Chapter 1122 - 50 - 56

Chapter 50: Big Brother Really Doesn't Want to Stand Out

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

Whenever An Mei returned to the dormitory, she naturally gravitated towards Ye Zisu. Meng Tian was just too cold and unapproachable. Although she wasn't a bad person at heart, they simply couldn't get along.

This Wang Zheng was truly fickle when it came to matters of the heart. He had quietly gotten a girlfriend of his own.

When Ye Zisu heard about what happened from her friend, on the surface, she seemed extremely calm. However, deep down in her heart, Ye Zisu couldn't believe it. She considered herself as one of those who knew Wang Zheng a bit better. During his entire time in middle school, no one paid any attention to him. Furthermore, during the holidays, he had gone to OMG to intern as a mechanic. When did he ever have the time to look for a girlfriend?

Furthermore, Wang Zheng was the type of guy that took a long time to warm up to people. When she heard that he had suddenly gotten a girlfriend, she truly couldn't believe it.

An Mei could see that Ye Zisu seemed unconvinced of the circumstance. "Susu, I have also talked to her. No matter how you see it, she is a formidable opponent. I feel as though she is absolutely invulnerable! You need to be careful."

"However, I believe that with Susu's qualities, you are more than capable of beating her. It's not like she is a three-headed six-armed monster," said Du Qingqing.

The two of them were extremely curious about Wang Zheng. To be honest, she and An Mei felt it was quite strange. Although Wang Zheng wasn't ugly, he didn't seem to possess any exceptional qualities either. They didn't understand which part of him had captivated Meng Tian and Ye Zisu, two individuals with completely polar opposite personalities.

So what if his military performance wasn't bad? It did not warrant such popularity!

Furthermore, he had silently and wordlessly gotten himself an amazing girlfriend?

"Oh, and before I forget, our Art Club's leader has asked us to speed things up. He was supposed to model for us! What happened to him? Has he gone back on his word?" asked Du Qingqing suddenly, directing her question at Ye Zisu.

Ye Zisu understood her meaning. Her friend was trying to console her by casting doubt on Wang Zheng's qualities as a person and his lack of commitment to a promise made.

"However, Susu, I will still support you wholeheartedly. Even if there is a struggle, it is only an internal one. We can't let some outsiders intrude onto our territory and steal our natural resources[1]!"

An Mei clenched her fists and continued to speak. "Tyrant Su will be our source of insider information. I will extract as much information from him as possible."

Ye Zisu bit her lip as she replied, "It's all up to you now."

An Mei and Du Qingqing looked each other in the eye. Deep down they were shocked. On the surface, Ye Zisu was a gentle and kind person. But inside, she was extremely haughty. Seeing her admit defeat and look to them for help, especially concerning matters of the heart… such a situation felt so surreal!

As an exchange student, Aina didn't come to Ares College just to date; she was also here to learn. Some of her lessons overlapped with Wang Zheng's schedule. For instance, they both attended Xiao Fei's lesson together. Even on an intergalactic scale, Xiao Fei was considered to be at the top of her field.

The two lovebirds had already exchanged timetables the day before. Today, the two of them would get to go to class together.

Wang Zheng had arrived extremely early to reserve a seat and was listening to music as he waited for Aina to arrive.

"Do you like to listen to Huiyin's music?" Aina smiled as she sat next to Wang Zheng.

"This song isn't bad; you can really feel her energy through the lyrics. I prefer to listen to songs that get your blood boiling," replied Wang Zheng as he removed his earpiece.

Aina gave him a wry smile. "She used your battle footage in your MV. Aren't you proud of that?"

Wang Zheng suddenly pulled Aina's hand, staring at his princess with pupils ablaze. "Do you know what I'm most proud of?"

Aina's face turned red. This bastard was becoming more and more audacious.

The two of them were interrupted by the sound of a bell, signifying the start of class. A new teacher walked in and immediately move towards the podium.

"Good morning, everyone. I am your substitute teacher, Professor Marcus."

Marcus' eyes swept across the entire classroom, surveying his temporary students. Immediately, the whole lecture theatre started gossiping animatedly. Marcus was well-known as the foremost expert of the Math Department. For him to teach a freshmen class… such a thing was unheard of! What was happening this year? First, Professor Xiao Fei started giving lectures, and now Marcus was teaching freshmen?

However, such news was only beneficial for the freshmen.

"Everyone here should know that mathematics is the foundation of science. The millions of things in the universe can all be expressed as a beautiful mathematical equation. Even love."

Marcus had very quickly earned a round of applause.

The more amazing a teacher was, the more likely they had abnormal standards. They were erudite and could use simple methods to convey complicated information. Furthermore, they could stimulate one's own thinking processes.

Marcus had no choice but to take a freshmen class. He was still unable to identify his mystery genius student, and Xiao Fei wasn't helping him in the slightest. However, Marcus felt that she seemed to be hiding something. Regardless, since the student was of this school and was a freshman, there would definitely be a way to identify him. Thus, he had chosen to conduct this class to see if he could discover this genius student. However, he had yet to obtain any positive results. At this rate, Marcus could only continue to do this for another month before giving up his search. It simply wasn't possible to keep teaching the freshmen classes, because his own research was already extremely time-consuming.

Aina was usually quite a responsible student who paid attention in class. Unfortunately, what Marcus taught was something that Aina already understood. Aslan's elite would receive their education from the early age of 3, and thus Aina's intellect could not be compared to an average individual's. However, she could still feel that Marcus was of a high caliber.

As one of Earth's three traditional colleges, the standard was not as bad as she had expected. Imparting knowledge was one thing, but being able to create was something else entirely. If the ability to innovate was constrained, it would still be extremely difficult to progress.

Marcus quickly finished the lesson in half of the allocated time before pausing. "One has to be nimble in their thinking and be willing to try. As the famous adage goes, dare to dream and dare to act. I have here a solution to one of Marloca's conjectures. I believe that most of you have heard of it; the First Step is as such. Who here can understand this?"

Saying which, Marcus began to write out a complicated equation on the blackboard.

Wang Zheng, on the other hand, was only looking at Aina. Aina couldn't help but reply, "We are in class; what is so great about looking at me?"

"Shishi, are you trying to say that the old man on the podium is better-looking?"

As he said that, he continued to tug at Aina's hand. Aina attempted to struggle slightly before eventually giving up and letting Wang Zheng grasp her hand tightly.

The entire class was absolutely silent. Even though all of them were geniuses in their own respective countries, this equation truly stumped them.

Aina stared at the equation momentarily. Although she had previously understood this, she would never flaunt her knowledge.

At this point, a short-haired man stood up. "Professor, is this equation trying to say that with Rodriguez's theory as a basis, using computational analysis…"

The short-haired man greatly enjoyed being in the limelight, yet he had even greater hopes that the girl sitting in the front row would turn to look at him.

Marcus nodded continuously as the guy continued to speak; his answer was not that bad. "What's your name?"

"Landry Busen."

Said the guy slightly haughtily. The rest of the class began to whisper amongst themselves, and one after another began to pay attention to him.

Landry Busen was a mathematics genius. He had entered the Sol System's Top 10 new stars. He had risen to fame by completely explaining Moore's theory, an influential figure in middle school.

However, after entering Ares College, he was disappointed to find out that Marcus did not teach any freshmen classes.

Landry Busen was determined to use his own abilities to gain Marcus' attention. A diamond's luster could not be obstructed by dirt.

While he was explaining, Wang Zheng and the beautiful girl continued to whisper and giggle, completely disregarding him.

Landry Busen started to get agitated. This bastard! Although he was from the Physics Department, he wanted to enter the Mecha Department's special training. However, he was transported back half-dead after being kicked out. He had no sense of shame and could still act so happy and contented.

"Excellent explanation, Student Busen." Marcus gestured for Landry to sit down. This brat could indeed be the one. He had also heard of Landry Busen's name. This was an extremely learned and gifted student.

Busen did not sit down but instead looked at the front row. "Professor Marcus, I heard that among us there is a genius from the Physics Department; even Professor Xiao Fei holds him in high esteem. He often engages in lively conversations with the Professor in class. Since mathematics and physics are quite closely related, I would like to hear his opinion on this equation."

"Oh?" Marcus looked at the front row. "Who might this student be?"

"Student Wang Zheng, what are your opinions on Marloca's First Step conjecture?"

Busen had singled out Wang Zheng to challenge him.

The surrounding students immediately felt antagonism and tension fill in the room. Yet our dear Student Wang did not even notice that he had become the center of attention. In the Physics Department, Xiao Fei's high opinion of him had already aroused the ire of many. Aina's appearance had only caused that fire to turn into an inferno.

In this day and age of dating, a girl chasing a guy would be very direct. If there was a goalkeeper, it would motivate one to score even more! However, to score in this goal would have a price.

It was not that Wang Zheng was not listening in class. Rather, he had already completely understood the entire theory a long time ago. During dear Student Wang's pointless childhood and middle school, he had spent all his time playing with the theory of numbers with the Old Merchant. Hence, when it came to things like drinking and playing, he was a complete amateur.

Aina lightly pushed him and said, in a low voice, "Let us take turns to handle this; there is no need to be scared of him!"

The entire class's curious gazes fell on Wang Zheng. They wanted to see if this bastard's luck would continue to hold.

Wang Zheng stood up, glanced at the equation on the board, and mulled for a minute before beginning to speak. "Marloca's First Step conjecture utilizing Rodriguez's theory is extremely wonderful."

At this point in time, the entire class burst out into laughter. Was this not rubbish? This was one of the world's most famous theories; why would one need to praise it?

Just as Aina was planning to say something, the words remained stuck in her throat. The sort of smile Wang Zheng had on his face was something that seemed vaguely familiar. She had often see her father and her aunt have the same sort of smile.

"However, Marloca's conjecture mainly relies on the fact that spatial jumps are able to break the space barrier. However, Rodriguez's theory's explanation is purely theoretical. In practice, it is being phased out as his explanation for passing through the barrier would result in a deviation of approximately a 0.1%. This deviation is already considered to be significant. With the necessity of spatial theory being more precise over time, this theory would also have to be phased out. Currently, the most practical solution would be to use Mill's equation as the first step. In this case, the chance of deviation would fall to a 0.01% instead."

The entire class fell silent. Busen's face was plastered with disdain. Was this guy joking? What was this Mill's equation that he was talking about? He had never even heard of it.

"Student Wang, is Mill's something you can eat? I have never eaten it before; has anyone here eaten it before?"

At this point, a raucous laughter could be heard in the room.

However, Marcus did not laugh. In fact, his heart already knew. "Hehe, Student Wang Zheng, Mill's equation has not been verified, and there are still some shortcomings in that equation."

"Professor, you said that we have to dare to try. Mill's equation replacing Rodriguez's theory is just a matter of time. At the very least, the first step has already been completed. A good start is half the road to success."

"Hehe. Really? Why don't you explain this first step?" Marcus smiled.

Aina stared at Wang Zheng. This was also the first time she had heard of this. A Princess wasn't all-knowing. The mainstream view was that of Rodriguez's theory, and furthermore, it had been in use for almost 10 years.

Everyone stared at Wang Zheng. Spouting nonsense was useless; he had to prove it.

A large number of students was hoping to see Wang Zheng stammer and make up an excuse, but much to their surprise, Wang Zheng got up and walked over to the blackboard.

[1] The natural resources here is naturally referring to Wang Zheng.

Chapter 51: This Math Class Really is Excellent!

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

Student Wang was not particularly interested in standing out, but as he was provoked, especially in front of Aina, he would definitely not let this go.

Wang Zheng paused momentarily in front of the blackboard before beginning to furiously scribble equation after equation.

Originally, Marcus was not very impressed. However, his expression quickly changed. The disdain on Busen's face gradually froze into a look of fear and horror. He could only understand a small portion of it!

As an influential figure of mathematics in the Sol Systems, the Sol System's federation possessed unparalleled libraries of information. He had the best resources and means, and yet …

Marcus continued to nod his head, Aina who was sitting below the stage, was similarly transfixed at the sight. She could understand the vast majority of it, but there were some things in Wang Zheng's workings that were beyond her.

After a period of time, the entire blackboard was filled with symbols. The audience was deathly silent, awaiting Marcus's judgment.

Marcus walked over and pointed at a string of inferences at the center. "How did you think of this?"

GOD!

His tone was that of one in a discussion…

Wang Zheng did not think much of it. He had often argued with the Old Merchant. The way he saw it, the Old Merchant was like a library, and their discussions would evolve seamlessly and endlessly. Discussing such a minor topic with a professor wasn't a problem.

Glancing at another string of explanations made by Wang Zheng, Marcus couldn't help but nod and smile. "Were you the one who solved the equation on the blackboard the other time?"

Wang Zheng stared blankly before nodding. "That was done casually."

"Haha, I finally understand why Xiao Fei feigned complete ignorance about you," Marcus said as he nodded his head.

"What Student Wang Zheng said here is completely right. However, this method of analysis is at the very forefront of the Milky Way Galaxy and is only for the purposes of our discussion. It will not be examinable. Everyone here does not need to consider this at all."

Following which, Marcus erased everything on the board. To the average student, this would completely ruin things with his enthusiasm.

It has to be said that everyone was completely dazed. As Wang Zheng returned to his seat, Aina stealthily gave him a thumbs up. That charming, adorable look led Wang Zheng to want to give her an embrace and a kiss.

Girls were made to be conquered!

Aina truly believed that those supposed geniuses could not compare with Wang Zheng. Who would dare say that Earth's standards were low? It was just that the Aslan Empire was just too ignorant!

Aina did not dare to represent the highest tier of geniuses in Aslan; however, she would not place Xiao Fei in disregard. She now understood how far away Wang Zheng stood compared to her.

He had such innate ability, yet he was so hardworking. There was no one else like him!

Busen wordlessly sat down. He truly could not understand the whole thing. Thus, he could not even retort. The words from the Professor had affected him, and he had been reduced to the position of just an ordinary person.

How could a monster like this have been completely unknown in middle school?

Aina, on the other hand, knew that this guy only liked to score 60 points on his tests. It could be seen that Wang Zheng had quite the humble personality.

This lesson had indeed been quite fruitful, especially for Professor Marcus. Most importantly, he had identified the genius! There was no escape for him!

He had once heard Xiao Fei mention that she had found a student with great potential. However, this student had wanted to join the Mecha Department. That was absolutely unacceptable! It would signify a great loss for the scientific world!

How could those weapon brandishing barbarians compare with the scientists that pushed the very frontiers of human society?

In this regard, he was definitely with Xiao Fei on this one.

The moment the class ended, Busen came to Wang Zheng. "What reference book did you use? Where did you discover this argumentative proof?"

Wang Zheng smiled. "In actuality, I have no clue as to what I wrote. You should be able to find it in the Milky Way's databases."

Finishing which, he grabbed Aina and left the classroom. The moment they left the classroom, Aina couldn't help but laugh. "You're so despicable, mocking that poor guy."

"Who asked him to look at you so lecherously?!" Wang Zheng replied with a feigned expression of seriousness.

Aina grinned. "What? Are you jealous?"

"You should reward me once for being jealous for your sake. Furthermore, I performed so well that you should reward me twice!"

Wang Zheng very quickly revealed his wolfish nature. He had managed to taste the sweetness of success yesterday. It was as though he had tasted the immortal fruit, and nothing else could compare to it.

"What? I didn't hear that."

She was like the Little Red Riding Hood who escaped from the wolf.

Since he could not convince her with his logic, Dear Student Wang was determined to use force. "Don't run; if I catch you, I will punish you with three strokes instead!"

His math was indeed brilliant.

After training in an abyss of suffering, Student Wang felt as though he was in heaven. Fortunate times often came without warning; Wang Zheng had also received an email from Solon. He wanted to ask if Wang Zheng was willing to participate in an interview, and for every question he answered, he would receive ten thousand Milky Way coins.

Solon was extremely polite. This plan of his was still in the budding stages and thus his funding was not exceptionally abundant. However, it could not be too low if he wanted to attract Wang Zheng.

Student Wang was at a loss. How could something like this happen!? It was as though someone was literally giving him money, and on top of that, flattering him endlessly. In his mind, an image of Skeleton appeared. Whether Bonehead needed the money or not, he did not know. However, what he did know was that he lacked money, and this opportunity could not be more welcome.

On the other hand, Wang Zheng knew that it wouldn't be good to do this too often. In all honesty, Wang Zheng would have preferred it if he could just answer a single question occasionally and not be made into a public figure on the CT forums.

Wang Zheng was not particularly interested in becoming a celebrity of CT. He was perfectly content with CT being able to sustain his lifestyle. Occasionally being able to enjoy the thrill of battle and being able to gain Battle Energy was sufficient. Hopefully it would not change his current lifestyle.

All in all, Solon was well on his way.

After receiving Wang Zheng's reply, Solon's heart finally settled down. The current him was sitting in the Sol System's Earth and Moon CT headquarters.

On the other hand, such a sight wasn't strange. Ever since a couple hundred years back, upon the advent of the internet, the internet conglomerates were already on par with traditional commodity trading conglomerates. They possessed terrifyingly large amounts of resources and channels to obtain what they needed.

With Solon's unconventional success, it had stirred up some noise among the inner echelons of CT upper management.

For today's meeting, the key question was to decide if they ought to increase the level of Skeleton's competitors.

Solon was prepared to increase the amount of publicity afforded to Skeleton. However, the higher ups were not convinced of such a move.

"Hehe, Solon, it should be said that this risky plan of yours is inappropriate! We have no need to take such a risk!"

"I am of the same opinion. I have seen his battles; they are all extremely thrilling. Even if he were to continue winning, there are still too many unforeseen parameters! Who is he? What if he wants to stop? What would we do then?"

The board members continued to throw out more and more reasons to dismiss Solon's idea. On one hand, they were truly concerned about the riskiness of the proposal. On the other hand, they were unwilling to see Solon have an unprecedented amount of success.

If Solon grew from this success, he could potentially climb over them!

McLaren, the Sol System's Board Chairman, was absolutely silent. He continued to let the other board members bicker. Solon also possessed some supporters, but they were not as significant. Furthermore, Solon's own position on the board was not high.

After arguing for half a day, McLaren raised his hand to signal silence. "Solon, with your excellent track record, you deserve a large year-end bonus. Your dedication to the company shall be rewarded accordingly. A key reason for your success is attributed to Lin Huiyin using Skeleton's battle footage to create her MV. If not for that, this would not have been possible."

After listening to the Chairman's words, everyone knew what he was hinting at. McLaren clearly wanted to continue with the plan; Solon's luck was just too good.

Although he was not superstitious, it was always best to do things after considering one's fortune. Solon, that old bastard, was so lucky that such a golden opportunity was literally knocking on his door. His success seemed very likely.

"Mr. McLaren, Sir, I will swiftly commence the plan. Hopefully, I will be able to cooperate with Ms. Lin. On the other hand, I have managed to gain Skeleton's agreement in carrying out an interview with him. During the period where Ms. Lin Huiyin will be carrying out her tour, we will have a massive opportunity which we need to capitalize on. If we don't, we will definitely regret it!"

Solon was extremely confident. At times, he would struggle tenaciously and would claw his way through adversity. This cautious approach had been a key factor in his success. As he presented his case to the board, he made sure to carefully and cautiously select his words.

McLaren nodded his head. "The benefits are great, but this is still a company. What we are concerned with are profits. Such mass advertisement would break all precedence and take up the vast majority of our advertising resources. I'm sure you understand that. Thus, the reward…"

"McLaren, Sir! I am both the proposer and implementer of this plan. I would like to thank everyone for giving me this chance. If anything unfortunate happens, I will take responsibility!"

Solon spoke very calmly. At this stage, he was already forced into desperate straits, so he could only advance and not back down.

Frankly speaking, this wasn't very difficult for him. When he thought of the situation he was in several months back, he was already at his wit's end. At the very least he still had the luxury of choice right now and could even influence the outcome.

"Very good. So long as you understand. This plan has been approved. All the departments should try and cater to his demands. I do not want to see problems arising from disunity. Any problems that crop up will be borne by the group collectively!"

Spoke McLaren solemnly. As CT's top management member, his word was law.

It was very clear from what he had said and done that McLaren was very supportive of this plan.

Solon had numerous problems, but McLaren also had problems of his own.

In the Sol System, Earth's performance was not outstanding. In the Milky Way coalition, the Sol System's performance was average. If McLaren wanted his company to stand out, he would need a player with huge future potential to draw the eyes of the masses!

At McLaren's position, he was not worried about stability but rather his reputation!

As the meeting came to a close, applause rang out. However, one could see the false smiles that lay on some of the board members' faces. They were all waiting to see a joke come to fruition. Seeing Solon climb to his position and stay on for such a long time… it was clearly time for him to retire! Yet here he was, tenaciously clinging on and placing all his hopes on a single individual… an individual which he knew nothing about! This was just too risky and uncertain! Furthermore, while Skeleton has had a lucky streak, no one could truly be that lucky! Skeleton's and Solon's downfall was guaranteed!

Solon was clearly staking everything on this one throw.

Solon strutted out of the room vigorously. He finally experienced his second wind, and at such an age to boot! He was finally able to do what he enjoyed after working in CT for so many years. He had climbed from a lowly programmer position until he became the Earth Sector's vice chairman and the one in charge of the Asian Region. He had already forgotten the joy of strife and was no different from a puppet. However, today he felt truly invigorated.

Sometimes one has to trust their intuition. Although he had never met Skeleton, as a CT addict, he had watched Skeleton's battle recordings endlessly, re-living every detail.

Technique, physical ability, experience, and even his psychological state. One could unearth all of this from paying attention to the details.

Skeleton was truly a peerless and fearsome warrior.

Even though there were times where his performance seemed slightly strange, Solon's intuition told him that Skeleton was definitely not very old. However, watching the battle seemed to show that he was a 40-plus year old experienced warrior who was at the peak. There was no other way to explain how he could have carried out the actions shown in the videos.

Even then, was there any meaning to it even if he did find out Skeleton's true identity?

If one wanted to accomplish something, they could not spend their time dreaming.

On the other hand, our dear Student Wang was completely oblivious to his impact on the upper management of CT! His performance in the arena had created such conflict among the board of directors!

Chapter 52: Devoted to Art

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

The Skeleton Corps was ranked first in popularity amongst the legions. The participation of masters, like Rainbow and Wild King, had brought great heat as well.

Rainbow and Wild King were both capable of carrying people in team games. Rainbow crushed his opponents with his equipment, and Wild King had the ability to crush the opponents violently. It was undeniable that a good scout could make a turnaround; this made quite a few people enjoy the feeling of winning from behind.

Just like the idiom said, two heads are better than one. Though the teammates' abilities might be limited, if they had a good captain, they could still create miracles.

Rainbow and Wild King never had the experience of being so popular. They logged in every now and then if they had a bit of free time, to see whether they could bump into Skeleton.

In fact, people were just imagining how it would feel like if they could team up and fight alongside Skeleton.

The pentakill last time was surely unforgettable.

Yao Ailun, Chen Xiu, and Tyrant Su gained the most advantage. Because of the positions they played, they got a lot of chances to win under the lead of Rainbow. Basically, they only needed to assist in the team game, and they could watch Rainbow's violent outburst kill the opponents fiercely.

After the courses in the morning, Wang Zheng received Ye Zisu's message, saying she wanted to invite him and Shishi to a meal.

Of course, he couldn't reject this invitation. Sooner or later they would have to meet. Moreover, he had something to tell her; except Xiaosu, only Zisu could more or less recognize Aina.

Ye Zisu was mentally prepared; she knew that the girl Wang Zheng liked would surely be excellent, but she had confidence in herself too. When Wang Shishi appeared in front of her, Ye Zisu was still amazed.

She met Wang Zheng for the first time when he brought her the love letter from Yan Xiaosu. The ridicule she made was actually generated by a girl's reserved manner and natural pride, or maybe unconsciously she was just trying to catch his attention.

At the birthday party, the sudden appearance of Princess Aslan did cause an astonishment to the crowd, but no one actually cared.

They were like two parallel lines, two parallel lines in two different times and spaces, but now Aina Aslan was just sitting in front of her. Even though her hair colour was changed, Zisu still recognized her at the first sight.

Wang Zheng smiled and said, "Zisu, Shishi is here to study just for a few months, and her identity still needs to be kept secret."

Ye Zisu smiled and offered her hand. "Shishi, welcome. I think we can be good friends!"

The two girls gently shook their hands, and Aina's face lit up. It seemed like they recognised each other's confidence.

Ye Zisu did have one advantage that Aina didn't have.

"Shishi, in Beijing, if you have any troubles, you should go ask help from Zisu, as Tyrant Su is not reliable."

"Hehe, now you call him Tyrant Su too." Ye Zisu couldn't hold back her smile. She really didn't know what Xiaomei was thinking when she came up with such a nickname. Honestly, it was quite easy to remember, and it was sort of likeable.

They had lunch in the school's canteen. The food was plain, but although the quality of the food was not up to their usual level, both girls had a good appetite.

Student Wang didn't really pay attention to these sorts of details. He was starving; he was hungry all the time, and he needed to eat several times more than an average man.

Ye Zisu laughed and said, "You can eat so much; you are definitely hard to provide for."

"Having a good appetite is the happiest thing in the world," said Aina.

"Well, that is true. By the way, Du Qingqing is going to have some issues. You promised to be the model of the art club, but you haven't checked in yet."

"Ah, so many things are going on recently. I will go there after I finish my classes in the afternoon."

Wang Zheng did forget the promise he made. Maybe he was just timid when he thought of the "superboy" president of the art club.

"Yeah. With a beauty by your side, even if it were me, I would also get fascinated."

Ye Zisu ridiculed. She had liked Wang Zheng for four years from the beginning of secondary school. She thought they wouldn't have a chance to meet, but destiny was really funny sometimes. After a series of incidents, they even got admitted to Ares College together.

She didn't think she would have no opponents, Meng Tian was one of them, but she didn't even think of having an opponent like Aina.

But she knew she had one advantage that Aina couldn't compare with.

Ye Zisu and Aina became friends, as expected; they had a lot of common topics. Wang Zheng also hoped that Aina could make as many friends as possible when she was here.

But when it came to the art club, Wang Zheng felt really frustrated. He had never modelled before.

After the classes in the afternoon, Wang Zheng braced himself for the art club. A real man should always keep his promises.

After all, they wouldn't kill him.

When he arrived at the art club, Du Qingqing was already waiting at the door.

"Yo, the busy bee is finally here. It's really not easy to invite you."

Du Qingqing ridiculed.

"*cough, cough* Classmate Qingqing, please let me off for Zisu's sake. If you think I'm not capable for modelling, please don't hesitate to fire me."

Du Qingqing coiled her long hair. It was quite noticeable that she took really good care of her hair. Every strand of hair was so smooth and sleek. Girls with long hair and gentle character could always touch the heart of boys, and that image also matched an artist's temperament.

"You are nervous before we even start; this is not your style."

Wang Zheng touched his nose. When did he ever have such a "style?"

There were ten odd people waiting in the studio, most of them girls, with two boys in between.

The president, Zhang Runan, was also here. She took a look at Wang Zheng with a poker face. "Take off your clothes!"

Wang Zheng was frightened. Taking off his clothes in front of so many people?

The audience laughed. It seemed like Wang Zheng was not the first one who had gotten pranked. Du Qingqing held back her laughter and said, "The fitting room is just over there. You just need to take off your top. Today we are only drawing a portrait of your upper body."

Wang Zheng let out a sigh of relief. What a nuisance! Why was there a habit of pranking the newcomers everywhere.

The club members all prepared the brushes and the paint. Wang Zheng also got out of the fitting room pretty fast, as it wasn't an issue for him to take off his top.

But no one could handle the awkwardness of being stared by a tomboy like Zhang Runan.

The members, on the other hand, were quite amazed. Wang Zheng didn't have a body builder's body, let alone when he had his shirt on. But when he took off his top, the flowing lines of his muscles were truly a pleasant view, especially to an Asian's aesthetic.

When people started to enter the mood of creativity, the studio became a lot quitter. Wang Zheng maintained a position as required. An artist needed a good model to refer to. Human beings were the most difficult to draw, as they were the most familiar, and that's also the reason why it was more demanding.

A good model could inspire the artists. There was only the sound of drawing in the studio room now.

It's quite tiring to be a model, keeping the same position for so long. After one hour, Wang Zheng's first modelling experience was finally over.

He himself was quite curious about how himself would look like in the paintings.

"You wanna look?"

Wang Zheng nodded. However, classmate Wang was quite speechless. The person in the picture looked nothing like him; it was a monster.

"This is me?"

"We are not cameras; the model is merely our source material, and we have to put our imagination in the drawing. The President's picture is the best."

Du Qingqing gasped in admiration.

…Classmate Wang wasn't curious about her drawing at all.

"Superboy" president unusually nodded. "Good, it's all for today. Please hand in your pictures to me."

Wang Zheng didn't fetch his breath until the "superboy" president left.

Du Qingqing smiled and said, "Seems like you are afraid of our president."

"Well, your president has a strong aura."

"Haha, that's true. But it's pretty rare to hear her praise someone. You are quite good. You didn't move at all in one hour; it's like you were born to be a model."

The models they had before, whether they were professionals or amateurs, often moved around. Models like Wang Zheng were too rare.

What classmate Wang was most afraid of was the phrase "born to be a model." He didn't want to have anything more to do with this.

"My mission is done. I need to go first."

Du Qingqing smiled and said, "Goodbye, and thank you. Ask Susu to treat you to a meal."

She couldn't help but smile. What an interesting person. It was no wonder Zisu and Meng Tian would fight over him, but he had a girlfriend already.

What a pity!

Nevertheless, art was always good. You can be the master in the world of art.

When Wang Zheng found Aina waiting for him when he stepped out the door, a sudden warmth rushed to his heart.

"How come you are here?"

"I was afraid of you getting eaten by those tigresses, so I'm here to save you."

"Did you see the president just now?"

"There's only one guy who walked out just now, but isn't the president a girl?"

Aina asked with a sense of curiosity, then she finally tumbled when she saw the odd look on Wang Zheng's face.

"Now you finally understand. It was so painful to be stared at by her for a whole hour."

"You just made a contribution to art. Anyway, let me give you a reward."

With this, she left a small peck on Wang Zheng's cheek, like a dragonfly skimming the surface of water.

This was not enough. Wang Zheng took Aina in his arms and gave her a long french kiss. Aina could barely breathe.

Wang Zheng wouldn't be planning to let go if they were not in public.

"You are getting so much worse!"

Aina murmured.

Wang Zheng's eyes took on a hurt expression. "You shouldn't blame it on me. If you really want to blame something, you should blame your beauty."

"I didn't know you were good at speech. Why is it that I didn't see it before?"

Aina rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'm a genius; I don't even need to learn."

"A genius of 28!"

"Great job! Make fun of me more! You are looking for trouble."

"Ah, you want to bully me again!"

Aina ran away laughing while Wang Zheng chased her. How good it would be if time could stop at this moment?

Looking at the lovely princess in front of him, Wang Zheng was filled with happiness and pride. It didn't matter even if the world would end in the future. That was a problem for the future.

As time went by day by day, the special training members were finally back. Masasi became the captain, while Zhang Shan had surprisingly become the vice captain.

Zhou Mu would officially bring forward Zhang Shan's double degree application to the school. Of course, personally, he suggested that Zhang Shan should have switched majors as well.

Zhang Shan had shown his great potential in the special training. After all, he didn't even have any systematic training; all he did was work out to keep himself in shape. His physical fitness was one in a million.

Due to the influence of his family, Zhang Shan did have an interest in physics. His ambition was shown during the military training, and after this special training, some factors were inspired too. He liked the feeling of battle.

The full members of the team were: Masasi, Zhang shan, Ma xiao, Meng tian, and Jiang Bing. Bench player: Guan tao.

The whole school was anticipating this meeting; it would be so shameful if they got defeated in the home court.

Zhang Shan received a warm welcome when he got back to his dormitory.

"Brother Shan, you are so wonderful! I think you are even stronger!" Chen xiu said, with a sense of jealousy. His own body was too thin.

"Pftt, his brain must have gotten squeezed," Classmate Ailun ridiculed.

Chapter 53: Seizing Control of the Rank Advancement Match

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

"Wang Zheng, what happened to you? It's such a pity you couldn't attend the training session!" said Zhang Shan.

Wang Zheng shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "I couldn't help it. My body's fatigue caught up with me. This happens for a couple days every month."

Everyone around him stared blankly before laughing out loud. "If you can laugh at this, something is definitely up."

"Hehe, Brother Shan, Brother Zheng has already gotten a girlfriend. Everyone is looking at him in envy," said Chen Xiu.

"F*ck, it's no wonder he is our dormitory leader. He is always one step ahead of us. Who is it? Could it be Ye Zisu?" asked Zhang Shan. Meng Tian was training with them after all, so it could not have been her.

"It's not Ye Zisu. The new girl is even prettier than her. Her beauty is indescribable. I have never met such a beautiful and graceful girl before," said Chen Xiu as he gestured excitedly.

"Is it true? Surely you are exaggerating? Nevertheless, congratulations to Brother Zheng!"

Zhang Shan's demeanor had changed considerably after his special training program had ended. It could be said that while an individual may be gifted with many talents, it is up to the individual to decide what suits him or her the most.

With time, one would have to slowly change. As with Zhang Shan, he had felt this change, and despite his childhood dream of pursuing a career in the Natural Sciences, he was conflicted as he now also wanted to develop himself in the Military Science Department.

He possessed an extremely logical mind and spatial awareness. This was extremely useful for swift decision making during a battle scenario.

Most importantly, the battlefield gave Zhang Shan a feeling which he would never experience in the field of physics.

On the other hand, Zhang Shan felt that Wang Zheng's situation was truly a pity. The special training was an exceptional opportunity which Wang Zheng failed to capitalize on. However, Wang Zheng possessed even greater talent in the field of physics, and perhaps this was actually the silver lining in the cloud.

Yet Wang Zheng was not at all depressed, as he had Aina by his side. Aina helped bring color to Wang Zheng's life. There simply wasn't enough time each day. In addition to his dating life, Wang Zheng continued to train. Despite numerous attempts to call out Bonehead, his mentor never showed. Wang Zheng could only continue with activities that he himself had come up with.

The Primal Regression technique had reached a bottleneck and no progress had been made for some time. However, he still couldn't relax. He could only continue to cultivate his inner strength and not go against the tide.

When Meng Tian got back and received news of Wang Zheng getting a girlfriend, she seemed very calm. It was as though she didn't care. Even during her MMA training sessions, she continued to train normally. Furthermore, when she talked, it was only about training. It was as if she could not care less about Wang Zheng's dating life.

The Art Society's modelling activity only happened once a week. The vast majority of the time, Wang Zheng spent his time with Aina. The two of them seemed to never run out of conversational topics. Wang Zheng would silently sit next to Aina and listen to the world of the Aslan Empire and its culture.

It was truly an elite world. Life had developed in the best way possible, but Aina felt that in the process of all this, its people had forgotten about the beauty of life. However, Aslan was the place that all the people of the Milky Way Galaxy aspired to live in.

Wang Zheng often talked about the interesting things that happened to him. His early life only comprised of the spirit stick his dad used to hit him with. Following which, he met the Old Merchant. Now that he thought about it, the Old Merchant still possessed other tricks. Aina truly admired the Old Merchant. A seemingly simple book store owner possessed such vast knowledge; crouching tigers and hidden dragons truly did exist among the common populace. One should never look down on them.

Although stories of Wang Zheng and Tyrant Su's awkward times were Aina's favorite, when the two of them spoke too enthusiastically, they would often mutter gibberish only understood by the two of them. Wang Zheng as a result still did not understand why Aina would fall in love with him.

More or less everyone who knew them did not understand either.

Aina gradually assimilated into Ares College's school life. She was very clear that she had to forget her identity as the Princess in order to better enjoy her student life. This was not something a normal girl could do; however, Aina wasn't a normal girl.

Like Ye Zisu, Yan Xiaosu, who often got extremely nervous around Aina, also discovered that Aina was blending in and trying to live a normal life while enjoying her time with Wang Zheng.

This caused Yan Xiaosu to feel utmost reverence for Wang Zheng. Wang Zheng was a true man. No! A god of men!

Even if Tyrant Su had always looked up to Wang Zheng, his respect had made Wang Zheng extremely happy.

These two single brothers had finally gotten attached. This year, the two of them would not need to drink by the lakeside as single men any longer.

At Brothers Net Café.

Wang Zheng had to hone his CT skills every weekend. In addition, Aina loved the way Wang Zheng looked when he battled. In Aina's words, at that point in time, Wang Zheng looked exceedingly cool and amazing.

Our dear Student Wang also had his own selfish motives. Honestly, he was more concerned about the rewards he would gain from winning. More importantly, a VIP room allowed a couple their privacy. There were too many students around, and if someone were to notice Aina and him doing scandalous things, his reputation would be ruined.

Alas, even our dear Student Wang felt that he was spoiled. However, after thinking about it, this was a result of his ability!

Yan Xiaosu also brought An Mei along. Student Yan wanted to demonstrate his skills in front of An Mei. With Rainbow's help, Tyrant Su had finally managed to attain a bronze rank in competitive play. That shiny insignia had improved Tyrant Su's reputation. He was now rushing towards the next rank, silver. Eventually, he hoped to achieve a gold rank, and he would do anything to obtain it so that he could meet his own standards.

Yan Xiaosu and Wang Zheng both had the same thoughts in mind. Lovers needed a private space! Thus, Yan Xiaosu held An Mei's small hands as he led her to a private room. He was truly obstructed.

A relationship between males and females is very mysterious. If a couple cannot progress at a point where mutual feelings are at an all-time high, it will only result in a friendship. Looking at it from another angle, such an outcome would be very pathetic.

Yan Xiaosu was confident that Wang Zheng had the same aim in mind. Otherwise, why would a noob-stomping elder run here? Boss was truly being a boss. Regardless of what he did, he would always plan things ahead.

Although, after saying all this, once they entered the battle, Wang Zheng would be extremely attentive. He wasn't like the others; if he didn't perform well, he would have to pay a price.

Bonehead's training did not allow for any failure. He could not remember the countless times he had been punished and electrocuted! Any more and he would have become an electrical conductor.

"Do you know who your opponent will be this time?" Aina asked curiously.

It was impossible for a member of Aslan to not be interested in military matters. In Aslan, every member of society had to go through two rounds of military training. Short of extraordinary circumstances, military training was typically unavoidable. As such, members of the royal family also had to undergo military training. As a result, Aslan possessed the ability to rally the entire country to arms and possessed an extremely skilled population.

Even a game like CT was played to the highest standards in Aslan.

1 versus 1 or 5 versus 5?

Wang Zheng looked at Aina and she blinked her eyes. "Let's make things difficult for you. How about 5 versus 5?"

Wang Zheng smiled as he selected the 5 versus 5 option. "And if I win win, what will my prize be?"

Aina cheekily winked at Wang Zheng. "Let's see how things go."

Dear Student Wang looked as though he had been splashed with chicken blood. He would have to perform well this time.

Entering Matchmaking.

In the discussion forum, numerous individuals were currently waiting. 5 versus 5. Every player in the server had heard of Skeleton. In fact, Skeleton was no longer a nameless and reputationless newbie. Now that he was famous, the moment he appeared, he would be the focus of the enemies. How would he fight?

There were just too many variables. With Skeleton's current win rate, he would likely be placed into an extremely high-skilled match. The Wargod No. 1's disadvantage in group fights would become evident.

"Welcome, everyone, to today's 5 versus 5 group match. I am Young Deer."

"Hello, everyone. I am Bubbly Foam, and I will be commentating with Young Deer for today's match. I have always looked up to Skeleton, and I can't believe that my first time commenting one of his matches will be for a 5v5 group battle!"

Bubbly Foam was a famous beauty among commentators. This time she was specially invited by Young Deer. The two of them were the most well-known CT commentators.

"It is my honor to be able to work together with Bubbly Foam. Let us see what kind of surprises Skeleton will show us today. Will his Wargod No. 1 be able to create miracles in a group battle?" Young Deer was extremely calm today. After suffering time and time again, even a pig would learn from its past mistakes. He would first observe the situation before making a comment.

The beauty smiled as she asked, "Young Deer, I heard that you hold certain prejudices against Skeleton. Is that true?" With her oval face, her laughter showed her adorable dimples. It was no surprise why she was bursting with popularity.

Professional commentators not only received compensation for their work but possessed their own online shops. They earned quite a sum, even more than certain players.

Young Deer was also an old fox. He gave her a wry smile. "What do you think? Don't joke around. I am an extremely cautious person. This tightrope situation can easily be overturned. Especially since it's a group battle. The only thing I can do is wish good luck to the ones who will become Skeleton's teammates."

"Really? Let us wait and see. Everyone, right now what everyone is seeing is the Newbie Arena's Legendary Skeleton's group battle matchmaker."

The discussion forum immediately exploded with chatter. What kind of battle would this be?

The officials had already been riled up and were currently awaiting the results of the matchmaking.

Pretty Outstanding Guy, Silver Rank 3

I Am Not A Noob, Bronze Rank 4

Don't Run Loli, Silver Rank 5

Tom, Dick, and Harry, Bronze Rank 1

Wang Zheng's win rate was too high. After seeing Tom, Dick, and Harry's portrait light up, it could be seen that this was a rank advancement match. He was trying to rise from Bronze Rank 1 to Silver Rank 5.

On the enemy team, there were two silver ranks and three bronze ranks.

Tom, Dick, and Harry was extremely nervous. He had to win two out of his three placement matches to advance in rank. He had already lost one and won one. This match would be the culmination of his hard work for the weekend. When he saw two silver ranks, he felt extremely happy. Unfortunately, there happened to be a noob on his team. At that point, his heart sank.

Hang on… this ID seemed slightly familiar.

Wasn't this the player that was extremely popular right now?

"The enemies have appeared. The red and blue teams both have an individuals hoping to advance to silver rank. This will be a battle where the players will stake it all. We have seen Skeleton's personal skill, but will it stand up to the test of a group battle?"

Bubbly Foam smiled as she browsed through the opposing players' information.

"Group battles are completely different from solo fights. Most importantly, one has to coordinate and comply with his team."

Young Deer looked extremely calm, but deep down he was extremely happy. This time there was a chance. With the situation now, the opposing team would definitely focus their efforts on Skeleton. If he lost, it could be blamed on Skeleton. If they won, but Skeleton got destroyed, he could once again blame Skeleton. This time he had more than a 50% chance of success.

However, what was depressing to Young Deer was the fact that Skeleton's matchmade teammates were all extremely strong.

The highest ranked player was designated to become the team captain. Thus, the captain would be Pretty Outstanding Guy.

"Everyone, this is Little Brother's advancement match. Please help me out. Please put in your best effort!" Tom, Dick, and Harry said anxiously.

The advancement match was one which had to be seized by force. Relying on oneself was not enough; it required the strength of the team. Thus, he had to be more polite and sincere.

Pretty Outstanding Guy gave him a slight smile. "Relax, our team has two silver ranks, while the enemy team also possesses two. However, we have a secret weapon."

"My god, it's Skeleton. That's wonderful!" shouted I Am Not A Noob. He was clearly well-versed in the latest CT news and gossip.

The two silver ranks were extremely calm. Higher ranks not noticing lower ranks was typically quite normal. Regardless, they had definitely heard of Skeleton.

"I have an idea. I will take the top lane and block two of the enemies. Skeleton will take mid lane and fight one of them. I think that shouldn't be a problem. Loli and the other two will lie in ambush and quickly dispatch the enemy. After that, come and assist me. They will definitely be taken by surprise."

Chapter 54: An Act Deserving an Oscar! Death with a Thousand Knives!

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

Pretty Outstanding Guy said, "The captain has the power to assign tactics. Although Skeleton is famous, he only has experience on individual matches. The ranking list of team matches is determined by every single match, and this is from my experience."

"Good move! We can gain advantages in the bottom, get back, and finish them off quickly," Tom, Dick and Harry said, with his fists punching in the air.

"Seems like both sides have assigned tactics. The match is about to begin!" said Young Deer. At the same time, the number of viewers kept rising quickly, but it didn't break the record from last match. The audience still felt unsure about what the level of skill would be shown in a 5v5 match. Team matches were usually not as exciting as individual matches.

The so-called godlike pentakills only appeared when beginners were all over the place. In this level of games, even if the team was losing, they would still try to avoid this situation.

Moreover, once the teams went head to head, the Brittleskin was no doubt a trash teammate,

One could escape one single sniper, but what if there were more?

The official website posted an announcement. The publicity was much stronger compared to the last match against Wild King, but the effect was not as good as imagined.

It would be untrue to say that Solon felt no pressure reading the data, because he had bet on the game. He was not worried about losing the game, but he didn't expect the audience to not be sold on it.

The staff was busy too; obviously they were feeling the pressure as well. They were bound together for good or ill, and this game would affect their year-end bonus.

The official side had done all they could, but some of the audience members were still not quite interested in the role a Brittleskin could play in the team match.

Especially in a situation like this match, the Wargod No. 1 could only play a very limited role. It would be quite boring, no matter the result.

Of course, the members of Skeleton Corps were the exception. Wild King…played truant. After all, it was not the first time for him.

Team match…

As a scout, he was fully aware of the importance of an excellent mech in team matches. You could focus on one single enemy, but there were too many unpredictable factors in team matches, and the traps could be all linked with one another.

Rainbow was not here because he was carrying out his task. One should be serious at work.

Yan Xiaosu was enjoying the battle at its climax. Who would have thought that An Mei was a master as well? She was a bronze rank 3, which was even higher than him. In between Skeleton and a girl, he chose the girl. After all, he would come to a miserable end if he were to ignore An Mei and flee.

Chen Xiu and Yao Aillun obviously were not restrained; they were screaming and cheering already.

"Antarctica Battlefield"

In the world of ice and snow, ten mecha came from above. One minute later, intelligent robots started to march towards each other's bases.

Pretty Outstanding Guy smiled and said "Follow my mech's execution. Victory is in grasp!"

"Victory!"

Tom, Dick, and Harry shouted, to pump himself up.

Pretty Outstanding Guy drove his shiny, silver Saint Knight mech and marched towards the top. His mobile suit was a scout style as well, and his ability wase reliable enough to pin down two people.

Wang Zheng took the middle lane. It was the first time his Wargod No. 1 had stepped on snowy and icy roads, so Wang Zheng needed a bit of time to get used to it.

The other three guys went to the bottom lane and split into three flanks.

"Seems like our player Skeleton is very confident, and he is not going be a burden on his teammates." Young Deer started to apply some eyedrops to his eyes. This was a sign he was getting ready.

"The tactics are pretty good. A silver rank on the top lane, and Skeleton is quite capable of taking the middle on his own. There is a 70 percent winning chance if the three guys at the bottom can complete their attack."

Bubbly Foam made a very penetrating analysis.

The number of spectators was increasing, but it was at a rather slow rate. Just then, the campaign had gone sour.

The five mecha of the blue team surprisingly did not split up. Instead, they headed towards the bottom lane together.

What was going on?

They intended to concentrate on breaking through, but even if they could kill all three in the bottom, the fort they defended would be destroyed anyway. What was the use of all that effort if they lost the game?

"Our blue team is very creative, but we don't know whether or not they can move fast enough," said Young Deer.

Crush the bottom, go back to support the middle, but there was no way they could make it to the top. Wasn't this bullsh*t?

Bubbly Foam thought to herself, "These five idiots, if they wanted to fight together, they should have gone into the middle to kill Skeleton."

Everyone was kind of speechless, as this fight was completely unorthodox. The strategy was too low-level. If they could delay well and have three players retreat slowly, they could have a rather good result. Their tactics were just too weak for such a match.

"Damn, we paid money to watch a match at the kindergarten level!"

"What are they even thinking? That's ridiculous!"

"If you wanna go all in, you should go to the middle!"

"The two players trying to win the promotion match have really bad luck."

The players in the match could not hear the comments. Loli Don't Run was talking to the two other players in his lane. "Hurry up and kill the two of them as soon as possible so that we can go back and aid the top lane!"

"Don't worry, let's go all out!" Tom, Dick, and Harry and I Am Not a Noob were very excited, as they were fans of Skeleton.

Mecha from the opposite side soon appeared. The two mecha seemed like they were on their own, just two bronze ranked players. They were seeking their own demise.

"Don't let them run! Hurry!" Loli Don't Run drove his shiny Silver Hunter mech and rushed over.

Upon seeing the silver player making his move, the two bronze players, without a word, rushed out as well.

But just at this time, snow started flying off in all directions, and three mecha flanked from the side with guns blazing.

The laser rifles roared, and the two mecha on the front also launched an attack.

Loli Don't Run had only fired one shot, and it had missed the target. He was then killed by concentrated fire. The two remaining bronze players had to resist while retreating.

Though the situation was quite disappointing, Tom, Dick, and Harry was not too angry. "Everyone is in the bottom lane; go ahead to middle and top!"

This information was useful enough, especially for the player in the top lane. The ability of a silver rank 3 was sufficient for winning this battle.

Tom, Dick, and Harry was trying his best to stall for time. Every minute they stalled improved their chances of victory…

"AH! My internet…"

Tom, Dick, and Harry heard a sound: Pretty Outstanding Guy had gone offline

I Am Not a Noob was distracted. All of a sudden he was hit and his mech exploded.

Only one remained. The ice and snow slowed down the speed of the mecha. But the opponents were driving scout mechs, and hence their situation was not as bad.

Five mechs came to surround Tom, Dick, and Harry, and in the middle was a Radiant Type A mech. It stopped for a second as if it was playing with its prey, then it shot Tom, Dick, and Harry in the head.

Triple kill!

The Radiant Type A was a typical pay-to-win mech. It was made in the Aslan Empire. The player Natural King was a bronze rank 1. He was playing to get promoted to silver rank, and he just gotten a triple kill.

At first, the audience was quiet for a while. What followed was a buzz of comments. What had just happened?

At the moment he got shot, Tom, Dick, and Harry was stupefied. Then he realized that it wasn't unstable internet connection, this was a damn trap, a shameless seven versus three.

"Damn, it just a qualifying round. Why so impudent?!"

All of the hard-earned points from a whole week were wiped out in a day. This was too aggravating. F*ck! Was it something extraordinary to be rich?

Natural King could not hold back his laughter. "Sure enough, winning is in my destiny. Regardless of who kills Skeleton, so long as he dies, I will give an extra twenty thousand federal coins to everyone."

It was entertainment, and there were a lot of ways to play. Like Yan Xiaosu had asked people to help out for his promotion match, but it was not as crazy as this time.

Young Deer and Bubbly Foam glanced at each other and said, "Seems like we just saw a pretty rare game. Pretty Outstanding Guy can win an Academy Award for his performance just now."

To ensure victory, some people would ask for game throwers. The most effective way was to choose a time to matchmake together; this way your chosen game throwers would be in the same match..

In these sort of "acting" games, we have to say, Pretty Outstanding Guy and Loli Don't Run acted pretty well. One took the lead to get killed, while the other went offline. It was quite useless if one wanted to complain.

These sorts of games happened from time to time, but they didn't happen very often because it was quite expensive. No one would have thought that Skeleton would get involved in this match.

The five people all selected scout mechs just for their speed. Skeleton had gone to the middle, so he should have been able to aid the situation.

From this point in time, the viewer count started to decrease rapidly. Solon and the staff became wild-eyed. Damn, what sort of crazy luck would one have to see something like this?

From now on, there wasn't much to watch. Five scout mechs, one Radiant Type A, four Takrama Type B's. Under these circumstances, the match became a game of cat and mouse with five cats in the game.

The audience didn't spend the money just to be tortured; this match was too disgusting. There were no techniques involved, it was just a sham.

Natural King, on the other hand, made an outrageous flaunt. "I'm just too rich, so I play for the sense of invincibleness. You are merely a Brittleskin; let me terminate you!"

It was a bummer for him that he couldn't achieve a pentakill.

The members of Skeleton Corps were stupefied too. What in the world just happened? This group of people was too shameless; what was the point of winning this way?

"I don't know whether it's called 'all warfare is based on deception.' Though it's not so fair, Skeleton still has to face the situation. Will he surrender or will he quit?" Young Deer said as though he was forced to. But anyone with a discerning eye could easily see that he was laughing inside

"What a pity. We were looking forward to an exciting battle. Unfortunately, the ending is that the miracle of Skeleton has come to an end!"

On the battlefield, five scout mecha were heading to corner Wargod No. 1. At this time, instead of accelerating and going to attack the fort, the Wargod No. 1 walked directly towards them.

Actually, with Skeleton's speed, it was still possible to win the game.

"Skeleton, my god, forget it. Let's forfeit the game and make a complaint. They are so shameless!" I Am Not a Noob cried in anger. His voice was quite young.

Tom, Dick, and Harry sighed and said, "Yeah, these folks are shameless; don't let them have an easy win. If they were to kill you, we would be angry."

Wang Zheng didn't answer. He preferred to let his actions speak.

Just like what Bonehead said, the best way to deal with one's enemies was to kill them.

An aura of death could be seen in Wang Zheng's eyes.

System Alert: blizzard coming, blizzard coming.

The Wargod No. 1 was still marching towards the five scout mecha.

"I have to say, Skeleton's decision is just impulsive; that's really unwise. If it was me, I would have definitely forfeited the game and then complained," Young Deer slowly said.

Bubbly Foam took a brief glance at Young Deer and said, "Some people will never understand what courage is."

Chapter 55: Winning Without Trying?! (Explode!)

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

Young Deer was not angry at Bubbly Foam's idealistic view. He gave her a wry smile and said, "Courage is sometimes just an ordinary man putting on a brave front."

The forum was in complete confusion; everyone was in shock. There was no undoing what had been done. The result would be broadcasted live. Although it was infuriating, nothing could be done as no one had expected this situation.

There were many people who often skirted the line between what was right and what was not. If anything, one could only blame their bad luck for the current situation.

Having good teammates was entirely a function of luck.

The blizzard's occurrence had caused the mecha's speed to decrease while severely obscuring everyone's vision. However, such a blizzard would not last long, and better mecha would not be affected as severely by the environmental conditions.

Many people could no longer watch the show. Although there were still people tuning into the livestream, it could not compare to the number of viewers leaving. There was only half as many viewers as before.

It was clear that many people were unwilling to see the result.

Solon was flabbergasted. This was the first day of which his grand plan was being rolled out.

On the Moon, McLaren was also watching intently, a cup grasped tightly in his hand.

Sometimes, one needed luck to achieve success.

"Make sure he can't escape. Give me the finishing blow. If I get the kill on him, I will increase your reward by 30,000 coins!"

Natural King was very excited; it was as though his happiness was at its peak! Having the chance to kill Skeleton in front of such a large audience would be absolutely amazing.

This was why he loved playing CT. He enjoyed crushing his enemies with the help of his wealth, dominating them until they screamed for their parents.

The radar suddenly started beeping. The Wargod No. 1 had appeared in their attacking range.

The blizzard was slowly receding. Although it had a slight impact on the situation, the effect was mostly negated.

Both teams accelerated towards each other, with the blue team maintaining their formation. The rich man was protected in the center with his four other teammates surrounding him closely. In such a situation, the power of the individual mech was even more obvious. So what if it was Skeleton? So what if it was a Wargod No. 1? Miracles did not come around every day.

The Wargod No. 1's speed increased more and more. It flew over the rugged, icy terrain with great agility, and it was completely different from its initial acceleration speed.

Yet one had to know that exceptional speed might not be the best approach, as braking in such slippery terrain was perilously hard.

Laser fire blanketed the snowy plains, coating it with a resplendent array of lights. Wang Zheng calmly advanced amidst the salvo of fire, holding his laser rifle in his left hand while his right hand clutched an alloy knife.

He had finally entered the blue team's firing range.

Boom!

It was a competition in one's accuracy!

"F*ck, the damned snow is affecting my vision!"

"No need to aim, just spray and pray. With so many of us here, we are bound to destroy him!"

"F*ck, if any of you guys actually destroy him, we will lose our compensation!"

After Natural King spoke, the 4 other players reduced their rate of fire. However, Skeleton's speed did not decrease. He continued to advance, with his laser rifle constantly firing.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

"Your mom! That bastard hit us!"

"I've been hit!"

"What are you worried about? You have energy shields; these explosions are meaningless!"

Skeleton's laser hit them again and again. The other four no longer cared about the extra prize. If they lost, they would absolutely lose all of their reputation.

A firefight ensued as explosions echoed around the battlefield.

At this point, the Wargod No. 1 suddenly leaned over. It had actually started skirting around the battlefield at a 45 degree angle to the ground using inertia to maintain his balance!

Skeleton held his laser rifle in his left hand, calmly firing not at one target but at all five of the mecha simultaneously!

However, the five of them were still standing in a row, firing wildly. Skeleton's Wargod No. 1 was like a snowy ghost, weaving in and out, while the laser beams were only able to cause explosions of snowy flowers as they missed him again and again. Ironically, this obstructed their vision even more.

"F*ck. He disappeared! No, wait! He's next to us!"

A loud ringing sound could be heard in each of the blue team's mecha, indicating an enemy was in extremely close proximity.

All of them had already drawn their lightsabers. At this point, a pile of snow exploded and Skeleton's Wargod No. 1 could be seen falling from the sky, and the five scout mecha were already fully prepared to fight.

"Destroy him!" shouted Natural King hysterically. At this point in time, it didn't matter who killed him.

Snow slowly drifted down.

The five seemingly sluggish scout mecha suddenly burst into action. Truth be told, they were not inexperienced noobs. Even the worse one among them was a bronze player. Although Natural King looked dumb, his mech reacted the fastest. His lightsaber was the first one to lunge towards the Wargod No. 1.

At this point, the Wargod No. 1's brakes kicked in and the mech plummeted. Pushing the mech to its limit, the Wargod No. 1 used its great plummeting speed to increase its speed of rotation as it spun downwards.

The Wargod No. 1 fell straight into the center of the enemies. Lasers firing, the alloy knife dancing amongst a string of blossoming flowers of fire.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! …

DOUBLE KILL!

TRIPLE KILL!!

QUADRUPLE KILL!!! (The system announcements increased in volume intensity with each consecutive kill.)

Bang! The Radiant Type A Mech's energy shield was destroyed and the mech was knocked down by the Wargod No. 1, his feet pressed firmly on the mech.

A laser rifle was pointed directly at Natural King's head.

Natural King was completely defeated. All he had seen was an explosion of snow, followed by a ring of light which brought with it a string of fiery explosions… before silence.

"No… Please don't kill me! Let me win! I will give you a 100,000 coins!" Natural King shouted. This was his last chance.

"You either live as a coward, or you are reborn again in battle!"

Boom…

Skeleton's laser rifle flashed 4 times. Mech destroyed!

PENTAKILL!!!!!

The system announcer screamed wildly!

GOD!!!!!!!

Red Team WIN!

A cry rang out. Bubbly Foam jumped up excitedly. She had completely forgotten her previous analysis and was instead endlessly roaring in excitement.

Everyone went mad!

"Boss! Boss! It's about to explode! It's going to explode! It's DEFINITELY EXPLODING!"

In the livestream chatroom, the viewership counter's dwindling number of viewers suddenly exploded upwards, like a rocket launching into space. In a short span of time, it had reached the stratosphere.

Solon's hand clutched the table's edge tightly. "I want an immediately analysis of the video!" he commanded.

"Boss! It's a call from headquarters!"

Solon paused for a moment, calming himself before saying, "Put it through."

It was McLaren.

"Congratulations, Solon!"

"Thank you, Chairman!"

Although it was a simple congratulations, the meaning was extraordinary.

It was as McLaren had said: success required a certain element of luck.

"Boss, the two new servers to accommodate for increased traffic are full. The number of VIPs has exceeded 500,000!"

Even his workers were rambling incoherently at this point.

"Boss, the ones who have become VVIP's have exceeded 200,000. We have set a new record!"

"Boss, the number of hits have exceeded 2,000,000!"

The situation was extremely wonderful for Solon.

"You either live as a coward, or you are reborn again in battle!" Solon mused over those words.

No one else left the livestream. Those who had left, upon hearing the news, immediately regretted their decision.

At Brothers Net Café, Yan Xiaosu, who was hugging An Mei, gave her a deep kiss while cheering excitedly. This time, An Mei did not reject his advances!

There truly existed such tyrannical people in this world.

Congratulations, Player Tom,Dick, and Harry, you have been promoted to silver rank 5.

Tom, Dick, and Harry stared blankly as he sat at home. How was this possible???

He had been promoted. He had failed for an entire month, but he had succeeded under such impossible circumstances?!

Young Deer's eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. That bastard could win even under such circumstances. How could anyone survive that onslaught?!

This was the Skeleton Corps' festival. "I'M NOT AFRAID!"

Countless people from numerous backgrounds were all shouting and cheering together. This was the greatest display of strength!

This was what it meant to be a hero!

No one left as they were waiting for the video analysis to come out.

You either live as a coward or are reborn again in battle!

The huge title came out and numerous people rushed over. The ones who were already streaming were extremely lucky.

A slow-motion video started playing.

Only by analyzing the battle frame by frame could one see what had occurred during the blizzard. The blue team's unscrupulous blind firing did not even manage to hit a hair of the Wargod No. 1. They were overconfident. On the other hand, the Wargod No. 1's control was like that of a snow ghost. What was supposed to be a restriction on mecha ended up becoming the Wargod No. 1's strength.

"This is the Advancing God Drive technique executed while sliding! F*ck. How is this possible!?" Young Deer suddenly screamed. Although his personality left much to be desired, his knowledge was superb.

The blizzard affected the accuracy of the five mecha, but it did not affect the Wargod No. 1. Every shot made by the Wargod No. 1 hit its target.

At this point, the video was edited to show a 360 degree view of the situation. Regardless whether the Wargod No. 1 was sliding and firing from left to right or right to left, every single hit landed at the exact same position. This showed that the individual had supreme confidence in his firing skills.

This proved that the last fight with Wild King was not a fluke!

Skeleton's Wargod No. 1 was calm and coldblooded as he slaughtered his enemies on the snowy plain.

This was in contrast to its maniacal maneuvers.

However, Skeleton's strategy of a close combat approach was extremely dangerous.

As the Wargod No. 1 leaned forward during its advance, its momentum allowed the mech to keep its mechanical frame close to the ground. Thus, even with such uncertain terrain underfoot, the Wargod No. 1 had managed to maintain full control and could accelerate quickly. Furthermore, it was from a direction no one expected.

As a result, this dangerous approach was actually the safest method to victory!

Although everyone understood that, executing it was a completely different story.

In the blink of an eye, the Wargod No. 1 had rushed in front of the blue team. Natural King and the rest had already drawn their blades and were prepared to chop Skeleton into pieces. However, the brilliant use of an emergency brake maneuver had thrown them off.

Upon braking, the Wargod No. 1's engine went into reverse and allowed the mech to forcefully land; all of this was part of Skeleton's calculations.

What happened next was terrifying to behold.

The was a move that could have only been executed after sheer practice and endless repetition in a deadly snow environment.

Carlman's Tornado of Death!

That year, Mars' Carlman had faced 15 enemies on Mars' icefield and won with this very move.

However, that was done in a mech that was specially adapted for the blizzard environment! This was a Wargod No. 1, a mech completely unsuited for the weather!

Even if one used the Tornado of Death, it was unfeasible that one would emerge unscathed!

Once the video analysis came out, everyone could a feel a sense of fervent bewilderment.

As the video was played back frame by frame, it was clear that the sparks flying off Skeleton���s alloy knife were not made by attacking his opponents. Rather, the sparks were from Skeleton deflecting sabre strikes from the blue team! In the blink of an eye, Skeleton had deflected all of their attacks and followed up with shots fired from his laser rifle. In such close proximity, Skeleton managed to deliver headshots at near point blank range! Within this short exchange, he had killed four of them!

The closer one was to the enemy, the more intense the fight would be. In addition, the previous fight had exhausted them, and it would have been more than enough to destroy them.

However, what was most important was that bastard's control! His mind and body were synchronized to such a degree; an ordinary person could not possible replicate what he did.

Tornado of Death + dual wielding a gun and blade!

The video paused at this moment. The laser rifle and alloy knife were pointed in different directions and held at different angles. The mech itself was pointed in a third direction.

This was the multi-tasking ability to dual wield!

When the match ended, people were already going crazy. After watching the analysis, everyone went absolutely ballistic!

This was truly an example of godly piloting!

PENTAKILL!!!!!

It would forever be engraved in their hearts!

However, another word was to be announced… GOD!

This was the legendary announcement.

Being able to kill five enemy mecha alone, (dealing at least 80% of the damage to each one), while obtaining five kills within five minutes; even if it was a chain of kills, it would trigger the announcement of the highest prestige in the CT battlefield: GOD!!!

The Skeleton God had finally descended!

Chapter 56: Popular Mecha

Translator: Abyssruler Editor: Lucas

The cheers and applause were thunderous, and the two announcers barely had any time left to speak. Given a battle of this sort, they were at a loss too.

The interview that was planned for Skeleton after the match didn't happen as Skeleton had already left.

Actually, student Wang had waited for a while. But after realizing that no one was paying any attention to him, he got embarrassed and left. He felt that there actually wasn't any questions that were worth asking. Ten thousand dollars for a question, how could such offers be real?

"Brother Xiu! Brother Xiu! Please count me in; I'm the one who was fighting with Skeleton God in that battle. I'm not a noob, please I beg you, let me join."

"I Am Not A Noob" had already made dozens of applications to join, but Chen Xiu and Yao Ailun were already very busy. That damned nouveau riche, where had he gone at this critical period of time?

The moment Rainbow got on the line, his first words were: "It is so bustling; what did I miss?"

"Giant Rainbow! Go take a look, quick! Tornado of Death and Double Control, Skeleton God did the impossible again! Ultimate god penta-kill!

Rainbow was stunned for a moment, then he came a sudden burst of vulgarities. He quickly rushed into the VVIP where the clarity and definition were the best. Although the match was ending, the numbers of spectators were not reducing.

This could be done over and over again.

"Damn it! I've practiced the Tornado of Death for a month only to end up taking a stroll at the starting area!"

"I used to think that this move was only good-looking and that it was always better to be simple and practical on the battlefield. But I did not expect this kind of trick to be used in actual combat. It defies the gods!"

"These kinds of moves are very dangerous, ah! I saw someone use it once; they spun one circle and only ended up making themselves dizzy."

"Double Control, I've heard that to train for it, one is required to practise using chopsticks with both hands."

Wang Zheng retreated, opened his arms, and said, "Lovely little princess, come here and give me a hug."

Aina couldn't contain her feelings of admiration for Wang Zheng. The difficult level of this kind of attack would never be possible without having gone through very tough training. "How did you do it?" she asked as she walked over obediently.

Wang Zheng held Aina gently and placed her on his lap. He could finally show off a little, "I'm telling you! I am a genius! I am going to collect my payment now, with interest on top of that."

Aina rolled her eyes, giving a look of having been smitten. Girls should be conquered, and she loved Wang Zheng when he was overbearing and courageous.

Wang Zheng only let go of Aina after a round of hot kissing to let her catch her breath. Aina gently punched Wang Zheng. "You are so daring! Other people wouldn't even breathe the air that I exhale, but you are bullying me every day. I didn't come from far away only to let you bully me."

"You are the Princess of Aslan, but here, I am the one who takes charge!" Wang Zheng said. And without giving Aina a chance to protest, he started kissing her passionately again.

If you are not convinced, I am going to kiss you until you are!

Before long, Aina could only obey. But this rascal's tongue was very cheeky, and he started to french kiss her with his tongue.

At this moment, something hit the door and in rushed Yan Xiaosu. Wang Zheng and Aina quickly separated, but only at the lips. Wang Zheng could not throw Aina off, nor could he ever bring himself to.

"Yan Xiaosu, are you trying to seek death!?"

This rascal, of all the times to arrive. He would only arrive when he wanted to.

An Mei was behind him. When she saw this scene, she understood what was going on. She also got bullied in this way before.

"Shishi, come here! This pair of brothers is good for nothing! They just want to have their way with us ladies all the time."

"You arrived at the perfect time!" Aina's face was red.

"Heh heh, don't blame me, Boss. This is a big development. Skeleton God has soared again, getting a pentakill. It's not just a godly pentakill, but a super godly pentakill!"

Yan Xiaosu had a feeling that he was about to fly. Because of this feeling, he kissed An Mei. He was finally advancing the relationship between the both of them.

Wang Zheng was taken aback by this guy's impulsive behaviour. It was fortunate that he did not tell him. Even the little things like this would surprise Yan Xiaosu.

"You will treat us to a round of meals!"

It was also not known whether An Mei was always hanging around Aina intentionally. If so, she was a professional at it.

"No problem! No problem! Boss, let me tell you. If you want to progress, you have to believe in Skeleton God!" Yan Xiaosu said at the back.

"You're always missing the main point, you rascal!" Wang Zheng said while shaking his head.

Looking at the two girls walking in front, Yan Xiaosu finally came to his senses. How could beauty be so cold!?

He realized that Boss was still smarter; he could slowly view the replay when he gets back. But if he offended An Mei, he could say goodbye to happy times.

"Let's go! Tonight we'll have a good feast!"

"You pick the place, it's my treat," Wang Zheng said. Come to think of it, after so many battles, it was about time to distribute the money.

"Wow, had I known this, I shouldn't have eaten earlier" Yan Xiaosu said while laughing.

"Then we should eat more!" An Mei ridiculed Wang Zheng as if she had to in order to feel comfortable. "Shishi, you wouldn't mind, right?"

"As you wish."

The four of them laughed. Jokes aside, Wang Zheng could feel the battle energy in his chest getting stronger. He didn't understand the death gyro; it was totally an instinctive reaction. The plum pile training was based on the concept of pace. Only by using this kind of attack could he maintain his center of gravity. He borrowed the momentum of the moment to execute it.

As for double control, given Skeleton's crazy training routine, what was this compared to that?

Aina's heart was still beating very hard. The reason was because she realized that she was losing more and more control of herself. Wang Zheng's every move was making her smitten. What was wrong with her…

Data bulletin regarding the Wargod No. 1 regular armor:

The solar system's latest three most popular armor:

Heavenly Umbra Calamity Type 3: Aslan Super Mecha, all-weather scout type. Aggressive combat effectiveness, but it is difficult to operate. It is still difficult even in CT, but if it can be played to its highest potential, it can crush the gods, also known as the Terminator models.

Atlantis "Dragon's Roar": Atlantis Republic's Super Mecha. It is the king of naval warfare. In water battlefields, it is known as an overpowered mech. It is the favorite of players who love naval warfare.

Wargod No. 1: Practice Machine

The popular quarterly competition was very intense. The database was also updated constantly, but for some high-end mecha, their performance could not be copied completely. But in general, they performed at about 90% of the actual thing. These mecha were highly sought after by the high-end players.

Currently in military research, the major federations, republics, and empires were mainly focused on funding the development of mecha. Since the ban on weapons of mass destruction, warships and mecha were now the key assets in battle. The high mobility of the mecha had become an increasingly important stat. Many scientists predicted that as technology advanced and the mecha became smaller in size, the mecha would become the main power in combat. The combination of human and mechanical civilization would be at its highest level.

However, under such fierce competition, for the permanently free Wargod No. 1 to rise to becoming the third most popular mech was already a miracle.

Many people initially thought that it was an official mistake, or that the latest of a super mech was called the Wargod No. 1.

When Skeleton's latest match ended, the Wargod No. 1 just barely squeezed past the Republic of Madagascar's' Demon King Super Mech to take third place.

Skeleton Corps members were now no longer just from Asia, not even just from Earth. Even players from Mars as well as the Moon were starting to join.

The most recent victory marked the 9-game winning streak. This win rate wasn't that amazing; there were masters who had more than 20-game winning streaks. But no one was able to achieve such a win rate with the Wargod No. 1.

The players had also realized that in the recent two battles, Skeleton seemed to have been under the influence of some intense aggressiveness.

Natural King was also unlucky; his title lasted for three months in the end under the eyes of the audience. Did he think that everyone was blind to his unscrupulous actions of bribing other players?

But no one was concerned about his antics anymore; some even wanted to thank him. Without the effort he put in, how could the battle have been so exciting?

The only real pity was that the originally planned interview ultimately never took place. The official statement given was that the announcers were too shocked after watching the battle and the staff forgot to remind them. This was quickly explained and forgotten.

Bubbly Foam also expressed her apology on her own social media platform. Although she had casted a lot of intense high-tier games, she was baffled by his battle and thus forgot to ask the questions.

People would always be more forgiving towards a beautiful girl. Also, Skeleton's words were a classic that had become quite popular. When the battle was about to end, he said the words "You either live as a coward, or be reborn again within battle!"

"And with a chorus of amen, hallelujah etc.. the opponent will be finished.

Although it was a terrible mech, no one was able to stop players from using the Wargod No. 1. Besides, it could change the person's attitude, forcing them to become more cautious and to pay attention to the environment. Although not using the Wargod No. 1 would only result in victory, such a victory was not as cool nor as satisfying.

This trend had been gaining more and more popularity; it was the most popular in Asia.

Of course, amidst this bustling scene, some experts had begun to stir. Their positions at the high tiers had received strong challenges, and questions had been asked. But at the same time, for an expert to fight against the lower-tier arena would be an embarrassment for them.

The high-tier and low-tier scenes were two totally different things. What was achieved in the low tier would be impossible in the high-tier. The opponents were not pigs, and they were not prone to rash decisions. The pentakill (killing the others without taking more than 80% damage) was the limit. The knowledgeable people knew that this was the reality; only those at a lower tier would make a fuss over this.

Only newcomers like Wild King would accept this kind of stupid invitation. The others would be dismissive; even a win would be distasteful. Fighting in these kinds of battles would be akin to lowering one's own standings.

Although the scene was bustling, the professionals and master players did not comment.

But some uncouth people had proudly announced that they were able to single-handedly destroy Skeleton, attracting the ire of the rest of the players.