Chapter 859: Star Heaven Martial Arts Ceremony (22)

"This... I clearly won the match with my own strength... How did it become like this..."

"Fortunately, Jimi covered for Lu Ka, and shortly after, Xing took the dispirited Lu Ka off the field."

"Just after returning to the athletes' lounge, Gui Naifen sent a message reminding Xing to tell her and Lu Ka to be careful lately. As public opinion heated up, the situation became increasingly serious. Some said they had taken the company's black money and specifically targeted native Xianzhou athletes for underhanded tactics; others said they were attacking the dignity of Xianzhou people, calling them company dogs, and wanted to have people teach them a lesson offline..."

"Lu Ka, standing aside, had sunk deep into self-doubt, unable to figure out why, despite clearly winning the match, things had developed this way."

""Someone online said that Yali Luo-VI is a destroyed planet, but aren't the people of Bei Cheng all living well?"

""They also say I'm an illegal immigrant using a fake identity… Hey, I entered Xianzhou properly through the Heavenly Shipping Bureau Customs!"

""Someone said I used to run with the Extinction Gang… Right, Miss Ka Mei Li, what does the Extinction Gang do? Forget it, no need to answer—just from the name you know it's nothing good."

""And there's this… a comment said my hand was chopped off by a Xianzhou swordsman, so I got this prosthetic, specifically to suppress Luofu's athletes."

"Moreover, the number of unbearable comments and rumors grew, making Lu Ka tremble all over."

""Such a joke… isn't funny at all!"

"--"

"Overlord."

""Hah… these humans even attack the victor with insults."

"I don't know if it's because Kesetes was angry, but Demiurge stretched out his hand, and I felt the room temperature drop several degrees."

"Kesetes fully put himself in Lu Ka's position--perhaps because they were both martial artists--and when that torrent of insults and rumors attacked Lu Ka, Kesetes's whole body emitted an astonishing chill."

"The weak's criticism is itself disrespect to the strong, and large-scale, organized slander of victors, in his view, is an unforgivable crime."

""These insulters should all be executed, so he knows what attitude to hold toward the strong."

""Whatever, I just think these Xianzhou people are really boring—it's just a sparring match; win is win, lose is lose, and their constant chatter of nasty words is as disgusting as maggots in a cesspit."

"Xitiya carefully examined Lu Ka's phone in his hand; although she didn't know its exact functions, she clearly knew that Xianzhou people used it to discuss and contact each other. They only dared to hurl insults on that little metal slab, yet none dared to confront Lu Ka face to face... truly cowardly enough to laugh to death."

""Ugh…" Awula had her hands behind her back, curiously looking at Xitiya, "Say, Xitiya, if one day humans organized to spread rumors and insult the Supreme One, what would happen?"

"Just as Awula's words hadn't finished--"

"Xitiya's exquisite doll-like face quickly twisted, then burst open, with dense rows of teeth like a lamprey's spilling from her mouth, and the whole 'person' almost instantly fell into a berserk state."

""Where——!?"

""Who dares to defile the Supreme One? Where is that scum? I'll wring out every drop of their blood! Awula! Do you know something?!"

"Awula was clearly startled, although she had long been accustomed to the true form of the vampire progenitor, she hadn't expected her reaction to be so great."

""Uh… just kidding! Don't worry. How could such a reckless person possibly exist! And even if such a person did exist, Aureole would take care of them right away."

""Alright, everyone, don't you find these Xianzhou people interesting?"

"A calm voice suddenly sounded in the room, and all the guardians' gazes snapped toward Demiurge."

""Interesting?"

""More precisely, it's their so-called 'public opinion' that's interesting."

"Demiurge gracefully placed one hand behind his back, ''Public opinion' can actually make a powerful martial artist feel lost, drive countless humans to attack their own kin, and even lavish any vicious language to curse him……Don't you find that interesting?"

""If we wanted to achieve that, we'd probably have to simultaneously apply mind-control magic to an entire nation's people for them to cooperate in attacking one person. Yet the so-called 'public opinion' merely through a few reports and a few sentences easily achieves an effect that magic cannot, don't you find that amazing?"

""Indeed……"

"Kesetes also agreed with Demiurge's idea; the 'public opinion' discussed in the heavens is literally countless times stronger than mental magic, and it's astonishing that Xianzhou people, without any coercive force, spontaneously attacked Lu Ka."

"If they could master a human nation's 'public opinion,' they could probably kill their strongest martial artist without bloodshed……It's practically an intangible divine artifact."

"--"

""Lu Ka, don't look at these; they're of no benefit to your current state," Ka Mei Li advised."

""I understand! I know I should treat everyone's comments like a passing breeze. But I can't pretend nothing happened! I saw some of my supporters merely defend me with two sentences, and they were immediately swarmed online."

"Lu Ka lowered his head, looking utterly dejected: ''Back in Bei Cheng, I never realized that winning a match would hurt so many people…''"

""When everyone gathers on the field, they certainly cheer for the victor. But off the field, especially online… not everyone is happy for the victor. After all, constant victory looks like arrogance to some."

"Ka Mei Li looked at him seriously: ''But that doesn't mean everyone wants to see you fail, Mr. Lu Ka! You just said supporters would defend you. Online, unfriendly voices always sound especially loud and grating, making supportive voices seem insignificant.''"

""Besides… if you could redo today's match, would you choose to lose to Shuojin just to avoid those grating voices?"

"Lu Ka almost instinctively denied: ''I……would never pretend to lose to anyone for any reason.''"

""Then that's right! What you should do now is pull yourself together and win more matches for those still supporting you."

"After Ka Mei Li's persuasion, Lu Ka finally understood, regained his spirits, and prepared to start today's training right away. But just as he was about to move, a familiar voice suddenly sounded at the doorway."

""No wonder you're Iron-armed Lu Ka—I didn't expect you not only to block the opponent's punch but also to withstand this wave of public opinion attacks."

"Tuopa came to the lounge again, saying he wanted to see how Lu Ka was doing now."

"Xing raised an eyebrow: ''Just here to check his condition?''"

"「Of course……not just for this. 」Tuo Pa curled the corner of her lips into a faint smile, she took out an exquisitely made card and handed it to the two of them, "I came to deliver an event invitation letter to athlete Lu Ka."""