"Once Sans's attack logic is understood, we need to focus more on precise control of the red heart's position," Mo Zhi analyzed. "Even if we take 0.1 seconds less damage per wave, over a round that's over ten HP points less. Micro-management is too important!"
"Hoo!" Mo Zhi took a deep breath to keep her mind clearer. It was her turn to challenge next!
For a while afterward, Sans inexplicably became Mo Zhi's specialized practice tutor. Starting from the opening attack, Mo Zhi repeatedly practiced at each attack phase until her HP was maintained at a relatively healthy state before proceeding to the next round.
In this manner, Mo Zhi progressed bit by bit, much like a student undergoing intensive practice by chapters and types before a college entrance exam. Two hours passed, and she reached the progress she had previously blundered through. Unlike before, her HP was above the healthy line when she reached the '+ and x' laser cannons again. Now she had enough room for error to explore the next stage.
'Wow! Her progress is really visible. A technical streamer indeed!'
'Mo Zhi's perseverance is amazing. I'm moved to tears!'
'Streamer, you've worked hard! Here's a plane as a small token of my appreciation!'
...
The viewers who had been following were all shocked by Mo Zhi's perseverance. Those who had come to watch for entertainment also put away their mocking smiles as Mo Zhi stood up again through her repeated struggles and tears.
Finally, hard work paid off.
After skillfully dodging Mo Zhi's attacks, Sans suddenly stopped. Sweat appeared on his forehead, a rare sight. "Uh... speaking of which..."
"Listen," Sans said. "I know you haven't responded to me before, but... I can feel that somewhere deep in your heart, there's still a remnant of kindness. It's a memory left by someone who once yearned for kindness, someone who, in another time and space, might even be a... friend?"
"If you listen to me... can we just forget everything? You just need to put down your weapon, and my task will be much easier."
【Sans is sparing you.】
Oh...
Sans, like a master of human psychology, had shaken Mo Zhi's resolve with just a few words. That kind friend... Papyrus.... The image of the little angel who, even with only his head left, was still trying to persuade her to be good flashed through Mo Zhi's mind. Her heart was touched. After hesitating for a moment, she chose [Mercy] to respond to Sans's offer.
"..."
Sans raised his arms. "Finally, come on, friend."
*Boom!*
Bone bars rising from below locked and strangled the red heart within the frame.
Game Over!
A humiliating defeat!
If we were truly friends... you wouldn't come back.
It had to be said, Sans was a fellow of both courage and strategy. Feeling he might be outmatched, he resorted to such means to win. The familiar betrayal reminded Mo Zhi of her own actions when she faced Papyrus's mercy. Karma indeed. She wondered if Papyrus felt the same way she did at that moment. She deserved it...
Having endured the suffering she deserved, it was time to enjoy the pleasure of victory! After cursing herself inwardly, Mo Zhi embarked on her journey again. The boss battle had now entered its second phase. Sans's attack frequency increased again, and his combination attacks made Mo Zhi's CPU smoke. She even encountered the most annoying move yet – menu attacks. This maneuver completely refreshed everyone's perception! During Mo Zhi's turn, while in her selection interface, bones floated around the periphery. When Mo Zhi carefully selected to fight or use an item, being hit by these bones also caused significant damage per frame.
"Damn it!!" Mo Zhi couldn't take it anymore. She said with a wronged tone, "Brothers, imagine this. You're boxing with someone, and during every rest period, the opponent sends people into your resting area under the ring to hit you. What kind of fair play is that?"
"It's too cheap!"
"Wuwuwu... I can't stand this injustice!"
After hearing Mo Zhi's peculiar analogy, everyone in the live stream burst into laughter!
'Hahaha, no honorable conduct!'
'A wonderful analogy from JoJo, and so vivid!'
'I can't stop laughing. What was the designer thinking to come up with such a bizarre idea? Couldn't they put it to good use in their actual job?'
'Is it rude for me to laugh out loud in such a serious moment? But Sans is really something else!'
...
For a moment, the live stream was filled with a cheerful atmosphere. It was mainly because Sans was so ridiculous; this dishonorable tactic appearing in such a formal duel gave a sense of comical yet strangely reasonable absurdity. It added a barrage of laughter to an already fun game.
After her outburst, Mo Zhi's taut nerves gradually relaxed. Such a despicable tactic indicated that Sans was also at the end of his rope.
【Sans is preparing his special attack.】
He still had a trump card? Seeing the suddenly appearing notification made Mo Zhi's eyelids twitch, and her relaxed heart tensed up again.
At this moment, Sans's eye sockets turned pitch black, bottomless. This was a sign of his absolute seriousness. The ultimate explosive attack was imminent.
Sans waved his arm, and a super continuous attack composed of gravity control, side-to-side jumps, and an ultra-long track appeared. What was even more despairing was that there was no break in between, no chance to drink potions, significantly reducing the margin for error. She had to grit her teeth and power through in one go! Otherwise, all her previous efforts would be in vain, and she would have to start over.
This segment of the journey was five to ten times longer than any previous attack segment. However, this wasn't what made Mo Zhi most desperate. When she spent another two hours reducing the margin for error in the ultra-long attack segment to the minimum, thinking victory was within reach, the ultimate killing move, the most difficult, perverse, and insane in the entire game – the infinite G-shaped windmill laser cannon – appeared.
Initially, Mo Zhi thought that with this laser cannon rotating in a 'G' shape, she could dodge it like playing hide-and-seek by mastering its rhythm. Sans would also be on his last legs, and she would be just one step away from becoming the first person to clear it.
However, the ideal was beautiful, but reality was cruel! After trying this move, the faint smile on Mo Zhi's face instantly froze. She had always prided herself on her precise micro-control of the red heart in the Sans boss battle. She had reached an advanced stage in understanding when the red heart should jump, how far, and with what force. For fixed pattern stages like the opening attack and the first phase, she could even pass with 90% HP. What she thought was what she achieved, just like in a shooter game, seeing the enemy the moment they appear, and moving the crosshair onto them before they moved was the core.
The infinite G-shaped windmill laser cannon tested precisely this ability. It required her to use stiff directional controls to make the red heart move in a circular path, reacting before each rotating laser beam reached her position. This created the visual effect of 'disaster is always one step behind me.' Everything was planned perfectly, except she underestimated the impact of the laser's frequency on her reaction speed.
The laser's rotation speed was constantly accelerating, getting faster and faster... so fast that the afterimages combined to form a spinning windmill. The speed was suffocating. This was the origin of the infinite G-shaped windmill laser cannon! That is: a windmill laser cannon rotating rapidly in a 'G' shape!
During her first attempt, Mo Zhi felt as if she were trapped in a raging storm of death, sinking deeper the harder she struggled! Once caught in the vortex, there was no escape. Her proud control was pulverized into dust by the accelerating vortex. No matter how hard Mo Zhi tried to improve, she couldn't advance her progress even a bit. But could the proud Mo Zhi give up so easily?
'Ah... I'm breaking down. What kind of devilish stage is this.'
'Despair, deep despair. Is this something humans can do?'
'Streamer, you've worked hard! I'm going to give you all the gifts I saved for Yingying and Huahua!'
'I can't say any encouraging words anymore. Streamer, reaching this point has already surpassed most people, proving you're a technical streamer, a technical streamer with no fluff!!'
'Go for it!!!'
...
Regardless of whether they were Mo Zhi's fans or not, the viewers who had persisted this far, seeing Mo Zhi sweat and persevere so earnestly in the game, all brought out their most treasured gifts. This unknowingly gave Mo Zhi immense encouragement and determination, igniting her courage to fight with her back against the wall, to break through any obstacle. She was determined to win this battle that carried everyone's hopes and honor!
Mo Zhi practiced even more diligently, strengthening herself. The sky outside her window was already showing the first light of dawn, but she paid no mind. She charged into the windmill countless times, and countless times she was torn to shreds.
Finally.....
No matter how much she improved, she still fell at the last hurdle, the final push towards success. Not all efforts yield good results. It was true for you and me, and it was true for Mo Zhi.
Unwillingness, grievance, regret, resentment, guilt..... various emotions surged into her heart. The accumulated frustration of the entire night erupted completely.
"Aaaaaah!!!" Mo Zhi's eyes turned red. She grabbed her keyboard and slammed it fiercely onto the desk, screaming hoarsely, "Get out! Get out!!"
"Get out of my computer!!!"
"Get out, get out, get out!!!"
...