209 Life or Death is Determined by Fate (1/2)

The next day at noon, they stood at the entrance of the field. Ye Qingxuan could hear the raucous spectators inside. The noise felt solid, like a tangible sound wave. Ye Qingxuan had never thought that such a big noise could be produced when so many people sat together.

It resounded in all directions and one could not describe it. It was like a cheer, but also like a growl. One could not tell if it was in anticipation or spite. It was just a declaration. It was as if the entire world was urging him onto the battlefield.

He sucked in a deep breath and looked behind himself. ”Are you all ready?”

”Yes!” Charles pounded his chest with a serious expression, producing clangs.

Ye Qingxuan was suddenly felt out of character. ”Uh…you really prepared well, huh.”

Behind him, Charles was covered in heavy football gear and pads, making him look stuffed. There was a knight’s helmet on his head and a mask on his face. The cheap, mass-produced instruments that filled his back stuck out messily. He looked like he was going onto the battlefield, rather than the soccer field.

”Can you even run with all that?” Ye Qingxuan was suspicious.

Charles smiled secretively. ”I made this entire set. It’s really light and…it’s upgraded too.” He lifted up his sleeves to show Ye Qingxuan the steel auxiliary bones hidden underneath. This was the battle armor he had produced by staying up late. It was not as good as a musician’s robe, but with his creativity and weird techniques, it was pretty useful.

”What do you think?” Charles struck an impressive pose, but he clanged whenever he moved, like a peddler trying to run away from the police.

”Senior, I have the urge to hit you.” Ye Qingxuan sighed, then scanned his teammates. When he realized that only Bench Guy seemed reliable, he really wanted to cry. They would be hopeless without Bench Guy. ”Let’s go.”

Ye Qingxuan felt powerless with these teammates, no matter how enthusiastically the spectators cheered. This time, their life and death would be up to fate! He gritted his teeth and walked out of the shadows into the light on the field.

”Let’s go!”

-

”This game uses the revised international rules released three years ago. I hope both teams have prepared well and won’t try to find any loopholes. Do you have any questions?” The referee grasped the special soccer ball and stood on the midline, gazing at both team leaders. ”If yes, we can revise it now.”

”No need,” Ye Qingxuan replied first. It seemed that the school board had filled every loophole to stop him from doing anything weird. Thankfully, he did not put his hopes on that.

Across from him, Banner nodded slightly, showing that he had no objections either. But just as the referee was about to announce the start of the game, he opened his mouth. He shot a challenging look at Ye Qingxuan and said, ”Mr. Referee, I request changing the game system!”

”Huh?” The referee was shocked. ”What do you want to change?”

”To be honest, one thousand points per victorious game is no longer attractive,” Banner stated. ”Why don’t we link the points to the goals? One thousand points per goal. I’m willing to bet half of my points on the winner. What does the history department think?”

Off-field in the stands, the drowsy principal opened his eyes wide. He straightened and smiled. ”It’s getting interesting…”

The faculty and spectators’ stands were also quiet as everyone stared at each other, wondering if they had heard incorrectly. Ye Qingxuan furrowed his brows; he knew what Banner meant.

It was one of the tricks that the students liked when they bet on games in private. Other than official soccer games, the academy also allowed the students to form teams and play in private. But unlike the academy’s conservative style, the students were much more open minded.

No matter if it was the official game or players, no one would refuse playing in private. After all, everyone needed more points, so the stakes grew bigger and bigger. The strong preyed on the average, the average preyed on the weak, and the rankings changed dramatically. Many teams had already lost all their points and were forcefully eliminated. Some other teams had used their foresight and skill to move forward many places.

Compared to them, the history department was continuously passed over. Now, they had fallen to sixth place with fourteen-thousand points. Banner was different though. His team was the most powerful. After two days of chaotic battling, he had returned to first place with twenty-six thousand points.

If he bet half of his points, it would be practically half of the history department’s points. This was a difficult choice for Ye Qingxuan. If he won, he would have twenty-seven thousand points and would jump from sixth place to first. But if he lost, his points would be completely wiped out.

The winner would win all, the loser would be eliminated. It was a difficult choice.

”Banner, if you have this idea, you can talk about it privately, but our school will not recognize this type of bet,” the referee announced. He had seen enough of these suggestions throughout the past two days, but the academy’s attitude has always been neutral. They would not approve of, refuse, support, or forbid it. They just let the students do whatever they pleased.

Actually, without the school’s guarantee, the losers could renege on their bet, but if they did that, they would never be able to erase their shame.