Chapter 123: More smacks
The most ironic part was that among these videos, there was one showing a battle between EternalMoon and a mutated anaconda.
The anaconda, already massive by nature, did not grow in size after mutating. Instead, it developed in a far more terrifying direction—speed.
With a huge body, strong defense, and speed no longer being a shortcoming, the mutated anaconda became an almost unbeatable foe for a Yellow-tier novice.
Yet, EternalMoon managed to accomplish it. He grappled with the anaconda for three nights. Perhaps just to hone himself, every day when the anaconda's mutation ended, EternalMoon also stopped attacking and retreated to rest. Repeating this three times, he finally identified the anaconda's weakness on the third night.
The last scene left every viewer in shock.
EternalMoon unexpectedly staked everything by letting the anaconda swallow him. Everyone held their breath, knowing that EternalMoon would surely emerge victorious. Yet, this horrifying scene still made some timid viewers cover their eyes.
After EternalMoon's upper body disappeared into the snake's jaws, a blade suddenly broke through the skin of the anaconda's belly, slashing downward. The massive mutated snake was nearly cleaved in two.
The blood-drenched young man who emerged looked like a death knight stepping forth from a river of blood—cruel and beautiful. He disdainfully removed his blood-soaked jacket and tossed it aside.
EternalMoon walked toward the camera, drawing closer and closer. Many viewers, watching his muscular upper body clad only in a black vest, felt the power in every step, and couldn't help but swallow hard.
"Don't worry, see? I'm right here," EternalMoon said with a smile, as if speaking to the person behind the camera. Even with his face smeared in blood and painted with camo so thick his features were barely visible, those star-like bright eyes and gentle smile became many people's desktop wallpapers and phone screensavers for a long time to come.
"Ahhhh! My male god, no no no, no matter what I do I feel like it's blaspheming my male god! I'm losing it, I don't even know what I'm saying!"
"After watching male god's videos, are the haters' faces painful? Loving look emoji."
"Come on, haters, keep jumping! The difference in strength between that mutated snake and this mutated anaconda is like heaven and earth~ and those who claim my god stole prey have faces that are even bigger than the disparity between these two snakes!"
#I apologize to EternalMoon for blindly believing the rumors#
As soon as Lu Heng's video was released, the direction of public opinion reversed instantly. This trending topic appeared simultaneously on the National Ancient Martial Arts Conference official forum, the OhMyMy streaming platform, and Weibo.
Different people responded to this topic in different ways.
The die-hard fans of EternalMoon and Idol were naturally proud and elated, feeling a sense of justice and vindication after days of silent frustration.
The navy controlling the narrative made one last desperate effort, only to be smacked in the face by fans, who used a simple method to do it: they responded to any slander with clips and GIFs. It was a one-shot kill.
The fans-turned-haters and passerby critics who had been easily swayed by rumors felt their cheeks burn with embarrassment. Recalling their previous words and actions that followed the trend to blacken EternalMoon, they felt moronic and wished they could lose their memory on the spot.
And finally, there was Zhou Yishu—the mastermind who orchestrated this entire storm.
"Xiao Shu, it's time for dinner," Mother Zhou called gently, knocking lightly on his door. Her voice was soft, coaxing. "You've shut yourself in there all day. If something is bothering you, talk to us. We'll find a way to…"
Before she could finish, a loud crash from inside interrupted her.
"Leave me alone," came a curt response from inside the room.
Sighing, Mother Zhou walked away. Zhou Yishu's room was in a mess—anything breakable had been smashed into pieces.
His eyes were bloodshot, face dark with anger, as he sat on his bed.
Damn that EternalMoon, that EternalMoon! Zhou Yishu threw himself back onto the bed, gradually forcing himself to calm down.
Fortunately, he had always maintained a high-minded stance and pretended to speak in support of EternalMoon, so he hadn't lost everything. He still had the finals to look forward to, where he'd finally have his chance to deal with him.
Blinded by jealousy and rage, Zhou Yishu failed to see the truth staring him in the face: the strength EternalMoon had displayed in that video was far beyond anything Zhou could hope to match at his current level.
Meanwhile, Lu Heng was content to let things end here. Proving himself through skill was the best way to silence critics, and as for the mastermind Zhou Yishu, he had plenty of surprises in store for him in the future. There was no need to rush.
But someone else wasn't so quick to let it go. After all, the precious videos that should have been enjoyed solely by him were now being used by netizens to lick the screen.
Gu Lingjun was very unhappy.
He picked up his phone and dialed a number: "Cui Zihang, did you lend out your exclusive live streaming team recently?"
Cui Zihang, surprised to receive a call from the Gu family's Little Martial Uncle, responded nervously, "I've been busy with the conference recently and haven't been streaming. So I let my team take on some private gigs to keep them sharp. Wh-what's happened?"
"I need to speak with them."
***
#Full Video of Zhou Yishu vs. Mutated Snake#
This post appeared on the official forum of the National Ancient Martial Arts Exchange Conference. The post contained no text—just a video.
And yet, it caused an uproar.
Because the content of this full video was entirely different from the short clip that had circulated earlier. In this uncut footage, Zhou Yishu's battle with the mutated snake was evenly matched only in the opening minutes. After that, he was completely overpowered by the mutated snake.
At the end, Zhou Yishu was flung a dozen meters across the ground by the snake's powerful tail, smashing hard into a wall. The mutated snake then looked directly at the camera for a moment before leisurely slithering away. Viewers swore they saw a mocking expression in the mutated snake's eyes in that parting glance.
It was as if the snake were mocking them for having been so easily deceived and instigated, mistaking a glass bead for a precious stone.
The higher Zhou Yishu had been elevated before, the harder he fell now.
The fooled netizens flocked to Zhou Yishu's contestant homepage. Though the votes they'd cast couldn't be taken back, the netizens found another way to express their anger—bricks as opposed to little red flowers.
According to busybodies keeping track, the number of bricks Zhou Yishu received in just a few days was enough to build a skyscraper over a hundred stories tall. This was an unprecedented spectacular event since the National Ancient Martial Arts Exchange Conference began.
To put it in perspective, bricks were far harder to obtain than little red flowers, as they were a prop that couldn't be bought with money. According to the official website rules, to prevent malicious trolling, only accounts linked with the Exorcist Martial Artists streaming platform were eligible to earn bricks, receiving one brick per year of registration.
Therefore, netizens jokingly called this prop "gold bricks." Over the many tournaments held, most contestants had received zero bricks. After all, they were too valuable to give out unless it was "true love."
And now many netizens had emptied their savings, the flood of bricks piling up to tower-like heights, which was a testament to just how deep their "love" for Zhou Yishu was.
Compared to these bricks—unflattering but ultimately harmless virtual items—Zhou Yishu now faced a far more serious consequence.
Zhou Yishu's thought energy had increased dramatically thanks to his recent trending status, enabling him to rise directly from Yellow-tier low-rank to Yellow-tier upper-rank. However, just when he needed to consolidate his realm, the release of that full video meant he could no longer gain even a hint of thought energy.
On the contrary, his recently achieved realm was even showing signs of regression.
Finally, Father Zhou found out about the situation. Zhou Yishu had kept the fact that he'd hired online promoters hidden from him. Although Father Zhou had been aware of the recent uproar on the Internet, he'd assumed Zhou Yishu had simply benefitted from unintended publicity. He had no idea that his son had orchestrated the entire scheme.
It stemmed from Zhou Yishu's perfect conduct in everyday life. He was broad-minded and generous, never hesitating to share his insights on cultivation with friends and fellow disciples.
Father Zhou never imagined that his son would resort to such underhanded tactics just to bring down a rival. All this just for the sake of a popularity ranking for newcomers?
How utterly foolish! He was just sabotaging his own future!
Having immersed himself in Martial Arts for many years, Father Zhou had only reached the Black-tier upper-rank due to limitations in talent, but his perspective was far beyond what Zhou Yishu could comprehend. He understood that for a Martial Artist to reach the peak of Heaven-tier, the state of mind was far more important than thought energy.
While thought energy could be gradually accumulated, once cracks appeared in one's mental state, it would no longer be smooth and flawless. Repairing it would be nearly impossible.
Father Zhou, who had never been angry with Zhou Yishu, flew into a rage: "Utterly foolish! It seems that your smooth sailing since childhood has clouded your judgment. You actually gave up the ultimate martial arts for the sake of instant petty gains!"
"I didn't expect that video to be leaked. Those people on the team took so much of my money and actually went back on their word! When I find out who leaked it…"
Smack!
A resounding slap cut off Zhou Yishu's defense.
"Hey, if you have something to say, just say it nicely. Why are you hitting the child!" Seeing Zhou Yishu's cheek quickly getting red and swollen, Mother Zhou felt sorry for him and stepped forward to intervene.
Father Zhou pushed Mother Zhou aside with one hand when she blocked him, not curbing his strength at all, which sent her stumbling heavily to the floor: "If it weren't for you, would Xiao Shu have turned out like this? And you still dare get in the way!"
Father Zhou looked at his wife, who was quietly shedding tears, then at Zhou Yishu, who still wore a defiant expression. He covered his face and sank heavily onto the sofa. There was no point in saying these things now. For the sake of Zhou Yishu's future, he had no choice but to do whatever he could to make things right.
After all, he'd already sacrificed one child for the revival of the Zhou family. He must not let the Martial Path of his remaining child be cut short as well.
A few days later, the skinning storm involving EternalMoon finally reached a conclusion on the forum.
The most famous navy studio on the Internet came forward to testify, revealing that the entire EternalMoon incident had been orchestrated by a Yellow-tier Martial Artist who had lost his seeded contestant spot due to EternalMoon's sudden appearance. The studio posted a series of evidence online, including communication logs, payment receipts, etc.
At the same time, a notice appeared on Zhou Yishu's contestant homepage:
I, Zhou Yishu, would like to apologize to all my friends who have supported and liked me for what happened before.
Although these disputes were manipulated by someone behind the scenes, it ultimately stemmed from my failure to securely handle my video, allowing ill-intentioned individuals to exploit it, leading to damage to EternalMoon's reputation. Out of vanity, I didn't come forward to clarify matters immediately, but now I have fully realized my mistake.
As a gesture of my remorse, I have decided to forfeit my seeded contestant spot. I will sign up for the Resurrection Challenge and earn my place in the finals fair and square with my own strength.
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