Because they didn't take the honor of this competition too seriously, everyone was relaxed about tomorrow's competition. Since they had classes in the first two periods tomorrow morning, everyone went to bed early tonight.
But Chen Xu couldn't sleep in bed.
He didn't wear the headphones that Xiaomin had transformed into to enter the virtual world. Instead, he just stared blankly at the ceiling, recalling the thrilling battle that afternoon and Zhan Jing's words.
Although I said before that winning or losing didn't matter, I'm satisfied with getting this far.
But the question is, since we've already come this far, why not continue?
Chen Xu is not one to admit defeat, even if he knows that his opponent is stronger than him.
"Touch technique... hacker input method..." Chen Xu asked Xiao Min, "Do you have any information in your materials about the latest hacker touch techniques and input modes that can improve my hand speed?"
"Searching, please wait... The latest hacker input method in the current data was developed in 2045 and is very suitable for the operating habits of Chinese learners. This input method once became the most popular program command input method among Chinese hackers, and it also came with professional finger placement practice methods, and was updated every three years. However, the data after that has been lost and has not yet been recovered."
There really is one?
Chen Xu was somewhat exasperated: "If you had something this good, why didn't you give it to me sooner?"
"Because you didn't ask before."
Xiaomin's answer infuriated Chen Xu, but her next sentence cheered him up a bit: "Besides, this program's command input method uses Chinese script commands and doesn't support other languages. That's why you couldn't use it before."
So that's how it is!
Previously, Chen Xu couldn't reveal the Chinese language because this all-Chinese template computer language was so unexpected, so he could only study it secretly. But now it's different. He has openly revealed the Chinese language, and many people know that SMMH had already privately taught him it before.
Now, this Chinese input method is perfect for him!
"Put this input method and finger placement on for me. Teach me how to use it," Chen Xu said. "By the way, how long will it take me to get familiar with this finger placement?"
"It depends on the individual. But after all, it's a completely new input method, and it will take at least a month to become familiar with it and use it flexibly. It also depends on your understanding of the Chinese language."
A month isn't a long time, but the problem is that Chen Xu only has one night left.
This is an opportunity. An opportunity to openly and fairly demonstrate his strength, and there's more... Chen Xu vaguely felt that he could actually win tomorrow's match.
Because of Zhan Jing!
Looking at Zhan Jing's expression, he had a feeling that perhaps tomorrow's opponent wouldn't be much of a threat to Zhan Jing.
So when she said today that she had no chance of winning, was she referring to herself?
Think back to today's match, Chen Xu's attacks had several flaws where others entered his system first, only to be blocked by Zhan Jing. This girl seemed to block them very easily, extremely easily.
That means these people aren't strong enough to threaten her today!
So why didn't she give it her all?
Chen Xu became increasingly puzzled. He wasn't someone who could particularly hide his thoughts, so he simply picked up the phone and called Zhan Jing to get to the bottom of things.
At that moment, Zhan Jing was actually in the room next to Chen Xu's. She was staring blankly at her computer screen. Suddenly, her phone rang. She picked it up and saw it was Chen Xu's number. Puzzled, she answered, "Hello? What's up?"
This is Zhan Jingdi's way of expressing herself. If it were Gao Xiaojie, he would probably immediately yell, "Damn it, classmate, why can't you say what you want to say in my room? We're only separated by a wall, is it really necessary to make a phone call? What a waste! Although the phone bill may not be much to you, it's still an extreme waste!"
But Zhan Jing didn't say anything. Instead, she answered the phone and said softly, "The match tomorrow... are we really not going to win?" Chen Xu's voice came from the other end: "The match tomorrow... are we really not going to win?"
Zhan Jing paused for a moment. After thinking for a while, she said softly, "It's because you can't win right now."
Chen Xu immediately understood the meaning of the words "we" and "you".
He knew Zhan Jing wouldn't lie. Especially not to him. Chen Xu said, "Can you win? With us helping you, we can win tomorrow's match, right?!"
"So what if you win? It doesn't mean anything," Zhan Jing said. "My purpose in participating in this hacking competition is solely for your victory. If it's about relying on me, then it's completely meaningless. Do you understand?"
Hearing her say that, Chen Xu immediately understood.
He understood why the qualified girl hadn't been putting in her best effort, and why she'd been made captain and given such strict guidance. "If I could win, maybe the chances aren't great, but there's still hope. Would you help me?"
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then someone said, "Yes."
Upon receiving this answer, Chen Xu smiled and said into the phone, "That's settled then. Go to sleep early. Trust me, I can win tomorrow!"
Chapter 244 The Temptation of Photos
The next afternoon, after dinner, everyone sat down in front of the computer to prepare for the competition.
Regarding tonight's match, everyone is basically in a pessimistic mood... To say "everyone" really refers to Yingnian Zaofei and Zhong Ziyu, the master and apprentice. Wu Yuan feels that he is already very satisfied with how far he has come. Zhan Jing's face is calm and expressionless. Gao Xiaojie is a substitute with no rights anyway and is currently drawing circles in the corner. As for Chen Xu, he just smiles occasionally and does not make any comments on tonight's match.
Only occasionally, when Chen Xu's eyes met Zhan Jing's, would Chen Xu confidently curl the corners of his mouth. Although the girl was curious, she didn't ask any questions; she would find out everything during the competition.
But to his surprise, when he entered the competition server around 7 p.m., before he could even greet the other side, he saw the other side on the server wailing and crying their hearts out.
"Oh no, I'm going to be eliminated!"
"Ugh! How about this? Xuancao MM, if you just post a recent photo of yourself, I won't ask for a clear, unedited, makeup-free picture. Just post one photo and we'll obediently admit defeat and back out, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, we're definitely going to lose anyway, so it's more satisfying to get a photo. I've admired Tianhuixing Xuancao MM for a long time!"
"You bunch of idiots! That's not how you ask for photos... We should muster up our courage and say that we found some kind of secret manual like the Sunflower Manual and our martial arts have greatly improved, and that Xuan Cao MM is no match for us, and that's how we can trick you into giving us the photos."
"You're the idiot! If you want to practice the Sunflower Manual, go practice it yourself! Besides, even if you practiced the Sunflower Manual, you wouldn't be a match for Xuancao MM!"
Chen Xu and the others were dumbfounded. What were these guys doing?
Zhan Jing pressed her hand to her forehead, feeling a bit of a headache. These guys... thankfully no outsiders saw it. After all, they were two Heavenly Generals and three Earthly Fiends... their behavior was really embarrassing for the Red Hacker Alliance.
Chen Xu typed on the keyboard: "How did you know Xuan Cao was in our group?"
"Oh dear, is that even a question? We naturally have our own information. That slut Yingnianzaofei is in your group too, right? Haha!"
"Damn it!" the young, overweight man immediately retorted, "Who the hell are you?!"
The reply came from the other end: "Oh dear, normally in a hacker competition you have to check your opponent's identity yourself. But it's obvious that Xuan Cao MM didn't make a move yesterday, which scared us all night. But since we're destined to compete with Xuan Cao MM, we should leave our names here. You young, fat, little scum, I am the Black Whirlwind of the Heavenly Killer Star!"
"Tianjie Xingying".
"The lewd husky of Earth Dog Star".
"A silver pig that wiggles its butt on Earth-Sky Star".
"The Great Dragon God of the End of the Century on Earth's Microcosm!"
Then a picture appeared below, which was a scene from Stephen Chow's "Flirting Scholar," where four animals struck a pose: "We are the East Lewd, the West Cheap, the South Lustful, and the North Wild!"
Chen Xu almost choked, and Zhan Jing sighed helplessly. Gao Xiaojie rolled around on the sofa next to them, clutching her stomach and laughing so hard she was doubled over.
Young and Fat replied, "Damn it, so it was you bunch of bastards. We couldn't be bothered to guess who the three of you were. But Black Whirlwind and Shadow Daylily had already figured it out, so there was no surprise at all."
"Huh? You figured it out? Waaah, we're doomed!"
"Oh no, there's absolutely no hope left!"
"Xuancao MM, send us a photo to comfort our wounded hearts!"
Another wail erupted on the screen.
Even the referee couldn't stand it anymore. Since Blue Baby's team had withdrawn from the competition, he decided to act as the referee. This time, the referee was none other than LION, the founder of the Red Hacker Alliance. LION couldn't help but yell, "You five useless piece of trash! You're already thinking of surrendering before the match even starts!"
"Waaah, Boss Lion, you can't say that! The difference in strength is too big. Xuan Cao alone could take us all on."
"Oh no! This is so unfair! Someone of Xuan Cao's caliber should be able to advance directly to the finals just like you guys."
"Boss, how about we surrender and lose half?"
Upon seeing this, Chen Xu was taken aback. Apart from Ying Nianzaofei, who was somewhat aware of Zhan Jing's strength, everyone else turned to look at Zhan Jing… Could her strength really be compared to Lion and Blue Baby?
Zhan Jing gently tapped her forehead with her index finger and sighed helplessly.
These guys!
On the Red Hacker Alliance, Xuan Cao Jiang Li's reputation for beauty and skill is well-known among many forum members, although very few people have actually seen Zhan Jing's true face.
If we trace the origin of this gossip, it probably dates back to about ten years ago, before the Red Hacker Alliance existed. It was during a contest between Zhan Jing and Blue Baby that Blue Baby witnessed Zhan Jing, who was less than nine years old at the time.
When Blue Baby got back, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, what a gorgeous little beauty!"
It was probably from that time on that the older generation of hackers habitually thought that Xuan Cao Jiang Li was an extremely beautiful girl, while the new generation of those who joined the Red Hacker Alliance had also heard of Zhan Jing's stunning beauty.
Her strength, however, was entirely earned through her own efforts. No one can question that.
Lion finally couldn't stand it anymore, thinking, "These losers are so damn pathetic!" So Lion shouted, "Damn it, you have two Heavenly Generals and three Earthly Fiends, what are you afraid of?!"
"Even the Heavenly Stars are divided into different ranks, you know!"
"Yes, yes! We protest!"
"We want to boycott the competition! We want to forfeit! We want photos of Xuancao MM!"
"..." Chen Xu and the others were speechless. LION was almost furious; he didn't have any photos of Xuan Cao Jiang Li either. So, LION could only message Blue Baby, saying, "Come and see, your precious apprentice is too charming." Blue Baby curiously entered the server and saw the five guys from Black Sky Demon God singing together. Of course, "singing" here is just a figurative expression, since words can't convey sound, but the familiar tune immediately told them what these guys were doing...
"Daylily, daylily, I love you like a mouse loves rice..."
"You are electricity, you are light, you are the only myth. Awoooo ...
Blue Baby nearly fainted from anger as she looked at the chat history. These rascals were really stirring up trouble. To be honest, the last time Blue Baby saw Zhan Jing was three years ago, when Zhan Jing had just entered high school and came to Beijing specifically to see her. Indeed, she was much prettier in person than in photos. And Blue Baby was only nine years old when she first met her; now she was sixteen, having transformed from a cute little girl into a graceful young woman. It was hard to imagine that such a beautiful girl, at such a young age, possessed such amazing skills.
Zhan Jing, at sixteen, was already at a level no less than Blue Baby at the time, and perhaps even surpassed Blue Baby in her prime.
Although they had only met once, Blue Baby knew her apprentice's personality from their online chats, so she wasn't afraid of making Zhan Jing angry. Zhan Jing wasn't the type to take a joke. She'd seen plenty of online howls like this in the Red Hacker Alliance, and as long as it wasn't too explicit, Zhan Jing would usually just laugh it off.
But as for posting photos...
Blue Baby chatted with Zhan Jing for a bit, then stepped forward and said, "You bunch of good-for-nothings, Xuan Cao has already agreed that whoever wins the championship will get a photo. If you want to see beautiful women, then try your best to win the championship!"
Another wail followed.
Actually, if it weren't for the hackers' perspective, Zhan Jing wouldn't mind her photos being leaked. After all, many of them had known each other online for years, and she knew they were all nice people who liked to joke around. However, the hackers' requirement was to keep their real-life identities secret… but that didn't apply to Blue Baby and the others. Because they worked for the country, many people already knew their real-life identities. As for Zhan Jing, she wouldn't mind revealing her identity after she started working and had a career, but right now, she didn't want to.
As for the championship, it will definitely be won by Blue Baby and their team in the end, so it doesn't matter who gets the photo.
Seeing that these guys were still causing trouble, Blue Baby deliberately put on a serious tone: "If you keep causing trouble, I'll go to the Red Hacker Alliance forum and say that you harassed Xuancao. Hmph, then a bunch of people will definitely come after you!"
These words were more effective than anything else; the five animals were immediately too frightened to speak.
Black Whirlwind sighed as he looked at the screen. He thought back to his younger days, playing Legend of Mir all night long. One particularly unfortunate thing happened back then: he accidentally offended a woman… that woman was a well-known female player in their server, with good relationships with the leaders of various guilds and many high-level players. Moreover, her guild, "Fragrant Kingdom," was entirely composed of female players. It could be said that they were very successful among the various factions.
The consequences of offending such a woman were absolutely terrible. Black Whirlwind was hunted down by the entire server for three whole months. Many of his close friends, while hacking at him, would laugh and say, "Brother, it's not that I'm prioritizing women over friends, it's just that there's really no other way. You know, my wife is also in her guild, and she has orders that I can't disobey!"
After that incident, Black Whirlwind learned how terrifying women could be, especially those who brought ruin to the country and its people.
The others also had their own experiences, so they all remained silent in fear.
After the stern face is played, the lenient face also needs a chance to shine; after giving a big stick, you have to give a carrot. That's when Lion steps in... Ladies and gentlemen, in the Red Hacker Alliance, it's generally accepted that Lion is the father and Blue Baby is the mother. But generally speaking, a strict father and a kind mother doesn't work here; a kind father and a strict mother is more appropriate. So, Lion takes on the role of the lenient face.