Chapter 253 - 240: Rookie Competition (19)
Chapter 253: Chapter 240: Rookie Competition (19)
That batch of Silk Stockings had been given almost entirely to the resistance.
’So... those dozen or so women are all resistance members?’
’What does this mean?’
Some of them came alone, while others had a male companion they were close with.
A few more had come with friends, gathering in small groups.
’They... are here to watch the competition?’
’Or to place bets?’
Zhao Chi wasn’t sure.
One of the women in the front row even called out to Zhao Chi enthusiastically.
"Are you Zhao Chi? Can you give me an autograph?"
Zhao Chi had no desire to speak with her at all.
But this was a perfect opportunity to get a closer look.
"And you are?"
Zhao Chi didn’t care who she was. He just pretended to casually lower his head and glance at her legs.
’Confirmed.’
It was the old version of the Ultra-Thin and Super Smooth Silk Stockings.
’The ones I made with my own hands.’
The man next to her looked at Zhao Chi, his eyes filled with a strange, knowing smile.
’He must be part of the resistance too.’
Although there was no direct evidence, Zhao Chi had a very strong feeling about it.
’Stream Village, the Zhao Family... ’
Zhao Chi suddenly felt that his Identity was in danger.
He gave a perfunctory reply and left immediately.
But a question couldn’t help but form in his mind.
’What are so many resistance members doing here?’
’Just to watch the matches? To bet? That can’t be it, can it?’
’Should I tell Zhao Quan?’
’How would I even explain it to him?’
’I can’t just say I identified them by their Silk Stockings, can I?’
’No, that’s not right...’
’Why would I even think about telling the nobles to deal with the resistance?’
’Why would I want to go against the resistance?’
’I should be supporting them!’
’What’s wrong with me?’
Zhao Chi’s mind raced.
First, he definitely couldn’t tell Zhao Quan.
For one, he couldn’t explain it clearly and might end up exposing himself.
Second, it would be taking the wrong side.
But he still had to be on high alert.
Even though he supported the resistance, the Zhao Family had now become vassals of the nobility.
The resistance wouldn’t care about Zhao Chi’s personal thoughts.
In their eyes, he was just like the rest of them.
And the better Zhao Chi performed, the more potential they’d see in him as a lapdog for the nobles, and the more they’d want to eliminate him early.
’Damn it, what a mess...’
’Should I give Zhao Quan an indirect warning? Just say I suspect those people are with the resistance?’
After all, the resistance would likely see him as an enemy.
’To protect myself, it should be fine to use him to eliminate them, right?’
’...No, that won’t work either.’
The incident at Strong Fragrance Food Street, after all, hadn’t directly involved Zhao Chi.
That was why when Clan Leader Zhao Shizhang entrusted the matter to Li Ruanyu, Li Ruanyu agreed to it.
But if he informed Zhao Quan this time and it led to a strike against the resistance, he would be firmly placed on the opposing side.
Then he really would be an enemy of the resistance, truly a vassal of the nobles.
’What kind of mess is this?’
As he was thinking, a system notification arrived.
[Calculating results for the fifth round...]
[You have earned a total of 96 points. Current rank: 1st]
’Wait...’
’I’m already in first place?’
’What about Yuan Zhao?’
Zhao Chi found the leaderboard.
Yuan Zhao was second.
Jiang Die was third.
’Am I really that strong already?’
Zhao Chi was genuinely surprised.
It wasn’t that he was surprised by his own strength.
After all, with his current Racial Attributes and Genetic Improvements, he was confident he surpassed most Lords of the same Level.
He was surprised that he was still this strong even after holding back so much of his power.
Besides, he hadn’t used Gu Qing’s Silk Spinning at all.
It was a very powerful crowd control Ability.
He also hadn’t used his own Body Driving Technique.
So he could only stay in the back, striking people from afar with the Thunder Light Technique.
He had 100 Tier Two Female Soldiers in his territory, but only 50 had entered the match.
That was even more direct.
’And I still got first place even with all that?’
’Could it be... that Yuan Zhao and the others are also holding back?’
’It’s good to be confident, but I have to stay calm.’
[Matching for the semifinals...]
[Matchmaking complete!]
[Match Number] 1
[Time] 5:00 PM
[Duration] 60 minutes
[Arena] Arena 1
[Opponent] Jiang Die of Binhu Village
The match was at 5 PM, which was relatively late.
Zhao Chi was already feeling a bit exhausted.
But this was just a Village Level competition, after all. There was no need to drag it out; finishing it all in one day was fine.
Besides, everyone was in the same boat.
No one could really complain.
His semifinal opponent was Jiang Die of Binhu Village.
The number of spectators for this fight would definitely break 5,000.
After all, Jiang Die had a lot of supporters.
However, with Zhao Chi’s winning streak, he probably had a lot of supporters now too.
Jiang Die used Elves.
Zhao Chi had watched a few of her matches. She seemed unremarkable, just shooting arrows.
But she always managed to win.
She made it look easy, calm and unhurried.
However, the way she had deliberately toyed with Lu Yi in her previous fight left a bad impression on Zhao Chi.
Just as he was thinking, he received a message from Lang Hu through the system:
Lang Hu: [Zhao Chi, I never expected your two Heroes to be so strong. Can we talk? It won’t take much of your time.]
’What does Lang Hu want to talk about?’
In the last battle, Lang Hu hadn’t held back either. He had been ruthless when killing Zhao Chi’s Female Soldiers.
If Qi Yue and the others hadn’t been blocking the front, Lang Hu would have undoubtedly tried to assassinate Zhao Chi without hesitation.
But a battle was a battle.
This was something different.
Zhao Chi replied, [Where?]
Lang Hu: [Come to Arena 9. There are no fights here, so it’s almost empty.]
Zhao Chi: [On my way.]
There had been many contestants before, so all nine arenas had been in use.
Now, it was just the semifinals.
Only the first and second arenas were needed. The others were indeed mostly empty if no one had rented them.
When he entered Arena 9, Lang Hu was standing by the entrance tunnel.
He smiled and walked over when he saw Zhao Chi.
"That was amazing, Zhao Chi. I can’t believe I lost just like that."
Zhao Chi nodded. "It was nothing, just luck on my part."
Lang Hu pointed to the side. "Don’t be so modest. Let’s go sit over there and talk. People are always coming and going in the tunnel, it’s not a good place to chat."
There were very few people in this arena.
Some were lying across several chairs sleeping, and a few couples were scattered about.
Zhao Chi and Lang Hu found an empty spot.
Lang Hu sighed as he sat down.
"Toward the end, when your defensive Female Hero managed to block my Attack, I was already thinking of switching targets.
"You were in the back, and your Female Soldiers couldn’t have actually stopped me.
"But I never expected that other Female Hero with the blade to one-shot me.
"Her Attack Power clearly wasn’t that high; she could only scratch my Fur.
"How did she get stronger and stronger? One slash took out a huge chunk of my health!
"I really don’t get it.
"Can I ask, how are your two Female Heroes so strong? Is it their Skills, or their Genes?"
Lang Hu was asking about private matters.
But he knew that.
That’s why he asked in such a vague way.
Answering such a vague question wouldn’t be a big deal.
"One is a Skill, the other is a Talent."
Lang Hu was amazed. "I see! To have Skills and Talents like that... that’s incredible."
Zhao Chi said, "Actually, I was curious too. Your transformation...?"
Lang Hu said, "It’s a Skill. One that’s an extremely good match for a tiger man. My family paid a high price for it."
Zhao Chi praised, "It’s very powerful. Definitely worth the price. But I feel like your strength shouldn’t only rank you 8th. Were you holding back before?"
Lang Hu chuckled.
"Yeah. I was originally saving my transformation for Yuan Zhao in the finals. I didn’t expect you to force it out of me. And I still lost even after using it. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have held back. My rank would’ve been a bit higher. Now I’ll have to pick my rewards after the others."
"How strong is Yuan Zhao?"
Lang Hu fell silent for a moment.
Then he said, "I can’t stand a lot of the things he does, but to be honest, he’s very strong. He always had the upper hand against me before. I don’t know how much he’s improved in the last two weeks, but it’s got to be a lot. You have to be extremely careful when you fight him."
"I understand."
Lang Hu said, "I came here this time to invite you again to team up for the team competition later."
"Team competition? You mean the team-based combat for the final exam?"
"That’s right. Hua Yuyin invited you before, but you didn’t accept. So I wanted to invite you again today. Right now, the group has me, Zhou Lue, and Hua Yuyin. If we add you, that makes four of us. In terms of strength, we’d definitely be one of the top teams in our year."