binnovel Chapter 56 The Game Continues
Chapter 56 The Game Continues
On the morning of the third day, many spectators arrived at the stadium of Linhai University to watch the match. However, not many members of the Dawn Army came, as they needed to prepare for their planned attack on Xing'an District the next day. Li Chenglong, along with a dozen or so members of the Dawn Army and leaders from various levels of Dawn City, also came to the stands. As the announcer announced, the matches for non-superpowered individuals began. Last night, Yunlan had suggested that, to better showcase the abilities of superpowered individuals, the round of 31 to 16 for the superpowered group should be held in the morning, a suggestion Li Chenglong agreed to after consideration.
At 8:00 AM, the round of 16 to 8 for non-superpowered individuals began immediately. Two groups competed each time, each group having 10 minutes. Only military daggers were allowed as weapons; serious injury to opponents was prohibited, as were attacks on the back of the head, throat, and genitals. Li Xue exclaimed excitedly, "Brother, Captain Wang has advanced!" Li Chenglong was still contemplating tomorrow's attack when he was surprised to see someone finish the first round. Wang Yousheng had defeated his opponent within three minutes, advancing first. Li Chenglong happily said, "If Wang Yousheng can get the chance to become an Awakened One, that would be great. Most of the Dawn Army's battalion commanders are superpowered individuals, and even those except Zheng Yong are at level four or five. Only Wang Yousheng from the First Battalion is still an ordinary person; he must be very anxious." Yun Lan added, "Deputy Battalion Commander Wang Yousheng was very excited when he heard that the reward was a psionic apple that could make someone a superpowered individual. I've watched his battles these past two days; he always gave it his all."
Zheng Yong sat to Li Chenglong's right. There were some of the advancing contestants Li Chenglong didn't recognize, so Zheng Yong introduced them to him. The round of 16 to 8 concluded within 40 minutes, with a 25-minute break between each round. After the break, the round of 8 to 4 began immediately, with two groups per round, each group lasting 10 minutes. Wang Yousheng, Dong Tianfang, and others who performed well advanced. Many soldiers who came to watch were cheering for their own battalion or company. Watching the exciting battles, Zheng Yong happily said, "Our ordinary soldiers are quite strong now. If they can become ability users later, our combat power will increase significantly." Li Chenglong nodded, "The production of psychic apples is still low, but we have eight fruits so far. Although they are not yet ripe, we will continue to distribute them based on their current performance once they are ripe."
While the group was still chatting, the final four were already decided. To give them ample rest time, Li Chenglong directly announced that the round of 31 to 16 for the superpowered group would be held concurrently with the semifinals and finals for the non-superpowered group. The battles between superpowered individuals were clearly much more exciting than those between non-superpowered individuals, and many soldiers who had already prepared began arriving in the stands to watch the matches. The current 31 participants were all superpowered individuals at level four or above, so the level of excitement was considerable.
Since there are still 31 people left, one person will receive a bye. After a draw, Qi Guoan was lucky enough to draw the bye spot. Yun Lan said with a smile, "My dad will have to play one less round and consume less of his superpowers, so it'll be easier for him to win first place, right?" Li Chenglong said, "He does have a bit of an advantage, but the round of 16 to 8 and the subsequent matches won't be played until this afternoon, so let's wait and see." The round of 31 to 15 consists of 15 matches, with three matches played simultaneously each time, interspersed with one match for non-superpowered individuals.
The first match in the ability user group was between Wu Gang, a level 5 fire and wind dual ability user, and Wang Bing, a level 4 speed ability user. This match was a foregone conclusion; Wu Gang defeated Wang Bing in less than three minutes. Simultaneously, a level 5 earth and strength dual ability user faced off against Chen Anbang, a level 4 strength ability user. Due to the advantage in level and attributes, Zheng Aiguo also won easily. However, the other match was quite exciting: a duel between Liu Dongliang and Qian Guangming, two level 4 strength ability users. The two immediately engaged in combat, both using military fighting techniques. Strength-type awakened individuals generally don't have many special skills, but they possess immense strength, high physique, and top-tier defense and stamina among ability users. The two fought continuously from beginning to end, without any unnecessary probing or breaks. Since the other two matches had already concluded, all the audience's attention was focused on this one.
The Dawn Army and the security team cheered for the two fighters, their shouts deafening. After exchanging a punch, the two retreated, each letting out a roar. Red light emanated from their bodies, and their forms began to grow larger. This was a skill that power-type ability users awaken upon reaching level four: gigantification, and their size would increase with each level. A few dozen seconds later, they had transformed into three-meter-tall giants and were fighting again. The intense, bone-crunching battle drew cheers from the audience. Fifteen minutes later, as time passed, Liu Dongliang, who had reached level four earlier, began to show his advantage with a higher reserve of ability. Qian Guangming's ability waned, and his size began to shrink. Taking advantage of this, Liu Dongliang knocked Qian Guangming out of the ring.
After the first round of battles for the superhuman group concluded, the semi-finals for the non-superhuman group began. The four participants were all skilled fighters: Wang Yousheng, Dong Tianfang, Yang Hu, and Zhou Ran. Since they had reached the semi-finals, their strengths were very evenly matched, so there was no need for a draw; they directly faced off in one-on-one duels. The two matches were played simultaneously, and Li Chenglong watched the two exciting battles, cheering them on with great enthusiasm. Liu Qingqing and Chu Kexin, disregarding their image, stood up and cheered for them. Yun Lan whispered in Li Chenglong's ear, "Want to make a bet and guess who will advance to the finals? Currently, it's Wang Yousheng vs. Dong Tianfang, and Yang Hu vs. Zhou Ran." Li Chenglong spoke first: "Wang Yousheng and Yang Hu." Yun Lan pinched Li Chenglong: "Couldn't you have let me speak first? Take it back now."
Li Chenglong could only laugh and retract his words. Yun Lan held up a slender white finger: "I guess it's Deputy Captain Wang Yousheng and Logistics Company Commander Yang Hu. Let me make it clear, the person who guesses wrong has to wash the feet of the person who guesses right." Li Chenglong shook his head and didn't say anything, while Shen Menghua, Li Xue, Yun Qian, and the others beside him were already laughing hysterically. Ten minutes later, just as Yun Lan had predicted, Wang Yousheng and Yang Hu met in the finals, while Dong Tianfang and Zhou Ran went to play in the third-place match.
As per the rules, the competition for the superpowered individuals started simultaneously. Currently, only Liu Dongliang remains as a Level 4 non-military participant. However, there were only four Level 4 non-military participants to begin with, as Yun Qian hadn't yet participated. As the competition progressed, Sun Youcai, Hao Dahai, Zhao Gang, Yang Xuelin, Wan Dahai, and Zhao Rui also advanced smoothly. The third-place match for non-superpowered individuals also concluded, with Dong Tianfang securing third place. Since non-superpowered individuals only needed to reach the top three to receive a psychic apple, the final was relatively easy. Wang Yousheng, having fought too hard earlier, was exhausted despite resting and ultimately lost to Yang Hu. Thus, the competition for the non-superpowered individuals concluded, and the rewards were distributed on the spot.
Yang Hu, Wang Yousheng, and Dong Tianfang walked up to the stage. Li Chenglong stepped down and saluted and shook hands with each of them to express his congratulations. Then, someone brought a tray and distributed the supernatural apples to them, telling them to eat them directly at a side table. The remaining four to tenth place winners all received supernatural persimmons, while those ranked eleventh to one hundredth received various material rewards.
The competition to determine the top 16 in the ability user group was also drawing to a close, with Level 4 strength-type ability user Liu Jianye and Level 4 water-type ability user Song Tie advancing. At 11:00 AM, all 16 spots were confirmed: Wu Gang, Zheng Aiguo, Qi Guoan, Zhao Rui, Song Tie, Liu Jianye, Wan Dahai, Hao Dahai, Yang Xuelin, Sun Youcai, Zhao Gang, Yang Liu, Liu Dongliang, Ma Qi, Liang Hong, and Wang Shuang—a total of fourteen men and two women. Chu Kexin expressed some regret: "It's a pity I was just a hair's breadth away from Level 4; otherwise, we wouldn't have so few girls advancing." Meanwhile, good news arrived: Wang Yousheng, Dong Tianfang, and Yang Hu had all successfully become ability users. Wang Yousheng was a Level 1 water-type and speed-type dual ability user, Dong Tianfang a speed-type ability user, and Yang Hu a strength-type ability user. The three were very excited after becoming ability users and rushed to Li Chenglong to report, whereupon Li Chenglong offered his affirmation and encouragement.
The morning's matches were over, and the afternoon's most exciting event was the duel between advanced ability users. The audience hurried back to eat and rest, preparing for the afternoon's matches. Li Chenglong led Yun Lan, Li Xue, and the others to the government canteen. Because Shen Menghua and Yun Qian had to return to the logistics department to handle some matters, Cao Yuechan was carried to the canteen by Li Chenglong.
After getting their food, the group sat down together. Yunlan happily said, "Someone will wash my feet tonight, that's great, hehehe." Li Chenglong, on the other hand, was speechless. Li Xue took a bite of cabbage and said, "Who do you think will be the top three this afternoon? And who is the weakest among these 16 people?" Li Chenglong thought for a moment, "I think the top three will be Zheng Aiguo, Wu Gang, and Qi Guoan. Among these 16 people, Ma Qi, Yang Liu, and Liang Hong are relatively weak. Ma Qi is a level four speed type, and he and Yang Xuelin are currently the only two pure speed types among the 16. Speed type evolvers are not at an advantage in this kind of one-on-one battle. Liang Hong is weak because he only recently leveled up, and I saw his previous battle. He almost fought with all his might to win, so he has no advantage against the others among these 16. Yang Liu can go further if she fights the top two, but if it's not the top two, then she won't be able to. The main reason is that Yang Liu's ability is more support-oriented, and she has too few combat skills. Moreover, the others generally reached level four earlier than her, so she doesn't have an advantage in terms of ability reserves."
Yun Lan nodded: "My prediction for the top three is Wu Gang, Zheng Aiguo, and Qi Guoan. I feel the three weakest are Ma Qi, Liang Hong, and Wang Shuang. The reason I'm not optimistic about Wang Shuang is that her ability isn't suitable for this kind of major competition. She's currently the only dark-attribute ability user in our base, more inclined towards assassination. If she can't kill in one strike, she'll be at a disadvantage. But now most ability users are level four or above, making it difficult for her to launch a sneak attack. If it gets into a protracted battle, she won't be able to hold her off." Li Chenglong thought for a moment: "Actually, I wanted to recruit Wang Shuang into the special forces, but Wu Gang absolutely refused, hahaha. He said if he wanted to recruit Wang Shuang, he'd have to exchange one of our special forces' combat teams for her. Or, in future battles, only the First Battalion would be the main attacking battalion." Li Xue covered her mouth and chuckled: "Level four is too precious now. Losing one means losing a valuable combat force, and we're about to capture Xing'an District. None of the battalions want any major changes."
After lunch, with more than two hours until the afternoon's match, Li Xue went to the medical department, while Han Xiaoling and Cao Yuechan went to the logistics department to visit Chen Xiaoke. Li Chenglong went to the office building with Yun Lan to see if there were any documents that needed processing, as he had indeed relaxed a bit over the past two days. Just as the two finished handling some matters, someone from the communications department came in to report and handed Li Chenglong a document.
Li Chenglong opened the document, and Xu Jingyang, the deputy director of the communications department, said, "According to the communications sent back by our scouts, the Huaxing base seems to have been attacked by mutant beasts, causing some damage, but not enough to cripple it." Li Chenglong glanced at the document and breathed a sigh of relief: "Very good, thank you for your hard work, everyone in the communications department. However, these are special times, so please continue to work hard. We are still in a special period, but things will be better after these few days." Xu Jingyang saluted, left, and closed the door.
Yun Lan came over to check on things and asked with some concern, "Are we alright here?" Li Chenglong shook his head. "The Huaxing base is quite far from here, and our scouts have reached as far as 70km away. Even if there's danger, we'll have time to react." He then checked his watch; it was exactly 1:00 AM. Li Chenglong took out a map of Xing'an District, studied it for a while, and worked with Yun Lan to re-plan tomorrow's attack. After finishing, Yun Lan lay down on the office sofa to rest for a bit. Li Chenglong found a coat to cover Yun Lan with, then went out and locked the door.
His destination this time was the military camp. Currently, apart from the combat battalions that take turns guarding the camp each week, the other battalions are basically all together, spending their days training or searching for supplies. He arrived at the military headquarters and met with Zheng Yong and a few others. He also took the opportunity to inspect the situation of each battalion. Seeing that none of the battalions had relaxed due to their recent comfortable lives and were still on high alert, he was very satisfied.