Chapter 395: Pre-match Hype (3.5k)
Upon arriving at the hotel, Su Jiu changed her clothes in the restroom, swapping the foul-smelling Crow Feather Attire for her Battle King Hanfu. It was the only alchemical outfit she had left, as ordinary clothes were prone to “ripping” during intense combat. Su Jiu wasn’t exhibitionist, so she naturally wouldn’t wear them…
To Su Jiu’s surprise, as she came into contact with Sisi’s domain power and put on the Hanfu again, she felt a peculiar sensation. It was as if this alchemical Hanfu had a crucial element that had yet to be activated, and activating it required its master to reach the Battle King level.
“Mom?”
Just as Su Jiu was about to ponder the Hanfu, a clear girlish voice suddenly rang out from the Spiritual Space. Along with the voice, a soft something tightly embraced Su Jiu from behind.
Su Jiu’s pupils slowly widened. Just as she was about to say something, Vivian walked in past the glass door and gently knocked on the restroom door. She said with a tone of earnest advice, “Stop role-playing.”
“I’m not…” Glancing at the silver-haired girl behind her, who had large golden eyes and was naked, Su Jiu swallowed. She felt it was necessary to clarify a bit.
This damn thing is E Huo!
“Then… do you want her to call you Dad?”
But soon, Vivian’s teasing voice came through again, as if she had seen through Su Jiu.
Su Jiu: Abba abba…
…
On a crowded road, a black Chevrolet drove slowly towards the arena in the city center. Inside the car sat five people, three of whom were girls in the back. They were Su Jiu, Vivian, and Chen Jia’er.
“Are we going to the competition venue now?” Su Jiu asked Vivian, resting her chin on her hand and looking out at the bustling traffic. She was curious. Almost two weeks had passed unconsciously, and the monster siege outside the city should have stabilized by now.
Vivian was still engrossed in her phone, seemingly looking at something, and didn’t answer. Chen Jia’er, sitting beside her, spoke up to explain, “The first match this afternoon is between us and Tokyo University from the Cherry Blossom Country, so we need to hurry. Otherwise, the referee will declare us disqualified.”
“Tokyo University? They don’t seem to be a strong team. We should be able to defeat them easily.”
Su Jiu nodded thoughtfully, wondering if Xiangzi was still in jail. She guessed she had probably been redeemed and sent back home, otherwise, she wouldn’t have been on the list of participants.
“Captain.” Chen Jia’er habitually called Su Jiu “Captain.” She took out some information and pointed to “Xiangzi” on the list, saying very seriously, “This person named Xiangzi, it is said that during the previous defense battle, someone discovered that she actually unleashed power surpassing an Initial Stage Battle King… and killed an adult Battle King Level lord.”
“Xiangzi…” Su Jiu pondered for a moment upon hearing this, then turned and said with a smile, “She might not be Xiangzi. Xiangzi definitely doesn’t have this kind of strength.”
“Captain, aren’t you afraid? We are about to face an Intermediate Battle King level expert. Qi Miao VIII Wusi VI Ba⒎Qi” Su Jiu’s composed demeanor stunned Chen Jia’er. She was puzzled why Su Jiu was so calm. That was an Intermediate Battle King! They could even be hired as teachers at top Dragon Country universities like Magical Capital University or Imperial Capital University.
“It’s just this level of strength. There’s no need to be afraid. In the next match, I’ll be the first one to go,” Su Jiu said with a confident smile. Since Li Yi and the others had already proven themselves, it was time for her to play a grass-cutting rampage. She paused and added, “As a participant, not as a Priest.”
“Captain, you’re going up personally? But you’re not a Priest…” Chen Jia’er was momentarily stunned and wanted to say more, but Vivian beside her suddenly looked up and placed a hand on her shoulder.
“You’ve gotten stronger again…”
Vivian squinted and appraised Su Jiu, then tilted her head with a smile. She then waved her phone at the latest news, “Aers Live – Record of Heroes,” and her alluring red lips parted slightly. “Blocking a million soldiers alone, you are qualified to compete for that blood pool.”
Hearing Vivian’s inexplicable words, Chen Jia’er blinked, her face filled with confusion. What are you guys talking about? Why can’t I understand any of it?
“Blood pool… To compete for that thing, I at least need the strength to face a War God. We’ve arrived at the venue. Let’s go out first,” Su Jiu said with a helpless smile, looking out at the increasingly crowded people and the familiar venue. She then changed the subject. Her current strength was still at the stage where she could bully relatively weaker or foolish High-Rank Battle Kings. After E Huo’s seclusion, she would likely be able to truly face those powerful High-Rank Battle Kings once she reached the Battle King level.
“This guy has gotten so much stronger again without me noticing… This is.” Vivian pouted, but her gaze lingered on her phone. Seeing a hyperlink below Su Jiu’s introduction, she lightly tapped on a book titled “Land of Freedom” at the very bottom…
Is it the book written by that stinky servant? Su Jiu & Bairnis… Did Gemini write it together? I can take a look at what she’s been through.
Soon, everyone got out of the car. The familiar wide street paved with stones appeared before them. The surging crowd on the street made the usually quiet Su Jiu secretly marvel. The crowd was as lively as ever.
As they walked, the stands around the arena were finally packed with people again. The noisy sounds reached straight into the sky. After about another hour, the matches, which had been affected by the beast tide, resumed.
When a white referee wearing a blue and white striped uniform slowly walked onto the square, thunderous cheers erupted from the stands.
The cheers gradually subsided as the referee lowered his hands. The middle-aged referee looked around and then announced loudly, “Affected by the beast tide, our match progress needs to be accelerated. The rules are simple: only one match. 24 advance to 12. The winner advances directly, and the loser will not have the chance to continue the competition.”
“Alright, it’s time for the matches. Now, please, all teams, come to the center as soon as possible according to the order on the screen. Once a team is called and there is no participant, they will be deemed to have forfeited.”
The white referee didn’t say much more. After explaining the competition rules, he slowly retreated to the referee’s seat on the far east side. At this moment, the names of two teams lit up on the big screen.
[Slackers Squad (Magical Capital University)]
[Tokyo Team (Tokyo University)]
As the referee’s voice fell, the noisy square fell silent for a moment. The two teams slowly ascended the north and south sides of the competition stage.
“This Xiangzi is very unusual. She seems to be much stronger than indicated in the information.”
“Feeling her aura, it seems stronger than Mr. Wend’s. She seems to have reached Intermediate Battle King.”
As the contestants from both sides entered, countless gazes on the judging panel suddenly shifted to “Xiangzi,” who was wearing a kimono. In those gazes, there was more or less some admiration.
Hearing the praise from other representatives, the representative from the Cherry Blossom Country’s lips curved upwards. The plan to let Lingzi appear early to replace Xiangzi was his idea. It had been a long time since anyone had stood out from the East. If his country could take the first place, the Emperor would surely reward him greatly.
He then looked at Yun Mo in front of him and saw a hint of worry in his eyes, which made his smile even brighter.
Meanwhile, someone in the Five Powers seats was completely stunned. Beneath the large wizard hat was a look of utter disbelief. However, his gaze was not on Lingzi but on… Su Jiu!
“Isn’t this a player meeting?! Why is she there!!” He shouted in disbelief, and Green suddenly stood up, staring intently at Su Jiu’s face. His old eyes were as wide as ox bells. He finally remembered where he had seen this face before. This was the Priest from the Slackers Squad! It seemed Su Jiu had also told him before that she was participating as aid from the International Red Cross. These people have all been tricked by that strengthening technique…
“Hoo—” After a long while, he finally took a deep breath and turned to look at the worried Yun Mo beside him. His mouth twitched—Your elder ran onto the competition field to bully the baby, and you’re sighing here?
Others thought Green was lamenting Lingzi’s strength and didn’t pay much attention. But soon, he said to Yun Mo in a deep voice, “Brother Yun Mo, what’s Miss Su’s situation? Does Dragon Country plan to let a Night Watcher elder who can easily kill a High-Rank Battle King participate in this kind of children’s competition?”
“Night Watcher elder?” Being asked this by Green, Yun Mo blinked in surprise, then looked utterly bewildered. He quickly shook his head and directly denied, “Impossible! These are students recognized by the academic system, and they have all been through bone probing.” Saying that, he narrowed his eyes and looked at Su Jiu, as if trying to see through something, but he couldn’t detect her precise strength at all.
“Does she really have the strength to face Xiangzi?” At this moment, Yun Mo suddenly realized something was amiss. He, a demigod, couldn’t see through a student… He then turned to look at the exasperated Green, swallowed, and thought, could this old man be telling the truth?
Green sighed again. He leaned forward slightly, turned his head, and said with great sincerity to Yun Mo, “She is indeed a Night Watcher elder. When I went to investigate, she killed a bunch of Battle Kings, including the High-Rank Battle King Chief Commander Yela.”
“No… even the TV dramas wouldn’t dare to portray it like this, right?” Yun Mo was completely stunned upon hearing this, finding it utterly absurd.
“This is…” Behind him, his assistant mechanically took out his phone from his pocket and slowly unfolded it. Looking at the latest news from Aers, he suddenly felt like a silver bullet had hit his forehead.
Title: “The Hero and the Flag of Dragon Country”
Image: At the entrance of a hospital, people of various races are holding a giant red flag, and behind them are countless Aers citizens. At the very front, a figure holding a scythe is confronting another figure wearing a white shirt.
Reporter: Xu Wutong
“The flag I gave?”
…
“Why are those judges all looking at us?” In the Tokyo University team, the blonde guy dressed like a street bum looked uncomfortable and turned his head towards the judges’ seats. He muttered discontentedly.
“Perhaps they’ve discovered my strength? After all, in this kind of competition, an Intermediate Battle King is god-like. I’ll make those who pride themselves on being ancient Eastern countries realize what the true foundation of the Eastern countries is.” Lingzi glanced at him and then said carelessly, with a slight grin, seemingly not taking Su Jiu and the others, or even the referees, seriously.
“Won’t you reconsider?” Meanwhile, Vivian also withdrew her gaze from the judges’ seats and nudged Su Jiu with her elbow, asking with a playful smile, “If you go up, we won’t have a Priest to support you. Why don’t you stay in the Priest position, and I’ll cover the front for you?”
“Forget it… I wanted to test my newly promoted attributes.” Su Jiu smiled and shook her head at her. Then, when the referee asked if they wanted to change the order of participants, she suddenly raised her hand and stepped forward, saying calmly under everyone’s gaze:
“I want to be moved from the Priest position to the official starting lineup.”
Her faint voice echoed across the arena, causing the entire venue to fall silent for a moment, and then erupt into an uproar in an instant. Many gazes turned to Su Jiu, with a “wait-and-see” attitude. The Priest going to the front line to fight? Was this looking down on the opponent?
Sensing the doubt in those gazes, Lingzi’s expression instantly turned cold…
