The player "Grass Is a Plant" couldn't shake the image of his head being cleanly lopped off with a snap. Trembling uncontrollably, he couldn’t hear a single sound from the outside world.
Dongfang Yuan was at a loss. "Hey, say something! Do you surrender or not? Are you deaf or mute? If you don’t answer, I’ll really kill you!"
At the critical moment, Grass Is a Plant suddenly regained his hearing and roared with all his might, "Yes, yes, I surrender! Don’t kill me! Don’t kill me!"
His body shook violently, but the expected pain never came. Gathering his courage, the kid dared to open his eyes—only to find that the female demon... no, that kind-hearted person had already left the arena.
Grass Is a Plant felt like he’d been handed a second life. Overwhelmed with relief, he scrambled off the stage without a shred of hesitation.
From the moment he’d been selected for the Cross-Region Challenge, Grass Is a Plant had been utterly baffled. Why does War Wolf 006 think I’m some kind of expert?
Sure, he liked to act like a big shot in the chat lobby, but real experts—the genuinely strong ones—weren’t chatterboxes. Who spent their time showing off in chats instead of hunting monsters?
This battle had been a wake-up call. No more pretending. Running into a clueless top-ranked player like this meant nothing but trouble in the future.
The third 1v1 match featured Song Peifeng. Though his opponent wasn’t completely weak, Little Song wrapped it up in under two minutes.
Qi Xu couldn’t help but complain, "What the hell? Why are the players in this region so weak? War Wolf 006 is the only decent one. The rest are shaking in their boots the second they step onto the stage. How are we supposed to pick ten people later?"
War Wolf Dandan 7 cut straight to the point. "One hundred percent, Old Six just threw in random player names. Who the hell would even want to team up with him?"
War Wolf 009 chimed in, "Yeah, Boss. If it comes to it, just pick randomly from their region’s list. Even your blind picks would be better than Old Six’s deliberate choices."
After a brief exchange, the 2v2 matches began.
War Wolf Dandan 7 and 009 took the stage first, facing what seemed like two complete strangers who had zero teamwork.
Dandan 7 and 009, despite their penchant for trash talk, never slacked when it came to serious battles. No matter the opponent’s strength, they always fought at full capacity.
The moment the announcer, Qiuqiu, signaled the start, the two shot forward like human missiles—only for their opponents to scream in surrender and leap off the platform.
"This is so boring! Are they just handing us wins?"
Blessing had never seen a Cross-Region Challenge like this. Given the special resources for upgrading vehicles at stake, past matches had always been bloody brawls.
How had she never encountered a gem like War Wolf 006 before?
The opponents faced by Fluffy Ice Lamb and Happy Big Sis were more interesting—a pair of twin brothers, nearly identical in appearance and decently skilled.
What they didn’t expect was Happy Big Sis’s monstrous strength. When she charged at them, they tried to block head-on, only to end up with half their bodies numb from the impact.
Fluffy Ice Lamb, a seasoned fighter, had been waiting on the sidelines for an opening. She struck immediately, forcing the twins into a defensive struggle.
Even so, the battle dragged on for over ten minutes. It wasn’t until Happy Big Sis went all-out, ready to trade blows, that the twins finally surrendered.
The moment they conceded, Happy Big Sis lost control of her momentum and crashed into them, injuring herself in the process.
Qi Xu observed the entire match intently. Both Fluffy Ice Lamb and Happy Big Sis seemed like decent people—fighting style and split-second decisions revealed the most about a person’s nature.
He’d have to talk to them more after the match.
As for the twin brothers, they weren’t bad either. Not quite golden-tier chat material yet, but good enough to recruit into the region.
Five matches in, and Region 666 of District 88 had swept all five. Qiuqiu had checked and rechecked for cheating, only to confirm the truth: District 273 was just that weak. And that cowardly.
Qiuqiu issued a direct threat.
"Players of District 273, Region 122—if you lose all five matches, each of you will be fined 100 Survival Coins!"
The five players about to enter the 5v5 match were beyond despair. Getting dragged into this challenge as chat-addicted noobs was bad enough—now they were losing Survival Coins too?
Their resentment toward War Wolf 006 deepened.
But the match had to go on.
Old White Dragon in the Waves and his team quickly took their positions on stage, their formation meticulously planned—ranged attackers, front-line tanks, and flanking ambushers all in place.
Only to find their opponents huddled at the edge of the platform, refusing to even step into the center. Clearly, they were planning to surrender immediately.
"Don’t let your guard down. Anything can happen in an arena match. They might be playing weak to catch us off guard," warned Old White Dragon, absently touching the gourd tied at his waist.
The opposing team cracked under the pressure.
"Bro, no! We’re actually weak!"
[Warning! No communication allowed! Player 'Unrivaled Slayer' has violated arena rules. Penalty: Deduction of Survival Coins—... Tch, deadbeat! You don’t even have 100 Survival Coins?! Deducting 385 Vehicle Upgrade Card Fragments instead!
Reminder: Players are forbidden from surrendering and jumping off the platform without engaging in combat! Severe penalties will apply!]
Qiuqiu’s fury was palpable. The five at the edge of the stage didn’t dare another misstep, inching forward fearfully, terrified the fierce-looking bald guy might decide to slaughter them.
Old White Dragon suddenly spoke up. "Chinese Master Chef, these five are yours! Don’t worry about getting hurt—we’ll cover you."
Chinese Master Chef, who had just settled into a perfect hiding spot behind the other four, pointed at himself in disbelief. "Me?"
"Your new shield can move with you now, right? Perfect chance to test it. They look weaker than monsters—use them for practice."
Tempted, Chinese Master Chef shifted his weight and struggled to his feet.
"Hey, I think I’ve lost weight! Getting up feels easier!"
He was thrilled by the change. Weight didn’t matter—health did. With his shield handling defense, he could focus on agility. One day, he’d be a nimble heavyweight!
Pumped up, Chinese Master Chef charged at the five, shield raised.
.........
