The arrival of calamity, the beginning of cruelty

Players in 3rd District found the situation troublesome—the enemy's whereabouts were elusive, and every time they arrived at a location, they would receive news that their newly captured stronghold had been attacked; by the time they returned to provide assistance, the enemy had already moved on.

Before anyone knew it, five of the six small points had fallen into the hands of the 19th District.

"Impressive! The 19th District showed no signs of individualistic heroism or reckless fighting; their execution was top-notch!"

"This teamwork is not something that can be achieved overnight. I saw some team members fight to the very last moment to delay the opponent, which is truly admirable."

"The 3rd District have been careless this time, and their previous advantage is slipping away... The energy ratio has already caught up to 300:249."

"They were leading the game, but they got beaten like this. The performance of the 3rd District is a bit erratic today."

Seeing the situation reverse, "Dragon Diagram Jinghe" immediately ordered a halt to the pursuit:

"Don't let them lead us! Switch to a more conservative strategy!"

"Hold the existing southeast point and capture the points on the east side."

"One regiment stays behind, the second regiment follows me eastward—hold your ground, and don't advance rashly!"

This situation was somewhat beyond his expectations.

Moreover, some people got carried away and didn't care about protecting the energy points; they only knew how to hunt down others.

Clearly, the enemy is highly experienced in guild wars and has an extremely detailed grasp of our movements.

It's likely that there were reconnaissance professionals observing from the shadows all along, which explains why the opposing team had so many assassins and didn't intend to engage in a direct confrontation from the start.

The team members who had previously boasted that they would take most of the points were now silent.

Admittedly, they are indeed inferior to their opponents in teamwork and tactical execution, and for now, their only option is to play it safe and proceed cautiously.

The teams in the District 3 quickly switched to a defensive posture. As soon as the enemy showed up, they stayed at their strongholds while sending out men to quietly seize the enemy's strongholds.

Although the advantages accumulated earlier are small, they are like a steady stream; if they can be maintained, the scales of victory will eventually tip.

Players in the District 19 had already anticipated this shift—they knew that guerrilla tactics were unsustainable.

Just as the District 3 were determined to hold their ground, the enemy had already amassed its main force and launched a fierce attack on the players who remained in the District 3, even diverting some of their own stronghold's defense forces.

Faced with the overwhelming offensive, the remaining troops gradually found it difficult to hold on.

However, if reinforcements were hastily brought from another stronghold, the original garrison would be caught off guard again.

In fact, the District 19 relied on its information advantage to exploit the time difference.

Although they are slightly weaker in terms of strength, after eliminating Chongxing, who Cheater, they have the advantage in the 49-49 split.

This is about leveraging information and scheduling advantages to achieve a localized numerical advantage.

This is precisely the classic art of war.

Although my overall strength is weaker than yours, I have superior information, faster coordination, and stronger execution, which will enable me to turn defeat into victory.

In the blink of an eye, the balance of power was reversed again, the disadvantages of the District 3 reappeared, and the newly established lead vanished.

Seeing the opponents pushing forward in a group, while his own team members were scattered and their respawn time was too late to catch up with the changing battle situation, Zhang Mingzhen realized that he could no longer stand by and watch.

Having held the central area for so long, it's time to unleash my full potential.

Take the opportunity to stretch your muscles.

So he gave the order in the channel:

"Attention everyone! The enemy's main force has scattered us. I'm leaving the central area now. There might be assassins hiding here, but not many. Send two people to provide backup."

"If the assassin appears and attempts to seize the point after I leave, eliminate him immediately."

"I will head straight for the enemy's main force's stronghold on the east side."

"The remaining scattered team members will disperse in small squads to capture their strongholds, while I will deal with their main force."

Upon hearing the command to "Chongxing," the team members, who had been thrown into disarray by the District 19, immediately perked up—finally, they no longer had to be passively dealt with!

Zhang Mingzhen possesses advantages in mobility and strength, which is the source of his confidence in breaking the deadlock.

Zhang Mingzhen quickly rushed to the east side. The assassin who had been lurking in the center saw him leave, immediately notified the team, and appeared to take over the position.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he revealed himself, he was surrounded by three players from the District 3.

"The Chongxing is heading this way! Everyone retreat!"

Upon receiving the warning, the District 19 immediately attempted to evacuate.

But the players from the District 3 who had previously retreated to the corner were not going to let them get away so easily, and they all rushed forward to fight them—coming and going as they pleased was not so easy!

Before Zhang Mingzhen arrived, the attack had already begun.

"Eagle Strike" and "Chasing Wind" shot out one after the other, while a "Scattered Stars" simultaneously restored the teammates in the stronghold to full health, allowing them to move to other strongholds.

Under his continuous bombardment, the enemy's main force was quickly annihilated and entered the respawn time, which meant that a large part of their strength was lost.

He then directed all his team members to disperse and occupy various strongholds, and to immediately annihilate any enemy forces that were found to be gathering.

The deployment in the District 19 was completely disrupted, and most players were sent back to their respawn points one after another.

Next, Zhang Mingzhen pushed alone to the entrance of the enemy's respawn point, single-handedly blocking the main force from going out to provide support.

Without the support of a large group, the remaining enemy players were quickly wiped out.

At this moment, apart from a few assassins still hiding in the wild, all the players in the District 19 are trapped inside the respawn point and unable to break out.

The outcome is no longer in doubt.

The final score was 1,000 to 386.

The District 3 won this King of Guilds War, and have overtaken the District 19 on the event leaderboard, jumping to the top spot.

This battle also made other war zones realize the reality: unless they avoid one-on-one duels, it's best to avoid direct confrontations with the District 3, even in guild war mode.

"What a waste of time. I thought the District 19 could turn the tide..."

"Damn, the cheating is way too obvious."

"One person crushing a main force of more than ten people?"

"Yes, the performance of the District 19 was outstanding. If it weren't for Chongxing, that Cheater, in the District 3, the outcome of this match would probably have been reversed long ago."

Most of the onlookers were cursing that he was cheating.

Since nobody else can spend money, why are you so strong?

Those who spend money on power leveling services and buying equipment can only manage a 1v5 at most. Can you take on dozens at once?

After all, the advantage of equipment isn't that significant. Each piece of equipment has a limit; it's not a pay-to-win game where you can get +15 or +15 upgrades, or have various gem sockets.

Isn't this cheating?

"I'm so envious of the District 3. They've already secured two out of the four competition modes. How are the other regions supposed to compete?"

"Fortunately, we don't have to directly compete with them. Anyway, our war zone won't make it into the top ten, nor will it fall into the bottom ten. It's good enough."

"You have a good attitude!"

"Look at the war zones that are ranked lower these days, they're fighting even harder than the top ten—they'll do anything to avoid the so-called 'natural disaster'!"

To avoid the "natural disaster" whose specifics are yet to be known from this region, the lower-ranked war zones are resorting to any means necessary.

Their weakened state alone was already causing them immense suffering; if a natural disaster were to strike, they might all be wiped out.

The 77th War Zone was matched with the 12th War Zone this time.

Although not among the top in terms of combat strength, they are still a force that is difficult for them to contend with—the names of several of their experts are frequently mentioned even on forums.

Players from the 12th War Zone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the matchmaking result was the 77th War Zone.

"Greatsword" stretched his limbs in the Twelfth District Operations Command Center, his tone full of confidence. "If we win one more game, our ranking will move up."

"Let me play the first one-on-one match, let's see who the other side sends out."

He turned his head to look at "Weary Wind," the leader of the Legion Guild beside him, and added half-jokingly, "Hey, you wouldn't have secretly gone easy on me, would you?"

"Rumors are spreading like wildfire. Everyone's saying that the Legion Guild leader of the 77th District is so desperate that he's willing to use any means necessary."

The Legion Guild has never been a monolithic entity; the disputes from earlier meetings have already been leaked.

High-ranking players in all regions have heard about 77th District, which disregarded the requests of others.

A murmur of discontent immediately arose in the command room.

"They've really lost all sense of shame; they're all Dragon Han."

"Are we supposed to sacrifice ourselves to save them?"

"If you're not strong enough, you should accept it. Instead of wasting your energy on that, you should focus on improving your combat strength."

"If you can't afford to play, just quit the game and stay home to feed yourself. There's a minimum guarantee; they'll give you bread and water, so you won't starve."

"Yeah, if your stats are low, you go back to the real world. Anyway, you don't need to level up or fight monsters in the real world, you just have to stay in the Safe Zone."

Everyone was talking at once, their emotions running high.

"Natural disasters are indeed terrible, but we cannot condone leniency on behalf of the entire region."

Another player looked at "Weary Wind" with an apologetic tone, "Besides, not everyone in our region is from the Dragon Han; players of other ethnicities would never agree."

"Weary Wind, Juanfeng."

The Weary Wind understands this all too well.

Even if they were to reveal their entire strategy to the 77th District at this moment.

He remained convinced that victory would belong to this side.

Moreover, the first match also had the presence of a top tactical mastermind, "Greatsword."

Meanwhile, Sunshine, the head of the 77th District, was in a state of extreme anxiety.

"Commander! Can you help us? Are there any Powerful items that can temporarily boost our combat strength?"

"Calm down, look, you're in a hurry again." The voice of the Legion Guild leader came through the communicator.

"The Twelfth District is quite powerful; it will be difficult to turn the tide relying solely on external resources."

"I can grant you temporary access; go to the Legion Headquarters Equipment Vault and pick out some usable items."

Watching the Sunshine hurry towards the treasure vault, the officer sighed silently.

It's not that he doesn't want to help, but rather that he wants to help slowly, gradually, in an orderly manner, and with a clear priority...

Now that players are aware of the meeting's content, openly showing bias towards one side would severely damage the Legion Guild's credibility.

He only granted Sunshine access to the "Level Two Treasure Trove".

There are indeed some special items stored there that could influence the course of the battle.

But he must not reveal his true trump card until he is certain he can survive the natural disaster.

For example, the mage-exclusive Skill Scroll that was just auctioned off from "Chongxing" can ensure the caster's survival in dire situations.

[Frozen Barrier: Mage Exclusive. Seals the caster into ice, granting immunity to all damage for ten seconds, during which time the caster cannot move or cast spells.]

These kinds of treasures can only be used by strategic players who value them highly.

Players from the 77th District are clearly not on this list.

The top management of Dragon Han had already secretly decided to abandon the ten regions ranked last.

The long and arduous King of Glory tournament finally came to an end on this day.

The top ten regions will soon receive generous experience boosting rewards—most of which are leading regions that have been ahead for a long time.

In the region where the majority of the Mai Kingdom, they make up more than a third of the population.

You should know that Dragon Han have an advantage in this game.

This shows that Mai Kingdom really know how to enjoy sports.

They have a scientific and market-based selection and iteration mechanism that ensures that the elite rise and the mediocre fall.

Although personal connections and money play a significant role, ultimately it's about who makes the money and who has the ability that gets promoted, not who has connections or status.

This allowed the Mai Kingdom to quickly gain a foothold in the God's Domain Game, and through the introduction of a large number of Dragon Han masters, they achieved a comeback.

A system announcement resounded throughout the God's Domain: [The King of Kings Tournament has officially ended! Congratulations to the following regions for making it into the top ten.]

[Sort by score from highest to lowest:]

"The District 3, the District 1, the 19th District, the 22nd District, the District 17, the Twelfth District, the Ninety -District 19, the Seventy-Sixth District 1 -Hundred-Eighth Region!"

[The above-mentioned regions will soon experience a 24-hour experience drop event, starting in ten minutes! All players are requested to remain in the above-mentioned regions during this period!]

The world chat channel instantly went wild.

"The District 3 is invincible! We are number one!"

"How much experience will I get from this sudden drop? If I keep grinding monsters in the wild, will I level up like crazy?"

"The District 1 has returned in triumph!"

"Get up from where you fall... I really want to cry!"

"Fortunately, it won't match with the District 1 repeatedly; it would be dangerous if it matched with District 3."

"Making it into tenth place is already a stroke of luck."

"I'm already sitting here waiting to gain experience. So, does this count as leveling up while lying down?"

"I'm so envious of you guys! The top ten regions get these kinds of rewards, doesn't that mean you're getting stronger and stronger? I'm so annoyed!"

"We're lucky we didn't encounter any natural disasters."

"It's already difficult enough to stay in the top tier; just look at the regions at the very bottom... it's terrible."

Immediately afterwards, a second system announcement appeared coldly:

[The King of Glory Tournament has officially ended. The following regions have been ranked in the bottom ten due to excessive cumulative losses:]

[Region 65, Region 77, Region 138, Region 11, Region 27, Region 49, Region 4, Region 111, Region 35, Region 121.]

[A natural disaster is imminent, lasting for 24 hours.]

Desperate cries echoed across the channels of those regions.

"Help! We'll be in this weakened state for over a month. How are we going to survive the natural disaster? Can we retreat back to the real world to hide?"

"What exactly is the form of this natural disaster? I suggest everyone log off now and come back in 24 hours!"

"Damn it, you heartless people, you only care about yourselves. Why didn't you let us have a few rounds before?"

"Yes, especially that damned District 3. They never give way to anyone. Selfish people will get their comeuppance!"

"A person can't only think of themselves. If they only think of themselves, the Dragon Han will be doomed!"

"I don't know if it will work... but we have no other choice!"

Most participants in the latter ten districts chose to retreat to the real world, attempting to avoid the Judgment of the natural disaster.