Cheating on online games

edited by shay

Because neither He Qixing nor Nie Chuan wanted the privilege to choose the map, the two contestants ended up selecting a map themselves. — The snow map.

One self-proclaimed expert player held an energy cannon, and the moment the competition began, he found a thick snow-covered area and concealed himself within it.

The military mechas used by soldiers were all black, making them very conspicuous in the snow. Choosing a snow map made it easier for the two of them to locate their targets.

They themselves opted for the most ordinary white mechas, as the mechas were already white and practically indistinguishable in the snow, making it difficult for the two children to spot.

“Your teammate has been eliminated.”

“What?!” The expert player raised his face, a bit stunned.

“How is that possible? They must be using hacks.”

Maybe they found some cheat specifically designed to deal with snowy terrain visibility.

But that didn’t make sense, the map was of their own choosing. They couldn’t have predicted what map they would end up with.

Before the expert player could figure out the reason, he was suddenly kicked out of the snow by a mecha that had swiftly flashed beside him.

The black mecha, holding an energy gun, forced the white mecha back a few steps, shifted its weight to the side, executed a shoulder throw, and flipped the white mecha over onto the ground.

“Eliminated.”

As the message displaying “Congratulations on your victory” flashed before him, Nie Chuan raised the gun in his hand and shouted, “Victory!”

He Qixing, who had just aimed at the enemy with the long-range sight of the mecha energy cannon and killed him with one blow, stood up.

“This was only the first round, it won’t be that easy next time.”

Nie Chuan concealed his happiness from his face for now.

He understood the principle that overconfidence leads to defeat.

As He Qixing waited for the transition interface to leave the room, he pondered the remarkably swift conclusion of the battle.

Though the battle had been very brief, he had managed to glean quite a bit from it.

Nie Chuan’s perceptual abilities and mental powers had indeed greatly improved in a short period.

Just how did the General achieve this?

If there were such methods… could he also quickly break through his own mental power limits?

Just as He Qixing was lost in thought, Nie Chuan approached him using the mecha’s propulsion system, and they communicated privately through the mecha’s communication device.

“Do you also want to become stronger, Xingxing?”

He Qixing didn’t shy away from the question at all.

“Sure.”

“I can’t tell you exactly how I increased my mental power.”

He Qixing furrowed his brow slightly, remaining silent.

He understood that since the method was a secret imparted by the General to Nie Chuan, it was reasonable not to casually share it with others.

But he really wanted to know the specific details of that method. Regret and reluctance flickered in the eyes of the young man inside the mecha’s visor.

“But you can just ask, you know,” Nie Chuan added.

“You should learn from me, be a bit more shameless.”

“If you ask, I think the General would definitely be willing to share,” Nie Chuan suggested.

He Qixing was taken aback.

“How could the General possibly tell me such a secret?”

Although he envied Nie Chuan, he felt that Nie Chuan was closer to the General, which was why the General was willing to share with him.

He was just an ordinary military academy student.

How could the General be willing to share such a secret with him?

“Why not?” Nie Chuan analyzed for He Qixing.

“You informed the General about the Zerg tide situation last time. You did him a great favor. Have confidence, the General surely remembers you.”

“Give it a try.”

Nie Chuan fully understood that He Qixing was an ambitious person.

Always striving to be the best, aiming to secure the top position, even earning the title of elite soldier in the military region within just over a month.

Today, with the General’s help, he had slightly surpassed He Qixing in terms of spiritual power. Their relationship was good, and He Qixing might not say anything, but deep down, he was probably a bit resentful. In case their relationship became unstable in the future, the impact of this crack would definitely be greater than imagined. He didn’t want He Qixing to keep remembering this matter, to always feel regretful. Over time, it might even become a lingering issue.

He Qixing’s expression was complex.

“Aren’t you afraid that I’ll surpass you in terms of spiritual power?” Nie Chuan spread his hands. “We’re brothers, after all. If we want to get stronger, we should get stronger together.”

Although there might be competition between brothers, he hoped that this competition would be beneficial. Facing challenges together and sharing good fortune, he couldn’t just monopolize the benefits for himself.

While checking the new room for the next match, He Qixing chuckled lightly.

He couldn’t help but mock himself for thinking too much. How could he become brothers with Nie Chuan? They were completely different types of people. In comparison, he seemed overly petty, seeing things through a narrow-minded perspective.

He felt a bit ashamed of himself.

But this sense of self-reproach was quickly shattered by the next words from the youth, “Honestly, are you afraid that I’ll snatch away your top spot in the grade?”

He Qixing gave Nie Chuan a subtle look.

“Don’t worry, as long as you do well in your academic subjects, this year’s top spot might just be yours,” He Qixing said sincerely.

Upon hearing this, Nie Chuan immediately grabbed his own face and pulled it downward, making a comical expression.

“I beg you not to mention academic subjects, let’s just remain good friends.”

“Academic subjects, academic subjects, academic subjects,” He Qixing started reciting like a mantra.

“Let’s just end our friendship starting from today,” Nie Chuan grumbled, exuding an aura of frustration.

<hr>

On a small Zerg-infested planet, the Zergs and mecha soldiers were locked in intense combat. The sharp cries of the Zergs could be heard at any moment, and corrosive fluids splattered onto the ground, emitting a grayish-black smoke. Black mechas maneuvered around the remains of Zerg creatures as a voice shouted out.

“General, General! The areas designated for the First and Second Batallion have been cleared. Do you need reinforcements here?”

“Don’t let your guard down. They might call for reinforcements too. Have them stay put.”

A golden blade sliced through the body of a Zerg creature and quickly withdrew. A magnificent mecha, its colors blending platinum and white, sped across the planet’s surface littered with Zerg remains. It came to a stop among numerous black military mechas, shining brilliantly and proudly at the center, as if serving as the backbone of the group.

“Leave this to us.”

“Yes, General.”

Watching the departing mecha soldiers who had delivered the message, Yue Yang flew his mecha over to where Gu Huan was and sighed.

“I didn’t expect the Zergs to be so easily dealt with.”

Recently, the Empire had initiated a counterattack strategy, deploying one after another advance squads to “cleanse” the Zergs from the closest Zerg-infested planets. The results were remarkable, and it had eased everyone’s vigilance to some extent. No matter how numerous the Zergs were, as long as they were individually defeated, they would eventually be completely eradicated.

Gu Huan furrowed his brows slightly, raised his bow and arrow, and shot down a distant Zerg creature before turning serious towards Yue Yang.

“These Zergs are just hatchling phase creatures. You haven’t seen them swarming in groups.”

What was even more crucial was that these Zerg creatures hadn’t been implanted with Zerg Crystals. Even if they were powerful, they couldn’t fully exert their strength without someone leading them. That’s why they were being systematically taken down one by one.

If they couldn’t find Chu Fengyuan and prevent him from rising again to create new Zerg Crystals, a catastrophe might be inevitable.

So, on one hand, they needed to locate Chu Fengyuan’s hiding place, and on the other hand, they had to minimize the potential fighting force he could amass.

Yue Yang quickly realized his mistake and admitted, “I’m sorry, General.”

“Continue the battle.”

“Yes, General.”

The battle quickly came to an end. After using his mental power to sense the situation nearby and conducting a thorough check to ensure nothing was missed, Gu Huan gave orders to the several captains he had brought along through the mecha’s communication channel.

“Regroup, everyone.”

Returning to the starship with the captains, they held a brief summary meeting. Soon, the captains began chatting about some popular online gossip.

“I heard there’s a lively mecha competition going on recently. The participation has grown, and the prize money keeps increasing, attracting more and more skilled players.”

“Are there any military personnel participating anonymously?”

“Yes, there are, but due to the tournament format, people tend to target military participants. There aren’t many military personnel in the top ranks of the leaderboard.”

“It’s just a game after all. Only kids and those who have too much free time would join. Military personnel like us, who are busy out in the field every day, how can they have this time to participate in the competitions like those, don’t you think so?”

Because they had just achieved a major victory, everyone’s tone was relaxed.

Seated in the midst of the officers, the black-haired General remained silent, showing no intention of interrupting their lively conversation.

“Speaking of which, the two youngest military academy interns from our military district seem to have participated in that competition and made a name for themselves.”

Gu Huan raised his gaze slightly, showing a bit more interest in the conversation.

The other captains, who hadn’t noticed Gu Huan was also listening, grew more enthusiastic as they talked.

“How did you know it was the two from our district? Aren’t online participants usually anonymous?”

“Of course, I know. They’ve gained some recognition and even made it to the headlines on the mainstream news.”

“Their rankings are decent, and they haven’t brought any shame to our military district,” one of the captains chuckled.

Gu Huan’s fingers moved slightly as he tapped on his optical network messages. He soon found the relevant reports about Nie Chuan and He Qixing. He was quite interested in this.

According to the original story, although He Qixing was Nie Chuan’s good friend, someone as talented and capable as He Qixing wouldn’t easily become a subordinate to someone else. It was fortunate that in a battle, Nie Chuan had saved He Qixing from a critical situation, making He Qixing consider assisting Nie Chuan.

Observing the character development of the protagonists from the book up close was quite fascinating. So, after dispersing from the meeting and returning to his own room, Gu Huan connected to the optical network and entered the mecha competition they had discussed earlier.

Both He Qixing and Nie Chuan had become the main participants in the competition, and Gu Huan easily located their profiles. The arena was filled with a large audience, and commentators were providing commentary inside the venue.

“Now, we can see that our military academy duo is in a very unfavorable position in this best-of-three match.”

“……”

Gu Huan furrowed his brows slightly. He had heard that these two were quite formidable, but now that he was here, he saw them caught in a disadvantageous situation. Gu Huan was sitting in the audience stands, watching the intense mecha clashes on the large screen. He slowly stood up, his brow furrowing even deeper.

A sturdy-looking spectator beside him noticed him standing and offered an explanation in a seasoned manner, “Is this your first time watching?”

Indeed, it was his first time. He had initially come to see how his students were displaying their prowess, but now he was watching them being overwhelmed by the enemy. This strange feeling, as if he had been slapped in the face, made him forget his initial casual intention and focus solely on analyzing Nie Chuan and He Qixing’s mecha maneuvers and strategic layout.

Gu Huan nodded and watched attentively. Seeing his keen interest, the spectator next to him started a conversation, “These two students are indeed very strong, consistently ranking high on the leaderboard. However, they’ve run into bad luck this time, facing a formidable opponent.”

“The twin pair on the opposite side is the dark horse of this year’s competition.”

“Though they’re young, they get stronger when faced with strong opponents. They’re quite impressive, like two unstoppable forces.”

“Are you saying that these twins have been hiding their true strength?”

So, they reveal their true abilities only when they encounter stronger opponents, which is why they become even stronger in the face of challenge?

“No, no, no. I think those twins might be cheating. But the kind of cheat they’re using can’t be detected by the optical network’s AI, which makes it a true skill.”

Cheating?