Replication

"Good shot, hit the target!"

"So cool!"

The first contestant from Qing'an Province was Zheng Dengxian, and as his name suggests, he was the first contestant to take the stage.

But Zheng Dengxian was eliminated very quickly.

After performing a series of elusive feats, including disappearing from the water and diving long distances, Zheng Dengxian surfaced in the pool 30 meters away from Ren Anran, only to be struck in the head by Ren Anran as soon as he broke the surface.

This makes one feel that Zheng Dengxian put on a lot of fancy moves, only to be easily defeated.

But Zheng Dengxian's flashy moves were genuinely impressive. Even the most casual viewers could sense his exceptional diving ability. The camera couldn't keep up with his sudden resurfacing; whenever he submerged, he would reappear hundreds of meters away. His diving time was short, and his swimming speed was fast.

How Zheng Dengxian managed to swim at such speed and continuously dive underwater without panting is a mystery, but Ren Anran's successful gunshot is also a mystery.

"Here we go again!"

A user named 'Iron Nail' appeared in Song Fengying's live stream, sending a red reward and adding a comment.

Zhang Xuezhou glanced at it, then flipped through it again, and basically confirmed that the tip came from someone in Wanping Province.

Wanping Province was the province that suffered the most humiliation among all the provinces and cities. It came with great fanfare, only to be quickly crushed. The entire competition lasted a very short time.

But right now, the people of Wanping clearly see the same thing happening again.

Firstly, this is the province where Pei Jing, who is as famous as Zhao Tianhua, lives; secondly, Ren Anran's spear fighting style is too similar to Zhang Xuezhou's.

Neither Zhang Xuezhou nor Ren Anran had a particularly fast draw style; rather, their shooting accuracy was so high that they fired before others even had a chance to aim.

Even though Zhang Manqian used firearms in the Guiluo Provincial Youth Challenge, she was not classified as one of Zhang Xuezhou's peers.

However, Ren Anran's shot hit Zheng Dengxian unexpectedly, which gave high- Sequence Holder a very direct feeling: whether they could dodge the shot if it landed on them.

The biggest reason why high- Sequence Holder are not afraid of firearms is because of their fast physical reaction. They can deflect the gun at the instant their opponent's finger touches the trigger, thus gaining the ability to dodge.

Ren Anran's shot turned the opponent's surprise attack into a counterattack and even a decisive victory. Zheng Dengxian, who lost, stood in the pool, touching the blood that had spilled from his forehead, the fear in his eyes still undiminished.

The most relied-upon ability and the most suitable venue were used to deliver a fatal blow; such a defeat is hard to bear.

Even after the host, Song Fengying, had announced the results, he still did not withdraw. Instead, he reached into the pool and touched his water-splitting blade and waterproof short gun.

The time frame might be three seconds, or it might be five seconds. Zheng Dengxian reached for his gun, took it, and aimed—so fast that it was difficult for anyone to react.

But before his finger could even trigger the trigger, he heard another gunshot.

The blank bullet hit his trigger finger with extreme accuracy, nearly breaking his finger bone.

"Qing'an Province seems to be quite unruly. Should I shoot them in the eyes?"

Beneath the artificial hill at the edge of the pool, Ren Anran raised her pistol, a brief movement that sent Zheng Dengxian's expression shifting from fear to horror.

His eyes widened as if he saw a bullet pierce his right eye, a bullet he could hardly dodge.

At that time, there was no large-scale emergence of Gene Sequence experts among the general public, and the contestants who could participate were all wealthy and powerful. Zheng Dengxian had absolutely no intention of losing an eye.

"I was wrong... I admit... I give up!"

So horrified that he stammered out words he could barely speak coherently, Zheng Dengxian felt all the strength drain from his body.

Aside from expending two bullets from his opponent, he did nothing else, which was contrary to the plan he had set before entering the arena.

This even angered Ren Anran, who prepared to shoot at high-risk areas.

Not only was Zheng Dengxian shocked, but even the contestants preparing to compete in the audience all became serious.

Normally, which body part to shoot is not something an athlete can control; where the shot lands depends entirely on their ability. The possibility of injuring the eyes always exists. However, against an opponent who can choose which part to shoot, the probability of the opponent damaging the eyes suddenly increases to an extremely high success rate, which is indeed hard to bear.

Many of them were cultivated by wealthy and influential families, and most of them came to the stage to fight for a place on the alternate committee. No one came here to be blind.

The eye is a very special organ. Once it is damaged, it needs to be removed quickly to prevent infection from affecting the other eye, as there are no suitable replacements.

The mere thought of the possibility of going blind while on stage caused everyone's faces to turn grim.

Zhu Zilong, who was second in line to compete, looked ashen-faced, feeling that it was better not to participate in this youth challenge.

They had watched many youth challenge competitions from various provinces and cities. While they could still engage in normal competitions in any province other than Wanping, they had no desire to challenge the kind of competitions like the one in Wanping.

Zhang Xuezhou left, and now Ren Anran has arrived.

The situation in Wanping Province is repeating itself.

If the people of Wanping are quick to fight and quick to admit defeat, which led Zhang Xuezhou to treat them politely, then Zheng Dengxian's refusal to admit defeat after being shot introduced uncertainty into the match.

Life and death are inevitable in the ring, let alone with just one eye.

Zhu Zilong's expression changed repeatedly. After hesitating for a moment, he finally added a special pair of goggles to the equipment he had already prepared.

Goggles are not very effective against live ammunition, but they can provide some protection against blank rounds.

His action relieved many people, who felt they had to do the same as Zhu Zilong to avoid being caught off guard and leaving the scene.

"Everyone..."

"If we can fight, we will; if we can't, it's not our fault. This kind of opponent is likely to be like that one in Wanping Province!"

Before going on stage, Zhu Zilong couldn't help but look at everyone.

He asked in a low voice, which prompted the contestants to also whisper among themselves.

In a normal, competitive match, they wouldn't mind getting beaten black and blue or even hospitalized. Their continuous attacks would eliminate the Western Capital team and make them famous in Qing'an Province, even being recognized for their teamwork.

However, the current situation makes it impossible to participate normally.

The people of Western Capital showed no respect to Western Capital City, and it's hard to predict what they might do in their anger.

The group whispered among themselves, constantly making tactical changes and plans.

"Ning Que, the Linghu Chong you portray always manages to turn the tide. Can you show off a bit this time, just like you do on TV?"

After some discussion, Human Dynasty asked Ning Que Ning Que, who seemed out of place, a question, thus pulling him into the discussion as well.

"Television... television and reality are ultimately different!"

Ning Que looked at the competition venue, then at a large screen on the field, where Ren Anran's face was Highest Clarity displayed.

Ning Que had seen this face before; he even knew that Ren Anran and Zhang Xuezhou had an extremely close relationship.

As Ning Que's guide, Zhang Xuezhou was someone Ning Que could not repay with ingratitude.

He glanced at Ren Anran, then looked at the thin, grayish-white line on his palm that had healed with only a thin seam. His heart began to pound, and his thoughts kept changing. He felt that in this era, if you didn't crush others, you would be crushed by others, making it difficult to stand out.

He was previously clueless when he participated in the sequence battles, but in Qing'an Province he is now completely familiar with the relevant procedures.

During the selection process held by the high-level officials of Qing'an Province, which was merely a formality, Ning Que, who was not a pre-selected candidate, also participated in the registration and even managed to cut in line based on his minor reputation.

Just like in his previous competitions, he fought hard in the preliminaries and fought his way up, turning a casual participant who would have been eliminated in the first round into a finalist.

Ning Que has always stood out by relying on his skills, and now he is only one step away from success.

Once he obtains the position of alternate member of the order of succession, he will completely break free from his original social class and force his way into the core of the Scarlet Alliance State.

He wanted to concede this round, but he couldn't.

"The more I gain, the more I seem to change!"

A fleeting thought arose in his mind, but it quickly subsided, leaving him with a greater focus on his promising future.