Chapter 71 - The Competition Began

Tens of thousands of people gathered in White Deer Giant Stadium’s stands. Joy and anticipation filled everyone’s faces.

Four ten-meter tall bronze doors appeared at the center of the giant stadium, and each bronze door had different animal patterns on them. There were tiger patterns, dragon patterns, and wolf patterns.

There were also four enormous screens above each bronze door, so the audience could see what happened in the Mystic Realms.

As the annual school professional competition’s theme song played, the stadium gradually quieted down. Host Davis’s attractive, high-pitched voice sounded, “Ladies, gentlemen, and students, welcome to the annual school professional competition!”

“This year’s competition is unprecedented. There are thirty-two teams from twelve universities, with a total of one hundred and sixty students participating in this historic competition. This is the most significant number of participants in White Deer City’s history.”

“There are three segments to this competition: The team Mystic Realm competition, the individual Player Kill competition, and the team Player Kill competition. As you can all see, there are four bronze doors at the stadium’s center. These are entrances to Mystic Realms for the team Mystic Realm competition.”

“The contestants will compete in the team Mystic Realm competition in these four Mystic Realms. The Mystic Realms have varying star rankings. There’s a one-star Mystic Realm, a two-star Mystic Realm, and two one-and-a-half-star Mystic Realms.”

“The team Mystic Realm competition results will be based on the difficulty and completion time. The team that wins first place will receive one hundred points, giving each team member twenty points.”

“The individual and team Player Kill competition will occur later.”

“In the individual Player Kill competition, the contestants will be divided into thirty-two groups according to their draw. Each group will consist of five people. The group competition is all about points. The first person in each group will enter the thirty-two-person elimination round, and the player that gets first place will receive thirty-two points.”

“In the team Player Kill competition, thirty-two teams will enter the elimination competition according to their draws. The team that wins first place will receive thirty-two points for each team member.”

“Next up, let’s welcome the contestants into the stadium with warm applause and cheers!”

The audience erupted into thunderous applause and tumultuous cheers when Davis finished speaking. Then the contestants slowly walked out of the passageways.

“The first team to enter the stadium is Number Two High’s Super Whirlwind team! This team consists of a Sword Master, Great Swordsman, Grand Mage, Holy Alchemist, and a Crossbow Master.”

“They are also the crowd favorite for this year’s competitions. They are the strongest contender for the first Star of Hope.”

The audience’s emotions soared before Davis’s voice could fade. Cheers, discussions, and applause interweaved, and the atmosphere became lively.

“Wow! Those are all popular classes that are in one team. How are the other teams supposed to compare?! The others are just here to be Super Whirlwind’s cannon fodder!”

“A competition, huh? There should still be some suspense. The top ten teams in the current predictions should stand a chance of winning. It’s just a matter of how many chances they have.”

“It’s hard to say. The more matches there are, the more strength is needed. There might be more surprises if there are fewer matches. With how the competition is this year, it’s only a matter of time before Number Two High wins the competition.”

…

“Next in the lineup is the Crimson Fire team from Number Five High, led by Captain Turner. This team consists of a Blaze Mage, Ice Mage, Familiar Officer, Holy Alchemist, and a Great Swordsman!” Davis continued his passionate introduction as his voice echoed in everyone’s ears.

The appearance of several popular chasses made the audience’s blood boil.

“This match is going to be amazing. So many players from popular classes are competing in the same stadium. I’m really looking forward to this!”

However, the vast majority of the audience was optimistic that the Super Cyclone team would win this year’s competition and the Future Star award.

The participating teams appeared one after another, and the audience eagerly hoped that the competition would start soon. But some curious audience members couldn’t help but feel puzzled.

“I heard that a Knight is participating in this year’s competition. Why haven’t I seen him yet?”

“Wake up, dude. The teams appear according to their ranking order. A Knight is definitely going to be the last to appear!”

Amidst the audience’s heated discussions, Moss’s team appeared. The audience saw Moss leading his team with a sword on his back as he looked at the tall bronze doors in the middle of the stadium with a highly determined expression. Moss had a smile on his face the entire time.

Moss’s teammates looked around, obviously affected by the intimidating atmosphere of tens of thousands of people in the stadium.

“Look over there! The Knight team is here! The Knight is smiling too,” someone exclaimed, attracting everyone’s attention as they turned their attention to Moss and his team.

“Why wouldn’t he smile? If I were a Knight and they gave me the chance to participate in such a big competition, I would be so excited that I wouldn’t be able to sleep!”

“Wow, the last time I saw a Knight in this competition was thirty years ago. It feels like a lifetime ago now.” An older gentleman narrowed his eyes and sighed.

“Forget it. Knights are a joke in this competition. I’d rather put my energy into my favorite team to win the competition. There are Knights everywhere else.”

It was evident that the audience wasn’t interested in the Knight, which was reasonable. Considering there are so many other teams, the audience felt that a Knight wouldn’t stand a chance at winning. They would rather cheer for other teams.

Of course, Moss and the others couldn’t hear the audience’s discussions about Knights. Instead, they were immersed in the intimidating atmosphere in the stadium.

“There are so many people here, Moss. I’m so proud that we can represent our school in the annual school professional competition!” Alan said excitedly with a massive smile on his face. He was so happy that his eyes almost narrowed into slits.

“Get comfortable with the atmosphere, Alan. When it’s time for the Player Kill competitions, we will be competing in this thunderstorm-like atmosphere. It would be wise for us to adapt to this environment to perform better.”

Although Moss was a calm person, he couldn’t help but get excited by the grand atmosphere of the stadium. When Team Moss arrived before the bronze gates, the audience knew that the competition was about to begin.

When the earth-shaking annual school professional competition’s theme song ended, Davis’s voice sounded again, “Ladies and gentlemen, we will be broadcasting each team’s performance in segments to increase the suspense of this competition.”

“However, we will increase the exposure of the more popular teams according to your voice and cheers. The annual school professional competition will now officially begin!”

“Let’s once again give a warm applause to usher the contestants into the Mystic Realms!”

The four enormous bronze doors opened as soon as Davis finished speaking. Then the tens of thousands of people in the stadium erupted into a thunderous roar.

Images appeared on the giant screens above the stadium as the thirty-two teams entered the bronze doors. The audience saw various teams appear on the giant screen as the screens continued to flash.