Chapter 44: Wuzang vs. Puppet

There is a strange phenomenon within the EMP as well; in the Xuni Qu, solo matches are relatively rare. Everyone prefers group queues because it's livelier with more people, and all sorts of flashy Mecha fly everywhere. They chat while they fight, making the battles quite heated. However, in the Zhenshi Qu, the proportion of solo matches is higher. Of course, as the scores get higher, the proportion of group queues gradually rises, because these are all the top talents from various military academies.

Li Hao opened his EMP system. 1210 points; the score increase was still quite fast, mainly because the bonus points from that S-rank first clear were quite effective.

Puppet logged on.

Zhuang Zhou had received the notification immediately. He no longer needed to check every day, and besides, the time Puppet logged on was always so appropriate—it was exactly when he was free in the evening. Damn it, Zhuang Zhou felt more and more that the Puppet God might be right next to him.

But after the S-rank first clear, Zhuang Zhou began to doubt his bold guess again. How could Tianjing possibly have such a figure?

He went through everyone from top to bottom. It couldn't be among the seniors; if they had such diamond-hard skills, it would be impossible for no one to know. If it were a freshman, only Ye Tong could be considered capable, and frankly, Zhuang Zhou didn't think it was her. This young lady had the strength, but he absolutely did not believe she possessed the mature piloting ability of the Puppet God.

After the Kepler Battle Royale first clear was completed, other experts had been finishing it one after another. No test could withstand scrutiny. Previously, people passed by teaming up, but teaming up increased the number of Giant Insects, actually increasing the difficulty. Especially when team coordination was lacking, dragging each other down was equivalent to suicide. Passing solo required individual ability and a formidable Mecha. Especially since the first clear was achieved, the map was essentially opened. Recently, A-Grade ratings had appeared consecutively. It was said the best one was S-, which already proved that their strength was quite close, just not the first clear.

Without a doubt, the Puppet God's EMP score must have increased significantly, which meant future opponents would be increasingly difficult to deal with. Some of the famous top experts among the Four Great Federations were almost all very low-key. Only newcomers would fight for scores, while they treated the EMP more as pure training. Winning or losing was certainly important, but the purpose of the training was more important. For example, when they could clearly win a battle more safely, they would often push their limits, challenging themselves on the edge of failure. Perhaps this might lead to defeat and a drop in score, but the experience accumulated here would appear exceptionally important in major competitions. Even their teammates would not think the other person was truly incompetent.

Zhuang Zhou logged on, and Huonan appeared not long after. The effect of the two of them last time was quite good, and the officials were interested in having them form a cross-federation CP. Of course, that would depend on how far Puppet could go.

Zhuang Zhou didn't care; he just wanted more people to know about Puppet. Accompanying Puppet in the battles, he felt that Puppet must be doing something big.

Puppet logging on would receive a certain degree of promotion. Of course, it wasn't the so-called Four Great Federations type of promotion; that didn't exist. Given Puppet's current situation, he could only receive partial targeted promotion within the USE War Zone. NUP and TAS would not have it, and the ROM War Zone would only have a small amount of push, since it involved a little bit.

To reach the extraordinary level of being known by everyone, there was still a long way to go. Zhuang Zhou clenched his fists; he still had plenty of fighting spirit.

Sitting in the training pod, Zhou Naiyi had no fighting spirit at all. Today's bitter defeat was a huge blow to her, especially that sense of bewilderment. She pretended to be strong in front of her teammates, but when she was alone, this feeling would well up.

Should she look for the principal? At first glance, it seemed okay, but which battle team didn't find their own way? Wouldn't this make her look exceptionally incompetent?

What should she do?

Compared to Zhou Naiyi, Ye Tong, Wuzang, and the others were more single-minded and had already entered the queue. They needed to find their rhythm through battle.

Suddenly, Wuzang's eyes widened, round and gleaming. What kind of luck was this!

He rubbed his eyes; it really was Puppet!

He had queued into Puppet!

He had intended to play a few solo matches to warm up before entering the team queue, but he hadn't expected to run into Puppet.

Li Hao was also stunned for a moment. This was interesting. Wuzang's fighting style was quite good, but what was truly strong was his Mecha. The current Ancient Martial Arts Families were also constantly improving their martial arts, no longer for brawling, but to better adapt to the Mecha itself.

Wuzang (Tianjing Martial Arts) vs. Puppet

As soon as this matchup appeared, the entire Tianjing Martial Arts was in an uproar. Wuzang was a celebrity at Tianjing Martial Arts. He himself was very low-key, but as a member of the Wu Family, being low-key didn't mean others didn't care.

Heir of the Wu Family vs. Virtual War God

The title for the duel formed instantly. Even in S10, in solo matches, the USE's comprehensive combat rating did not lag behind other federations. Overall, it was about the same as NUP and a bit higher than ROM. It was just that team battles dragged down the overall score, and the Five Great Families clearly deserved credit for this. Currently, the physical techniques commonly used in USE military academies were summarized by the Five Great Families.

First-year student Wuzang was already very strong. He himself wanted to compete, but the Wu Family's style was steady and restrained, suppressing Wuzang for a year.

The live broadcast room became lively. Huonan had only heard of the Wu Family but didn't know much about Wuzang. Major war zones actually focused more on their own team members, unless their fame was great enough to cross federations, and there were only a few such people.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce the Puppet God's opponent. Coincidentally, it is my senior, a second-year at Tianjing Martial Arts, Wuzang of the Wu Family, a close-quarters combat expert."

"I've heard of the Wu Family; they haven't made any moves in recent years. A few years ago, someone named Wu Fa was okay," Huonan said, but his words were full of condescending arrogance, as if he were constantly reminding everyone that ROM was stronger than USE.

"It wasn't just 'okay'; he was the strongest of that year, the champion of the No. 3 position solo tournament."

"Haha, that's old news. One should look at the present. We don't need to argue about this; let's first see the standard of the two today."

Zhuang Zhou curled his lips in silence. When he was being reasonable, the other party acted like a hooligan. What kind of person was this? But Zhuang Zhou couldn't be bothered to argue about it; he would let the facts speak.

As the future pillar of the Journalism Department, he had deeply understood the situation of the academy, especially Wuzang. He was truly low-key, trained super hard, and he had never seen such a focused person. He didn't have a girlfriend, didn't play games, studied seriously in class, and spent all his time after class training. It had been like this for a year, and it was said he trained at home too. With such a good foundation, how could this person be weak?

Wu Fa was once the pride of Tianjing Martial Arts, but now he was already a military district commander. The glory of the new generation needed the new generation to carry it.

Zhuang Zhou was a bit conflicted inside. Wuzang was definitely the signature of Tianjing Martial Arts, and his attachment to his alma mater was inevitable. However, the Puppet God was his idol, and he didn't know who to support.

"Everyone, as you all know, I am a member of Tianjing Martial Arts, and the Puppet God is my idol. I will remain neutral for this match."

Huonan on the side chuckled, "Isn't it a matter of course for a commentator to remain neutral? Tianjing Martial Arts is the fastest-declining among the first-tier military academies in the USE, and the Wu lineage hasn't produced any eye-catching newcomers. Let us wait and see."

If they could have a real-life PK, Zhuang Zhou felt he could beat this guy to death. How could he have the nerve to say such things?

Seeming to see through Zhuang Zhou's thoughts, the smile on Huonan's face grew even wider. It was no big deal; young man, if you want to save face, don't be a commentator—it's better to be an audience member.

Arena.

Puppet: Armor Dragon Fighter, Titanium Blade

Wuzang: Dragon God E, Titanium Blade

"Both Mecha belong to the same series. The Dragon God has a slight advantage in performance, mainly in the piloting feel and operation, which are smoother. Senior Wuzang chose the Titanium Blade instead of the Laser Sword, probably preferring the impact feel of the Titanium Blade. The Puppet God is still the same as always. Ladies and gentlemen, the great battle is about to break out!" Zhuang Zhou roared with passion; he really wanted to witness the outcome between these two.

Zhou Naiyi, Ye Tong, and others who hadn't entered the group queue also stopped. What level Wuzang was at, this battle would show seven or eight out of ten.

The two Mobile Suits entered the battlefield. Wuzang stared intently at the Armor Dragon Fighter in front of him, his blood surging wildly. He had been waiting for such an opponent for a long time. Sometimes he didn't understand what his grandfather's forbearance meant. He wanted to perform, he wanted to display his strength, even greater strength, but he had been suppressed for the entire past year. He had realized some things from it, but was it useful?