Oasis League

"It must be my imagination." Akabane Tsubaki lowered her head and muttered to herself.

"There is no way Yuzu would show up at a time like this. It doesn't make any sense."

Before Xu Xiaoyou could even speak, dark red hair crashed into her embrace. The other girl hugged her with such force, as if terrified she might vanish, her sudden rush pushing Xu Xiaoyou back several steps.

"Yuzu, why didn't you tell me you were back?" Akabane Tsubaki sounded as though she had a thousand grievances to voice. Her eyes were rimmed with red, but she sniffled and held the tears back, her voice carrying a faint, trembling sob.

"I thought you were never coming back."

Unwilling to let the girl see her in such a vulnerable state, Akabane Tsubaki buried her face deeper into Xu Xiaoyou's shoulder.

"These past few days at school have been so boring. I had no one to talk to. Why did you leave so suddenly last time? We didn't even get to say a proper goodbye....."

Xu Xiaoyou hadn't expected such a strong reaction. "Ahem, Meijiu, people are watching."

At those words, Akabane Tsubaki practically launched into the air like a zombie stepping on a potato mine.

Her hair stood on end as she glanced left and right. Noticing the ambiguous, strange, and amused looks from the onlookers, the little witch flushed with embarrassment and anger. She bared her teeth and glared them down, scaring the crowd away.

Akabane Tsubaki cleared her throat, her expression shifting to one of composed frailty. "In any case, your timing is impeccable."

"Please don't use that cutesy tone with me. Thanks," Xu Xiaoyou said.

"Hmph," Akabane Tsubaki snorted. "I thought you liked that type."

Xu Xiaoyou raised an eyebrow, confused by the remark. Before she could figure it out, Akabane Tsubaki grabbed her hand without a word and led her toward the school gates.

Noticing the curious gazes of the people lingering around, Akabane Tsubaki leaned in close to Xu Xiaoyou and whispered, "Are you really the 'Dark Gold Rose'?"

Clearly, she had heard about the events at the Star of Art and seen the two dazzling figures at the center of the world stage.

"Aren't you also a little family head?" Xu Xiaoyou replied perfunctorily.

"That's completely different!" Akabane Tsubaki's eyebrows shot up. "That... that's a luminous prism grade fixer. I'm just a little family head from the shitty Red Heaven. You can't even compare the two."

"You sounded plenty confident when you first told me," Xu Xiaoyou said flatly.

Akabane Tsubaki lowered her head in shame, but then she realized she couldn't be such a coward. She huffed and lifted her chin again, looking perfectly composed and indifferent.

"So what if I was confident! What does a person with nothing have to lose?"

They stepped out of the school gates and followed a pebble path, walking along the trajectory of the wind.

They eventually reached a secluded grove where a mountain spring tinkled softly. The woods rustled, and the sounds of insects and birds filled the air. Fragmented sunlight filtered through the canopy, swirling down with the autumn leaves to cast dancing shadows on the grass by the stream. Smooth, rounded pebbles lined the bottom of the clear water.

Carrying her shoes, the girl spread her arms and walked barefoot across the smooth stones. Her slender ankles dipped into the chilly stream, and droplets of water splashed against her pale calves before falling back. Like a fawn crossing a creek, she carefully maintained her balance.

Her bell-like laughter echoed in the air. Xu Xiaoyou stood on the bank, watching the reflection of the deep amber water.

Surrounded by mountains and forests, white clouds piled up between the rugged peaks in the distance, touching the serene sky. The autumn woods covered the hills in undulating layers, resembling a golden sea of wheat swaying in the wind, creating waves of shimmering ripples.

A natural, fresh breeze blew into her heart, dispersing much of the heavy gloom that had accumulated over the past few days.

She sat on the grass, the azure sky reflected in her eyes. She closed them, letting her thoughts drift, allowing her inner self to find peace.

The girl wading through the water appeared before her at some point, scooping up handfuls of clear stream water and splashing her, laughing triumphantly.

Xu Xiaoyou raised a hand, and a large splash erupted from the stream. Rings of white water surged outward. Before Akabane Tsubaki could run away, the waves tripped her, sending her tumbling into the stream. She emerged soaked to the bone.

"Unfair! I'm not playing anymore! This isn't fair at all!" Akabane Tsubaki rubbed her backside and shook her fist at the water in protest.

Exhausted from the commotion, Akabane Tsubaki sat down beside Xu Xiaoyou, stealing glances at the girl's expression before finally summoning the courage to speak.

"To you... is she important...: : :"

"Are you interested in participating in a professional league for a massive game?"

A timely breeze swept past, kicking up fallen autumn leaves before the girl's eyes. She lowered her head. "You go first."

Akabane Tsubaki was quite curious about what this professional league was all about.

Reality was peaceful and quiet, but in another virtual world, the dark seas were already churning with massive waves.

Not long ago, Manchester, a family head from the Oasis Order Court, had passed away from illness. He was a veteran founder of the Oasis and the largest shareholder of Into the Night Dreams. It wasn't until yesterday that his will was finally made public.

Inside the Mint Green Leaf Shop, Xu Xiaoyou drew the final circle on the blackboard, adjusted her round-framed glasses, and said, "And that's the situation."

Akabane Tsubaki's eyes lit up. She slammed the table, looking incredibly excited. "What? What!"

"If you win the championship of the eleventh season of the Oasis professional league, you get Old Man Manchester's entire inheritance? Including the rights to the 'Omniscient Mode' in the Oasis? Is that for real!"

To Akabane Tsubaki, tens of billions or hundreds of billions in assets were just numbers. What mattered was the authority over the Oasis's 'Omniscient Mode.' With that, one could fly at will, do anything they wanted, and experience anything within the bounds of their imagination. It was truly 'Something for nothing!'

The Oasis project had been proposed fifty years ago and officially established thirty years ago. However, it wasn't until thirteen years ago that it became widely known to the public. Upon its debut, it was like a thunderclap across the world, drawing the fervent attention of investors and great families worldwide. The concept of a virtual metaverse was far ahead of its time back then.

Even today, as the high-ranking officials of Into the Night Dreams changed through endless power struggles, this retired old man's territory remained untouched. No one dared to covet it because he had held the authority over the 'Omniscient Mode' firmly in his hands from start to finish.

In this world, core technology was supreme.

No one knew exactly how he had kept the 'Omniscient Mode' under his thumb. As the original developer, he acted like a sword-bearer, loving the land into which he had poured most of his life's work.

To ensure this dreamland wasn't defiled by outsiders, he gripped that blade tightly—unmoved by threats, untainted by greed. He guarded his corner of the world until his final moments, when his grip on the blade finally wavered.

"Yes," Xu Xiaoyou said calmly.

"The old man's words have shocked the world. Every faction with even a bit of prestige is arranging for their members to prepare for the competition, registering Oasis passes and leveling up characters. Even some casual players have started new files and changed their classes to combat roles after hearing about this."

"I heard that to accommodate the millions of players suddenly flooding the servers from all over the world, the Oasis opened the season's grade 4 main city, 'Saint Cecile,' ahead of schedule. They even cleared out all the NPCs just to make room for the massive player base."

"So, are we going to form a five-person team, fight our way through the professional league, and take the championship?" Akabane Tsubaki asked excitedly.

"Yes."

"And our teammates? Where are they? Yuzu, you've definitely found them already, right?"

Xu Xiaoyou pointed at the excited red-haired girl, then at herself.

"Currently, it's just you and me. And one more I'm trying to figure out how to convince."

Akabane Tsubaki: "???"