the miner chuckled. "Trailblazer, didn't you know? The Silvermane Guard series is already recognized as the weakest Aether Spirits. It's still early—you sure you don't want to switch teams?"
Pei Guang: "No need. This team is strong as hell. Trust me."
The miner couldn't understand why Pei Guang thought this team was strong, but from his perspective, if Pei Guang wanted to lose with such a weak lineup, he had no choice but to accept the win.
Looking at the opposing four Weavers, March 7th covered her mouth. "Ah Guang! This isn't good—that guy's got a super strong lineup. The only ways to counter it are attribute advantages or a mirror match with better chips and levels. That team's easily top five in the whole event!"
Stelle, hands on hips, looked confident. "No worries. With Ah Guang here, even an unbeatable lineup gets cracked wide open."
Pei Guang: "Exactly. Now sit back and watch me work."
The battle began. The Weavers had 133 speed—blazingly fast—and could act before anyone else.
But unfortunately for them, while their base speed was indeed fast, the Silvermane Cannoneer was even faster in practice. Despite having only 95 base speed, the Cannoneer could gain 60% action advance at the start of combat.
Seeing Pei Guang's Cannoneer act first, the miner teased him. "Trailblazer, a single Cannoneer acting first won't be enough to beat my four Aether Spirits. Once your Cannoneer finishes its move, your whole lineup's gonna get wiped in a storm of attacks."
March 7th was also getting nervous. The Silvermane Lieutenant was way too slow. In Aether Spirit battles, speed usually decided the winner. Unless a unit had overwhelming mechanics or attribute advantages, acting last usually meant losing.
Yet despite the situation, Pei Guang just smiled. He had started the match with 3 energy points, enough for the Cannoneer to use its Ultimate. That Ultimate restored 2 energy to an ally, and with the energy cost for the Silvermane Lieutenant reduced, it only needed 2 to use its Ultimate.
"No worries! Silvermane Cannoneer—use your Ultimate on Silvermane Lieutenant."
At that moment, the Cannoneer unleashed its Ultimate, shouting out the custom battle line Pei Guang had written for it:
"With wonders beyond counting—let's get fired up, all together now!"
The Silvermane Lieutenant had been buffed: he could now use his Ultimate.
Pei Guang: "Silvermane Lieutenant, use your Ultimate: Total Preparation!"
Silvermane Lieutenant: "Years of cold hardens the will. We shall never fall!"
All of Pei Guang's Aether Spirits were now protected by a thin shield generated by the Silvermane Guard—enough to block one attack at most. However, thanks to a shield-boosting chip, the Lieutenant himself had a solid shield value.
With both Ultimates used, Pei Guang had the Silvermane Cannoneer follow up with a Covering Support attack on the Silvermane Lieutenant. Once the Cannoneer's move finished, Pei Guang's team's turn ended.
Now it was the miner's turn. His Weavers moved first and immediately unleashed a powerful spread-type combat skill toward Pei Guang's team.
The blast struck the shield, but in that moment… a strange chain reaction occurred.