Chapter 541: Battleground (2/2)
”Both sides are now making their final preparations. In the meantime, let me talk more about this terrain. As I mentioned earlier, the battleground is based on our standard Option One, the Hills, but with slight modifications. Option One is a hilly terrain, known for its complicated landscape. Mine, in particular, has mountains built with actual mountain rocks, making the area even harder to navigate. The terrain is extremely complicated. Parapsychic waves will be affected greatly, since the feedback will be less accurate than usual. Only an experienced shooter can decipher useful information from inaccurate parapsychic feedback. Besides, a shooter needs to be physically fit enough to navigate the terrain, since there is a lot of climbing involved.
”Alright, that's all for introduction of the terrain. Our combatants have all entered the battleground.”
Everyone, including Sun Sieha, shifted their gaze towards the huge screen.
”Aha, Master Ye and the other 12 shooters are entering from entrances that are directly opposite to each other. This means that they will need some time to locate the other side. For now, let's relax and take a drink,” Prince Desnio narrated lightly, but no one looked away from the screen.
”Let's start with our 12 young shooters. Hmm, not bad, they're maintaining a neat formation. In fact, the best place to be right now is somewhere high enough for vantage point, where their parapsychic waves will not be too severely affected. However, in this terrain, climbing is going to be difficult no matter where you are. Ah, Mang looked like he's trying to climb, but he's given up quickly. Without the right tools, it's hard to scale up the mountains here.
”Our beautiful Miss Man'er looks fantastic in her combat uniform. I think many of our young men here must feel even more drawn to her now. Despite her meek outlook, Ms Man'er is actually a Level 6 shooter. Truly a surprise to us. But from the way she conducted herself steadily in the battleground, I think we're all convinced that she's the real deal.”
Prince Desnio knew the taste of his audience. The camera panned and zoomed towards Shu Man'er. The guests responded immediately with some whistles from the younger crowd.
Sun Sieha looked at Shu Man'er on the screen and suddenly thought of something. A cold look flashed in his eyes. He signalled for one of the nearby servants to approach him and whispered some orders to the servant. The servant bowed and listened, then rushed out to see to the task he was entrusted with. No one but Duke Warren and Ming Xiao, who were sitting beside the King, noticed this little exchange.
On stage, Prince Desnio was continuing, ”Personally, I think that this battle will end up with both sides meeting each other without expecting it.”
”Alright, let's move on to our Master Ye, the man of surprises. What kind of surprise are we in for now?”
The screen shifted towards Ye Chong.
”Master Ye is not in a hurry. He seems to be used to this kind of environment. Oh, just to keep everyone from second guessing, let me make some clarifications here,” Prince Desnio affected an air of seriousness, ”this is the first time I've seen Master Ye. The man has never been to my battleground before.”
Some of the noble ladies hid their smiles at the Prince's act.
The night was turning out to be quite enjoyable. The women settled comfortably in a warm room, sitting on plush sofa cushions with their pet dogs on their laps as they listened to the Prince's narration. It was a cosy experience. The younger noble ladies could not help looking at the young King, sitting at the front, as they tried to devise ways to get closer to him.
”Master Ye seems to be quite relaxed, or at least he looks relaxed. Oh, looks like Master Ye is thinking of going to a higher point. The hills are quite difficult to climb. Hmm, Master Ye did not bring any tools with him. In fact, Master Ye continues to surprise me. I have no idea what he's about to do next. Let us wait and see.”
Suddenly, the Prince gasped audibly in the audience chamber. The audience cried out in surprise at nearly the same time. ”Ah! Master Ye has begun climbing! Heaven, he's fast, very fast! He's just like a monkey, no, he's even better than a monkey. Without any tools, the man is scaling up the nearly vertical cliff. It's incredible! It's just incredible!”
The audience could not help but stood up to watch Ye Chong on the screen. He had truly shocked them all. Ye Chong was climbing a rocky hill that was over 30 meters high, with an almost vertical ascent. Despite this, Ye Chong was scaling up the hill with apparent ease.
To the audience, this was an impossible feat. They would not have believed it possible without seeing it for themselves. Since Ye Chong was moving too quickly, they could not see how Ye Chong could scale up the cliff without the aid of any tools.
”Ohh!” Prince Desnio was wild with excitement. With his huge build, he looked like a huge chimpanzee in frenzy, ”This is amazing! Master Ye has brought to us a surprise like no other. Heavens, this is not humanly possible. Even with the right tools, I'm sure that no one can climb the hill so quickly. Now that he's reached the peak, Master Ye has an advantage in the match. If he was a shooter and with a laser gun in hand, I'm sure that we can already announce him as the winner.”
”However, the crux of the matter is, our Master Ye is not, in fact, a shooter, and he has no weapons with him. Right now, I'm thinking about our shooters, who always thought that physical fitness is not important. If they were to watch this match, I'm sure that they will realize their mistake. If a shooter is physically strong, well, not to the point of Master Ye here, but if the shooter can at least climb up to a high enough vantage point, then the advantage gained from it, hmm, need I say more?”
The audience considered Prince Desnio's words, especially military personnel like Ming Xiao. This frequently ignored problem was now brought to surface. It was because they were witnessing Ye Chong's extreme way of combat that they were able to reflect on their thought bias with seriousness.
A thin smile appeared on Sun Sieha's face. No matter the outcome of the actual match, he had won where it mattered. Perhaps the match was enough to convince people that it was wrong for shooters to neglect physical strength in favour of parapsychic control, but he could already see their conviction wavering.
Just then, the servant who left earlier returned to the audience chamber. He presented himself before the King and whispered something by his ear. He spoke quietly enough that even Duke Warren and Ming Xiao, who were sitting beside the King, could not hear him. Even so, both men sat facing the screen, pretending to be absorbed in the match.
After the servant was finished, Sun Sieha's smile turned a touch colder. He waved away the servant and directed his attention back to the huge screen. Now, both Duke Warren and Ming Xiao noticed the ghastly look that flashed in the King's eyes. They were both chilled by what they saw, but pretended to see nothing at all.