Chapter 31

C31 – Professional Confrontation

“Your reaction time is impressive,” Ning Xuan remarked once Taishi Xiu and the others had departed.

“Indeed.”

“I’ve noticed you’re not too familiar with this game.”

“It’s true, I’m quick to react, but I’m not well-acquainted with some of the maps,” Ye Hao acknowledged with a nod.

“The map for tomorrow’s game will be chosen at random. Make sure you take some time to get to know these maps later.”

“Will do.”

“The wager between the Vermillion Bird Team and the Nine-Headed Snake Team is a million dollars. If you can lead our Vermillion Bird Team to victory over the Nine-Headed Snake Team, I’ll personally award you a bonus of 400,000 dollars.”

Ye Hao was taken aback.

He thought to himself, “Taishi Xiu isn’t playing fair!”

“I’ll give it everything I’ve got for that 400,000 dollars.” Ye Hao found himself warming up to Ning Xuan more and more.

“You have the quickest reaction time I’ve ever seen. I’m confident you’ll clinch the win against the Nine-Headed Snake Team tomorrow,” Ning Xuan said with a nod of assurance.

What Ning Xuan didn’t realize was that Ye Hao hadn’t even tapped into his full potential. If he really pushed himself, his speed could increase by three or fourfold.

After Ning Xuan had briefed Ye Hao on a few key points to remember, she summoned Taishi Xiu.

Once Ning Xuan had given them their instructions, she allowed Taishi Xiu to take Ye Hao back to his room. There, Taishi Xiu clapped Ye Hao on the shoulder with enthusiasm. “I knew I was right about you.”

“But I was wrong about you,” Ye Hao retorted with a wry twist of his mouth.

“What do you mean?”

“I finally understand why you agreed so readily when I asked for a 100,000 dollars reward.”

At this, Taishi Xiu instantly realized that Ye Hao was aware of the million dollars bet.

Rubbing his hands together, Taishi Xiu explained, “I’m not being tightfisted, I just have a gambling debt that’s due soon.”

“Gambling debt?”

“I racked it up playing baccarat in M City.”

“M City?” A surge of excitement washed over Ye Hao.

He had completely overlooked this detail!

With his X-ray vision, he was bound to win at gambling!

This thought sparked an immediate urge in Ye Hao to head straight to M City.

“Let’s put that aside for now. We need to get a good look at the CF maps,” said Taishi Xiu, deftly booting up his laptop.

“Okay then. I’ll have the edible bird’s nest with snow clams, stewed bass, red lychees, and a brown crab.”

Ye Hao was at a loss for words.

He thought to himself, “My mother sure isn’t shy! I bet Taishi Xiu’s going to weep when the check comes.”

“Why don’t you pick out a couple of dishes too?” Guo Xiu offered the menu to Ye Hao.

Ye Hao browsed the menu and selected two of the more affordably priced items.

After tasting the food once it arrived, Ye Hao had to admit that Taishi Xiu hadn’t exaggerated. The cuisine was exceptional, albeit exorbitantly priced.

Upon spotting the members of the Nine-Headed Snake Team, Ye Hao felt a wave of revulsion. They were from J Country.

“Captain Ning, I see no point in having a match today,” a young man in a samurai robe remarked in broken Mandarin.

“You’re jumping the gun with that statement,” Ning Xuan replied icily.

The young man was taken aback.

Then, turning to Ye Hao, he said, “Captain Ning, I see you’ve recruited some help.”

“We’re just swapping in a team member for the time being.”

The Japanese youth couldn’t possibly take Ning Xuan’s words at face value, but he thought to himself, “No matter how strong their new player is, it won’t make a difference.”

“If you’re eager to compete, then let’s get on with it. Enough talk,” Ning Xuan said with a dismissive wave of her hand, “Please, have a seat.”

Huang Shouren was visibly irked when Ye Hao took a seat next to Ning Xuan.

“Move to a different seat,” Huang Shouren commanded sternly.

“Maybe if you focused more on the competition, you wouldn’t be facing such a crushing defeat,” Ye Hao said coolly, casting a sidelong glance at Huang Shouren.

It was clear to Ye Hao that Huang Shouren harbored feelings for Ning Xuan.

“Do you really want to give people a reason to mock us right now?” Taishi Xiu whispered from the sidelines.

Huang Shouren’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

He felt incredibly frustrated.

The CF competition consisted of 13 rounds, with the highest scorer emerging victorious.

The referee quickly went over the rules and then signaled for the match to start.

Once Ye Hao accessed the game interface, he grabbed a submachine gun and made a beeline for the enemy’s base.

“What’s happening?”

“Who’s the moron?”

“He’s from the Vermillion Bird Team.”

“Has the Vermillion Bird Team member gone dumb from losing too often?”