Chapter 74: Seeking the Meaning of Titles

After preparing a guest room for Wang Xiaoqian, the three retreated to their own quarters, each lost in thought. The memory of the two beauties exchanging sharp glances and verbal barbs at the dinner table lingered vividly; Li Xin, cold to the bone—a "killer" by nature—was nevertheless chilled to the core by their icy duel, shuddering from head to toe. Fortunately, the two were not lovers, which was at least a small mercy.

Listless and unable to sleep, Li Xin decided to get up and play some games. He donned his headset; the update for "Journey" was not yet done, but a progress bar showed: 85%. At this rate, the new content would be available by morning.

The cooldown for Game King had ended. He logged into CF and summoned the Game King's attribute panel.

Ding!

[System Message]: Wolf Pack Kill Mission completed. S-level rating achieved. Growth experience: 700 points.

Ding!

You have leveled up.

Li Xin: Game Spirit.

Level: 6

Growth Experience: 300/600

Attribute Points: 30

Special Skill: Qiankun.

Li Xin: Personal Attributes.

Strength: 20

Speed: 60

Intelligence: 20

Agility: 20

Mental Power: 20

Based on his experience over the past month, Li Xin concluded that a speed value of 30 equaled the average person's speed, while 10 points in other attributes matched normal levels. With his current allocation, every aspect was balanced, essentially twice that of an ordinary person. Yet, in practice, his overall prowess far exceeded merely twice the strength of a regular man.

There was something uncanny at work here—a non-standard formula where 1+1 > 2. For example, his strength was twice that of a normal person, but at peak, he could unleash force four times greater than an average male.

If he told anyone, they would never believe it, but it was the truth, even Li Xin found it strange and miraculous.

“I’ll push a few more rounds, level up to Game Expert sooner, and really study what this title does,” Li Xin muttered, entering the High One Soldier server.

The Soldier server was where experts loved to gather, clashing and interacting, enjoying the thrill of competition. He found a random team, switched to YY, joined the channel, exchanged a few words—just enough to rally everyone against the enemy.

Room 5, Satellite Base. Their opponents were a pro squad: all top ranks, V6 members, at least ten hero-grade weapons.

“Damn, it’s them? Maybe we should switch rooms,” said the random team’s temporary captain and YY channel operator “Steel Gun Ayong,” sounding worried.

“Yeah, they’re brutal—monthly champions, undefeated. We’re probably going to get wiped out,” another chimed in.

“I say we avoid the slaughter, or else we’ll lose all confidence and rhythm,” the third man said.

Only Li Xin and a girl had yet to speak.

“What’s there to fear? Are you three even men, so cowardly? If you ask me, let’s fight! Even if we lose, we fight!” The female teammate, “Yumi Yo,” spoke fiercely, clearly disappointed in them.

The three men fell silent, embarrassed—being mocked by a girl, how humiliating.

“Let’s play. Nothing to be afraid of. Lose enough times and you’ll eventually win,” Li Xin said lightly, his voice carrying an irresistible charm.

It was hard to say what kind of feeling it was, but the three male teammates felt that following him was the right choice.

“Alright, let’s do it! Losing won’t cost us much!” Steel Gun Ayong gritted his teeth.

“Let’s play,” said Lone Wolf curtly.

Across the room, the Yueguan team: Lin Hang Road Tiger’s players spammed the chat: Play or not? If not, leave!

Play! Steel Gun Ayong replied. The five prepared, entering the game.

As expected, Lin Hang Road Tiger had excellent tactics and marksmanship; their random team was no match. Li Xin didn’t want to stand out too much, only hoping to use the competition with a semi-pro team to hone his Game King integration and explore the properties granted by the title.

To avoid suspicion, Li Xin deliberately kept a kill ratio of 2:1 or 3:1, just enough to maintain a blurred, virtual presence without seeming too dominant.

Thus, though both sides were surprised by his prowess, they didn’t dwell on it. With millions of gamers out there, plenty of hidden masters exist. Not everyone craves tournaments; most play for fun.

Even Dongjia suffers defeat sometimes—a provincial champion isn’t guaranteed to rule all. In fact, it’s their steady mindset that gets them to the top; both skill and attitude are needed.

They played through three maps in a row. Thanks to Li Xin’s exceptional performance, the random team didn’t lose as badly as expected. Steel Gun Ayong repeatedly asked Li Xin to lead and command, but he politely declined—not unwilling, but unable to multitask, wholly absorbed in probing the effects of his title.

He sensed something stirring, though it was like a floating root on a lake, impossible to grasp.

“Yiran, A site, quick! Fall back to A site, all five are there!” Yumi Yo suddenly shrieked, instantly heightening the tension among the four men.

They were playing Submarine, finally at 4:4—a real chance to win, not to be squandered. The opponents abandoned slow, probing tactics for a rush. A site is easy to defend but hard to attack; if they planted successfully, defeat was almost certain.

“Don’t panic!” Li Xin suddenly spoke.

The four’s taut nerves relaxed a little, holding their breath, awaiting his command.

“Yumi, cover A long for observation. Ayong, you three head there. Two feign attack and throw items; the other two charge down. I’ll take the big stairs—let’s catch them in a pincer.”

“Got it.” The four answered together, hastily following orders.

Smoke grenades flew first, instantly blanketing the A site in red, green, and yellow—rendering even smoke-resistant goggles useless, vision completely obscured. Ayong and Yumi were nervous and doubtful; with their own vision blocked, would this really work?

“Flash! Don’t throw all at once, stagger them!” Li Xin continued directing.

Flashbangs whirled, utterly blinding Lin Hang Road Tiger’s five players, the feigned attack sowing confusion and misjudgment.

“Charge!” Li Xin called softly, watching the minimap as two teammates rushed A site, while he darted down the big stairs.

This time, he unleashed his extraordinary speed, halving the usual travel time, suddenly appearing behind Lin Hang Road Tiger’s shooters—executing a dazzling four-kill combo.

The last, Lin Hang Road Tiger’s captain “Discovery Divine Movement,” was finished off by Ayong’s wild gunfire.

Defenders win.

Ding!

[System Message]: This round rated B++, growth experience 281 points.

Just 18 more points to reach level 7. The random team’s YY channel was already buzzing with cheers and praise, but Li Xin heard none of it—his mind was elsewhere.

On the water’s surface, that drifting root was slowly moving. Suddenly, a giant hand sprang forth, grasping the tail of the root.