Chapter 275 - Races
The test continued. After the first round, only twenty contestants remained. Han Wu once again chose to defend in his second match and was paired with an opponent who had opted to attack.
Their match started, but the outcome was no different. The screen remained black, and for over ten seconds, the arena echoed with the screams of dying units before falling silent.
The judges reviewed the match and ruled in Han Wu’s favor. He had secured a place in the top ten. Qin Shuang and Elina had advanced as well, but Sun Qingnian had been eliminated by one of the seeded contenders.
In the third match, Han Wu again chose defense. The result followed the same pattern: the screen blackened, and the audience could hear only the anguished cries of the invading forces. None understood what had happened. This time, the sounds lasted over fifty-three seconds before the match concluded.
Han Wu’s opponent refused to accept the outcome. They claimed that a God had tampered with Han Wu’s divine realm, causing the rapid destruction of the invaders. They even demanded a thorough inspection of Han Wu’s divine realm by the college.
The judges had grown curious about the strange phenomena as well. With Han Wu’s consent, they entered his divine realm for inspection. No sooner had they stepped inside than they sensed countless towers locking onto them.
After a thorough assessment, the judges concluded that an array of powerful towers protected Han Wu’s divine realm. They would mercilessly bombard any intruder the moment they crossed the threshold. Even King life forms would struggle to survive more than a minute under such relentless assault. Life forms below the High Lord rank would last less than three seconds unless they possessed special Skills to preserve their lives.
Han Wu’s divine realm defenses were astonishingly formidable. The judges themselves could not be certain if their own units would survive there, let alone the first-year students.
Bound by their duty to protect the students’ secrets, the judges withheld their full report from the public. All they disclosed was that Han Wu’s victory had been fair and legitimate, with no signs of foul play. However, to preserve the balance of the test, they formally requested that Han Wu switch to the attacking role in the next round.
Han Wu agreed for the sake of the rewards. With only five contestants left, including himself, he would face at most three more opponents. When the fourth match arrived, Han Wu was fortunate not to be assigned an opponent. He could rest once again.
The matches ended quickly, and Qin Shuang was unfortunately eliminated. The two victors were Elina and a student named Lan Yu. Since Han Wu had not faced an opponent in the previous round, he was now forced to confront one of them. Ultimately, Han Wu was paired against Elina, who brimmed with excitement at the chance to face him.
“I will defeat you!” Elina declared confidently, knowing Han Wu had no choice but to attack her divine realm.
This was also the first time the senior students could truly see Han Wu’s army, as there was finally footage of the battle.
The screen displayed Elina’s divine realm as Han Wu forces invaded it. Gasps rose from the audience at the sight of his army. No one was surprised by the 500 billion locusts. After all, they were his core race, notorious for their explosive reproduction. Even their overwhelming numbers weren’t entirely unexpected.
However, the Tigermen were another matter. These were Elite life forms known for their formidable combat abilities, and there were 10 billion assembled. Their ranks stretched endlessly to the horizon.
Many students had already noticed the high ratio of experts among the Tigermen. Less than 10% were Elite Tigermen, 40% Unique, 45% Heroic, 4% Tigermen Lords, and fewer than 1% Tigermen High Lords. This kind of army composition surpassed what even some older Gods could field. Yet Han Wu had achieved it as a first-year student. The sheer absurdity of it stung, especially since the Tigermen weren’t even his core race.
The spectators believed they had grown numb to the shock after witnessing the scale of the Tigermen. That changed the moment they saw a small brigade of Great Dragons. At the head was a pure-blooded black dragon, radiating the unmistakable aura of a High Lord. This Great Dragon alone could effortlessly slay a King life form.
Ten lightning Great Dragons followed Alpheus. Although they weren’t pure-blooded like Alpheus, they were still formidable Great Dragons. Each one could serve as a powerful linchpin holding together the army of a typical first-year student. Yet here, they were nothing more than common infantry within Han Wu’s forces.
Behind them came millions of Epistians, several hundred thousand heavily armed Scorching Dwarves, and 10,000 minotaurs. At the rear of the army trailed a single figure—Steely.
Every spectator knew the particular Swordwind was different. He ranked as the strongest unit in Han Wu’s army, and his overall strength had reached the peak of a King life form. Beyond that, he was Han Wu’s Saint and had absorbed a compatible Divine Aspect. Everyone knew that the moment Han Wu became a God, Steely would soon follow and become a native Demigod. His potential knew no bounds.
Han Wu’s opponent, Elina, was no weakling either. The first thing that drew attention was the enormous city she had constructed out of Radiant Stones—a rare material sold by the gram in the Divine Civilization. That she had enough to build an entire city revealed the staggering depth of her resources.
The spectators started to reconsider their sense of scale when it came to wealth. A city built from that much Radiant Stone could have nurtured two powerful Gods.
Still, wealth alone would not decide the battle. They needed to evaluate her units too.
When they peered into the city, they saw ten billion Holy Knights in full battle gear, awaiting her command. Her army included two King life forms, hundreds of High Lords, several hundred million Lords, and over 10 million Heroics. This was an army worthy of a true God, and it embodied Elina’s true strength.
Given her army, everyone would have expected her to win the test. Now, doubt clouded their faces. They glanced from Han Wu’s forces to Elina’s, and it seemed she was fated to lose.