Chapter 045: Li Gang Gains a Measure of Fame

This dramatic turn of events left everyone utterly stunned, as if they were all hallucinating.

"This woman probably planned to take out all three," someone immediately speculated after Lin Yan fired her gun, quickly assessing the situation on the ground.

Most people nodded in agreement, thinking that must be the case. As they silently mourned the three men, many of the male onlookers couldn't help but sigh inwardly—indeed, there is nothing more venomous than a woman's heart.

But reality had a surprise in store.

In fact, Lin Yan didn't continue killing the other two men. Instead, she ordered Li Gang to kill Jia Tianming, and after it was done, she told the person she had been chasing just a moment before to stay where he was and wait for her.

Did this woman have a screw loose?

Just as everyone was puzzling over her actions, something happened that left them completely baffled.

Li Gang actually did as she instructed. After killing Jia Tianming, he didn't flee but stood there dumbly, waiting.

What on earth was going on? The confusion only deepened.

Ultimately, when it was revealed that Lin Yan and Li Gang already knew each other, everything suddenly made sense.

One couldn't blame the others for their bewilderment at the pair's earlier behavior. After all, among the so-called "Chosen Ones," there were only ten thousand, so the odds of any two knowing each other were quite low.

At this time, those who had just recovered from the Huang Feng incident—at least at the bases within China—once again turned their attention to Lin Yan and Li Gang.

Naturally, the scene of Lin Yan and Li Gang lying on the rooftop, gazing at the stars and chatting, unfolded before many people's eyes.

The divine system’s abilities and service levels needed no further comment. Any contestant could adjust the viewing angle or zoom on the scene as they wished, unlike the screens outside the lunar base, whose perspectives were professional but unalterable—only the gods could adjust those.

Ordinarily, unless gathered in a group, everyone would watch individually.

Of course, when privacy was involved, or a scene was unsuitable for children, the gods would thoughtfully obscure it. This once sparked discontent among all the men and most of the women on the lunar base.

After all, with the full restoration treatment, regardless of facial features, every contestant's physique had become ideal, nearly flawless.

Back to the present.

Everyone could clearly hear what Lin Yan and Li Gang talked about, and even zoom in to catch the subtlest changes in their expressions.

"Tsk tsk, another shameless pair," someone scoffed.

"Showing off affection is the fastest way to die."

"Those two men died so unjustly."

"Everyone else is fighting for their lives, and these two are making it romantic."

"Congratulations to contestant Chen Feng on receiving a green hat."

"Poor Chen Feng!"

"Chen Feng says: Petition to be resurrected, so I can kill this pair myself."

"Who would have thought, even in this hunting game, I'd be force-fed dog food? Ha!"

"This Li Gang is clearly a hopeless simp."

"A simp always ends up with nothing."

There was no shortage of singles on the lunar base.

Especially as the perennial singles watched Lin Yan and Li Gang lying together, they voiced their discontent. The above comments were the most common.

"So what if you’re a dog? As the saying goes, being a simp feels good for a while, but if you keep simping, it feels good all the time."

"Chen Feng never succeeded, okay? I have the full video here; Lin Yan is innocent."

"This girl is so forward, and the guy’s still unmoved—could he be into men?"

"Only those who eat the most dog food are the kings of dogs."

Among the singles, some disapproved of Lin Yan and Li Gang’s closeness, while others joked or simply enjoyed the spectacle.

"This guy is so wooden! Does he even know how to talk to women?"

"If I were him, she’d already be singing ‘Conquer’ under me."

"They really look the part—I have high hopes for them. I’m a fan now."

"Fan? Pfft. Couples who show off always get eliminated quickly."

But aside from the singles, there were also couples and even married pairs on the lunar base.

"Who would have thought—not only Huang Feng, but Lin Yan was also once a soldier, and a special forces operative at that. This is a blessing for our great nation," a few people noticed something different, catching Lin Yan's extraordinary background from their conversation.

"If Huang Feng and Lin Yan teamed up, this hunting game might end early," someone chimed in.

Some of the military personnel from China gathered to discuss the pair.

"Never expected that wild tomboy from the army, always unruly and fearless, would grow her hair out and become unrecognizable. That’s Lin Yan, that girl," a middle-aged officer stared at his virtual screen in surprise.

"Haha, yeah. Who’d have guessed? After she grew out her hair, she actually has a bit of feminine charm. Back in the day I used to say, 'That wild girl will never get married, no one would want her.' Now I’ve been proven wrong—a fool’s gone and fallen for her," another middle-aged officer laughed.

"Bring me Li Gang’s file," the first officer ordered a young subordinate.

Soon after.

The officer received the file, which was comprehensive, from birth through university graduation.

As he read, his expression froze in disbelief, and he fell silent.

"Old Li, what’s up?" someone nearby asked, noticing his change.

The officer, Old Li, muttered, "How should I put it, this Li Gang is a character."

Immediately, the other officers gathered around, interested.

Old Li didn’t hold back and shared the file.

"If it didn’t say here that he’s only twenty-two, I’d have thought I was reading the file of a middle-aged man who’d wasted half his life, full of defeat and no ambition. He even wrote on his university profile that his greatest life goal is to eat, sleep, and do nothing!"

"That’s not even the strangest thing. The highlight is something that happened while he was at university—it caused quite a stir at the time.

It was an interdepartmental event, themed on envisioning the future and aspiring to great ambitions. During the random selection segment, he was called on to speak. Guess what he said?

He actually said: ‘In this moment, I suddenly want to go herd cows. No pressure, no social games. With my intelligence, one cow is enough—more and I’d lose count. It eats grass, I nap on its back. If the cow goes missing, then so do I... so much peace of mind.’"

"…"

The officers looked at each other in disbelief.

Even with all their experience and rank, they’d never met anyone quite like Li Gang.

Meanwhile, in an unremarkable base somewhere in China, there was a high-tech conference room covering several hundred square meters.

Inside, dozens of people, some in full military uniform adorned with medals, others in sharp suits, all radiating authority and all over fifty, were present.

On the wall at the front was a large display showing two portraits: Lin Yan and Li Gang.

A square-jawed middle-aged officer stood at the podium to the right of the screen, his expression grave and commanding.

He began, "Over the past few days, our nation has a total of 2,138 surviving contestants. The potential ranking list has undergone a new round of changes, but overall, nothing major—except for two contestants: 2233 and 4444."

A white-haired elder replied, "We’re generally familiar with their situations, but please follow protocol and brief us on each."

The officer snapped to attention. "Yes, Sir!"

He continued, "Lin Yan, number 2233, previously ranked fourth in potential among all our survivors.

Lin Yan, age twenty-five, from MG County, YN Province. Former member of the South China Military District’s 218th Special Forces, Viper Strike Team. Scout, genius sniper, rank of sergeant. Retired due to injury. Her father, Lin Hua, is a lieutenant colonel and former commander of the Cobra Special Forces battalion in the South China Military District—they are not related by blood.

During her service, Lin Yan completed thirty-eight routine missions, twelve classified operations, specifically… After the game began, she was among the first to use the full restoration treatment, then…

She has since acquired the Speed and Endurance modules of the Basic Guidance Technique.

Li Gang, number 4444, previously ranked 194th among our survivors.

Li Gang, age twenty-two, from YD-01 County, HB Province. Recently graduated from an ordinary university, grades slightly below average. His father, Li Jin, is a truck driver; his mother, Gong Xin, a farmer and occasional day laborer.

When the game started, Li Gang did not use any enhancement opportunities, but instead trained alone methodically every day.

During this period, his four basic attributes steadily increased. On the twenty-second day, all four surpassed the average for adult males globally, and he used his first enhancement on his strongest attribute—endurance.

After that, he began jumping off buildings to test the effects of full restoration. While the method was a bit foolish, it showed that he has his own plan for the game, as well as a unique kind of courage.

Then, he was ambushed by Lin Yan and two others. Unexpectedly, instead of fleeing, he counterattacked the nearest assailant. His motives remain unclear.

So far, his adaptability rating is above average. All four basic attributes now rank within the top one hundred among Chinese contestants, but his overall combat score is at the bottom. He has obtained the Speed and Endurance modules of the Basic Guidance Technique.

Originally, Li Gang was not among our key subjects of interest. However, his alliance with Lin Yan has caused his potential ranking to soar. He’s now ranked seventy-eighth, making him an exception among our top-priority candidates—a distinction previously reserved for the national top ten. His inclusion is solely due to Lin Yan.

That concludes the report on Lin Yan and Li Gang."