194: Chapter 195 Alice Underestimated

Faced with this sudden enthusiasm, even Lin Muyang, who possessed exceptional mental fortitude, couldn't help but be taken aback for a moment.

He had participated in the national competition with the intention of winning the rewards; fame, intimidation, or recruiting followers were never part of his plan.

It had only been one match; how did things end up like this?

Su Daji, hiding behind him, seemed a bit bewildered by this spectacle as well, a hint of confusion appearing on her face, which was usually cool with a touch of playfulness.

She subconsciously shrank further behind Lin Muyang, revealing only a pair of lively pink fox ears and half of her stunning side profile, curiously observing this group of humans who had suddenly surrounded them with varying expressions.

It wasn't that she was afraid; with her master by her side, she felt incomparably safe.

It was just that the feeling of being intensely watched and surrounded by so many people felt somewhat strange and noisy to her.

"Master, did Daji cause trouble for you?"

She tilted her head slightly, leaned toward Lin Muyang's ear, and asked in a low voice that only the two of them could hear, her tone carrying a trace of imperceptible nervousness.

That warm breath brushed against Lin Muyang's ear, feeling ticklish.

Lin Muyang sensed her unease and couldn't help but chuckle inwardly; he raised his hand and naturally ruffled her soft, silvery-white hair, which felt silky and cool to the touch.

"Not at all, you did very well."

He offered a low word of comfort, then looked at the faces around him—some eager, some awestruck, some complex. His voice wasn't loud, yet it clearly carried across the slightly noisy contestant area: "Everyone, the competition isn't over yet. If you have anything to say, let's wait until the three matches are finished, shall we?"

His tone was flat, yet carried an unquestionable weight, as if he were stating a simple, self-evident fact.

These words caused many of the gathered contestants to freeze, their faces showing varying degrees of embarrassment.

That's right, only one match had been played, and although Lin Muyang had displayed overwhelming strength, theoretically, the final rankings had not yet been fully determined.

Rushing up so eagerly did indeed make them seem a bit... impatient.

But this couldn't be blamed on them.

Su Daji's performance just now, sweeping the entire field like a descending deity, had been simply too shocking, completely shattering the desire to compete in many people's hearts.

In the face of absolute power, any strategy, coordination, or calculation appeared pale and powerless.

Instead of waiting until the end of the competition when there would be too many people trying to curry favor and no room to stand out, it was better to show their attitude now, even if it was just to get familiar with him.

The female Summoner Zhao Man was the quickest to react and the most composed among them.

The trace of fear on her face had long since vanished, replaced by her signature smile—three parts charming and seven parts shrewd.

Hearing Lin Muyang's words, she didn't retreat; instead, she stepped forward half a pace, took out a simple yet luxurious deep-purple business card from her storage space, held it elegantly between two slender fingers, and offered it to Lin Muyang.

"Little Brother Lin Muyang is right, the competition is what matters."

Her eyes shifted, her voice soft and charming but not frivolous, "This is Big Sister's card. Our Zhao Group has some standing in Jingdu City and even across the country, and we have some channels and resources."

"If you need anything in the future, whether it's equipment, materials, intelligence, or anything else, as long as it's within my power, just say the word."

She specially emphasized "anything else," the hidden meaning of which was self-evident.

The Zhao Group, founded by her single-handedly, had risen to become one of the top ten chambers of commerce in the Xia Kingdom within just over a decade, thanks to her powerful personal strength and shrewd business acumen, ranking alongside old-guard conglomerates like the Gu and Lou families of Tianhai City.

And she herself was the chamber of commerce's greatest trump card and backer. This gesture of goodwill carried significant weight.

Lin Muyang's gaze rested on the deep-purple business card for a moment, but he didn't reach out to take it, simply nodding faintly: "I will accept the card. However..."

He paused, looked at Zhao Man, his gaze calm and unruffled, "During the competition, I will not show mercy to you, or anyone else, because of this."

"Haha, that goes without saying."

Zhao Man covered her mouth and chuckled lightly, not offended in the slightest; instead, the look of admiration in her eyes deepened.

She flipped her wrist, and the business card floated lightly, as if supported by an invisible hand, landing steadily on the contestant table in front of Lin Muyang.

"Although Big Sister lacks the strength, I still have this much grace. Since you are here, Little Brother, I dare not even dream of the championship. If I can't win the championship, whether I play in this competition or not doesn't really matter."

She spoke frankly, voicing the inner thoughts of many top contestants present.

For people at the level of Hao Qingshan, Wang Meng, and even herself, while the title of national champion was certainly prestigious, the real attraction was the unique mythic grade skill reward.

As for the magic crystals awarded to second through sixteenth place, while the quantity was an astronomical figure for ordinary Class Transferees, for these top-tier powerhouses who had backing from influential forces and extremely high efficiency in clearing Dungeons, the appeal was greatly diminished.

Wasting a large amount of time on the competition for these magic crystals, thereby affecting their own rhythm of clearing Dungeons and leveling up, was truly not worth the loss.

If the championship reward for this year hadn't been a mythic grade skill, they wouldn't have come to participate at all.

"Me too!"

Wang Meng, standing to the side like an iron tower, immediately chimed in with a muffled, booming voice, drawing sidelong glances from many.

He maintained his slightly bowed posture, his bull-like eyes staring intensely at Lin Muyang, filled with undisguised admiration and determination: "If Boss doesn't take me in, this competition really won't have any meaning for me! I, Wang Meng, keep my word; from now on, I'm following you, Boss!"

Lin Muyang looked at this straightforward, almost "simple" Northeast tough guy and couldn't help but feel amused.

Was this guy really beaten into submission by Su Daji? Or did he have other motives?

However, looking at Wang Meng's eyes, they were open and direct, not appearing fake.

This kind of single-minded powerhouse, once he set his mind on something, probably wouldn't be swayed even by nine oxen.

"Work for me?"

Lin Muyang raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at Wang Meng, "What can you do?"

"I have great strength, I can tank and I can fight! Wherever Boss points, I'll fight! If you tell me to go east, I won't go west! Whoever you tell me to beat up, I'll beat up!"

Wang Meng thumped his chest loudly, with an expression that said "I'm very useful," "And I have some connections in the Northeast; if Boss wants to go there to clear any Dungeons or secret realms, I'll absolutely arrange everything clearly!"

Lin Muyang was amused by his simple, honest demeanor and shook his head: "Alright, I've received your sentiment. However, go back and finish the competition first. We'll talk about the rest after the match."

He didn't explicitly agree, nor did he flatly refuse.

Through the battle just now, he had actually come to appreciate Wang Meng's strength and character.

A man who purely pursued power and was willing to accept defeat might be more reliable to use than those who were overly cunning.

As for whether he would really take him in as a follower, he would have to wait and see.

"Alright! Just watch me, Boss!"

Having received Lin Muyang's response, although he hadn't gotten a definitive nod, Wang Meng was so excited that his face flushed red, as if he had received immense encouragement. He nodded heavily, then turned around and marched back to his seat with heavy, thumping footsteps, his back straightened as if he had already become Lin Muyang's bodyguard.

Lin Muyang's seemingly casual yet deeply meaningful attitude, along with the very different but equally clear gestures of goodwill from Wang Meng and Zhao Man, left the other surrounding contestants who were still watching and hesitating with mixed thoughts.

Some who had originally only intended to get familiar with him were now even more determined to build a good relationship with Lin Muyang.

While some who prided themselves on their status or couldn't bring themselves to lower their pride silently retreated, their expressions complex.

However, reason ultimately prevailed.

Lin Muyang's words, "The competition isn't over yet," reminded everyone.

For contestants at the level of Hao Qingshan, Zhao Man, and Wang Meng, once the championship was out of reach, the significance of the competition greatly diminished.

But for many more contestants from major universities and local factions, the magic crystals awarded for second to sixteenth place were still a huge resource that could allow their families or factions to advance further! They had to fight for it!

Therefore, when Lin Muyang's gaze swept over them, the gathered crowd, though unwilling, could only sheepishly disperse and return to their seats, beginning to nervously think about which summon they should send out in the next match to gain more survival time and a pitiful amount of kill points under the hands of Lin Muyang's terrifying Nine-Tailed Fox.

Just in this slightly strange atmosphere, a deep, complex, and intensely unwilling gaze remained locked on Lin Muyang.

It was Hao Qingshan.

He didn't step forward to pledge loyalty like Wang Meng, nor did he offer a business card to curry favor like Zhao Man.

He just stood far away by his seat, arms crossed, his face having returned to calm, but deep within his sharp eyes, it seemed as if flames were burning—the pride and unwillingness to admit defeat belonging to a top-tier powerhouse were scorching.

"One move... just one move..."

Hao Qingshan chewed over that despairing scene from just moments ago in his heart.

His Heavy Hammer Demon, the trump card he had spent countless efforts to cultivate, had been as fragile as paper in the face of the opponent's bizarre spatial skill!

This kind of suppression, this feeling of powerlessness, he had never experienced before.

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"No, I don't believe it!" a voice screamed in his heart. "No matter how strong Lin Muyang is, he's just a Summoner who hasn't even reached level 100! No matter how terrifying that Nine-Tailed Fox is, could he possibly have a second or third summon of the same level?"

This thought spread through his heart like wildfire. Yes, it had to be! Lin Muyang must have poured all his resources into this single Nine-Tailed Fox summon! That's what created such an absurd level of strength! He intentionally sent out his strongest combatant in the first round to sweep the field with thunderous momentum, aiming to intimidate everyone so they would lose their nerve for the upcoming matches, or even dare not oppose him at all!

"A fine calculation, a clever scheme!" Hao Qingshan's eyes flickered, feeling he had grasped the key. "If everyone is intimidated by him and avoids him in the following matches just to save themselves, then he can steadily secure the most kill points with minimal effort and lock in the championship! He could even let his other, relatively weaker summons scramble into decent rankings?"

The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. The core of a Summoner is their summons, but cultivating them requires a massive amount of resources. Lin Muyang is so young and his level isn't high; even if he had a heaven-sent fortuitous encounter, his resources would inevitably be limited. It was only logical to concentrate resources on one ace!

"The second round... I'll try again!" Determination flashed in Hao Qingshan's eyes. "If his other summons are far inferior to this Nine-Tailed Fox, then I still have a chance! Even if I can't take the championship, as long as I can get enough points facing his other summons, my overall ranking won't be too bad! If I play it right, I might even have a shot!"

He took a deep breath and began to quickly think of a strategy. Su Daji's charm control was the biggest threat, and that defense-ignoring void attack was even more unsolvable. But charm is a form of mental control, and while the void attack is strong, its range didn't seem particularly large...

"Got it!" Hao Qingshan's eyes lit up. He remembered he had a trump card summon—[Flame Hell Demon Lord · Cinder]! This was a legendary-grade demon specializing in fire domains and continuous percentage damage. Although its burst potential wasn't as high as the Heavy Hammer Demon, its survivability and sustained combat capability were extremely strong. More importantly, he happened to possess an extremely precious mythic grade accessory—the [Heart of the Element Overlord]!

This equipment came with a powerful passive skill, [Elemental Barrier]. While the barrier was active, it could grant immunity to most elemental negative status and control effects, including mental control skills! Although its duration was limited and the cooldown was long, used at the critical moment, it would be enough to resist Su Daji's charm!

As long as he wasn't controlled immediately, with the Flame Hell Demon Lord's mobility and area-of-effect burning ability, combined with the summons of other contestants, they might actually pose a threat to Lin Muyang's other summons! Even if they still lost, as long as he forced out the true strength of Lin Muyang's other summons so he could no longer hide his capabilities, his goal would be achieved!

"That's the plan!" Hao Qingshan made up his mind and no longer hesitated. He wanted to see if Su Daji was truly the only ace under Lin Muyang's command!

While Hao Qingshan was secretly plotting and other contestants were racking their brains over who to send out next, the organizers' staff had already begun notifying the contestants to submit their summon lists for the second melee.

On the stands, after a brief period of shock and clamor, the audience gradually shifted their attention back to the competition itself. However, the focus of everyone's discussion was no longer "who will win the championship," but had turned into topics like "How strong are Lin Muyang's other summons?", "Will Hao Qingshan and the others still fight back?", and "Will a summon that can counter the Nine-Tailed Fox appear in the second round?" Su Daji's performance in the first round had completely overturned their expectations for the finals.

Soon, the contestants submitted their lists one after another.

When the organizers' staff summarized the lists, their expressions became somewhat strange. They found that over eighty percent of the contestants had coincidentally chosen the summons under their command with the strongest survivability, or those best at life-saving and escaping!

There were shadow-type summons with high-level invisibility and stealth skills, earth-type and space-type summons with life-saving displacement skills like earth-tunneling and distance-shrinking, and even special elemental creatures that could temporarily elementalize or fossilize themselves... They were varied, but the core idea was highly consistent: survive! Under that monster Lin Muyang, survive as long as possible! Don't seek to kill enemies, just seek self-preservation to scrape together some survival points!

This kind of survival-at-all-costs tactic was extremely rare in the history of the national finals. In the past, everyone tried every means to defeat their opponents and seize kill points. Now, because of one person's existence, the competition style had taken a direct 180-degree turn.

When the staff presented the final lineup, especially the list submitted by Lin Muyang, to the seven Pillars of the State in the VIP seats, these pillars of the Xia Country, who were used to great storms, also showed various expressions.

"A Vampire?" Xu Ruohan looked at the information for Lin Muyang's summon for the second round on the list, her brows furrowing slightly. The information was simple, only the name and race: Alice, Vampire. Other than that, the level, skills, and talents were all question marks, hidden by Lin Muyang.

"It's not that Nine-Tailed Fox anymore." The old man in military uniform tapped the armrest lightly. "It seems Hao Qingshan's guess might not be without merit. This Lin Muyang might really have concentrated his main resources on that Nine-Tailed Fox. This second summon might be used to 'stabilize the situation'."

"Vampire... This race is known for its agility, life-steal, and certain dark spells. But its ceiling doesn't seem very high, at least compared to the potential shown by that Nine-Tailed Fox, the gap is obvious," another Pillar of the State mused.

"Don't underestimate any summon that Lin Muyang chooses to cultivate," Zhou Wenyuan said in a deep voice, looking sharply at the list. "Since this Vampire was sent out by him, it must have its unique points. Perhaps it's another unexpected card."

"Old Zhou is right." Xu Ruohan nodded, a hint of anticipation flashing in her beautiful eyes. "And don't you find it interesting? Everyone else was so scared they sent out summons focused on survival, except for Hao Qingshan... He submitted the [Flame Hell Demon Lord]. It seems he doesn't plan to give up just like that."

"Flame Hell Demon Lord paired with the [Heart of the Element Overlord]... He's certainly playing his cards well." The military-clad old man's mouth curled into a meaningful smile. "He wants to use the Elemental Barrier to be immune to control, then use percentage burning to deal with the potentially weaker Vampire? Good idea, let's see if Lin Muyang's Vampire can handle it."

"The second round might be more interesting than the first," another Pillar of the State also laughed. "At least it won't be a one-sided slaughter, right?"

His tone carried a hint of uncertainty. After witnessing Su Daji's unreasonable strength, they didn't dare to jump to conclusions about any of Lin Muyang's summons anymore.

Soon, the halftime break ended.

In the huge martial arts arena, under the effect of formations, the traces left by the previous battle were quickly repaired and smoothed out, restoring it to a pristine state.

The host's voice rang out through the amplification formation once again, but this time, his voice also carried obvious excitement and anticipation: "Audience members! Thank you for waiting! The second melee of the Summoner Competition finals is about to begin! After the fierce competition in the first round, I believe everyone has a brand new understanding of the contestants' strength, especially contestant Lin Muyang's strength!"

"So, in the second match, what strategies will the other contestants take to respond? Will contestant Lin Muyang send out his world-shaking Nine-Tailed Fox to continue fighting? The answer is about to be revealed!"

"Contestants, please prepare to send out your summons for the second melee!"

As the host's voice fell, one summoning light after another lit up in the contestants' area.

On Lin Muyang's side, his expression was calm, and his mind moved slightly.

The space beside him rippled with faint, dark red waves that carried a hint of ominousness and elegance.

A petite yet curvaceous figure of a girl wearing a black classical western dress quietly emerged.

She had skin as pale as snow, lips as crimson as blood, and a pair of eyes that flickered with a faint golden light in the shadows. Her black, silky long hair draped over her shoulders, and on each side of the top of her head, there was a small, exquisite bat-wing decoration that trembled slightly as she appeared.

She stood quietly beside Lin Muyang, bowing slightly with an elegance like a noble girl stepping out of a medieval castle.