Chen Guo's Solo Match Against Tang Rou

The sun rose again, and customers gradually streamed into the internet café. Ye Qiu was busy at the front desk, helping customers log onto their computers. With his previous experience as a network administrator, he worked methodically and efficiently.

Liu Hao came downstairs and, upon seeing the busy Ye Qiu, couldn't help but clap his hands. "Not bad, you've got quite the talent for being a network admin."

Ye Qiu glanced at Liu Hao indifferently. "Oh, still here? Don't you need to go back for training?"

"Training? It's not like there aren't computers here. Besides, I'm not in the mood to go back and look at Sun Xiang's smug face," Liu Hao said casually, making himself a cup of coffee.

Ye Qiu nodded. He knew that Liu Hao and Sun Xiang would never get along. As the saying goes, "Two tigers cannot share one mountain." From the moment Sun Xiang joined the Excellent Era, internal conflict was inevitable.

Thinking about Excellent Era's current situation, Ye Qiu found it strangely familiar. After being ousted by Tao Xuan, the power in the Excellent Era shifted to Liu Hao, but Sun Xiang was Tao Xuan's favoured player... In other words, Liu Hao was now in the same position Ye Qiu once held, and Sun Xiang was in the position Liu Hao had once occupied. So, who would win and who would lose? Ye Qiu frowned, observing Liu Hao's expression.

Liu Hao appeared calm, sipping his coffee slowly and even complimenting his coffee-making skills as if he didn't have a care in the world.

Ye Qiu chuckled to himself, thinking he might be overthinking things. Even he couldn't entirely figure out Liu Hao, so how could Sun Xiang, with his straightforward nature, possibly outmanoeuvre him, even with Tao Xuan's support?

"I'm off work." Ye Qiu stood up from his seat, left the front desk, and headed upstairs to sleep.

Liu Hao took over at the front desk, filling in as the network admin.

At that moment, Liu Hao noticed a pretty girl standing at the door with a pink suitcase, smiling brightly. She was stunning, almost unrealistically so, with her delicate short hair and sparkling eyes, like a perfectly crafted Barbie doll.

"Could she be Tang Rou?" Liu Hao speculated. After all, such an eye-catching girl wasn't likely to be just another customer, especially not one dragging a pink suitcase.

Tang Rou walked in, and upon seeing Liu Hao at the front desk, her first impression was that this network admin was quite handsome.

"Hello, I'm a friend of Guo Guo's. Could you help me with my things? The suitcase is heavy, and I can't carry it up to the second floor on my own."

Liu Hao nodded. "Of course."

"Thank you. I'll treat you to a drink later," Tang Rou said with a smile.

Liu Hao thought to himself that Tang Rou was surprisingly polite. Despite being a wealthy heiress, her demeanour wasn't arrogant at all but relatively warm and approachable.

"My suitcase is hefty; you probably can't lift it alone. Let me help you," Tang Rou offered.

Liu Hao waved her off. He wasn't kidding when he said he worked out for this. Although he looked skinny, if he took off his shirt to show his muscles, he could easily win a bodybuilding competition.

"No need, it's easy for me," Liu Hao said, effortlessly lifting the suitcase with one arm.

All men, whether they know the woman or not, whether they have a girlfriend or not, want to show off their strength in front of a beautiful girl.

Seeing Liu Hao lift her suitcase with one hand without any expression, Tang Rou was shocked and couldn't help but exclaim, "Wow, that's impressive!"

Liu Hao carried the suitcase upstairs, where he happened to run into Chen Guo, who was brushing her teeth and watching TV in the living room. Chen Guo had just woken up and hadn't washed her face yet. When she noticed Tang Rou, who had just come upstairs and was standing behind Liu Hao, her eyes widened.

"Xiao Tang, you're back! Why didn't you tell me?" Chen Guo said in surprise, her mouth full of foam.

"I wanted to surprise you!" Tang Rou said with a laugh, hugging Chen Guo. "I saw your Moments post, saying you found a super handsome boyfriend. I didn't expect our Guo Guo to fall in love finally!"

"Don't tease me," Chen Guo blushed.

"Who is your boyfriend? Introduce me! I even brought gifts for both of you," Tang Rou said curiously.

Chen Guo pointed to Liu Hao, who was standing silently to the side, smiling. Since Liu Hao was a professional player and somewhat of a public figure, their relationship couldn't be made public. When Chen Guo shared sweet moments on her Moments, she only included Liu Hao's body, not his face, so Tang Rou only knew Chen Guo had a boyfriend but didn't know what he looked like.

"Hello, let me introduce myself: Liu Hao, Guo Guo's boyfriend," Liu Hao said with a smile.

"Huh?" Tang Rou was surprised. So, was the network admin who helped her with her suitcase Chen Guo's boyfriend?

"What's wrong?" Chen Guo asked, puzzled, looking between Liu Hao and Tang Rou. "Do you two know each other?"

"We just met," Tang Rou said with a smile. "The suitcase was heavy, so I asked him to help. I thought he was a new network admin you hired. I didn't expect him to be your boyfriend."

"Is that so? It's fine," Chen Guo laughed. "Liu Hao is firm. Carrying a suitcase is no big deal for him... Oh, by the way, Liu Hao is also a professional player. He's super skilled in Glory!"

"How skilled? Better than you?" Tang Rou asked.

"You cheeky girl, don't tease me," Chen Guo said, lightly poking Tang Rou's forehead. "My skills in Glory are pretty average. Although I've improved a lot after some special training, I'm still no match for Liu Hao."

"Special training?" Tang Rou didn't understand what that meant.

"You know Su Mucheng, right?"

"The name sounds familiar. Isn't she your idol? Your favourite female professional player in Glory," Tang Rou recalled.

"Yes! Su Mucheng is Liu Hao's teammate. Liu Hao exchanged tips with Su Mucheng for her Gunner class's signature techniques, and after studying hard, my Glory skills improved a lot. Now I can easily complete tasks in the Heavenly Domain!"

"Really?" Tang Rou was half sceptical.

"You don't believe me? Want to solo me?" Chen Guo couldn't wait.

Tang Rou didn't really play Glory. Despite Chen Guo's enthusiastic recommendations about how fun the game was, Tang Rou never showed much interest in it.

Tang Rou was a prodigy. The first time she played Glory, she was helping Chen Guo in the Arena. At first, she didn't understand the controls and lost twice in a row, but once she got the hang of it, she quickly crushed her opponents.

Chen Guo still remembered that scene. After Tang Rou beat several top players, she turned her innocent face and said, "This is easy!"

Chen Guo was so envious at the time. The opponents she couldn't beat were easily defeated by a soft and cute girl who had only played two matches. Didn't that mean Tang Rou could crush her, too? Chen Guo, who always prided herself on being an experienced Glory player and a master, was utterly humiliated.

Now that she had finally learned most of Su Mucheng's Gunner techniques and significantly improved her skills, Chen Guo naturally wanted to solo Tang Rou to reclaim her image as a veteran Glory player.

Tang Rou didn't refuse Chen Guo's solo invitation. Since Chen Guo was so eager, she wouldn't dampen her enthusiasm. She smiled and said, "Sure, let's solo. But shouldn't you wash up first?"

Only then did Chen Guo realise she still had a toothbrush in her mouth. She quickly ran to the bathroom to rinse her mouth.

Ten minutes later, Chen Guo finished freshening up, changed her clothes, and eagerly dragged Tang Rou downstairs, turning on two adjacent machines.

Liu Hao stood alone on the side. He had been waiting for a long time, hoping to receive the gift Tang Rou mentioned, but the two girls started chatting and completely ignored him. And Tang Rou, who said she'd treat him to a drink for helping with her suitcase, didn't follow through. So it was just polite talk, after all?

Liu Hao thought to himself, "I'll remember this grudge!"

...

Liu Hao followed them downstairs and saw the two girls already in the Arena, surrounded by a crowd of onlookers.

A battle between two beautiful players was a rare event, something that would attract attention no matter who won or lost. It was like watching two gorgeous women have a catfight in real life—no man could resist stopping to watch.

Liu Hao put on a mask and squeezed into the crowd.

The match had already started. Chen Guo was using her account card, Chasing Haze, while Tang Rou was also using a max-level Gunner account card.

Tang Rou had always used Chasing Haze when she first started playing, so she only knew how to play the Gunner class.

"Xiao Tang, I'm not going to go easy on you!" Chen

 Guo trash-talked right from the start.

Tang Rou smiled slightly. "Just do your best."

Then, both Gunners charged forward. As soon as they were in range, Chen Guo, relying on her seasoned instincts, fired the first shot. Although Tang Rou lacked game sense, her reaction time and hand speed were speedy. The moment she saw Chasing Haze's cannon firing, she clicked her mouse to launch a counterattack.

Explosions erupted.

Everyone watched intently. When the smoke cleared, it was Tang Rou who had taken damage, while Chasing Haze was unscathed!

It turned out that Chen Guo had anticipated Tang Rou's aim and dodged as soon as she fired, avoiding Tang Rou's shot. Tang Rou, on the other hand, hadn't dodged and took the hit straight on.

Tang Rou frowned slightly. Chen Guo's improvement was beyond her expectations. Could Chen Guo really be faster than her?

In reality, Chen Guo wasn't faster. Her extensive experience allowed her to judge the Gunner's attack range accurately, allowing her to fire before Tang Rou.

Of course, the match had just begun, and even though Tang Rou had taken a hit, she didn't think she would lose.

At this moment, Tang Rou fully utilised her strengths—speed and reflexes—unleashing a barrage of Gunner skills on Chasing Haze. The surrounding spectators cheered, praising Tang Rou's agility and speed.

Chen Guo suddenly felt immense pressure. Although Tang Rou's skills were chaotic and full of flaws, she simply couldn't keep up with Tang Rou's breakneck hand speed and the dense barrage of skills!

Chen Guo tried to rely on her combat experience to figure out the best movement strategy, but her hand speed and reflexes couldn't keep up, resulting in her losing a significant amount of health.

Tang Rou smiled slightly, thinking to herself that Glory was indeed too simple.

Liu Hao watched the whole match and shook his head lightly. Skills were never meant to be thrown out all at once—they needed to be used with strategy. Although it seemed that Tang Rou had the upper hand in health at the moment, her skills were now all on cooldown, while Chasing Haze's skills were still available. Without skills to counterattack, Tang Rou could only become a sitting duck for Chasing Haze.

This girl, Tang Rou, has fast hand speed and good reflexes but lacks game experience and awareness. She's destined to lose to Chen Guo.

Chen Guo was no longer the novice she once was. She knew that she had completely taken control of the match's pace. Chasing Hazee continued to shoot steadily, interspersing her attacks with skills.

At first, Tang Rou could use her hand speed and reflexes to dodge attacks while waiting for her skills to come off cooldown. But gradually, she realised that her movements seemed to be read entirely, and Chen Guo's shots were hitting her every time.

Tang Rou felt highly frustrated. As if she were playing chess against a seasoned veteran, every move she made was anticipated, and she had no idea what her opponent's next move would be.

Four minutes later, Tang Rou's Gunner was defeated, and Chasing Haze still had 40% of her health left. Although it wasn't a crushing defeat, it was indeed a well-deserved victory.

"Nice!" Chen Guo shouted excitedly. Nothing was more satisfying than defeating a genius. The sense of accomplishment from an ordinary person beating a genius made Chen Guo feel elated.

The surrounding customers also applauded Chen Guo.

However, Tang Rou looked a bit serious. The outcome of this solo match didn't actually convince her. She felt she had a chance to win, but she had played too carelessly at the beginning.

"Guoguo, I want another round," Tang Rou said softly.

"Another round? No problem!" Chen Guo, having won the match, had no reason to refuse. But in her excitement, she didn't notice that something was off with Tang Rou's mood.

Liu Hao secretly thought this was bad. Was Tang Rou's competitive spirit kicking in? Was she really going to go at it with Chen Guo stubbornly? Could these two sisters really go from a solo game to a real-life fight?

Liu Hao, having read the novel, knew that Tang Rou was the type who wouldn't give up until she won a match. But Chen Guo was his girlfriend, so of course, he had to side with her. However, Chen Guo and Tang Rou were also very close friends. If this affected their friendship, it would be a severe problem.

Liu Hao suddenly realised how complicated relationships between girls could be. After a solo match, guys could still hang out together even after calling each other "dad." But with girls, Liu Hao couldn't be sure the game wouldn't affect their relationship. Moreover, Tang Rou was strong-willed and wouldn't accept even if Chen Guo deliberately let her win.

Damn it, it's supposed to be a solo match between you two sisters—why am I the one worrying about it? Liu Hao's mind was racing. He knew he couldn't stop this solo match, but he had no idea how to handle the situation.

The match started again. The customers split into two groups, half cheering for Chen Guo and the other half for Tang Rou. They spread out on both sides, leaving only Liu Hao in the middle.

Chen Guo glanced at Liu Hao and smiled, "Dear, you'll cheer for me, won't you?"

Liu Hao broke out in a cold sweat, thinking, "Sister, do you not realise how serious this is? This was supposed to be Ye Qiu's business—why did you get involved? And even if you got involved, why drag me into your battle with another woman?"

Even the usually cunning Liu Hao was at a loss. His mind went blank, and after a sigh, he could only softly say, "Guoguo, go for it."

(End of Chapter)

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