Chapter 117 – Life-and-Death Marathon (8)
◎ Congratulations, ‘Shunxing Teahouse,’ for successfully checking in ◎
To prevent their identities from being exposed, Lin Youyou and Su Cha used random names for the race. She even gave herself a nickname, “Rapper Trainee,” in the group chat of seven people, and called Su Cha “Black Serpent Warrior” (because of the black serpent tattoo on the back of his neck). Song Ke and Xu Xing joined in the fun, respectively naming themselves “Master of Spiritual Artifacts” and “Ice Prince.” However, everyone was just playing around. No one expected that Lin Youyou would, in this kind of situation, sing unabashedly in such an extremely juvenile way.
Not to mention Su Cha, who felt like curling his toes, even Song Ke was stunned.
The audience squatting in the V587 live room burst into laughter instantly, and the barrage of hehes and hahas flooded the screen.
“LOL, is the Black Serpent Warrior going to transform in the next second, hahaha.”
“I originally thought V587 would make it to the finals based on skill, but turns out it’s by making opponents feel awkward…”
“I’ll admit, if this rapper releases a single, I’ll buy it. It’s oddly catchy despite being cheesy.”
“Agreed, +1 to the commenter above.”
In the official live room, Ah K switched the main screen to the two confronting teams, commenting with interest, “Different music styles colliding, what kind of spark will they produce? Let’s wait and see.”
Ferrara is a paradise for musicians, so AI guests immediately began their evaluations.
“Feng Duona’s singing, is that even called a song? Clearly, it’s noise pollution!” This comment was rather spicy.
“I find the music of the other contestant quite interesting. Although the rhyming is a bit unpolished and the lyrics are straightforward, her breathing rhythm, including enunciation, is very clear, devoid of the typical issues rappers face. It shows she has some solid foundation.” This was an analysis from a professional perspective.
“Setting aside the music itself, I believe this is also a clever strategy in the face of battle.” Luo Qinghe, who had been quietly watching the match, suddenly spoke up.
“Oh? Qinghe, please elaborate.” Ah K gestured as if to listen attentively.
“I don’t know if anyone noticed, this…,” Luo Qinghe glanced at the list of competitors, “Ms. Rapper Trainee’s ability relies on her singing voice, so it takes some time to take effect. Rapper Trainee intentionally used exaggerated and bold lyrics to initially shock the ‘Ferrara Star,’ causing their concentration to scatter, and then took advantage of the opportunity to gain control. Now, the opponents have fallen into her trap.”
Luo Qinghe’s technical analysis greatly raised his popularity, and fans were screaming in excitement.
Ah K nodded in agreement and then burst into laughter, “But it doesn’t change the fact that she’s really hilarious, hahaha!”
Amidst the laughter in the barrage, the situation at the scene in Rainbow Cloud City suddenly changed.
After stumbling on flat ground, Su Cha resisted the pressure and ghostly attacked the “Ferrara Star.”
A dark light flashed, and the guitar strings being played were severed. Su Cha revealed his figure, showing a finger tiger wrapped in adhesive tape on his fist, entirely in a ghostly blue—a spiritual artifact! The finger tiger, a common weapon for martial artists, had an extremely sharp striking surface, capable of cutting through iron like mud. Its versatile nature and immense destructive power made it a perfect match for Su Cha.
After cutting the guitar strings, Su Cha repeated his previous move. In a flash, he appeared mysteriously behind the bassist. Sensing the danger, the bassist immediately played a flashy and skillful slide. Su Cha was affected, his footing slightly slipping. Just as the bassist was about to escape, he found his feet frozen!
Not just him, including Feng Duona and the other five members, they were all gradually covered in ice, up to their calves. It was the ice-based awakener from V587, but when did this happen? Why didn’t anyone notice?
Before they could comprehend, Su Cha made a swift move with his finger tiger, and the bassist’s strings snapped.
On the other side, Song Ke almost simultaneously made her move with Su Cha. Her dual blades spun down, first dismantling the electric piano and then crashing into the jazz drums, causing them to disintegrate into pieces. After dealing with the two, she turned towards the source of the heinous noise, Feng Duona.
Feng Duona, suppressed by Lin Youyou’s ability, couldn’t speak at all. Witnessing her teammates consecutively taking hits, she took a deep breath, intending to sing again, but a sharp dark figure struck her, a punch straight to her face. Immediately after, a thick towel was stuffed into her mouth.
Poor Feng Duona couldn’t even utter a sound before collapsing, seeing stars.
In less than ten seconds, the “Ferrara Star” was completely wiped out!
V587’s exquisite coordination and rapid response astonished the audience. They didn’t need commands or communication. Starting from Lin Youyou’s control, everyone executed the right skills at the perfect moments, subduing their opponents flawlessly. In terms of teamwork, they were even on par with the championship favorites, “Three Grandsons and One Grandpa.”
The barrage went silent for a few seconds, then quickly transformed from “hahaha” to a dense “666.”
Feng Duona and her group were only temporarily incapacitated and would soon recover on their own. While they were engaged in battle, Lu Xiaoyu cleared a path for them at the bridge entrance. Song Ke and her group bypassed them, swiftly heading towards the skyscraper.
Clearing a path through the congested heap of zombies, they ascended to the rooftop of the observation tower, where Zhuang Qingyan’s voice resounded in their earpieces once more.
“I just thought that the player’s drone for tracking might change position; its data capacity is larger than the positioning device…”
“You just turned off the receiver,” Song Ke held a grudge, not willing to let it go easily.
“Cough, cough,” Zhuang Qingyan coughed lightly, “Try to find the one that hovers in place…”
“You turned off the receiver!”
Song Ke raised her voice, growing angrier as she thought about it. How could this be? It was agreed upon to face difficulties together, so how could you sneakily turn off the receiver?
The captain was furious, and nobody dared to intervene. Not even laughing at Zhuang Qingyan.
Zhuang Qingyan received a scolding, but he chuckled softly, obediently admitting, “I was wrong, Captain. I will listen to the noise with you next time.”
Song Ke: “Hmph.”
*
Ferrara.
In the hotel suite, He Qiuhong tuned into the official live stream. Even while watching the match, she remained focused, sitting with her legs together and her back straight, maintaining an exceptionally upright posture. He Qiuhong watched and made notes, particularly focusing on the popular teams like “Three Grandsons and One Grandpa,” “Shunxing Teahouse,” “Anna Knights,” and “V587,” delving into the profiles of the players.
A knock at the door interrupted her—Yin Xiao, the captain of “Tustan,” entered. They had returned to Ferrara two days ago, but He Qiuhong had official matters to attend to, so he refrained from disturbing her.
“Commander, Liu Yuan and Dr. Gao have been sent to Tongwan, the zombie tide has receded, and all the tasks you assigned have been successfully completed,” Yin Xiao informed, settling on a couch he found for himself. Stretching out his legs casually, his tone was respectful, yet his attitude was relaxed.
He Qiuhong was accustomed to his style and nodded. “You’ve worked hard.”
“You’re not in a rush to return to the base?” Yin Xiao asked, glancing at the projection showing the ongoing match.
“Not particularly. I’ll be staying in District C72 for about a week,” replied He Qiuhong.
“Oh, that’s good then,” Yin Xiao said casually, touching his earring. He casually asked, “Are you watching the Throne Race? These competitors are from District C, right?”
“There are quite a few exceptional awakeners in District C,” replied He Qiuhong without directly answering.
Yin Xiao shrugged. He knew He Qiuhong tended to be more gentle in her attitude towards awakeners.
In the Northern Base, strength was the only pass. The more powerful the awakener, the better treatment they received. For instance, the “Tustan” team, despite nominally serving General Ye, had significant operational freedom and fewer constraints when talking to He Qiuhong.
“Why, are you interested too?” He Qiuhong noticed his prolonged gaze on the projection and asked.
“Yeah,” Yin Xiao chuckled, “but I’m not interested in the competition.”
Yin Xiao stood up. “Commander He, I’ll take my leave.”
He Qiuhong was watching the official live stream. The scenes kept changing without any specific focus, so he decided to go back and watch the individual live streams of the players instead.
…
Lu Xiaoyu’s silver hair fluttered without any breeze as his overwhelming awakened energy spread out.
Currently, all 16 final teams were within Rainbow Cloud City, and there were hundreds of player drones alone, not to mention the scene cameras, motion captures, audio systems, tripods, rails, and various other devices, totaling over five hundred.
After about five or six minutes, Lu Xiaoyu opened his eyes, his ice-blue eyes displaying a plethora of data. Swiftly, the data disappeared, and he raised a brand-new, shiny mechanical arm, pointing in a direction. “There, abnormal data flow. A team has already gone there.”
Zhuang Qingyan’s suggestion worked indeed. With a top-tier hacker like Lu Xiaoyu, they could forcibly exploit bugs and find the check-in point.
Song Ke made a quick decision. “Let’s go.”
The five of them dashed towards their destination, encountering zombie blockades on the way, taking some time to clear them out.
Surprisingly, the place Lu Xiaoyu pointed to was a wildlife sanctuary.
“Rainbow Cloud City Endangered Species Breeding Research Center,” Xu Xing read aloud the name on the gate, “What’s this?”
“No zombies nearby,” Su Cha reported after his investigation.
“Rainbow Cloud City boasts a 5A-level ecological scenic spot in the Alliance, specifically dedicated to cultivating and restoring flora and fauna from ancient civilizations,” Zhuang Qingyan explained through the earpiece. “Don’t let your guard down. Since Ilya set this as a check-in point, it won’t be easy.”
Song Ke and her team followed behind Lu Xiaoyu, maneuvering through the densely covered bamboo forest. Finally, they arrived at the Predatory Animal Viewing Area. Peering down through three layers of transparent barriers, they saw an object resembling a wax seal floating on a platform, a holographic projection above it—the emblem of the Throne Race.
Song Ke’s spirits lifted; this seemed to be the check-in point! However, getting closer to the check-in point wasn’t easy. The perimeter of the park was teeming with various mutated beasts, blocking the entrance entirely. Next to the holographic projection stood a two-story black-and-white building, conveniently blocking the platform where the wax seal was placed.
After staring for a while, Song Ke noticed something peculiar—the building seemed to have… moved.
She rubbed her eyes, feeling increasingly unsettled. Just as she leaned in for a closer look, at that moment— the little building lifted its “legs”.
Song Ke gasped, finally seeing it clearly. This wasn’t any ordinary building—it was a two-story tall zombie bear!
The bear was massive, its body overweight and covered in patchy, shedding fur that revealed yellowing bones beneath. As it lifted its leg, a large pile of rotten flesh and dried leaves cascaded down, scattering the pinned zombie rats as they fled. Even from a distance, the unmistakable stench of zombie decay filled the air.
Fortunately amidst the unfortunate, the surrounding environment remained quiet. The colossal creature lay napping on its back.
The zombie bear rolled over, emitting dog-like murmurs. Its razor-sharp claws, as if surgical blades, lightly scratched the platform, unaware.
Lin Youyou gently nudged Song Ke, gesturing for her to look in another direction—Shunxing Teahouse was also present.
Under hushed instructions from Mr. Xiang, a faint shadow manifested behind them. Another awakener seemed to shift a few times, stealthily brought above the platform. This was… spatial ability? Suddenly, Song Ke recalled encountering this person before; during their time in Luli Port, it was this individual who continuously moved, making it difficult for others to approach the A-level zombies.
The gecko-like awakener seemed skilled, agilely maneuvering with limbs adhering tightly to the ceiling like a gecko, inching toward the projection while holding a terminal in their mouth. Upon reaching the projection, they swiftly scanned the wax seal.
The zombie bear brushed its ear, its sharp claws slicing through a few strands of hair from the gecko-like awakener who froze in terror, his face turning pale. Luckily, a system prompt arrived swiftly.
The holographic projection displayed a line of text: “Congratulations, ‘Shunxing Teahouse,’ for successfully checking in.”
Mr. Xiang’s face lit up with joy as the spatial awakener exerted force again, bringing back the gecko-like awakener. The group swiftly departed.
Song Ke lowered her head and discussed with her companions under the barrier, “Should we… follow their lead?”
Mr. Xiang had demonstrated an excellent example for them. It was a perfect opportunity to act now without alarming the zombie bear, quietly making the check-in and leaving. It would allow them to complete the marathon in Rainbow Cloud City at the fastest pace possible.
Although V587 didn’t have a spatial awakener, they had Su Cha, whose stealth abilities were top-notch.
“Su Cha, you go for the check-in. I’ll cover,” Song Ke gestured.
“Okay.”
The two immediately sprang into action. Su Cha silently descended to the lower level, while Song Ke climbed over the beams from above to provide backup. But halfway there, they ran into another team. They exchanged a two-second gaze and simultaneously made a “shh” gesture, instantly reaching an understanding. A shared smile passed between the two groups.
On the ground, Su Cha was inches away from the platform. Just one reach, and the wax seal would be within grasp.
But Song Ke’s heart sank slowly.
“Boom! Boom!”
Deafening cannon fire echoed from outside the park, startling the mutated beasts, which scattered in a frenzy.
The blocked entrance was violently blasted open. Irene, carrying a rocket launcher single-handedly, kicked over the barrier and, upon seeing Song Ke, raised an eyebrow with a smug grin. “Well, well, if it isn’t you guys. So, did you find the check-in point?”
“We found it,” Song Ke sighed in utter disappointment.
“Roar!”
The zombie bear sprang up, its furious roar resonating throughout the entire zoo.
