: Two bricks in three rounds, successfully advancing to the finals!

Gunshots echoed through the horizontal testing workshop.

The man behind the wall had just peeked out when a bullet pierced his helmet. Uluru's body fell backward and crashed to the ground.

Ye Tian didn't stop; he reloaded and positioned the gun at the doorway.

After waiting for five seconds, nothing happened.

He turned and ran to the decoding point, just as the progress bar finished.

[Successfully sent a Mandel brick!]

Large words popped up on the screen.

Ye Tian breathed a sigh of relief and used the propulsion to slide to Xia Ren's side and pull him up.

"Holy crap, that scared me to death." Shrimp sat on the ground applying medicine. "I thought we were going to lose that wave."

"Quickly loot the bag," Ye Tian said, walking towards the door.

The two licked the bag clean from the ground and came out of the horizontal test workshop.

The three ran to the baggage drop-off and evacuation point next to the horizontal testing workshop, threw their bags away, and the countdown started with 9 seconds remaining... The three successfully evacuated.

The standings have been reorganized.

The Xia Qingtian team, with just two bricks, secured first place in Group A and advanced to the finals.

The live stream chat exploded.

—【Awesome!!】

——【Ye Tian is awesome!】

—【They managed to decipher all of this; that last shot was crucial!】

——【Congratulations to Xia Qingtian for advancing to the finals!】

——See you in Suzhou offline!

The host's voice came from the commentary booth: "Congratulations to the Xia Qingtian team! They've become the first team in Group A to advance to the finals! See you in Suzhou in three days!"

Ye Tian closed the results screen and exited the game.

Qingchuan and Xiaren were still shouting in the earpiece.

"Holy crap! Holy crap! Holy crap! I advanced!" Shrimp's voice cracked.

"Ye Shen is awesome!" Qingchuan shouted as well.

Ye Tian smiled and said, "Alright, I'm logging off now. Time to rest."

"Right, right, let's rest. We're going to Suzhou tomorrow," Shrimp said. "By the way, Ye Shen, we can finally meet in person! I'll treat you to dinner!"

"I'll treat you too!" Qingchuan said eagerly.

"Okay, see you in Suzhou," Ye Tian said.

See you in Suzhou!

The three of them disconnected from the voice chat.

Ye Tian shut down his computer and stood up from his chair. The internet cafe wasn't crowded; most people had gone home to sleep by this time. He picked up his phone from the table and glanced at the time: 2:30 AM.

My stomach growled.

Having not eaten all afternoon and evening, Ye Tian was starving. He grabbed his coat and headed outside, intending to find something to eat nearby.

As soon as I stepped out of the internet cafe, I saw someone standing at the entrance.

Su Linglan was leaning against the wall, playing on her phone, carrying an insulated bag. She looked up when she heard the door open.

"Finished?" she asked.

Ye Tian was taken aback. "Why are you here so late?"

"I brought you some food." Su Linglan handed over a thermal bag. "It's pork rib soup my mom made, it's still warm."

Ye Tian took the bag, opened it, and found a thermos and two lunch boxes inside.

"Have you been waiting here all this time?" Ye Tian asked.

"It wasn't long," Su Linglan said. "I was watching your live stream; your last shot was awesome."

Ye Tian smiled but didn't say anything.

The two walked to a nearby bench and sat down. Ye Tian opened the thermos; the pork rib soup was still steaming. He took a sip; it was lukewarm, just right.

"Are you ready for the research?" Ye Tian asked while eating.

Su Linglan nodded. "Yes, I've submitted all the materials. The interview is next month. What about you? Are you going to Suzhou tomorrow?"

"My flight is the day after tomorrow morning," Ye Tian said. "Let's go get used to the venue first."

"Then play well." Su Linglan looked at him, "I'll wait for you to win the championship."

Ye Tian put down his chopsticks and turned to look at her.

Su Linglan looked at him too, without looking away.

"What will you say if you win the championship?" Ye Tian asked.

Su Linglan smiled. "What do you think?"

Ye Tian smiled and said, "Okay, wait until I win the championship."

The two sat and chatted for a while. Ye Tian finished his soup and ate his rice. Su Linglan put away the insulated bag and stood up.

"Go back, we have to catch a flight tomorrow," she said.

"And you, what's your return?" Ye Tian asked.

"Take a taxi."

"I send you."

"No need, go back to sleep." Su Linglan waved her hand. "I'll take you there the morning after tomorrow."

Ye Tian nodded, "Okay."

Su Linglan turned and took a few steps, then turned back. "By the way, what time did you book your flight?"

"Eight o'clock."

"Okay." She waved and hailed a taxi.

Ye Tian stood there for a while, then turned and went back to the internet cafe. He booked a room at the hotel upstairs, took a shower, and lay in bed, his mind still replaying that last shot.

Close your eyes and go to sleep.

Two days later, at six o'clock in the morning.

When Ye Tian came out of the hotel, Su Linglan was already waiting at the door. She was dragging a small suitcase and wearing a white sweatshirt.

"Good morning," she said.

"Good morning." Ye Tian took her suitcase and they got into a taxi together.

The airport wasn't crowded, and the check-in, security check, and boarding process went smoothly. As the plane took off, Ye Tian looked out the window, wondering what was happening in Suzhou.

Su Linglan sat next to him, wearing headphones and listening to music.

Two hours later, the plane landed.

As soon as they exited the terminal, they saw someone holding a sign at the arrivals gate that read "Xia Qingtian Squad." It was a young man in a work uniform who quickly went to greet Ye Tian and his group when he saw them approaching.

"Teacher Ye Tian? I'm an official staff member here to pick you up," the deliveryman said.

Ye Tian nodded, "Thank you for your hard work."

"It's not hard work at all. The car is outside. Let's go to the hotel first."

Once we got in the car, the driver gave us a tour. He explained that the finals in Suzhou were being held on a large scale, with a venue that could seat 5,000 people, and tickets were sold out long ago. The contestants were staying at the Rose Hotel, a ten-minute walk from the venue.

Upon arriving at the hotel and checking in, the clerk said, "By the way, Mr. Ye Tian, ​​there's an official cosplay event this afternoon. Are you free?"

"What activity?" Ye Tian asked.

"It's just about inviting contestants and cosplayers to take photos together and sign autographs for fans. If it's convenient for you, we can meet in the hotel lobby at 2 PM."

Ye Tian glanced at Su Linglan.

Su Linglan said, "I happened to have brought some clothes with me."

"Okay," Ye Tian said to the young man, "Let's go."

2 PM, hotel lobby.

Ye Tian changed into the Dragon cosplay outfit provided by the official cosplayers, complete with a tactical vest, helmet, and exoskeleton knee pads. Su Linglan also changed; she was cosplaying Mai Xiaowen, wearing a gray tactical uniform and a beret.

As soon as the two came out, many people in the lobby looked over.

"Holy crap, Ye Tian!" someone shouted.

Ye Tian turned his head and saw two people walking towards him. One was dressed in nameless clothes, a black trench coat, and wearing a mask. The other was dressed in black clothes, a heavy bulletproof vest, and a helmet.

"Master Ye!" The man in the nameless robe removed his mask, revealing a young face. "I am Qingchuan!"

The guy in black took off his helmet too. "I'm Shrimp!"

Ye Tian laughed, "You two are quite the perfect recreation of the original look."

"Absolutely!" Shrimp patted his bulletproof vest. "This thing is so heavy."

Qingchuan looked at Su Linglan, "This is...?"

"My girlfriend, Su Linglan," Ye Tian said.

Su Linglan nodded to them, "Hello, I've often heard Ye Tian mention you."

"Hello, sister-in-law!" Qingchuan and Xiaren said in unison.

Xia Ren leaned close to Ye Tian and whispered, "Master Ye, your wife is so beautiful."

Ye Tian ignored him and instead gave him a wary look.