[So the surprise Apex Entertainment prepared for us was him?]
[Li Zheng, an A+ rank Superpower User. I remember him; he's a rare Space-type user whose abilities are Spatial Compression and Spatial Collapse.]
[Only A+ rank... I thought it would at least be someone at the S rank stage... Mainly because while A+ rank is strong, it seems like delivering a mosquito when facing Cifera, who is most likely S- rank.]
[Exactly. What's more, they are both Space-type powerhouses. Being of the same type, wouldn't the weaker Li Zheng be at a natural disadvantage? The advantage range is completely on the opponent's side!]
When Pardofelis first entered the vault, the live broadcast footage seamlessly switched to the interior of the vault.
In an instant, the bullet comments surged across the screen like a boiling tide, mostly filled with voices of confusion, disappointment, and skepticism.
This was because the viewers recognized the man standing in the center of the vault—Li Zheng, an A+ rank Space-type user who should have been powerful, but at this moment appeared to be an underqualified supporting actor in this "grand play."
Despite the doubts in the bullet comments, the strength of an A+ rank was not to be underestimated.
Holding a mindset of "perhaps there will be a reversal" or "at least he can test her depths," the viewers held their breath and focused their gaze on the imminent collision.
However, the subsequent footage made everyone's breathing hitch.
A crushing defeat! An utter, thorough crushing!
Li Zheng controlled space, an invisible, massive force booming down, and the alloy floor collapsed in response.
Yet Cifera disappeared like a phantom in a matter of milliseconds. In the next moment, she sent Li Zheng flying with a single kick.
Immediately following, in a fit of rage, Li Zheng used three even stronger spatial forces to seal off all escape routes, intending to capture Cifera in one go.
But Cifera's figure vanished without a trace once more. Then, a dull sound of a heavy impact rang out, and Li Zheng flew backward like a tattered sack, becoming deeply embedded in the alloy wall. Blood sprayed from his mouth and nose, leaving him in a wretched state.
The entire process was so fast it was dazzling—it didn't even take a minute!
The bullet comments first fell into a dead silence, as if a pause button had been pressed by this devastating scene.
In the next second, an even more violent storm swept through the entire livestream room:
[Holy crap?! This must be S rank! An A+ rank is like paper in front of her?!]
[One minute? No, thirty seconds! Thirty seconds to solve an A+ rank Space-type?! You're telling me she's S-? This pressure is definitely S rank at the minimum!]
[The speed at which she defeated Li Zheng was like swatting a mosquito. Apex Entertainment, you call this a surprise? It's more like a scare!]
[Swatting a mosquito? Just kidding, it wasn't even that slow.]
[Advantage range? In the face of absolute strength, elemental counters are a joke! Li Zheng's spatial ability is like a child playing with mud in front of her!]
[Is Apex Entertainment really this poor? They don't even have the money to hire an S rank to hold the fort? Bringing out an A+ as cannon fodder? How hilarious!]
[It's over, it's over. This is Apex Entertainment's answer? It seems they've given up on treatment themselves!]
Sarcastic, shocked, and incredulous bullet comments rolled frantically, nearly drowning out the screen.
At this moment, the livestream room was filled with a playful atmosphere of "Apex Entertainment has completely screwed up."
Just as public opinion was almost entirely one-sided, in the center of the screen, Su Xiaowei and Lin Ran on the commentary panel showed not a hint of panic over a failed plan. Instead, they wore... a smile of a successful scheme?
Su Xiaowei elegantly picked up her water glass and took a light sip, as if having finished enjoying a wonderful appetizer.
She then set the glass down, her gaze sweeping across the camera. Her red lips parted, and her voice was clear with a hint of mystery as she said:
"Everyone is right." She first affirmed the views of the bullet comments. "Against an opponent who displays such terrifying strength—one we can tentatively assume is at least S- rank—pitting a single A+ rank Space-type user against them is indeed like a mantis trying to stop a carriage."
Then, her tone suddenly shifted, and the smile on her face became meaningful:
"However... dear viewers, you seem to have misunderstood our preparations from the very beginning."
Lin Ran took over the conversation at the right time, his tone steady yet hiding a sharp edge:
"We never said that the Li Zheng in the vault was the main force prepared to capture Cifera."
Su Xiaowei leaned in slightly toward the microphone, her voice dropping as if sharing an explosive secret:
"We especially never said that the meeting gift we meticulously designed for Miss Cifera consisted of only this... one layer."
The moment her voice trailed off, the broadcast director precisely executed the pre-arranged command!
Snap!
Accompanied by Lin Ran clapping his hands on the side, the camera that was facing Cifera and Li Zheng inside the vault plunged into darkness without warning.
However, just as the viewers cried out in confusion due to this sudden black screen, the footage in the livestream room did not disappear. Instead, it instantly switched to another scene.
A laboratory filled with a sense of technology.
This image occupied the entire screen.
In the center of the screen was a massive main display occupying three-quarters of the field of view.
What was displayed on the screen was footage from a first-person perspective. The viewers could even clearly see Cifera's exquisite face, which was right in front of them and still wearing a playful smile, as well as the pile of "looted" gold shelves behind her.
This was exactly the final scene seen by the dying Li Zheng before the black screen just now!
And below the main screen, the scene was even more hair-raising:
A man wearing a special tight-fitting sensory suit was sitting in a complex experimental chair.
On his head was a sci-fi helmet covered in wires and indicator lights. The visor of the helmet was flashing with a ghostly blue light, clearly operating at full power.
And right beside the experimental chair stood a bio-pod emitting a faint green light.
The transparent walls of the pod were filled with light green nutrient solution, and suspended quietly within the nutrient solution was a body identical to the Li Zheng who had been beaten into an unrecognizable shape by Cifera in the vault!
This body was completely intact, merely having its eyes tightly closed as if it had fallen into a deep sleep.