Chapter 416: The Sewer

This thought occurred to almost every member of Apocalypse in the player area; this was likely Zuo Xiaotang's true talent, a terrifying warrior capable of turning any opponent, any environment, and any situation into a favorable factor for himself.

Although it was unknown what would happen next, this battle was Zuo Xiaotang's deification; the people at the venue stood up and applauded—Earthlings, Moon People, and even Martians...

This was the purest warrior.

The entire venue was drowned in applause; the livestream channels of Huonan and Kuangwu Daren already had over 18 billion in popularity—Mars colliding with Earth was always this passionate and high-spirited.

This small interlude also seemed to signal that Tianjing Mecha had blown the horn for a counterattack.

Zuo Xiaotang also received hero-like cheers and immediately trended; the Sniper's calmness, thinking, layout, and that fearless heart—at this moment, Zuoge himself had become an idol.

Back in the tactical room, Zuo Xiaotang was still dazed, but he also let out a sigh of relief; he had been quite worried about losing, but once the fighting started, he forgot everything—the opponent was so strong, it was so satisfying.

Upon returning, Zuo Xiaotang naturally received cheers from everyone as if he were the moon surrounded by stars; Huo Ying had carried him back directly.

Although they were behind in the score, the advantage in the match had now shifted to Tianjing Mecha; Tianjing Mecha could now make adjustments. With Li Hao as a strong point, entering the team battle was almost guaranteed. The only one who could defeat Li Hao should be the Wolf King Basta; others were a bit lacking. Most Martians were still clear-headed about this point. Now, it depended on how Fire God handled it—was the fourth match the Wolf King or someone else?

Fire God did not delay; Mengnaluo appeared for the fourth match.

Tianjing Mecha's supporters were excited; if Basta did not go up, Li Hao would likely take the win if he appeared, and entering the team battle to decide the outcome meant everything would start over.

It had to be said that Zuo Xiaotang's battle had also woken everyone up. Zhou Naiyi requested to fight; if they could take the small match three to two, it would still be an advantage. Team battles would have various uncertain factors, such as simultaneous destruction, etc. Although it was a low-probability event, if there was an advantage, it had to be taken.

But Li Hao vetoed it, "Naiyi, this person is clearly targeting you. Your ability is crucial for the team battle. Ma Long will go in this match!"

Ma Long was stunned, "Me??? Hao Ge, I'm not Zuo Xiaotang; I really can't win."

"The mission for this match is just not to get injured. The win or loss doesn't matter. I have the fifth match; I want to meet Basta," Li Hao smiled.

"Should we be a bit more stable?" Zhou Naiyi said. Facing the powerful Fire God Team, ensuring they entered the team battle first seemed better.

Li Hao shook his head, "Wuzang can no longer participate in the team battle; the variables are too great. Besides, it is impolite not to reciprocate."

If Basta did not play in the final match, Li Hao was secure. Moreover, in such a major competition, it would affect the morale of Basta and the entire Fire God team. Replacing him with someone else was one thing, but this was the Wolf King after all. A cowardly Wolf King, a Wolf King who had flinched—no matter how grand the excuse, it would be unjustifiable.

Zhou Naiyi understood; Li Hao was putting pressure on Basta, even wanting to make Basta unable to play in the team battle.

Ma Long gritted his teeth. Either way, he was going to get hit; he might as well make himself useful. He couldn't just not play a single match. Besides, without the pressure of winning or losing, let's do it.

Suddenly, he pulled Sheng Man over and gave her a deep French kiss, "Manman, I'm going up. Remember to stay a widow for me."

"Get lost! If you dare to have anything happen to you, I'll find ten tonight!"

Ma Long laughed and went up without hesitation. He knew what Li Hao meant; the opponent would likely target the pilots, so his mission was to finish the match and stay healthy, because no matter how the team battle was fought, it required five players, and Wuzang was still in surgery.

He was important!

Mengnaluo appeared, and Tianjing Mecha's response was Ma Long?

Instantly, the audience was a bit confused—what was Tianjing thinking?

Li Hao still didn't go up at this time, nor did he send Zhou Naiyi, which was equivalent to sending the advantage he had in hand back. What did this mean?

In the eyes of most people, Li Hao was still very powerful. If he went up, he would have at least a 70-80% chance of winning. And given Tianjing's situation, safely entering the team battle first was definitely the preferred choice. He didn't go up... was he waiting for Basta?

This was the S Tournament; shouldn't there be some tactics?

Even if he didn't go up, shouldn't he send Zhou Naiyi? Sending a Substitute?

Could it be that Tianjing Mecha was also preparing a big move, and Ma Long was the secret weapon?

The whole venue was buzzing with discussion; no one understood this move. The only explanation was that Ma Long was a specialist, and he had been waiting for this opportunity.

Anyway, watching Tianjing Mecha's matches never lacked heart-pounding moments. In the Tianjing campus, everyone's hearts began to flutter. How they wished Li Hao would go up directly to take a point, and then fight in the team battle—that would be great. Facing Basta, everything would become uncertain; after all, he was the Wolf King.

Maxis and his Galaxy Team were also there. Zuo Xiaotang had also successfully attracted their attention. There would be no suspense in Sea Dragon fighting Wail; they had already collected sufficient intelligence on Sea Dragon, and they were all old opponents from Apocalypse, old acquaintances in the Shadow Scout, all having grown and improved. Everyone was mentally prepared. However, the Tianjing Mecha led by Li Hao was a bit hard to figure out.

It looked full of flaws, but the growth potential was too strong, and everyone had some unique traits. This also made Jie Jie interested. This kind of person who looked weak but was strong in actual combat had an unpredictable flavor. He really wanted to know what method Zuo Xiaotang would use to fight him. Clearly, his life experience was extremely ordinary—let alone Apocalypse, he hadn't even participated in proper intensive training. What kind of accumulation could he have in a place like Tianjing? Yet, this little fatty's fighting style was extremely rich.

"This Ma Long should be a decoy; Li Ge is going to increase the intensity for Basta."

"This should only be a part of it; I feel it's to avoid Zhou Naiyi being targeted. Basta has been preparing for a long time."

"Do you think this Ma Long might have a reversal?"

If it weren't for Li Hao, no one would think so deeply.

Not only were they thinking, but the Fire God Team was also thinking. They didn't know what Li Hao's move meant. Mengnaluo had already prepared to face Zhou Naiyi or fight Li Hao.

If it were Zhou Naiyi, that would be exactly what he wanted. He wanted to target Zhou Naiyi and nip her in the bud. Her ability was too special, and she was close to Dita. If Dita's ability was absorbed by her, even at 80% strength, it would be troublesome. This kind of uncertain factor had to be crushed directly. If Li Hao went up, his ability could also be consumed to pave the way for the team battle.

Ma Long really hadn't considered him before the match. A healer—fine, a glowing healer—what the hell was the use of that?

The two players went up and bowed; applause thundered. Mengnaluo looked at Ma Long, who was pretending to be calm but was actually panicking, and subconsciously looked at the opponent's combat room, immediately feeling another gaze and a face with a half-smile.

Mengnaluo's heart sank—was there an ambush?

What intelligence had Ma Long hidden that they didn't know about? That was why he was specifically kept on the bench. Just like themselves, Mengnaluo didn't dare to be careless. If he capsized in the gutter here, he wouldn't be able to return to Mars.

The match battlefield: Kepler Jungle.

Mengnaluo chose his signature Deep Sea Berserker; the plan was still to be executed. Even if it was a substitute, he had to be crippled. The possibility of Wuzang returning to the battlefield was extremely low, and even if he barely returned, he would be a cripple. Forcing him to appear would likely leave hidden dangers for his future career. Presumably, Wuzang himself had to consider it clearly.

Deep Sea Berserker, 160 tons.

Three-engine Nuclear Fission Drive, Deep Sea combined laser fire system, Gravity Electromagnetic Cannon, K23 Titanium Battle Axe, Titanium Alloy Shield.

Ma Long chose the Super Type Mecha from USE—Mingwang Acalanatha. He also wanted to show off a Night Fighter, but he just thought about it; with his piloting skills, he would probably be beaten into slag.

He had practiced the Mingwang Mecha for a while; at least this kind of firepower could make up for his technical shortcomings, and he wouldn't be easily knocked over.

Mingwang Acalanatha, Super Type, 85 tons.

Dual-Core Fission Drive, four-bracket multi-control laser cannon, dual K23 Titanium Blade, Laser Eye.

Dual-arm ejection-type Laser Shield.

Once the Mingwang Mecha was selected, the hearts of Tianjing Mecha's supporters basically cooled by half. The firepower characteristics of this mecha were not enough in front of Heavy Armor. The only advantage was flexibility... but with Mengnaluo's technical characteristics, could he bring it out?

It had to be said that Zuo Xiaotang had reversed the morale; the supporters of both sides at the scene erupted in rounds of cheering.

Ma Long sat in the Cockpit, silently repeating to himself over and over, calm, calm, calm, calm. He could do it; don't fight head-on. His mission was to consume and pull to find opportunities, to play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses!

Ma Long, you can do it; you are the coolest!!!

Amidst countless mental victories, the two Mobile Suits descended into the Kepler Jungle.

Although Mengnaluo was full of confidence, he really didn't dare to take Ma Long too lightly. After all, he was chosen by Li Ge, and he had given the impression of being very weak all along. The Hunter did the same thing back then; those who looked weak later became super fierce. Cheng Konghai was a typical example. This Ma Long was clearly a healer, which was actually a very practical and rare ability; he couldn't be careless.

The two Mobile Suits began trading fire as soon as they started; the Mingwang Mecha had the most outstanding firepower among medium types, and the Deep Sea was, needless to say, Heavy Armor. The two of them unleashed a wild barrage of lasers, with energy rampaging across Kepler. Ma Long kept moving to maintain distance and dodge the opponent's heavy firepower, but he soon felt the pressure; the bombardment from the opponent's combined laser system was a bit fierce, and the opponent's strikes were also quite precise, with the combination of firepower making him feel very uncomfortable.

Having just dodged a round of lasers, a missile exploded, and Ma Long's Mingwang Mecha was sent flying by the blast. In that instant, the world spun, but Ma Long's Red Pupil immediately activated, and his mind finally cleared. Upon landing, he immediately darted into the jungle; in terms of hit-and-run, the Mingwang Mecha was peerless, firing wildly with its four limbs, while the Deep Sea Fighter kept closing in.

At first, Mengnaluo was still a bit cautious, but he soon discovered that the opponent's strikes... were really lacking in power. Compared to Zuo Xiaotang, this marksmanship was simply worlds apart. Seriously, he couldn't possibly think that just trading fire like this would end the match, could he?