Chapter 85
In the blink of an eye, the day of the official start of the bounty league had arrived. The competition venue was bustling with a large crowd of people, showcasing the prosperity of the interstellar era.
Lu Jingning arrived early in the morning and was already feeling irritated due to the crowds pushing and shoving around him. He noticed a sudden wave of people screaming and running past him, their high-pitched voices causing him to frown. He couldn’t help but ask, “What’s going on over there? They’re acting like they’ve taken some kind of stimulant.”
Bing Yunlin replied, “Oh, it should be some celebrity contestants who have arrived.”
Lu Jingning’s lips twitched, “Celebrities in this mediocre competition? Who could they be?”
Yan Hebin explained in a nonchalant tone, “No matter which bounty league it is, it will attract a large number of spectators, and many professional bounty hunters use such events to increase their popularity and attract more fans.”
It was evident that Yan Hebin had done his homework, although he didn’t seem like someone who would pay attention to such things.
Lu Jingning looked over at the man dressed in blue who had just descended from a flying vehicle not far away. He snorted disdainfully at the screaming fans around, “Who the heck is that? Dressed like a blue duck, and with just that appearance, he has so many fans? What if I show up? Will I sweep them all off their feet?”
Yan Hebin glanced at him and said, “… The bounty league mainly focuses on combat strength.”
Lu Jingning raised an eyebrow, “Do you really think his combat strength could be higher than mine?”
Yan Hebin replied, “… Forget I said anything.”
Listening to their conversation, Wen Xingchen had a somewhat bad feeling. He reached out and pulled Lu Jingning into his arms, his eyes slightly lowered, and reminded him as his boyfriend, “Lu bro, let’s discuss something. When you enter the arena, be a little more low-key, don’t show off too much, and don’t make the audience go wild.”
Lu Jingning felt a bit unhappy about his lack of trust, “Do I look like the kind of person who would attract unwanted attention?”
Wen Xingchen maintained a calm smile in response to the skepticism, “Of course not. I’m just worried that your striking appearance might unintentionally win over too many hearts.”
Lu Jingning felt comfortable hearing this and thought for a moment, “That’s true. I’ll try to be more restrained, then.”
Wen Xingchen continued to hold him gently, “Thank you very much.”
…
Since everyone’s preliminary rounds were divided into different groups, after completing the registration and exchanging words of encouragement, they each went to their respective competition venues.
Lu Jingning was placed in Group C, No. 10, and followed the provided map to the venue. As he approached the building, he glanced at the black square structure before him. The venue was far from the spectator area, and the noise from outside faded away, creating an atmosphere of seriousness.
Just as he was about to take a step forward, he suddenly halted his movement.
A figure flashed by in his peripheral vision, and before he could fully see the person’s appearance, they had disappeared into the entrance of the neighboring group.
It wasn’t someone familiar, but the striking white hair was too eye-catching and reminded him of a particularly profound memory.
Lu Jingning’s blood froze for a moment.
He stood still for a while but eventually shook his head inwardly, resuming his steps and entering his own competition venue.
Although white hair was not a common hair color among humans, it was not unheard of among the Insect race. With the diverse mix of participants in this bounty league, there were quite a few Insect contestants as well. It was unlikely to be anything more than a coincidence, right?
After completing the registration at the entrance, Lu Jingning was taken to his designated virtual cabin. Once fully immersed in the virtual data, he opened his eyes again and found himself in the waiting area of the virtual space.
As the competition hadn’t started yet, all participants were waiting here. When he appeared, he felt countless gazes converging on him from all directions.
But in the next second, they silently turned away.
Oh, an Omega, and a very beautiful one.
But no matter how attractive he was, what use would it be here?
Most people were here for fame or profit. Even if they were a bit conceited, they would only focus on the competition rewards. During the matches, some participants might form teams to pursue ranking points, but they were usually people they recognized. As for new participants like him, they were more cautious in finding teammates.
Lu Jingning didn’t mind being ignored by others. He hadn’t planned on finding a teammate anyway, so being left alone was actually quite peaceful.
He did notice a few young participants nearby who would occasionally glance his way and mutter among themselves.
“Hey, have you guys noticed that this Omega looks a bit familiar?”
“Is he a celebrity from some modeling company?”
“Maybe, I feel like I’ve seen him on a live stream before.”
“Tsk, people are so lucky! Why can some people ride the waves smoothly just because of their looks, while I have no future even after entering the military academy?”
“Why worry about others so much? Focus on preparing for the competition! If you’re eliminated in the preliminaries, you’ll be done for!”
“I know, but… does this Omega really look like a celebrity? I somehow don’t think so.”
“It’s already so late, why are you still concerned about others? Prepare well for the competition! If you can’t advance in the preliminaries, then it’s truly over!”
Lu Jingning couldn’t help but feel amused, “Newbies are all the same, a bit thin-skinned…”
He looked up at the countdown on the screen; there were less than three minutes left.
At this moment, a few more participants arrived, and to his surprise, one of them was the blue duck he had seen outside.
After entering the arena, the system automatically provided everyone with a simple and uniform combat suit. However, this particular guy with blue hair not only had blue hair but also wore blue eyeshadow, making his flamboyant appearance impossible to ignore.
Lu Jingning observed as a crowd instantly gathered around him, a stark contrast to the lack of attention he received when he arrived.
Lu Jingning: “…”
Well, what can he say? The guy is a celebrity contestant, after all!
Soon, all participants from the preliminary rounds gathered, and there were quite a lot of them in one group, around fifty people.
When the countdown reached one minute, the system began to explain the specific rules of the preliminary round to everyone. Lu Jingning listened for a while and got a rough idea.
In simple terms, it was a score-snatching match. Killing other participants would earn two points, and the top three players who successfully occupied the independent bases inside the arena would earn 10, 6, and 3 points, respectively. The top three players to reach the finish line would get 20, 15, and 10 points. In total, there were four independent bases in all the maps, so even if someone secured the first place in all bases, they could only get a total of 40 points. This meant that the primary source of points would be from other participants.
Lu Jingning quickly came up with a plan. First, kill monsters, then take over bases!
As the contestants waited anxiously for the preliminary round to officially begin, numerous live broadcast channels were already available on various star networks. However, due to the large number of venues for the preliminary rounds, the audience was dispersed across multiple channels.
Fortunately, the group Lu Jingning was in had the blue-haired celebrity, so the number of viewers on their channel was quite substantial.
Most of the viewers were fans of the blue-haired guy, and they were mainly there to watch their idol. As a result, the barrage on the live broadcast page was harmonious.
At this moment, the screen was focused on the waiting area, and the topics of discussion revolved around the contestants’ appearances.
The barrage rolled slowly –
“Wow, besides my husband, there are so many handsome guys in this group! My feminine heart!”
“Just thinking that these young ones will be covered in blood in a moment makes me… feel a bit excited!”
“Ah? Was that an Omega just now? Quickly, show it again! Ah ah ah, so handsome! Almost blinded my eyes!”
“Do you need more than one husband? Why look at the Omega? Damn, but he’s really good-looking!”
“Which talent agency is responsible for training these newcomers? But where are his teammates? Is he planning to solo the whole thing?”
“Why isn’t anyone teaming up with him?! Even if I were given such a beautiful leg accessory, I’d be happy!”
“Don’t seduce me! I’m devoted to my husband, no climbing over walls for me!”
…
Each live broadcast room had corresponding staff handling the situation. They noticed that the topics in the barrage seemed to revolve around the same person, so they quickly shifted the focus to the blue-haired celebrity.
Just at this moment, the countdown ended, and the competition officially began.
As the participants’ bodies were enveloped in beams of light, the background switched to another wilderness.
As expected, many participants chose to actively score points at the beginning of the match. As a result, the arena turned into a scene of bloodshed.
The audience instinctively covered their eyes before the bloody scenes appeared, fearing to witness the good-looking Omega being drenched in blood.
However, just as other participants engaged in violent combat, the person in front of the camera flashed and had already moved away from the center of the battle zone.
Then, in the next second, the Omega in the video punched the head of a nearby contestant, rendering the unfortunate guy unconscious. He casually lifted the unconscious player like he was holding a convenient weapon and swung him around.
Next, as he re-entered the battlefield, he plowed into it like a bowling ball, scattering everyone in all directions.
The barrage paused for a few seconds in confusion.
Audience: ???
What’s with this Omega???
Why did they feel pity for him just now?!!
…
At the same time, in a dormitory at the Imperial Navy University.
Jian Luan, who was concerned about the competition, happened to witness this scene and fell into contemplation with an expressionless face.
This vaguely familiar scene reminded him of some not-so-good memories.
After the competition, he wondered if he could have a chat with that brother who had been turned into a weapon?
T/N: Hey there! There is plenty more where that came from, so stay tuned! And stay healthy! Straighten your posture, so some stretches and drink some water before continuing hehe~
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Also, check out the other series we have on HoH!
If you like cats, check out Revenge of the Garfield
If you like dragons, check out I’m Pregnant with the Hope of the Entire Planet and The Dragon and the ‘Princess’
How about some mystery or showbiz? Check out Morbid Addiction & Perfection
What about the perfect, most non-toxic male lead ever? Laws of Love
How about MC nursing ML back to health? Forced into the Deep
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