Chapter 85 1/2

In “Polar,” there have been very wealthy players, of course, but recharging to the game’s upper limit in a single go is truly unprecedented.

Xiaoxia was stunned.

But she didn’t even have time to think about how much commission she could get from the player who recharged $2 billion. She quickly, under the gaze of her colleagues, trembled as she manipulated the chubby white ball to find the player who had just recharged two billion.

When a big spender suddenly recharges, as an exclusive customer service representative, she must go see if there are any instructions.

She found Sheng Quan in the VIP room of the arena, replayed on the big screen.

This player, who had just spent two billion and triggered discussions across the game, didn’t create a guild, didn’t buy land, and didn’t recruit people; instead, she was sitting there earnestly watching replay videos of arena matches.

The cute white ball twisted its chubby body and came out of the teleportation array. It bowed laboriously.

“You’ve just made a large recharge. Is there any significant transaction you need assistance with? I can help you with it quickly.”

Yes, even big transactions in “Polar” required some paperwork. Although the official explanation was to create realism, players who were impatient with such procedures criticized the company for using any means to encourage players to spend money.

But there was no other choice; “Polar” was just too much fun, and everyone continued to play while grumbling.

Sheng Quan saw the cute white ball and couldn’t help taking out fresh green leaves from the food storage. As she handed them over, she replied, “Not for now.”

She deliberately cultivated items in the prize pool related to the game, so she naturally had plans related to the game.

But she still needed to be patient and wait.

“Xiaoxia, you came at the right time. I was just thinking of asking you, who would participate in arena matches? Professional players?” Sheng Quan asked.

Seeing that Miss Wojiangshan’s attitude was normal, Xiaoxia sighed in relief.

Holding a green leaf, the white ball replied in a cute manner, “Arena matches have rewards. Sometimes it’s monetary rewards, sometimes it’s dungeon rewards. All players can participate, and during the off-season, professional players come to play in specific matches when there are special rewards.”

“During the season, you rarely see professional players in arena matches.”

“Is it because they need to train for the season?” Sheng Quan asked.

“Yes, arena matches are one-on-one, and daily training for players is possible. However, during the season, the focus is on team matches. Arena matches don’t help much with season training, and professional players don’t like to participate because it’s not very fair for them. They have to fight opponents with a forty percent reduction in their power, which is quite deadly in the game.”

In other words, if professional players want to win arena matches, they have to overcome opponents who are 40 percent stronger. In that situation, it must be exhausting to exert their abilities when their own power is suppressed.

Sheng Quan’s gaze fell on the list of past winners. Sometimes there was a “no pursuit,” and sometimes there wasn’t, but almost every day, she could see “no pursuit” among the participants.

Tan Chen participates in arena battles almost every day.

This is definitely exhausting. Before Sheng Quan came to play, she didn’t feel it much. However, after starting to play games herself, she realized that focusing on gaming really consumes a lot of energy, especially in games like The Arctic, which require special operations during duels.

Moreover, it has to be said that the games in this world are really intense.

As for professional players, their skills are more impressive than their looks. Compared to appearance, their techniques are more formidable, and the difficulty level of operations that seem challenging to others is basic for them.

Even the major domestic teams that are criticized by fans are more exciting to Sheng Quan than the esports matches she witnessed in her previous life.

If the members of these teams were to be in her previous life, even the most ordinary one would probably be treated as a top player. She wonders whether it’s because people in this world have a higher inherent skill level or because everyone is constantly striving and pushing themselves to develop these abilities.

However, although Sheng Dong doesn’t engage in such intense gaming, she enjoys watching it. The clash of technical skills is fascinating!

Even game streamers are highly skilled. They showcase various technical moves with great coordination and bring out emotions with their clever catchphrases.

Sheng Quan firmly believes that her recent immersion in gaming is related to them.

Even among non-professional players who don’t become streamers, there are many experts emerging. These experts particularly enjoy arena battles as they can gain fame, earn money, and receive additional rewards.

In a situation where their strengths are comparable, they would definitely not be able to beat Tan Chen. However, when Tan Chen’s power is suppressed, the situation changes.

It’s as if Tan Chen, with a child’s body, is going against strong opponents, one after another.

And he’s winning.

In the game, Sheng Quan extends her hand, and a telescope immediately appears in her hand. She lies in the VIP room, using the telescope to watch Tan Chen compete on the arena.

The commentator above is a large parrot, hanging upside down on the railing, commentating with its head down.

“Don’t follow the first skill with the second skill, fourth skill, and seventh skill. Unfortunately, this is a desperate struggle. The Flame Pursuit has already tracked him, unless a miracle happens. Wait, what is this?! The ninth skill! After the combo, he can still use the ninth skill in a continuous combo! What kind of awareness and speed is this?”

“Clearing the sky in one leap for thousands of miles! The seventh skill and the ninth skill merge into an ice formation, freezing the Flame Pursuit in place! Don’t Follow did it! He did it! He actually hasn’t rested and continues to execute one, two, three combos, four, and six tactics; it’s happening!! Flame got hit! He got hit!”

“One! Two! Three! Flame falls!”

The parrot flies down, landing on the character’s shoulder that Tan Chen is controlling in the game, taking out a megaphone larger than itself.

“Now I declare!”

“Player Don’t Follow! Wins!”

“Woo-hoo!!!”

“6666666!!!!!!”

“Ah, ah, ah, ah, too strong!”

The audience watching the arena immediately erupts into enthusiastic cheers. For a moment, the entire arena is filled with noise.

“Don’t follow! Don’t follow!”

For ordinary players, this atmosphere might be okay, but for VR players, what they see and hear is closer to reality. Xia Xia is a bit worried that her big client, whom she serves, might find it too noisy.

After all, Miss Scenery is a typical quiet and laid-back person, and her style doesn’t match the competitive scene.

“If you find it too noisy, you can turn on the noise reduction mode.”

A white-haired girl says while turning her head, only to see in the video that Miss River View has also taken out a megaphone, the kind with a gold border.

In her headphones, the excited voice of Miss River View quickly comes through: “Don’t follow! Don’t follow!”

“Ah ah ah ah ah!”

Faced with Sheng Quan, who is completely absorbed and even louder than anyone else, the white-haired girl is stunned for a second.

Then she quickly takes out another diamond megaphone from the warehouse and hands it over.

“You can use this; this one has a louder sound!”

She can’t see it, but from Sheng Quan’s game perspective, she is currently playing a replay video from seven years ago.

The protagonist also doesn’t follow.

The same limit-breaking moves

The same comeback from a desperate situation.

The same cheers from the audience

Nineteen-year-old Tan Chen controls the character to create a beautiful sword dance, waving energetically to the crowd below, where his teammates and opponents stand.

“Tan Chen! If you have the skills, come again tomorrow! The winner is not decided yet!”

“The arena is tough; I can’t play too much. You want to challenge me? Wait in line next week, and by the way, I will win next time too.”

“You’re too arrogant. Who thinks they can win before even playing?”

“Don’t understand, huh? This is the spirit of esports, always chasing victory, never admitting defeat.”

Reality and the recorded video from the past are almost synchronous. The only difference is that, amidst the cheers, the game character controlled by Tan Chen stands quietly, seemingly lost in thought.

The defeated Flame resurrects on the spot, moves his neck as if stretching, and invites Don’t Follow:

“Don’t follow; take a break and come back; I’ll personally put up the bounty.”

Don’t follow; Tan Chen is short on money. As expected, Tan Chen accepts the reward handed over by the parrot, agreeing:

“Okay, I’ll be back in five minutes.”

In reality, his arms are subtly aching.

There is also a tingling sensation at the base of his palm. Unable to ignore the past stabbing pain, Tan Chen raises his hand. His once agile and slender fingers are slightly stiff, slowly rewrapping the bandages on his arms.

“Coach.”

Chen Mo’s voice suddenly sounds. Tan Chen tightens the bandage, controls the game character to sit and rest in the rest area, turns off the voice, and then looks at her.

“Weren’t we filming? Why did you come over?”

The little girl looks at the arena match on the screen and says, “It’s lunch break now; they’re not filming our group, so I came over to take a look.”

“Do you have another arena match? Let me take over; I can win too.”

Tan Chen slowly placed his bandaged arm back on the table, the tingling sensation prompting him to instinctively take out a cigarette and place it in his mouth.

Because Chen Mo was present, he didn’t light it up.

“What’s the point of playing? You’re about to participate in a variety live broadcast; where’s the time for all this?”

“We can make time, and we can take turns playing. It’s still possible to have one match a day.”

Tan Chen’s tone was indifferent. “No.”

Chen Mo didn’t give up. “Coach, just let us play. We can win too! We’ve improved a lot now, and we can also earn money for the team.”

Tan Chen replied, “Forget it.”

Chen Mo stubbornly said, “Coach, I know arena matches can cause injuries, but I’ve checked; it won’t have a short-term impact. Let’s just play until the global competition is over, and then we can rest.”

Tan Chen was amused by the naive words of the youngest member of the team.

In his laughter, there was self-deprecation and helplessness because he used to be just as naive.

“Just rest. Do you know what it feels like for a professional player to suffer from injuries? The arm hurts all the time, and in severe cases, you can’t even eat. Combos that were easy to execute before are now impossible.”

“Once a professional player gets injured, retirement is not far away. Either spend a lot of money on surgery or rely on the team doctor to help alleviate it. Do you want to stay awake at night in pain, or do you want to endure when the pain becomes unbearable from overdosing on painkillers?”

“Once a professional player is injured, it’s the end. You think you can just rest and recover? It’s not that simple.”