TSA Chapter 54

Bonus chapter~ Happy Valentine!

The six of them ran the Black and White World dungeon five more times together, clearing their dungeon cooldowns for the day. Only then did Night Owl and the others log off—by that time, there were less than two hours left before their scheduled departure.

Thinking about their upcoming in-person meeting, Ran Qi and Gu Le lost interest in continuing to play and logged off to return to the hotel.

The gaming pods at the Star Gaming Lounge didn’t have nutrient fluid dispensers, so after climbing out of their pods, they settled their bill via their optical brains and left directly.

They had entered the gaming cafe in the afternoon, but by the time they left, it was already the next morning. Both of them were starving, so they had no choice but to find a vending machine and buy two bottles of nutrient fluid.

When the machine dispensed the drinks, Gu Le noticed that they were a light pink color. After inspecting, he saw that they were produced by Ran Qi’s family’s company, with ‘NEW FLAVOR’ prominently printed in bold red letters on the packaging.

“Hey, what are the odds? We actually got our hands on your company’s newly released nutrient fluid! The color looks pretty nice too!” Gu Le laughed.

“Really?” Ran Qi was momentarily surprised. He took the bottle from Gu Le and took a sip. Although the packaging didn’t specify the flavor, he immediately tasted the sweet and tangy notes of tomato—kind of like a thick tomato milkshake. The taste was still somewhat simple, but compared to the bland mixed-flavor nutrient fluids, it was already a vast improvement.

Back when Ran Shaojun took away his tomato egg soup, he had mentioned developing a new flavor. However, the research department later discovered mysterious trace elements in the ingredients, so Ran Qi assumed the company would focus on studying those instead and wouldn’t have the time to launch a new product.

He hadn’t expected them to not only develop a new flavor but also release it so quickly.

“This tastes really good! I feel like buying another one!” Gu Le downed his bottle in one go and still felt like he hadn’t had enough.

Ran Qi couldn’t help but chuckle and gave him a playful glare. “Save some room for real food tonight.”

“Haha, you’re right!”

The two of them walked back to the hotel, chatting and laughing. Along the way, they could clearly feel the increasing number of people heading toward the venue, and the number of hovercars in the air was also growing. Even though the competition was only open to students, those students would eventually join the military and become the backbone of the nation. Because of this, even ordinary citizens were highly interested in the event—who knew they might be witnessing the rise of the next legendary war god!

Gu Le asked, “Should we head to the arena early? I’m worried we won’t get front-row seats if we go too late.”

“Sounds good.” Ran Qi agreed. Contestants and spectators would have separate entryways, and with the massive crowd, there was no risk of being seen by their teachers or classmates.

After returning to the hotel, they took a shower and changed into clean clothes before heading to the competition venue. Since it was close by, they simply walked there.

As expected, the arena was packed. Security was also tighter, requiring them to scan their optical computers to register their personal information and undergo a full-body security scan before they could enter.

They had arrived relatively early and managed to secure front-row seats near the left-side entrance. Since they had entered from the right side, that meant the left-side entrance was likely where the contestants would come in. Sitting here, they’d be able to spot Night Owl and the others as soon as they entered.

As time passed, more and more people flooded into the arena. Even before the scheduled start time, the massive stadium, which could hold a million spectators, was already half full.

“Wow, there are way more people here than I expected! I thought the crowd wouldn’t be this big until the finals…” Gu Le looked around in amazement.

“Well, it’s the opening day. A lot of these people are probably from other schools, here to cheer for their teams. Once the eliminations start, the audience will thin out.” Ran Qi wasn’t surprised at all.

This regional competition had over seventy schools participating, with more than seven hundred contestants. Each school likely brought a cheering squad of at least a hundred people. Adding in family, friends, and die-hard fans of the Imperial Combat Tournament, the turnout was bound to be huge.

“Haha, makes sense. I’ll message Soul Chaser and ask where they are!” Gu Le and Soul Chaser had similar personalities—both were straightforward and lively—so they got along really well.

[Coke: Where are you guys?]

[Soul Chaser: We just arrived. Changing into our uniforms now and getting ready to enter.]

[Coke: Awesome! We’re already in the arena. See you soon!]

[Soul Chaser: See you soon!]

Before long, the venue was filled with stirring music. After a brief introduction from the host, he invited the elite students from the military academies of the Capital Star to enter the arena.

As the top-ranking military academy on Capital Star, Imperial Star Military Academy naturally led the procession. The ten participating students from Imperial Star were all dressed in their school uniforms—a striking combination of black and gold that exuded both elegance and prestige. They entered the venue through the left-side passage of the stands, not far from where Ran Qi and Gu Le were seated.

Ran Qi immediately spotted the person holding the Imperial Star school flag. He was simply too striking—his well-fitted black and gold uniform emphasized his tall, lean figure, and every movement carried an air of effortless nobility. He looked like a refined gentleman, radiant and poised, so mesmerizing that it was impossible to look away.

“Oh my god, that insanely handsome guy leading the group has to be Night Owl, right?!” Gu Le recognized Night Owl and grabbed Ran Qi’s arm excitedly. “He looks even better in real life than in the game!”

“Mm…” Ran Qi responded vaguely, his gaze locked onto the figure in the arena. His heartbeat inexplicably quickened, thudding so loudly that he could hear it in his ears.

“Imperial Star! Imperial Star! Take first place!” In the stands not far from them, a group of students dressed in matching black and gold uniforms suddenly stood up, shouting at the top of their lungs to cheer for their school.

Hearing the cheers, the Imperial Star’s contestants turned their heads and waved at their fellow students.

As Night Owl’s gaze swept across the left side of the stands, it met Ran Qi’s.

Then… the corners of his lips lifted slightly, as if he were smiling.

A sharp wave of screams erupted from the crowd—many spectators had noticed that smile.

“Whoa! Did Night Owl just look at us? He totally smiled in our direction just now, didn’t he?!”

“Maybe…” Ran Qi tried to appear calm, but the tips of his ears had already turned red.

To be recognized at a glance by someone he had never met in person, out of a sea of thousands… no matter how he thought about it, his rapid heartbeat seemed completely justified.

One team after another entered the arena, and Ran Qi’s school was ranked 42nd in the procession. He wasn’t sure if the order was random or based on ranking…

Still, since it was his own school, he and Gu Le joined in the cheers as their team entered.

After the entrance ceremony, the contestants took a short break before the matches began.

The rules remained the same as before: the AI system would randomly pair contestants for one-on-one duels, with the winner advancing to the next round. However, due to the large number of participants, twenty matches would be held simultaneously to save time.

From the center of the arena, twenty combat simulation platforms slowly rose into view—a truly impressive sight.

Each platform was equipped with two virtual combat pods. The large holographic screens around the venue displayed the matchups and platform numbers, so contestants only needed to go to their assigned platform on time.

“Damn, I forgot to ask for their real names. Just looking at the matchup list, I have no idea who’s who…” Gu Le scratched the back of his head in frustration.

“It’s fine. As long as they’re from Imperial Star, we’ll cheer for them.”

“Good point! All of them made it through the preliminaries anyway!”

With twenty matches happening simultaneously, the screens were divided into different sections, allowing spectators to move closer to their preferred contestants’ platforms. Contestants who hadn’t been called yet could rest in the waiting area.

In the first round, an Imperial Star contestant named Lin Han was assigned to Platform 12. Seeing this, Ran Qi and Gu Le moved to the stands directly facing Platform 12.

When the contestant stepped onto the platform, the two of them immediately recognized him—wasn’t that Soul Chaser?! He looked almost the same as he did in the game—tall, and handsome, but with an added rebellious sharpness in his expression.

So his real name was Lin Han!

Once all the contestants were in place, the referee signaled for them to enter the simulation pods.