Netizens rushed to answer on her behalf:
“The count is in – 397!”
“If the admin hadn’t given him a special close-up, I would’ve completely forgotten there was even a Xin Kuang on the sidelines.”
“Who says Xiang Yunjian’s trip to this league was a waste? He just stole the spotlight big time in front of the expeditionary forces!”
“Congratulations to UFU for breaking 1,000 kills! And this isn’t some ‘assisted by expeditionary forces’ – this is a record they grinded out all on their own! What do Tao Rui’s fans have to say now?”
“The five-school alliance still got a third of their heads taken off – tsk, the White faction really isn’t cutting it this time.”
“Tao Rui’s face is completely frozen in bewilderment – this has probably exceeded the acceptable range for his data analyst’s calculations, hahaha!”
“All the planning in the world can’t beat fate – this is destiny!”
The unique stillness of the early morning seemed to dissolve amid the mechs’ fierce artillery fire, as deafening noise erupted from every dormitory building at UFU. Some people even rushed straight out of their rooms, standing on the balconies to let the cold wind wash over them, using the chill to cool the heat rising from their skin.
This group had enough experience by now to be good at mentally preparing themselves: It’s not over yet. Don’t waste too much emotion. And don’t shout randomly either – otherwise, when the results finally come out, you won’t have any voice left to create the right atmosphere.
Of course, the most important reason was that the ultimate twist in the last tournament had left them with serious psychological scars.
“Good! Well done!”
Mr. Kong could barely form words. He stood up again, pacing excitedly around the office – this time even the instructors couldn’t hold him down.
He jumped to the back of the room, pumping his fists like a child, then whipped out his light-brain and loudly called his wife, asking his dear spouse to order him a deluxe takeout because he couldn’t spare the focus to mess with the light-brain right now.
The two instructors exchanged glances, genuinely curious about Mr. Kong’s standing at home. Asking his wife to order takeout in the middle of the night – man had some serious guts.
Mr. Kong chuckled cheerfully. “She’s watching the match too, though she doesn’t really understand it – usually she watches dramas and occasionally switches over to glance at the stats.”
He walked back, still riding the waves of emotion, and in such a state of mind, everyone looked kind and amiable to him. He generously praised. “Xiang Yunjian’s performance was really good.”
“He’s a senior now – it’s all expected.” The instructor waved modestly. “It’s really Cheng Feng who’s more impressive – able to attack, defend, and support all at once. She opened up over half of the opportunities on the big battlefield.”
The two of them exchanged hypocritical compliments.
“Not at all, it was everyone’s collective effort.”
“The important thing is that Cheng Feng stays neither arrogant nor rash, and can steady the overall situation.”
“No, no – when it comes to the bigger picture, Xiang Yunjian has more say.”
…
The sealed car windows only intensified the stench of blood.
Shen Dan had reported an estimated number of over 350 kills to Cheng Feng – the figure wasn’t exact.
Based on that, Cheng Feng estimated that UFU side should have nearly 900 kills by now.
Yet even this impressive statistic couldn’t give her enough of a sense of security, because she had blown up the buildings near the city gate, and she had no idea how many points would be deducted for that.
The NPC was driving, mulling things over in silence. After a long while, he spoke with a hint of suspicion, “You two are playing me, aren’t you? Holding back such a trump card! I shouldn’t have assigned you two squads of expeditionary forces!”
Cheng Feng let out a low chuckle, slouching into the spacious seat and leaning toward Xiang Yunjian, fist raised. “Brother Xiang, I’d love to team up with you in competitions again in the future.”
Xiang Yunjian raised his hand and bumped fists with her. Cheng Feng started laughing again, looking a bit goofy.
Xiang Yunjian had been in charge of defending the front line earlier. Although he hadn’t seen much action, his nerves had been stretched taut the entire time – he’d been going for over 20 hours straight without rest. Now, under the debuff effects of the San Yao system, he was starting to feel drowsy. He leaned against Cheng Feng and closed his eyes.
Shen Dan glanced back and, seeing the two of them huddled together in exhaustion, called out, “Brother Xiang can sleep, but you – Great Commander – need to stay awake.”
Jiang Linxia said spiritedly, “The Commander and Brother Xiang can both sleep. Leave the rest to us. It’s not like the whole UFU crew is just dead weight!”
Startled awake by his voice, Cheng Feng quickly said, “I wasn’t about to sleep.”
“You’ve all forgotten about me, haven’t you?” A resentful voice cut in. “You’re really something else.”
Jiang Linxia let out a “Huh” – he truly hadn’t remembered Xin Kuang was still there.
He was still on the White faction’s side, locked in a fierce back-and-forth with the opposing heavy-armor units.
Xin Kuang’s voice turned fierce: “You guys just left on your own and didn’t even bother with me? Not even a heads-up? Cheng Feng, fine – but Xiang Yunjian!”
That final lunge of his had been full of true camaraderie, and he hadn’t even gotten a single glance in return.
Three mechs had set out together. He’d been on standby the longest of all. And yet he couldn’t even land a spot as background scenery.
Xiang Yunjian said, “We mainly didn’t want to distract you. Focus on your fight – we’ll definitely remember your contribution.”
That made it sound like they’d already written him off as dead.
Jiang Linxia let out a half-hearted call along with his buddy, just to reassure him that their bond was real. Even if the emotional connection wasn’t that deep, the mutual interests certainly were.
Xin Kuang glanced at his remaining energy reserves and couldn’t help but let out a cold laugh.
Not only did no one from UFU care about him, but even Thunderstorm and Breaking Army from the neighboring squad couldn’t be bothered with him either.
Those two mechs had switched straight to standby mode, holding position while Tao Rui urgently regrouped the troops – completely ignoring Xin Kuang as he went back and forth trading blows with their comrades nearby, showing not the slightest intention of stepping in.
Piloting those bulky mech models wasn’t any easier than charging into battle.
By the time the White team had finished reorganizing and began moving forward with the flow of troops, Xin Kuang’s control panel also sadly lit up red. His energy meter hit zero, and the cockpit automatically ejected.
Before he could even draw half a breath, he was immediately riddled with holes by the enraged White faction players taking out their frustration on him – dying a wrongful death in place of Cheng Feng and Xiang Yunjian.
His sacrifice didn’t make much of an impact – it was just one inconspicuous green dot disappearing from the map.
Cheng Feng reached the equipment depot and helped Xiang Yunjian out of the mech. Out of common courtesy, she offered him a brief word of consolation, so he wouldn’t feel too dejected after logging off.
The main topic of discussion in the channel was still Tao Rui. Jiang Linxia could already see the White faction’s vanguard mechs in the distance. Everyone focused intently, waiting for the enemy to strike.
UMU and the Second Military couldn’t just stand by and let the midline be breached. After some discussion, each cautiously pulled out a two-hundred-man squad to provide reinforcements.
They were hoping to coast by or pick off a few stragglers, but this time the White team came in full force and gave them no such opportunity.
Those two mech pilots seemed to have learned their lesson from Cheng Feng -throwing aside their earlier caution and becoming extremely bold and aggressive in their tactics. Whenever they spotted Red faction soldiers gathered together, regardless of whether it was appropriate or whether it would damage the buildings, they would kick with their feet and smash with their fists. Even without ranged weapons, their destructive power was still formidable.
Jiang Linxia exclaimed, “Holy crap, that’s brutal!”
With mechs leading the charge, the few scouts on the front line couldn’t even find an angle to fight back – they were instantly slaughtered, sending shivers through the allied troops behind them.
Who would want to walk into that kind of disaster? Going up against mechs with plain flesh and bone would be sheer madness.
Cheng Feng quickly said, “Fall back! Fall back!”
Jiang Linxia took the lead and bolted.
The UFU students were always ready to make a run for it – quick to react and sharp in execution. They split off in a circle, scattering to the top and bottom lanes, leaving their slower-reacting allies behind to curse them out.
Tong Xun snapped, “Cheng Feng, are you just abandoning the mid lane?!”
Kang Zhenxue had no idea how many kills Cheng Feng had racked up earlier. Witnessing this one-sided stomping, he stomped his foot in frustration and said, “Why do the White faction mechs still have so much energy?! Cheng Feng, you two are infantry MVPs! You can’t even take them down in a 2v2?!”
“Come back!” Tong Xun, that old fox, was now yelling like a cat with its fur standing on end. “Put everything else aside – the mid lane cannot be lost! Let’s bury the hatchet and work together for real! This is the league – you can’t just be this reckless!”
“Don’t panic.” Cheng Feng, on the contrary, calmed down and said to her two allies unhurriedly, “We haven’t all run away either. Look – our snipers are still in position. Yan Shen, what’s going on with you guys? Are your legs shorter than mine or something?”
Yan Shen had been hiding up high earlier, waiting for a chance to snipe. His squad mainly focused on ambush tactics. When he heard Jiang Linxia’s panicked shouts, he actually wanted to help cover their retreat – but by the time he realized the situation had turned bad and rushed down the stairs, he was already too slow.
He’d only made it down two floors when he glanced out the stairwell window and saw that the White faction’s soldiers had already ridden up close on military motorcycles.
He quickly ducked back, pressing himself against the wall, not daring to go up or down. Covering the communicator by his ear, he said, “Help… Xiang Yunjian.”
Based on his limited but accurate understanding, the only real human in his circle of friends was Xiang Yunjian.
Cheng Feng regretfully informed him, “Your Brother Xiang has gone AFK to eat. I had to carry his shell back myself.”
Yan Shen knew exactly how to spell “accept your fate.” He shut up and patiently waited for a turning point.
Out on the streets, all kinds of restless shouting and hurried footsteps echoed and intertwined.
“Charge! Guys, get revenge!”
“Cheng Feng, come out and die!”
With the Red faction scattered and putting up no resistance, the White faction’s offensive line swept forward like a hot knife through butter. Cheng Feng called for everyone to hurry toward the equipment depot, and within moments, over two hundred people had rushed through the gates.
The tide of today’s match was truly ever-changing and full of twists.
Having regained the upper hand, Tao Rui finally settled down a bit. He looked at the layout on the map and asked the mech pilots, “How much energy do you have left?”
Thunderstorm said, “5%. If I use it sparingly, I can hold out for another 5 minutes.”
Breaking Army sighed. “I’ve only got 4% left. My biggest worry is a power leak.”
Their position was already not far from the equipment depot. After zooming in with their surveillance cameras, they could clearly see the depot’s main gate.
Thunderstorm suddenly said, “Huh… the uniforms on those few up ahead are different -did UFU invite NPC assistance?”
Tao Rui’s icy expression softened slightly, and his gaze flickered as he said, “The cost of inviting NPC assistance is considerable – at the very least, death points are counted double… That’s a good thing.”
His tone wasn’t entirely certain, because having higher-value NPCs stand in front of one’s own soldiers was frankly an unusual move.
However, San Yao’s assistance rules changed every time. Perhaps, as compensation for the five-school alliance, NPC deaths wouldn’t incur point deductions this time.
After a long silence on Thunderstorm’s end, he finally said vaguely, “It seems… not that simple!”
The group of NPCs were spread out and few in number. Thunderstorm wanted to kill a couple to gauge their skill level, but after cycling through various surveillance angles, he couldn’t find a single good target.
UFU had three data analysts – and that their positioning was precise – wasn’t particularly surprising. What truly caught him off guard was the sharpshooting accuracy of these NPCs.
The mechs’ massive size and sturdy armor were exactly what had allowed the White team to advance so quickly.
Thunderstorm and Breaking Army had plenty of infantry following behind them, and up until now, their coordination had gone smoothly, allowing them to push forward without obstruction. But under these NPCs’ watchful eyes, just by carelessly exposing half a head – for merely a second – their soldiers were cleanly shot dead with a single bullet.
Both mech pilots changed expression at the sight.
These NPCs were either real players or they were cheating!
If they were real players, their skill level was absolutely beyond the reach of most military students!
…They had to be taken out!
Thunderstorm steeled his resolve and immediately raised his long blade, slashing toward the nearest NPC.
That NPC had strayed a little too far out while looking for a better shooting angle. Sensing a shadow approaching from above, he took a quick glance, then instantly tensed his muscles and darted back toward Thunderstorm’s position like an arrow released from a bow.
Thunderstorm was genuinely startled by his explosive burst of speed – but matching a mech’s pace was still out of the question.
Just as the massive metal weapon was about to strike, the NPC stopped abruptly, and the mech’s arm also halted midair with a clanking sound.
Thunderstorm’s pupils trembled. After a moment of panic, he realized what had happened – the mech’s joint mechanism had jammed, and the arm couldn’t extend any further. He quickly adjusted his stance, switching to stomp with his foot instead. But the NPC seemed to have predicted his move and started repositioning a step ahead.
Thunderstorm’s posture was off. He spun around to track the figure and nearly lost his balance, forcing him to stop.
In the span of that single turn, the NPC had already found an opening to retreat into the alleyway, pressing himself flat against a tall building, and turned back to flash him a light smile.
Thunderstorm read sarcasm and contempt in that smile. A surge of anger shot straight up from his gut, lodged in his throat, and pressed against his vocal cords as he spat out a curse.
He’d only had one meal today. First he’d been pissed off by Cheng Feng, and now an NPC’s expression had him so furious his liver was trembling and his stomach was starting to cramp.
Tao Rui noticed his breathing fluctuating – sometimes light, sometimes heavy, as if he were suppressing something, with a faint chattering of teeth in the background. Suspicious, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
“This NPC is seriously messed up!” Thunderstorm growled. “He’s running figure-eights around my mech? How the hell is that even possible?!”
He was a top-15 infantry candidate! Letting an opponent escape unscathed from right under his mech’s feet – even if luck was involved – was completely unacceptable!
Breaking Army said grimly, “I suspect they’re veterans. If Cheng Feng wins this round, she’ll be the first manual-mech pilot in history to score 3 MVPs – and probably won’t see another for over a decade. Unprecedented and unlikely to be repeated – it’s definitely drawn attention from the military.”
Tao Rui fell into thought and didn’t answer for a while.
In contrast, cheers erupted from the UFU side.
Quite a few examinees in the equipment depot had also witnessed this miraculous scene. With their jaws dropped, they joined their commander in giving a round of thunderous applause.
The NPC who had successfully escaped pressed down on his cap and chuckled. “How was that? Pretty decent, right?”
“Decent? That was absolutely phenomenal!”
The world was never short of expeditionary force fanboys. A bunch of them rushed to shower him with praise, terrified they’d lose out if their vocabulary fell short.
“As expected of the expeditionary force – that reaction time and judgment are truly second to none! What kind of talent is that?!”
“Every seemingly casual move was meticulously calculated – especially that back view, so dashing and effortless!”
The young man was feeling pretty good about himself, when a student shouted, “Big shot! Big shot, help us farm a couple of kill points! You take out their limbs, and I’ll finish them off for the head! Please, big shot!”
The examinees reacted quickly, and like a bunch of chirping chicks clinging to a hen, they all started yelling, “Brother! Senior! Please, bro!”
The word “bro” sent a tingly shiver down the young man’s spine.
Sure enough, every compliment came with a price tag attached.
The other expeditionary forces didn’t escape either – they were all swarmed with requests.
A bunch of grown men really couldn’t stand the deliberately syrupy tones their voices had taken on. With a headache, they grudgingly agreed. “Fine, fine. All of you, get over here!”
After listening to Thunderstorm’s account of the battle, Tao Rui also noticed through the panel data that their casualty count had risen significantly on the stretch approaching the equipment depot.
Their main force had already been slashed by nearly 400 people by Cheng Feng – they no longer had the numbers advantage. Both mechs were also running on fumes. To avoid triggering the equipment depot’s automatic defense system, they couldn’t just ram through by brute force. Continuing to tangle with these NPCs in the mid lane would cost more than it was worth.
Tao Rui made a snap decision and completely shifted tactics, saying, “Switch to the bottom lane! Push UMU’s camp, take their signal tower, and farm points!”
The Red Team’s most fatal problem was still their lack of unity.
UFU now had few people left and could barely hold their own. The bottom lane wasn’t critical, and the Second Military wouldn’t commit all their forces.
They’d have the mechs use their last remaining power to clear the way, then break through one by one, defeat the bottom lane, and push upward from there. They’d directly abandon the mid-lane push.
Play it steady – just like last year. Even if they couldn’t secure a faction victory, it wasn’t impossible to still contend for MVP.
Steal kills! Stack points!
Thunderstorm acknowledged the order and led the team to pivot downward.
The pressure on the mid lane suddenly eased, and Jiang Linxia said joyfully, “Tao Rui’s giving up on mid. Should we reinforce the bottom lane?”
Cheng Feng laughed. “Such a great opportunity to farm points!”
With a single command, she left 110 people on standby at the equipment depot and sent all the remaining examinees rushing to the bottom lane.
By the time Thunderstorm and Breaking Army reached the bottom lane, their energy had finally run out. What followed was a repetitive slaughter.
Cheng Feng and the two deputy commanders updated battle reports in real time, guiding their teammates in small-unit skirmishes and covert ambushes.
Chen Huayue and Shen Dan’s eyes were bloodshot, their hands moving almost on pure instinct.
“Kill!”
At this moment, everyone’s thoughts converged into one: Kill one more person! Victory might just be theirs!
The smell of blood and gunpowder hung thick in the air.
This brutal, sky-darkening battle raged on until 5:14 in the morning.
The students who had stayed up all night were overcome with a wave of intense fatigue, yet they still kept dragging their feet and running around without pause.
The gun barrels cradled in their arms were burning hot. All surrounding information blurred, and even their sense of time faded away – until the San Yao system officially popped up its announcement, declaring the end of the large-scale battlefield. Only then did their souls, which seemed to have drifted away, return to their bodies.
The Red Team had successfully defended the city!
They received a 50% base point bonus!
A group of people set down their weapons and pulled up the map, only to realize that the total number of players remaining on the field had dropped to just a thousand.
Then, examinees in different military uniforms slowly emerged from the shadows, exchanging smiles and waving at one another.
After a golden notification floated up in midair, the final results weren’t announced immediately. Due to the many factors to consider, the backend was still calculating each school’s points and conducting manual verification.
The commanders-in-chief of every military university were all quietly tallying up their scores.
Tao Rui half-closed his eyes and ran through the situation on the Red Team’s side.
Although they hadn’t managed to successfully take the city, among the final remaining thousand players, the two factions were roughly equal in numbers.
Of the 487 White Team survivors, their First Military alone accounted for 276 -undoubtedly the highest number of survivors among all military universities, with the greatest kill-point weight as well.
In the final fierce skirmish, the First Military’s kill count had successfully surpassed a thousand. They also had points from capturing camps and seizing signal towers, plus they’d later ambushed some NPCs patrolling around the warehouse.
Killing the system’s built-in NPCs yielded relatively low points, but it was still a valid contribution.
At that rate, even if UFU had a 50% base bonus – after deducting penalties for structural damage and subtracting the death-point losses from summoning NPCs – given their number of survivors and the weight factor, they’d most likely fall short of the First Military.
UMU and the Second Military had never been able to keep up with his rhythm, so they were even less of a concern.
Thus, the First Military had a very strong chance of taking the MVP.
Tao Rui lifted his head, nodded to his fellow deputy commander, and let out the first relaxed smile of the match.
On the other side, Tong Xun was crouched on the ground, fingers tapping away at his light-brain as he calculated by category.
The Red Team had a 50% win bonus, so the MVP would definitely come from within their side.
UFU had lost too many people early on. To preserve the bare minimum of 100 survivors, they’d barely participated in the final climactic battle. Even if their early kill count was high, the later phase hadn’t yielded much gain. Being generous, let’s assume their kill count was around 900.
His own forces had the highest number of survivors – 201 people. And since their soldiers were of better quality, they’d definitely have more kills than the Second Military.
So the MVP was most likely going to UMU.
Kang Zhenxue’s thoughts were pretty much the same as Tong Xun’s.
Although they only had 175 survivors left, UFU was practically wiped out – they’d had to play it safe in the later stages and definitely stood no chance.
Tong Xun’s style was timid and hesitant, so his performance in the final battle surely couldn’t match theirs.
The MVP of the large-scale battlefield would ultimately fall to Second Military!
So, during that brief moment of stillness after the battle ended, all the spectators witnessed a remarkable scene.
Soldiers from all four military universities simultaneously broke into cheers, celebrating their own school’s presumed MVP victory. Among them, the UFU examinees were the least reserved – shouting as they high-fived the NPCs, tearing off their hats and sprinting through the streets, letting out all kinds of unintelligible yells.
The examinees from the First Military, United Military University, and the Second Military all gazed at them with pitying looks.
Had UFU lost their minds?
The disappointment later was going to be even greater.
How pitiful.
“Well…” the host said with amusement, “I don’t watch the league often, but this is the first time I’ve seen a situation where all four military academies think they’ve won.”
Mr. Luo paused, then said, “To be honest, this is my first time too.”
![The No. 1 Hunfen King in the Entire Server [Interstellar]](https://i1.wp.com/lazygirltranslations.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/unnamed-5.jpg?resize=151,215 "The No. 1 Hunfen King in the Entire Server [Interstellar]")
