Chapter 66 - King
translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
Zuo Botang’s pupils contracted abruptly, his eyebrows scrunching up.
The powerful shotgun was only three meters away from him, the butt of the gun against Wu Jin’s shoulder, and the muzzle of the gun pointing straight at his abdomen––
Just like an hour ago, when he had used a sniper rifle and aimed at Wu Jin.
Zuo Botang looked at the black muzzle of the gun, his gaze sweeping over Wei Shi, who was standing behind Wu Jin.
Jingyi’s team captain wasn’t embarrassed on the camera. Instead, his brows smoothed out, and he looked so calm that it didn’t seem like he was about to be eliminated in a game that would affect his future. Instead, he made it seem like it was nothing but a trivial contest.
Wu Jin pulled the trigger.
Zuo Botang dodged instinctively, but his gaze went over Wu Jin’s shoulder and across the burning fire from the divine punishment to fall on his teammate Ming Yao. He nodded to him in encouragement.
In the distance, Ming Yao let out a cry of surprise, and in the next moment, a life-saving capsule popped out with a ‘bang’––
Jingyi Entertainment, Zuo Botang was eliminated!
Wu Jin stilled.
The palm of his right hand was damp with sweat. It had only been two seconds between dodging and shooting, and almost all of it had been based on muscle memory and instinct. Even his expression had gone blank for a moment.
Zuo Botang shouldn’t have been knocked down so easily based on his skills with evasive maneuvers, but...
At this time, two cards, guns, and ammunition dropped down at the same time! Wu Jin no longer thought about it and instead rushed in to pick up the spoils.
Jingyi’s double c had collected a large number of cards during the corridor skirmishes and the previous instance. However, Zuo Botang’s machine gun only had six bullets left, and there were only two cards here. It was obvious that he’d given the most precious of the supplies to Ming Yao.
Of the two cards, one was a King of Swords, and one a Knight of Swords.
Wu Jin looked at the life-saving capsule in front of him and finally let out a breath of relief. His boiling blood surged through his arteries, and he couldn’t restrain his excitement, subconsciously looking back towards Wei Shi––
The man’s goggles reflected the light, the flames seeming to press against the lenses. It wasn’t possible to see his eyes clearly from Wu Jin’s point of view, but the knife-sharp lines of his chiseled face were majestic.
Their eyes met, and the big boss nodded at him lightly.
Wu Jin suddenly raised up his small round face. His smile couldn’t be held back anymore and spread across his face; he wanted to turn around to pick up the supplies, but was reluctant to turn away, so he put on an act of distributing the supplies instead.
The man’s aggressive scent burned hotter when the youth came close. Wu Jin was oblivious, his exposed skin carrying a healthy glow from the intense exercise. His bright eyes leapt with happiness, and it seemed that he was still immersed in the delight of fighting together.
It was just like what he’d seen from the first instance. Their judgement, shooting, and circle of firepower were almost identical. Even if their line of fire was pulled away, the two of them could still cooperate and shoot to support each other without turning back to check on the other party.
Wu Jin huffed as he picked up the supplies and tossed them down between the two of them. He pretended to be discussing it seriously as he chattered non-stop, his small curls soft and perky. It seemed that the words &#k2018;happy happy happy’, &#k2018;want praise’, &#k2018;want more&#k2026;’ and so on were written in speech bubbles over his head.
Wei Shi’s palms were a little itchy.
The camera that had been chasing after the two of them finally flew over to Ming Yao, and the fire blocked the view of the fixed camera.
He suddenly raised his hand and expressionlessly touched the boy’s soft head.
Wu Jin lifted his chin. His eyebrows and eyes curved with his smile, and his face that was covered in a thin layer of sweat glowed softly. The restless small curls hooked and scratched against the big boss’s palm before nestling against his hand in satisfaction.
By the time the camera switched back to them, he was once again a well behaved, gentlemanly rabbit spirit.
Inside the Crosson Show director’s studio.
Ying Xiangxiang looked at Ming Yao through the screen, “I didn’t think that Zuo Botang would be eliminated so early. 114/300, Zuo Botang is currently at risk of falling to C-level––unless Jingyi can get first place as a team and guarantee him a B.”
“However, there are too many teams gunning for the title of champion in the third elimination match. Judging from the previous grade changes, Silver Thread Roll’s Thin Fire, White Moonlight’s Caesar, and Dolma’s Qin Jinbao were all demoted to B-level in the last game, so this team ranking is very important to them. There’s also Contestant Wei Yan––he was second in the second elimination match, so he’ll have to take the championship in either this match or the next in order to maintain his S-level ranking.”
“Based on the current situation, Jingyi was the first amongst the major powers to have a member of their team eliminated, and it was also their captain. The task that’s now on Ming Yao’s shoulders will be more difficult than ever.”
“As can be seen on screen, Ming Yao’s play style has changed. Even if he has all of Jingyi’s abundant supplies, he chose not to avenge his captain and instead focused on defense. He’s avoiding Wu Jin and Wei Shi’s line of fire.”
Blood Pigeon nodded from the side, “His biggest responsibility now is to bring the supplies to his other two teammates, not to get revenge.”
Ying Xiangxiang sighed emotionally, “It’s really difficult for Ming Yao to hide, but even just based on his positioning, it’s already more accurate than it had been just now. After fighting in three games as a vice-captain, he now needs to play like the main c.”
“I remember that there’s a saying––’when you feel relaxed, it must mean that there’s someone behind you who is supporting you in silence.’ Zuo Botang’s elimination is an opportunity for Ming Yao to grow up... However, if Zuo Botang had dodged in time, the situation might not be like this now. Unfortunately...”
Blood Pigeon suddenly looked over at the life-saving capsule in the camera, and then glanced at Wei Shi. Finally, he shifted his gaze to Ming Yao, his eyes flickering as he interrupted Ying Xiangxiang’s words, “Zuo Botang is a very admirable captain.”
The live broadcast switched back to Wu Jin’s group again.
The scrolling comments were densely packed, and the atmosphere was pushed to the peak after both men pulled out their guns at the same time.
The communication between the two people in this group was less than any other pair of ‘Lovers’, but their cooperation was still very in sync after they seized the upper ground that had originally belonged to Jingyi Entertainment.
Wu Jin took up the assault position and was fearless as he stormed the Garden of Eden. Beneath the ceiling lights, he looked like a vigorous baby leopard––the type that had been raised with a keeper.
In half an hour of gun skirmishes, he killed two more players who belonged to the same team and quickly snatched up the supplies before handing them over to his teammate.
Wei Shi stood behind him, his sniper rifle fast and accurate. Their score, which had originally been suppressed to the bottom, increased steadily. After the fire from the ‘divine punishment’ landed five times, it no longer visited their group. Wei Shi changed the target of his muzzle and started to pave the way for Wu Jin.
The two people’s line of fire overlapped and covered for each other, and there was no gap in their tacit cooperation. There were several times when the audience thought that the two of them would open their mouths to discuss things––but unexpectedly, they only exchanged a glance and were done.
When the results of the instance were basically determined, even though there were countless viewers calling out that ‘Beauty is pleasing to the eye; please give a renewal fee to extend their camera time by 1 minute’, the director still mercilessly moved the camera away.
However, the discussion on the scrolling comments suddenly heated up, and relevant forum threads were also being quietly built up.
“The wildest Eve, the coolest Adam––hold the new CP flag up high!!”
“Wait a minute, is this about cooperation? Is this a survival show? Why are there sparks from shooting a gun?! My god, what kind of logic is this?! I just regret that these two people speak too little!! Their gazes met a good many times, and I even want to start smiling like an auntie as an audience member, but you end up not talking? Not saying anything?!”
“I’m new here! I came over from the theme song on the Star Blog, a bumpkin here who hasn’t seen any survival shows––may I ask if contestants are usually like this when they cooperate? Why is it so sweet that I suddenly want to vomit blood...”
“My god! I thought I was the only one who felt that way! These two are clearly only relying on brain waves to communicate, and that moment when their eyes meet is too perfect. No, wait, I’m Little Witch’s mama fan ahhhh!!! Son, you’re still young, you’re only nine years old!”
“On the floor begging for Wei Shi’s contestant information aooo! I’ve never seen him before?! Just now, I went to the voting channel to take a look––too tragic, he’s powerful and good looking, but he only got one vote? One vote?! WTF?”
“Hahahaha a one vote contestant ahahaha! That voter should be able to die happy, right? They didn’t need to toss money at it and were still able to stand hand in hand with Contestant Wei!”
“Thin Witch CP girl passing by, I just want to watch you guys push them into a CP...”
“Not a CP pusher, microscope girl passing by. Click into the site for the full broadcast, at 4h16min, Contestant Wei tosses over the gun, and the camera is to the left behind Little Witch. You can see that his cheekbones moved––16 pixels, and he recovered after 65 frames (visualize that my son smiled a little). 4h36min, the two were splitting up supplies, and the camera switched back––compared to 4h35min, Little Witch’s cheek and ear, the original color swatch was #F8D0CB, followed by #D59685. The red levels increase slightly, though it’s not obvious––Little Witch blushed.”
There was silence.
More silence.
A moment later, the comments below the post exploded.
“Oh my god, this skill, 6666!!! Kneeling for the big boss!”
“I can’t tell from the camera at all! Little Witch smiled? He even blushed? Son, what’s the matter with you ahhhhh, are you getting seduced away by Contestant Wei? He’s not cute and lively at all! Your preferences for choosing a partner are all messed up!”
“Laughing and crying as I offer up tea for the big boss! I think that it should be Little Witch being shy XD, a two month mama fan wants to express that Little Witch is soft towards everyone. He was probably given a scare by this match up in ‘The Lovers’ instance. Smiling and blushing is all reasonable, after all, my son is a little silly and dazed when not playing in the competitions. However, this CP is tasty. Sitting here waiting for more!”
“Any survival show CP is good as long as they’re tasty! Jingyi/Thin Witch/Wei ALL/ALL Wu/Two Fools/Zuo Lin are all good! I even watch Wei Yan X Program Producer when I’m in the mood!! By the way, secretly getting all flushed by this Unknown Trainee X Heartthrob Stage C-position ahhhh!”
“Crosson Main Dancer X Too-destitute-to-give-the-program-money Poor Man is also tasty!”
“... Suddenly excited! My smile is turning evil! I’m not a microscope big boss, but I can provide a clue––Contestant Wei selected Little Witch within 3 seconds after coming through the door, right? How many years do you have to be single for to have this kind of hand speed? He’s clearly so cold on the surface, but he must’ve been paying attention to Little Witch in private for a long time! His single pick has been exposed!!”
There was a lot of excitement and noise off-camera.
On the screen, the Lovers card instance was finally coming to the end.
With Wu Jin and Wei Shi clearing the instance out quickly, the instance advanced faster than expected.
20 minutes later, Wu Jin killed three people, and Wei Shi killed another. During the fierce battle, some trainees were eliminated by the ‘divine punishment’, and the number of people matched the number needed to pass the instance. The exit for the instance finally opened up.
Having gained experience from the last time the instance opened, almost all of the trainees ran outside like their lives depended on it. Without the restriction of the instance rules, the ‘lovers’ who had been cautiously cooperating with each other suddenly experienced the awkward predicament of fleeing separately when calamity was about to strike.
Ming Yao of Jingyi Entertainment escaped at the fastest speed.
Ying Xiangxiang’s guess had been accurate. He was much more careful now that Zuo Botang had been eliminated. Wu Jin stood on the elevated platform and shot at him several times, but the other side was always able to find shelter and make his way out unscathed.
Wu Jin didn’t continue the pursuit. He had the same level of strength as Ming Yao, and he didn’t want to go so far as to rely on the big boss’s strength to kill. As long as both of them remained in the Crosson Show, there would come a day when they could really have a fight out in the open.
In the center of the instance, on the elevated platform.
The partnering rule disappeared, and Wu Jin’s terminal rang, indicating that there was less than 100 seconds left before their cooperation was considered an illegal team.
The Garden of Eden beneath their feet was a mess, but from the elevated platform up, the holy light, the sculpture, and the birds made it seem like a harmonious piece of heaven.
The two of them combined had collected a lot of supplies. Wu Jin had finally gotten a big upgrade, and even the wound on his right arm that had been covered by a simple bandage had now been sprayed with a healing solution––some contestant had probably obtained it with a card from the cups suit, then been attacked by Zuo Botang, and the item finally fell into Wu Jin’s hands.
Wu Jin took advantage of a column and stood with his back to the camera. He was happily dividing up the guns on the ground, one to the left, then one to the right, and so on.
Wei Shi stood against a pillar with his arms crossed over his chest, watching as Wu Jin delightedly split up the carrots and radishes.
Soon after, the rabbit spirit had finished splitting up the vegetables and held up an armful of guns of different lengths, handing them over like he was holding out a bouquet of flowers.
Wei Shi picked out two of them, his gaze dropping down to the cards they’d taken from Jingyi.
Minor arcana, the King of Swords and Knight of Swords.
Wu Jin finished selecting guns, then adjusted the strap and slung them messily over his back. After taking two steps, he felt that they were too heavy and reluctantly tossed down two of them. At a glance, he seemed like a rich landlord’s silly son.
Then, he reached out for the Knight of Swords card without thinking––
Wei Shi suddenly reached out and held down the card, gesturing for Wu Jin to take the King of Swords and leave the Knight of Swords for him.
Wu Jin was surprised, then nodded obediently.
Speculating from the previous time they’d exchanged cards, there wasn’t any difference between the minor arcana in the same suit when they traded for supplies at the materials box. The box would only spit out the equipment the players needed the most, so he didn’t delve deeply into the ranking of the card.
––The knight was a symbol of battle and loyalty. They were heroic defenders of their king.
There was 40 seconds left before their team formation was considered illegal.
The youth had his weapons on his back and was about to leave the platform. He looked back and raised his head, “Big brother, I’m leaving!”
The man nodded. His gun-callused finger stretched out to straighten the strap of one of the guns Wu Jin hadn’t been able to bear throwing out, like sorting out the decorative ribbons for a young king before his coronation, “Mm. Bring back first place.”
Go fight for your crown.
Juurensha: Awww, stalwart protector of the young upstart king.
xiin: i just imagine a big pile of oversized carrots and radishes on the floor ahhhh Little Witch you’re so cute~
This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺