390: Chapter 325: Pre-match reconnaissance, Chen Hai's intelligence network makes a difference.

The forty-eight hours of preparation time flowed by silently and urgently, like fine sand in an hourglass.

Inside Xinghai University's preparation space, the atmosphere was solemn and efficient. The air seemed filled with the tension of a drawn bowstring, every breath carrying the weight of imminent action. In a corner of the hall, Su Yueyao remained in a deep sleep on a floor mat, her face pale, but her breathing maintained a faint stability under the continuous nourishment of Lin Zhou's low-power Fire of Civilization. Qin Qing, Wang Meng, Zhang Jun, and the others each occupied a spot, their surrounding Divine Power or rule fluctuations rising and falling as they went all out to refine potions, nurture their godheads, and repair damage, racing against time to recover their state.

Lin Zhou sat cross-legged in the center, several translucent Divine Power light screens floating before him. One screen displayed the public records and preliminary intelligence summary of the Abyss Contractor Academy and its captain, "Blood Curse · Draka"; another showed a preliminary tactical deduction model sent remotely by Li Mo based on existing information, with data streams cascading like waterfalls; yet another connected to his own divine domain core's data stream, monitoring the divine domain's repair progress, resource allocation, and the status of his followers in real-time.

His brows were tightly knit, his gaze sharp as a blade as he repeatedly scrutinized every word regarding the combat style of the Abyss Contractors. Sacrifice, contracts, pain, blood, Abyssal Descent... behind these words lay an extremely dangerous power system that was difficult to measure by conventional standards. Public intelligence and preliminary analysis pointed out the opponent's weaknesses and patterns, but the lack of key details made any tactical deduction feel like it was built on shifting sands—for instance, what were the specific precursors of [Abyssal Descent]? What was the correlation between the scale of sacrifice and the intensity of the explosion? What were the specific manifestations and severity of the backlash? Was that "brief" burst period exactly two minutes, three minutes, or five minutes? A tiny discrepancy could lead to a massive error.

"Li Mo, is there any new news from Chen Hai's side?" Lin Zhou's voice was transmitted directly into the consciousness of Li Mo, who was far away in the Mechanical Divine Domain core assisting with the deductions, through a special mental link.

"Not yet." Li Mo's response carried a trace of imperceptible electronic noise, clearly indicating his main body was also undergoing high-intensity calculations. "I've sent a highest-priority information request to him through seven encrypted channels, marking the key data points we need. But you know, although Chen Hai's 'Rat Path' intelligence network is pervasive, obtaining core combat data from a top-tier team like this—especially the specific details of their trump cards—is extremely difficult and carries immense risk. The opponent certainly has counter-intelligence measures. We need to be patient and also prepare for... the worst-case scenario where intelligence cannot be obtained in time."

Lin Zhou fell silent. He naturally knew the risks involved. Chen Hai's divine domain was "Ratmen," and his talents [Shadow Eavesdropping] and [Breathless Stealth] were uniquely gifted for intelligence gathering. Combined with his cautious and sneaky yet extremely loyal personality, he had built a secret and efficient intelligence network for the protagonist's Hundred Schools Society over their four years of university. But this time, the target was the Abyss Contractor Academy, the 11th ranked monster academy in the entire Universe. Its students mostly dealt with abyssal demons, and their methods were eerie and ruthless; they would surely spare no effort in protecting their secrets. It would be no easy feat for Chen Hai and his Ratman followers to snatch a tooth from the tiger's mouth.

As his gaze swept across the gloomy and pale virtual portrait of "Blood Curse · Draka" on the light screen, a cold light flashed in Lin Zhou's eyes. If there really was no more detailed intelligence, he could only prepare according to the most conservative and comprehensive plan, paying a greater price to test the waters... but that would cause the variables and risks to increase drastically.

Just then—

Buzz!

The seemingly ordinary but actually multi-encrypted [Secret Communication Rune Stone] on Lin Zhou's wrist, which served as a direct line to Chen Hai, suddenly emitted an extremely faint vibration of a peculiar frequency. This vibration was neither sound nor light, but a specific code that acted directly on the perception of the Divine Soul, which only Lin Zhou could decipher.

There's news! And it was sent through the highest-security emergency channel!

Lin Zhou's spirits lifted, and he immediately focused all his attention on the communication rune stone. He quickly completed the decoding in his mind, and a brief stream of information flooded into his consciousness:

"Boss, I got it. Target: Blood Curse · Draka. Content: Real-time rule record fragments from three key battles (non-public recordings, derived from the last sensory residues before his opponents' divine domains collapsed, purified and translated via special Ratman talents). Transmission risk is high, so I'm only sending key segment summaries and core data. The full records have had their traces destroyed. The rune stone will self-destruct after reception. Take care. — Hai"

At the end of the message was an extremely complex, one-time-use spatial coordinate key.

Lin Zhou's heart skipped a beat. He got it! Chen Hai really pulled it off! And it was the most precious kind—"rule record fragments" translated from the sensory residues before an opponent's divine domain collapsed! This was far more valuable than ordinary combat recordings (energy light and shadow records) because it was closer to the truth of the rule level, reflecting many details that energy recordings couldn't, such as fluctuations in divine office authority, the connection strength of contract power, rule disturbances of sacrificial rituals, and so on!

Without a moment's hesitation, Lin Zhou immediately followed the guidance of the key, setting up several temporary isolation barriers (with Qin Qing's assistance) within the preparation space, and then activated the coordinates. An almost imperceptible spatial rift, smelling of rodents and shadow, quietly appeared. Three pitch-black [Memory Crystals (Fragmented)] with eerie data light flowing on their surfaces were gently pushed out by a force into Lin Zhou's palm. Immediately afterward, the spatial rift closed instantly without leaving a trace. The communication rune stone on Lin Zhou's wrist simultaneously turned into dust and vanished.

The entire process took less than a second, secretive and efficient.

Lin Zhou gripped the three cold crystals, sensing the residual aura of despair, pain, and abyssal power erosion from before the collapse of different divine domains contained within. He didn't check them immediately; instead, he first carefully scanned the crystals' surfaces with the Fire of Civilization to confirm there were no hidden tracking or curses before cautiously connecting them to the main analysis light screen in the preparation space.

"Li Mo, Qin Qing, Wang Meng, Zhang Jun, come over!" Lin Zhou said in a low voice.

Everyone immediately ended their meditation and gathered around, their eyes fixed on the light screen. Everyone knew that this might be the key intelligence determining the victory or defeat of the next battle.

The light screen lit up, and the data stream began to decode and reorganize. Since they were rule record fragments, what appeared was not a high-Definition image, but a more abstract yet extremely information-dense multi-dimensional dynamic map. In the map, colors, lines, light spots, and ripples represented different energy types, rule strengths, divine office fluctuations, follower statuses, spatial changes, and so on.

Li Mo immediately took over the data analysis, his mechanical logic core running at full speed as he attempted to transform this abstract map into a more intuitive visualization report with specific parameters.

The first record fragment comes from the team of 'Song of the Forest' Academy, ranked 68th. The recording perspective is the final perception of the opposing captain, a nature-type deity, before their divine domain collapsed. The chart shows that in the Early Stage of the battle, Chaos Erosion and Pain Ripples (dark red and deep purple), representing the Abyss Contractor, spread rapidly, suppressing the Life Green Light representing natural life. About fifteen minutes later, the Abyss side suddenly erupted with a strong Sacrificial Wave (a piercing scarlet), and in the chart, the signals representing some of their low-level kin (clusters of gray light dots) were extinguished in a large-scale, orderly manner. Immediately after, the core signal representing the Abyss captain, Draka (a constantly pulsing dark red black dot), surged sharply in brightness and intensity, with violent Abyss Echoes (black vortex-like ripples) appearing around it. Its intensity instantly exceeded the divine domain endurance limit of the nature-type captain (a green threshold line). The burst lasted about 190 seconds (3 minutes and 10 seconds), during which the nature-type captain's defense (a green barrier shape) was rapidly dismantled, and the core (a green light dot) was heavily damaged. Then, the Abyss core signal suddenly dimmed and became disordered, its intensity curve plummeting like a roller coaster. At the same time, the signals representing its remaining kin (sparse gray and dark red light dots) began to flicker and collide violently and irregularly, with some even rushing directly toward the dark red black dot representing Draka's core! Immediately after, the record was interrupted—the nature-type captain's divine domain had completely collapsed.

The second record fragment comes from the 'Star Divination' Academy, ranked 42nd. This time, the opponent specialized in prophecy and interference. The chart shows that the Star team tried to use Fate Disturbance (silver threads) and Starlight Delay (a pale blue halo) to interfere with the Abyss sacrificial ritual (scarlet waves), which achieved some effect, causing the scarlet waves of the sacrifice to appear unstable and intermittent. Draka seemed to be enraged and directly increased the scale of the sacrifice—in the chart, signals representing over thirty percent of his mid-level kin (dark red light dots) and part of his own life Origin (the dark red black dot's brightness briefly decreased) were mixed in the sacrifice! The burst triggered this time was even more terrifying; the core signal intensity soared to a staggering peak, and the Abyss Echoes almost turned into a literal black tide, instantly drowning out the Star team's interference. The burst duration was slightly shorter, about 175 seconds (2 minutes and 55 seconds), but the destructive power was stronger, directly shattering the Star team's core defense. After the burst ended, the disorder and dimness of the Abyss core signal were even more severe, and the chaotic rampage of its remaining kin was also more violent. The chart even captured the phenomenon of a few kin signals self-annihilating (light dots disappearing directly) during the rampage.

The third record fragment comes from the 'Holy Light Bastion' Academy, ranked 29th, the strongest of the three opponents. Holy Light power has a certain restraining effect on the Abyss. The chart shows the battle was exceptionally deadlocked, with the Holy Light's Light of Purification (gold) and the Abyss's Chaos Erosion (dark red) wearing each other down. After failing to break through for a long time, Draka seemed to have used a contract with a higher cost. Clear Contract Backlash Omens (fine, pale white cracks appearing on the dark red black dot) appeared in the chart. He sacrificed more than half of his mid-level kin, a large amount of resources, and part of his godhood Origin (the core signal showed a clear defect). The intensity of the Abyssal Descent he launched reached the highest value among the three matches, even vaguely drawing the gaze of a higher Abyss Will (a blurry, heart-palpitatingly massive shadow appeared at the edge of the chart). This burst took only 150 seconds (2 minutes and 30 seconds) to forcibly tear open the Holy Light team's strongest defense, the Holy Bastion (a golden wall shape). But after the burst ended, the dimness and disorder of Draka's core signal reached a shocking level, with its intensity dropping to rock bottom. All remaining kin signals in his divine domain (including a few un-sacrificed elite units) fell into a complete and frantic rampage. They not only attacked each other and Draka's core but even began attacking buildings, resource points, and everything else within the divine domain! The entire Abyss divine domain fell into absolute chaos until the record was interrupted due to the destruction of the Holy Light team's core.

Although the three record fragments have different perspectives, opponent strengths, and Draka used different sacrificial scales and absolute burst intensities, they reveal several startlingly consistent key points:

1. Burst Duration: Concentrated between 2 minutes 30 seconds and 3 minutes 10 seconds. The larger the sacrificial scale and burst intensity, the more the duration seems to trend toward slightly shortening, but it basically does not exceed three and a half minutes.

2. Post-Burst State: After each burst ends, Draka's core signal (representing his godhood and Divine Power status) undergoes a severe and regular drop in intensity and rule disorder, falling into extreme weakness.

3. Backlash Phenomenon: After the burst ends, the remaining kin in his divine domain fall into varying degrees of chaos and rampage. Their targets include friendly units, divine domain buildings, and even Draka himself! This phenomenon was particularly severe after the third and most costly burst, reaching the point of 'indiscriminately attacking everything.'

4. Key Node: When the sacrificial ritual is being performed, it generates strong and specific rule fluctuations (scarlet Sacrificial Waves), and the ritual seems to require a certain amount of time (from the chart, there is a 'Channeling Period' of about 5-10 seconds from the start of the sacrifice to the arrival of the burst).

Li Mo presented the analysis results in the form of a clear data list and curve graphs, attaching intensity estimates based on the charts:

[Abyssal Descent] Burst Phase (Estimated):

- Average Duration: About 180 seconds (3 minutes).

- Peak Intensity Increase: Can reach 300%-500% of Draka's base state (depending on the sacrificial scale).

- Characteristics: Accompanied by high-intensity Abyss rule erosion, chaotic mental shock, and extremely strong physical/energy destructive power.

[Abyssal Descent] Post-Burst Backlash Phase (Estimated):

- Draka's Personal Status: Divine Power exhausted, godhood damaged, rules disordered, combat power dropped to less than 20% of the normal state, duration unknown (at least several minutes).

- Kin Status: 100% fall into 'Abyss Frenzy' (degree varies with burst intensity), unable to distinguish friend from foe, attacking all targets in sight, including Draka himself and the divine domain core. Duration unknown (may last until the end of the battle or until Draka regains control).

- Divine Domain Status: Rules in turmoil, defense systems basically failed, extremely fragile.

Looking at the cold and clear data on the light screen, everyone gasped.

Three minutes! Only a three-minute super burst period! But these three minutes are enough to tear through the defenses of most opponents of the same or even higher Rank! And once the three minutes pass, the opponent will fall into a desperate situation where they are at the mercy of others, potentially even suffering backlash from their own maddened kin!

"I see..." A flash of realization crossed Qin Qing's eyes. "Extreme burst in exchange for extreme fragility. This is the essence of an Abyss Contractor, a frantic gamble with the devil."

Wang Meng licked his lips, his eyes filled with a mix of Battle Intent and solemnity. "Three minutes... as long as we can survive those three minutes, we can win without even fighting!"

Zhang Jun said weakly but excitedly, "The key lies in how to interfere with or delay his sacrificial channeling, or... how to maximize the preservation of our strength within his burst period to last until the three minutes are over!"

Lin Zhou's gaze was fixed on those data curves, especially the 'Sacrificial Channeling Period' and 'Kin Rampage' sections, his brain working at an unprecedented speed. The intelligence sent by Chen Hai was of immeasurable value! It not only verified previous guesses but also provided a time window and backlash details precise to the second!

"Li Mo, immediately perform a new tactical simulation based on this precise data!" Lin Zhou's voice was resolute. "Core objective: At all costs, delay, interfere with, or evade the frontal impact of his burst period, and drag the battle into the backlash phase after three minutes! Focus the deduction on: How to use Legalism 'Definition' to interfere with the sacrificial contract? How to use Mohism 'Non-Aggression' barriers and Daoist Formations to maximize our defense time? How to use the characteristics of his kin's rampage to guide them or even counter Draka himself? Also..."

A flash of determination crossed his eyes. "Deduce the feasibility and cost of using the Scroll of Civilization for a forced Seal to buy time if necessary."

"Understood!" Li Mo's projection glowed brightly as the data stream surged frantically again.

Lin Zhou looked around at everyone. "Everyone, with this intelligence in hand, the advantage is ours. For the next 48 hours, we need to conduct the most precise coordination drills and divine domain adjustments targeting this 'delay-counterattack' tactic. Although the Abyss Contractor is strong, his fatal weakness is now in our hands! This battle, we will surely win!"

"We will surely win!" everyone growled in unison, their eyes burning with intense fire.

The mist of intelligence was cleared, and the dawn of tactics had appeared.

A three-minute death countdown versus a desperate counter-kill after three minutes.

The scales of victory and defeat have already begun to tilt quietly toward Xinghai University because of these few crystals Chen Hai risked his life to deliver.