Xu Jintang and the other two stood side by side and bowed to the surrounding stands to express their gratitude.
After the match, Xu Jintang and his five teammates shook hands with the members of the Dragon-Slaying Team as a gesture of respect.
"Sister," the captain of the Dragon-Slaying Team suddenly whispered, looking at Xu Jintang, "You guys should... be from one of the top five military academies, right?"
Xu Jintang withdrew her hand, glanced at him, and replied decisively, "No."
The captain of the Dragon-Slaying Team chuckled twice, "It's alright, I understand."
By this point in the match, everyone could more or less guess the origins of the Mask Squad.
After all, there aren't many students this young and talented; one could guess they came from one of the top five military academies.
As for which military academy it is, that's unclear. After all, they've never used their superpowers, so guessing is impossible.
"This wasn't satisfying enough; it was over in less than two minutes," Song Tianqi muttered as he walked out with the group.
Xue Zhongqi tossed his hair and chuckled, "You'll have a lot to play after the semifinals."
Yan Yuting sighed softly, "We were lucky this time, getting into the upper half of the bracket where there aren't any particularly strong opponents. But after the semifinals, it's hard to say."
Xu Jintang kept his hands in his pockets, remained silent, and continued to maintain his aloof persona.
As they walked out of the player tunnel, the fans waiting on both sides immediately shouted, "Masked Mask, born fearless! Mask Squad will win!"
Amidst cheers, Xu Jintang group of five slowly disappeared at the end of the passage.
Song Duoduo, who had just come down from the stands, stared at the backs of the group and fell into deep thought.
After the second round of the qualifying tournament, the Mask Squad's reputation soared even higher.
Their strength is one reason, but the main reason is that these five people all have rather unique code names.
Captain Foodie, a very simple and unpretentious name, is the true core of the Mask Squad, making him someone you can't help but pay close attention to.
Secondly, the strongest Fourth Tier ability user, the Ruthless Killer, barely spoke, focusing entirely on combat; her demeanor and behavior perfectly matched her codename.
Then there's the Big Watermelon, whose fighting style is unpredictable and erratic, often pulling off unexpected and quirky moves that are impossible to defend against.
Information about Jade Fox and Hot Air Balloon is scarce, but given their inclusion in the Mask Squad, their strength is likely extraordinary.
[I'm so looking forward to seeing the five Mask Squad take off their masks!]
[Ahhhhh, after watching the match, I'm completely obsessed with the Ruthless Killer! He's so ruthless, I love him!]
[Let's have a strong team in the next round, and smash the masks of the five members of the Mask Squad to pieces! I just want to see what these five people actually look like, hahaha.]
The meeting room inside the villa.
Wu Jinghong leaned against the table, looking up at the replay of Xu Jintang four teammates' battle in the second round of the points competition.
"Your opponents were indeed too weak in this match, and you weren't able to perform to your full potential. But it's a good thing, it saved you a lot of trouble."
Xu Jintang immediately raised his hand, "Teacher, today the captain of the Dragon-Slaying Team asked me if we were students from the five major military academies, and I answered very firmly that we weren't. They shouldn't guess our true identities, right?"
Wu Jinghong smiled meaningfully.
"Your mental strength is quite advanced for your age, so it's normal to guess that you come from one of the top five military academies. But... let them guess which one."
Yan Yuting asked curiously, "Won't people guess it's Leikedasi?"
Wu Jinghong crossed her arms and explained, "The competition among the five major military academies is the fiercest. We knew we were going to create this experimental class, and the other four military academies naturally thought of it too. So as long as you don't say anything, and the other four military academies don't say anything either, no one can confirm your specific situation."
At this moment, inside the Clifford Military Academy.
Several military academy teachers, including Shi Lekang, were gathered together watching a replay of the battle video of the five members of the Mask Squad.
Shi Lekang stroked his chin and guessed, "Could it be someone from the Quiet Moon Military Academy? I heard they specially recruited a student this year whose mental strength level is already at Fourth Tier."
Quiet Moon Military Academy ranked third in the previous league and is also among the top five military academies.
The surrounding teachers nodded. "Possibly. But it's also very likely it's Leikedasi."
Another person raised a different opinion, "Why do I feel like it's a bit like the Xihe Alliance Military Academy?"
"Am I the only one who thinks it's Imperial Military Academy?"
Various speculations arose in the meeting room, giving Shi Lekang a headache.
He quickly raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet.
"Stop arguing. It could be any of the other four military academies. But our focus isn't on guessing which one it is, but on their overall strength. We'll have to meet sooner or later in the league anyway, so making a prediction now will help us prepare."
The military academy instructors stopped arguing and nodded in agreement. "Yes, that's true."
Besides Clifford, the other three military academies were also secretly discussing the matter.
Moreover, viewers who followed the competition online have been spreading all sorts of speculations.
Meanwhile, Xu Jintang, the person involved, was leaning against the sofa in the living room, arguing with the Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx.
"Idiot! Idiot, idiot!" Archaeopteryx, transformed into a green-feathered parrot, shouted angrily.
Xu Jintang held a handful of green peas in his hand, a snack that the Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx has been enjoying lately.
"Call me master, and I'll give you some." She teased him, hefting the green pea in her palm.
The Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx cursed even more fiercely, "Idiot, idiot, idiot!"
"Call me master." Xu Jintang closed his palms and continued to coerce him.
Hearing the commotion, Song Tianqi ran downstairs. "Squad leader, you're playing with the parrot again! Can I play with it too?"
As he spoke, he rushed over like a gust of wind, sat down next to Xu Jintang, and curiously examined the green-feathered parrot.
Xu Jintang gave him a handful of green peas, saying, "Tell him to call me master, then give him some more."
The enraged Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx glared at Song Tianqi.
If he can't handle Xu Jintang, can't he handle an outsider?
The Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx immediately shifted its hatred, flapping its wings and flying in front of Song Tianqi, pecking wildly.
"Damn it! Why are you pecking at me?" Song Tianqi immediately reached out to catch the parrot, but the parrot reacted quickly and spread its wings and flew away.
A chase ensues between a person and a bird in the living room.
When Yan Yuting came downstairs, he saw a chaotic scene and was a little dumbfounded. "What's going on here?"
Xu Jintang casually tossed a green pea out, "Playing with the bird."
Yan Yuting withdrew her gaze, walked over and sat down next to Xu Jintang, smiling as she leaned closer, "Squad leader, our team now has its own fan group. I just registered a new account and infiltrated it."
Chapter 82
The communicator's light screen immediately appeared before my eyes.
Chat messages popped up in the fan group: [Brothers and sisters, the third round match is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Anyone who's free can come to the venue to cheer us on!]
[New members, please check the group announcement. If you have time to attend the match in person, you can purchase tickets for the following stands.]
Although the fan group has not been established for long, it is clearly organized and disciplined.
Xu Jintang and Yan Yuting spent quite a while watching the group chat with great interest.
Until the Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx and Song Tianqi were tired from playing, the two of them collapsed on the sofa and fell silent.
Xu Jintang turned to look at the Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx, revealing the green pea in his palm, and suddenly generously said, "Here you go."
The Green-Membrane Archaeopteryx glanced this way, then turned its head away sullenly, as if it hadn't heard anything.
But it only lasted two seconds before it spread its wings and flew over, sweeping away all the green peas from her palm.
Xu Jintang brushed the pea residue off his palm, got up, and went upstairs.
As soon as I got back to my room, my communicator vibrated twice; it was a message from Song Duoduo.
Xu Jintang cleared his throat, sat down on the sofa, and opened the message.
It's a repost of a trending topic about the Mask Squad.
Song Duoduo: [This Mask Squad thing is really popular lately.]
Xu Jintang replied: [Not familiar.]
Song Duoduo replied instantly: [Understood.]
Xu Jintang: [?]
Song Duoduo: [Don't worry, I'll keep your secret. bowing and saluting]
Having spent so much time with Xu Jintang, she could basically guess some clues about Xu Jintang in the blink of an eye.
This eagerness to distance oneself from the answer clearly indicates a guilty conscience.
Xu Jintang touched his nose, didn't reply, and pretended nothing had happened to turn off the communicator's light screen.
The following day, during the opponent draw for the third round of the points competition, the Mask Squad had another stroke of luck, drawing a team whose average strength was no more than Second Tier, and won without much effort.
From this point on, the Ability User Competition officially entered the elimination rounds.
"The three rounds of the points-based competition have now concluded, and this stage of the competition is nearing its end. Below, we will release the official team rankings based on the official data. Teams ranked outside the top 64 will be eliminated from the First Tier of the knockout rounds."
As soon as he finished speaking, the semi-transparent light screen floating behind Li Xiang immediately lit up.
The names of all the teams that participated in the qualifying rounds appeared at the top.
Among them, the Mask Squad ranked first in the standings and is the only team in the upper half of the bracket with no losses in three matches.
"The First One is Really the Mask Squad."
"I told you, they were really lucky. Apart from drawing the Heavenly Radiance Team in the first match, whose strength was fairly even, their opponents in the next two matches were too weak, and they won easily."
"But they only sent one player and still won completely against the Heavenly Radiance Team."
Various voices and discussions from the surrounding area reached my ears.
Xu Jintang and his group of five maintained their aloof demeanor, silently crossing their arms and remaining silent.