by <unknown>
"Mr. Li Yao, I've long heard your crazy performance in the Thunder Training Camp, which has left a deep impression on many of your classmates. Even such an expert as Long Qianyue has expressed her regret that she didn't find the opportunity to challenge you in the final elimination match and her intention that she would like to challenge you again in good time. I never expected that you are so skilled at driving a crystal suit!"
"Mr. Li Yao, since you are the test pilot of the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, you must know its advantages and disadvantages very clearly. Can you elaborate them from the perspective of an Exo?"
"Mr. Li Yao, you guys have visited a lot of MP crystal suit models provided by your competitors. What do you have to say about their products, especially Tiger King, Mournful Mist, and Sword Torrent? Although their costs are much higher than the cost of the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, their specifications seem to be much better than that of your crystal suit. Is the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit good enough to compete against them?"
Li Yao was never a prudent man. He smiled and said, "In my opinion, the relationship between the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit and the products of our competitors can be compared to the relationship between egg fried rice and seafood fried rice."
His remark silenced the entire spot.
Even the most knowledgeable reporters were looking at each other in confusion.
Some of them rubbed their ears uncontrollably which they thought had deceived them.
Crystal suit and fried rice? How in the world were they related?
Li Yao explained unhurriedly, "We visited a lot of booths just now and we have no doubt, but only admiration for the experience and capability that the major universities and sects of the federation have in the refinement of crystal suits.
"As a crystal suit fan, I have listed many of their classic crystal suit models as objects that I need to study and targets that I must reach. I dream of buying several of their masterpieces, even if that might bankrupt me.
"However, the classic crystal suit models have utilized a lot of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures without any exception.
"A refiner who is good at crafting high-end crystal suits equals to a chef of an expensive restaurant who is good at making seafood fried rice with the best lobsters, scallops and abalones.
"I'm afraid that such a dish of seafood fried rice won't be affordable for everyone. Two to three thousand a serving, I imagine.
"However, the chef is now asked to make a dish of ordinary fried rice with a cost below a hundred.
"I admit that the culinary skills of the chef are definitely top of the trade. However, the cost limits his options. How can he put in the tasteful seafood that he is most familiar with when he only has a budget of a hundred bucks?
"The Grand Desolate War Institution is different. As the well-acknowledged citadel of grassroots refining ideology, the Refining Department of the Grand Desolate War Institution has gained abundant experience in the refinement of low-end magical equipment for a long time. We are like ordinary cooks specializing in egg fried rice.
"If we were to produce a dish of seafood fried rice that sells two to three thousand, our product would certainly be beaten to the ground.
"However, if the target of the competition is a dish of ordinary fried rice, no one will have more professional expertise than we do.
"We have never considered whether or not we should add seafood since the very beginning. Instead, we have carefully picked the perfect eggs, hams, onions and rice and cooked them into impeccable ham-and-egg fried rice in the way that we are most familiar with and good at.
"Let me ask you, if you have a hundred bucks, would you prefer a bowl of seafood fried rice without any seafood, or a bowl of supreme ham-and-egg fried rice with authentic and well-picked ingredients?
"I have every faith in the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, and I believe that you will enjoy our 'supreme ham-and-egg fried rice'!
"Action speak louder than words. Crystal suits are the stars of the Magical Equipment Exposition this year. The organizer has specially set up many contests for crystal suits. I'll participate in some of the important ones with the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit. By that time, you will be able to observe the collision of different types of 'fried rice'!"
The unexpected metaphor had prompted the reporters to write it down quickly; Li Yao's aggressive declaration made many of them enjoy themselves, too.
Right then, an unharmonious shriek came from the crowd.
"Mr. Li Yao, your performance just now is too unbelievable for a beginner with a cheap crystal suit to achieve. The dynamometer…"
Chapter 307: Face Slapping! |
The shriek stopped suddenly, intentionally cutting off the latter half of the sentence.
But it was enough for everyone to understand what he was trying to say. He was implying that the Grand Desolate War Institution had cheated on the dynamometer, otherwise Li Yao's fists would've never been so stable.
Narrowing his eyes, Li Yao stared at the crowds with eyes as sharp as saber, as he asked calmly, "May I ask who you are?"
"I am Xu You, a journalist from 'Magical Equipment World'. I believe many others share the same doubts as mine after witnessing Mr. Li Yao's shocking performance; I'm speaking for all of us.
"However, I can't help but notice that the dynamometer has been lowered down. I doubt if there's any significance examining it now."
A sly reporter in his thirties talked slowly in a high voice with a fake smile.
He was insinuating that even if the dynamometer turned out to be fine after examination, it was still not enough to prove their innocence, because the Grand Desolate War Institution must've removed the tricks on the dynamometer in the past several minutes.
Xu You was indeed good at framing other people. There seemed to be no evidence to falsify his theory.
"Magical Equipment World?"
"Xu You?"
The name alarmed Li Yao greatly. Brutal brightness beamed out from his eyes, as his lips curled in cruelness.
He remembered who the guy was.
When the Demon Beast Detector was first released, the three magical equipment magazines had all posted several implicit reviews.
The reviews on 'Refiners' Home' and 'Flying Sword and Battle Armor', although showed no confidence in the Demon Beast Detector, were actually elaborated from the perspective of its creator, who was only a college student with barely any experience, and the perspective of its orientation, which was mixed and unclear.
The perspectives indicated that they didn't find much useful materials to attack the Demon Beast Detector per se.
The review on 'Magical Equipment World' was the only one that lambasted the Demon Beast Detector.
Li Yao was never a lenient man. He had been pissed off by the review upon reading it. How could he let go of someone who had vilified his dear magical equipment?
He remembered clearly that the author of the review was Xu You!
The two of them stared at each other in the eyes and noticed the viciousness in the other's eyes at the same time.
Xu You was pissed off by Li Yao's panache, too.
Xu You had graduated from the Refining Department of Deep Sea University. He majored in History of Refining and Comparative Refining.
He had been working at 'Magical Equipment World' all the time after graduation.
After more than ten years of hard work, he finally gained enough expertise and connections to establish a column in 'Magical Equipment World'.
Right then, a college classmate who had been working in the Zephyr Guild reached out to him, subtly asking him to write a 'just', 'objective', and 'professional' review regarding the Demon Beast Detector.
It was not unusual for reporters.
Although 'Magical Equipment World' had strict rules banning him from openly accepting commercial bribes, his friend had arranged parties and dinners where he really enjoyed himself and had been providing a strengthening drug for him to 'evaluate' for a very lo
ng time.
Besides, the Zephyr Guild was a giant in the business of refining. It would do him good for his future development if he could make some friends there.
As for Li Yao, the refiner of the Demon Beast Detector, who was that guy?
No one!
He felt that there was no need to think twice. The moment he went back home, he wrote an article slamming the Demon Beast Detector fiercely.
He thought that was it. He was only a second-rate critic of 'Magical Equipment World', and his column was on an unimportant page. The Demon Beast Detector was a piece of magical equipment that hardly anyone knew about, too.
Never did he anticipate that a few months later, Twin Dragons Union, of which Li Yao was a shareholder, would invest in the Mountain Sea Sect, which then cooperated with the Moon Splitting Sword Guild. With the nationwide commercials and the brand-new distribution network made up by flying swords, the Demon Beast Detector was on fire!
Inevitably, the review that Xu You had written was dug out again.
As the Demon Beast Detector became a fashion and many people had tested it themselves, they naturally discovered that the review was over-exaggerated, or rather, utter BS, if put more straightforwardly.
Many netizens had left comments in his column decrying him to be a blind idiot who knew absolutely nothing about magical equipment.
Even worse, many colleagues inside 'Magical Equipment World' complained about him, too, accusing him of undermining the professionalism of 'Magical Equipment World'.
It was true that every reporter had friends and connections, and that the articles they wrote were not always neutral. But it was wrong of him to have been so obvious!
"Xu You is still too young and immature. He needs more practice."
If anything were to move on smoothly, Xu You would've been promoted to host a renowned column of 'Magical Equipment World' shortly.
However, due to the incident, he was remarked as above when vetted by the leaders of the magazine. Not only did he blow the opportunity of hosting the renowned column, he even lost his personal column and was relegated to be a field reporter who had to travel busily all the time.
Xu You had never been more furious. He was not angry at the Zephyr Guild, nor at his old friend, nor at the review that he had been fooled into writing. Instead, he was bent out of the shape when he thought of Li Yao, the refiner of the Demon Beast Detector.
If Li Yao had not invented this wretched Demon Beast Detector in the first place, how would he have ended up like this with all his hard work in the past decade gone forever?
When enemies meet, there is bound to be blood. Xu Yu hated Li Yao and was not particularly fond of the Grand Desolate War Institution where Li Yao came from, either. He had been nitpicking the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit the whole time in the crowd. Now that he saw it was Li Yao who had been driving the suit, he was overwhelmed by madness and blurted these words out.
However, he hit an iron plate this time, one that was barbed, poisonous, and heated.
Li Yao smiled and replied, "I was wondering which experienced journalist could come up with such a brilliant satire, and I immediately thought of Mr. Xu You. And when I turned around, there you were!
"The 18,744th issue of your magazine, on which a review entitled with 'Demon Beast Detector: A Crab that Does Not Taste Good', is still fresh in my memories.
"In the article, you proposed a lot of marvelous and mysterious insights. For example, wearing the Demon Beast Detector on one side of the head would lead to body imbalance; the pieces of the Demon Beast Detector would stab into the eyes if it was accidentally broken… Those sharp observation and extraordinary deductions proved that you are a well-deserved top expert of magical equipment."
Li Yao's words triggered a round of whispers.
The audience at the spot were experienced experts of the trade and magical equipment fans. Many of them had heard of the Demon Beast Detector before and knew that the criticism of 'body imbalance' was cavil.
"What's going on? The two of them are targeting each other. Is there grudge between them?"
"Of course there is. You didn't know anything about it? Come on, let me tell you…"
Most of the audience had heard of the background of the Demon Beast Detector. Now, with the introduction of the reporters who were never afraid of stirring up trouble, everyone had put on an 'ah ha!' face and were looking at Xu You in disgust.
The reporters from 'Refiners' Home' and 'Flying Sword and Battle Armor' were gloating over Xu You's disgrace and glad that they did not catch much attention. Otherwise, it would be them who were being bashed by the public.
Xu You did not expect that Li Yao knew who he was and remembered the article he wrote, and he did not expect that Li Yao's tongue was so sharp that it slapped his face like a thorny whip.
He was rendered speechless for a long time with his face flushed and his neck bulging.
Li Yao's eyes left him as if he were already a dead dog and then glanced at the crowds,
"The test just now can be repeated at any time. If you have any suspicion, we can rerun the test on a dynamometer provided by the organizer or any party that is willing to offer, except…
Li Yao sneered and said, "Except 'Magical Equipment World'. I personally have doubts about the position and professionalism of 'Magical Equipment World'. Until I'm fully convinced, I'm not taking any interview or review from 'Magical Equipment World'!"
Everyone gasped at what Li Yao just said, which was like a Hellfire-Lightning that blew the crowds away.
A typical refiner would always try to make friends with the three magical equipment magazines, which made Li Yao, who had fallen out openly with 'Magical Equipment World', a unique and eccentric one.
No wonder he was 'Vulture Li Yao'!
"Crack! Crack!"
For a moment, countless flash rune arrays were lit up in front of Li Yao's face. Many photos that were going to be popular on newspapers, magazines, and Nexus were taken.
In the meantime, Xu You seemed to be caught by a raging fever. His body was shivering, and his teeth were chattering. The flames in his eyes seemed to be burning Li Yao to ash.
He knew that he was in even bigger trouble now.
Li Yao scoffed.
Elite refining ideology was the mainstream among refiners. The three magical equipment magazines were dominated by the elite refiners, too.
As a grassroots refiner, he wouldn't be welcomed by them even if he were to bow and kneel humbly. They were not going to judge the magical equipment of the grassroots refiners objectively, either.
In light of that, he might as well go at loggerheads with the three magazines. That way, there would be a good chance that he would attract a lot of attention in the Cultivation world.
Meanwhile, the three magical equipment magazines would be taught a lesson that Vulture Li Yao, as well as the Grand Desolate War Institution behind him, was not a push-over.
Right then, Yuan Manqiu walked forward and said with a smile, "Everyone, the booth of the Grand Desolate War Institution is officially opened now. Please enjoy yourselves inside. You can examine the broken Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit with your own hands. Also, we have an intact Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit here which is ready to be tested by fellow Daoists who have experience in wearing a crystal suit!"
Li Yao took a step back and spoke to Yuan Manqiu in a low voice, "How about it, professor? Did I do my job well?"
"Yes, marvelously. You have outdone yourself."
Yuan Manqiu winked at him, "We have set off a firecracker that is loud enough. I'm pretty sure that all the media will report the news about the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit later. Maybe we'll even be able to kick Deep Sea University out of the headlines!"
Chapter 308: Magical Equipment Purchaser |
"I'm afraid I was too outspoken towards the end and ridiculed 'Magical Equipment World' to their bones. Will they write something bad about us if they feel insulted?"
Li Yao was a little ill at ease.
/>
"If we didn't ridicule them, would they write something good for us?"
Yuan Manqiu patted his shoulder. "Rest assured. I picked you as our spokesman today because you are a student and it is not a big deal what you say. We'll be able to clean up the mess however you castigate them.
"Also, you didn't overstep any line just now. You just said that you would decline interviews and reviews of 'Magical Equipment World' personally. Young men are always rash. Everyone understands that. Besides, there are still 'Refiners' Home' and 'Flying Sword and Battle Armor'.
"Even if the three magical equipment magazines are all against us, it is still unimportant. The Grand Desolate War Institution has its own media channels, too!"
The Grand Desolate War Institution was relatively weaker in regard to refining. However, as one of the Nine Elite Universities, it boasted great comprehensive capability and had a lot of connections both in the military and in the news industry. It was also in a good relationship with the Demon Hunters' Association, whose magazine 'Predator' had crystal suit sections, too.
Besides, now that Li Yao had pointed out the conflict between 'Magical Equipment World' and himself to the public, it would be questionable whether the three magical equipment magazines were bold enough to continue posting negative reviews about the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit.
Chances were that they might have to return to a relatively neutral position due to the pressure.
As it turned out, the news of the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit had appeared on the live stream of dozens of media outlets within the next hour, informing the entire federation of its arrival.
The mysterious promotional audio, the intimidating stage setting, the amazing stability and durability of the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit, the startling strength control of Li Yao, who had been engaged in a violent quarrel with a reporter from 'Magical Equipment World'…
All of these made the Mystic Skeleton Battlesuit and Li Yao a focus of public attention.