211: Surrounded by formidable enemies, all sorts of extraordinary talents have emerged.

The preliminary points competition of the Xinghai University Freshman Cup was like a massive and efficient sorting machine, filtering out the vast majority of the over three thousand freshmen in the most brutal and direct way possible, all within three days.

Lin Zhou sat upright in his dormitory's Link Meditation Room, with several semi-transparent data screens floating before him. Soft white light illuminated his calm yet focused face. The preliminaries had entered their final day. His record was 27 wins and 0 losses, with a current score of 324 points, firmly securing the 9th position in the real-time rankings. This achievement was already stunning in the highly anticipated and competitive Freshman Cup, enough to guarantee him an early spot in the Main Competition, and a highly ranked seed position at that.

However, Lin Zhou showed little sign of relaxation. His gaze rapidly scanned the files on the "monster-level" freshmen at the top of the current leaderboard. These files had been urgently compiled by Li Mo and supplemented by fragmented information received from parts of the intelligence network (mainly from the sporadic information passed on by Chen Hai).

The names and the god Domain information they represented, displayed on the screens, exerted a heavy pressure that even Lin Zhou, with his Heart-Nature, could feel. The random matching of the preliminaries had allowed him to avoid the absolute top tier (the System has a balancing mechanism to prevent premature king vs. king confrontations), but observing these individuals' records, match durations, and occasionally leaked combat footage fragments was enough to glimpse the full picture.

[Key Opponent Profiles (Preliminary Performance Analysis)]:

1. Thor, Wrath of Thunder (Combat Academy)

Current Rank: 2nd (Score: 341, 28 Wins, 0 Losses)

God Domain Type: S-Rank Potential Assessment · Storm Titan God Domain (Suspected to have Awakened a portion of Ancient Titan Bloodline).

Core Kin: Storm Titans (Infant/Youth Stage). Quantity unknown, estimated to be no more than 50 units, but of extremely high quality.

Preliminary Performance:

Average Battle Duration: 1 minute 47 seconds (one of the shortest overall). Most battles end within 2 minutes.

Tactical Style: Extreme violent crushing. When the Titan kin appear, they usually only require a single group charge or one round of ranged throwing (Storm Spear) to destroy the opponent's defenses and god domain core.

Key Data (Estimated based on combat footage):

Strength Attribute: Averaging over 60 points (Infant Stage Titans)! Individual Elite/Hero units may approach or even exceed 80 points! This is terrifying strength capable of tearing steel bare-handed and collapsing ordinary stone city walls (non-magically reinforced) with a single punch.

Physique Attribute: Estimated 50-70 points. Combined with natural rock or lightning skin, their physical defense is shocking.

Special Abilities: High affinity for lightning. Attacks carry powerful lightning damage and area splash. May possess a "Storm Control" type talent, allowing them to locally alter the weather and summon lightning.

Threat Assessment: The epitome of extreme strength and destructive power. Any tactic attempting a frontal clash appears pale before the Titan's absolute strength. Relatively slow speed (Agility estimated at 20-30 points) may be one of its few weaknesses, but its massive size and area attacks compensate for this to some extent.

2. Elsa Frost-Whisper (Elemental Academy)

Current Rank: 4th (Score: 332, 27 Wins, 1 Loss; the only loss is suspected to be a deliberate forfeiture to test tactics)

God Domain Type: Elemental Monarch Bloodline (Frost System). Rumors claim her god domain core is an "Eternal Frozen Ice Core," which has initially formed a small Elemental Ice Demiplane.

Core Kin: Ice Elemental Spirits, Frost Constructs, Frost Wyrms (rare). The composition of kin is diverse, and synergy is excellent.

Preliminary Performance:

Average Battle Duration: 3 minutes 15 seconds.

Tactical Style: The elegant and deadly Absolute Zero Domain. She excels at instantly deploying a large-scale "Extreme Cold Domain" at the start, drastically reducing the movement and attack speed of the opponent's kin, while continuously inflicting frost damage and freezing effects. Coupled with the precise targeted strikes of the Ice Elemental Spirits and the steady advance of the Constructs, opponents often suffer a desperate defeat amidst the cold and sluggishness.

Key Abilities:

Domain Control: The "Extreme Cold Domain" has an immense range (estimated diameter exceeding 200 meters), high intensity, and seems capable of fine-tuning based on the opponent's attributes (stronger suppression against fire types).

Summoning and Construction: Can rapidly summon Ice Elemental Spirits (Casting Units) or condense Frost Constructs (Meat Shields/Assault Units), providing strong tactical flexibility.

Bloodline Spells: Suspected to have mastered high-level Ice Spells, such as "Frozen Path" (creating slippery ice surfaces with freezing effects) and "Glacier Spike" (area ground spike attack).

Threat Assessment: A top-tier Domain Controller and Elemental Master. The extreme cold environment is a nightmare for most non-ice kin, severely restricting mobility and performance. Her tactical System is complete, with no obvious weaknesses.

3. Shadow Song (Shadow Academy, Name Unknown, Codename)

Current Rank: 6th (Score: 327, 26 Wins, 1 Loss)

God Domain Type: Rare Void Phantom God Domain. Deeply linked to the Shadow Plane or Void energy, mysterious and unfathomable.

Core Kin: Void Phantoms (a type of semi-corporeal shadow creature capable of shifting between physical and ethereal states), Shadow Lurkers, and Ghost-type units.

Preliminary Performance:

Average Battle Duration: Varies greatly, ranging from tens of seconds to over ten minutes.

Tactical Style: Eerie, secretive, and one-hit kill. Common tactic: Conceal the entire field at the start, making the god domain core and main kin difficult to locate. They constantly harass, weaken, and divide the opponent through Shadow Jumps, Psychic Whispers, and Fear Auras, creating Chaos. When the opponent's morale is low and formation is scattered, the main Void Phantom force erupts from the shadows, striking directly at the god domain core or key hero units, often ending the battle instantly.

Key Characteristics:

Ethereal/Corporeal Shift: Void Phantoms can freely switch between corporeal form (when attacking) and ethereal form (when evading physical attacks or stealthing), providing extreme restraint against purely physical troops.

Mental Erosion: Attacks carry mental damage and fear effects, excelling at striking morale and creating illusions.

Difficult to Target: The god domain core may be located in a demiplane or deep shadow, rendering conventional scouting methods extremely ineffective.

Threat Assessment: The most troublesome assassin and master of psychological warfare. Conventional positional warfare and frontal assaults have limited effect against them. Requires extremely strong anti-stealth and mental defense capabilities, as well as strategies to counter high-speed raids and decapitation tactics.

4. Saint Roland (Theology Preparatory Institute)

Current Rank: 8th (Score: 325, 27 Wins, 0 Losses)

God Domain Type: Pure Holy Light God Domain. Faith is extremely pure, radiating immense light.

Core Kin: Holy Light Guards (Heavy Infantry), Dawn Archers (Light Archers), Supplicants (Support/Healing Units), and a small number of Twin-Winged Angels (Suspected).

Preliminary Performance:

Average Battle Duration: 4 minutes 50 seconds.

Tactical Style: Steady, aboveboard, overwhelming opponents with momentum. The Holy Light kin have balanced attributes, strict discipline, and excellent coordination. They excel at using the "Holy Light Domain" to purify negative statuses, enhance allies, and weaken enemies with Dark/Undead/Chaos attributes. Their battles are like a tide of light, advancing step-by-step, making them difficult to shake.

Key Characteristics:

Holy Light Purification: Possesses extremely strong restraint against Dark, Undead, and Chaos attributes, and may exhibit a tendency toward "repulsion" or "purification" against positive energies outside the Holy Light System (such as Lin Zhou's Fire of Civilization?) (Requires verification).

Unwavering Faith: Kin morale is extremely high, virtually immune to mental effects like fear and confusion.

Strong Recovery Capability: Possesses highly efficient healing units, strong capacity for protracted battles.

Threat Assessment: A perfect Order Legion and Aura stream. No obvious weaknesses, comprehensive tactics, and potentially capable of special attacks against Lin Zhou's "non-traditional" Order power.

5. Qin Qing (School of Literature and Law / Student Union Enforcement Department)

Current Rank: 5th (Score: 329, 27 Wins, 0 Losses)

God Domain Type: Judgment Angel God Domain.

Core Kin: Judgment Angels (various forms), Holy Flame Constructs.

Preliminary Performance: Highly efficient, precise, and ruthless. Judgment Angels have extremely strong suppressive power against "chaotic" and "disordered" targets, often crushing opponents with absolute Order. Her personal command is calm, and tactical Execution is meticulous.

Threat Assessment: A natural enemy on the Order plane. May possess a targeted advantage against Lin Zhou's rule-diverse God Domain.

Besides these five, there are other strong contenders ranked around the top ten, such as "Steel Bone, Iron Hammer" (Hill Giant + Mechanical Modification) and "Star Speaker" (Rare Astral Psionic God Domain). None of them are easy opponents.

Lin Zhou slowly closed the screens, leaned back in his chair, and shut his eyes. In his mind, the terrifying data and tactical styles flashed repeatedly.

The city-shattering power of a Titan's punch... the absolute sluggishness of the Frost Domain... the phantom-like ethereal assassination of the Void Phantom... the potential "purification" characteristic of the Holy Light... and Qin Qing's cold Order Judgment...

The pressure, like an invisible mountain, weighed heavily on his heart. Although the Hundred Schools Divine Domain was unique and grew rapidly, its development time was short. Its average subordinate Rank, hero unit strength, and accumulated god domain core foundation had no advantage compared to these top Prodigies with profound backgrounds and exceptional talents; in fact, it was at a clear disadvantage in terms of basic attributes.

His advantages lay in the diversity of his ideologies, the flexibility of his tactics, and the as-yet-fully-developed potential for inclusion and transformation held by the river of civilization. But against absolute power, ultimate Domains, treacherous assassination, or perfect Auras, could these advantages translate into victory?

The smooth sailing of the Preliminary Rounds was largely due to opponents not being strong enough, or their tactics being countered. Once they entered the Main Competition, especially after the top 64 or top 32, facing any of the aforementioned individuals would be an extremely severe test.

"We can't stick to the usual plan..." Lin Zhou opened his eyes, a sharp glint flickering within them. The existing tactical plan needed significant adjustment; they had to devise more targeted, even risky, strategies against different types of top-tier enemies.

He stood up, left the Quiet Room, and used his Personal Terminal to issue an Emergency Summons Directive to the core members of the Hundred Schools Society and the Tian Gong Institute.

Half an hour later, the atmosphere in the Tactical Discussion Room next to the Society's activity room was heavy.

Lin Zhou shared the compiled data on strong enemies with Zhao Hao, Wang Meng, Li Mo, Zhou Ming, and Ye Wan (Iron Face and Copper Hammer's Consciousness Projections were also present via a special link).

After reviewing the data, Zhao Hao gasped: "Oh my goodness... is the Titan's strength seriously 80 points? My Adolescent Red Dragon's strength is only 55! How are we supposed to fight that? A single Dragon Breath attack would probably just tickle it!"

Wang Meng's expression was also grim. The strength his Behemoth prided itself on seemed like a joke compared to the Titan. "And that Ice Maiden, once her Domain opens, my Behemoth turns into a slow-motion ice sculpture... Shadow Song is even more disgusting, you can't even find anyone to hit!"

Li Mo pushed up his glasses, data streams flashing across the lenses. "President, based on data model analysis, our current conventional tactical System has a victory rate of no more than 30% against any of the aforementioned opponents, perhaps even lower. The Titan and Frost fall under the 'Hard Power Overwhelm Type,' Shadow Song is the 'Mechanism Counter Type,' and Saint Roland and Qin Qing are likely the 'Rule Targeting Type.' We need unconventional solutions."

Zhou Ming attempted to deduce a plan: "Perhaps we can utilize the terrain? Or lure them into dividing their forces? But the Domains of the Titan and the Frost user are both large-scale..."

Ye Wan said softly, "My Deer Spirit might be able to counteract the slowing effect of the Frost Domain to some extent, but the effect would likely be limited, and it couldn't protect the other subordinates."

Everyone discussed animatedly, but most of the proposed solutions were limited and failed to address the root of the problem.

Lin Zhou listened quietly. Only when the discussion subsided did he slowly speak: "If conventional means cannot secure victory, then we must use unconventional means. The Hundred Schools of Thought are not limited to direct confrontation."

He looked at Li Mo and Copper Hammer's projections: "Tian Gong Institute, I don't need conventional equipment upgrades. I need you to focus your efforts on prioritizing the research and development or improvement of two to three 'Special Tactical Items' before the Main Competition begins."

"President, please instruct us!" Li Mo and Copper Hammer immediately stood at attention.

"First, targeting creatures like Titans—those with ultra-high strength, high defense, but relative clumsiness—I need a device or technique that can severely restrict their movement, interfere with their exertion of force, or weaken their strength attributes at the rule level. We are not aiming for lethality, but for 'Control' and 'Weakening'." Lin Zhou said solemnly. "In the Mohist Mechanical Arts, are there concepts like the 'Dragon Binding Lock' or the 'Force Dispersing Array'? By combining them with Goblin explosive devices, can we create a single-use 'Power Disruption Field'?"

Copper Hammer frowned, thinking quickly: "A mechanism to confine a giant creature... yes! But it requires extremely strong Materials and Divine Power to maintain. If we combine it with the Goblin concept of explosive acceleration... perhaps we could design a 'Delayed Trigger' Super Gravity Rune Array? Or... a Leyline Turbulence Trap? Changing the local gravity or rule stability for a short time, making it difficult for the Titan to exert force?"

Li Mo's eyes lit up: "Explosive acceleration trigger! We can design a Nested Structure: first use a small explosion to 'nail' the Core Rune Array into the ground beneath or around the Titan, and then use a secondary delayed detonation to trigger large-scale gravity turbulence or rule interference! Materials... we might need a large amount of 'Mountain-Sinking Iron' and 'Void Dust' to construct the unstable field."

"Feasibility and time?" Lin Zhou asked.

"Theoretically feasible! But it requires extensive testing, the Materials are scarce, and the cost is extremely high! Success rate... about 50%. Time... at least five days of non-stop work!" Copper Hammer gritted his teeth.

"The Materials Science Society will try to raise a portion of the Materials. I give you Maximum Authority, focus all efforts on this Breakthrough!" Lin Zhou decided.

"Yes!" The two accepted the Order.

"Second," Lin Zhou looked at everyone, "targeting opponents like Shadow Song, who combine the tangible and the intangible and use Mental Attacks, we need to strengthen Anti-Stealth and mental defense. The Legalist Edicts' Net of Law has the characteristic of detecting 'violations'; perhaps we can try to enhance its function of 'Detecting Hidden Malice.' At the same time, the Confucian Vast Righteous Qi and the Daoist Quietude and Non-Action should have potential in protecting against Mental Erosion. Li Mo, can you develop a portable 'Mental Stabilizer' or 'Anti-Stealth Beacon' based on these ideologies?"

Li Mo quickly took notes: "To enhance the Net of Law's detection module... we need more precise Rule Sensing Runes. For the portable Mental Stabilizer... we can attempt to miniaturize the Confucian 'Rectifying the Heart' Rune and the Daoist 'Calming the Spirit' Rune, combining them with Psionic Crystal power. But this requires you, President, to provide more specific 'Ideological Resonance' support for the runes to take effect."

"Understood. I will cooperate." Lin Zhou nodded.

"Third," Lin Zhou's gaze deepened, "we need one or two true 'Trump Cards.' Trump Cards that can reverse the situation at a crucial moment, or at least create a decisive opportunity. This Trump Card might not lie in external objects, but in... a deeper Fusion of our own ideologies, or... the further guidance of the river of civilization's power."

He looked at everyone: "In the coming days, besides assisting the Tian Gong Institute with R&D, everyone, including me, needs to engage in higher-intensity Meditation and ideological comprehension. We must try to apply different ideological powers through deeper combination. For instance, combining the School of the Military's Devious Dao with the Mohist Schools Art of Argumentation to create Tactical Deception; combining Legalist Edicts with Confucian Teaching to perform area-wide 'Rule Definition' and 'Morale Reversal'; combining Mohist Mechanisms with Daoist Nature to create Temporary Constructs with 'Growth Potential' or 'Environmental Adaptability'..."

"This will be extremely difficult and require immense consumption." Zhou Ming reminded him.

"But this is the threshold we must cross." Lin Zhou's tone was firm. "If we cannot use a higher level of 'Ingenuity' and 'Change' to counter ultimate 'Force' and 'Domain,' we won't get far."

The meeting lasted for a long time. The initial solemnity of the attendees gradually transformed into a desperate fighting spirit. Pressure brought fear, but it also spurred a greater will to survive and creativity.

After the meeting, Lin Zhou remained alone in the discussion room. He brought up the Temple of Civilization interface, looking at the 1820 civilization points, the deeper, yet-to-be-unlocked Classical Text Areas within the Sanctuary, and the "Heroic Spirit Summoning" option he had never attempted.

"Perhaps... the time has come." Lin Zhou muttered to himself. Facing such strong enemies, his existing understanding and power might truly be insufficient. He needed deeper Wisdom Guidance, or a "Power of the Sages" capable of stabilizing the situation at a critical moment.

He clicked on the "Heroic Spirit Summoning" option, and a complex, ancient list slowly unfolded, enumerating the Names of Sages from different eras and fields, along with the civilization points required to summon them (even if only an extremely faint projection or Legacy of wisdom). The costs ranged from hundreds to thousands of points.

Lin Zhou's gaze slowly swept over several names, weighing his options.

Outside the window, the night was deep. Xinghai University's lights were still brilliant, and the smoke of the Freshman Cup Main Competition had quietly begun to permeate the undercurrents. The real challenge was imminent. Lin Zhou knew that the preparations over the next few days would determine how far he and the Hundred Schools Society could walk down this path crowded with experts.