Longyuan vs. Qingjun: Infected Zone 1

"Xu Lingqu finally left her dorm!" Jinfang Taibai spotted the Moye group arriving and told Li Muyi excitedly.

Li Muyi glanced over too. Xu Lingqu looked the same as before, her hair a bit longer. Moye's purple combat uniform made her look pale, and her every movement seemed unhurried, almost careless.

"Next time you want to show you care, don't linger outside someone's dorm building," Li Muyi said, turning to educate the wild child Jinfang Taibai. "It's very rude."

Jinfang Taibai pouted, looking like a rebellious kid who didn't want to be lectured.

Li Muyi said ominously, "Have you forgotten what happened last time you forcibly tried to add Xu Lingqu on your smart brain? If you don't listen to me now, be careful—you'll end up getting a beating."

Jinfang Taibai nodded obediently.

Xu Lingqu appeared in the VIP viewing seats for the Qingjun versus Longyuan match, and for a moment, everyone's attention shifted from the arena's big screen to her.

This year's league popularity could be credited almost entirely to Xu Lingqu. In the Empire, there were already calls to give her a major's rank. In the Federation, a bunch of people loudly claimed she wasn't that impressive, yet if you looked at their match replay numbers, Xu Lingqu's five games took the top five spots—pure talk vs. action.

"This is turning into a Xu Lingqu exhibition hall," Jin grumbled from beside her. "Haven't they ever seen a person before?"

"Not one who toppled the Merlin Family in thirty minutes," Hei Yingzhi added from behind.

Xu Lingqu, the center of attention, showed no reaction. She quietly watched the match.

Today's commentators were Lieutenant Quan and Teacher Chang.

"I've been looking forward to this match for two days," Lieutenant Quan began, joking to warm up the live and streaming audiences. "These past two nights, I even dreamt of Longyuan versus Qingjun—I've been thinking about them nonstop."

"So who won in your dreams?" Teacher Chang played along.

"Longyuan, of course!" Lieutenant Quan replied. "And then in the finals, Longyuan faces Moye—that's the best script for our Empire viewers. This is the strongest year for our Imperial academies, right!"

"I think it's too early to say that. Xu Lingqu is still just a first-year," Teacher Chang couldn't help but bring up Xu Lingqu. The director gave a facepalm, mentally deducting 50 from her salary.

Lieutenant Quan beamed.

Gu Tingzhi led Longyuan out. He looked a bit haggard—these past two days had been the most stressful for him. To counter Jia Xianglan and Qingjun, he must have prepared extensively.

Despite his wan complexion, his demeanor was relaxed. He looked up, offered a smile to the viewing stands, and paused before the VIP section. His gaze cut through the crowd and met Xu Lingqu's.

Xu Lingqu gave him a slight nod. Gu Tingzhi lowered his head with a smile, took a deep breath, and headed for his cocoon pod.

I want to face Moye, I want to face Xu Lingqu. See you in the finals.

[Longyuan vs. Qingjun: Infected Zone]

This map was, in short, a large city. At its center was a device constantly emitting pollution toxins. Initially, the infected zone was limited to the city center, but over time, it would expand until it covered the entire city.

Longyuan and Qingjun started in the eastern and western districts respectively. They could send people to shut down the device. The final extent of the infected zone didn't affect the outcome—victory was still determined by how many combatants remained standing.

This match featured a decapitation mechanic, but commanders were immune to the negative effects of infection.

If neither side was wiped out or decapitated, the map would last for two days. After that, the side with more survivors would win.

Before the match, Director Yin from the League Center was pleased to see Longyuan and Qingjun draw this map.

The infected zone map was originally designed to promote anti-war sentiment and oppose inhumane warfare. The pollution device was inspired by real toxin weapons—during the height of Empire-Federation hostilities, there had been repeated calls to use such weapons. Mounted on mechs or starships, dozens could be launched simultaneously at a small planet, and within a day, all life on it would be infected, rotting, and dying—turning it into a dead world.

Such attacks wouldn't actually cause massive damage to an opposing military, since soldiers were ensconced in starships, mechs, armored vehicles, and aircraft—they could simply leave the moment toxin weapons were fired.

The true victims of such weapons were the poor civilians of interstellar space.

They had no means of escape. They could only be infected in despair and die without dignity.

The device in the infected zone was a metaphor for toxin weapons. If both sides could agree from the start to shut it down, the map would become a simple urban battle—benefiting both sides. The designer hoped both teams would witness the cruelty of toxin weapons and set aside their differences to first eliminate this inhumane threat, thereby promoting anti-war and anti-cruelty ideals.

Director Yin believed this year's league needed such a map to ease relations between the Empire and the Federation, so she felt relieved when the infected zone appeared.

But today, standing in the arena, she looked up at the big screen with a nagging sense of unease.

Why? She pondered with lowered eyes. Perhaps because this map clearly didn't suit Jia Tu's preferences, yet it had been drawn... and in a match featuring his son, Jia Xianglan.

Could Jia Tu have tampered with the draw?

"Jia Xianglan probably won't shut down the device," Jia Xiangying concluded after reading the rules.

Hei Yingzhi raised an eyebrow. "Not shut it down? Then his own people suffer the infection. He doesn't care?"

"Yeah, he doesn't. Since commanders are immune, he definitely won't send anyone to shut it down," Jia Xiangying said, knowing her younger brother well.

Jia Xianglan had always stepped on others to climb higher, feeding on their blood. As long as he wasn't personally harmed, others' lives meant nothing to him. His only edge over Tansen Meilin was his silver tongue.

"Then what about Gu Tingzhi? Is he going to send his own people to shut it down?"