CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 39: DIGGING HOLES MAKES PEOPLE HAPPY

"Fang Zhen?"

"Did you just join Shadow of the Storm?"

Chen Ya couldn’t help but scrutinize him, her beautiful eyes showing slight surprise. She expected a young talent, but it turned out to be a middle-aged man.

At this age, no matter how you look at it, it’s the age to retire. Even if he looks mature, he’s on the verge of retirement.

Yet, she had never heard of this expert on the verge of retirement before.

"No, I’ve always been a member of Shadow of the Storm."

Fang Zhen was also startled to see Chen Ya at the game cabin entrance. He didn’t expect the famous Blood Flame Gun Girl to take the initiative to inquire about someone as obscure as him.

"Always at Shadow of the Storm? Why don’t I have your records?" Chen Ya found it even stranger.

For a master of triple micro-operations, every major club would keep detailed records, but Fang Zhen’s name had never appeared.

This led Chen Ya to suddenly feel that she must have a deeper conversation with those who conduct investigations later.

Otherwise, in the national competition, you wouldn’t even know what experts other teams have, and it would be just like now, caught off-guard.

And as Chen Ya was filled with deep doubts, the Shadow of the Storm team members present, especially the coaches, couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.

Not only did Blue Demoness lack detailed records, but even they had no comprehensive records.

In fact, their club was planning for Fang Zhen to retire today, to be replaced by a selected backup player...

"Forget it, it’s not important." Chen Ya decided not to delve into the matter of detailed records any further and directly looked at Fang Zhen, "Your spear technique is quite good. I look forward to your performance in the national competition. Next time, you won’t hit me so easily."

As she spoke, Chen Ya turned to look at Li Ranxing, who hadn’t yet recovered.

"Let’s settle the result of this encounter in the national competition’s individual matches."

"No problem."

Li Ranxing nodded in agreement to Chen Ya’s challenge, planning to beat her fair and square in the national competition’s individual matches.

Then Chen Ya left the Shadow of the Storm Club with the members of Blue Demoness, with no intention of staying any longer.

"Captain, were you planning to recruit that person?" Zi Lan couldn’t help but ask softly as she watched Chen Ya walk out the door.

Zilan, knowing Chen Ya well as a friend, understood she would never investigate Shadow of the Storm’s members without reason.

If she’s willing to inquire, it means she values that person’s talent and strength.

And their goal at Blue Demoness had always been to win the championship. If a top expert joined now, their chances would increase significantly.

"I had that intention, but I changed my mind." Chen Ya shook her head, "He’s too old, and it’s hard for him to maintain peak performance for a long time. The national team’s competition is five rounds with three wins needed, rarely just three games. We should reserve this money for the initially planned talent."

"What a pity." Wang Yidao sighed, "At his age, this is probably his last competition. If he joined us, he might still have a chance to win the championship."

"What’s there to pity? His potential is already exhausted. Even if he joins Blue Demoness, he’d be surpassed by newcomers. Better to let other talents have the opportunity." Chen Ya glared at Wang Yidao, "As for you, failing to make a trade-off in a 2-to-1 situation might cost you your chance to compete."

First-floor hall of the Shadow of the Storm Club.

"Fang Zhen, based on your performance today, our coaching team unanimously decided to upgrade your contract from B Level to S Level, and extend it for three years. If you have no issues, we can sign the contract now." A middle-aged coach with graying hair excitedly approached Fang Zhen, presenting an electronic contract.

With the mention of S Level, envious glances from other Shadow of the Storm team members turned towards Fang Zhen.

An S Level contract was a step up to great success, with only Li Ranxing having one in the entire Shadow of the Storm Club, securing a guaranteed annual income of over five million, with potential increases based on national league results.

Of course, Li Ranxing’s S Level contract guaranteed even higher income, as he was sixth in last year’s individual competition. Fang Zhen, although a veteran, only made a surprising performance in this simulation match, unlikely to earn the same as Li Ranxing.

But still, this was the contract countless professional players on Mecha Continent dream of.

"Coach, if I sign this contract, can I conduct my daily training independently?" Fang Zhen asked, inquiring about something personally most important.

The game’s brilliance, Descent of High Martial, exceeded Fang Zhen’s expectations. Playing it daily could bring improvement beyond his imagination.

This made Fang Zhen feel that he should spend more time playing Descent of High Martial instead of wasting it on daily training.

"Of course."

"S Level contracts are very flexible, you just need to check in at the club daily."

The coaches nodded, not surprised by Fang Zhen’s proposal. Many professional players have their lives outside of gaming; it isn’t everything. It was simply Li Ranxing’s requirement for everyone to have daily special training.

But for those with an S Level contract, such restrictions are meaningless.

"Alright, I’ll sign it."

Fang Zhen, confirming there were no issues, looked at the S Level contract in his hands, feeling as if he were dreaming.

He originally thought that with less than half a year left this year, he would have to retire, as the contract was expiring. He was well aware that participating in the national competition was simply out of the question.

The club needed to develop new players—there was no way they’d let an old guy like him compete. The best he could hope for was to sit on the bench at the national competition.

In that case, it was better to retire early and fully focus on game streaming.

Now, with an S Level contract in hand, guaranteeing an annual income of five million for three years, making a total of fifteen million, it was a lot more profitable than game streaming.

"Brother Zhen, can you tell us how you train? That triple micro-operation was just amazing!"

"And that bizarre step technique, it’s the first time I’ve seen a remote mecha move as fast as a melee mecha. That’s incredible!"

As Fang Zhen finished signing the new contract, the veteran teammates who had a good rapport with him eagerly approached, asking about his training. It was truly a miracle that someone his age could improve his skill level so much.

"I won’t hide it from everyone." Fang Zhen looked at both the veterans and newcomers present, all eyes on him, and decided there was no point in hiding it when he couldn’t keep it a secret anyway. He said directly, "I’ve been playing a combat game called ’Descent of High Martial,’ and I’ve learned quite a bit from it, which is why I’ve reached my current level."

"A combat game?"

"Indeed, playing different virtual games can have unexpected training effects because each focuses on different aspects."

"Brother Zhen, what kind of training do you usually do in that game?"

"Well, since I started playing, I’ve been digging holes and chopping trees. Recently, there’s a new task of repairing houses."

As Fang Zhen spoke, the crowd exchanged looks of disdain and disbelief.

What kind of combat game involves daily tasks like digging holes and chopping trees without fighting monsters? Is this a real combat game or just a brick-moving game?

Some even suspected Fang Zhen was making this up to prevent them from catching up.

"Digging holes?" Not far away, Li Ranxing, hearing this, thought Fang Zhen wasn’t lying. After all, Fang Zhen once mentioned he was digging holes at midnight, which seemed like a joke, but it turned out to be true. "Maybe I should try that game too."

Li Ranxing felt he had reached a bottleneck. No matter how intensely he trained daily, there wasn’t much improvement in his skill level. Switching to a different training method might not be a bad choice.

At the Black Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, the sun was setting.

"Brother Zhen, what’s up with you today? You’re digging holes with such gusto."

Twilight of the Gods observed Fang Zhen, who was using Shattering Stone Fist instead of the Alloy Shovel, filling sacks with soil as if he had found treasure, running around without even catching his breath.

He was as industrious as a busy bee.

"I’m in a good mood today, so I decided to dig more," Fang Zhen said, full of emotion. "Haven’t you noticed? The game progresses according to our advancement. There will definitely be a wave of players joining in the future. If we don’t dig now, others will take it all. We need to dig as much as we can now, or there’ll be nothing left later."

"Brother Zhen, you make so much sense. How did I not think of that?" Twilight of the Gods suddenly felt enlightened. "The underground of the Martial Arts Hall is only so big, with limited planting areas. The more we dig now, the more planting land we’ll have in the future. With enough planting land, we can earn more than the newcomers by just laying back!"

"Uh, I didn’t think that far," Fang Zhen admitted, feeling a sense of enlightenment himself. "But you’re right; let’s get digging!"

"Right on!" Twilight of the Gods picked up a shovel with excitement and began digging fervently.

Meanwhile, Lin Qi in the Martial Arts Hall’s lounge had a rather gloomy expression.

"Are these players insane? Is digging holes really that entertaining?"

Lin Qi watched as all ten players ignored the task of repairing the Martial Arts Hall and focused entirely on digging, growing more enthusiastic. He didn’t understand what was on their minds.

Even though he had increased the reward for the hall’s repair tasks, the ten were so adamant, like turtles eating weighing stones, stubbornly elevating their skills in Shattering Stone Fist and Leopard Shadow Step. In just one short night, their proficiency increased by over 7%, and each reached over 50% beginner level.

His own extracted proficiency brought Shattering Stone Fist to 79% beginner level, Leopard Shadow Step to 82%, and even the Breathing Technique to 43% beginner level.

Strength: 155.4 kg. (Apprentice 200 kg)

Speed: 11.2 meters per second. (Apprentice 12 meters per second)

Contemplation Technique: Fixed Star Explosion Visualization Technique (5% beginner level)

Based on pure strength, with his mental will controlling his body and reaction, even without using Martial Arts, he could likely contend with an entry-level Apprentice expert.

"No, I must think of a solution, or else the time to repair the Martial Arts Hall will be delayed again." Lin Qi, despite being pleased with his strength improvement, knew that increasing the Martial Arts Hall’s manpower was now the top priority.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

The sound of the charging completion notification drew Lin Qi’s attention to the humanoid mechanical robot he washed earlier in the day.

"Battery fully charged, would you like to start it?"