The Esports Little Demon King Is a Sweet and Fierce Omega - Chapter 18

The seconds ticked by, and at exactly nine o’clock, the mechanical female voice echoed across the ruined city: “The 32nd Fengshen Selection Trials have officially begun!”

In the trials, victory had nothing to do with your kill count; it was strictly a matter of survival. The last one standing was king. Because of this, many solo players chose to “turtle” in the early stages, at least until the first poison circle began to shrink.

Tian Jiu had watched replays of past trials until he knew them by heart, and he found that this was the most reliable strategy. He only wanted the championship; he had no interest in being a maverick just to catch people’s eyes. Thus, from the very beginning, he had decided to hide and avoid being the “bird that sticks its head out.”

However, while he wanted peace, he couldn’t control what others thought.

Boom!

An explosion shook the entire building. Tian Jiu snapped his eyes open. Crouching in the corner of the terrace, he peeked out cautiously.

The rat-a-tat of machine guns erupted, interspersed with the blasts of shells. The previously quiet area of unfinished buildings had become a chaotic war zone.

A man dressed like a cowboy stood under the eaves of the first floor across the street, draped in rows of explosives like a human ammunition crate. He hid behind a thick stone pillar, occasionally leaning out to hurl a grenade. From Tian Jiu’s position, the cowboy was visible, but his opponent who was clearly using a machine gun, remained hidden.

Suddenly, Tian Jiu felt a prickling sensation on his scalp; an instinctive reaction to perceived danger.

Without thinking, he pulled back into the corner. Almost simultaneously, a bullet whistled silently over his head, slamming into the terrace wall and boring a hole that sent sand trickling down.

There was a sniper on the opposite roof!

If he had been a second slower, Tian Jiu might have been taken out by a headshot. He dragged his heavy cannon closer and stopped peeking.

The two below were still fighting, but Tian Jiu knew the outcome was near. Both the grenadier and the gunner were classes dependent on mana bars. In the trials, long-range attackers consumed mana quickly; after fighting for this long, both were likely nearing the end of their resources.

Sure enough, the grenades stopped, and the gunfire followed suit. The grenadier was likely waiting for his mana to regenerate, but the gunner wasn’t about to give him the chance.

Tian Jiu held his breath, hearing the gunner’s footsteps rhythmically approaching the opposite building.

“Damn it, I’ll take you with me!” the grenadier roared, rushing out from behind the pillar.

A series of gunshots rang out, and the grenadier’s health bar hit rock bottom. Tian Jiu saw a firework explode in the sky, the burning sparks forming a line of text: Remaining Survivors: 300.

Less than five minutes into the game, 63 of the 363 contestants had already been eliminated.

The gunner watched the “corpse” of the grenadier vanish and gave a contemptuous laugh, picking up a bottle of nutrient solution the man had dropped. Game rules dictated that every player dropped one bottle upon death.

However, the gunner had just picked it up, and before he could put it in his bag, a silent sniper shot claimed his life. The sniper from before hadn’t moved.

Tian Jiu didn’t budge. He had a feeling that the moment he showed his head, that silent gun would take him out unless someone else diverted the sniper’s attention.

A silent stalemate lasted for two minutes. Neither Tian Jiu nor the sniper moved. Below, the two bottles of nutrient solution lay abandoned, ignored by all. Far away, the sounds of gunfire and Mage skill explosions continued; likely several youth teams were clashing.

Ten minutes later, another firework burst in the sky: Remaining Survivors: 200.

It was too fast. The first circle hadn’t even finished shrinking, and nearly half the players were gone.

“The skill gap between players this time is a bit large,” Zhou Funian whispered to Feng Wu. Having been delayed by an upset stomach, the FOX partner and boss was now sitting beside Feng Wu, chatting quietly.

Feng Wu nodded. A large skill gap meant excessive eliminations in the early stage, making the late game significantly harder.

“Oho! Look at our Omega Cannoneer. He seems to be pinned down on that terrace,” Fei Erfeng said tensely. “Let’s see who’s on the opposite roof… It’s Okishima Kazutoshi! Ranked ninth, Okishima Kazutoshi!”

“As everyone knows, Okishima is the strongest sniper in this trial, bar none! It looks like things are looking grim for Tian Jiu. Unless the poison circle forces him out, Okishima will likely camp there until he shows his face.”

“Wait! A turn of events!”

A smile spread in Tian Jiu’s eyes. The opportunity he was waiting for had arrived.

The sound of rustling footsteps echoed from below. It sounded like two people. They seemed to have spotted the two nutrient bottles and were cautiously approaching them.

Tian Jiu listened intently. The moment a suppressed sniper shot rang out, he grabbed his cannon with lightning speed and, without a moment’s hesitation, fired a shell toward Okishima’s position.

Boom!

The moment that shell exploded, another shell hit the two people below.

It turned out that in an incredibly short window, Tian Jiu had fired two consecutive skills. It was so fast that the audience barely saw the movement.

Okishima was blasted back by the shockwave, falling two meters away, his health dropping by a fifth. The two below were hit directly and lost half their health instantly.

Tian Jiu didn’t give them a chance to breathe. Another shell followed, harvesting both kills.

Those three shells had depleted half of Tian Jiu’s mana. He immediately shouldered the cannon and fled the terrace. Okishima also abandoned his sniping point and began running downstairs. However, he was on the seventh-floor roof while Tian Jiu was on the third. By the time he reached the ground, both the four bottles of nutrients and Tian Jiu were gone.

He stood in silence for two seconds before turning and leaving the unfinished building area.

Fei Erfeng’s commentary was nearly frantic with excitement. “He did it! He did it! He successfully snatched his life back from Okishima’s sniper rifle and made Okishima suffer a serious blow!”

“Let’s give Tian Jiu another round of applause! Truly our ‘Bearded Cannoneer’!”

The atmosphere at the venue was electric. It was the first time the Omegas had seen such a daring Omega contestant; they felt a surge of collective pride. The Alphas were even more enthusiastic, their palms red from clapping and their voices going hoarse.

The Ji couple, who had been lying low recently, were appearing in public for the first time since their apology video. They hadn’t known Tian Jiu was competing, so they had been stunned speechless since seeing him introduced as a top seed. Now, seeing him perform so well and hearing the whole arena cheer for him, their hearts were filled with a complex mix of emotions.

This son, who had always been a cowardly waste… is he actually this powerful?

Given the atmosphere, even if Tian Jiu didn’t win a rank, he would definitely be the talk of the town after the match. Such glory shouldn’t belong to Tian Jiu alone; as his parents, they felt they should share in it. The two exchanged a look and immediately understood each other: Tian Jiu had to return to the Ji family with this glory!

On the other side, Ji Kaile was struggling to maintain his usual “sweet and soft” facade. His fists were clenched tight, and his eyes were red with fury.

He should have taken Tian Jiu to the third floor back then; falling from the second floor was far too easy on him! If he had died then, he wouldn’t be here now, stealing the spotlight and making it impossible for Luo Yuan to look away!

He glanced at Luo Yuan, whose admiration was undisguised. Ji Kaile felt like crying from rage. He reached out and gently took Luo Yuan’s hand.

Luo Yuan startled, turning to meet his eyes. Ji Kaile gave him a sweet smile. “Xiao Yin is so amazing, isn’t he?”

“Yeah,” Luo Yuan smiled back, squeezing his hand before turning his gaze back to the arena.

The smile on Ji Kaile’s face froze, and he lowered his eyes to hide his expression.

******

Zhou Funian watched the red panda on the screen. “This kid is quite good. But why do I feel like he looks familiar?”

Feng Wu smiled. “You’re getting old.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Your memory is failing.”

Zhou Funian couldn’t be bothered to argue.

Tian Jiu put his weapon back into his bag; the cannon was too large and easily exposed his location. He was quite small, darting quickly through the rubble. The results of his recent exercise showed as he ran with impressive speed. The audience saw nothing but a “red panda” bolting through the ruins, its big, fluffy tail swaying back and forth.

There were over a dozen youth teams in the competition. After the initial skirmishes, few teams likely had all members still alive. Tian Jiu decided to hide near a large supply point so he could observe the youth teams and find an opening to harvest some nutrients.

The closer he got to the hotspots, the louder and more chaotic the sounds of battle became. Mages would occasionally cast skills that reduced the already broken ruins even further. Classes like Fire or Frost Mages even caused the local air temperature to shift noticeably.

Tian Jiu made his way familiarly to the Department Store. The Department Store consisted of twin towers facing each other, seventy stories high. Almost every year, the most spectacular moments of the trials occurred here.

Tian Jiu entered the stairwell of Tower A. He took out his cannon, shouldered it, and crept up the stairs. His attack range was limited; he had tested it; six floors was his limit. Any higher, and his skills dealt almost no damage. Because long-range classes were nerfed in solo mode, the effectiveness of attacks dropped significantly beyond fifty meters.

Back in the unfinished buildings, he had been able to deal significant damage to Okishima because the buildings were close together and his mana had been full.

Tian Jiu reached the third floor and repeated his previous tactic, ducking into a shop and hiding on the terrace. This time, he carefully observed the opposite roof. He didn’t see any snipers for now, but he didn’t rule out that someone was hiding well.

Half an hour later, a piercing siren blared over the ruins. The first poison circle was starting to shrink. A virtual map appeared in the sky, showing the circle’s position and a red countdown; one minute until the shrinkage began.

Tian Jiu was surprised to see the unfinished building area was actually inside the poison zone. Good thing I moved early. So lucky.

Amidst the sirens, players in the poison zone scrambled toward safety. A minute later, the countdown ended, and the circle began to contract. In the distance, the earth shook as players clashed again.

Tian Jiu heard several people running into the building he was in, and many others ducked into Tower B opposite. Everyone was cautious; no one started a fight abruptly. No one knew how many people were hiding in these towers; exposing one’s position prematurely was just asking to be the “mantis” eaten by the “oriole.”

Five minutes of silent peace passed. The circle stopped. The safe zone included half of the city center and half of the old district. Large supply points like the Department Store and the abandoned factory were still in the safe zone.

Tian Jiu looked at the map in the sky. The live survivor count was down to 81.

Boom! 

An explosion thundered from the nearby gymnasium, followed by endless gunfire and the clashing of blades. Tian Jiu’s heart raced as he watched the count drop rapidly. Unlike the noisy gym, the Twin Towers remained silent and tense, everyone holding their breath like a drawn bowstring.

“There are currently twenty-three contestants gathered in the Twin Towers, including four top-seeds. It seems this year’s ‘killing part’ will once again happen here! Let’s wait and see!” Fei Erfeng provided real-time commentary.

Tian Jiu leaned into the corner, keeping his breathing shallow, focusing all his attention on his ears. Suddenly, he heard a faint whistling sound, a throwing knife.

Clang…

A bullet fired from another direction, knocking the knife off course. The knife slammed into a floor-to-ceiling window. The glass shattered into a spiderweb of cracks, and the battle officially began.

Tian Jiu heard the roar of guns and cannons from the opposite tower. A Frost Mage’s skill hit the wall of his building, instantly freezing a large section of the masonry. Tian Jiu couldn’t help but shiver.

Lightning flashed with blinding light, exploding from the terrace above Tian Jiu. A sniper on the opposite roof was hit, falling from the hundred-meter height; his silhouette vanished mid-air, leaving only a bottle of nutrients on the ground.

Worried about being spotted by the person above, Tian Jiu shrank further into the terrace, moving closer to the balcony door. Suddenly, he heard the faint sound of footsteps approaching from inside the room. Someone was heading his way likely wanting to hide on this same terrace.

Fei Erfeng said in a panicked voice: “It’s the fifth-ranked top-seed, Ding Sa! As a trainee of Team FB, though he’s a Beta, his use of twin daggers is masterful! In this trial, he’s considered the king of close combat!”

“In such a small space, Tian Jiu’s cannon will be impossible to use. If he fires a shell, he’ll be injured by the shockwave himself!”

“It looks like things are truly dire for Tian Jiu. Let’s pray Ding Sa changes his mind about that terrace, or we won’t be able to ‘cloud-raise’ our little red panda in the coming matches!”

The vast majority of the audience held their breath for Tian Jiu. Ji Kaile and those who disliked Tian Jiu, however, were eager to see him turned into a bottle of nutrients.

“A pity,” Zhou Funian sighed. “I quite liked him. But it looks like he won’t make the top thirty.”

Feng Wu raised an eyebrow, noncommittal.

Inside the arena, Tian Jiu’s small face showed no trace of fear or tension. He looked completely oblivious to the danger, looking so innocent it was heartbreaking.

Feng Wu watched him with interest, feeling that this little red panda might just do something unexpected.

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