After the crossfire ended, the main screen went back to playing what it was initially playing.
The multiple scenes displayed on the screen were too much for the officials to take in.
The staff would also considerately play some individual scenes of seeded players.
This time, Jaehyun and Cruff were among those seeded players.
But since the competition had, after all, just begun, these players were still overly cautious, so exciting and intense battles had yet to arise.
Other than personnel from the relevant associations, most officials started getting bored.
Hence, there were hushed conversations heard amongst them.
It was a normal phenomenon.
Since Lisa sat in the back rows, which was farther away from Nian Chusheng and the rest, she didn’t know those around her.
“How boring. Is this how the competition usually is? It’s not exciting at all,” Someone started grumbling in a low voice.
Looking over, Lisa saw that the voice came from a blond man who appeared relatively young. He seemed extremely bored and even yawned.
He added, “I bet putting two dogs in there and letting them bark would be more interesting than what we’re currently seeing.”
Lisa frowned upon hearing this.
This man went overboard with his speech.
She looked over, and that blond man saw that Lisa had noticed him. He then seemed to realize something.
He lowered his eyes and averted from Lisa’s gaze.
Next to him, someone berated him softly, “What sort of place do you think this is? Watch your behavior.”
This was, after all, an international competition, and senior officials from various countries were around. If someone heard him and made a fuss about what he had mentioned, they could easily do it and result in a political scandal.
Only then did Lisa retract her gaze.
Honestly speaking, though, there was indeed not much to see at the start.
However, through observing how the players hide, one could infer their habits.
But only people like Lisa could interpret their actions. It was torture to these people who couldn’t understand what was going on but had to stay around and watch.
No one dared to voice that opinion, though.
They were here because they had responsibilities to fulfill.
Just then, Lisa saw Chairman Song, who was seated in the front row, turn his head and nod in her direction.
Lisa didn’t quite understand the meaning of this nod, but she nodded back.
At night time, they asked Lisa to go for dinner with them.
When she came out, Nian Chusheng said to her, “Don’t be anxious, night time is when the competition gets interesting.”
“Because it’s ideal to launch an attack late at night?” Lisa asked.
Nian Chusheng nodded and said with a smile, “You can come over and watch tonight, but don’t force yourself. The competition will end tomorrow at 3 p.m. When the time comes, they will record the important moments. You don’t have to view it live if you can’t take it.”
“I understand, Commanding Officer Nian.”
Lisa nodded, then went to eat with Nian Chusheng and the rest.
At least they could still eat. As for Jaehyun and the rest, they had to stay in the competition venue for the entire night.
When one wasn’t on the battlefield itself, they honestly couldn’t understand the environment in which the competition took place.
But it was not as relaxed an environment as what they might see on the screens.
After eating, Lisa merely took a brief rest before re-entering the viewing hall.
The moment she entered, she made it just in time to view an exciting battle.
It was Cruff.
As she watched Cruff in action, Lisa’s eyes sparkled with a glow.
She returned to her seat to watch this competition.
Based on what they could see on the screen, Cruff was chasing someone.
He, together with his two companions, had determined smiles on their faces.
An orange glow emitted from farmhouses in the surroundings and the nighttime visual effect of the cameras.
For this competition, all the players used a specially made gun model.
It was different from the ones Lisa, and the rest used. This type of gun could fire into a greater distance.
It evolved from the guns used for round targets. Although it had the form of a handgun, its barrel was slim and long.
It could at least ensure precision within two thousand meters.
It was a great test of the user’s skills in controlling the gun.
The camera was facing right at Cruff. Lisa saw that when Cruff fired a shot, there would be a fanatical expression on his face.
She was very familiar with such an expression—it was one that showed the player’s determination in hitting the prey.
Moreover, when he fired a shot, he nearly didn’t hesitate, and he could always hit the target he was aiming for.
The players he had chased were ones who moved with incredible speed as well, in hiding and dodging.
It was definitely not a simple task to aim for a target when it was too far away.
Moreover, the other party didn’t have the intention to counter him head-on.
Just then, the repeated gunshots attracted the attention of other players.
Someone charged towards Cruff. Seeing that the situation was unfavorable to him, he instantly climbed up a farmhouse.
And his two teammates continued chasing after others.
After Cruff climbed up the house, as he was under the roof, and added to the fact that it was a dark night, even if there were cameras, he still briefly disappeared.
Those who came chasing after him weren’t goons. They speedily retreated behind other obstructions in the farmhouse.
But when one of them fell slow for a moment, he was momentarily exposed under the lighting.
It was merely a short second.
Bang!
After a subtle gunshot sound, this player’s pupils shrunk, and he dodged almost instantaneously.
However, he hadn’t expected that someone fired the bullet in the direction in which he was moving towards in his attempt to dodge the bullet.
Ironically, that meant that nothing would have happened to him if he had simply stayed where he was.
There was a column indicating the accumulated points for each country beside the large screen, and it now showed that the US had gained four points, and was ranked number one.
One player from France was eliminated.
“Woah…”
Gasps erupted amongst the crowd. Many people hadn’t seen clearly how things had resulted in such an outcome.
Lisa was also astounded.
That eliminated French player certainly wasn’t slow in responding, and with his speed, he had no problem dodging the bullet.
But most importantly, how did Cruff accurately predict the direction in which he was going to dodge?
That shot just now….
Lisa frowned. Based on her capabilities, it was still a tad difficult for her to predict the direction someone was going to dodge accurately.
Unless there was a blatant obstruction next to her opponent.
But nothing but flat terrain on all sides surrounded the French player…
There was simply no way to predict which direction he was going to dodge in.
But it was a fact that Cruff accurately hit him.
In the shadows, Cruff’s face appeared, a very visible arrogance on his face.
He then raised his brows at the camera.
Lisa rapped her finger against her arm. The international battlefield indeed exceeded her expectations.
These players’ capabilities were terrifying. But this Cruff seemed even more frightening.
Jaehyun’s location was very far from Cruff, and for the time being there wasn’t any action.
On the big screen, someone was making a slow-motion commentary of the shot Cruff fired earlier.
It was a pity that Cruff’s hiding location was in a blind spot. Hence, one could only see the direction in which Cruff had shot that fire, and not any other issues.
Could it be that Cruff had accidentally missed his target and the French player so unluckily happened to get hit?
It was impossible.
Unless they could not hit the target in this competition, something as laughable as ‘missing the target’ couldn’t possibly happen.
The players here could easily hit an apple on a person’s head several hundred meters away with their eyes closed.
Cruff obtained four points with this shot, the only points gained by any player so far.
With this first victory, the nighttime battle grew even more intense.
If it weren’t because this was an actual competition, one would think they were watching a movie.
The battles and bullets flying around were fascinating beyond one’s imaginations.
Lisa willed herself to stay awake and watched until midnight before Chairman Song made her go back and rest.
When the time comes, he will send the competition video to Lisa for her to analyse.
With her arm injury, Lisa couldn’t keep up late nights.
Apart from the fact that the audience was more high class than an ordinary competition, there weren’t many differences in other areas.
Lisa felt regretful that she couldn’t experience the competition as a player to handle the exhilaration at the place where all the action was taking place.
She would have to wait another three years before she could participate.
When she returned the next day, Lisa saw the US was still ranked number one, whilst the China team ranked second.
They had 24 and 20 points, respectively.
Although the battle was intense and explosive throughout the night, it didn’t mean that it was easy to gain points.
Everyone was skilled. It could only be said that Cruff of the US team was indeed an extremely strong player.
But Jaehyun’s first performance could be considered very impressive.
On the second day, Lisa heard many people discussing him.
This genius player that suddenly emerged from China had aroused the interest of many.
Lisa didn’t watch for long before Chairman Song summoned her.
“What thoughts do you have after watching them all this while?”
Chairman Song asked Lisa as he walked in the corridor outside.
Lisa thought for a moment, then said blandly, “Actually it’s not as exciting as I had imagined.”
Previously, she thought that since this was an international competition, it would be as thrilling and impactful as other international sporting events.
However, other than the times where there were battles taking place amongst the players, most of the time the competition was quite dull.
Lisa could sense this.
Chairman Song nodded and smiled. “Many people had thought the same previously.”
“But Lalisa, you need to know that this competition is not open to the public, and those who aren’t part of the action cannot understand the exhilaration that happens during the competition. You saw on the big screen that their battle exploded at a great speed and ended rapidly. But with the excitement of it all, take part as a player before you can understand. As for most of the ‘audience’ in there, what they need to understand is the point they have will determine their country’s ranking.”
Lisa fell into deep thought when she heard Chairman Song’s words.
Actually, she understood such a mentality.
All of those inside were officials, and most of them could restrain themselves pretty well.
Hence the atmosphere was solemn, and the air of officialdom was intense.
This affected Lisa’s mood in viewing the competition.
It was why she had felt the competition felt dull.
Only the players themselves could understand just how exhilarating the competition was.
“It’ll be your turn to perform three years later. I have confidence in you. Three years later, I hope you can join hands with Jaehyun and create a miracle. I’m already delighted with Jaehyun’s performance this time.”
It baffled Lisa. “The difference in points isn’t that great. Do you not have confidence in Jaehyun, Chairman Song?”
Chairman Song let out a bitter laugh. “Of course, I have confidence in him. But the nearer the competition approaches the end, the more alert will the countries ranked ahead be, making it increasingly difficult to gain points. As for the countries ranked towards the back, they would launch aggressive attacks. Even Cruff couldn’t ensure he can get a lot of points in such a situation. In the second half of the game, even he would sometimes just gain one point. At times like this, all the more they ought to opt for self-preservation. If a player accidentally gets eliminated, the person who eliminated that player will receive half of their accumulated points. This isn’t an ending that they can endure.”
Chairman Song’s words made Lisa furrow her brows slightly.
It seemed like China had always played a conservative strategy.
After obtaining sufficient advantage, they ought to carefully protect themselves.
This was, of course, what was most important. But did that mean they should stop attacking altogether?
Although Lisa wasn’t in the game, she couldn’t help but wonder what she would do if she were there and in the lead.
Perhaps because Chairman Song could tell that Lisa was in deep thought, Chairman Song asked, “If you’re in the game and you’re in the lead, what would you do?”
Lisa gave it some thought but didn’t give a definite answer. “Depends on the situation.”
She could attack or play defence.
All this was empty talk before she participated in the competition.
But in her heart, Lisa was perhaps more inclined towards… attacking?
Chairman Song didn’t continue discussing this. He merely patted Lisa’s shoulder and said, “You don’t have to fret over this for now. There are still three more years for you to prepare. Learn well from Elder Gong. Win the local shooting competition in October first.”
“Mm.”
After this conversation with Chairman Song, Lisa returned to the viewing room once again.
Just as Chairman Song had predicted, subsequently the countries ranked bottom started launching aggressive attacks.
When facing countries with high points, so long as they eliminated the person with the highest points, they could get half their points. Wasn’t this a guaranteed good deal?
But the players ranked ahead weren’t goons either. Naturally, they would be more cautious in concealing themselves.
Just Cruff alone carried 14 points from the US. Eliminating him would mean gaining half of that, which is 7 points.
Jaehyun alone carried 12 points.
Twelve points.
That was merely two points lesser than Cruff on an individual basis.
Such a result shocked many people.
After all, this was Jaehyun’s first appearance on the international battlefield, and his performance was sufficiently outstanding.
The only regretful thing is, Jaehyun had yet to counter Cruff head-on.
The intense battle between the two that others imagined had yet to appear.
But judging based on the live situation, what Cruff was powerful at was his ability to hide.
He was just like a chameleon who conceals himself well in his surroundings. He deals the opponent with a fatal blow when the latter isn’t looking.
It was very rare for players to find Cruff in where he is hiding.
On the other hand, Jaehyun launched aggressive attacks, and his responses were top-notch.
These two players displayed two extreme styles.
Finally, just as the competition was about to end, everyone in the competition grew nervous.
Because the competition was getting tighter, at 1 pm, the US team had 25 points after gaining another point.
The China Team had 22 points, after gaining two points.
Chairman Song and the rest got all wired up.
The difference was only three points at present.
Could they stand a chance this year?
Perhaps Jaehyun could create a miracle?
But too bad that nearly no players were moving actively in the large venue in the final two hours of the competition.
It was looking quite impossible to gain those three points.
But just then, suddenly, Jaehyun was about to meet Cruff!
The nervous Lisa subconsciously clenched her fingers.
Most of the officials held their breaths as this sudden scene played on the screen.
There were only a few minutes left until the end.
Jaehyun suddenly entered a farmhouse Cruff was hiding in.
Cruff was on the balcony of this farmhouse’s top level.
And Cruff had already noticed his presence.
In the center of the house, a US team member was in ambush.
Although Jaehyun had cautiously entered as displayed in the video, he didn’t realise Cruff was on the top level.
Cruff was hanging next to a piece of glass, and the afternoon sunshine reflected off the glass as it shone upon it.
There was a curtain hiding Cruff that even if Jaehyun looked up, he might not necessarily see Cruff.
Lisa finally understood how Cruff got his ‘chameleon’ nickname—because he always had a way of finding an ideal hiding spot right away.
Add to his unique technique in concealing his breath, even a player with keen senses might not discover him.
When Jaehyun walked over, Cruff narrowed his eyes.
But because his hiding spot was impressive, he didn’t dare signal his other team member, for Jaehyun would immediately notice him that way.
However, Cruff had quietly raised the gun in his hands, aiming straight for Jaehyun’s head.
He recognised that to be Jaehyun.
He had a smirk on his face; it was as though he wanted to deal a fatal blow.
A fatal blow to the China team.
A blow in the last minute before the competition ended.
Time seemed to tick loudly. The Chinese representatives seated among the audience felt like they were about to suffer a heart attack from all that suspense.
If Cruff managed to hit Jaehyun, China would drop to the bottom rankings.
30—
29—
Cruff had already pulled the trigger!
All the viewers could feel their scalps turning numb from excitement.
However, when the bullet was fired, by right, Jaehyun wouldn’t be able to respond promptly.
But at that moment, he suddenly leapt into the house and nicely dodged Cruff’s fatal shot with a response speed that seemed impossible.
Following that, he fired three continuous shots into the house.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
“Player Number Three from the US team has been eliminated!”
“The competition has ended. All the players may prepare to return to the resting station corresponding to your country.”
“Wah…”
Gasps erupted among the crowd. Chairman Song and his group could feel cold sweat dripping down.
After they managed to calm down, they got a kick out of seeing Cruff’s incredibly shocked expression on the screen.
However, at that moment, how did Jaehyun discover Cruff?
Most people likely didn’t understand.
Otherwise, based on the speed at which Jaehyun was moving, even if he was swift in responding, he likely couldn’t hide from Cruff’s bullets.
There was only one possibility—that is, he had already discovered Cruff.