351: Is the battle over?

Zhong Huai's gaze shifted toward the messy battlefield, or more accurately, it landed on Lin Yu.

Chen Jing subconsciously looked at the screen. On the display, Lin Yu stood tall with a steady aura, showing no signs of exhaustion at all. He clearly could still go toe-to-toe with the Asura and had remained standing amidst that elemental storm!

Others might not see it, but an old hand like Zhong Huai, who had survived countless brushes with death, saw it clearly.

That seemingly indestructible armor was already an empty shell. Lin Yu was only able to remain standing now through sheer force of will.

To him, the mission was already complete.

What he wanted wasn't the outcome of an exhibition match, but rather the upper limit of Lin Yu's abilities.

Now, he had it.

He already had a plan for the next assessment task. If this kid could break through today's limit during the assessment... then he wouldn't mind giving him a high score.

Zhong Huai ignored the dejected Chen Jing and turned to leave. As he passed Wen Yan, he stopped and reached out to pat the man's shoulder.

"Don't overthink it."

Wen Yan's body stiffened slightly.

"Everyone has their own fate," Zhong Huai's voice wasn't loud, but it reached his ears clearly. "That childhood friend of yours—his mindset really was the problem."

"There is a gap between Superior Rank and Epic Rank, but that gap shouldn't have been enough for him to end up like that. A Superior Rank who works hard and stays grounded wouldn't live such a bad life."

"It was that sense of loss and repeated disappointments that wore down his spirit. In the end, it wasn't talent that defeated him; he defeated himself."

After saying this, Zhong Huai let go and walked straight toward the door.

Wen Yan nodded slowly, but the expression behind his gold-rimmed glasses remained complex and hard to read.

A chasm... perhaps Officer Zhong was right.

But that feeling of watching a close friend be swallowed by the chasm while being powerless to help... was he truly just a cold bystander?

Zhong Huai's figure disappeared through the doorway.

Yet Wen Yan remained seated, motionless.

Everyone has their own fate.

He defeated himself.

Zhong Huai's casual words felt like mountains weighing heavily on his heart.

He slowly raised his head and looked back at the surveillance screen.

A messy battlefield, three figures facing off.

Beside him, Chen Jing, who had been waiting, felt restless. The Commander-in-Chief had left, but this Strategist was still sitting there; he didn't know what to do for a moment.

He cautiously approached and asked tentatively.

"Captain Wen, do you... still need us to provide commentary?"

Wen Yan didn't turn around; he simply shook his head gently.

He didn't need commentary.

He had his own eyes and his own judgment.

As if granted a grand pardon, Chen Jing nodded awkwardly and signaled his subordinates. The group immediately tiptoed out, hurrying to follow in Zhong Huai's footsteps.

The massive monitoring room instantly became empty and quiet.

Only the red alarms that occasionally popped up after the equipment overload and the faint static of electricity remained.

Wen Yan's fingertips tapped gently on the cold control console.

His brain began to function at a speed far beyond that of a normal person.

Countless streams of data flashed across the screen, captured, analyzed, and reconstructed by him in an instant.

His professional talent, [Tactical Master], was pushed to its limit at this moment.

He wanted to see clearly.

Not with his eyes, but with data—to see through the essence of this battle.

The first to be analyzed was Lin Yao.

On the screen, the ponytail-clad girl stood with her hands on her hips, her face brimming with uncontrollable excitement.

Her energy readings were terrifyingly stable.

The world-shattering "Thousand Spells Volley" from earlier, which was enough to overturn the entire Duel Arena, had surprisingly cost her very little.

Her Spiritual Power was still maintained at over ninety percent.

A thin layer of cold sweat broke out on Wen Yan's back.

This was... a mobile magic battery.

And one with infinite ammunition.

His analysis shifted to another person.

Zhao Tianyang.

The Asura standing tall like a demon god.

The data was even more outrageous.

Vitality: 110%.

Energy Activity: 123%.

Physical Strength: increased by 8%.

Not only was he undamaged by the continuous bombardment just now, but he had actually... grown stronger.

He was like a greedy black hole, devouring all attacks and turning them into his own nourishment.

Physical immunity, elemental buff.

How could anyone fight this?

Wen Yan felt a wave of powerlessness.

This was Mythic Rank.

Unreasonably powerful, monsters that couldn't be measured by common sense.

Finally, all his analytical power focused on the most inconspicuous yet central figure on the field.

Lin Yu.

The black armor was covered in spiderweb-like cracks.

He stood straight, his form not wavering in the slightest.

But data doesn't lie.

Wen Yan clearly saw that the bar representing Lin Yu's energy reserves had fallen below the red warning line.

A precarious number.

The energy within his body was recovering with extreme efficiency, at a speed far exceeding that of Professionals of the same rank.

But this didn't change the fact that his consumption was enormous.

The contrast was too stark.

One had almost no consumption.

One grew stronger as the fight progressed.

Only he was hanging on by a thread.

Senior Zhong Huai probably saw this, which is why he chose to leave.

Wen Yan looked at the tall but lonely figure on the screen, his lips moving unconsciously as he whispered.

"So this is the difference..."

"The difference between Epic Rank and Mythic Rank."

That chasm really does exist.

It's not a gap in rank, but a chasm between dimensions.

No matter how exquisite your combat techniques or how firm your will, they appear so pale in the face of absolute talent crushing you.

He seemed to see his past self and that childhood friend who sat dejectedly in a tavern, grabbing his collar and questioning him.

Perhaps he really was wrong.

Utterly wrong... Inside the Duel Arena.

The violent energy aftershocks gradually subsided.

Lin Yao let out a long breath. Hundreds of clones instantly turned into specks of spiritual light, dissipating into the air and returning to her main body.

An unprecedented sense of accomplishment filled her chest.

This feels amazing!

This is the kind of battle a Mythical-level Professional should have!

One against two!

Her opponents were another Mythic Rank Asura and her own unfathomable brother!

Although the match couldn't conclude with a winner due to arena limitations, in her eyes, she was undoubtedly the most dazzling one there.

Look at Zhao Tianyang; those muscles were covered in frost and burn marks she had left.

And look at her brother.

Hmph!

Looking pathetic!

Lin Yao's gaze fell on Lin Yu; that handsome black armor was cracked, and his aura was somewhat unstable.