Chapter 126: Chu Xuan, Who's Following the Script
"What did you say?!"
Inside the police station, after Zheng He learned that he and his four companions were actually pawns discarded by Chu Xuan, he became enraged. He grabbed Chu Xuan's collar and punched him!
Chu Xuan staggered back from the punch, and his glasses flew off.
Seeing Chu Xuan remain silent, Zheng He angrily pointed at Zhang Jie. "He almost died! We all almost died!"
Xiaoye Hui, squatting to the side, also glared furiously at Chu Xuan. Because of him, her Kabutack robot was left behind in the tunnel they had just escaped. This meant that her entire experience in "A Nightmare on Elm Street" was for nothing. Xiaoye Hui's world had collapsed.
Li Shuaixi, Yan Wei, Fei Bao, and Hu Yong from the newcomer group, as well as Zhan Lan, who was guarding the rear at the police station, all stared at Chu Xuan with fury.
They too had nearly lost their lives in the North Arctic Team's sneak attack.
Six of the small-town police officers on duty on the first floor of the police station were dead. The North Arctic Team had almost fought their way to the second floor. At that point, facing the unarmed members of Team China, the North Arctic Team's Druid and mage could have easily activated their point-farming mode.
Chu Xuan was completely unfazed by the burning rage of his companions. He picked up his gold-rimmed glasses, which Zheng He had knocked off, and explained with an expressionless face, "To maximize our benefits, this is just the first step."
"What the f*ck first step?!" Zheng He lunged forward again, trying to grab Chu Xuan's collar.
Zhang Jie, lying on the "sickbed" temporarily built from office chairs, urged in a hoarse voice, "First... first listen to what he has to say."
"You still want to listen to him?" Zheng He clenched his fists. "If it wasn't for Nuowa's Three Pure Ones Daoist Talisman, you'd be dead by now!"
Nuowa's Three Pure Ones Daoist Talisman was something Ren Arakawa had exchanged for her. After Ren Arakawa finished farming points from the Aliens, he lacked a side story plot to exchange for a fusion skill. Nuowa generously gave him a C-rank side story plot, and Ren Arakawa got her the talisman to repay her kindness.
This talisman, valued at 500 reward points, had pulled Zhang Jie back from the brink of death, which was why Team China had not lost a single member to this day.
Zhan Lan tugged at the enraged Zheng He. "First, let's just listen to what Chu Xuan has to say."
Zheng He suppressed his anger and sat to the side, his fists still tightly clenched. It looked like if the answer wasn't satisfactory, he would give Chu Xuan a couple more punches to vent his frustration.
Chu Xuan still maintained his calm expression. "In this points competition, there will be one winner, and only one winner will emerge. That will be Team China."
Zheng He said furiously, "Cut the crap! Tell me what you *actually* did!"
Chu Xuan wiped some dust off his glasses and continued unhurriedly, "Have you ever played Beast Chess? This is actually an unfair game of Beast Chess..."
"Elephant, Tiger, Bear, Leopard, Wolf, Dog, Cat."
"Yes, there's no Mouse. This is just to make it easier for you to understand."
"Excluding Ren Arakawa, this tiger, you veterans can basically be divided into Leopards, Wolves, and Dogs."
Chu Xuan pointed at himself and the four other newcomers. "They and I are all Cats."
"As for the North Arctic Team, besides having a tiger, the rest of their members include Bears and Leopards. Their lowest-ranked veteran is at the level of a Wolf."
"But, they also have nine newcomer Reincarnators, who are little Cats."
"This is their burden!"
"A major battle is imminent. They can either choose to bring their burdens along, or send a Wolf to guard their home base and protect these little Cats."
"Now that we're done with the North Arctic Team, next is the East Sea Team!"
"The East Sea Team has a strong member. According to the intel from Ren Arakawa, this opponent has at least the strength of a B+ rank enhancement at the third stage of the gene lock. He is the only one in this team battle..."
Chu Xuan adjusted his glasses. "The Elephant!"
Hearing this, everyone in Team China listened patiently. Even Zheng He's fists gradually relaxed.
"The East Sea Team, with their Elephant, can launch an attack under its protection against Team China and the North Arctic Team, who have no Elephant and no Mouse. We would be almost defenseless, and all of us would face the fate of being trampled to death by the Elephant."
"The variable lies in our cooperation with the North Arctic Team, and the fact that the East Sea Team lacks a wise leader with the final say who can suppress the 'strength' within their team."
"With the East Sea Team having lost a Bear, the Elephant was enraged and pursued our strongest member, the tiger. At this point..."
Chu Xuan looked at the crowd. "The only thing our team's Leopards, Wolves, and Dogs can do is go and cause trouble for the East Sea Team, which has lost its Elephant!"
"Unite with the North Arctic Team's tiger and devour the East Sea Team's Cats!"
Chu Xuan raised his reincarnation watch. "Currently, our team's score is four points!"
"The North Arctic Team has zero points. Think about it yourselves. To make up the four-point difference, will they seek out the East Sea Team, or will they come after us?"
Li Shuaixi, who had also just survived a life-or-death battle, spoke up as if looking for a camera, "Hmph, they'll definitely come for us little dogs and cats. The five veterans of the East Sea Team, even without the Elephant, would still be a lot of trouble for them to kill."
Chu Xuan glanced at Li Shuaixi, mentally giving this drama-seeking newcomer a score before continuing his explanation. "This is the key to tonight, and also the only hope for you Leopards and Wolves to survive!"
"Our team's tiger! Will pounce directly on the North Arctic Team's home base!"
"He holds the lives of the North Arctic Team's nine little Cats and their one home-guarding Wolf in his hands."
"A full thirteen-point difference! The North Arctic Team will never be able to catch up!"
A cold light flashed in Chu Xuan's eyes. "Because... the East Sea Team also needs to make up for their points!"
Zheng He gradually calmed down.
He counted the members of Team China. Excluding Ren Arakawa, that nearly unkillable tiger, the rest of them combined were worth eleven points.
If the North Arctic Team wanted to avoid losing reward points and side story plots, they had to claim Team China's points for themselves.
However, the East Sea Team, which possessed the "Elephant," couldn't possibly stand by and watch themselves lose a fortune upon their return.
Whether it was the North Arctic Team's strategist, Druid, or their captain, Gunnar, as long as their brains were still working, they would reach one conclusion.
They had to cover Team China's retreat. They couldn't let Team China be killed by the East Sea Team. This was the only way to ensure the survival of their team's nine little Cats and one Wolf.
This was because Chu Xuan had played his hand brilliantly, sending their tiger to the North Arctic's "cat's nest" to threaten Gunnar into covering the escape of Team China's five-person group.
And if the North Arctic Team were to disagree with Chu Xuan's proposal, then Ren Arakawa, as the captain of Team China, could leverage the massive thirteen-point difference and start flying around the town, running in circles.
Ultimately, the winner, no matter what, would still be Team China.
Now that they understood everything, the way Team China's members looked at Chu Xuan had completely changed.
Even Zhang Jie, who had nearly died, had to admit that Chu Xuan's scheme would grant Team China the greatest possible advantage.
In comparison, being nearly eaten by a tiger suddenly seemed acceptable.
"Now..." Chu Xuan put a piece of chocolate into his mouth. "Team China holds the initiative with a four-point lead. No matter how we play from now on, we are the ones with the advantage!"
Hearing this, Zheng He smashed the office desk with his fist and glared at Chu Xuan. "Then did you ever consider that now that we're gathered at the police station, the East Sea Team can march right in here, devour us, and take eleven points? You'd become just another point for them! Did you think of that?! You'll die too!"
Facing Zheng He's furious roar, Chu Xuan replied, completely unfazed, "Die, huh?"
Chewing the chocolate in his mouth, he hummed with utter indifference, "Oh."
(More to come later)
(end of chapter)