Ch. 236 - The Immersion Was Too Strong — It Already Started Feeling the Pain [1]

"What nonsense are you talking about? This is genuine public sentiment! I only hired the water army for one day!"

Chen Shu shrugged. He hadn't expected his popularity to reach this level.

Looked like he could start doing livestream sales next...

When it came to the internet, he truly had it completely figured out!

Chen Shu mused to himself as he arrived at the competitors' area of the Spirit Fighting Arena.

The three members of Nanqian City's team had already arrived as well — every one of them with low spirits.

They'd fought tooth and nail just to reach the Top 16, and now they'd drawn Chen Shu right out of the gate.

They would have preferred facing a team with S-rank contract spirits.

"So, you guys thinking over your surrender wording?"

Chen Shu spoke up. There was genuinely no comparison between the two sides — the gap was way too massive.

"Don't get so full of yourself!"

The three exchanged glances, their expressions firming up with resolve.

With that, they summoned their contract spirits.

A pitch-black wild bull materialized, berserk fury blazing in its eyes — the A-rank Black Power Bull!

Although it lacked ranged skills and was an element-less contract spirit, its physical durability was more than sufficient for the main tank role.

The other two contract spirits were a Flame Leopard with a body of blazing red and a tiny earth-yellow monkey.

The three made for a well-balanced combination — a team with respectable combat capability.

Chen Shu looked toward Xu Xiaoyu and Xia Bing and gave a nod.

In an instant, the Golden Slime, the Fire Bird, and the Frost Wolf appeared in the arena.

The moment they did, the entire audience erupted in shock.

"A B-rank Frost Wolf?! And it's only Level 8 — is this some kind of joke?"

"Holy crap, this is literally one person dragging two deadweights!"

"I thought Nanjiang's team was a championship contender, but the other two are completely useless! There's a time and place for bringing your girlfriends along, man!"

The contract spirits of Xu Xiaoyu and Xia Bing instantly detonated the crowd.

They were simply too weak — utterly incomparable to the Golden Slime.

Xia Bing's Frost Wolf, in particular, was only a B-rank contract spirit and just Level 8 to boot.

It was practically cannon fodder!

Listening to the arena-wide mockery, Xia Bing's face couldn't help but go pale. She silently lowered her head.

She really was deadweight for the team.

Chen Shu patted Xia Bing on the shoulder, a sunny smile on his face, and said in a firm voice:

"Trust me! You're not a cut below anyone here!"

Xia Bing's heart trembled. She nodded, took a deep breath, and shut out the crowd's jeering.

"Looks like we can rest easy. One strong person can't carry a team."

Xie Fengyu and the other two from Nancang First High exchanged glances, grins spreading across their faces.

Clearly, Chen Shu's terrifying combat power from before had genuinely spooked them.

If the other two teammates were anywhere near the Slime's level, that would have been simply absurd.

"Match begin!"

Chen Shu kept his expression composed and called out, "Xiaoyu, pin down that leopard. Frost Wolf, tail that monkey!"

With that, the Fire Bird beat its wings and rocketed straight toward its opponent.

Both were A-rank, fire-element contract spirits, their combat strength about evenly matched.

Little Yellow used Charge, but its speed wasn't very fast — slow enough for the Frost Wolf to keep pace from behind.

By now, Chen Shu's control over his skills had grown increasingly refined. He could freely adjust the speed of Charge.

"Earth Spikes!"

The earth-yellow monkey's eyes flared with the glow of a skill. Seven or eight earth spikes condensed in the blink of an eye, shooting madly toward the Slime.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Relying on its monstrous defense, the Slime simply smashed through the earth spikes on impact.

The distance between them had already closed!

Chen Shu called out, "Xia Bing, use Ice Domain!"

The Frost Wolf let out a howl. An invisible wave of frigid air spread outward, instantly covering a radius of dozens of meters.

The earth-yellow monkey activated another skill. Yellow mud abruptly materialized in the air and coated the Slime's body.

"A control skill?"

Chen Shu raised an eyebrow. Just then, the Slime's body flared with radiant light — Tyrant Body activated, granting direct immunity to crowd control.

Its adorably blank eyes widened, and then it unleashed Violent Sitting Kill.

The massive body launched skyward, its target locked on the earth-yellow monkey.

Already slowed by the Ice Domain, the monkey's eyes filled with sheer terror.

Something that enormous — it genuinely couldn't handle it!

The Nanqian City Beast Tamer kept his full attention fixed on the battle, showing no sign of panic whatsoever.

At the very last second, he decisively recalled his contract spirit without a trace of hesitation...

"Ah... um..."

His other two teammates were caught completely off guard. You fucker, that was way too decisive!

The Slime adjusted its target and charged straight at the Black Power Bull.

The Black Power Bull's eyes flared wide. Its thick, powerful hooves churned as it launched into a counter-charge in the blink of an eye.

CRASH!

The two melee contract spirits collided, the impact making everyone's hearts clench.

As expected — no surprises here. The Black Power Bull spewed blood from its mouth as it was sent flying on impact...

In the distance, the Flame Leopard witnessed this scene. Its body couldn't stop trembling, and then it began rolling around frantically, like it was having some kind of seizure.

Up above, the Fire Bird stared blankly. What is this, insurance fraud? [2]

"Chen Shu, did you use some kind of skill?"

Xu Xiaoyu was completely baffled. She had no idea why the leopard had suddenly started acting like that.

Chen Shu explained, "Its immersion was too strong. It's already started feeling the pain..."

"......"

Off to the side, Nanqian City's three members looked utterly dejected. The leopard's owner, in particular, was mortified beyond belief — his own contract spirit had just started having an episode right there on the battlefield.

"Bro, let's surrender. We seriously can't win."

"Sigh... fine, we surrender!"

The two directly recalled their contract spirits and forfeited the match.

It wasn't that they were weak — it was that the opponent was too strong!

Chen Shu and the two girls exchanged grins. The road to advancement was just way too easy.

But Xu Xiaoyu and Xia Bing both knew — everything hinged on the Slime being too ridiculous for words.

If Chen Shu hadn't been here, and instead it had been Du Long or Tang Lie competing, Nanjiang City would have been eliminated in the very first round.

"Another twenty million in the bank!"

Chen Shu sighed. He'd just earned Nanjiang Second High's money — walk in the park!

The match concluded, and the Spirit Fighting Arena erupted in cheers once more.

Xia Bing's Talent Skill, Ice Domain, had a massive range, was an area-control skill, and lasted a long time. It definitely had value in a team composition.

And more importantly, it could synergize with Chen Shu's Slime.

That afternoon, the three of them went out to celebrate, then returned to the hotel.

It was already April. Orioles were flying, the grass had grown tall, the sunlight had turned gentle, and the college entrance exam was drawing closer and closer...

Chen Shu was just about to freshen up and go wander around outside.

His phone suddenly rang, and he answered the call.

"Hey, Sis Fang Si? You're back in the capital?"

"I'm back already. I need to talk to you about something. Do you still remember Liu Ping?"

Chen Shu said, "Who? Does he owe us money?"

"......"

Fang Si said, "The Black Iron Beast Tamer who tried to assassinate us last time!"

"Oh, oh. What about him?"

"I've dug up some information. He was connected to an international organization. They might have a base in Nancang City. You're competing there right now, aren't you? You absolutely need to be careful!"

"Should be fine, right?"

Chen Shu's heart jolted with alarm. A Black Iron-level assassin was genuinely something to fear.

"Better safe than sorry."

Fang Si reminded him. She had no desire to see Chen Shu end up in trouble. She shifted topics and added:

"By the way, I saw you've already advanced to the Top 8! Not bad!"

Chen Shu sighed. "Just winging it, really. This batch of competitors is weak — I haven't even gone all out."

"Cut the crap!"

Fang Si seemed to think of something and said with complete seriousness, "Also, don't you dare cause trouble in Nancang City!"

"I've always been a law-abiding citizen, okay? The Provincial Education Minister personally praised me just today."

"The minister? Praised you for what?"

"Said I have ambition, an entrepreneurial mindset, good at starting businesses, that sort of thing..."

Click... click... click...

Chen Shu hadn't even finished speaking when the phone went dead.

"No patience at all..."

He shook his head. And right at that moment, options appeared before his eyes.

[Option 1: Finish the tournament low-key and return to Nanjiang City. Completion reward: Moderate Beast Taming Power]

[Option 2: Report directly to the Dragon Guard and have them investigate the Dark Night Organization's base. Completion reward: Skill "Rebound Force" +1]

[Option 3: Find an opportunity and destroy the enemy's base yourself! Completion reward: Slime All Attributes +10% + Large Beast Taming Power]

Chen Shu's expression froze. A red glow had appeared in his field of vision.

He walked to the window and immediately located the source of the red light — a luxurious office building.

The base was right in the center of Nancang City?!

[1] 代入感 (Immersion): A term for how deeply a person gets absorbed into fiction — feeling what characters feel in novels, movies, or games. Chen Shu applies this media-psychology concept to a contract spirit: the Flame Leopard watched its teammate get destroyed and became so "immersed" that it experienced genuine phantom pain, like a viewer flinching during a horror film. This becomes a recurring joke in the novel.

[2] 碰瓷 (Pèngcí — "Porcelain Bumping"): A notorious Chinese scam where fraudsters deliberately throw themselves at vehicles or fake injuries to extort compensation from drivers. In internet slang, accusing someone of 碰瓷 means they're dramatically overreacting or faking injury for attention. The Fire Bird — a literal bird — accusing another animal of insurance fraud is peak absurdist comedy.