Chapter 73: First and Second Updates Players VS Ju Jiping!

"Game Fudomine·Tachibana Yoshihei VS Rikkai University·Yagi Kei,"

“——15:0!”

The whistle blew and the whole audience was silent.

Just one ball, an extraordinary ball, an unimaginable ball,

A goal that is not acceptable at all.

Even if it was Rikkai University... even if it was a member of that 'Kanto Overlord', this kind of strength...

No, this guy is only a first grader?!

The spectators and the members of his school who were inside to gather intelligence were all stunned.

Just one ball, regardless of its speed, power, accuracy, or even coming straight at you, the naked eye can't follow its trajectory.

Just how strong is this guy!?

The ball hit the ground with a sudden loud bang, and the first person to be hit was Jiping Ju, who was closest to it.

He did not underestimate the opponent and would not let his guard down just because he was a freshman.

Placed on his equal footing with considerable respect,

But even if we have achieved this, it is still not enough, not enough at all.

The naked eye cannot catch the trajectory, it is so fast that only at the moment of the sound of landing can the reflex nerves sense and capture it.

The pupil of the eye touches the trail of the ball falling to the ground from the corner of the eye.

Not a step forward, not a single step forward,

This point suddenly fell into Li Hai's palm.

“…”

“…”

The dead silence spread, and the heated discussions between the two teams as they entered the court seemed to be suddenly silenced.

All that was left were meaningless exaggerated gasps and murmurs of doubt about the situation.

“…What was that just now?”

"Is it a serve? ...Is it the serve from that Rikkai University freshman?"

"This level... is too much..."

No one answered, and everyone was shocked by his first shot in this public event.

Outside the net, Yuushi Oshitari pushed up his glasses and tilted his head slightly, his peripheral vision falling on Keigo Atobe, whose observation ability had been turned on to the MAX from the very beginning.

Atobe Keigo didn't say anything, his slender fingertips still touching his brow bone.

His eyes were fixed on the two people on the court.

"Xiao Jing?" Oshizuka Yuushi couldn't help but ask him,

"...Hehe," a faint smile escaped from his throat, and Atobe Keigo's gaze finally changed. He raised it slightly and fell on the side of Rikkai University, and said with an ambiguous feeling,

"Rikkai University..."

He was vague about the details, and Qingxue's side was not much better.

Fuji Shusuke opened his sharp eyes, but he was not the first person to react like this.

Silence also spread over Qingxue.

Slowly, Momoshiro Takeshi's voice rang out, and he laughed with difficulty twice, "When did this kid Kei become so terrifying..."

No one answered. Echizen Ryoma stared at the two people fighting in the field with his upturned cat eyes under his hat. He squeezed the Ponta in his hand lightly, and bubbles slowly rose up, making a sound.

Kikumaru Eiji, the most active, tried to lighten the mood, saying, "Ahahaha... doesn't everyone know how formidable that little guy from Rikkai University is? After all, we've seen his abilities during the four-school training camp..."

"It's different now,"

He paused before realizing that the person who spoke was his most familiar partner, Oishi Shuichiro.

Oishi Hideichiro's expression was also very serious. "It's different now, Eiji."

Inui Sadaharu opened the notebook, and Kaidou Kaoru took a closer look and saw that the number had already reached eleven.

"...Comparing the data from the four-school training camp with the data from the Kanagawa regional preliminaries, Rikkai University's Yagi Kei...has evolved far beyond his normal pace. Judging from his current strength, it's roughly... 1000% of what it was during the four-school training camp."

“——!!”

"No way, Senior Gan, don't be ridiculous. What the hell do you mean by 1000%?!"

Horio Satoshi, a freshman who came with the team, couldn't hold it in any longer and shouted in doubt.

"That's a full ten times! Even if you improve even more, it's only been a month and a half. How is it possible that your strength has increased tenfold in just a month and a half?!"

Gan was not flustered in the face of the doubts, but just calmly pushed up his glasses and said, "That's for ordinary people."

Horio Satoshi, Kato Katsuro, and Mizuno Katsuo looked at each other in confusion: "...Ordinary people?"

Fuji Shusuke spoke slowly, "Well, ordinary people."

"Ordinary people's talents have limits. Once they reach the peak, it's difficult to go further. That's the upper limit."

"…The upper limit?"

Fuji Shusuke nodded, his ice-blue eyes fixed on the two figures facing each other across the net on the court.

"Well, the upper limit."

"And Agan said that the reason why Yagi was able to increase his strength tenfold compared to before was precisely this."

Horio Satoshi was puzzled, Mizuno Katsuo and Kato Katsuro were scratching their heads.

Tezuka Kunimitsu, who was always keeping his eyes fixed on the field, spoke calmly.

"Because of Yagi Kei, he has no upper limit."

Horio Satoshi/Mizuno Katsuo/Kato Katsuro: "...No, no limit?"

"—Yes, there is no limit."

Yanagisawa Renji flipped open the cover of the Yagi Kei data collection notebook, which had the twentyth one written on it. Yagyu Hiroshi glanced at it briefly. From one to twenty, they were neatly arranged, not one more, not one less.

Liu Jun...

It's really professional.

Yagyu Hiroshi's idea failed to reach the minds of the Rikkai people. At this moment, they were gathered together to listen to Yagyu's analysis.

"I discovered this by comparing Yagi's data observation and recording."

Liu pointed to a certain page with his pen, and everyone's attention was drawn to it. For a moment, only Liu's voice was clear and rising.

"Yagi's data fluctuates wildly, increasing dramatically almost every day."

"Whether it's physical fitness, speed, reaction, spirit, or strength, the improvement in each one is superhuman,"

As Liu spoke, he closed his notebook and looked up at the figure on the court.

"In the data of normal members, the closer they get to the critical limit, the slower the growth rate will be."

"But for Yagi, this law has never been true."

He slowly opened his eyes, and the Rikkai people finally saw the emotions in his eyes. Long ago, when he first fought against Yagi Kei, Yanagi had already sensed the "endless" in him.

Now he can finally say this to everyone.

"Kei Yagi, he has no upper limit at all."

“…”

"Kei, is he so strong..." Kirihara Akaya murmured,

Marui Bunta looked at him worriedly. Although he was also shocked by Liu's conclusion, he would still pay attention to the emotional issues between the juniors.

It would be bad if the younger generation was too strong and the mentality of the senior Akagi was affected...

"——That's absolutely fantastic!!" Kirihara Akaya raised his hands high and breathed a sigh of relief.

"It's okay, it's okay! I'm glad Kei can win! Hahaha, I didn't expect Kei to secretly evolve without telling me! Damn it, even if he hid it from the seniors, he shouldn't hide it from me!!"

Marui Bunta and Jack Kuwahara, who had been worried for a long time, said: "..."

Kirihara Akaya noticed something and turned around, "What's wrong, Marui-senpai, Kuwabara-senpai, why are you all looking at me?"

"...Ah, ah haha, no, nothing," the two of them laughed together, looked at each other and silently wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads.

Kirihara Akaya had a huge question mark on his head and was blinking his eyes in confusion.

Of the three giants of Rikkai University, Sanada and Yukimura remained calm after Yanagi said the above words.

As an opponent who had formally fought against Yagi Kei in the early stage,

A person who had a disguised fight with the later Yagi Kei,

When it comes to fighting with Kei Yagi, both of them have their own ideas and unique insights.

But without exception, it is entirely based on the affirmation of the strength of the younger generation.

"Haha, it's about to begin, Genichirō."

"……Um."

A drop of sweat slowly rolled down Ju Jiping's forehead.

The nervousness, tension, and indecision had left him since his second year of junior high school, but now they were back again.

Across the net, the black-haired figure on the opposite side took out a yellow tennis ball from his pocket.

Holding the ball, he tossed it up and down slowly, slightly tilting his face, looking from the end of his narrow eyes.

Is he in his eyes?

Is he not in his eyes?

Bend your knees, throw the ball, jump, swing the racket—

"Bang!"

“—This way!”

With his physical instincts honed to the extreme, Tachibana Jiping quickly ran towards the diagonal landing point.

Take a big step forward, even if you have tried your best to go faster, faster, even if it is just half a second faster,

The moment the tennis racket was about to reach the yellow ball, time, which had been slowing down, suddenly sped up.

He rubbed the edge of the racket and rolled over it mercilessly!

“——Beep!”

"Fudomine Tachibana Yoshihei vs. Rikkai University Yagi Kei: 0:1!"

The referee waved his arm to indicate a successful score.

The whole audience was in uproar.

A drop of sweat that had been accumulating on the corner of his eyebrow finally rolled down to the ground. Tachibana Jiping stood up, holding his racket, and looked back at the black-haired figure across the net.

No expression,

Expressionless.

Noticing his gaze, the other party just gave him a slight glance and then looked away.

It seems like I never cared.

It seems that I never felt that fighting with him... was something that needed to be nervous.

"Orange!"

"--team leader!"

The players changed their hair, and the members of Fudomine looked at him nervously. Tachibana used a gentle smile to comfort them.

"It's okay, everyone. It's okay..."

Kamio Akira's face looked unhappy. Ibu Shinji turned his head slightly to look at Rikkai University. Ishida Tetsu frowned even more.

"Orange..."

Tachibana Jiping interrupted what he was about to say with a soothing look.

Placing him in singles is a risky move. Facing this year's Rikkai University, especially the complete team,

Legend has it that every regular member possesses national strength, the overlord of 'Kanto', Rikkai University.

It is absolutely impossible to win by just following common sense. You can only take the enemy by surprise to fight for a chance of survival.

But no one expected that he would face Yagi Kei in singles match.

No, maybe it was expected, but no one knew how powerful Yagi Kei was.

But it is useless to lament these things at this time. The right thing to do is to play every next ball well.

"I will try my best to win this game," Tachibana patted the shoulder of his teammate Fudomine who was worried about him, picked up the tennis racket and stood on the court again.

Meanwhile, at Lihai University, everyone was silently looking at the younger generation who was eating grilled fish in silence.

You look at me, I look at you. According to the Kanagawa regional preliminaries process, Yukimura is not there, so there is no one to give countermeasures and suggestions to the players on the field.

Now that Yukimura is back, no one dares to point fingers at the mushroom head who is on the field.

After staring at each other for a long time, Minister Yukimura finally spoke, "Yagi, you——"

When I looked up, I saw that Mushroom Head, who was holding the grilled fish, had already walked ten miles away.

Yukimura Seiichi: "..."

Others: “…”

This familiar feeling of not listening to others has been missing for a long time.

I went back to the fountain to recover my strength and, by the way, replenished the buff status of my Noble Phantasm [Perfect Referee Chair: Used during competitions, it increases experience by 125%, accelerates physical recovery by 125%, and accelerates health recovery by 125%.

Players raise their rackets and continue playing!

The opponent I matched with in this match had a very thick health bar. When I looked up, I saw that it was an elite dungeon BOSS.

No wonder the health bar is so thick.

However, the defense is weak, and the player's attack power can easily make him go in and out seven times.

Finally, I don't have to scrape my skin when fighting against BOSS.

This is the normal difficulty of a dungeon challenge. The difficulty of the previous Samurai Weekly and special dungeon BOSS was obviously beyond the standard... It was simply bullying a cat!

After going back to the GM to give feedback, the muttering in his heart finally came to an end. The player looked up and faced the attacking dungeon boss, Tachibana Yoshihei.

Holding the racket in his right hand, Ju slowly closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his whole body was filled with vigor.

Seeing this scene, everyone at Fudo Peak slowly felt relieved. "Great—it's the 'Breath of the Beast!' Tachibana has now entered his own rhythm!"

The player took a look from afar, and the prototype of the lion king appeared faintly around the dungeon BOSS, and its momentum increased greatly.

And it is still adding buffs to the status bar.

[Due to the skill 'Breath of the Beast', the boss's agility increases! ]

【Due to the skill 'Breath of the Beast', the boss's speed has increased! 】

【Due to the skill 'Breath of the Beast', the boss's attack increases! 】

[Due to the skill 'Breath of the Beast', the BOSS's health bar is temporarily increased to 125%! ]

Player: “…”

The player slowly typed out a question mark.

It would be fine if it was just a buff skill, but this one has all-around buffs! ?

Was this the use of a skill or the direct summoning of a martial spirit's true form?!

The players were dazzled by the numbers and various buffs, and could only remain silent.

Silently swung the racket, silently ran over, and silently hit the ball.

“——Bang!!”

Hurricane attack and collision, using the "Breath of the Beast", even when serving, he was fully focused, and immediately followed up with Tachibana Jiping's ultimate move - "Rampage Lion" after returning the first ball!

In an instant, the air was divided into two, two into three, three into four... In the blink of an eye, it was already densely packed with yellow balls.

Tennis balls, so dense that it was terrifying, roared and rushed towards the black-haired figure on the other side of the net from all directions. Even each ball was wrapped in the unparalleled power of a lion.

The spectators who saw something familiar were immediately shocked, "—Isn't this the ultimate move of the Kyushu Twin Heroes!?"

"Tachibana Jiping...it turns out to be that Tachibana Jiping!!"

The audience was shocked, but the Fudomine members had no time to be shocked. Their hearts were all on Tachibana Jiping who played the "Rampage Lion".

"For this ball, after Tachibana returns the ball, many tennis balls will attack the opponent." Fuji pinched his chin slightly and said,

Unable to help but be carried away by the atmosphere on the court, Kikumaru Eiji also felt a little nervous. "Every ball feels so real. I can't even tell which one is the real return. How is that little guy from Rikkai University going to deal with it..."

Taocheng Wu thought about it nervously, but the only scene that appeared in his mind was the scene of Mushroom Head holding a tennis racket and transforming into a Thousand-Handed Centipede on the spot, "Hua La La" and hitting it back with one click.

He immediately clenched his left fist and knocked his right hand, overjoyed: "I figured it out! - As long as I transform into a centipede, I will have enough hands to fight back!"

Qing Xue and the others: "?"

Echizen Ryoma pulled his hat and said, "You're still a long way from here, Tao-senpai."

Everyone's eyes immediately turned to him. Taocheng Wu smiled wryly: "So what do you think, Ryoma?"

Echizen Ryoma tilted his head slightly to look into the field, "That guy, doesn't he still have legs?"

Others in Qingxue: "..."

Kikumaru Eiji turned aside and whispered, "Oishi, I think... why don't we let Xiaobutian and Taoshao play with the little one from Rikkai University?"

"They...seem to be a little abnormal here."

Oishi Shuichiro: "Ha, haha..."

Oishi Shuichiro could only smile bitterly, and then looked at the court. The black-haired figure standing there, holding a racket, faced the tennis ball that rushed towards him in a thousand ways, with no change in expression.

Slightly raise your eyes, take a step sideways, and swing your racket——

"clang--!"

The violent sound of the racket hitting the ball hits my eardrum instantly. After a delay of one frame, I raised my backhand and hit the other side of the net.

Tachibana Jiping's pupils suddenly shrank, reflecting the roar of the person who had identified the most accurate tennis ball among the thousands of tennis balls with just a light stroke, and hit it back with a force that was no less powerful than his own, straight in his face.

He slowly grinned, his adrenaline secretion filled up, he sprinted and jumped over, suddenly gripped the racket to meet the attack head-on, and pressed down with his back hand to hit back!

"It's the Exploding Ball Dance!" Everyone in Fudo Peak shouted in unison!

In an instant, the return ball under the racket rebounded and trembled, ups and downs, suddenly jumped and split, and the number of balls was much greater than before, falling down with the powerful momentum of Mount Tai.

The target is directly pointed at——Yagi Kei who calmly raised his eyes!

Liu Shiji explained, "The principle behind this attack is that Tachibana uses the forward momentum and downward force of his jump, combined with brute force, to strike the tennis ball with the hoop, causing the force to collide everywhere inside the ball."

"—Tennis balls are moving very fast in the air, so it looks like there are countless of them."

Neither Yukimura Seiichi nor Sanada Genichirō said anything, their eyes fell on the figure of Yagi Kei who remained calm.

The audience was discussing: "What's going on? Why did he suddenly stop moving? Was he scared?"

"It's possible... After all, he's facing Tachibana Yoshihei, one of the two heroes of Kyushu! And this kid is only a first-year, so it's normal for him to make mistakes..."

The text bubbles of NPCs cannot attract the player's attention.

The players just watched in silence as the elite dungeon BOSS, which was covered in a bunch of special effects, shouting, roaring, and possessed by the spirit form of the Lion King, released skills everywhere.

It was coming with great force, but when I looked in front of it, wow, it was a tennis ball.

No, a tennis ball can create such a big momentum?

But the NPCs and BOSSes here seem to like to do something big.

I can only respect it.

The player raises the racket and makes an A.

"Bang!"

The ball hit the bottom line and passed the edge. The referee raised his arm and blew the whistle quickly.

“Beep!”

"Fudomine Tachibana Yoshihei vs. Rikkai University Yagi Kei, 0:2!"

Tachibana Jiping landed on the ground and watched helplessly as the return ball whizzed past him at a speed that was too fast for him to resist.

He looked at where the ball landed for a long time, then slowly turned his head.

The dark-haired figure on the other side of the net was already casually turning around with his racket in hand. Even when he looked at her, there was nothing in his eyes.

There is no winning or losing, no victory,

No rival.

With a heavy punch, Kamio Akira's face became worse and worse. Fudomine had thought that he would lose to Rikkai University, but he had never thought that it would be a crushing defeat.

Even if it's just to win one round... Even if it's just to let Tachibana win...

The player didn't read the text bubble above the NPC's head. If he did, he would just look at them with dead eyes and be confused.

Aren’t NPCs and BOSSes meant to lose to players?

Players practice this very attentively, attack attack attack, AAA,

Here, scratch it!

Over there, scratch it!

If the weapons and attack methods were not locked, and the BOSS had a health value protection, the player would have been able to show more skills and quickly solve the problem.

The players with dead eyes were hitting the ball randomly, and the audience inside and outside the field were completely dazzled.

From the initial doubts, to the gradual opposition to Haida's understanding of him, and then to watching him non-stop from beginning to end, without pause, even all the attack strength, speed, and angle were controlled at the same level,

After five rounds, he didn't blush or get out of breath, while the opponent, Ju, was sweating and panting.

He was simply too relaxed.

It was so easy that it seemed like this was not a competition where you had to give your all, but just a game.

The more I looked at Fudo Peak, the more frightened I became.

This guy...is he really still human?

Is this level really something a human can reach?!

Rikkai University, are all of them perverts like this?!

I didn't expect that even though the junior's attack methods and weapons were restricted, the other party could still handle it so easily. The Rikkai people said: "..."

At this moment, sensing the gazes from both inside and outside the venue, for some reason, everyone felt an inexplicable emotion in their hearts, forcing them to strongly want to explain to the outside world.

Oh, so... Although Kei/Yagi is also from Rikkai University, except for him, all the people in Rikkai University are normal people who can breathe and feel tired!

The players have no idea about the NPCs' mental journey and are only concerned with finishing off the opposing dungeon boss as quickly as possible.

Finish work early and leave early, then give it another A!

Once again, Tachibana Jiping used all his strength to perform the "Explosive Ball Dance" in the return attack, and before he could even catch his breath, he watched helplessly as the person who had been moving very slowly turned around and jumped straight to the net.

Amidst the exclamations from the sidelines, he aimed directly at his target, meeting Tachibana Jiping's trembling eyes—

Raise your hand, swing your racket, and attack——

"Bang! Bang!!"

Without any hesitation, without any delay, he found the right ball in the instant of contact and hit it back with 100%.

Ju's moves - from the very beginning, he had cracked them!

The yellow tennis ball spun towards the baseline, landed with all its might, then jumped back quickly to catch the ball.

With great difficulty, amid the prayers of everyone on Fudo Peak, Tachibana stretched his arm forward with all his might - and finally touched the edge of the tennis ball with the rim!

"——Got it!"

The tennis ball hit the hoop, shifting its angle slightly and flying high behind him. Ju stumbled and nearly fell to the ground, but without hesitation, he suddenly stood up and chased the flying ball, looking up.

What caught his eyes was the figure of someone jumping and swinging the racket.

No, don't...

Fudo Peak's sincere prayers,

At the very least, give them a chance...

Tachibana's eyes were wide open and he couldn't pick up the racket in time.

“——Bang!!”

There was a heavy and muffled sound, and the ball brushed past my cheek,

It was also the final goal.

【You win! 】

[Rikkai University vs. Fudomine, Rikkai University wins! ]

[…loading…The next opponent is being matched…]]

“…”

“…left.”

Momoshiro Takeshi was bewildered. "Ah? Minister Tezuka, aren't we going to watch it anymore?"

Kikumaru stopped smiling, and Oishi's expression became more serious. "The outcome is decided, Tao, our match is about to begin."

"And...when we face Rikkai University, it will be the finals."

“…”

“…”

"Both teams shake hands!"

"Thanks for your advice—!"

Rikkai University defeated Fudomine 3:0 and advanced to the next round. The players from both teams saluted.

The morale of Fudomine was low, and Rikkai University didn't say much. After exchanging pleasantries, they packed up and prepared to leave.

The player took the winning reward and turned to leave.

Halfway through the turn, I suddenly found that the road was blocked by NPCs.

I looked up and saw that this was the elite dungeon boss that I had just defeated.

The player and he looked at each other in silence.

Mushroom Head opened his dead fish eyes, and Ji Ping's words went around in circles.

The players from the two teams nearby noticed this and came over at the same time.

I just happened to hear the voice of Ju,

He asked, "Yagi, in this match... did you show your true strength?"

Rikkai paused, and Fudomine stared at each other blankly.

What are you asking? This level isn't even considered true strength?

The player glanced at the text bubble above the NPC's head.

What are you mumbling about? Skip it.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the black-haired boy only glanced at him, then casually walked past him with his racket in hand.

Kamio Akira: "Hey, you——!"

"Kamio,"

Ju called him, pressed his shoulders and shook his head.

Seeing this, everyone at Rikkai, especially Marui Bunta, stepped forward and laughed: "Ahaha, sorry... This kid is just like this, sorry, sorry--"

Ju was considerate and understanding, and told him not to worry about it.

After the entire Rikkai University team left, Fudomine was the only one left on the field. Kamio Akira, who had been suppressed for a long time, finally asked the crucial question:

"Tachibana! Why are you stopping me? Even if he's from Rikkai University, that kid is too rude. At least say something!!"

"He has already said that,"

Kamio: “Huh?”

Ju Wei raised his head and looked at the backs of most of the Rikkai members going away, especially the figure mixed in with the crowd, which was covered, protected and controlled by layers.

"Finally, he picked up the racket left-handed."

"What's wrong with his left hand? It's not like he has a left—"

"……ah."

“…”

“………”

"It seems you've thought of it, Kamio."

Ju retracted his gaze, looked at his curled up and even slightly numb hands, and smiled helplessly.

"That kid... he's never been serious from the very beginning."