My Insect Fusion System: Invincibility Begins with a Cockroach

Chapter 115: Avengers, Assemble!

After a period of grueling training, the opening day of The Jade State League had finally arrived.

Mr. Carter brought Fly, Genevieve, 'Emperor' Valerius, and Jett to his office. Shortly after, Dean Sterling, the homeroom teacher of Class Six, Mr. Ironside, and a few other freshman homeroom teachers arrived as well.

"Jett, even though you've transferred to the Rocket Class, don't forget that you used to be my student. Look sharp, and don't embarrass me out there!" Mr. Ironside said, clapping Jett on the back.

Although he and Mr. Carter were always at odds, and he firmly believed that Mr.Carter had simply lucked out by getting a top-tier seedling like Fly to secure first place in the Power Assessment Test...

But he still understood that personal grudges had no place in official business.

In this Jade State League, Fly and his team weren't just representing Star City High; they were representing the entirety of Star City.

Whether it was Dean Sterling, Mr. Ironside, or any of the other homeroom teachers, they all genuinely hoped for their triumphant return.

"Don't worry, Mr. Ironside!" Jett replied confidently, pumping his fist.

"Good," Mr. Ironside nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Mr. Carter. "Dave, it's all on you guys this time."

Ever since Lysander Thorne, Star City High hadn't achieved any decent results.

Even though The Jade State League was divided into four brackets—ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth grades—and seniors like Preston York and Lance Wolfe were also outstanding young Beast Warriors, Mr. Ironside still felt that Fly's group had a much better shot at actually making a mark.

But no matter what, the rest of the school's students still had to attend their regular classes and continue their cultivation.

The school couldn't possibly find three substitute teachers all at once.

Therefore, the task of leading the team into battle fell squarely on the shoulders of Mr. Carter and Dean Sterling.

"Don't worry, Iron. This time, Star City is finally going to hold its head high," Mr. Carter said, a proud smirk curling the corners of his mouth.

To say he wasn't excited would be a blatant lie.

Over the past few days, whenever he had a spare moment, he couldn't resist running over to Grandmaster Muse's villa.

Watching Fly and the others' strength advance by leaps and bounds filled his heart with immense anticipation.

"Speaking of which, we still need to come up with a team name," Dean Sterling reminded them, glancing over the tournament guidelines.

The level of attention and hype surrounding The Jade State League was on a completely different level compared to Star City's internal Freshman Invitational. Major television networks and sponsors closely monitored the event. You could even say that The Jade State League was just as much a commercial enterprise as it was a martial arts tournament.

Because of this, the organizers specifically required every participating team to pick a catchy name to facilitate commercial promotion and better tap into the youth market.

"How about 'Team Starlight'?" Jett chimed in immediately, acting as if he was afraid someone else would beat him to the punch.

Although he had bought his way onto the team through a sponsorship, his hard work over the past few days had paid off, earning him fourth place in the entire grade during the midterms.

Compared to before, he was much more confident and poised.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Genevieve frowned slightly, clearly unimpressed by the suggestion.

"You know, starlight... shining bright. Plus, it matches our school's name perfectly... Uh..." Seeing the dead silence from the rest of the group, Jett's momentum instantly deflated.

Valerius simply shrugged. "Count me out. I don't really want to get involved in this sort of thing..." He turned his head away somewhat stiffly.

"What about you, Fly?" Genevieve asked, turning her beautiful eyes toward him.

Fly blanked for a second; he wasn't exactly prepared for this either.

"Come on, Fly, spill it. You're the captain, after all," Genevieve urged.

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," Fly said, lowering his head to mull it over.

The Decepticons?

Nah, doesn't sound right.

The Fellowship of the Ring?

A bit too weird.

Long Live Gryffindor ?

At this thought, Fly subconsciously shot the others a glance. Would they even know what Gryffindor is?

Forget it...

"How about we go with 'The Avengers'?" Fly suggested casually.

The moment the words left his mouth, everyone was stunned.

"The Avengers... The Avengers..."

Genevieve muttered the name repeatedly under her breath.

Mr. Carter and the others also fell deep into thought.

It really does have a phenomenal ring to it.

Ever since Lysander Thorne, Star City High had gone years without securing a decent rank in The Jade State League.

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

It was safe to say that over these years, Star City High had endured far too many defeats, too much helplessness, too many regrets, and far too many sighs...

Now that Star City High had welcomed another batch of exceptionally gifted geniuses, it sparked boundless imagination regarding their performance in this tournament.

Having suffered so many failures and regrets in the past, Star City High was marching into this year's tournament with a thirst for vengeance.

"That works. It perfectly captures our mindset for this campaign," Dean Sterling praised.

Mr. Carter and Genevieve nodded repeatedly in agreement, and even 'Emperor' Valerius gave a subtle nod of approval.

"That's Fly for you. Not only is he a beast in Martial Studies, but he even comes up with badass names," Jett complimented, clapping Fly on the shoulder.

This sudden barrage of praise left Fly sweating bullets.

Wait, what are they even talking about?

It's literally just the name of a comic book movie from my past life, why are they...

Whatever. I guess it's a happy accident.

...

With the team name settled, everything else went smoothly.

Mr. Ironside and the other homeroom teachers escorted Fly and the group all the way to the school gates, where the school's designated driver had been waiting for quite some time.

Upon hearing that Fly and the others were heading off to compete in The Jade State League, the driver had even gone out of his way to buy some fresh fruit, happily passing it around the moment everyone boarded.

"Are Preston York and the others not coming with us?"

Fly was a little surprised.

The Jade State League was an annual event divided into four grade brackets.

He had assumed the school would charter a massive coach bus and send all the participating students together.

Instead, a simple minibus had shown up. Aside from Fly's group of four, the only others on board were Mr. Carter and Dean Sterling.

The Directors hadn't even bothered to show up at the gates to see them off.

"You guys aren't part of the Student Council," Mr. Carter grumbled.

The competitors from the other grades were all Student Council members.

Only Fly's team didn't have a single person in the Student Council.

Given the circumstances, why would they want to mix in with that crowd?

"Ah, makes sense." Fly nodded slightly.

"By the way, Fly, is Grandmaster Muse not coming with us?" Mr. Carter asked after a brief thought.

While being the manager for 'The Avengers' was a tremendous honor, Mr. Carter had zero experience leading a team on his own.

If possible, he really wished Grandmaster Muse could tag along.

Furthermore, Grandmaster Muse had been personally overseeing their training these past few days, so he was quite familiar with Fly and the team.

Was he truly not going to accompany them?

"Grandmaster Muse is getting on in years, and his mobility isn't the best. Plus, he doesn't seem too interested in public spectacles," Fly replied.

"True enough..." Mr. Carter nodded slightly.

After all, Muse was a Grandmaster Realm Beast Warrior certified by The Martial Association. Guiding Fly's group for free all these days was already a massive favor.

Aside from Fly being a probationary disciple and Genevieve's grandfather being an old acquaintance, the rest of them had zero ties to Muse.

Furthermore, The Jade State League wasn't being hosted in Star City, so it was perfectly understandable that Grandmaster Muse wouldn't want to make the trek.

Meanwhile, Fly noticed the driver firing up the GPS and searching for the route to Sycamore City before finally starting the engine.

Fly: "???"

"Aren't we heading to the airport?"

"We're just driving straight there?"

Fly was caught off guard. What is this, a road trip?

Talk about zero prestige!

In an era of universal martial arts with such advanced technology, even if they didn't have teleportation portals or airbuses, they should at least have basic commercial flights, right?

"Sycamore City isn't that far from Star City. If we can drive, why fly?"

"Besides, with the six of us, driving only costs around three hundred bucks. Flying would easily cost over a grand."

Mr. Carter counted on his fingers, giving Fly a detailed breakdown like a total cheapskate.

"You've got to be kidding me, Mr. Carter. The school usually reimburses travel expenses for this kind of thing, right?"

"The Directors literally just gave us two million in sponsorship funds. Do we really need to penny-pinch on something this small?"

Fly couldn't help but complain. He thought he was frugal, but Mr. Carter was on a whole other level.

"You have the nerve to say that? To support you guys in The Jade State League, the school not only made an exception to let you use the Gravity Chamber early, but they also allocated a two-million-dollar budget just for you to customize your Warrior Gear."

"Naturally, this ruffled the Student Council's feathers. So, they threw a wrench in the works and got our travel reimbursement canceled, telling us to just cover it with that two-million grant."

However, Fly and the others hadn't bothered to hold back when customizing their Warrior Gear.

So that massive sum of two million had dwindled down to practically nothing.

As for the two million Jett had sponsored, that was a reserve fund meant for emergencies during the tournament, not to be touched lightly.

What with one thing and another, Mr. Carter had no choice but to pay for the travel expenses out of his own pocket.

Naturally, he was going to be as cheap about it as possible.

"Besides, Sycamore City really isn't far. It's only a few hours' drive," Mr. Carter explained.

"Oh, right, speaking of which. Isn't this a state-level league? Every city is sending their Martial Academies to compete, so why is it being hosted in Sycamore City?" Fly suddenly asked.

Sovereign City was the most developed city in the Jade State. Not only was it the largest by area, but its transportation, medical facilities, and educational infrastructure were the best in the entire state.

And ever since an entrance to The Martial Sanctum was discovered in Willow City, it had instantly become a prime development hub, receiving astronomical financial grants every year.

"There are two main reasons."

"First, while Sycamore City's economic strength might not match Sovereign City, Willow City, or Laurel City, its overall foundation is still solid enough to host the tournament."

Meanwhile, cities with weaker economies like Grand River City, Sun-Peak City, and Obsidian City simply lacked the resources, even if they wanted to host it.

"The second reason also boils down to economics. The Jade State League is an annual event. As the top-tier Martial Academy tournament in our state, it naturally draws a massive amount of attention."

"Aside from full television coverage, people from all over the Jade State scramble to buy tickets to watch the matches live."

"And since they're already there, they might as well do some sightseeing and try the local cuisine before heading home, right?"

"So, The Jade State League not only generates revenue for the organizers, but it also heavily stimulates the local economy of the host city."

"Because of this, if Sovereign City hosted it every single year, even more resources would funnel into Sovereign City. Over time, the wealth gap between Sovereign City and the rest of the state would just keep widening."

"Do you think the other cities would just sit back and let that happen? So, for the sake of fairness, a different city hosts The Jade State League each year."

Aside from the four cities Mr. Carter had just mentioned...

Oceanwatch City, Stagcall City, and Soulriver City all possessed the financial muscle to host The Jade State League.

"By extension, the Martial Academies in those seven cities are generally stronger. Combine that with the abundance of local sponsors, and their teams are actually exempt from participating in the group stages," Mr. Carter explained, giving Fly a quick rundown of the tournament rules.

"If Star City actually made up its mind to host... could we do it?" Jett asked.

"It's not entirely impossible, it's just... sigh." Mr. Carter let out a heavy sigh before continuing. "Star City had its glory days, but our infrastructure is far too outdated now, and the government doesn't seem to have any plans for a renovation."

"To host a state-level event like this, you need proper tournament arenas, right? You need enough facilities to accommodate the massive influx of tourists, right? But with what we have... well, let's just drop it."

"Then where does our Star City roughly rank within the Jade State?" Jett asked tentatively.

"Somewhere in the middle. We're far from the worst, but we absolutely can't compare to the top four," Mr. Carter said with another sigh.

"Honestly, we don't even have a clear edge over the cities sitting at the bottom of the economic ladder anymore."

"So, now do you understand why the Directors at Star City High don't have any expectations for us?"

Mr.Carter lowered his head.

No matter who looked at it, it was hard to hold out any hope for their tournament results.