197: Chapter 197 Melee Mode

Following the promotion of the Beast-Eared Clan and the Star-Gazing Clan, the progress bar that had been appearing before them suddenly flickered and then vanished, dissipating into points of light.

Everyone only glanced at it curiously before turning their attention back.

They all understood that it meant the lagging races behind them had been eliminated and no longer had the chance to continue competing.

Cui Jingming withdrew his gaze, turned around, and looked behind him.

The captains of the various teams were now standing before him; these were all powerful adventurers from their Stronghold, otherwise, they wouldn't have become captains.

The people on the other two sides were also gathered together, discussing something in low voices, clearly deliberating on the candidates for the upcoming match.

Cui Jingming's gaze swept over them as he asked, "Who wants to go up first?"

As soon as he spoke, a discussion immediately broke out below.

Some suggested Tian Ji's horse racing strategy—sending someone weak first to test the waters.

Others argued that since it wasn't calculated by the number of victories anyway, they should send the strongest person immediately to wipe out the enemy's effective strength and accumulate an advantage for later.

The discussion went on for quite a while with everyone talking at once.

Cui Jingming listened with a frown, thought for a moment, and finally, his gaze landed on a lean man in his thirties.

The man had a beard and two short blades hanging from his waist; he was currently standing in the crowd with his arms crossed, not participating in the discussion.

"Gao Yue, you go first," Cui Jingming said.

The man was roughly a C-rank, and his strength was considered above average among them.

This choice was neither surprising nor conservative; it was quite standard.

"Alright." Gao Yue's eyes flickered for a moment before he stepped forward.

Cui Jingming patted his shoulder as a sign of encouragement.

He didn't say much more and walked toward the arena.

After walking a short distance, his figure suddenly flashed and disappeared from the spot.

When he reappeared, he was already standing in a mid-air area on the arena.

At the same time, the other two sides had also selected their participants.

On the left, in the Star-Gazing Clan's camp, a figure composed of energy floated onto the arena; they couldn't distinguish specific features, so they couldn't tell who it was.

On the right, from the Beast-Eared Clan's side, was a burly male with a pair of grey wolf ears, carrying a double-edged battle axe in his hand.

The three of them stood ready.

In mid-air, white subtitles slowly emerged.

[Seventh Assessment: Arena Competition, Round One, Begin.]

The moment the subtitles appeared, everyone below held their breath, staring tensely at the three people on the arena.

But the battle did not begin immediately.

The three stood still, their eyes fixed on the space before them, as if they were reading something.

After a while, Gao Yue suddenly raised his hand and tapped a few times in the air.

Immediately after, a flash of joy crossed his face.

While everyone was wondering, Cui Jingming immediately spoke up:

"Gao Yue sent a message. After going up, you're asked to choose an opponent; you can only fight if you select each other. He chose the beast-eared guy."

Pausing, he added, "Gao Yue just won the coin toss and has the initiative; he can choose to actively increase his combat power or decrease the opponent's..."

Only then did everyone understand what the joy on Gao Yue's face was about.

But just as Cui Jingming finished speaking, everyone saw the joy on Gao Yue's face vanish, replaced by a somewhat grim expression.

Because they couldn't hear the sounds from above, everyone turned their gaze back to Cui Jingming.

Cui Jingming stared at the new message on the panel, and his expression darkened as well.

"The options are out," he looked up. "It's either to increase his combat power or decrease the opponent's combat power."

Everyone's expression changed.

This indicated that the opponent's rank and combat power were stronger than Gao Yue's.

This was not good news at all...

Even if the rules leveled the combat power to the same standard, experience, skill, and the degree of control over power were not things that could be compensated for by simple leveling.

Everyone's expression became somewhat solemn.

However, the battle had already begun.

Gao Yue's figure appeared on the arena.

And the opponent appeared at the same time, standing thirty meters away from him.

That Beast-Eared Clan male with grey wolf ears was now holding his double-edged battle axe, wearing an undisguised, cruel smile on his face.

...

The battle broke out.

The people below almost didn't dare to look.

It was a one-sided "slaughter."

Gao Yue was completely suppressed, with no power to fight back.

Less than a minute into the fight, seven or eight wounds had been added to his body, his clothes were soaked in blood, and his footsteps began to stagger.

The opponent, however, was doing it with ease, every axe swing carrying a hint of mockery.

This was a complete crushing of a low combat power by a high combat power.

Another axe swung down.

Gao Yue barely raised his blade to block, only to be sent flying along with his weapon.

His body tumbled through the air, blood splattering from his mouth along the way.

The opponent didn't give him a chance to breathe; he kicked off the ground, leaped high into the air, and swung the double-edged battle axe in a wide arc toward Gao Yue.

The moment the axe blade was about to fall, there was a flash of white light.

Gao Yue disappeared from the spot.

When he reappeared, he was back below the arena, lying on the ground and spitting blood.

Cui Jingming rushed forward to Support him, while shouting behind him, "Healers, come up!"

Several Supports rushed up, pouring potion into his mouth and casting Healing Spells on him.

After a busy while, Gao Yue's complexion finally recovered a bit, and he could prop himself up on the ground to rest.

After waiting a little longer, he finally stood up again, staggering.

Everyone looked at him; no one asked, but the meaning in their eyes was clear.

Gao Yue wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and shook his head: "I chose to increase combat power, but it was useless."

He took a breath and continued, "This method won't work. We still have to bring them down to the same level and restrict their original strength to have a chance of winning."

After Cui Jingming finished speaking, he sighed softly and patted his shoulder: "Good work."

Gao Yue shook his head and didn't speak.

...

At the same time.

On the field, another battle was also nearing its end.

That person from the Star-Gazing Clan was also being continuously hacked at by the wolf-eared male from the Beast-Eared Clan.

The body composed of energy had already been split apart several times, and each time it re-condensed, it became a bit dimmer.

Another horizontal axe sweep.

The energy body completely dispersed, and then with a flash of white light, it was sent off the arena.

The first round ended, and the Beast-Eared Clan took the victory.

Seeing this, Cui Jingming and the others had solemn expressions.

The overall strength of the other side seemed to be stronger than theirs.

The first one the opponent sent up already had this kind of strength; there were likely many more behind him with the same or even greater combat power...

...

In the opposite corner.

After the dispersed Star-Gazing Clan member was sent down, his figure re-condensed and floated back to his team.

Noel stepped forward, but before he could speak,

The person gently shook his head and said, "B-rank combat power, I am no match."

Noel nodded, his expression becoming serious as well.

B-rank.

Although they were all elites, there were only a few B-ranks on their side.

And on the other side, the first one to take the field was already a B-rank, which meant such a level was common.

What to do?

Noel's mind raced, thinking of a strategy.

In his state of anxiety, a new prompt box suddenly popped up before him.

[Choose Melee Mode? All three parties take the field at once, the winner advances.]

Noel stared at that line of words, his eyes flickering.