Genius Chapter 170: After the Match

Chapter 170: After the Match

Translated by Karai of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Addis

The battle had nearly ended in an instant. The livestream audience was still fixated on the moment when Summoner was barely escaping from the Mage’s ultimate skill. However, in those crucial few seconds, Summoner managed to trigger the Beast’s Wrath, with multiple summoned beasts surrounding and attacking at close range, right as Eight Desolations of the Forbidden Earth ended.

ScarletFruit covered her eyes and asked softly, “Is it over? Did we win?”

“Yes, we won!” FireworksAndLanterns excitedly slapped ScarletFruit’s leg. “Beast’s Wrath took out two! We won!”

Cheers erupted in the voice chat. Both ultimate skills on the field had almost ended simultaneously, resulting in the deaths of BrokenOracle and HaiTang.

Su Mo leaned slightly against Yu Zhen, who said nothing more and simply supported him with one hand.

“Are you tired?” Yu Zhen asked.

Su Mo smiled and said, “I’m not tired; it was quite exhilarating.”

Questions from the audience nearly overwhelmed the livestream chat as the commentators excitedly discussed the aftermath.

“Double ultimate skills!!” SkilfulEmptyHand exclaimed. “UnchainedWanderer’s Eight Desolations of the Forbidden Earth controlled the field and immobilized the opponents. Momo escaped with a sliver of health and triggered Beast’s Wrath, completing a double kill with a simultaneous assault!! The arena match is over! The winners are the Advertising team! Congratulations to them!!!”

[???] 

[I haven’t even processed what happened, and the game is over.] 

[Momo newbie, and this is a double kill!?] 

[Can someone explain what just happened!?]

As the arena match concluded, CloudTraveller spoke up, “This was actually a dual-layered scheme. From the very beginning, when Momo ventured alone into the BrokenOracle’s encirclement to attack HaiTang, he had planned to use his summoned beasts. At that time, the summoned beasts were placed far away, and BrokenOracle thought it was Momo’s tactic to lure them away, so at first…”

As the arena commander, understanding the sequence of events in the battle was crucial.

BrokenOracle had chosen to protect his teammate HaiTang, which became a crucial move that Momo exploited. Even when they later tried to use HaiTang’s [Cloud Territory Hate Curse] to kill Momo first, it was all within Momo’s expectations. The Advertising team’s objective was clear: Momo had given UnchainedWanderer the chance to set up and execute a strong control, then used that control to regroup the summoned beasts and trigger…

This intricate plan, though seemingly risky, relied entirely on the trust between the array master and the summoner. If any one link in the chain had faltered, they would have lost the confrontation.

“Momo had a plan from the start,” Midnight Bell said, switching the livestream to replay the final moments, zooming in on the strange doll in front of BrokenOracle. “Did you see that? Although Cloud Territory Hate Curse and Eight Desolations of the Forbidden Earth appeared to be used simultaneously, the initiative was already in Momo’s hands. The doll appeared in front of BrokenOracle, while the real Momo was behind UnchainedWanderer…”

The livestream camera carefully revisited the scene before the clash began, showing a faint, small object on the side of the glazed brick occupied by UnchainedWanderer. The close-up revealed that the fabric of the object was strikingly similar to the strange doll in front of BrokenOracle.

“Now you understand, right?” Midnight Bell said calmly, his gaze fixed on the summoner in the arena. “He had set up the doll from the beginning and was fully prepared. Even if it had failed, they had left room for contingency.”

[My God, so he had set up the doll from the very beginning.] 

[Could that doll be a life-saving skill? Momo must have swapped places with it, which is why he didn’t die.] 

[Oh yes! That’s quite possible!] 

[So impressive, I almost thought he was done for.] 

[But have you considered that this is exactly why BrokenOracle fell for it…]

Su Mo had used a quest skill, [Substitute Doll], which he had unlocked earlier. When Yu Zhen decided to take the risk, Su Mo had decided not to keep the skill but placed the substitute doll next to Yu Zhen instead. In a scenario like the Glazed Palace, he couldn’t find a safer environment than near Yu Zhen.

If the substitute doll was destroyed by an enemy, it wouldn’t have the effect of taking a hit for the real player.

Fortunately, the doll’s small size meant that, in the end, the opponents hadn’t noticed it, allowing everything to go smoothly.

“Bro, you scared me to death.”

“Didn’t expect we’d actually win, and we were just joking around!”

“So, we ended up winning the championship, huh?”

The members of the Advertising team teleported in, and everyone chatted happily.

“Come look at this monument, we’re on guard duty now!!”

“Wow, look at the ranking at the top!!”

“Over here, there’s a virtual avatar!!!”

Listening to his teammates, Su Mo finally felt the reality of the two-month-long competition coming to an end.

The final match of the Grand Debate of the Realm tournament concluded, and the Debate Peak arena was merged. The original teleportation monument at the Peak was replaced by a grand, solemn, and enormous stone monument standing in the center. The monument was inscribed with the rankings of this year’s tournament.

Not only that, but the winners would remain in the summit area, becoming permanent NPCs in the scene under their current appearance, commonly known as “standing guard.”

In the future, the Debate Peak arena would remain open, with the winners staying there until the next tournament replaced the current one.

The closing ceremony was very grand. Although it was a game competition, it had attracted significant attention from players over the two-month period. It had not only engaged player participation but also attracted many new players.

[The Debate Peak scene in the game has opened! You can see the Debate Monument inside.]

[The Debate Monument has names engraved on it!! You can see the detailed ranking data of this debate tournament!]

The live broadcast was still showing the award ceremony, especially when the camera focused on the Debate Monument. At the very top of the list, the name of [Advertising Space for Rent] appeared prominently, written in the largest font and most elaborate style, proudly displayed in five bold characters.

“Ahem, the first Celestial Horizon tournament has concluded. The champion team for this tournament is [Advertising Space for Rent], the runner-up team is [Ren XiaoYao], the third place team is [Veiled Cloud Sanctuary], and the fourth place is [Zenith Expanse],” the commentator, SkilfulEmptyHand, introduced the results, though he stumbled a bit when mentioning the first-place team.

FirstUnderHeaven couldn’t help but comment, “The name [Advertising Space for Rent] is indeed quite eye-catching…”

It wasn’t just eye-catching; anyone passing by the summit could see this loud and obvious name, making it particularly striking in the fantasy game.

[In the future, when people mention it, our game’s number one is called Advertising Space for Rent…] 

[Laughing so hard, what’s with this name? It feels like it brings down the level of the Debate Monument.] 

[From afar, it does seem quite imposing, but when said out loud, it sounds very down-to-earth.]

[It’s clearly an honor list, but looking at it like this does feel a bit…] 

[Hahahahahaha, it went from the Debate Monument to the Advertising Monument.]

As the competition ended and the award ceremony began, it was quite solemn given that it was a fantasy game. Besides the top two teams, CloudTraveller and Midnight Bell’s team also arrived. All four teams, totaling 40 people, gathered at the summit, where several ethereal, elderly figures appeared in the game scene.

Those familiar with the game’s storyline knew that these elder NPCs were highly esteemed figures within the game. In the story’s background, they were responsible for awarding honors to the winners of the Celestial Horizon tournament. The official prize money and gifts would be sent through mail with specific details, while the awards for this ceremony were mainly in-game items.

In addition to the announced prizes, teams would receive additional rewards based on their rankings, including [quest reward packages] from the Celestial Horizon official team and special contract invitations from partner companies. The tournament had collaborated with many enterprises, and many players had received cooperation invitations during the two-month event, which also involved detailed assessments of individual skills.

As the award ceremony concluded, the voice of the central system announced the end of the first Celestial Horizon tournament and the opening of the special summit scene, along with a series of upcoming game updates. By the time it was 4 PM, the competition had ended, but the festivities were far from over. In response to the Celestial Horizon official invitation, all four teams participated in post-match interviews, with the primary focus naturally being on the hot topic [Advertising Space for Rent].

In the recently concluded 2v2 match, the performance of Momo and UnchainedWanderer had been exceptional. Moreover, the viewers in the livestream had not had the chance to interact with these two players in detail. In the StarNet era, virtually every game player had a social media account, and most social accounts left traces due to the integration of StarNet’s big data.

However, these two players were incredibly low-key. On the Celestial Horizon official forum, there were no posts from UnchainedWanderer or Momo. In their gaming careers across various games, there were no records for these two IDs. They were either high-profile players using alternative accounts or genuinely low-key individuals who hadn’t posted anything.

Now there was finally an opportunity to interact with them directly. After all, the post-tournament interviews were for all team members, and the timing coincided with a break period. Generally, teams wouldn’t refuse… But as the time for the post-match interviews approached, the champion team, [Advertising Space for Rent], still hadn’t shown up.

[Huh? Is Archdemon going to leave us hanging again?]

[Everyone wants to make a name for themselves in games. I’ve been playing for so long and haven’t met a player as low-profile as him.] 

[Exactly. Strategy guides are all posted by ScarletFruit. Now with universal accounts across the internet, I don’t believe they don’t have an account on the forum.]

[They shouldn’t. The official announcement said all members were invited…] 

“Sorry, it seems there’s been a technical issue in the livestream room that needs some time to resolve. Please, be patient,” said SkilfulEmptyHand, who was also puzzled. They had contacted Momo promptly to prepare for the post-match interview. After all, they were the champion team, and the game officials would consolidate the interview into a record video for the official website. Interviews typically didn’t involve player privacy and were generally not declined.

When they contacted Momo, the response had been quick and positive. However, on the way to the livestream room, there was an issue: Momo’s game launcher seemed to have an external connection error and could not link with the livestream room. They had no choice but to contact the system’s main server for a check. The final problem was found with Momo’s launcher; all other functions were normal, but there was an anomaly during the StarNet connection. The main server determined it was a user-specific launcher setting issue rather than a network problem.

“Why did it suddenly break?” Cantaloupe asked with some confusion. “This is the first time I’ve heard of an issue with the Celestial Horizon launcher connecting to StarNet.”

Momo glanced at Yu Zhen, and the two of them exchanged a tacit understanding without revealing anything. The F-class launcher naturally did not have StarNet connectivity. If it did connect, the massive influx of information could overwhelm Su Mo. But the F-class detail was a personal secret, and Su Mo did not want to cause any issues in the game because of his system. After confirming with Yu Zhen that everything was fine, Su Mo agreed to the request.

If they couldn’t access the livestream, the issue could be attributed to the launcher.

Seeing the official staff’s puzzled expressions, Yu Zhen said, “It might be that he made a mistake with the settings a while ago. How should we handle the interview now? Can we conduct it within the game?”

Adjusting the launcher issues would be difficult since it was a player’s personal privacy.

“That works,” the official staff replied. “We can switch to an in-game interview. Just change the livestream mode and conduct the interview directly in the Celestial Horizon arena. It fits the occasion.”

The livestream audience had been waiting for quite a while. Eventually, SkilfulEmptyHand and FirstUnderHeaven entered the game, using a mobile livestream approach to interview the champion team.

During the final post-match interview, the questions were naturally selected from the livestream chat.

SkilfulEmptyHand asked, “A fan wants to know, why did you choose the name [Advertising Space for Rent]?”

Su Mo recalled carefully, “Oh, that was Watermelon’s idea.”

Watermelon, who was beside him, said, “I just mentioned it offhand.”

ScarletFruit added, “I clearly suggested [Full Server Purchasing] would be better.”

FireworksAndLanterns asked in confusion, “Wasn’t it supposed to be ‘FireworksAndLanterns the Great’?”

Apple remarked, “In the end, it didn’t help us gain popularity. Is there anyone left in the livestream? The Fruit Platter is recruiting melee players for the full server. Interested players please contact Fruit Platter manager Apple. Feel free to chat with us.”

The group began to chat animatedly, and SkilfulEmptyHand looked towards the calm summoner, suddenly realizing the true meaning behind the name [Advertising Space for Rent]—it seemed that the whole team wanted to advertise!

A fan asked, “Do you have many strategies in your team? For example, those tricks, and you’re said to be an acting master. As the commander, what’s your feeling about that?”

Su Mo responded, “Strategies? Those aren’t really tricks. We use different methods depending on the opponent. As for acting? Isn’t PvP all about tricking each other with skills?”

The livestream audience was left speechless.

When it came to tricking skills, it was indeed about tricking skills.

But how was that not a routine for your team!? Is tricking skills normally done like that?

[He really speaks in a very cold manner.]

[Summary: Archdemon: This isn’t a routine; this is deception.]

SkilfulEmptyHand continued, “You completed the quest very quickly. Fans are also curious about the atmosphere within your team. It is said that you are very strict when you command. Is that true?”

Su Mo paused when he heard “strict,” then examined himself carefully and turned to his teammates, asking, “Am I?”

The teammates were unusually silent.

Yu Zhen spoke up to clarify, “No, he isn’t.”

Su Mo turned back and said, “No, I’m not.”

[Laughing my head off.]

[I noticed the silence.]

[Didn’t anyone notice Watermelon? Is the rumored deputy leader of the Fruit Platter actually Watermelon?]

[Got it, the devilish coach has been nailed down.]

After asking a few more team-related questions, the focus naturally shifted to the players themselves, with the most important topic being the commander, momo.

“Fans are curious if you visit forums regularly and if you have seen the discussion posts there?”

Su Mo paused briefly and replied, “I don’t visit them, but I do hear about them.”

[Doesn’t visit, but hears about them.]

[Got it, should start following ClearWind’s livestream and ScarletFruit’s posts.]

[Ah, why doesn’t the big shot consider starting a homepage!]

SkilfulEmptyHand asked, “So how do you usually keep up with game news?”

Su Mo looked at him with a puzzled expression and said, “The ads they send out, and I can log into websites through the terminal. There are many ways to keep up with game news. Does it have to be StarNet?”

SkilfulEmptyHand was left speechless.

But isn’t it usually StarNet for updates? Who still uses terminals to check?

[Is it just my impression, or does Momo seem like an old-school type?]

[If you’ve seen his wildness on the field, how can you say someone like him is old-school…]

[Huh? I thought the old-school type in their team was Bitter Melon. I always thought Bitter Melon was slow and sluggish.]

SkilfulEmptyHand asked a few more questions, but Momo didn’t have much to add. The topic then shifted to the summoner himself. SkilfulEmptyHand asked, “In the final match, your tactics were very risky, and your coordination was excellent. Under such intense conditions, how did you decide to use such a risky approach? Or was it planned before the match?”

“No, it was a suggestion made during the match to go for a quick victory,” Su Mo said. “At that moment, it seemed feasible, so we didn’t hesitate too long. After all, the cooldowns were still running, and we had to act quickly. We didn’t have much tactical communication.”

Apple added, “That’s true. When those two were on the field, they basically communicated very little.”

Cantaloupe coughed and said, “Even if they did communicate, we usually didn’t understand them.”

“We were the ones who were anxious,” ClearWind said. “During that last wave, I almost thought we had lost. But then I opened my eyes, closed them again, and realized we had won.”

[They just went for it without hesitation?]

[Wow, no tactical communication? So it all depended on coordination.]

[I thought they had planned everything out in advance!!]

[It’s all about the synergy… Why don’t these two try 2v2? It would definitely be exciting to watch.]

[I suddenly want to watch a few more matches.]

For the final question, SkilfulEmptyHand asked, “Momo, why did you choose to play as a summoner?”

Su Mo quickly replied, “I just found it interesting. There are quite a few summoning beasts.”

SkilfulEmptyHand was a bit surprised. He expected Momo to mention something about skill combinations, varied gameplay, or the challenges involved, but it turned out that the choice of profession was simply because the summoning beasts were numerous and lively!? Was he here just to play a pet-raising game?

After finishing the interview with the Advertising team, SkilfulEmptyHand moved on to interview the Ren XiaoYao team. Within the Advertising team, they were discussing where to go for the celebratory dinner that evening, debating whether to splurge on a float for a citywide parade, and so on… With so many leisure activities available in the game, as long as one could afford the gold, anything was possible.

ScarletFruit tapped away, “Spending a lot of money, huh.”

ClearWind said, “Why doesn’t the owner of Desert Inn open a branch in the city?”

FireworksAndLanterns shouted, “I want to host a banquet and hire a band… Oh right! Floats and a parade!”

BitterMelon looked on with a kindly expression, “Alright then. Can we do it in Sunset City? I have a good rapport with their city lord; it should be manageable…”

The request was covered by the big spender, BitterMelon, who organized a celebratory dinner for the evening and asked everyone to be online by 8:30 to join in the fun.

Yu Zhen, listening to their discussion, suddenly noticed that Su Mo’s gaze was fixed on the Ren Xiaoyao Team in the distance. Yu Zhen paid a bit more attention and saw that the team  being interviewed was the Golden Partners, Air and Durian Milk Tea.

He then switched to private chat and sent Su Mo a message.

“Mo Mo, want to go somewhere?”