Chapter 1 The Blood Boils

The blood of Kuang Wu Daren was burning, but he also knew that Tianqi had a non-disclosure agreement from the alliance, and as a media person, it was even more impossible to slap himself in the face. But how could he stand watching those clowns dance wildly?

The one jumping the highest was the popular Huo Nan. How could he be missing from this? Since arriving at the S-match, he had been the brightest star in the streamer world. Mu Ou acting like a big shot – how wonderful! Putting on an act before even starting to fight – wasn't that just asking for death? Especially after seeing the photo, Huo Nan was stunned. How thick was this skin? Was he crazy? How inflated and reckless could you be to do something so insane?

He also heard that he was late, wore a scowl, and cursed people. Unbelievable!

Huo Nan started his little essay, making all sorts of veiled accusations and adding fanciful details to create vivid little stories. He immediately received the frenzied support of his followers.

Back in the dormitory, Li Hao went into hibernation and didn't pay attention. Ma Long and the others had already shut down their media feeds, focusing on preparing for the battle. They didn't notice what was happening outside either.

Kuang Wu Daren was getting worked up watching. Were these people stupid?

Even if the Earthlings and Moonlings were a little restrained, did they really think the Martians and Titans were dead?

If anyone was dissatisfied, wouldn't they make a big scene? So many unruly top experts were so quiet – didn't that indicate a problem?

But the public opinion had been swayed by Huo Nan. Occasionally, someone would raise a question, but no one cared. Sometimes people only want to see what they want to see, and nothing else matters.

Kuang Wu Daren updated his personal page:

---A damaged throne is covered in cobwebs, awaiting its king's return!

The accompanying picture was a lonely throne in the darkness.

As the person who paid the most attention to Kuang Wu Daren, Huo Nan immediately responded to Kuang Wu Daren: An ignorant simp has started his attention-seeking performance again!

This feud started because of Mu Ou, but it wouldn't end there. Especially since they were both selected as official commentators for this year's S-match. Huo Nan was a natural fit, with his qualifications, popularity, and ability to stir up the atmosphere. What was that amateur Kuang Wu?

Kuang Wu Daren saw Huo Nan's provocation, smiled, and ignored him. He was concerned about Cheng Konghai's condition. Had the person who had once crushed him into渣渣 (zhā zhā – literally, dregs; meaning utterly defeated) fully recovered?

The king's blade-wielding guard, the Hunter's number one captain, whose defining trait was – ferocity.

And Xili An, the strongest on the moon, with the best background, extraordinary talent, and unlimited resources, had returned with the invincible Shadow Sentinel.

Zhou Naiyi and the others completed their final pre-battle training. Tomorrow was their first S-match battle. Except for Zhou Naiyi, who had some experience, everyone else was a first-timer. However, their current problem was that Li Hao didn't seem to be in the right state.

Zhou Naiyi gathered everyone together. "Did something happen to Li Hao?"

"Ah, what happened?" Ma Long and the others looked blank.

"I just received a message from him saying that he's not feeling well and might not be able to fight tomorrow. He hopes we can end the match before the team battle." Zhou Naiyi shook her head. She didn't rush to find Li Hao. First, she needed to find the problem. He was the team's core and couldn't have anything happen to him at this time. "Did he and A Youyou have a fight?"

The match consisted of five one-on-one battles, each worth one point. The team battle was worth two points, so it was possible to end the match early. Each player's individual performance was the basis for selecting the best player in each position.

Seeing Zhou Naiyi's expression, Ma Long immediately reacted. "That shouldn't be the case. They were fine before."

"Aren't you the expert on this!" Zhou Naiyi said. "What else could it be besides that?"

Zhou Naiyi knew very well Li Hao's physical strength and terrifying power. Not feeling well? Who would believe that? But when she saw him this morning, his face wasn't very good. With his carefree personality, what else could it be besides relationship problems?

Ma Long quickly raised his hands. "How would I know that? Zuo Xiaotang, did you notice anything unusual?"

"What unusual thing? Wasn't everything fine yesterday? Sleeping in late? He's always like that." Zuo Xiaotang had no idea. He was in pretty good shape now, focused on practicing a combination skill with Cheng Konghai, so he hadn't noticed anything else.

Zhou Naiyi glanced at Musashi. Besides Musashi, no one on the team was making things easy.

"Could it be that Brother Hao is doing it on purpose, trying to make us more confident in facing the match?" Musashi suddenly said.

The team was very dependent on Li Hao, especially when facing strong opponents. It could be said that tomorrow's opponent was probably the weakest they would face before the official matches. If they couldn't even win against this opponent, how would they fight against the higher-ranked teams later?

Everyone looked at Cheng Konghai. Cheng Konghai looked confused. "I don't know anything. Are women important?" Zhou Naiyi was speechless. Asking him was pointless. He was an idiot too.

"Hey, I think Musashi's analysis is right. What could be wrong with him? He must be trying to build our confidence!" Ma Long suddenly slapped his thigh. "Sister Yi, don't think too much. What could be more important than the S-match? Even if they really had a small fight, with Brother Hao's personality, it wouldn't be enough to make him do this. We don't need to worry about it. We'll put on a great debut tomorrow. A mere Gundam doesn't need Brother Hao to take action!"

Zhou Naiyi and the others felt that it made sense and went back to their rooms, feeling more relaxed. Even if Li Hao didn't participate, they were confident in facing Gundam.

The qualifying matches began, two days, eight matches in the morning, eight matches in the afternoon. On the first morning, the popular teams that appeared, besides Tianjing Mech, included Galaxy Team, Round Table Knights, Wolf Martial Team, Super Space, Abyss, etc. Currently, Galaxy Team had the most attention, followed by Wolf Martial Team, and Tianjing Mech ranked third. But in terms of past honors, Tianjing Mech could be considered unprecedented.

And the guests responsible for commentating on the Tianjing Mech and Gundam teams were Huo Nan and Kuang Wu Daren, which was exactly what they both wanted.

The top teams in the qualifying matches were just making an appearance and didn't need to use their full strength. For example, Galaxy and Indira Team. Although Indira was full of confidence and even boasted before the match that they wanted to have a good spar with Ares Maxis, everyone knew that Indira would be lucky if they weren't completely whitewashed.

Huo Nan and Kuang Wu Daren chatted and laughed, showing no signs of their fierce online battles.

The team members from both sides entered the arena, and the venue was packed. But in terms of popularity, Mu Ou had a lot of fans. In comparison, the Martian Gundam was much less popular. The pre-match gossip didn't affect the audience's enthusiasm.

Soon, Huo Nan discovered the problem. Tianjing Mech's captain, Li Hao...?

Wasn't there?

Soon, the director gave the information to the host. Tianjing Mech's captain, Li Hao, was absent due to health reasons. Tianjing Mech had no substitute for this match.

This situation was not uncommon. Even with the best medical equipment, there were still many injuries under the high intensity of the S-match. But in the qualifying match...

Thinking about the pre-match events, Huo Nan couldn't help but laugh. "The Gundam team is a ROM team with some unique characteristics. They have a tough style and are relatively balanced in all positions. Li Hao's absence will cause Tianjing Mech to stop in the qualifying match. What a pity."

Kuang Wu Daren also expressed his regret. "Tianjing Mech still has an advantage in terms of strength. Even if Captain Li Hao is absent, they will still win the match relatively smoothly and prepare for the more important official matches later. I also apologize to all the viewers. There are always unexpected situations in the S-match, and I hope Captain Li Hao will return to the arena as soon as possible."

When the opponent, the Gundam team, learned of this news, they were overjoyed without hiding it. Dimoka was arrogant, but he wasn't afraid of Mu Ou or Li Hao. It didn't matter. But if the opponent lost a core member, it was like a free pass. He couldn't be happier.

"Brothers, cheer up! Sweep them 4-0 and send them back home!"

Accompanied by Dimoka's roar, the Gundam team was in high spirits. Besides Mu Ou and Musashi, the others were just杂鱼 (zá yú – small fry; unimportant people). As for rising stars like Musashi, ha, Dimoka specialized in beating rising stars.

Mu Ou's fans were very worried. They didn't expect Mu Ou to be absent from the first match due to health reasons. This was very dangerous.

Although they knew it must have been an unavoidable decision, they still felt quite sorry. And Tianjing Mech was stunned.

At this time, almost all the teachers and students of Tianjing Mech were waiting in the square for the start of the match... Li Hao wasn't there?

The scene was silent. What was going on?

Tianjing Mech had been carried into the Mid-Season Tournament almost entirely by Li Hao, and it was Li Hao who had stubbornly won ninth place in the Mid-Season Tournament. When they learned that Li Hao was Mu Ou, the entire Tianjing Mech felt like it was dawn. They even had higher expectations. This...

After a period of silence, there was a noisy discussion, accompanied by various sighs. How could they fight with just Musashi? Musashi didn't have much experience. This was the official S-match, and it was the most difficult S-match ever.

Long Danni was slightly stunned but didn't worry too much. Li Hao looked unreliable, but he handled everything in an orderly manner. And if something really happened, he would definitely notify her. He wouldn't not say a word. Li Hao knew very well how important this match was. If they failed, she would be finished, the team would be disbanded, not to mention everyone's disappointment. And even if Li Hao was careless, Zhou Naiyi wouldn't fail to remind her.

In other words, this was likely Li Hao's strategy.

In almost ten seconds, Long Danni regained her composure and didn't ask. She didn't doubt the people she used, and she used the people she trusted. She wanted to see how far Tianjing Mech could go without Li Hao. This was also the time to test Tianjing Mech's quality.

The match between Galaxy and Indira in the No. 6 arena had already started as the first battle. As the most popular team, Galaxy's excitement went without saying. The live broadcasts of major media also dominated. Although Fan Liweite was the champion last year, the Moonlings still felt that Ares was the strongest. Maxis had defeated many strong opponents to win the championship, while Fan Liweite's championship was less difficult. In addition, Maxis was more stable, with more of a kingly demeanor.

The referee had confirmed the situation of Tianjing Mech. Li Hao was absent, and he couldn't participate later. This wasn't a joke. The match began.

The two sides blindly chose their vanguard battle.

Tianjing Mech chose Musashi, and the Gundam team chose Dimoka.

Dimoka had a smug smile on his face. He knew that Tianjing Mech would definitely put their strongest, Musashi, in the first match, and he, Gundam King Dimoka, would teach this rookie from the Musashi family a good lesson.