Chapter 19 April 19th

April 19th, late, 11:30 PM.

Although there was still some time before the match began, the number of online players in Thriller Paradise had already surpassed eight figures.

If the users of those live streaming platforms were also included, the number of viewers waiting to watch this S3 final at this moment had undoubtedly exceeded one hundred million.

It was at such a time that another shocking thing happened.

Just like when [Gates of Paradise] announced their forfeit, this time… [Hell Front] also contacted Dream Inc. and obtained permission to "announce the news" through the official platform.

Thus, Feng Bujue… appeared in the screens of major live streaming platforms.

This scene was like an emergency news report, interrupting the advertisements and trailers on each channel, and shocking the viewers who were waiting in front of the screens.

The first reaction of the people was – could it be that [Hell Front] was also going to forfeit?

"Don't worry, we won't forfeit." As if seeing through people's thoughts, Feng Bujue said this as soon as he opened his mouth, with a mocking smile on his face.

"I just have a few words to convey to the members of [Order] studio." Jue-ge said, "Although I can also tell you this in private, in that case, my words may be judged by you as 'deceptive,' so that it does not achieve the desired effect... Therefore, I will use this form to publicly express my meaning."

He paused, and in a very serious tone, continued: "Since Dream Inc. doesn't give me much time, I won't talk too much here, let's get straight to the point... Everyone in [Order], we all know very well what kind of duel the audience wants to see most; this is already the final, there is no reason to let things like 'arrangement rules' become an obstacle to the establishment of that duel... So, now I'll just put my words here... Swallowing Heaven Ghost Howl, I, Feng Bujue, will be waiting for you in the 'Vanguard Battle', today, in this final of the Peak Tournament, I want to have a one-on-one showdown with you."

After saying that, he closed the video connection, leaving those words to echo in people's hearts.

He had "thrown down" his words, but the people who heard these words were in an uproar... Not to mention others, just speaking of the [Order] side, from the company boss to the front-line players, what kind of feeling was in their hearts?

Believe Feng Bujue? Change the original formation and let Ghost Howl take the lead? What if the other side sends Snow in the first game? With Feng Bujue's integrity, it is entirely possible, even if he is scolded for being despicable and shameless afterwards, it will not affect his character setting.

And not believe Feng Bujue, ignore him? If he really put himself in the Vanguard Battle, wouldn't [Order] be seen as timid?

Moreover, although Feng Bujue's behavior seems extremely arrogant at first glance, if you think about it carefully, what he said is very true... What do the audience want to see most? It must be the one-on-one battle between [Swallowing Heaven Ghost Howl] and [Mad Detective Feng], but under the existing rules, it is indeed difficult to ensure that these two can meet in the game.

Now, Feng Bujue took the lead and wanted to fight Ghost Howl in the "Vanguard Battle". If he puts himself in the vanguard position as scheduled in half an hour, and [Order] does not respond, then the latter will not only be regarded as retreating, but will also seriously offend the audience.

For casual players, it doesn't matter if they offend the audience, but for studios, the risk is much greater... If they neither respond to the challenge nor win the game in the end, they will probably be sprayed by the audience for a whole week (the memory limit of netizens), and this matter will often be used as an example or meme in the future.

However, if they respond to the challenge, but end up losing the game because of being fooled, Feng Bujue will just maintain his consistent low limit and be sprayed. Maybe people will think it's normal, and on the contrary, they will say that [Order], who was tricked, is too silly and naive.

Taking a step back, even if [Order] wins in the end, but if Ghost Howl and Jue-ge don't meet during the game because they didn't respond to the challenge... then they will still offend the audience, and may even be said to have won unfairly.

After all, the audience is the audience, and definitely not everyone can understand the professionalism and the weight of victory in e-sports. A large part of people have higher requirements for appreciation than everything else... Putting it in the field of football, some teams park the bus but can win the championship, and some teams play very gorgeous but end up empty-handed every year. The two types of teams have their own audiences, and you can't say who is right and who is wrong because of different preferences.

In short, Feng Bujue's move can be said to be a model of conspiracy—he only used a few simple words to disrupt [Order]'s position before the game.

And what is the basis for his strategy? It's nothing more than his unfathomable lower limit and the burden of the other party's "big-name studio"...

…………

April 20th, midnight.

Peak Tournament S3, the final, the battle between [Hell Front] vs [Order], officially begins.

Venue: Grand Line - Banaro Island.

After the voice prompt of [The match will start in thirty seconds], the "vanguards" of the two teams entered the battlefield one after another.

On this wasteland that has been washed by darkness and flames, [Mad Detective Feng] and [Swallowing Heaven Ghost Howl] met as scheduled.

One, with black hair and purple shirt, exuded an evil aura.

One, with red hair and white cloak, had burning battle spirit.

Judging from the aura of these two people, it seemed that a fierce battle between darkness and flames was about to be staged here again.

Of course, their battle... will not be like that.

[...fight!]

The countdown ended in the blink of an eye, and the two people on the battlefield did not move a single step.

They stood opposite each other, but it seemed that neither of them intended to make a move.

"You really came after all." A second later, Feng Bujue said with a smile, "It seems that your team has settled the accounts clearly."

"Yeah..." Ghost Howl responded coldly, "It's not a particularly tangled problem. For us, there is only one best answer – 'Put me in the first game and win the final victory'."

He was right, only in this way can [Order] avoid offending the audience and strive for honor at the same time.

Even if they lose the game in the end, they can find excuses depending on the situation...

For example, if they lost because Feng Bujue didn't keep his promise, [Order]'s public relations can turn the negative public opinion of "silly and naive" to "the magnanimity of the king is that even if he loses, he will not be timid"; and if Feng Bujue keeps his word and wins, [Order], who chose to respond to the challenge, has nothing to blame, since they are not as skilled as others, they can show a peaceful attitude and "congratulate their opponents."

"But... you played this hand really well." After a pause, Ghost Howl said again, "Even knowing that you might set a trap, after weighing the pros and cons, we still have to drill into it."

"What are you saying..." Feng Bujue spread his hands, "Am I such an unreliable person in your impression?"

"As an ally, you may be more reliable than anyone else..." Ghost Howl said, "But as an enemy, you can't be described as 'unreliable', you should say... you can't treat you as a human being at all..."

For Ghost Howl's words, those who have had contact with Jue-ge all deeply agree... The limit of "human" is nothing more than "can do everything," but Feng Bujue doesn't have that kind of boundary. He belongs to the state of "you can't even imagine what he can do."

"Heh... okay, okay..." Jue-ge didn't care about being called non-human, and smiled calmly, "Say whatever you want, but I still appeared in this Vanguard Battle as agreed... didn't I?"

"Yeah... By your standards, you didn't do that when you could have calculated us completely, it's worth praising." Ghost Howl replied, "But... I'm not here to chat with you or comment on your lower limit..."

At this point, Ghost Howl's eyes... changed.

His fiery red long hair rose like it was blown up, and his pupils also showed the light flow of data.

The firm killing intent made the surrounding atmosphere heavy; the surging fighting spirit made the entire island under their feet tremble.

"Feng! Bu! Jue!" Finally, Ghost Howl raised his voice and shouted the name of his opponent, "From the first time I saw you, I have been waiting for this battle..." He spread his arms, released his whole body's power without restraint, and continued with a ferocious look on his face, "Don't let me down..."

"Don't worry." Seeing this, Jue-ge remained calm and unhurriedly took out [Chuck Norris's Razor] from his bag and began to harvest his hair... "I will definitely let you fight to your heart's content."