"What the hell, why is the lousy semi-finalist acting so cocky!"

Before entering the space channel, a plain-faced guy said angrily.

Teacher Cai Cai comforted, "Don't let it affect your mindset, focus on the match. I'll go submit the lineup for the solo matches, you guys check if there's any need for changes?"

Bai Pu leaned over and took a glance.

The lineup had Blood Spider in the first vanguard position, probably aiming for a good start; following the "second vanguard" and "central core" positions were two plain-faced guys; Bai Pu was listed fourth as the deputy general, and Xuan Pin was fifth as the main general.

"My suggestion is that Blood Spider should go second, and I'll go third."

Bai Pu explained his reasoning, "Our goal in the solo matches is not to win four matches, but to prevent the opponent from winning four matches! Just winning two matches is enough, the other three can be forfeited, focusing our win on the team battle. Blood Spider has always gone first, she might be targeted by a strong opponent. If she loses, we'll be passive."

Teacher Cai Cai nodded silently.

She also understood the peculiarity of Xuan Pin as a Summoner. Not to mention the concern of being disrupted during a summon, even if the Gate of Nature can be successfully opened, and a large number of nature partners are summoned to win a solo match, so what?

Consuming a lot of Professional Energy in solo matches means recovery is impossible by the time of the team battle.

Teacher Cai Cai arranged Xuan Pin in the fifth main general's position, hoping to win two out of the first four matches, so Xuan Pin wouldn't need to make a move in the solo matches.

"Focusing on the team battle?" a plain-faced guy questioned, "Are we coordinated well as a team? You haven't trained with us."

"Our team coordination isn't smooth, but we will definitely win." Bai Pu stated as a matter of fact.

"Gangxin makes a good point. With our strength, winning four out of five solo matches is unlikely. It's better to bet on the team battle. Let's follow Gangxin's lineup suggestion for this match."

Teacher Cai Cai didn't feel much pressure. Just advancing this year has already exceeded the past five years' achievements. With Jiangnan University's previous huge defeat, Xili Institute of Technology won't face much criticism even if they lose this opening match.

She turned to submit the lineup to the podium, while Bai Pu and the other four entered the space channel alongside the Xiliang University team.

...

Pengliu Island, Gold and Silver Platform. The two teams boarded ferries, heading towards the target site—the third island.

This was the match field drawn before the competition.

The third island was a crescent-shaped isolated island roughly the size of ten soccer fields.

The inner circle of the crescent was a coastal beach, gradually transitioning to flat land and hills toward the outer edge.

Both teams' ferries docked on the sea surface along the crescent's inner circle.

The referee signaled for the first competitors from both sides to enter the arena.

Xiliang University's first contestant was the captain, a stocky, sturdy tank with a cuboid build named Railway!

And when Railway saw that Xili Institute of Technology team's first contestant wasn't Blood Spider, his face clearly darkened.

Obviously, Railway went first aiming to "catch" Blood Spider, but he miscalculated.

Xili Institute of Technology's Level 5 Enhanced Elite, a plain-faced guy, intended to showcase his moves, using the kite strategy, fleeing while using Remote Shooting to chip away at Railway's Life Value. By a thirty-minute time limit, they would determine the winner by Life Value percentage, and he was sure to win.

However, since the plain-faced guy belonged to the Agility-based Close Combat Professions, the overlap between Remote Shooting Specialty and Close Combat Weapon Mastery was almost zero. Although he usually practiced, his shooting was only at Intermediate Level 3, and the accuracy of moving shots was questionable.

Railway quietly approached and suddenly raised his hand, throwing a black lasso just as the plain-faced guy released a shot, binding his legs tightly before dragging him forcefully!

Bai Pu was too familiar with this skill—it was precisely the new skill he had learned, [Lasso Strike]!

And Railway's use of this skill was evidently above Level 4, featuring extra special effects! The black lasso not only hit its target but also conjured illusory shackles and manacles on the plain-faced guy, preventing him from attacking or casting spells!

Railway forcefully dragged the shackled plain-faced guy to him, and then slapped him with a large shield like an iron plate, delivering a stunning damage slow effect, followed by a hammer blow from the single-handed weapon in his right hand.

Dazed, blinded, bleeding, weakened...

Railway's right hand hammer, with every three attacks, added a negative status effect!

The plain-faced guy gave up resisting, not even bothering to use a Decoupling Skill.

After all, they had collected information, and Railway was most frightening for his endless negative statuses. Once he got close, it was sheer torment.

Better to save the Decoupling Skill for the team battle; the team wasn't counting on him to win the vanguard match, after all. Using the "Tian Ji's Horse Racing" strategy, having his lower-tier horse trade with the opponent's high-tier horse was already a win.

Blood Spider was initially unhappy with Bai Pu's arrangement; she was confident in her abilities, believing no one could surely beat her among Level 6 Heroes, and with her seamless transition between long-range and close combat, she had no obvious weaknesses to target.

But Bai Pu's reason for changing the order was precisely because the opponent would send someone strong to target her! This undoubtedly left Blood Spider feeling stifled, but like Bai Pu, she disliked arguing.

Now seeing the first opponent was Railway, a tank with high Life Value and defense, possessing a Lasso Strike drag skill and various annoying negative statuses, was indeed most restraining to her combat style!

Now facing the second opponent, a Level 6 Enhanced Elite Power-type Warrior, was much easier to handle than Railway.

Blood Spider's contained frustration naturally dissipated.

After she entered the arena, she fought more cautiously, chipping away from a distance and utilizing the outer crescent island's rocky terrain to dodge the opponent's charge and such Charge Skills. Constant refreshing slow effects left the opponent powerless, leading to a frustrated defeat.

In the third match, the "central core" position confrontation.

Bai Pu stepped in.

The opponent's central core was a Support-type Hero Profession, code-named "Mandarins."

Mandarins was a round, fleshy-looking girl who, upon seeing Bai Pu when entering, smiled so broadly her eyes formed into slits, waving hello.

Mandarins smiled so happily, not because Bai Pu was handsome, but because facing Bai Pu was the most advantageous matchup for Xiliang University.

As a support, even as a Hero Profession, Mandarins' solo capability was very weak, lacking output was her biggest issue. Facing a Level 5 Enhanced Elite power dealer, she also lacked confidence in winning.

So Tian Ji's Horse Racing strategy remained in use.

Mandarins didn't wait for the referee's countdown to finish before directly conceding.

Bai Pu didn't underestimate Mandarins because of this; such a support-focused Awakened who sacrificed solo power to invest all skill slots into team assistance could play a terrifying role in team battles.

Bai Pu used Nine Chapters to probe her abilities. Currently, this Bronze Level Famous Relic's probing ability lagged behind, but upon activation, he only saw Mandarins' high Spirit and Endurance Attributes, alongside unconventional Professional Skills.

[Parasitic Spores: Plant Parasitic Spores in an ally (with consent), allowing for short-range mental communication. The host can voluntarily sacrifice the spore within the ally to grant a continuous 5-second Life recovery and a +1 priority to Control Skills boost.]

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