Chapter 163: A Boy’s Life of Saving Face

Chapter 163: Chapter 163: A Boy’s Life of Saving Face

After twenty minutes of practice, everyone was finally ready to begin the competition between the Divine Team and the Divine Beast Team.

[No matter how many times I hear it, I still think this team name is hilarious~]

[The new guys are seriously too funny. How on earth did they come up with the ’Divine Team’?]

[Divine Beast sounds so badass. But Divine Team... well, it sounds like a joke.]

Silver Shuttle, supremely confident in the name he had chosen, remained blissfully unaware of the netizens’ mockery. He happily stepped up to be the first guinea pig.

"Ready?"

"Ready!"

On the Divine Team, the towering Hoder took on the role of pushing the snow tube. After all, he looked like the strongest.

"Ahhh!"

SMACK!

Unlike the Platinum Giant Lion, who had lain flat on his stomach, Silver Shuttle chose to sit on the snow tube. Perhaps Hoder had pushed a bit too hard; halfway down the lane, Silver Shuttle wiped out with a loud smack, landing flat on his face.

"Little Shuozi?!" Seeing Silver Shuttle fall, Silver Feather rushed over in a panic. He stared at him with concern and tried to pull him up. "Are you okay?"

"Sorry, sorry! Did I push too hard?" Hoder hurried over right behind him, apologizing profusely as he helped Silver Shuttle up. He looked him up and down to check for injuries.

"I’m fine. I just lost my balance, it’s not your fault," Silver Shuttle replied, rubbing his freezing face in embarrassment. The moment he face-planted into the ground, he hadn’t felt pain—he had only felt cold.

"We can’t sit on it. It’s too easy to pitch forward. Let’s try a different method," Hoder suggested, sighing in relief that his teammate was unhurt. He and Silver Feather helped Silver Shuttle back to the starting line, letting him sit on the sidelines to rest while they adjusted their tactics.

Assuming no one was paying attention to him anymore, Silver Shuttle winced and rubbed his backside. As a manly man, he had been too embarrassed to howl in pain earlier, but now he was struggling to hold it in.

[Pfft! Boys and their lifelong dedication to saving face~ He’s actually kind of cute!]

[Did someone just call him Little Shuozi? What an adorable name~ He’s like a little puppy~]

[Thank you for giving us such a hilarious scene! Laughter is the best medicine, and I feel ten years younger!]

Liang He, who happened to be checking if the live stream was running smoothly, saw the comments. She looked at Silver Shuttle’s back, hesitating to speak. Out of basic humanitarianism, she finally decided against rubbing salt in his wounds.

"Ahem, Silver Shuttle just scored three points. Now it’s the Divine Beast Team’s turn." Acting as both the referee and the pusher for the Divine Beast Team, Liang He announced the score, reset the knocked-over inflatable bowling pins, and called up the eager Mengji Snow Leopard.

"Leopard, lie down nicely. Don’t be scared." Liang He patted Kuang Ye’s head to comfort him. Once she made sure he was lying flat, she gently tugged his tail out of his mouth. "Be a good boy. Don’t bite your tail while we’re playing. It’d be bad if you got nervous and accidentally bit down too hard."

"MEOW~"

The obedient Mengji Snow Leopard tucked his tail safely beneath his belly and locked his burning gaze on the inflatable bowling pins.

"Alright, ready, go!" Counting down from three, Liang He pushed the Mengji Snow Leopard out right on cue. Having grown accustomed to the inflatable pins, he was not only calmer than the Platinum Giant Lion but also far bolder.

"MEOOOOW!"

The Mengji Snow Leopard charged headlong into the formation of pins. Relying on his massive frame and powerful momentum, he knocked down six pins in one fell swoop.

"Wow! You’re amazing, Leopard! You knocked down six!" Liang He rushed over and hugged the big cat, her joyous expression infecting the Mengji Snow Leopard. He might not understand what six points meant, but he knew the two-legged beast was happy, and that was enough.

"MEOW~"

"Alright, let’s head back. It’s the Divine Team’s turn next." Liang He easily reset the pins and led the Mengji Snow Leopard and the snow tube back to the starting line.

[Waaah~ I suddenly want to be one of the fluffies. The Breeder is so good at coaxing them~]

[It’s still daylight out, stop daydreaming. Who could possibly compete with these big shots!]

[Who’s next? I can’t wait! Is someone else going to wipe out? Hehehe~]

The netizens’ next target of interest was Lan Zhuo. He stepped onto the ’battlefield’ with the tragic heroism of a man hoping for a quick death.

[Pfft~ Why does he look like he’s going to his death? It’s just a game.]

Lan Zhuo, looking exactly like a man going to his death, knelt on the snow tube. If he accidentally flipped over, he could at least use his hands to brace himself and brake in time.

"Ahem, don’t worry. I’ll push a little lighter this time," Hoder said. He was much more timid now, afraid to exert too much force. Lan Zhuo was a doctor, after all. A Veterinarian was still a medical professional. If Hoder injured Lan Zhuo’s hands, the staff at the Animal Research Institute would drown him in spit.

"Okay." Lan Zhuo took a deep breath and nodded, signaling Hoder to begin.

Following the countdown, Lan Zhuo was pushed forward. However, Hoder had been overly cautious, leaving Lan Zhuo stranded half a meter away from the inflatable bowling pins.

"Can I use my hands?"

"Yes, but you can only hit them once. How many you knock down will depend on luck." Since it was everyone’s first time playing and the activity was purely for fun, Liang He wasn’t too strict. "You can try to inch closer, as long as your hands and feet don’t touch the ground."

Following Liang He’s advice, Lan Zhuo tried to wriggle his body to inch the snow tube closer to the pins. However, his squirming posture was completely at odds with his usual dignified image, causing the netizens to burst out laughing.

"Hahaha! How is Doctor Lan looking even more pathetic than me?" Silver Shuttle, who had only just recovered, immediately started laughing at someone else, completely oblivious to the fact that the netizens had already mocked him mercilessly.

Looking exceptionally strained, Lan Zhuo finally shimmied into what he deemed a suitable position. He then straightened up and, with the demeanor of a martyr sacrificing himself, lunged at the nearest inflatable bowling pin.

"Holy crap! Doctor Lan is awesome! There are only three left... Wait, two!"

A gust of wind blew past, toppling the last teetering pin to make it eight.

"Congratulations to the Divine Team! Eight points scored, bringing your total to eleven!"

Hearing Liang He applaud Lan Zhuo, the others finally snapped out of their daze. They cheered and sprinted toward Lan Zhuo. The thrilled Hoder yanked the doctor to his feet and began jumping up and down, nearly making Lan Zhuo throw up on the spot.

"Stop! Stop... for a second!" Noticing Lan Zhuo’s discomfort, Xu Yi hurriedly told Hoder to freeze. "Lan Zhuo, are you alright?"

Realizing he had accidentally messed up again, Hoder scratched his head apologetically. He wanted to support Lan Zhuo but was afraid of breaking him.

"I’m fine, Senior. I’m just going to go rest for a bit," Lan Zhuo said, waving his hand weakly. He had just been pulled up too fast and bounced around too vigorously, making him a little dizzy.

"Right, right, right! Go rest!" Lan Zhuo was their MVP now. If there was a tie, they might have to rely on him to turn the tide!

[Still waters run deep! Thumbs up for Doctor Lan!]

[The way Doctor Lan was twisting his waist earlier was so seductive. My heart fluttered, haha~ (Just kidding, please don’t block me~)]

[Dun dun dun! Which Divine Beast is up next? I can’t wait!]