A short while later.
Two 330ml cans of sugar-free cola were found on the bed, along with two phones displaying the game "Honor of King of Glory," with the account names [Chen Dragon·Silver Dragon] and [Yin Tiger·Mountain Lord] respectively.
"Damn it, there's only a two in a hundred million chance of getting Ghost Match, and I don't even know if I'll succeed," Hu Xiao thought uncertainly.
"Stop overthinking, Brother Hu. If you really are the Imperial Emperor's brother, and I really am the Imperial Emperor's sworn brother, then with that close relationship, we're guaranteed to be matched against Ghost Match, against the Imperial Emperor in a parallel world!"
Yin Long said with absolute certainty.
Hu Xiao nodded. "That's true."
With solemn expressions, their fists pounded against their chests, and they said in unison, " Silver Dragon / Mountain Lord, loyal to the Imperial Emperor!"
The clock struck midnight.
Yin Long and Hu Xiao clicked to enter the ranked match at the Glory rank with lightning speed, and were matched successfully five seconds later.
Yin Long exclaimed with delight, "Holy crap! Brother Hu, we're in the same line!"
Hu Xiao poured cold water on the situation, saying, "Being on the same team is certainly something to be happy about, but the matchmaking interface is from the 2025 King of Glory Season 41 version, not the 2015 King of Glory Season 1."
Yin Long's heart skipped a beat, "Did we fail?"
The next second.
Ten people clicked "Confirm".
A nostalgic background music with a strong sense of oppression started playing, and the ranked ban/pick interface of King of Glory Season 1 was then revealed.
Yin Long exclaimed in shock, "Holy crap? It worked!"
"Holy crap, we're actually matched against Ghost Match!" Hu Xiao Roar exclaimed in shock, frantically searching for the ghost player, Imperial Emperor.
"He's on the fifth floor, Brother Hu!" Yin Long exclaimed excitedly, spitting everywhere. "If nothing unexpected happens, he's the professional player from the Yousu Team in the parallel world of 2015— Imperial Emperor!"
Hu Xiao quickly looked down to the fifth floor.
As expected, the game ID was [ Imperial Emperor ].
"Without further ado, let's test whether the Imperial Emperor has any mental health tendencies now." Yin Long hurriedly picked up the mental health self-test form and was about to ask the Imperial Emperor a question when Hu Xiao stopped him.
"Damn it, I don't know if he's mentally ill or not, but he'll definitely treat you like one. Before asking, you need to get closer to the Imperial Emperor, lower his guard, and gain his favor."
"Damn! Brother Hu, you're incredibly meticulous." Yin Long looked at Hu Xiao with newfound respect, thinking that Brother Hu was as sharp as a needle, seemingly rough but actually very shrewd. Who said he was a brainless Martial General? He was a complete strategist!
Hu Xiao pondered for a moment, then typed out his question.
[ Mountain Lord ]: Brother on the fifth floor, are you Imperial Emperor, a professional gamer living in a parallel world of 2015?
[ Imperial Emperor ]:?
[ Mountain Lord ]: I don't know if you remember Chou Ox? He's the top laner you matched with the day before yesterday.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: That Arthur AFK'd for 20 minutes?
[ Mountain Lord ]: Oh right, brother, I'm teammates with Chou Ox on the same team. I apologize to you on his behalf. Chou Ox didn't intentionally go AFK. He was just too shocked to be matched with a professional player from a parallel world in 2015.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: Oh, it's alright, I understand.
"Awesome, the Imperial Emperor has lowered his guard." Yin Long silently gave Hu Xiao a thumbs up in his heart. All he could say was, your brother is still your brother.
[ Mountain Lord ]: Brother, Chou Ox said you're really good at games. I like to make friends with strong people. My real name is Hu Xiao, and I'm 28 years old.
After Hu Xiao finished his self-introduction, he felt uneasy. After all, he had two purposes in saying these things: first, to exchange sincerity with the Imperial Emperor and get closer to him; and second, to try to extract as much information as possible from the Imperial Emperor.
A short while later.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: Hello, my name is " Su Hang ", and I am 18 years old.
"Holy crap?" Yin Long's eyes widened.
" Su Hang!" Hu Xiao's heart skipped a beat, because the Imperial Emperor that Liuli was looking for was actually named Su Hang, and he was also 18 years old!
Yin Long swallowed hard and said, "Now I'm even more convinced of Keyu's time-travel theory. This Su Hang, who lives in a parallel world of 2015, might just be the 8-year-old Imperial Emperor who traveled to our world in 2015!"
"Very likely."
Hu Xiao took a deep breath to calm himself.
[ Mountain Lord ]: Brother Imperial Emperor, if you don't mind, then I'll call you "Little Brother Su".
[ Imperial Emperor ]: Yes.
[ Mountain Lord ]: Brother Su, the guy on the second floor called Silver Dragon is in the same team as me, we're teammates, we queued up with you.
Hu Xiao gave a wink.
Yin Long understood and picked up his phone.
[ Silver Dragon ]: I've heard so much about you, Captain of the Imperial Emperor! My real name is Yin Long, and I just turned eighteen this year.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: I've long admired your name?
[ Yin Long ]: Imperial Emperor, you're quite popular on the King of Glory forum in our world. Players call you the Ghost Player, since you're from a parallel world in 2015 and don't exist in our world.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: I did get matched with some people who called me a ghost player, but after the game ended, I couldn't access their match history or find their game IDs.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: But how did you know I'm the captain of the " Yousu Team "?
"Huh?" Yin Long was stunned. He addressed the other party as captain simply because, in Liuli's memory, Imperial Emperor was the captain of the Imperial Crown Team. He hadn't thought too much about it and just typed it out casually.
This alerted Hu Xiao, who immediately typed an inquiry.
[ Mountain Lord ]: To become the captain of a team, Su Xiao must be outstanding in both gaming skills and personal charm.
[ Imperial Emperor ]: My gaming skills are decent, and many King of Glory players call me the number one King of Glory. As for personal charm, I am a homebody and not good at socializing. My friends are limited to the Yousu Team.
[ Mountain Lord ]: Little Su, how are your relationships with your teammates and management?
[ Imperial Emperor ]: I get along well with my teammates; everyone is quite friendly. As for my relationship with the management of the Yousu Team, it's rather tense.
[ Mountain Lord ]: What does that mean?
[ Imperial Emperor ]: I personally don't like to show my face in public. I will wear the Emperor Hero mask in offline competitions. I refuse to commercialize my personal IP, so the team management has always disliked me.
"Rejecting the commercialization of personal intellectual property?"
Hu Xiao was stunned.
Even Yin Long was stunned. You see, the commercialization of personal IP is the exclusive domain of star professional players, which means a constant stream of brand endorsements, corporate sponsorships, and business collaborations will come knocking on their door.
Earning a million a year is a breeze.
"Has Imperial Emperor lost his mind?" Yin Long said in surprise. "He could easily earn millions a year by commercializing his personal brand, so why would he refuse? Is he some kind of super-rich second-generation heir?"
Hu Xiao frowned. He truly couldn't understand Su Hang's actions. If playing professionally wasn't for making money, then why play professionally at all?
[ Mountain Lord ]: Brother Su, why do you refuse commercialization?
But the Imperial Emperor's next reply stunned Hu Xiao Yin Long.