Chapter Nine: The Interstellar Maelstrom (Part One)
Zhou Luoyao was the class monitor of Class Five.
Originally, she had planned to meet with Chen Zishi, the monitor of Lin Cheng’s class, along with the study committee member Zhuang Sijing to discuss the upcoming open class. But now, they had ended up playing again...
As the sunset stretched across the hills and the sky swirled with rushing clouds of fiery hues, the basketball court was bathed in the glowing light of dusk, carrying a sense of passionate and romantic exhaustion.
Zhou Luoyao dropped the ball and walked up to the stands, sitting together with Zhou Ye and Zheng Nange.
The three were relatives and childhood friends, all transferred from the capital as children of prominent families. Years later, they might not even remember this very moment.
Bathed in the sunset, Zhou Luoyao’s slender figure appeared especially graceful.
Her gaze crossed the playground and landed on Lin Cheng, who was riding his little blue electric bike.
“Lin Cheng! Come over here!” Zhou Luoyao waved at him.
When Lin Cheng wasn’t acting like a sycophant, he actually had a decent reputation—everyone had a few skeletons in their closet!
Zheng Nange glanced at Lin Cheng and nodded listlessly.
Zhou Ye smiled and said, “Nange’s in a bad mood, let’s go battle together!”
Lin Cheng looked at the “Golden Dragon Beer” Zhou Ye was holding and shook his head.
Zhou Luoyao frowned slightly. “No way, you have to come!”
Lin Cheng felt speechless. Zhou Luoyao “issued the order” and then said to Zheng Nange:
“Come on! Just play for two hours and then go home!”
“No way!”
No need to ask—it was another father-son battle during their rebellious youth!
Zheng Nange’s father was the top official in Wuzhou; three years ago, he was transferred here from the provincial government.
Because of this, these three kids from the capital were exiled to Jiangnan!
Zhou Ye continued, “If the two of us stay all night, what about Luoyao?”
Zheng Nange rolled his eyes at him. “When we’re done, let Lin Junjie send her home!”
“Fine, with the little money we have, how long can we really fight your old man?”
Zhou Ye said this, then turned his head and stared mischievously at Zhou Luoyao:
“But girls always like to stash away a little secret money, Luoyao!”
Zhou Luoyao quickly waved her hand. “You two stop always scheming against me! Seriously, are you my brothers or what?”
“Alright, let’s go!” Zheng Nange interrupted the sibling bickering.
Zhou Ye said, “Luoyao… maybe you should just go home.”
“No way, I’m coming too! I’d rather go myself than be interrogated by his dad at home!”
Suddenly, Zheng Nange looked at Lin Cheng. “What about you? Coming along?”
“Oh, no need to ask, he’s coming!” Zhou Luoyao giggled.
“Alright then, it’s on me!” Lin Cheng, not wanting to spoil the mood, agreed.
Although in their previous lives, due to different social circles, Lin Cheng lost contact with the other three after graduating university, youthful friendships were always simple.
Different personalities, backgrounds, and values didn’t matter—playing the same games or skipping classes together instantly forged ironclad bonds.
…
They took a taxi to Thunderstorm Arena Internet Café.
Inside, blue, purple, and pink lights intertwined, creating a futuristic atmosphere.
Large esports posters and photos of star players adorned the walls.
Passing several themed zones, some were playing the latest hit game, Counter-Strike.
Others were engaged in StarCraft matches.
Lin Cheng had been a veteran in the previous life, playing until Warcraft came along and pulled him into a new realm.
Zheng Nange and Zhou Ye sat side by side on a private sofa.
Lin Cheng and Zhou Luoyao faced them.
“Luoyao, go grab four bottles of cola and order some fried rice for me…”
“I’m not going!” Zhou Luoyao rolled her eyes at Zheng Nange.
“Then let’s play a round—loser goes!”
Zheng Nange set up the console, and the four plunged into battle. Before long, Lin Cheng was defeated by a relentless tag-team assault from Zheng Nange and Zhou Ye.
Lin Cheng smiled wryly as he stood up; Zheng Nange and Zhou Ye poked their heads out from behind the computers.
“Ah, it’s not Luoyao? Then why was she shouting so much!”
Zhou Luoyao stuck out her tongue playfully. “I knew you two were scheming against me!”
The clatter of keyboards rose and fell; the four quickly ate and drank, battling fiercely until nine o’clock at night.
Zheng Nange joined the PK tournament organized by Thunderstorm Arena.
Playing games well required talent—not just endless practice.
Zheng Nange had been a team member in the capital; no wonder his strict father sent him to study high school down south.
If he’d stayed in the capital, he might have taken a different career path.
In the vast internet café, Zheng Nange had no opponents, attracting a crowd watching him play.
“Damn, that micro-control!”
“Hey, he’s sending out dog units now…”
Of course, many were also there to watch Zhou Luoyao.
Zheng Nange shouted, “Any more challengers? Keep them coming!”
His crisp capital accent carried an indefinable arrogance.
A guy with glasses and a crew cut spoke up.
His hairstyle looked like he’d just been licked by a calf; judging by the admiring looks around him, this crew-cut guy was probably the local gaming master.
Zheng Nange smiled. “Bring it on!”
“Let’s spice it up with a bet?”
“What kind of bet?” Zheng Nange looked at the crew-cut guy with disdain.
The crew-cut guy smiled slyly and pointed at Zhou Luoyao.
“If I win, I get to play against her, no quitting halfway. Deal?”
The crowd erupted in cheers and laughter.
“Get lost!” Zhou Luoyao retorted with disdain.
The onlookers, some watching the match and others watching Zhou Luoyao, were thrilled by her ever-changing expressions of mock annoyance and delight.
“Alright!” Unexpectedly, Zhou Luoyao replied to the crew-cut guy:
“If you lose, you have to go shout on the street ten times that you’re the ‘Big Spring Green’!”
She then turned to Zheng Nange. “If you lose, we gang up on you!”
“Let’s do this!” Though some didn’t mean harm, seeing Zhou Luoyao’s playful charm made the crowd’s excitement boil over.
“Let’s start! Best of three!”
The crew-cut guy immediately set up his machine and chose the Zerg.
Zheng Nange picked Protoss. As he deployed his first units from the Photon Cannon, he sent scouts across the map.
Suddenly, a red flash appeared on the map, and Zheng Nange’s heart tightened.
Clicking over, he saw two small dog units fiercely attacking his workers.
He quickly pulled back his workers.
The crew-cut guy chuckled and commanded his two dog heads to charge directly at Zheng Nange’s base!
At that moment, Zheng Nange’s first Zealot units arrived. After withstanding the initial assault, he sent four dogs to tear at the crew-cut guy’s workers.
The crew-cut guy fought while retreating, losing two dogs before pulling back the remaining forces.
This wave had Zheng Nange sweating in relief.
He amassed half a squadron of Dragoon and a group of Zealots, preparing to confront the crew-cut guy on the central plain.
The crew-cut guy’s dog squad swarmed like a hive, sweeping over Zheng Nange’s Dragoon ranged units.
Suddenly, a rumbling sound filled the air as a transport ship descended from the sky!