binnovel Chapter 288 Joint Games
Chapter 288 Joint Games
On December 20, 2025, after much effort and preparation, delegations from more than ten bases of varying sizes participated in the Games. The furthest participating team traveled to the Hohhot base, while bases from the Central Theater Command, such as Anxi and Heijincheng, also sent delegations.
To demonstrate the importance attached to the competition, General Chen Guoqiang and others arrived in Shuguang City aboard the Shuguang City Air Force's X2 spaceship to attend the opening ceremony of the Joint Games. Deputy Commander Ding Hai of the Hohhot Base and Deputy Commander Shangguan Jingyun of Heijin City also came to Shuguang City. Needless to say, the main leaders of the four large bases of the Eastern Theater Command and other smaller bases were all present.
Xu Qingming arrived yesterday, well-prepared. He picked 999 roses from the greenhouse of his Flying Cloud Base, and under the protection of a superhuman, these roses arrived in Dawn City in pristine condition. Later, he went to the Dawn Army's information support unit and confessed his feelings to Li Xue. However, Li Xue didn't accept his advances. She said they could be friends, but a romantic relationship would have to wait until the situation stabilized. Although Xu Qingming felt somewhat disappointed, he sensed that Li Xue hadn't completely ruled out the possibility, so he still had a chance.
However, his actions provoked dissatisfaction from many people in Dawn City who were interested in Li Xue or regarded her as a goddess. Some even set up a Li Xue support group on the Crystal Network to protect Li Xue from bad men.
At 8:00 AM, the opening ceremony of the United Games officially began. To ensure that the people of China could witness this grand event, Dawn City Television deployed all its personnel for a live broadcast. The live signal was also transmitted via Dawn City Broadcasting Network Television Bureau and then through the central computer room to all areas within the Crystal Network's coverage area. Areas outside the coverage area were then rebroadcast by the base stations using the Crystal Network base stations built over the past few months.
As the band played, the four hosts, Jiang Hui, Chu Kexin, Wang Bing, and Su Yunjin, dressed in formal attire, began introducing each of the entering delegations. The stadium, which can accommodate 68000 spectators, was almost full, and each delegation was greeted with enthusiastic applause upon entering.
Forty minutes later, delegations from the other 12 bases, large and small, had all arrived at the stadium, with the Dawn City delegation being the last to enter. Jiang Hui excitedly said, "The last team to enter is the Dawn City Sports Team. Dawn City has sent a total of 200 ordinary athletes and 167 athletes with superpowers to participate in this competition, covering 85% of all events in this joint games."
Chu Kexin continued, "Through the development of Dawn City over the past year, the total population has now exceeded 200,000, and the total number of troops is nearly 50,000. Under the leadership of the team headed by Li Chenglong, with the care of the Huaxia Headquarters and the Huaxia People's Association, and with the support of the people, Dawn City has gradually been built into a multifunctional modern metropolis, and the Dawn Army has gradually been built into a modern force capable of fighting tough battles."
The moment the Shuguang City sports team entered the stadium, all the leaders present stood up and applauded. Wu Gang and Zhao Liying, one waving the national flag of China and the other waving the flag of the Shuguang City Autonomous Region, led all the members of the sports team slowly into the stadium. All the spectators stood up and gave them a warm round of applause.
Each athlete held a small Chinese national flag and a Shuguang City flag, waving to the audience. General Chen Guoqiang clapped and said to Li Chenglong beside him, "Excellent. The development and progress of Shuguang City can be seen from the audience and your athletes. Moreover, you haven't forgotten your roots, which is truly commendable."
After all the athletes had taken their designated positions, General Chen Guoqiang, the highest-ranking official of the People's Congress and China, delivered an important speech. He highly praised the development of Shuguang City over the past year and encouraged the athletes from all the bases participating in the Games. He also issued a mobilization order for China, urging other parts of China to take Shuguang City as an example, build their own homes well, and strive to overcome this apocalypse in the new year of 2026.
After General Chen Guoqiang finished speaking, Li Chenglong and Wu Gang, representing the host city and athletes respectively, delivered speeches. Following this was the performance segment. To provide a better viewing experience for the audience, the stadium's dome gradually closed, plunging the venue into darkness. Next came a program jointly presented by Shuguang City Television and the Publicity Department. The captivating performances frequently drew enthusiastic applause and cheers from the audience.
The joint sports meet opening ceremony concluded successfully at 11:00 AM, and the official competitions will begin in sequence according to the schedule at 2:00 PM. After the opening ceremony, Li Chenglong and others held a grand reception for the leaders of various bases in the banquet hall next to the Shuguang Building. General Chen Guoqiang specifically emphasized that this banquet would only discuss friendship and not national affairs. However, after the banquet, the main leaders of these bases would hold a meeting to discuss future matters.
At 2 PM, the preliminary rounds of some events started on time. Because there were still many participants in the preliminary rounds, some events, such as football, held their preliminary rounds on relatively simple venues. In men's football, there were a total of 8 teams. To ensure fairness, the 8 teams were divided into two groups. Each group's teams played against the other three teams in their group. The four teams that advanced from each group then competed in the semifinals, finals, and third-place match.
At 2:30 pm, the four matches of the two groups were played simultaneously on four football fields. The football fields were covered with cold-resistant grass and maintained by water-type ability users, so even in winter, the grass was in good condition.
Li Chenglong's men's football team is called the Wolf Warriors. Their first opponent is the Thunder team from the Qingshui training base. Most of the Thunder team's players are also level 8 or above ability users, including three dual-element and one tri-element ability users. Li Xiaopeng continues to use the 4-2-3-1 formation he has been using in training, while the Thunder team uses a 4-3-3 formation with a diamond midfield.
After the coin toss, it was determined that Li Chenglong's Wolf Warriors team would attack first, from right to left. Since it was a soccer match between superhumans, the soccer ball was definitely specially made. To create sports equipment suitable for superhumans, such as soccer balls, basketballs, and volleyballs, Li Chenglong personally led his special forces to hunt many high-level alien beasts. Meanwhile, the Industrial Zone 1 of the Dawn City Industrial and Information Department conducted numerous experiments using various alien beast hides, finally creating many ball sports equipment suitable for superhumans.
Li Xiaopeng made a slight adjustment to the starting lineup, swapping the positions of Wu Gang, the defensive midfielder, and Sun Youcai, the level 10 wind-elemental ability user, in midfield. The stronger Wu Gang became the midfield core, supplying the ball to the lone striker, Li Chenglong. Thus, in the Wolves' 4-2-3-1 formation, the defenders from left to right were Wang Yousheng, Zhao Rui, Qi Guoan, and Zheng Yong, while the defensive midfielders from left to right were Zheng Aiguo and Sun Youcai.
The three midfielders, from left to right, are Wang Bing, Wu Gang, and Zhao Gang, with Li Chenglong at the very front. The rules for soccer for those with superpowers are basically the same as for ordinary people, and the use of superpowers is not allowed. This rule is mainly because if superpowers were allowed, the soccer field would be destroyed in no time.