205: Chapter 205 The Last Stand

[Act 1 Rule A: Defending against the invasion of the Calamity Demon and guarding the crystal is the common cause of all countries. Unless there is a reasonable justification, countries may not attack the Towers of others. 'Reasonable justification' is limited to historical allusions that actually existed in the Old Era; allusions from legends or fantasy works cannot be used as excuses for war. 'Reasonable justification' can only be used once.]

With the start of the final wave, this hidden rule regarding how to destroy the other side's Towers was also announced.

Toslev relayed this rule to Chen Aoyun word for word, gritting his teeth as he said, "So it wasn't that Saku Kenichi was so confident of victory that he took the initiative to reveal the rule; rather, Saku Kenichi knew this rule was about to be automatically made public and decided to reveal it a step early. How shameless. Doing this both highlights his Saku Kenichi's aura of inevitable victory and prevents you and me from getting the information for nothing."

These were all basic maneuvers for a Strategist; if it were him, Chen Aoyun, he would use similar means to strike at the opponent's confidence when necessary.

Chen Aoyun did not delve into this topic. After confirming the exact text of the rule from Toslev, Chen Aoyun pinched his chin, carefully and word-for-word considering this rule.

"The Heroic Spirit Manifestation is ineffective against the invading demons in the final wave. And the entries written by wonder abilities cannot break through the limits of the Tower itself. Right now, to turn the tide, we can only find an opportunity within this rule. As long as we can destroy enough Sakura Country Towers, at the very least, we can protect Russia's second-place position so it won't be snatched away by the Sakura people!"

With furrowed brows and a focused expression, Chen Aoyun refused to admit defeat even in this situation, putting all his effort into thinking of a way to break the deadlock.

Toslev shook his head and advised, "Young man, you gave me quite a few lessons before, so let me give you one. What is most important for a Strategist? It is to assess the situation! Assessing the situation lies not only in reasonably utilizing all the rules and details of the Game of National Destiny. It also lies in knowing when to advance and retreat; when necessary, you must know how to let go. In this act, even I, the principal, have given up, so what can you, the advisor, not let go of? Only by giving up on this act where there is no chance of victory and adjusting your mindset appropriately can you better face the next act."

Toslev could say this calmly because even if Russia's crystal were destroyed right now, he would still be third in this act and get total points.

Moreover, Toslev had gains beyond the ranking in this act, namely the knowledge about Heroic Spirits that Chen Aoyun had popularized for him.

Therefore, Toslev was unmoved when Saku Kenichi tried to sow discord earlier, and that was why Toslev could calmly say the word "give up."

The principal felt there was no possibility of a comeback and had given up. Chen Aoyun, however, had not.

He could not give up; not in any act.

After this Game of National Destiny ended, he would immediately have to face the [National War] initiated by the Sakura people.

Dragon Country might not be able to take first place, but at the very least, it must not be pushed out of the top three by the Sakura Country people!

"The 'reasonable justification' mentioned in the hidden rule must be the 'war excuse' Saku Kenichi spoke of. Perhaps there is another rule that has not been announced yet that specifically interprets what a 'reasonable justification' is. Since I haven't seen that rule, I can only think along the lines described by Saku Kenichi. Sakura Country and Russia fought a total of six wars in the Old Era; I know of two, but four I do not. The 'wars' that have already been used cannot be repeated. If I want to destroy the Sakura people's Towers at this juncture, I can only try to find other wars between the two countries besides those six? ... How could I possibly find that?! I don't even know the names of the four wars the Sakura people have already used, so how could I possibly know more?"

As a transmigrator, the only historical knowledge Chen Aoyun possessed was from before he transmigrated in the Old Era. Regarding what happened in the Old Era after he transmigrated, he knew even less than the people of the New Era.

Unable to find a path forward, Chen Aoyun put on a mask of pain.

Watching the unyielding Chen Aoyun, Toslev shook his head incessantly before turning to look at the surging demons.

The demons attacking in the final wave only came in one wave, but this wave was endless.

When the first demon entered the range of Russia's Towers, the difficulty of killing it had already left Toslev aghast.

There was no "hardest to kill," only "harder to kill."

When the time reached the fifth minute, an 'Elite Monster' suddenly appeared among the attacking demons!

The 'Elite Monster' had a larger physique and thicker health!

Not only that, the Elite Monster's resistance skin was even more exaggerated. Most of the negative effects, such as slowing effects from projectiles hitting its body, were nullified—the degree of nullification reached nearly ninety percent, far exceeding that of ordinary demons, which were already quite exaggerated!

This Elite Monster, with its even more ferocious appearance, withstood the attacks of all of Russia's Tower projectiles along the way. Under the cover of other demons, it didn't take long to break out of the Towers' attack range and rush toward the crystal at the end of the road.

In the final wave, Russia finally leaked the first monster!

It took ten monsters entering the crystal for it to be destroyed.

But don't look at the fact that Russia only leaked one; one was just the beginning. It meant that the current firepower of Russia's Towers could no longer handle the strength of the demons.

From this moment on, as long as similar Elite Demons appeared, they would be able to successfully rush into Russia's crystal; the destruction of Russia's crystal was imminent!

Looking at the other two countries: The USA had a comprehensive Tower firepower rating of 55,000. Facing that thick-skinned Elite Demon, although they were under pressure, they were far from the point of leaking monsters.

Sakura Country was the same; 52,000 in firepower was a bit lower than the USA, but killing this Elite Monster was not difficult for Sakura Country.

Among the three countries, only Russia had leaked this Elite Demon.

Seeing this, Toslev couldn't sit still.

"The Towers can't handle the current strength of the demons. I want to use the resources remaining in the crystal to strengthen the Towers again; perhaps we can hold on for a while longer." Toslev said this after watching the Elite Demon rush into the crystal.

Chen Aoyun was quick and grabbed Toslev.

"No! No matter where the turning point is, the resources in the crystal are an essential condition. There aren't many resources left in the crystal now. If you use these resources to strengthen the Towers, then there will be absolutely no hope of a comeback!"

"Still thinking about a comeback? Where is there any hope for a comeback now?" Toslev really wanted to knock away the hand Chen Aoyun was pulling him with, but seeing Chen Aoyun's unyielding and stubborn eyes, Toslev ultimately chose not to do so.

Chen Aoyun, who was pulling Toslev, analyzed, "Strengthening those Towers a little bit is meaningless. Perhaps it can handle the next Elite Monster after strengthening. But the demons in the final wave will constantly increase in difficulty. The difficulty increases every five minutes. Who knows if the Elite Monsters that appear simultaneously after five minutes will be harder to kill, or if the Elite Monsters that spawn after five minutes will go from one to two. Using those few resources in the crystal to strengthen the Towers is absolutely impossible to deal with either more powerful Elite Monsters or two Elite Monsters. Instead of just waiting to die, why not take a gamble!"

Toslev raised his eyebrows and asked, "Gamble on what?"

Chen Aoyun: "Gamble that I can find a way to break the deadlock within five minutes!"

A way to break the deadlock? And within five minutes?

Toslev rolled his eyes so hard it looked like freshly applied plaster. Then, he locked eyes with Chen Aoyun.

"Sigh~" Toslev sighed. "Anyway, as you said at the beginning, it's not a question of how long we can persist, but whose crystal will be broken first. The resources in the crystal are simply not enough to make up for the gap with those two countries. We'll lose sooner or later, so why not... humor you for once?"

He couldn't stand Chen Aoyun's refusal to admit defeat, yet he also missed this kind of refusal to admit defeat. Back in the day, when he, Toslev, first became a Strategist, wasn't he also like this, insisting on things regardless of the circumstances?

It wasn't that he was old, or that he lacked drive; it was simply that after being a Strategist for so long, Toslev had recognized reality. The outcome of the Game of National Destiny was not affected by personal persistence.

Toslev didn't think there was anything wrong with this summary gathered over many years, but seeing Chen Aoyun's stubborn eyes reminded him of his younger self, and the Russian stubbornness in his heart was unknowingly reignited.

Of course, the main reason Toslev chose to do this was that it didn't actually affect Russia's ranking.

In fact, for Russia right now, keeping those resources in the crystal was the only sliver of a negligible hope for a comeback.

Toslev looked at Chen Aoyun and suddenly said, "Before, you popularized the allusions of Russian Heroic Spirits for me. As a reward, it was your condition that Sakura Country not be ranked ahead of Russia. I didn't achieve this condition. As compensation, if you can make Russia turn the tide, I will give you all the points above 6!"

Third place would allow Russia to get 6 points in this act. The higher the ranking, the higher the score.

Toslev was willing to give the extra points gained after a comeback to Dragon Country, not because he wanted to be some great philanthropist, but because it was a necessary move to make the cooperative relationship more solid.

If someone helps you improve your ranking, you have to show something, right? The Heroic Spirits that had already been popularized required Toslev to provide a return. If he wanted to continue such popularization in the future, Toslev also had to show a sufficient degree of goodwill. Giving the extra total points to Dragon Country was very appropriate.

For a Game of National Destiny where victory was not guaranteed, even if the first-place reward was ten times higher, it would not be as important as the Heroic Spirit allusions learned from Chen Aoyun.

Russia was not a country lacking in national destiny and facing imminent worldly disasters. Nor was it a country about to face the [National War]. Dragon Country was.

Foreigners also understood the principle of helping others in times of need. At this time, exchanging a few total points for deep cooperation with Chen Aoyun in the future was not a loss for Toslev.

"You'll give the points above 6 to my Dragon Country? Are you serious?"

"Naturally serious! It's just that regarding the history and allusions of the Old Era, especially the historical allusions of my Russia, you and I will have to continue to communicate in the future..."

Using the allusions of Heroic Spirits/wonders was originally Chen Aoyun's means to manipulate Russia and find allies. Toslev's request was not excessive, so Chen Aoyun naturally agreed.

Now, Chen Aoyun's will to help Russia achieve a desperate comeback was even stronger.

"Perhaps there is less than five minutes left; I must find a turning point!"

...

"What are the Russians doing? One Elite Monster appears, and they leak one! They've already leaked the third one! Why don't they use the remaining resources in the crystal to strengthen the Towers? Each Elite Monster is at low health; strengthening the Towers might just hold them off. What on earth are the Russians thinking?" Some of the viewers watching the live stream yelled strangely.

After the final wave reached the fifth minute, an Elite Monster appeared about every minute. Now Russia had already leaked the third one. If this continued, it wouldn't be long before their crystal was broken. The viewers watching the live stream, especially the Russian viewers, were extremely anxious.

Some didn't understand why the Russians didn't use the resources in the crystal to strengthen the Towers. Others didn't understand why the [red token] in the hands of various countries hadn't been used yet. The final wave was a game of who fell first; what were they waiting for by not using it?

"Can't you see the reason for not using the [red token]? Although those ordinary demons are hard to kill, all three countries are currently capable of dealing with them. Even if they used the [red token] to destroy a few Towers, those ordinary demons still wouldn't be able to approach the crystal. The main issue is how the three countries deal with the Elite Demons. The current Elite Demons can no longer be defended against by Russia. Even if Sakura Country used the [red token] in their hands to destroy a Tower, the result would be the same; it wouldn't accelerate Russia's death. As for Sakura Country and the USA, the situation is similar. They have held off the Elite Monsters, and even with one or two fewer Towers, they can still hold on. In short, the [red token] cannot change any current situation, so no country has used it."

The viewer who said this spoke with great certainty, but no sooner had he finished speaking than he was slapped in the face.

During the interval between the appearance of Elite Demons, a projectile shot out from Russia's Towers. This projectile carried a dazzling red light, tracing a beautiful arc in the 'sky,' and then fell straight onto Sakura Country's Tower. With a 'boom,' one of Sakura Country's Towers collapsed completely.

"Can't hold it back anymore? Russia used the [red token] in their hands? I remember the Russians have two tokens, so that means there's another one?"

Sure enough, no sooner had the barrage from some viewers floated across the live stream screen than another Tower in Russia's 'Tower formation' glowed with a distinct red light, and immediately after, another projectile streaked across the sky, destroying another of the Sakura people's Towers.

An eye for an eye. Although using the [red token] now had no meaning and couldn't change any current situation, since Russia had made a move, there was no reason for the Sakura people not to retaliate!

Consequently, a projectile also shot out from Sakura Country's 'Tower formation,' slamming straight into one of Russia's Towers. The Towers were purely offensive and had no defense; defensive entries based on wonders could not be written into them. The two Sakura Country Towers that had just been hit collapsed instantly, and now, after Russia's Tower was attacked, it also instantly turned into ruins.

"The final stubbornness before exiting?" Seeing this scene, almost all the viewers watching the live stream had this thought pop into their minds as Russia suddenly used the [red token] in their hands.