270: Chapter 205: Pre-Battle Analysis, The Gap in Absolute Strength Becomes Apparent

[Hundred Schools Society · Tactical Deduction Room]

Time: 71 hours before the finals

A heavy atmosphere filled the air, mixed with a faint scent of ink, the smell of metal coolant, and a trace of scorching heat caused by the high-intensity operation of Divine Power.

In the center of the deduction room, a huge, translucent screen condensed from Divine Power flowed with dense data streams and 3D models like a waterfall. Before the screen, Zhao Hao scratched his flame-red hair irritably, Wang Meng crossed his arms with brows furrowed into a knot, and Li Mo's glasses reflected the rapidly scrolling code as his fingers tapped in the void, almost leaving afterimages. Qin Qing stood a bit further away, her posture straight, but her slightly pursed lips and focused gaze on the screen revealed her inner turmoil.

Lin Zhou sat in the main seat, his face still somewhat pale, but his eyes had regained their usual calm and sharpness. The nurturing effect of the Medical Divine Domain was significant; his condition had recovered to about eighty percent, at least enough not to affect his thinking and command.

Su Yueyao had already left, but the several ancient Jade Slips she brought and a preliminary list of information were floating by Lin Zhou's hand, emitting a faint and profound glow.

"Everyone is here." Lin Zhou spoke, his voice not loud, but it caused all the noise in the deduction room to vanish instantly. "Time is tight, let's start directly. Li Mo, show us the results of your deduction."

Li Mo nodded forcefully, took a deep breath, and made a heavy swipe in the void with his finger.

The data stream on the screen cleared instantly, turning into a crystal-clear comparison interface. On the left was the detailed data model of the "Hundred Schools Divine Kingdom," and on the right was the model of the "(Estimated) Xuanyuan Hao's Divine Kingdom." In the middle was a striking red dividing line and a huge, shocking number—[Comprehensive Win Rate Simulation: 2.7%].

"2.7%..." Zhao Hao cursed under his breath, "How the hell is this different from just telling us we've already lost?"

"The difference is," Lin Zhou calmly interjected, "this 2.7% means the System believes there is a theoretical, extremely tiny possibility of us winning. Even if it might stem from an error or unknown variables. Having it versus not having it is a fundamental difference."

He looked at Li Mo: "Give us the specific analysis."

Li Mo pushed his glasses; the eyes behind the lenses were bloodshot. It was clear that these dozens of hours of sleepless deduction and data analysis had exhausted his mental energy, but his tone was exceptionally excited—the state of a researcher facing an extreme problem.

"Yes, President." Li Mo tapped his fingers repeatedly, and the data models on the screen began to break down and enlarge item by item.

Item One: Basic Comparison of Divine Kingdoms

Area and Volume:

Hundred Schools Divine Kingdom: 300 square kilometers (stable value after Fusion with the ancient Grotto-Heaven).

Xuanyuan Hao's Divine Kingdom: Conservatively estimated at 800 square kilometers (based on his control of eight astral realms, calculated from the basic resource output and minimum area of each astral realm). The actual size might be larger, or include folded, semi-planar subsidiary spaces.

Comparison Result: Area ratio approximately 1 : 2.67. We are at an absolute disadvantage in terms of volume. In the vast semi-plane of the "Ultimate Mode," our divine kingdom's projection's 'presence,' rule coverage, and resource point control potential are far inferior.

Rule Completeness and Stability:

Hundred Schools Divine Kingdom: 68% (significant leap due to the prototype of the river of civilization and the ancient Grotto-Heaven Fusion, but the newborn rule System still needs time to settle and integrate).

Xuanyuan Hao's Divine Kingdom: Estimated >85% (possesses the nine cauldrons phantom for suppression, longer divine kingdom management time, and a mature System).

Comparison Result: There is a generational gap at the rule level. The opponent's divine kingdom is 'sturdier,' with stronger resistance to rule impact, erosion, and environmental mutations. Our rule System is more 'active' and has more 'growth potential,' but its current 'strength' and 'stability' are insufficient.

Divine Kingdom Core (Miracle Building) Comparison:

Hundred Schools Divine Kingdom: Temple of Civilization (Core, many functions but limited direct combat bonuses), Jixia Academy (Morale/Wisdom), Temple of Law (Rules/Crowd Control), Tiangong Workshop (Production/Mechanisms), Martial Temple/General Appointment Platform (Military), Imperial Hospital/Hundred Herb Garden (Logistics), enlightenment tea tree (Special).

Xuanyuan Hao's Divine Kingdom: nine cauldrons phantom (Core suppression/All-attribute boost), Heavenly Emperor Palace (Command/Governance), Angel Reincarnation Pool (Angel Legion core), Myriad Beast Garden (Exotic beast breeding), Unknown War-oriented Miracle Building (Suspected).

Comparison Result: The opponent's core miracle building, [nine cauldrons phantom], is a known, powerful suppression and amplification-type supreme wonder projection. It might naturally suppress our System, which excels in ideology and rules. Our building functions are scattered, requiring precise scheduling for cooperative combat effects, leaving a low margin for error.

Item Two: Core Vassal Legion Comparison

Two columns of detailed unit attribute comparison charts appeared on the screen, the cold numbers stinging everyone's eyes.

Average Rank and Scale:

Hundred Schools: Wenxin Elves (Average Rank 38, quantity approx. 4,000), Creation Dwarves (Average Rank 36, quantity approx. 6,000), Tianxian Mermen (Average Rank 35, quantity approx. 3,000). Total of 12 Hero units, highest Rank 45 (Wenxin Elf High Priestess · Elena, successor).

Xuanyuan Hao: Holy Angel Legion (Average Rank 48, estimated quantity ≥ 5,000), Primordial Exotic Beast Legion (Average Rank 45, estimated quantity ≥ 3,000). Number of Hero units unknown, estimated Angel Heroes ≥ 10 (Rank 55+), plus several exotic beast heroes.

Comparison Result: Average Rank difference of 7-10 levels. In terms of quantity, our total force is about 13,000, while the opponent's is estimated at ≥ 8,000, but the quality of the opponent's units (Tier 3 Angels, special exotic beasts) far exceeds our mainly Tier 2 vassals. The quantity and quality of Hero units are also overwhelmingly superior.

Key Unit Attribute Examples (using main force confrontation as an example):

Wenxin Elf Ranger (Rank 38 typical) vs. Holy Light Warrior (Rank 48 typical)

Strength: 38 vs. 55 (-17)

Agility: 52 vs. 52 (Equal)

Physique: 42 vs. 60 (-18)

Spirit/Intelligence: 58 vs. 45 (+13)

Skills: [Lingbo Step] (Evasion +25%), [Righteous Qi Arrow] (+30% against evil) vs. [Holy Flame Slash] (Holy damage, +50% against non-holy), [Holy Protection] (Damage reduction +40%)

Conclusion: Melee combat is completely impossible to withstand. Elf Rangers must rely on range, mobility, and the [Vast Righteous Qi] Domain bonus (which has extra effects against non-orderly/good alignments, but do Angels belong to Lawful Good? To be confirmed) to perform extreme kiting, and they cannot afford any frontal collision.

Creation Dwarf Iron Guard (Rank 36 typical) vs. Golden-Scaled Land Dragon (Rank 45 typical)

Strength: 50 vs. 75 (-25)

Physique: 65 vs. 80 (-15)

Skills: [Immovable as a Mountain Array] (Combined defense +50%), [Spiked Thorns Armor] vs. [Dragon Might (Weak)] (Area morale suppression), [Earth Stomp] (Area stun/damage)

Conclusion: Dwarf Iron Guards might be able to briefly withstand the charge of Land Dragons by relying on formations and fortifications, but [Dragon Might] and [Earth Stomp] are extremely destructive to formations. Once the formation is broken, it will be a massacre.

Heavenly Decree Merman Enforcer (Rank 35 typical) vs. Judgment Priest (Rank 48 typical)

Core Attributes: Spirit/Intelligence 55 vs. 65 (-10)

Skills: [Net of Law] (Rule binding/weakening), [Judgment] (Against high-value targets) vs. [Greater Healing Spell], [Holy Purification], [Wrath of Heaven (Summon)]

Conclusion: The Mermen's rule-based skills might cause some interference to the Angels, but the opponent's priests have extremely strong support and purification abilities, and they possess summoning skills. The attribute gap means skill effects might be significantly diminished.

Item Three: Comparison of Deities and Special Factors

Divinity Rank and Divine Power:

Lin Zhou: Rank 280 (Weak Mid-tier), Divine Power limit approx. 28,000 units (standard conversion), recovering after battle.

Xuanyuan Hao: Rank 500 (Weak Peak), estimated Divine Power limit ≥ 50,000 units, and faster recovery speed.

Comparison Result: Divine Power reserves and endurance in a prolonged battle differ by nearly double. The rule control, divine spell power, and calculation power advantages brought by a high Divinity Rank are immense.

Special Bloodline/Legacy/Treasures:

Lin Zhou: Temple of Civilization (Core plug-in, functional growth-type), river of civilization (Prototype, rule erosion/defense), Son of Heaven Sword Fragment (Incomplete, not fully mastered), god-king godhead fragment (Slowly absorbing, cannot be used immediately), enlightenment tea tree (Support).

Xuanyuan Hao: Human Sovereign Bloodline (Command/Aura), Son of Heaven Sword Projection (Complete, attack/Luck-severing), nine cauldrons phantom (Defense/Suppression), Unknown "Human Sovereign's Legacy."

Comparison Result: The opponent's special elements are more direct, more mature, and perfectly compatible with their own System, providing terrifying immediate combat power bonuses. Our elements have huge potential, but most are in a state of not being fully developed or cannot be directly used for frontal combat.

Item Four: Deduction Battle Report (Standard Frontal Engagement Model)

Li Mo pulled up a simulation animation, his voice dry:

"Based on the above data, assuming an encounter in open terrain where both commanders perform at a normal level and engage in a frontal legion battle. The deduction was performed 1,000 times..."

The animation began to play: golden angels and a torrent of exotic beasts advanced in a rigorous and efficient formation. The Hundred Schools allied forces attempted to build a wall with a dwarven shield formation, supported by elven long-range cover and murloc interference, creating layers of defense. A phantom of the river of civilization unfolded, attempting to weaken the enemy.

However, the joint Holy Light strike of the angel legion instantly evaporated the foremost dwarven defense line, and the charge of the Golden-Scaled Land Dragons easily tore a second gap. The purification light of the Judgment Priests significantly weakened the effects of the [Net of Law] and [Vast Righteous Qi]. Angelic hero units plunged into the backline, beginning to execute the elven heroes and murloc law enforcers.

The erosion from the river of civilization progressed extremely slowly against the Black-Yellow Qi shed by the nine cauldrons phantom and the [Holy Kingdom] Domain jointly upheld by the angel legion, failing to effectively shake the opponent's footing.

The animation accelerated, and the blue light dots representing the Hundred Schools allied forces melted rapidly like snow under a scorching sun.

"Average endurance time—" Li Mo squeezed out the numbers with difficulty, "14 minutes and 37 seconds. The fastest collapse record: 11 minutes and 02 seconds. The longest: 18 minutes and 55 seconds (relying on extremely favorable terrain and triggering a low-probability rule coincidence)."

"Final battle outcome prediction: Before our divine kingdom core is destroyed, it is estimated we can cause 5% to 15% in troop losses to the enemy. We cannot cause substantive damage to their divine kingdom structure. We cannot threaten Xuanyuan Hao's true body."

Dead silence.

In the deduction room, only the low hum of the Divine Power equipment remained.

Wang Meng smashed a fist into a nearby alloy pillar, letting out a dull, heavy thud; a shallow dent appeared on the pillar's surface. "Damn it! This is stifling!" he growled.

Zhao Hao slumped into a chair, covering his face with his hands: "Fourteen minutes... in front of him, we can only last fourteen minutes? Then what's the point of fighting!"

Qin Qing slowly exhaled and looked at Lin Zhou: "The data doesn't lie. In a head-on battle, we have zero chance of victory. Any conventional victory condition based on 'defeating the enemy legion' or 'destroying the enemy's divine kingdom' has a probability approaching zero under the current gap."

Li Mo added, his voice carrying a trace of frustration: "This 2.7% win rate, according to the System notes, mainly stems from uncontrollable variables like 'commander's extraordinary performance,' 'extremely favorable environment,' or 'significant enemy errors or accidents,' as well as... an extremely uncertain valuation of our 'unknown rule trait (river of civilization).' But the weight of the latter is very low because the System lacks sufficient data for modeling."

Everyone's gaze finally focused on Lin Zhou.

He remained seated there, fingers lightly tapping the armrest, staring deeply at the piercingly contrasting data and the tragic deduction animation on the light screen. There was no anger, no despair, not even much surprise.

He had known the gap was huge for a long time, but such a cold, detailed, and suffocating quantitative comparison still brought a strong shock.

Fourteen minutes.

A 2.7% win rate.

This was the near-iron reality they were about to face.

"Finished?" Lin Zhou finally spoke, his voice steady.

The crowd nodded, the atmosphere oppressive.

"Good." Lin Zhou stood up, walked to the light screen, and reached out to temporarily close those depressing comparison charts. "Li Mo's analysis is very comprehensive and objective. It tells us one thing: if we play by the 'Divine Kingdom War' rules that the opponent is familiar with and that are common throughout the Universe, we will undoubtedly lose, and we will lose very quickly and very badly."

He turned around, his gaze sweeping over every teammate: "Therefore, our only chance lies in—not playing by his rules."

"Not playing by his rules?" Zhao Hao looked up, a spark of hope reigniting in his eyes, "Old Lin, do you have an idea?"

"I don't have a complete plan yet," Lin Zhou admitted honestly, "but I have several directions."

He traced his finger through the air, and new entries appeared on the light screen.

"First, the interpretation of the match format." Lin Zhou pointed to the description of 'Astral Conquest · Ultimate Mode,' "24 hours of real time, 240 hours internally. The goal: 'Completely destroy or force the enemy's divine kingdom core to surrender.' Note, it is 'force to surrender,' not necessarily physical destruction. This means there is a possibility of achieving the victory condition through other means."

"Second, the environment and variables." Lin Zhou continued, "The randomly generated demi-plane possesses native forces, resource points, and dangerous environments. These are unknown and fair to both sides. How to utilize these 'third-party' forces, or even use the dangers of the demi-plane itself to counter, weaken, or even attack Xuanyuan Hao, is something we must focus on. His divine kingdom is powerful, but that also means it's a large target with high consumption, potentially making it easier to trigger certain environmental mechanisms."

"Third, his 'weakness'." Lin Zhou pulled up the summary of materials left by Su Yueyao, "The ancient texts provided by Senior Sister Su show that the 'Path of the Sovereign' and the 'Sword of the Son of Heaven' center on 'dominion,' 'orthodoxy,' and 'mandate of heaven.' This path is powerful, but it also carries the weight of 'orthodoxy.' He cannot lose, especially not to a 'non-orthodox' or 'emerging' challenger, as that would shake his Dao foundation. This is his psychological pressure and could be our entry point to exert influence."

"Fourth, our 'advantages'." Lin Zhou's gaze became sharp, "We are small, we are flexible, and our 'Way of Civilization' is inclusive and good at learning, adapting, and transforming. In the vast and complex environment of the demi-plane, small-scale elite infiltration, intelligence gathering, rapid mobility, asymmetric harassment, and even 'ideological dissemination' (if conditions permit) might be more effective than a large-scale legion confrontation. We must avoid a decisive battle and drag the War into a rhythm we excel at—persistence, guerrilla warfare, rule entanglement, and psychological maneuvering."

"Finally," Lin Zhou paused, "don't forget that 2.7%. The 'river of civilization,' which even the System cannot fully model, is our biggest variable. In the last battle, it showed the potential for rule erosion and transformation. In this battle, in a more complex environment and against a more powerful opponent and rule System, can it create a miracle again? I don't know. But we must design every possible tactic around it."

His words were like a clear stream, flowing into the nearly stagnant atmosphere.

Zhao Hao sat up straight, Wang Meng loosened his clenched fists, Li Mo began to record rapidly, and a light of contemplation flashed in Qin Qing's eyes.

"So," Lin Zhou summarized, "our next task is not to think about how to 'defeat' Xuanyuan Hao's legion, but to think about how to survive these 240 hours and use every possible means to increase that 2.7% probability until we find that chance to 'force the opponent to surrender' that might only exist for a fleeting moment."

"Now, dismissed. Li Mo, continue to dig deep into cases of past 'Ultimate Mode' matches in the 'Astral Conquest,' looking for examples of the weak defeating the strong or utilizing the environment to win, especially those involving complex terrain and native force interference. Zhao Hao, Wang Meng, you are responsible for drafting several 'extreme survival' and 'guerrilla harassment' plans under different environments based on our discussion; be bold and think outside the box. Qin Qing, assist me in focusing on analyzing Xuanyuan Hao's 'Human Sovereign Bloodline' and 'Sword of the Son of Heaven' characteristics, as well as possible weaknesses or limitations related to 'orthodoxy' and 'Luck'."

"In 70 hours, we will gather here again to integrate all information and formulate the final tactics."

"Remember," Lin Zhou's gaze swept over everyone, his voice firm and decisive, "this battle is not for crushing the opponent, not for glory, but for one goal—to turn the impossible into the possible. Even if there is only a sliver of light, we must seize it and tear open this darkness called 'absolute strength'!"

"Yes!" the four responded in unison, their fighting spirit reignited.

Although the road ahead was still bleak, at least they had a direction and a specific goal to strive for.

Just as everyone was preparing to leave, Lin Zhou's personal communicator vibrated. He tapped it open to find a message from an unknown number, but with a military encryption tag:

"Student Lin Zhou, in view of your outstanding performance in previous missions and the competition, the military's 'Fledgling Eagle Project' headquarters has specially authorized you to temporarily use the [Military-Grade Tactical Deduction Sandbox · Local Area Network Access] (limited to 6 hours) before the finals. The access coordinates have been sent. Perhaps it will help you see the essence of the 'chasm' clearly. — Your 'old friend' from the KT-73 frontline, Lei Lie."

Lin Zhou's pupils constricted slightly.

Lei Lie, the frontline veteran and mid-level Divine Power officer he had met in the shattered Star Domain who had gifted him the [Rule Repair Crystal]. This 'gift' came at just the right time.

The simulation realism and data dimensions of a military-grade deduction sandbox far exceeded the academy's System. Perhaps it could help him more accurately locate the specific position of that 'sliver of light'.

"Wait," Lin Zhou called out to his teammates who were about to leave, a cold arc curling at the corner of his mouth, "the plan has changed. Let's go somewhere first and use a more 'realistic' perspective to see just how wide and deep this 'chasm' really is."