Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Tang Wulin walked out of the house and took deep breaths to calm his emotions. He shut the door before making his way out of the Fire Basin.
In front of the window, a pair of wet and bleary eyes were fixed on his receding back. The Emerald Demon Bird was perched on her shoulder as it curled its feathers slightly.
Silver light flickered, and her figure disappeared silently as well.
It was already late in the night when Tang Wulin reached the Blood God Army. He returned to the dorms, but his mind was filled with her silhouette.
It was only after he produced his Golden Dragon Spear and felt the influence of the Spear’s Consciousness did he gradually ease into meditation.
Reluctance to let go led to anxiety. He was already looking forward to their next meeting.
As long as he could obtain good rankings from the competition to make his way up to the ranks of a major, he would be able to meet her often. ‘Work hard, I’ll have to work harder!’
The much-needed break and recuperation was a proper balance between work and rest. Tang Wulin felt motivated to work harder.
No matter how heavy the responsibility was upon his shoulders, the moment he saw Gu Yuena’s sweet and beautiful smile, he no longer felt exhausted. In order to have a future in which he could stay with her forever, he would have to become powerful. When he could be powerful enough to stand at the world’s pinnacle, he would no longer need to fear anyone keeping him and Gu Yuena apart.
He cultivated the whole night. The next day, the competition continued.
Tang Wulin entered the Star Dou Battle Network. He noticed there were additional changes on top of his head. The initial golden and silver arrows had been replaced with triangles which shone with increased brightness.
It probably meant that he had proceeded to the next stage of the competition in both the soul master and mecha competitions.
However, he noticed a distinct difference this time. When he passed by the crowd, they took notice of him after they saw the marks atop his head. Out of all the people he came across, there was only a handful who had two marks like him.
‘Can the others who did not join the competition enter this place?’
Tang Wulin was quick to notice that the number of people entering the western area of the stadium was definitely more than the number of contestants.
The round-robin and elimination rounds for both the soul masters’ competition as well as the mechas’ competition were held separately. The two different competitions would be held on alternate days.
There were sixty-four soul masters who made it to the round-robin of the soul masters’ competition. Half of them would then be eliminated. However, the number of people he saw right now surpassed six hundred forty!
“Our esteemed round-robin contestants, in this stage of the competition, the west competition area will be open for observation. Anyone can watch the matches by paying a certain amount of Federation coins. You may also watch the matches of other contestants. Ticket prices will depend on the location of the seats.”
Simultaneously, a spectator’s price list popped up in front of a dumbstruck Tang Wulin.
‘They sure know how to make money…’
Tang Wulin was flabbergasted. What unscrupulous merchants! In the end, the Federation was the largest profiteer!
If the spectators had to pay to watch the matches at this stage, would it not be the same for the finals? Judging by the fact that the Star Dou Battle Network had only been promoted recently, it would not rake in much profits for now. However, in the future, if the general public could gain access to the Star Dou Battle Network, the revenue generated for the Federation would be an astronomical figure indeed. Once the Star Dou Network was launched across the entire Federation, even the Spirit Pagoda would not be able to compete in terms of monetary gain.
Tang Wulin was very smart. He quickly intuited the role the Battle Network would play in generating the profits. Its influence would inevitably increase in tandem with its popularity. The only hurdle was that the hardware was still overly expensive at the moment. He reckoned that it would be difficult to promote it extensively for the time being.
Just when he was lost in his thoughts, the time for his match had come.
A light flashed and Tang Wulin noticed himself standing in the competition ground.
It was the same vast competition ground. He could faintly make out the large crowd sitting on the perimeter of the competition ground as they prepared to watch the match.
‘So people really do buy tickets to watch the matches!’ This was just like the competition organized by the Star Luo Empire back then. Moreover, the Battle Network could accommodate an unlimited crowd.
Tang Wulin’s opponent appeared opposite him far away. From the appearance of his opponent, there was not much of a difference between them. However, Tang Wulin noticed something different from when he was in the elimination rounds. Their names were displayed!
In order for the spectators to recognize the contestants so they could follow the progress of their contestant of choice in the future, the organizers revealed the names of both contestants.
Obviously, the name that hung above Tang Wulin was ‘Little Tang’. When he looked at his opponent’s name, he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
Between Four-Six!
‘Isn’t Between Four-Six Jiang Wuyue?’ They had not met each other throughout the previous matches. However, they never thought that they would be able to evade their fates. They were matched against each other in their very first match of the round-robin.
When Jiang Wuyue saw that his opponent was Tang Wulin, he could not refrain from swearing. ‘What kind of rotten luck is this?’
The electronic voice began counting down at this moment. It even counted more numbers than before. “Five, four, three, two, one. Begin!”
“I yield!”
A light flashed before him. Between Four-Six disappeared.
An electronic voice reached Tang Wulin’s ears immediately. “Your opponent, Between Four-Six has yielded. You’ve won the first match of the round-robin.”
‘This…’
Tang Wulin was at a loss for words for a while. Currently, the spectators who had purchased tickets for this match were in an uproar. Naturally, Tang Wulin could not hear the barrage of curses being hurled at the organizers, but he could definitely understand the spectators’ outrage for having paid to watch such a match.
In the next moment, Tang Wulin noticed that the spectators in the competition ground vanished as if they had been sent away instantly. At the same time, he had also returned to his waiting area.
He located Jiang Wuyue, who had the words ‘Between Four-Six’ flickering above him, at first sight.
“Wuyue, why did you yield?” asked Tang Wulin, puzzled. They were now familiar with each other that they addressed each other by their names.
Jiang Wuyue said angrily, “What else can I do? Should I let you beat me up? I’m not a masochist, you know?”
Tang Wulin said with puzzlement, “What about the spectators? Didn’t they pay to watch the match?”
Jiang Wuyue said with a smile, “Don’t worry, the Federation foresaw such circumstances. If someone yields, the spectators will be transported to another match. After all, everything is virtual. There is no limit to the number of spectators. I’m so depressed for having been paired against you in the very first match. You’ll have to treat me to lunch.”
Tang Wulin said gloomily, “It’s become a habit of yours to rob me in broad daylight, hasn’t it?”
Jiang Wuyue guffawed. “I can’t help it since you’re rich. How about you forge something for me? I’ll not pay you with merit points since it’ll be a waste anyway. I’ll treat you to a meal.”
Tang Wulin said with a smile, “I’ve always thought that you were an honest man. I see now that you’re a profiteer as well. Alright, what do you want? I’ll forge it for you.”
Jiang Wuyue was not exactly depressed. Although he had lost one match, he could still proceed to the next round so long as he won at least four matches in the round-robin. He did not have to win the match against Tang Wulin. Besides, he was very confident in his strength.
Tang Wulin won the first soul master match without having to fight. On the other hand, he had to face a troublesome opponent during his first mecha match.
As usual, the spectators came in great numbers. The words ‘Little Tang’ flickered above his head.
Tang Wulin picked the spear as his weapon of choice just like he did during the previous mecha matches. With his daily practices, his Spear’s Consciousness had improved. However, It was still a long way to unleashing the Thousand Accusing Fingers, whether it was in terms of cultivation base or understanding. In any case, he was cultivating correctly.
His opponent was operating a long-range mecha. However, it was different from the long-range mechas he fought before which used soul cannons. This long-range mecha was armed with two large boomerangs.
