Translator: Lonelytree Editor: Millman97
“I’m surprised that you are better than I expected…” Laughing Soul praised Xiao Tan, who had just returned.
“Yes, definitely. That last final hit that you did, the hero ending the battle…it was enough to melt a young girl’s heart,” Feng Bujue said with a wicked smile as he pointed at Laughing Soul. “Being cool is more important than winning. That has always been true.”
“Leader, please stop this nonsense. It’ll cause misunderstandings,” Laughing Soul said as she narrowed her eyes and gave Brother Jue a side-eye.
“Nah, he’s right. I saw the blush on your face as well.” Passing Rain sold out her cousin without hesitation.
“Cousin!” Laughing Soul angrily huffed and pouted in a complaining tone. Xiao Tan merely stood there and smiled. He was a kind person and knew where the line was. Feng Bujue also knew when to stop, and he quickly changed the subject. “So now that you have entered the winner’s group, if all goes well, you will be exempted from further matches in the next two days. Your OT is already over. It’s about time you rest and train at your level.”
“Hmm…I do hope that will be the case,” Xiao Tan said. “But that win is not a guarantee that I’ll get into the second round, right? If my winning rate puts me in the bottom 120 among the winner’s group, then I still need to fight the redemption round, don’t I?”
“Have some faith in yourself. You have 42 wins, remember?” Laughing Soul encouraged him. “The winner’s group will have 1,500 people and only 8 percent is required to fight in the redemption round. You have always looked down on yourself. Actually, most people get into this round by fighting all 50 matches. Only a handful won more than 40 matches over 50 matches. Therefore, your victory rating is higher than the average.”
“Is…is that so?” Xiao Tan asked as he scratched his head.
“Naturally,” Feng Bujue added. “By her tone, it’s clear that she has researched on it. She must have scanned through the threads on the forum and did the analysis based on the list that was announced.” He paused. “Based on this detective’s experience and instinct, the only reason our Soulie friend here would be so concerned about someone is that she has an ulterior motive.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be a great writer?” Laughing Soul interrupted him. “Since when did you change your job?!”
“If necessary, I can take on any job I want and do anything I wish to,” Feng Bujue said shamelessly. “My hidden identities are more than you can imagine. A few hours ago, I even saved Earth from the clutches of the aliens from Mars.”
“What you did was have takoyaki for dinner.” Xiao Tan knew him best. And obviously, Brother Jue had used this gag more than once before.
“Erm…” After Feng Bujue was exposed, he pouted and changed the subject again. “It’s getting late. Let’s go for a team scenario. To go further in the Tournament for the Best, Xiao Tan needs to level up his Sorcery mastery.”
“Qie…You also care about Xiao Tan, don’t you? Why do you keep making fun of me then…saying all those nonsense,” Laughing Soul grumbled to herself.
Xiao Tan was standing close to her, and he heard her clearly. He leaned in to whisper into her ear. “Erm… I hope they are not nonsense.”
Laughing Soul rolled her eyes at him and said, “What are you talking about?”
Xiao Tan chuckled to answer.
“If you go on like this, I’ll go offline now, drive to your house in fifteen minutes, break into your room, pull you out of the gaming hub, and suffocate you with a pillow until you die.” Laughing Soul uttered the whole threat in one breath.
“Fine, fine. You win.” Xiao Tan surrendered. “I will zip my lips up and say no more.”
Meanwhile, at the Market, on the main monitor, two commenters had just finished broadcasting a focus battle between Vishnu and Smiling Divine Question. The match was a direct match between the player ranked 6th and 7th on the combat stat ranking. Finally, it was Smiling Divine Question, whom people called ‘Master Smile,’ who won the question, sending the second-in-command from Brahman into the redemption round. While the audience was discussing this epic battle, a livestream of another match was pulled up on the screen.
“Dear viewers, welcome back,” Commentator A said. “I am Pan Feng.”
Commentator B introduced himself. “I am Hwa Xiong.”
Pan Feng said, “The battle earlier was epic, was it not? The echoes of the battle are still ringing in my ears.”
Hwa Xiong added, “But the livestream for tonight is not over yet. Many matches are still undecided. Now, let us recollect ourselves and move our attention to another ongoing battle.”
The two GMs did not show up on the screen. The players could only hear their voices. The screen had switched to show the map of the scenario. The image of the match was shot by the system. It was taken from a higher altitude, and the camera would even shake and pan in and out accordingly. The lighting effect also mimicked the actual scenario. There were beams of strong light, darkness, dust, and water ripples. This affected the cinematography of the livestream. The audio was a surround-sound system, and there was no static. During the battle, if the players spoke clearly, the livestream would pick them up. Of course, whispering and grumbling were not picked up by the audio system.
“In this first round, the only two players from the Top 20 who ran into each other were Smiling Divine Question and Vishnu from the previous match. Looks like they weren’t that lucky,” Hwa Xiong said. “The other high-ranking players have mostly achieved their victory, and the current player still fighting is Zen Dream.”
Pan Feng added, “I believe everyone is not unfamiliar with Zen Dream. He is one of the four best players from Regulation, a star player among the celebrities players.” He paused. “But the viewers might not be that familiar with his opponent. We will give a brief introduction about him. This candidate is Long Aomin, and he came from the Blade Edge guild. He is on the same level as Zen Dream. They are both at Level 37, and his ID is Savage Shield.”
Hwa Xiong continued, “Like the viewers, we are watching the battle alongside with you. From the current situation, it seems like Zen Dream has the upper hand and is pressuring Long Aomin with his strong attacks.” His tone shifted slightly. “It looks like this match is reaching its end. As expected, the player on the higher combat stat ranking will nab the win.”
Pan Feng suddenly cut his partner off. “Wait! Look! Long Aomin is suddenly surrounded by a golden aura. He has started to counter! Is he going to give up his defence to do a last bit for a chance at victory?”
Hwa Xiong followed up. “Zen Dream used a strong skill to push his opponent back. The skill looks powerful. It has to be his ultimate. Oh! The attack is easily naturalized! Long Aomin now has successfully turned the table around!”
The commentators spoke fast, but the players on the screen fought faster. The clinking and clanking was the crescendo of sword and shield. The booming and howling was the chorus of speed and brute strength.
In the scenario, Brother Long, who was glowing with flashes of gold, had leaped to stand before Zen Dream. The latter, whose Stamina Point had reached zero, was a fish on the chopping block. Perhaps for the others, it looked as if Zen Dream was pressuring Long Aomin. In reality, Zen Dream was the one being cornered. He had to keep on his relentless attack because he had no other choice. Even though he started attacking at the start of the scenario, Zen Dream failed to break through Long Aomin’s defense system. When his Stamina Points dropped to zero, Brother Long activated his title skill, with one strike that burst forth like a shining beacon, and that was the match-defining hit.
“I’m surprised that I will lose here.” Zen Dream knew that it was over. He knelt down to the ground and chuckled with a bitter smile.
Long Aomin was not one to step on his opponent. “It is your poor luck that your fast blade ran into my slow shield. With your ability, the redemption round should be a piece of cake for you.”
“Who can really tell…” Zen Dream smiled and continued, “You might not know this, but my gaming studio has set a high requirement for my victory rating. This puts me in such hot water.”
“Then I wish you good luck,” Long Aomin said as he raised his shield to deliver the last hit.
Zen Dream shrugged and said, “You too, my friend.”