Chapter 255 - There is Only One Protagonist
Zhao Jianhua’s deep voice suddenly caused the splendorous and lively venue to go silent.
Everyone present knew that, once Xu Wenqing made a decision, nobody was allowed to interfere with it. However, Zhao Jianhua actually stepped in and tried to interrupt Xu Wenqing. Suddenly, the atmosphere within the event hall turned extraordinarily intense, like a minefield where a single misstep could trigger a massive explosion.
In reply to Zhao Jianhua’s interruption, Xu Wenqing did not speak any words. Instead, he merely stretched out his hand, halting the two bodyguards from dragging Ling Feilong away. He then returned his focus to Zhao Jianhua, his eyes carrying a questioning look. He wanted to know just what sort of reason Zhao Jianhua had for going against his decision.
Zhao Jianhua was one of the main sponsors for the Jin Hai Fellowship Party. He was also one of the directors of the Zhao Group, a major corporation in Jin Hai City. Hence, Xu Wenqing could not simply ignore Zhao Jianhua’s opinion.
“Elder Xu, I am the one who allowed Ling Feilong to prevent Shi Feng from entering this place. Moreover, I feel that I did not make any mistake in this decision. Please don’t make things difficult for Feilong.” Zhao Jianhua then added with a laugh, “As for the reason why I didn’t allow Shi Feng to enter, it was simply because I did not want him to continue associating with Ruoxi. Please understand my decision, Elder Xu.”
“Second Uncle, I’ve already said that our relationship isn’t what you imagined it to be!” Zhao Ruoxi argued immediately, her crescent brows slightly wrinkled.
Listening to the niece and uncle pair bickering with each other, Xu Wenqing, with his many years of experience, instantly figured out the crux of the matter. Suddenly, he laughed and said, “It is indeed good to be young. Since it is a matter between young people, then I will not intervene.”
Ling Feilong immediately let out a sigh of relief when he heard Xu Wenqing’s words. If he were truly chased out of the Fellowship Party, then his reputation would be in tatters. Fortunately, he had Zhao Jianhua on his side. Ling Feilong gave Shi Feng a look that seemed to say “So what if you received praise from Elder Xu? Aren’t I still completely fine right now?”
Shi Feng merely shrugged at Ling Feilong’s provocation, paying him no mind at all. Right now, his sole goal for coming upstairs was to look for the Five Demon Generals. Ling Feilong could do whatever he wanted for all Shi Feng cared. However, if Ling Feilong dared to actively seek trouble with him again, then he couldn’t be blamed for responding in kind.
At this moment, the elegant and handsome-looking Lan Hailong sent a glance at Zhang Luowei, who currently stood beside him.
“Fellow student Shi Feng, please wait a moment.” Zhang Luowei stepped forward, hurrying to Shi Feng as he shouted, “I have been looking forward to meeting with Zero Wing for a long time now. I never would have thought I would get the chance to do so at this Fellowship Party. I hear that Zero Wing has plenty of experts, and each and every one of them has extraordinary skills. Fellow student Shi Feng, as a middle manager of Zero Wing, I believe that you must definitely be skilled. Hence, I wish to seek some pointers from you. We can also take it as an entertainment for this Fellowship Party. I wonder, what is fellow student Shi Feng’s opinion on this matter?”
Hearing Zhang Luowei’s suggestion, glints flashed through Xu Wenqing’s, Zhao Jianhua’s, Chen Wu’s, and everyone else’s eyes. They felt that it was a good suggestion. However, they still chose to remain silent as this was a matter for the younger generation; it wouldn’t be good for old folks like them to intervene.
Among those who showed interest in Zhang Luowei’s suggestion, Zhao Jianhua was the most eager for it to take place. Zhao Jianhua knew very well how amazing Zhang Luowei was. After all, even a martial arts master like Chen Wu looked favorably upon Zhang Luowei. Within a few years, Zhang Luowei would definitely become the fighting champion of Jin Hai City. Meanwhile, if Shi Feng embarrassed himself in front of Ruoxi right now, at the very minimum, he could make Zhao Ruoxi understand how ordinary Shi Feng actually was. Once she knew that they were people of two different worlds, she might even decide to give up on her relationship with Shi Feng.
“Is this going to be a martial arts competition?!”
“Excellent! To think that I’ll get the chance to witness Jin Hai University’s champion fighter exchanging moves with an expert from Zero Wing; the money I paid to join this Fellowship Party is totally worth it!”
Anticipation started filling the eyes of everyone present within the event venue.
“Hahaha! Fellow student Shi Feng, see how everyone is looking forward to an exchange between you and Luowei! It wouldn’t be good to disappoint everyone, right? You can rest assured, though, since this is only an exchange of pointers, we won’t go too far in this competition. We are only doing this to liven things up at this party,” Lan Hailong chimed in with a laugh. He continued, “I am also a board member of Shadow, and in regard to a Guild as powerful as Zero Wing, I had always wanted to learn a thing or two from you all. I wish to take a look at the gap between us so that I can turn Shadow into a Guild that would not lose out to Zero Wing. I hope fellow student Shi Feng will not refuse this competition.”
The shrewd Lan Hailong was very good with his words. He had made the simple competition between Zhang Luowei and Shi Feng sound as if it were a competition between Shadow and Zero Wing. Lan Hailong was clearly intending to use Zero Wing to raise Shadow’s status.
Originally, the protagonist for the Fellowship Party should have been Shadow Guild. However, that role had been hijacked by Shi Feng midway, and now, Zero Wing had become the protagonist of the event. Moreover, Shi Feng had also managed to recruit plenty of new members with good potential. Lan Hailong and Zhang Luowei naturally couldn’t stomach such a scene occurring right before their eyes. Hence, they thought of using Shi Feng as a stepping stone. That way, Shadow’s fame at this event would instantly surpass Zero Wing.
Moreover, Lan Hailong’s plans weren’t limited to just this one point. He also intended to publicize Shi Feng’s loss, allowing everyone, both inside and outside of God’s Domain, to know that an expert from Zero Wing had lost badly to a player from Shadow. At that time, Shadow’s reputation would not lose out to Zero Wing by one little bit.
As for Shi Feng himself, he would definitely be expelled from Zero Wing after turning the Guild into a laughing stock. This could be considered Lan Hailong’s revenge on Shi Feng for stealing Shadow’s limelight at this event.
Also, now that the event had become so lively, with so many people cheering and calling out Shi Feng’s name, Shi Feng would not have an easy time declining the competition request.
“How could you say such a thing?” Zhao Ruoxi asked, dissatisfaction in her tone. “Shi Feng is a gaming expert, not some fighting expert. What point would there be for the two of them to have a match with each other?”
Immediately, many people among the audience came to a realization. Although Shi Feng was amazing inside a game, that did not mean he would be equally amazing at fighting in real life. Even if Zhang Luowei defeated him, that did not prove that Zhang Luowei was strong inside the game.
“Fellow student Zhao Ruoxi, you must be joking. God’s Domain is a virtual reality game, and every aspect of the game is extremely realistic; I believe that anyone who has experienced combat in God’s Domain would know this. Although being good at fighting in real life does not necessarily make someone good at the game, the same cannot be said for the opposite. If one is good at the game, then it shows that they are equally skilled at fighting in real life. In fact, I know just how amazing fellow student Shi Feng is. After all, he was able to defeat Zhou Yuhu, the student who placed third in Jin Hai University’s fighting competition. With such strength, it would be a pity for the two of them to not compete against each other.” Lan Hailong smiled calmly. Contrary to his words, he had absolute confidence in Zhang Luowei obtaining victory. As for Shi Feng, although he was relatively powerful himself, he was definitely not a match for Zhang Luowei. The reason being, Zhang Luowei had already reached the standards of a professional. He was on an entirely different level when compared to Zhou Yuhu.
“What?! That Zhou Yuhu was actually defeated by Shi Feng? No wonder he managed to become a middle manager of Zero Wing. As expected, Zero Wing is powerful!”
Many of those present in the event hall was shocked by this revelation, their anticipation towards the competition between Shi Feng and Zhang Luowei growing even more intense.
“It seems that I really can’t underestimate young people. To think that he would choose to keep himself hidden despite possessing such skills. It is truly rare for a youngster like him to have such a humble heart,” Xu Wenqing commented, his evaluation of Shi Feng rising even higher now. “With such a temperament, his future achievements would definitely be extraordinary. Chief Zhao, don’t you think your requirements are a little too high? You should just let the younger folk handle themselves; it wouldn’t be right for us older generations to constantly stick a hand into their matters.”
“It can’t be true, right? He managed to defeat Zhou Yuhu with a small body like that?” Zhao Jianhua looked at Shi Feng suspiciously. He had a good grasp on the standards of the fighting competition held in Jin Hai University. It was also the reason why he admired Ling Feilong’s achievement of obtaining ninth place in the competition.
“Alright, then. Since everyone is looking forward to it so much, how could I bear to refuse?” Shi Feng laughed.
Lan Hailong was still as good with words as he had been in the past.
Shi Feng had a very clear understanding of Lan Hailong. Lan Hailong was also the cause for his decade of hard work going to waste. Shi Feng remembered this point very clearly. Originally, Shi Feng had not intended to seek trouble with Lan Hailong in this life. After all, those matters had all occurred in his previous life. Hence, Shi Feng decided that, as long as Lan Hailong did not provoke him in this life, he couldn’t care less what Lan Hailong did. Yet, Lan Hailong just had to come looking for trouble. Since it was so, Shi Feng would not remain courteous with Lan Hailong. It was also a good chance for him to rid himself of past grudges.