55: Chapter 55 The Frenzied Invasion: The Operation Begins

"Wait, why is Lin Xiao still first?"

Wei Xuanqi was startled, suddenly noticing this anomaly.

The prodigy ranking was determined first by territory Rank, then by overall strength.

It was understandable that Lin Xiao was originally ranked first, as he was the only one with a Rank 3 territory.

But now, Yun Zhiyue and the others had all upgraded to Rank 3 territories.

Others aside, Yun Zhiyue, like him, had an all-Epic team, and her territory possessed numerous powerful special buildings; she was a Prodigy among Prodigies.

Lin Xiao came from an ordinary background. Even with investments from the Jinshi Chamber of Commerce and the Lord Association, he couldn't be that strong. At most, he would have two or three Epic-level heroes or units, and the gap in special buildings would be even greater.

Even if he had a head start and had raised the strength of his heroes and units somewhat, the gap between them wasn't so easily bridged.

Not to mention, in these ten days, Lin Xiao's territory must have been invaded multiple times, and the losses wouldn't be insignificant.

"It must be because Yun Zhiyue just upgraded."

"The gap between the two is actually very small, and she will soon surpass him?" Wei Xuanqi guessed.

However, to his complete surprise, as time passed, the prodigy ranking never changed; Lin Xiao remained firmly above Yun Zhiyue, unmoving.

"This Lin Xiao is truly not simple." Wei Xuanqi was shocked.

Others in the Prodigy Group were equally stunned. No one expected Lin Xiao to be so resilient.

...

In the world behind the Sin Race, at the Heretic Hunting Bureau.

Several lords sat together.

"Gentlemen, our plan to lure the snake out of its hole has succeeded." Drake wore a smug smile.

The hunting of the Human Race Prodigies in the First Source Sea was led by him.

Originally, seeing Lin Xiao upgrade to a Rank 3 territory without regarding their threat, Drake was indeed furious. He wanted to eliminate him as quickly as possible to intimidate the other Human Race Prodigies.

However, just then, a subordinate presented a strategy. It stated that Lin Xiao's background was not from a major force or Family, and his foundation was shallow; even if he were allowed to grow, his impact on the overall situation would be minimal.

It would be better to simply spare him, create the illusion that they were outwardly strong but inwardly weak, and attract more Prodigies to upgrade to Rank 3 territories, entering their hunting range.

Rank 2 Prodigies had already maxed out their territory strength during the Seven-Day Assessment, making them difficult to surround and kill. But once they upgraded to Rank 3 territories, even super Prodigies like Wei Xuanqi and Yun Zhiyue would have a brief period of weakness. This was the best time to surround and kill them.

Drake listened and found it very reasonable. As long as this year's batch of Prodigies were dealt with and the disruptors were gone, their advantage would expand further. It would also have a significant impact on the overall situation of the First Source Sea.

Thus, Drake persuaded the person in charge of the Purgatory Race to slow down the pace of the invasion, giving Lin Xiao a glimmer of hope, while simultaneously setting a trap for other Human Race Prodigies.

"Transmit my order."

"Go all out to surround and kill this batch of Human Race Prodigies. All invaders must not hold back; they must bring at least half of their troops when invading." Drake radiated Killing Intent.

The others dared not delay and quickly agreed.

"By the way, that Lin Xiao should also be dealt with." Drake looked at one person and said nonchalantly, "Matsumoto Toshio, don't let me down."

Keeping Lin Xiao was to lure others. Now he had no utilization value. It was time to remove this thorn in their side.

Below, Matsumoto Toshio quickly stood up and said respectfully, "Lord Drake, rest assured, we are already screening suspected targets. Within a day, we will be able to find his territory coordinates."

"That's good. He has lived too long." Drake nodded approvingly, not doubting the other's words.

After dismissing, Matsumoto Toshio returned to his office, immediately summoning his subordinates to inquire carefully.

The strategy of sparing Lin Xiao to lure the snake out of its hole was his idea, and he had promised Drake that he would find Lin Xiao's territory coordinates as quickly as possible. This was by no means easy.

There were still quite a few Third-Tier Lords of the Human Race in the First Source Sea. Trying to accurately invade Lin Xiao's territory by using qualifiers to exclude known Human Race lords was unrealistic. The amount of Source Crystal required would be an astronomical figure that no one could produce. They could only minimize the search range as much as possible.

In order to increase the probability of invading Lin Xiao's territory, Matsumoto Toshio used extremely precious items; some could temporarily increase luck, and some could even trigger a trace of the power of fate.

In the First Source Sea, the effects of these items were greatly weakened. If quality wasn't enough, quantity would make up for it. After some operations, Matsumoto Toshio could guarantee that some of the lords under his command must have already invaded Lin Xiao's territory.

Next, it was time to screen them one by one. Once Lin Xiao's territory coordinates were determined, it would be his death date.

...

Human Race Main World. Pang Lingfeng, ranked thirty-first on the prodigy ranking, returned to the Main World after upgrading his territory and arranging various matters.

His expression held both anticipation and unease. Pang Lingfeng was not a warmonger like Yun Zhiyue. The reason he chose to upgrade to a Rank 3 territory together with them was to find out if the current situation was a trap set by the Purgatory Race and the Sin Race.

Once a territory was invaded, it would cut off contact with the outside world, which was why he had come to the Main World.

[Your territory has been invaded.]

"It's here." Within an hour, Pang Lingfeng received a System prompt that his territory had been invaded. He did not act rashly.

After a few more hours, he received another prompt that his territory had been invaded. "This is not normal." Pang Lingfeng's face turned pale instantly.

In half a day, he had been invaded twice. The frequency was too high, far exceeding the normal invasion rhythm. Whether the Purgatory Race and the Sin Race had used extremely precious items or were conducting large-scale invasions, it all pointed to one thing: at this moment in the First Source Sea, the Purgatory Race and the Sin Race held a huge advantage.

While attacking the Human Race Third-Tier Lords, they could still mobilize massive forces to deal with them, the Prodigies.

"This is a trap." After sending the message out, Pang Lingfeng immediately took a large amount of resources and forcibly returned to his territory. A life-and-death struggle awaited him.

...

"It's about time." Inside the territory, Lin Xiao slowly opened his eyes. It was already the tenth day; it was time to act. With an order, all Burning Sky Flame Dragons were summoned.

Lin Xiao opened Taylor's attribute panel.

[Taylor (Burning Sky Flame Dragon)]

[Quality: Epic]

[Rank: Third-Tier]

[Physique: 31,000]

[Spirit: 32,000]

[Bloodline: High Dragon Clan Bloodline (A-Rank)]

[Skills: Dragon Language Magic (A-Rank), True Dragon Body (A-Rank), Dragon's Fury (A-Rank), Summon Meteorite (A-Rank), Scorching Flame Dragon Breath (A-Rank)]

With the help of precious resources like Dragon Blood Grass and Fusion Core Crystals, in just two days, the strength of Taylor and the others had advanced by leaps and bounds, with their attributes all growing to over 30,000.

A threefold attribute gap, Epic-level quality, and they were Dragon Clan units. Such strength could not be described by simply calling them the strongest units; even walking sideways in the First Source Sea would be a breeze.