[Congratulations to Country L's challenger, Master Lin Xiaoran, and her Heroic Spirit, Fujitora Issho, for successfully eliminating all challengers, surviving to the end, and taking first place! You have won this round of the game!] [National fortune rewards: 1. The lifespans of all Country L residents increase by 50 years! 2. The constitution, comprehension, and health of all Country L residents increase by 50 points! 3. Natural disasters in Country L decrease by 50%! 4. Land damaged by earthquakes in Country L is restored by 50%! 5. Water sources contaminated by disease and plague in Country L are restored by 50%!]
[Wow! These rewards are amazing! So powerful!]
[That's the benefit of having a high score! The ceiling gets raised enormously!]
[An extra 50 years of life! My grandpa can live another fifty years!]
[And those extra constitution, comprehension, and health points! Who knows how many seriously ill patients can be cured now!]
[Especially comprehension. That's a huge boost for scientists and researchers! Our national strength can rise again!]
[The last time E Country won, constitution only increased by 10 points, extreme cold weather only decreased by 5%, and temperatures only rose to -30 degrees. But for us, natural disasters dropped by a whole 50%! Our land and water sources were restored too!]
[It's all good news!]
[Forget E Country's great hero. Student Lin is the real great hero!]
[God Lin!]
[Great Hero Lin!]
[Let's celebrate our great hero taking first place!]
[Let's celebrate our great hero taking first place! +1]
[Let's celebrate our great hero taking first place! +2]
The moment these national fortune rewards were announced, every country around the world erupted!
The boost to Country L's national strength was truly terrifying!
These rewards might not have propelled Country L straight to the top in one go, but they had already left every other country in the dust!
First, excessive resource extraction around the world had depleted Sky Blue Star, triggering all manner of natural disasters. Earthquakes, tsunamis, viruses, storms, disease, and countless other tribulations plagued the entire world, constantly whittling away at countries' populations and food supplies while their technology and national strength declined by the day. Even without the National Fortune Game, their collapse would only have been a matter of time.
When that happened, the world's refugees would number more than ten or even a hundred times as many as there were now!
But now, thanks to Lin Xiaoran's outstanding performance, her frantic accumulation of enormous numbers of points, and her ultimate victory in the game, Country L's natural disasters had dropped by a full 50%!
That was 50%!
A single terrifying natural disaster could leave millions of refugees homeless!
The medical supplies, food, and other resources the country consumed to help those people, along with the materials needed to rebuild their homes afterward, amounted to an astronomical figure!
As a result, Country L had now saved vast amounts of supplies! It had preserved countless lives!
There were also the restored land and water sources. Country L could use them to grow crops, raise poultry and other animals, and so on. These were all hidden assets that could ensure steady population growth!
While other countries struggled to survive amid natural disasters, Country L could steadily grow stronger in peace, restore its population, develop technology, and constantly bolster its national strength.
This alone meant that even if the National Fortune Game vanished now, the world's strongest country in the future would be none other than Country L!
Oh, right, there were also the increases to lifespan, constitution, comprehension, and health.
At present, setting natural disasters aside, the average lifespan across Sky Blue Star was around seventy to eighty years, which counted as quite long-lived.
However, every country had one fatal problem: a severely aging population!
Country L was no exception, so extending lifespans by fifty years could be said to have put out the fire singeing their eyebrows.
Then there was the increased constitution. An eighty-year-old's physical condition could now rival that of a middle-aged person in their forties or fifties!
This counted as another way of turning back the years and returning to youth!
Jiang Jiayou closed his eyes and focused on feeling his body grow stronger. All his old problems with fatigue, weakness, and insufficient mental energy vanished at that moment!
The longer he lived, the younger he became!
"Whew! This boost feels so good!" Che Yisi said blissfully.
He felt healthier than he ever had before!
Chang Jian's eyes shone as he clenched his fists, feeling the endless strength flowing through his body. He shouted, "I could kill a cow with one punch now! And all the hidden injuries I've accumulated over the years have healed too!"
Killing a cow with one punch was clearly an illusion on Chang Jian's part, but the increase in constitution had indeed improved every physical metric of Country L's people across the board.
Especially its soldiers.
They already maintained strict training regimens, and their stamina, fighting skills, strength, and so on were all somewhat better than those of ordinary people. After this boost, that gap widened as well.
This was also what other countries least wanted to see.
After all, this was an increase in military strength!
"We owe it all to Student Lin this time, for thinking of having her powerful Heroic Spirit help earn points! Otherwise, simply winning wouldn't have earned such outrageous rewards!" Jiang Jiayou said with feeling.
The higher the score, the better the rewards. This round had demonstrated that to the fullest!
It also served as a reminder to every country: if a challenger summoned a powerful Heroic Spirit in the next game, they would have to find ways to earn as many points as possible!
Oh, provided they could deal with the great demon king, Lin Xiaoran!
According to the National Fortune Game's pattern, the winner's Heroic Spirit grew stronger with each round.
But Lin Xiaoran's Heroic Spirit could already summon meteors this time. What about the next time? Would she summon something else?
Therefore, no one dared let their guard down.
At the same time, as their greatest rival, the great demon king standing in the way of every country in the world, Lin Xiaoran would also face the greatest trouble in the next round.
That was a coordinated attack by all the challengers.
This was an unspoken understanding between the countries. Without being told, the challengers knew what to do.
But neither Lin Xiaoran nor Country L had any way to stop it.
No matter how humiliating or ugly the curses they hurled, they could not overcome the other countries' determination to win.
So it would all come down to Lin Xiaoran herself.
Fortunately, Lin Xiaoran was not panicking either, simply because she had a cheat!
Inside the game instance.
The moment the National Fortune Game's announcement rang out, the countdown to exiting the game began, leaving Lin Xiaoran and Issho just ten seconds to say goodbye.
"Uncle Issho! Thank you for all your help this time!" Lin Xiaoran said quickly.
"I should thank you too, for summoning me and letting me take part in such a pleasant journey! Farewell, Master! Take good care of yourself!" Issho said goodbye with a smile.
"If fate allows, we'll meet again!"
Ten seconds passed in a flash. No matter how much more Lin Xiaoran had to say, there was no time to say it.
A white light flashed, and Lin Xiaoran returned to her bedroom.
"Whew, I'm back. It feels just like a dream!"
Lin Xiaoran went straight to her bed and flopped down, relaxing her entire body.
Five days earlier, upon learning that she had to take part in the dangerous National Fortune Game, Lin Xiaoran had stayed up late in a panic looking up guides. Yet after entering the game, she had unexpectedly obtained a system, leaving those guides largely unused. Issho had carried her as he slaughtered his way through the entire National Fortune Game instance, making her a carried freeloader who successfully won and came back alive.
Not only that, Lin Xiaoran had also drawn Issho's Advanced Observation Haki and Press-Press Fruit abilities, transforming into an ability user!
That was her greatest gain!
At that thought, Lin Xiaoran activated her Observation Haki, wanting to see whether there would be any difference in her perception in the real world.
"Why are there so many people outside my door?"