Ch. 231 - I Can Fight... Like Hell I Can!

Chen Shu cleared his throat, rose to his feet, and assumed the posture of a senior official addressing his subordinates.

"Now that everyone's here, let me say a few words!"

Every head in the room turned at once. Who the hell is this guy?

"First, let me introduce myself. I'm Chen Shu, from Nanjiang City. You can all just call me Uncle!"

The others froze. Why did I feel like I just got conned out of something?

"I just want to notify everyone of one thing. Note -- this is a notification, not a discussion."

Chen Shu said it with complete seriousness. "If you run into me, surrender on the spot. Do not -- under any circumstances -- hold out any hope that things will go differently."

"Ha... ha..."

"Who do you think you are? Do you seriously think you're some kind of genius?"

"Nanjiang City? What kind of backwater is that? You're a frog in a well!"

In an instant, most of the room answered with cold laughter. Everyone there was a top-tier talent, and no one was about to bow their head to anyone else.

Xia Yan, standing off to the side, let out a quiet sigh. Chen Shu only dares to swagger like this because he really is that strong.

"I know everyone here is a genius," Chen Shu continued, "but you can't just lump all people together."

He looked over. "Xia Yan -- give everyone a little life-safety lesson."

Xia Yan's expression went blank. Why the hell are you dragging me into this?

And what does 'life-safety lesson' even mean? That's a complete joke.

"Hurry up!"

Chen Shu sat back down and handed the stage over to Xia Yan.

"I... that... how do I even..."

Everyone was staring at him now. Xia Yan stuttered and fumbled, not sure what to say.

The sight made the others jolt. It was obvious Xia Yan was being strong-armed.

But the other guy had an S-rank Contract Spirit!

There were nearly a hundred geniuses in that lounge, and only a little over a dozen of them had S-rank spirits. The vast majority were top-end A-rank tamers.

Xia Yan can't beat him?

That thought surfaced in everyone's mind simultaneously.

"Nobody's heard of an S-rank Contract Spirit from Nanjiang City. Is he really that low-profile?"

The mockery died. The others started studying Chen Shu's face instead.

Just then, a voice came in from outside.

"All contestants, please proceed to the draw and determine your opponents!"

Xia Yan let out a long, slow breath of relief. One thought lingered in the back of his mind, though.

Should I go back and bone up on life-safety tips? Just in case?

"Slime Defense +5%."

Chen Shu had only spoken a few lines, but he had made sure every single person in that room would remember him. With Xia Yan's performance as a backdrop, every last one of them had something to think about.

The twenty-seven cities competing in the Beast Taming Competition had fielded a total of thirty-two teams. Nancang City alone had sent six -- six! As for why?

Sorry. When you're the host city, you can do whatever you want.

Not to mention, all six of their teams were formidable. Each one had at least one S-rank Contract Spirit.

Outside of Nancang City's six teams, only three other teams possessed an S-rank spirit.

Those were Xia Yan's team from Daxing City, Li Longxu's team from Zhonghan City, and Wang Chen's team from Nanwang City.

Per competition rules, those nine teams would not face each other in the first round. This setup essentially guaranteed that any team with an S-rank spirit would advance to the top sixteen.

"Please don't let me draw them. Please don't let me draw them..."

Xia Yan prayed silently, his eyes locked on Chen Shu.

"Really? It's that serious?"

The team standing nearby shook their heads, wearing expressions of faint contempt.

Nanjiang City's team was not in that group of nine, which meant Chen Shu did not have an S-rank Contract Spirit.

Most people figured he was just posturing. Some even wondered if Xia Yan was in on it -- putting on a little show to help hype up some nobody from a small city.

Chen Shu stepped forward and, under the staff member's guidance, drew a slip.

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He glanced over at Xia Yan.

"Oh no. Please don't tell me..."

Xia Yan's heart lurched. Looking at Chen Shu's smile, he felt a chill run through him.

"Looks like fate brought us together!"

Chen Shu unfolded the slip. Written on it in clear characters: Daxing City.

All the color drained from Xia Yan's face. He slumped and exhaled.

He had thought that with his presence, Daxing City could make the top eight this year. If luck was on their side, they might even push for the top four.

Instead, they had run straight into his nightmare in the thirty-two-to-sixteen round.

"Keep your chin up. This is a team competition -- one strong individual doesn't win the match."

Li Longxu clapped a hand on Xia Yan's shoulder.

Xia Yan blinked.

Right. This was a team competition!

As long as they could eliminate Chen Shu's two teammates, it would be three against one. That was not hopeless.

Xia Yan's heart still felt uneasy, but at least he had something to fight for. Without that, he might have surrendered before the match even started.

"I have to beat him..."

Xia Yan said it quietly to himself. At this point, Chen Shu had become a shadow looming over him.

The remaining teams stepped forward one by one for the draw, and all their match-ups were settled.

"Tomorrow, the Provincial Beast Taming Competition officially begins! All contestants, please rest up and adjust your mindset -- go out there and represent your cities!"

The crowd filed out of the Spirit Fighting Arena.

...

The next morning.

Nancang Province's finest talents gathered inside the Spirit Fighting Arena.

Today was the day the competition officially opened. The arena was packed to capacity -- at least ten thousand people. Every news outlet had their equipment out and was live-streaming this once-a-year provincial spectacle.

"Good morning, everyone!"

A middle-aged man walked to the center of the competition platform.

The entire crowd fell silent in unison.

He was not the Governor of Nancang Province that some had been hoping to see, but he was still a powerful figure. The pressure radiating off of him was formidable.

"Gold rank at minimum..."

Chen Shu watched the man on the platform and murmured to himself.

The middle-aged man swept a gaze across the entire arena and spoke with a smile.

"Once again, it is time for Nancang Province's annual grand event. I hope every contestant gives it everything they have."

"Without further ado -- let the competition begin!"

With that, he stepped off the platform. A male host and a female host took the stage in his place.

"Let me now walk everyone through the competition rules..."

Most people already knew all of this, but the formality had to be observed.

"And now, the prizes!"

"The team that wins first place will receive three Designated Skill Selections -- any skill from a Gold-rank beast or below -- along with a cash prize of 100 million Huaxia yuan!"

"Second place receives one Designated Skill Selection and an additional 50 million Huaxia yuan!"

"Third place receives 30 million Huaxia yuan..."

Chen Shu felt something jolt inside him. Greed flickered in his eyes. These prizes are genuinely tempting.

A Designated Skill Selection meant you could choose one specific skill from any fierce beast below Gold rank and have the materials supplied until your spirit comprehended it. Silver-rank Lord materials alone cost tens of millions. If your luck ran bad, even 100 million yuan might not be enough to get a single skill to click by conventional means, and sourcing bulk purchases took brutal amounts of time.

But this prize was different. The competition authority would keep drawing from national reserves and feeding it to your spirit — no queue time, no material costs. You kept going until comprehension happened.

"First place, second place..."

Chen Shu turned the idea over in his mind, then shook his head. Do my best, I suppose.

His Slime had flattened everything in Nanjiang City, but against the best talents in the entire province, there were no guarantees.

On top of that, with Xu Xiaoyu and Xia Bing as his only teammates, he was effectively going to have to hold off all three of Daxing City's opponents on his own.

"Our first match-up: Nanjiang City versus Daxing City!"

Ten thousand voices erupted at once.

"Go, Nanjiang City!"

"Nanjiang Bandit is unstoppable -- smash Daxing City!"

The chants shook the walls. The crowd looked around in surprise.

Were we out of the loop? What's the Nanjiang Bandit?

Chen Shu stood there with his arms folded and a satisfied grin on his face.

Xia Bing frowned. "How are there this many people who know who we are?"

"Do you even have to ask? Obviously someone bought paid commenters."

Xu Xiaoyu shook her head. Nanjiang City was just a small city -- no one in the province would have known to root for them. Support like this wasn't organic.

"What do you mean, paid commenters? These are all real fans showing up to cheer."

Chen Shu shrugged. I'm sure the school will cover that expense, right?

The three of them strode to the contestants' area with their heads high.

Xia Yan and Daxing City's team, for their part, did not look great. They had not expected to face Chen Shu in the very first round.

"Begin!"

Xia Yan drew a long, steadying breath and composed himself.

He did have a shot. And this was a team format -- one person's raw power did not determine everything.

"I can fight. I can fight."

Xia Yan closed his eyes and kept repeating it, and somehow, through sheer self-suggestion, his old confidence began returning.

Self-hypnosis. You really couldn't say it was completely useless.

"I can beat him!"

He kept breathing steadily, and a conviction of victory took root inside him.

"Huh? Why is the arena so quiet?"

Xia Yan noticed something was off. He slowly opened his eyes.

"What the..."

His mouth fell open, and his expression went completely blank.

Occupying his entire field of vision was one enormous mass of... poop. Nothing else. Just that.

"I can fight... like hell I can! What in the actual hell IS that thing?!"