Chapter 327

Gu Xiuwen remained completely unaffected, standing upright on the stage with his hands behind his back.

The appearance of the two prominent figures, renowned throughout the Federation, immediately brought the atmosphere to a fever pitch.

Following this, leaders from various Federation agencies appeared one after another, and the principals of the five major military academies also took the stage to give speeches.

"Please be seated, judges. Now, contestants, please prepare yourselves. The simulated battlefield program has been activated. In ten seconds, each contestant will be randomly selected and drawn into the battlefield to begin this year's grand final competition!"

As soon as he finished speaking, an invisible force descended from the sky, slowly covering the entire arena.

Xu Jintang shifted her gaze from Gu Xiuwen, closed her eyes, and a feeling of weightlessness washed over her.

All the light around us seemed to have been sucked away, leaving only endless darkness.

"Drip, drip, drip..."

The notification tone kept ringing, then the countdown began, "Five, four..."

"Three, two, one."

As the final countdown ended, Xu Jintang's consciousness wavered for a moment. When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a forest filled with yellow leaves.

"Squad leader?" Yan Yuting's voice came through the phone.

Xu Jintang slowly opened her eyes, looked up and rubbed her temples, "We're in?"

"Yes, this should be the simulated battlefield for the finals." Yan Yuting nodded.

A moment later, another howl rang out from nearby.

"Damn! I almost fell to my death." Song Tianqi rubbed his butt as he emerged from a clump of grass. "I was teleported to a tree, and as soon as I opened my eyes, I lost my balance and fell straight down."

Jiang Shiyi was safely teleported to flat ground. She stood silently to the side, observing her surroundings without saying a word.

Xue Zhongqi was the first to wake up, and now he had already gripped the Inscription Talisman in his hand, wary of the enemy.

"All players participating in the finals have been successfully loaded."

"The survival zone will begin its first round of contraction in one hour. Please be prepared."

The broadcast sounded from the horizon.

Xu Jintang and the other four all looked up at the sky.

A giant screen floated in the air, displaying the names of the ten teams that had advanced. Each name was flashing red, symbolizing that they were still alive.

"So how exactly does this competition work? Is it a survival battle?" Song Tianqi asked, scratching his head.

Yan Yuting immediately shook his head, "How could it be just a survival battle? That's what they say, but only the last team that survives is the winner, so there will definitely be competition and elimination among them."

"Okay, let's observe the situation first." Xu Jintang nodded.

The group immediately took their positions and formed a battle formation.

Song Tianqi walked at the front, holding the Scarlet Flame in his hand, ready to fight at any moment.

Xu Jintang, positioned in the middle, had already silently activated his mental energy to probe the surrounding situation.

Yan Yuting was protected by Jiang Shiyi and Xue Zhongqi. She gripped the electric whip in her hand, her lips tightly pressed together, her expression tense.

"The area we were teleported to is just an ordinary forest area. Normally, there should be monster camps nearby." Xu Jintang's detection range has now expanded to a radius of several dozen miles. After a quick patrol, she has a basic understanding of the surrounding area.

Yan Yuting turned around, puzzled, and said, "We've been walking for a while now, and we haven't encountered a single demonic beast. That's a bit strange."

Song Tianqi and Xue Zhongqi stopped and looked around.

The entire grove was quiet; only the footsteps of Xu Jintang and his companions could be heard.

Xu Jintang pursed her lips and looked around.

Suddenly, a violent tremor came from all directions.

"Watch out!" Song Tianqi reacted immediately, raising his hand to activate his spiritual power, a ball of Scarlet Flame floating in his palm, ready to strike at any moment.

"It doesn't seem to be a demonic beast." Yan Yuting gripped the lightning whip in his hand, his gaze fixed on the direction from which the sound came from.

If it were a monster attacking, it should have reached them by now, given all this time. Yet, there is still no sign of any monster around.

"It's an earthquake," Jiang Shiyi's calm voice rang out. "It should be a natural disaster simulating a battlefield."

"Huh? What should we do then?" Song Tianqi's eyes showed a hint of confusion.

Xue Zhongqi was the first to react, shouting, "Run! Once we're on flat ground, we'll be safe!"

As he spoke, he himself rushed out first.

They are currently in a densely wooded forest area surrounded by rolling mountains. If the earthquake continues, it could easily cause rockfalls and ground fissures.

Xue Zhongqi was running ahead, quickly locked onto a direction and pointed to the right front, "Run that way, that's the plains."

Xu Jintang followed closely behind.

Just as they were about to change direction, the ground beneath their feet suddenly trembled violently, and then a crack appeared in the ground.

"Watch out for the ground cracking!" she shouted a warning, immediately channeling her mental energy.

The crack has extended into a bottomless chasm, and thick glaciers have quickly covered it, forming a stable ice surface.

Jiang Shiyi and Yan Yuting immediately followed, quickly crossing the ice.

The earthquake is still ongoing.

As expected, before long, countless rocks rolled down from the nearby mountain, and the surrounding trees began to break and fall, blocking the road.

"Squad leader, there are people ahead!" Xue Zhongqi, who was at the forefront, saw several figures and shouted quickly.

Xu Jintang looked up.

Not far ahead, another group of people could be seen charging towards the plains on the opposite side.

"It should be another team." Xu Jintang quietly gathered his mental energy in his palm, "Get ready for battle."

Outside the simulated battlefield.

The audience watched the broadcast screen with eager anticipation.

"This is going to be interesting! The two teams, Grande and Leikedasi, have actually clashed right at the start of the game."

"Grande lost to Leikedasi in the qualifiers."

"But this isn't a ring match. The simulated battlefield is unpredictable. Who can guarantee that Leikedasi will have a smooth ride all the way?"

The two teams that everyone was talking about had already met in the simulated battlefield.

"Captain Xu, it's been a long time." Shi Anyu greeted him first with a gentle smile.

Seeing that he didn't seem to intend to make a move, Xu Jintang returned a smile, "What do you mean? Should we fight now or try to coexist peacefully for now?"

"Fighting is no fun. Let's sit down and talk about cooperation." Shi Anyu got straight to the point.

This is the second team to want to partner with Leikedasi.

Xu Jintang looked up, a smile playing on his lips. "Cooperation is fine, but we'll have to see your sincerity first."

Shi Anyu nodded readily, pointing to the falling rocks rolling towards them from behind, "Shouldn't we dodge this wave of rocks first?"

The eyes of the team members behind him were also focused on the falling rocks behind them.

Xu Jintang glanced back and nodded, saying, "Run first!"

So both teams turned around and continued their escape.

After running out of the mountains, the falling rocks behind were quickly left behind.

The tremors gradually subsided.

Xu Jintang only stopped after confirming that there was no danger around.

Song Tianqi and the others lined up in a row, each standing on either side of Xu Jintang, remaining vigilant.

Shi Anyu and his group appeared much more relaxed.

"Don't be nervous." Shi Anyu smiled and pointed to the open space beside him. "Captain Xu, shall we talk?"

Xu Jintang pursed his lips and pondered for a moment.

She had some dealings with the Grande Military Academy during the preliminary rounds, Shi Anyu didn't seem like the kind of person who would cheat or play dirty tricks. She didn't think he would deliberately set traps or launch sneak attacks.

Moreover, it wouldn't be so easy for the other side to launch a sneak attack specifically on her.

"Okay." Xu Jintang gestured for the other person to go first. "Please."

Xu Jintang and Shi Anyu turned around one after the other and walked together to the open space next to them.

The remaining team members stood facing each other, each keeping their eyes fixed on the ground with vigilance.

After walking a distance, Shi Anyu stopped and turned around.

"Captain Xu, let's cut to the chase." Shi Anyu's eyes gleamed. "Grande Military Academy isn't here to win the championship, so there's no competition between us."

Xu Jintang frowned slightly, "Why are you participating if you don't want to win?"

Shi Anyu replied, "Stop and expose Jing Hongyi's conspiracy to collude with the demonic beast."

That's a bit outrageous.

Xu Jintang immediately took a large step back, quickly distancing himself, "What you're saying has nothing to do with Leikedasi."

As she said this, she was still glancing around out of the corner of her eye.

This final is being broadcast live; their conversation might have just been broadcast over.

To everyone's surprise, Shi Anyu didn't seem to care, maintaining his smile. "Don't worry, I deployed jamming devices before we started talking. The satellite cameras simulating the battlefield will automatically avoid us."

Xu Jintang had some doubts.

However, if what Shi Anyu said was false, then there should have been some reaction when he uttered that treasonous remark.

"Continue." Xu Jintang's gaze fell on him, her expression becoming more serious.

Shi Anyu spoke again, "You personally experienced the Dragon Lake Lion Pride' surprise attack on the border city, which almost triggered a major war. Don't you find it strange? Why would the Dragon Lake Lion Pride, who have always been peace-loving, suddenly behave so abnormally?"

Xu Jintang didn't respond, waiting for him to continue.

Shi Anyu continued, "Furthermore, the league suddenly changed so many rules this year, and most of them were specifically targeted at the five major military academies. This is because the conflict between the Federation and the five major military academies has been brewing for too long, and Jing Hongyi has long disliked you."

Xu Jintang's expression turned serious.

She knew about it, of course, but she just hadn't brought it up openly.