NOVEL WEB Chapter 271: Chapter 270: Dragon Nation vs. Cold Nation!
Before the New Professional Tournament began, the point gap between the Cold Nation and the Dragon Nation was at 96.37% vs. 96.22%, with a mere difference of 0.15%.
After two matches over the past two days, the gap was reduced to 0.08%.
At this rate, if the Dragon Nation continues to develop with such an advantage, by the end of the tournament, the Dragon Nation is bound to surpass the Cold Nation and take the world's third rank.
Thus, to curb the Dragon Nation's progress, the Cold Nation issued a direct challenge to the Dragon Nation.
On the Dragon Nation's side, there was only a brief hesitation before they made their decision.
Immediately, the Cold Nation's participants began their sneering provocations.
["Are you afraid of our Cold Nation's mythical Frost King and dare not accept our challenge for fear of angering him?"]
["Blah blah blah~ Only the strong can be fearless. As for you weaklings... If you don't want to live under the shadow of terror, don't provoke us. Just stay quietly in your fourth place. Understood?"]
After their taunts, the Cold Nation participants swaggered away.
Truthfully, they had no real intention of battling the Dragon Nation. Their goal was merely to use their mythical Frost King, Kwon Ji-hyun, to intimidate the Dragon Nation and suppress their momentum.
They believed the Dragon Nation would not dare accept the challenge. After all, in the World Finals for veteran professionals half a month ago, the Dragon Nation's three strongest players—Ice Emperor, Moon Mark, and Seraph—were utterly crushed by the Cold Nation's Frost King, Kwon Ji-hyun.
Historically, the Dragon Nation had only achieved a 35.12% win rate in matches against the Cold Nation.
Under normal circumstances, with only a 30% chance of victory, most people would naturally decline.
But what the Cold Nation participants didn't expect was: Just as they turned to leave, they received a system notification.
[Ding~ [Dragon Nation] has accepted [Cold Nation]'s challenge. All participants, please prepare. The match will begin at 10 a.m. tomorrow]
["What the heck! They actually accepted our challenge?"]
["How dare they!"]
["In that case, we'll crush them on the battlefield and show them how powerful the Cold Nation is!"]
The Cold Nation participants shot sharp glares at their Dragon Nation counterparts before leaving.
During the post-match rest period, Ouyang Ling'er sent a Feixin message to Zhang Yue: ["Good news: The Cold Nation hasn't produced any legendary-tier professionals this year."]
["Bad news: Every one of their participants is an epic-tier professional, all above level 60, equipped with specially crafted gear!"]
Wow. With just a brief encounter, Ouyang Ling'er had practically figured out what color underwear the opponents were wearing.
"This... Is this what top-tier hackers are like?" Wu Haotian, sitting nearby, stared at Ouyang Ling'er in a daze.
His attitude toward her had gone from disdain to outright admiration.
But Zhang Yue made a statement that left everyone stunned: ["All epic, all legendary..."]
["What's the difference from all ordinary?"]
If anyone else had said this, they would have been ridiculed.
But when Zhang Yue said it, it didn't sound arrogant. Instead, it felt... modest.
It should've been: What's the difference between all mythical-tier professionals and all ordinary ones?
That day's matches came to an end.
Entering the mid-game rest phase, Zhang Yue returned to the Eleventh World: Calamity of Myriad Beasts.
Though the competition was important, Zhang Yue had not forgotten an even more critical task in the Eleventh World.
That was to reach level 70, greatly enhance his combat power, and enter the Gate of Eternity to uncover the mystery behind the disappearance of Xuan Lan and Long Two.
Upon entering the Eleventh World, his mission was still to clear the Demon Sealing Tower, slay monsters, gather demonic energy, and exchange Demon Sealing Talismans for valuable rewards.
Based on yesterday's pace, he should be able to max out two golden Demon Sealing Talismans with demonic energy before the dorms closed at 10 p.m.
But today, Zhang Yue was faster.
Because compared to yesterday, he now had a new weapon: [Slay Demon · Exorcise Evil]
Not only did this weapon greatly enhance Zhang Yue's attack power, but its bonus effect of +60% damage to monsters made his efficiency skyrocket.
By the end of the day, Zhang Yue had maxed out three golden Demon Sealing Talismans with demonic energy.
Using the talismans, he obtained three consecutive rewards.
With each talisman granting 50 million EXP, coupled with the combat experience from slaying countless monsters, Zhang Yue had leveled up to 67.75%.
He was one step closer to his goal of reaching level 70.
At 10 p.m., Zhang Yue returned to the Divine Realm for a good night's rest.
The next morning at 10 a.m., the third match began.
Today, it was [Dragon Nation vs. Cold Nation]
A showdown between the world's third and fourth-ranked teams.
It was clear the Cold Nation's participants had not done their homework on this year's Dragon Nation team.
In their eyes, Zhang Yue and his team were still the same Dragon Nation "weaklings" who historically had only a 35.12% win rate against the Cold Nation and had always ranked below them.
Due to live streaming restrictions, only after the World Finals conclude can past match footage be reviewed.
Thus, the Cold Nation had no chance to watch the Dragon Nation's previous two matches against the Eastern Nation and had no idea how Zhang Yue had utterly crushed the Eastern Nation, leaving them too scared to accept another match.
The Cold Nation was overflowing with confidence.
"Do you know why your Dragon Nation will always rank fourth while our Cold Nation remains third?"
Facing off, a silver-armored archer from the Cold Nation, Cheng You, arrogantly stroked his golden bow and declared, "Because we are stronger than you."
The match began.
The Cold Nation demonstrated their superiority over the Dragon Nation—at least in the first two rounds.
In the first round, a monster-killing competition, the Cold Nation refrained from using sneaky tactics like the Eastern Nation. Instead, they competed openly and honorably.
In the end, they defeated the Dragon Nation with 31,250 points to 30,400 points.
In the second round, a battle royale, the Cold Nation won again with 30,000 points to 28,000 points.
Although they won both rounds, it was clear the gap between the two teams was small.
In other words, the Cold Nation's victories were narrow.
Still, a win is a win.
Even if it was by a slim margin, it was still a victory.
Historically, the Cold Nation had only ever slightly outperformed the Dragon Nation.
Leading in points, the Cold Nation participants were brimming with confidence.
In their minds, victory was already assured.
Little did they know, their true nightmare was about to begin in the final round...
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