EDMLSFM Chapter 40: The Competition

Translated by JayQue of Exiled Rebels Scanlations 

Editor: Kris

 

While Chen Bai was putting his all into a competition scrutinized by millions of people, Heinz was sitting in his office, focusing on all of his wife’s actions. The organizers have given Chen Bai a lot of screen time because of the discussion topics he sparked, making Heinz feel gratified.

But he still went out of his way to use his network and ask someone for Chen YiBai’s video recording, putting it to the side as it played.

As for all the sour comments about Chen YiBai floating across the screen on the official video broadcast? Heinz had already closed them, as they blocked him from seeing his wife’s face.

But what still made him unhappy were the live comments rolling beside the video feed, as some of the glaring comments made him really annoyed. Thus, he could only stare at the close ups of his wife with relish and screenshot them onto another light screen to savor, while separating a tendril of mental energy to report all of the comments that were flinging abuse at Chen YiBai.

Just ten minutes after the start of the competition, Heinz had already reported up to ten thousand comments.

“… Too striking.” Kureya was also sitting in the office, taking some time off from her busy work to watch her boss’s wife’s competition. Her few meetings with Chen YiBai had made her think that he was not a simple character, which stimulated her interest in watching the video. Then, seeing the ID “Bai Bai’s the Best” repeatedly appearing on the reports panel, Kureya couldn’t help but wipe her face.

Manually operating, it is impossible to report ten thousand comments in five minutes. The only possibility was mental energy, and at this frequency, it was pretty high… probably S-rank and above. And Heinz didn’t even try to hide his IP address, which a simple check could trace to the military’s location.

Ay, must be nice having a high rank and power, not even needing to hide when procrastinating during work hours, Kureya lamented in her mind as she hastily minimized her light screen when she heard the sound of knocking on the door.

But when she looked at the information the person gave her, her gaze froze in an instant.

“Marshal, I think you might want to look at this as soon as possible.” The next moment, Kureya put the stack of documents on Heinz’ desk, her expression serious, “Before, you had asked us to investigate the reason for the Eagle Hunter troops’ sudden early visit to the rainforest and run surveillance on the follow-up of that pet shop as well as the events that happened at Donina restaurant two days ago. These are the findings.”

Hearing this, Heinz’ spine suddenly chilled, then he straightened himself and turned to look at Kureya, “What have they found?”

Kureya’s gaze was still very solemn, “According to the reports, the Eagle Hunter troops had committed violent, unnatural acts in the rainforest. They didn’t dare to get too close, but, looking at the wavelength and hotspots, they suspect that the Eagle Hunter troops may be abusing and… slaughtering the contractual beasts in the rainforest.”

Abuse… Heinz had thought of this long ago.

Gabudors only give parasitic births under extreme shock. When he discovered something wrong with the Eagle Hunter troops, he kept investigating it in the dark. As expected, they found a special underground basement connected to the pet shop in the Alliance’s city center. All the clues showed that there was a high probability that there was a contractual beast research center there.

To avoid alarming the enemy, Heinz had only dispatched people to observe quietly and not conduct any surprise attacks. The fact was that Berkeley wanted to research contractual beasts and use their extreme methods to create new humans, so Heinz believed that he himself could have connected it to them.

But slaughter?

What’s the reason?

“Marshal, should we interfere?” Kureya’s face was anxious and dark. Contractual beasts were every mental controller’s lifeblood as it was because of contractual beasts that they could lengthen their lifespan. Any mental controller hearing about contractual beasts being slaughtered would definitely become aggrieved, “With their speed, even if the contractual beasts resisted, they might not be able to withstand for long.”

“Mn,” Heinz nodded, “Tell them not to expose themselves. Contact the residents we placed nearby there and create some havoc. Destroy their backup resources, then interfere with their equipment.”

Berkeley wearing Eagle Hunter skin to do all of this meant that it was not time for them to be exposed yet. So, they would never dare to touch normal civilians, which could give Heinz a little more time.

He needed to understand what exactly Berkeley was plotting. The contractual beasts in the rainforest were being slaughtered. Though the Alliance didn’t check on the Eagle Hunter troops, as to prevent monopoly, the military had set up a few departments in the early years for contractual beast capturing. The Eagles Hunters doing this would only gain a start because in one or two days at most, the Alliance would definitely hear of it.

Berkeley’s blunt movements… meant what? Their time period for lying low was up?

Thinking back to the meeting at the Donina restaurant, Heinz’ gaze turned heavy. He couldn’t help but look at the light screen still playing the Teacher’s Competition that he put to the side.

At that very moment, just when Kureya received his commands to deploy to others, someone suddenly barged into Heinz’ office.

“Marshal!” The person was one of his trusted people, and his face was full of terror, “Marshal! We just received news: the first research lab was attacked! The lab… The lab just exploded!”

.

“Ahhhhh!” Waldo’s terrified scream was heard in the skies, followed closely by a loud bang.

“Everyone land safely?” Mundi glanced sideways at Waldo, who had fallen onto the cushioning package that had just sprung out, then looked around at their surroundings.

Chen YiBai stood at the side and nodded at him, then looked down at his watch.

All of their watches not only showed their information and the group they belonged to but also contained three light screens, three micro tracking cameras, and a location tracking chip.

Not mentioning the other stuff, things like location tracking chips instinctively made him feel uncomfortable, as it was an indicator that restricted people.

Chen Bai looked at his wristwatch. The moment he lifted his head, his gaze met Faye’s in midair, and the latter immediately turned to share a look with Mundi.

In that instant, the three of them had the same thought, which was to shield off the location tracking chips.

When they were trying to think of ways to inform the others separately, Carlyle said vaguely that he could probably make a peculiar program, which he had gotten inspiration for from a friend two days ago.

And Waldo just jumped three feet into the air. If it wasn’t for Mundi instantly covering his mouth, as well as blocking his cameras at the same time, Waldo would have screamed!

“No no no.” Being forced to calm down by Mundi’s cold and piercing gaze, Waldo still shook his head repeatedly, avoiding the cameras by communicating with Mundi through light screens.

Since this was still a survival competition, the organizers didn’t monitor their light screens so that they were not too overly oppressed.

“What if we get into danger? Then the military won’t be able to know our specific location and come save us!”

Waldo had participated in the Teacher’s Competition before, and because of the groupings, his rank was actually quite high. So, he believed that he was eligible to speak in this area.

Who takes away the only thing that could guarantee their safety in a survival game? This was too absurd!

“He disagrees.” Receiving Mundi’s gaze, Faye said to Chen YiBai.

To ensure the group’s unity, they needed to have everyone’s assent as it was just the beginning of the competition. This was what all of them had agreed to.

“As expected.” Chen Bai nodded, “But Carlyle should still finish the program. We’ll deal with the specifics and play it by ear later.”

Faye made a noise in response. She was unclear on Chen YiBai’s ability, but she knew what Waldo was capable of. He indeed had some accomplishments in detection, and he was a big coward. She’d seen previous competitions. When Waldo was forced into a tight spot, he would do a lot of things that Faye didn’t feel were quite moral. Even though he couldn’t be blamed for it on the battlefield, if they hadn’t reached a pivotal point, neither she nor Mundi would want to create unnecessary trouble for now.

Their actions here were not discovered by the spectators, as the organizers tend to display those who analyze their situation more right at the beginning of the live broadcast.

The organization that was responsible for the live broadcast, filming, and editing for this year’s Teacher’s Competition was the Alliance News. Since it was an official media source, it was more focused on profession rather than discussions. From the start of the group’s descent, they kept broadcasting the popular Professor Vanda’s group, as listening to his analysis had attracted the attention of a lot of viewers.

“Not sure if all of you have heard: this year, the person who organized the entire military attack as well as overall arrangement and such is none other than the military headquarters’ General Stephen!” The show host interrupted suddenly in an excited voice after Professor Vanda’s group had three minutes of screen time on their analysis of their situation and the other groups. “He is the military’s well-known layout strategist and defeated the Gars in the Century War! He has also been the military’s blood-and-iron instructor until today. Here, I really wanna interview General Stephen. Is this year’s competition easier or harder than the previous ones, in his opinion?”

Stephen had a face of a devil, with a lot of deep scars on his forehead.

“Of course, it should be hard. Compared to previous competitions, this year’s standard is an all-time high.” Staring into the camera, the iron-and-blood general’s gaze was full of confidence.

“Really? But compared to before, this year’s competition only has one goal. If they hide well, then I personally believe the teacher groups can have a higher chance to achieve the last win.” The host laughed with a sweet voice.

“Impossible.” Stephen shook his head, “This year, the teacher groups are going to face off against the military’s elite troops that have already familiarized themselves on the planet one day before them. Along with their observation and adaptation as well as sensitivity on the battlefield, the teacher groups will never be able to pass the competition just by hiding. Not to mention the food we provided them is not enough to survive for ten days.”

The host paused, “Before, I also heard that this year’s competition only gave enough food supply for each group to last three days at most, even if they try to save it. Then, does this imply the teacher groups must always clash with the military elites to survive until the end? Even if the groups don’t lack ex-members of the military elites, this still sounds… pretty harsh.”

“Right, so we’ve prepared 10 special energy stones for the teacher groups. If the teacher groups find these stones, one stone could cancel out potential attacks for the entire day. In other words, if a teacher group has one energy stone, the military can’t launch any attack at them for the rest of the day. The stones will be collected back after the day ends.”

Stephen said as his eyes showed a hint of a cruel smile, “This is the only preservation method we provide for the teacher groups. They must face this bravely, as any teacher who wishes to finish the competition by hiding will not survive for more than one day inside.”

When Stephen said this, his cold expression and oppressive aura seemed to recreate that battlefield’s strategic ace of a general, shocking the host speechless for a moment.

Just as she regained her wits with a forced smile and prepared to continue the interview, a voice suddenly sounded in her earpiece.

The female host paused slightly, before her expression changed drastically. The camera cut to her face, perfectly capturing all of the changes in her facial expression.

She pressed on the earpiece, and after confirming a few times, she turned to the camera with an extremely serious expression.

“Interrupting with breaking news! Just now as I was interviewing General Stephen, the military launched the first ambush in the competition grounds! The attack forced seven teachers to be eliminated, with one voluntary forfeit! Two groups are now left with only two members and have escaped the scene!”

With the host’s expression, the viewers exploded in an instant.

[What? It’s been less than ten minutes and already eight teachers are eliminated?!]

[No way, the military is serious? Having the elites or something cross paths with teachers… isn’t it just bullying them…]

[What really happened to have eight people eliminated in less than ten minutes? Even having one forfeit voluntarily, were they hurt? I’m shocked, curious, begging the hosts to cut to the scene for us to see!]

It was not just the viewers watching the video, but all the participants in the competition also received the news. Perhaps because of the great disparity in abilities, aside from the ten energy stones, the military also gave them another special privilege: when someone was eliminated, they could watch the scene of the event.

The rest of the groups were also completely shocked by the news they received in less than ten minutes after they’d just landed. They all opened the video information sent from the organization and watched along with all the viewers as those two groups got decimated.

The two groups had been led by a core teacher and a previous military lieutenant general, respectively. After they’d arrived, they had the same idea as Mundi and had gone towards the nearest water reservoir.

It seemed because they had a former military lieutenant general as well as a core teacher who had done scientific research on this planet, they both had similar goals. Coincidentally, they had also been just a short distance away from a water reservoir.

But just when they had reached the water reservoir, they had been immediately attacked by the military without any warning. Seven of the teachers had been eliminated when their wristbands were snatched in battle, and one of them had slipped and rolled down a steep side of the water reservoir, breaking a leg and voluntarily forfeiting to seek medical attention.

The two that escaped were the lieutenant general, who was one of the groups’ leaders, and a member of the core teacher’s group, who had been walking at the very back at the time and had luckily escaped at the first chance.

When everyone saw the video, even the comments floating across the screen descended into silence.

[F*ck… What the hell is this… this is too shocking!]

[F*ck f*ck f*ck! The military sent out people with this power?! This is too scary! Feels like this’s too shameless, then won’t the teachers have no chance to last to the end?]

[Does it have to be this hard… at such a quick speed, even the lieutenant general was stunned! Only someone on his level could escape there! But looking at the entire competition, only three people are on the level of lieutenant general! Is the military only letting us watch the three of them compete?]

[… I think with this manner, it’s already good if half of the participants are left after today. Completely shocked.jpg.]

The video cut back to the host.

“It’s simply too astounding! This is the power the military took out for the Teacher’s Competition! Under this pressure, it’s likely that the teachers won’t even be able to withstand it. Is this the military’s intention?”

The host was clearly stunned by this show of power. When those military people attacked, they never viewed their opponents as Aldia’s teachers. Their eyes and ferocity were basically treating the teachers as enemies! If it weren’t for their expressions calming down after they snatched the wristwatches, she would almost doubt that she was watching the Teacher’s Competition but rather an actual battle to the death!

It wasn’t just her, as many viewers of the Alliance had similar thoughts. The military’s vicious attack made their actions look like they were carrying guns to bully the weak.

“That’s right.” The host thought that Stephen would give a slight official comment, but who knew this iron-and-blood instructor would actually confirm it, his gaze stern and awe-inspiring, “This isn’t even the strongest troop in the military. But what I can say is, the military’s strongest troops had also collapsed at the first blow in the battle with the Gars in the past.”

“The reason we chose such a harsh method is to use this highly anticipated competition to let all the people in the Alliance know the difference between us and the Gars, or us and any of the Alliance’s future enemies. If the teachers can’t even survive this competition, then what about the students? The people?”

“This is a battle competition. I wish its cruelty will awaken all the gradually numbed fear from the Gars attack, instead of being content with the current situation. I hope that these teachers can set out the best examples in the face of war and pressure for all their students and the people.”

These words were said to all the participants by the chief planner of the ambush, Stephen. Perhaps to create some psychological pressure, his words were broadcasted to all the participants who were still in the competition.

“General Stephen…” When Mundi heard it, he murmured softly. Then he looked at the few faces who were eliminated in the first round. His gaze darkened slightly, and he shared a look with Faye at the side.

He recognized every teacher here, and he was definitely close with those few faces. No one was sure when it started, but Aldia was slowly being enveloped by dark activities. And the seven people who were taken away just now were all near the edges of these dark affairs.

Faye took a deep breath and shook her head. She already knew this competition wouldn’t be easy, and this opening event had only confirmed her thoughts.

This wasn’t just a Teacher’s Competition. This was a game between all the parties in the Alliance that have power.

“Did you see that! Water reservoir! Water reservoir!” Waldo screamed in terror after watching the video, “They were attacked at the water reservoir; we definitely can’t go there!”

He said as he rushed forward to pull at Mundi, “Leader, you saw that. Such a fast attack; they didn’t even have any chance to counter! We can’t go! We’ll be eliminated too if we go!”

“But, water is necessary.” Chen Bai glanced sideways at him and patted his bags. There were a lot of empty bottles, with only one half-filled bottle, “Right now, our water can only last us for one day at most.”

“Then just one day! We hide first, hide and try to hold out for one day. There will be more people getting eliminated. Can’t we observe for one day, then go get the water?”

It did sound like a good idea.

But Chen Bai shook his head, “No, during the opening, the organizers have specifically emphasized that the military departed at the same time as us. We can’t guarantee that after something has happened to the first group that they wouldn’t do anything to the water reservoir. We need to be one step ahead and fill up our water.”

“That’s right.” Mundi nodded, “As the military’s rule of equality, the other party has fifty people as well. Even if they had familiarized themselves with the planet before us, they couldn’t set up an ambush then. And now that they’ve attacked a group in less than ten minutes, it means that their direction of actions is very clear. We must be quicker and snatch at least three to five days worth of water before determining our next steps. If we wait until tomorrow, but can’t get the water, our energy will be completely drained, and we’ll be pushed back at every moment. So, we should seize the initiative now.”

“But! But you saw it too!” Seeing everyone seemingly standing against his ideas, Waldo suddenly became agitated. He shouted, “Two groups of people! There was even a lieutenant general similar to your rank, and they were attacked like that! Among us, even if among us you and Faye escaped, then what about us? Carlyle doesn’t have the stamina, Chen YiBai can’t do anything, and when we actually face any danger…”

After the first two groups were attacked, the cameras zoomed in on the rest of the eight groups to watch their reactions. When it was set on Mundi’s group, it was coincidentally when Waldo was trying to convince them not to go to the water reservoir.

The comments all exploded. Even the host couldn’t help but start a discussion.

[They really want to go to the water reservoir!? Really??]

[I think both teachers were right… but Teacher Waldo’s more reserved idea was better suited for them, cuz they only have two members who could be fighters. Teacher Mundi’s idea was also sound, but with his group members, it doesn’t seem to be realistic.]

[I think with Teacher Mundi’s suggestion, only him and Faye could do it… if Teacher Carlyle provided mechanical support, and Teacher Waldo could do the detection work, they might have a chance. But Chen YiBai just looks too useless. He couldn’t support Teacher Mundi’s initiative method, and he dared suggest finding the water reservoir. He’s too fearless for his own good!]

[The people from the military also have wristwatches. When they meet, there’s only two ways to survive, the first is to escape, and the second is to snatch the wristwatch. I think the former is difficult for Chen YiBai, Teacher Carlyle and maybe even Teacher Waldo… let’s not even talk about the second one, as Teacher Mundi’s suggestion is really risky.]

When the floating comments were all discussing heatedly, many people also analyzed the rules of the competition for a long while.

Their conclusion: only Professor Vanda’s group had the resources to move right now, as they had three fighters, one mechanical analyst and an extraordinary spy such as Professor Vanda.

But Mundi’s group? It’s a road to death if they go to the water reservoir.

To this, many of Mundi’s and Faye’s fans were wallowing in pity and placed their anger on the three other members of the group, especially Chen YiBai.

Ling Ling was also sitting in front of the light screen, watching intently. She had invited Amin to watch it together. Chen YiBai’s screen time wasn’t much, but he was quiet, and adding on to Waldo being difficult, his presence was pretty low.

“Do you think… Do you think Teacher Chen could do it?”

Watching it, Ling Ling couldn’t help but ask softly, “I think, on mental abilities, it might sound absurd, but somehow I think Teacher Chen might not be weaker than Professor Vanda, but it’s hard to say about stamina. Teacher Waldo and Teacher Carlyle don’t have great stamina, and I don’t often see Teacher Chen’s… will it be dangerous for them to go to the water reservoir?”

“You must believe in Teacher Chen.” Amin stared at the light screen for a while before shaking his head, “When they said to go to the water reservoir, Teacher Chen didn’t object, and instead he agreed wholeheartedly, so I think he’s already confident. Since his mental energy might not be second to Professor Vanda’s, and his analysis on the situation must be really good, we need to believe in him.”

Amin’s words lit up Ling Ling’s eyes, and she nodded repeatedly, “Yes, we must believe in Teacher Chen!”

As the competition continued in full swing, Heinz had also reached the research lab rumored to have an incident. Looking at the scene with all the mess on the floor as well as injured people everywhere, his expression was extremely ugly.

“What’s the situation?” His gaze landed on a lab manager Kureya brought over.

“The data, the data was taken away! And Dr. Einbergen, Einbergen is…” The person pressed the wound on his head and said sorrowfully.