37: Chapter 37: Signing the Contract! Crossover Challenge Scheduled

Section 1: Ink on the Gilded Contract

In the conference room of the Shanghai Sports Center, the crystal chandelier refracted a piercing light. Chen Wu twirled a gold-stamped contract between his fingers; the long string of zeros following the "liquidated damages" clause on page 17 looked like a snake flicking its tongue.

"Mr. Chen, this is the exclusive agreement for global broadcasting rights." Gao Jun pushed over a fountain pen encrusted with diamond chips, the tip hovering over the contract for three seconds. "12 Crossover Challenges against opponents spanning the worlds of combat, track and field, E-sports, and even Go. The prize money per match is a guaranteed fifty million, with livestream revenue sharing calculated separately."

On the conference room's projection screen, highlights of the Moon Duel played on a loop—the moment Chen Wu's solid "Qi" spear pierced the high-dimensional projection, the golden bullet comments from 60 million viewers poured down like a waterfall. The peak global viewership data made a Breakthrough of 3.2 billion, equivalent to half the people on Earth being glued to their screens simultaneously.

"E-sports and Go count as crossovers?" Chen Wu's finger slid across the clause regarding Qi form transformation; the contract required that at least two forms of Qi be demonstrated in every match, otherwise it would be considered a breach.

Gao Jun smiled, revealing a gold tooth. "The audience loves to see something fresh. Imagine using Gaseous Qi to interfere with an E-sports player's operations, or using Liquid Qi to solidify pieces on a Go board—that kind of buzz potential could make the livestream servers crash three more times."

Lin Xue suddenly pushed the door open and entered, slamming a folder onto the table. "The Bureau of Abnormal Incident Management has found that you still have connections with the remnants of the Grey Shadow. This 'opponent selection right' in the contract is actually an opportunity to arrange assassinations for them, isn't it?"

The "Force Majeure clause" on page 9 of the contract suddenly glowed with a red light; it was Chen Wu's Liquid Qi detecting fluorescent ink in the paper. Sure enough, under ultraviolet light, a line of small characters appeared on the back of the clause: "Opponents are permitted to use non-lethal genetic medicine."

"President Gao, care to explain this?" Chen Wu's knuckles turned white from the force he exerted. His Solid Qi caused the tip of the fountain pen to freeze instantly, and ink dripped onto the contract, blooming like a black flower.

Gao Jun's expression shifted, and he suddenly pulled a USB drive from his briefcase. "This is the Grey Shadow contact list we've uncovered. Consider it a sign of sincerity." He pressed play, and Scorpion's roar from inside the prison echoed through the conference room speakers: "Tell Gao Jun that if he doesn't send over a sample of Chen Wu's Qi, I'll leak the evidence of his money laundering!"

The livestream camera was pointed directly at the conference table, and this conversation was broadcast in real-time. The number of online viewers soared from 28 million to 35 million, the anger in the bullet comments like boiling oil poured onto a fire:

"A dog can't stop eating feces! Trying to pull something dirty again?"

"Brother Wu, don't sign! It's a trap!"

"37 million online! I suggest arresting Gao Jun immediately."

"I bet the list in his hand is fake!"

Chen Wu suddenly laughed and tossed the USB drive to Lin Xue. "The Bureau of Abnormal Incident Management should be able to verify its authenticity. I'll sign the contract, but I'm adding three additional clauses." He took the fountain pen, and his Liquid Qi made the ink flow automatically across the paper:

1. All opponents must undergo genetic medicine testing.

2. The Bureau of Abnormal Incident Management will have full security control over the competition venues.

3. 30% of the prize money from each match will be donated to the Martial Arts Enlightenment Fund.

Gao Jun's gold tooth clattered as he bit down, yet he had no choice but to watch the pen sign Chen Wu's name on the contract. Where the pen tip passed, golden Qi patterns spread like vines, firmly locking down those clauses that hid fishy business.

[System Prompt: Crossover Dissemination Task triggered. Complete 12 challenges to unlock Qi Energy Transition.]

Just as the mechanical voice finished, fireworks exploded outside the conference room's floor-to-ceiling windows. On the giant screen of the sports center, the poster for "Chen Wu's Crossover Challenge" was scrolling—behind Chen Wu's silhouette were the outlines of 12 opponents, and on the Go board to the far right, the pieces formed the character for "Qi" in Seal Script.

Section 2: Qi Waves on the E-sports Chair

The first match was scheduled for a week later against the three-time E-sports world champion, "Night God." When Chen Wu walked into the E-sports arena, the cheers from the crowd almost blew the roof off. Night God sat in a custom E-sports chair, his fingers dancing across the keyboard as his character on the screen slit a virtual enemy's throat with a dagger.

"I heard you can use Qi to interfere with equipment?" Night God's headset was encrusted with LED lights that flashed at a frequency startlingly similar to Chen Wu's Qi fluctuations. "But my mechanical keyboard has a response time of 0.01 seconds. Do you think you can catch up?"

The rules were simple: both would simultaneously perform a speedrun challenge in "Starframe." Chen Wu could use Qi but could not directly touch the equipment, while Night God could use any auxiliary tools except for game cheats.

The online viewership made a Breakthrough of 40 million, and the betting information in the bullet comments scrolled rapidly:

"Night God's hand speed is 12 keys per second! Brother Wu has no chance."

"Don't forget he can use Gaseous Qi! The keyboard will fail."

"42 million online! I'll bet a pack of spicy strips that Brother Wu wins!"

The moment the countdown ended, Night God's fingers were already a blur on the keyboard, his game character rushing out of the spawn point like a bolt of lightning. Chen Wu, however, just sat quietly, Gaseous Qi forming a transparent cocoon around him and seeping into the computer host along the wires.

"What are you waiting for?" Night God had already destroyed three bosses on his screen, his health still at 100%. "If you don't move soon, you'll lose!"

Chen Wu suddenly opened his eyes, and Gaseous Qi instantly flooded into the server room. Viewers saw an amazing scene through the drone camera: the indicator lights on all the equipment suddenly turned golden, and the gravity parameters in the game began to turn erratic—Night God's character suddenly floated up, and the equipment that was supposed to drop got stuck in the air as if held by an invisible hand.

"This is..." Night God made an error in his operations, and his character fell into a lava pit, his health plummeting. He looked at his mechanical keyboard; a layer of golden Qi film had actually solidified over the keys, slowing the response time by a full 0.5 seconds.

"It's not interfering with the equipment." Chen Wu's voice came through the microphone as Liquid Qi condensed in his palm into the shape of a game controller. "It's changing the physical form of the data."

By the time Chen Wu's character cleared the game, Night God still had three bosses left. On the arena's giant screen, the data comparison displayed by the System sent the crowd into an uproar: Chen Wu's error rate was 0%, and his movement path had a 100% overlap with the optimal solution—Gaseous Qi could not only interfere but also simulate the optimal operational path.

Night God took off his headset and suddenly bowed to Chen Wu. "I lost. It turns out the fastest hand speed is no match for the most precise Qi."

[System Prompt: First crossover victory achieved. Popularity +8 million. Current total Popularity: 43 million.]

The livestream cut to the backstage, where Gao Jun was roaring into his phone: "How could he have mastered data interference? Didn't you say Gaseous Qi could only affect air flow?" A busy signal came from the other end; Lin Xue's special forces team had cut the signal.

Chen Wu looked at the sunset glow outside the window and suddenly remembered Night God's final words: "Actually, I let you win on purpose. My younger brother is one of your martial arts students. He said your Qi could treat his cerebral palsy."

Section 3: Solidified Pieces on the Chessboard

The second match took place at a Go Hall against the decade-long champion, "Go Sage" Zhou Qingyuan. On the rosewood Go board, the Yunzi stones emitted a warm, lustrous glow under the lights. Zhou Qingyuan's fingers as he pinched a black stone were as steady as a rock.

"Mr. Chen, do you know the true essence of Go?" Zhou Qingyuan's first stone landed on the Tianyuan point. "It is not about slaughter, but balance. Just as your Qi has three forms, the black and white stones must also have mutual generation and restriction."

Chen Wu did not place a stone; instead, he dripped Liquid Qi onto the board. The golden droplet solidified at an intersection into a white piece more lustrous than Yunzi, its edges glowing faintly.

"This is..." Zhou Qingyuan's pupils constricted. That Qi piece was actually slowly absorbing the surrounding light, causing the adjacent black stones to dim slightly.

The online viewership made a Breakthrough of 50 million. The Go commentator's voice was trembling: "I have never seen such a piece! Its gravitational field seems to influence the placement choices of the surrounding stones!"

Chen Wu's second Qi piece landed on a Star Point, the liquid suddenly transforming into a gaseous state and forming an invisible wall on the board. Zhou Qingyuan's finger, which was about to place a stone, stopped in mid-air—his calculations showed that spot was the optimal solution, yet he now felt as if he were stepping into a trap.

"You are changing the momentum of the board." Cold sweat broke out on Zhou Qingyuan's forehead. His "AlphaGo" auxiliary System was reporting errors frantically; no algorithm could analyze the influence of the Qi pieces. "This isn't Go; it's magic."

When Chen Wu placed his 18th Qi piece, a Taiji pattern suddenly emerged on the board. The golden Qi pieces formed the Yang fish, while Zhou Qingyuan's black stones formed the Yin fish, blending perfectly at the Tianyuan position. Looking at his defeat, Zhou Qingyuan suddenly smiled. "It turns out the balance of Qi is even more brilliant than Go."

[System Prompt: Second crossover victory achieved. Popularity +10 million. Current total Popularity: 53 million.]

At the post-match press conference, a reporter asked Zhou Qingyuan if he would retire. The old man pointed at the un-melted Qi pieces on the board. "I'm going to the Public Welfare Foundation to learn Qi. Go is a two-dimensional balance, but Qi can create a three-dimensional Universe."

Gao Jun smashed his phone outside the venue. The hidden trap he had arranged—an electromagnetic jammer under the board—had been frozen into a block of ice by Chen Wu's Solid Qi. Lin Xue's special forces team was escorting a man in an electrician's uniform past him; hidden in the man's coat was a pulse device capable of making Qi erratic.

"10 matches left." Chen Wu held up the contract toward the camera, golden Qi patterns flowing across the paper. "Who's next?"

Section 4: Wind Speed on the Track

The third match was set for the National Stadium against the 100-meter record holder, the "Flyer" Liu Xiang. The anemometer on the track showed a wind speed of 2.3 meters per second, just within the regulation range, but everyone knew this was Chen Wu's Gaseous Qi quietly making adjustments.

"I've studied your Moon Duel." Liu Xiang's spikes were braced against the starting blocks, his muscle lines like a fully drawn bowstring. "In a low-gravity environment, your stride frequency is 4.8 steps per second, but Earth's gravity will slow you down."

Chen Wu said nothing, only condensing Solid Qi on the soles of his shoes to form a thin layer of ice crystals. This would reduce friction by 30% without damaging the track like Liu Xiang's spikes.

The moment the starting pistol fired, Liu Xiang shot out like an arrow leaving the bowstring. His real-time time of 9.83 seconds was already close to the world record. But Chen Wu's figure was even more uncanny—his feet barely touched the ground as Gaseous Qi formed an air cushion beneath him, carrying him across the track like the wind.

At the 50-meter mark, the two were neck and neck. Liu Xiang could feel a gentle thrust coming from his side; it was Chen Wu's Liquid Qi helping him offset air resistance. "Are you crazy?" he shouted through the wind. "This is a race!"

"The essence of sports is to Breakthrough limits." Chen Wu's voice carried a hint of a smile as the Gaseous Qi suddenly accelerated, pushing both of them forward simultaneously. "It's not about determining winners and losers."

The instant they crossed the finish line, the timer showed 9.58 seconds, 0.15 seconds faster than the existing world record. However, the referee declared the result invalid—high-speed cameras had captured Chen Wu's Qi as it made a Breakthrough past the wind speed limit.

The stadium was deathly silent at first, then erupted into thunderous applause. Liu Xiang grabbed Chen Wu's hand and held it high toward the camera. "This isn't cheating; it's a new possibility for humanity!"

[System Prompt: Third crossover resulted in a draw. Hidden reward triggered—unlocking Qi Sharing Ability.]

On the press conference's livestream, Gao Jun's face turned as pale as pig liver. The "genetic medicine inspector" he had arranged was exposed on the spot by Lin Xue; the man's syringe contained tetrodotoxin capable of making muscles go rigid.

"I'll accompany you for the remaining 9 matches." Liu Xiang patted Chen Wu's shoulder, the Olympic gold medal on his chest reflecting the golden light. "Let the world see what kind of sparks can fly when the Dao of martial arts and sports collide."

On the contract in the conference room, the list of opponents for the 12 matches was automatically updating. A golden character for "Friend" appeared after the names of Night God, Zhou Qingyuan, and Liu Xiang, while the names of the assassins arranged by the Grey Shadow remnants were being erased bit by bit by Chen Wu's Qi.

[System Prompt: Global Martial Arts Enlightenment Progress 250%. Blueprints for an Interstellar Martial Arts Hall unlocked.]

Chen Wu looked at the starry sky outside. The energy core of the Moon Base was sending out a signal, forming a resonance with Earth's System Core. He knew that these 12 Crossover Challenges were not the end, but the starting point for humanity to use Qi to connect with the Universe.

The last frame of the livestream was the bullet comments sent by 58 million viewers simultaneously, forming a golden bridge with one end connected to Earth and the other leading toward the sea of stars:

"Using martial arts as a bridge to cross boundaries."

The lights of the sports center gradually went out, leaving only the Qi in Chen Wu's palm still flowing. The three forms of energy blended into a miniature star, illuminating the ink on the contract—those once cold clauses now glowed with a warm light, like the expectations of countless people for the Dao of martial arts, slowly blooming.