325: Chapter 330 Dragon Kingdom Ranks Number One! (Two Chapters Combined)

The announcement from the National Fortune Game that the second stage would allow for additional National Destiny Bearers undoubtedly excited the citizens of those countries whose contestants had died.

They once again saw a hope for survival.

Now, the conditions for Thousand Times Materialization in the game were visualized; as long as they played steadily, they could contribute Thousand Times Materialization to their country.

This would allow their nations to break free from the brink of destruction.

This included countries like India, Netherlands, Wa Country, Spain, and Fei Hou Country.

And that wasn't all.

[Each country will have 50 contestant slots, and contestants will be randomly selected from the healthy population.

The top five countries in the comprehensive ranking of the first stage of the National Fortune Game will receive additional contestant slots.

The top five contestants in the first stage comprehensive ranking are as follows:]

[Fifth Place: Kimchi Country.]

[Fourth Place: Persian Cat Country.]

[Third Place: Woolen Thread Country and Lighthouse Country.]

[Second Place: Rich Dog Country.]

[First Place: Dragon Country.]

[The additional slots for the top five countries, from lowest to highest, are: 55, 60, 65, 70, and 80 slots respectively.]

[Furthermore, contestants can choose to reduce their country's contestant slots in exchange for needed national destiny items.]

[Reducing 5 slots can be exchanged for 1 blue energy particle.]

[Reducing 10 slots can be exchanged for 1 revival coin.]

This announcement ignited the world once again.

"5—50 contestant slots!?"

"This is the best news I've seen today!"

"..."

The increase of National Fortune Game contestant slots to 50 for the second stage made the entire world leap for joy and celebrate.

More people meant that Thousand Times Materialization would be easier.

It could speed up the process of pulling a nation back from destruction.

With a division of labor, if luck was on their side, it wouldn't be surprising to materialize several kinds of resources a thousandfold in a single day.

Most crucially, production became much easier.

With more people, the ability to resist danger would be greater, making it easier to survive.

Moreover, they could complement each other's skills.

For example, some might be fishing experts, while others could craft ingenious traps to catch prey.

Or some might have great strength and could handle physical labor.

With mutual help, would they still need to tread on thin ice as they did when they were alone?

At this moment, the whole world realized the truth: many hands make light work.

Countries all over the world were watching the start of the second stage of the National Fortune Game.

In the eyes of people who were originally desperate, the flames of hope burned once more.

However, a sentence in the bullet comments soon pulled everyone from their beautiful ideals back to harsh reality.

"By the way, having more people is a good thing, but in case of an accident where several contestants die, what will happen?"

This sentence made everyone in the world realize the implications after the fact.

That's right! If a contestant died, it would not only reduce the lifespan of the entire nation's people by 5 years but also halve the nation's resources and bring down a terrible punishment.

What would happen if several contestants died in a row?

One contestant means 5 years less life, two means 10 years, three means 15 years...

Following this logic, if a team was wiped out, the direct reduction in lifespan would be 250 years.

Even the citizens of Dragon Country, who had the longest lifespans, wouldn't be able to withstand that.

"Be optimistic; maybe the punishment only descends when all contestants are dead and the country has no one left?"

"I also think that's the most likely case; otherwise, it would be too unreasonable and go against the original intent of the National Fortune Game."

"Indeed! The original intent of the National Fortune Game is to save civilizations in the universe that are about to go extinct."

"It's impossible they would do something that exterminates a civilization."

"Don't think too much about it; we'll know the answer later. As long as we act carefully, it's impossible for so many people to be wiped out all at once."

"By the way, reducing slots can be exchanged for national destiny items. I wonder how those National Destiny Bearers will choose."

"Dragon Country was already powerful, and now they've gotten 80 slots. How can anyone else play in the future?"

"An Ke can just retreat behind the scenes now."

"..."

Dragon Country, High Command conference room.

Whether it was the foreign public or the Dragon Country Masses, they all held an optimistic attitude.

They felt the National Fortune Game wouldn't do something to destroy a civilization.

But the Dragon Country High Command didn't think so.

"Having many slots isn't necessarily a good thing!" The Dragon Country Commander had his arms crossed, his tone deep.

"If large-scale casualties occur, even if we've accumulated enough before, we'll be severely weakened."

Beside him, some experts and scholars had noncommittal expressions.

After a moment, Xiao Liang spoke up curiously:

"Commander, are you so sure the punishment mechanism for the second stage of the National Fortune Game is the same as the first stage?"

"Some people in the bullet comments have a point; maybe the punishment isn't based on individuals?"

"Xiao Liang, you're still too young." At this time, Old Li, who was sitting at the head of the table, spoke in a heavy voice.

"Whether the controllers behind the scenes are a higher civilization or deities with supreme authority."

"They wouldn't help a civilization for no reason."

"Exactly!" the Dragon Country General said loudly.

"If the other party really wanted to protect the human civilization that's about to perish, why wouldn't they just step in to help humanity directly instead of setting up some National Fortune Game?"

"With the means they've shown, they must have something to gain..."

"Perhaps we humans are nothing more than a bunch of crickets in the hands of those behind-the-scenes controllers."

"And right now, they are holding a cricket fight..."

The High Command conference room fell into a deep silence.

Many experts and scholars felt their skin crawl just thinking about it.

When humans face supreme power, they all give birth to the oldest and most primal emotion—fear.

This is also why humans believe in gods.

Right now, those supreme beings are still "fighting crickets" with interest. What happens once they lose interest?

Keeping the "crickets" in a box forever, finally forgetting them and leaving them to fend for themselves, might be the best outcome.

The fear is that on a whim, they might take the "crickets" they've lost interest in and feed them to a "chicken."

At that time, as the "crickets," would humans be able to resist?

"We're getting off track!" At the head, Old Li pulled the topic back.

"What's wrong with being crickets?"

"As long as a cricket has a gun, it can kill a chicken too."

"Hahaha! Old Li is right!" the Commander burst out laughing.

"If we have missiles, we can even kill an eagle!"

...

The topic in the conference room soon returned to An Ke.

Dragon Country now had 80 slots, and they wondered how An Ke would manage these 80 slots.

Would he let 80 Dragon Country people join the National Fortune Game as contestants, or would he use some slots to exchange for National Fortune Game items?

In the live broadcast room, the topic of the bullet comments was also on these 80 slots.

The masses were discussing these 80 slots with great fervor.

"I think all 80 slots should be used to select contestants..."

...

"As they say, there's strength in numbers. Naturally, the more people, the better."

"I think so too! Although Boss An has many powerful animals under him."

"In the end, animals can't compare to people."

"Exactly! Animals are always just animals; they're far from humans."

"Boss An hasn't even had a change of clothes until now. If a skilled tailor goes in, he could have a different look every day for a month."

"Hahaha! I really hope I'm one of the 80. I'm willing to work like a horse for Boss An."

"To the person above, I think you just want to go in and enjoy good food and drink with Boss An, right? Talking about working like a horse, how shameless."

"Just ask, who wouldn't want to go in and follow Boss An?"

"Exactly! Following Boss An is practically like being on vacation!"

"Watermelon, durian, unripe mango, apple... family! Who understands? My mouth is watering."

"Just thinking about it feels great, hahaha!"

"..."

The pleasant exchange among the Dragon Country Masses made the Foreigners lurking in the live broadcast room very envious.

An Ke had built a solid foundation in the National Fortune Game.

The contestants who entered afterward would practically be on vacation; they wouldn't need to worry about food or drink at all.

In contrast, contestants from other countries would have to join a cruel wilderness survival as soon as they entered, hunting for food, searching for water, and so on.

Moreover, they would have to worry about the risk of wild beasts at every moment.

At this stage of the National Fortune Game, fierce beasts were no longer ordinary fierce beasts.

Without weapons, they basically couldn't be dealt with.

Some creatures were difficult to deal with even with weapons.

For example, the Tyrannosaurus Rex that Kata from Rich Dog Country encountered.

Could that thing be killed without heavy firepower?

But the Dragon Country Contestants entering would have no need to worry about the threat of fierce beasts; anyway, there were animals to stand in front of them, so they wouldn't die.

Just thinking about it felt great.

The greatest wish of many Foreigners now was that they were Dragon Country citizens; even Foreigners from countries like Lighthouse and South Korea had this wish.

It was impossible not to be envious.

Dragon Country, inside the High Command conference room.

"Sigh! Although An Ke is indeed very strong and has built a solid foundation."

"But this mindset of the masses isn't very good."

"Exactly! If they only think about going in for a vacation, they'll only hold An Ke back."

"Even if our Dragon Country ranks first, what An Ke needs most right now are talented people."

"I wonder what choice An Ke will make."

"I hope he doesn't use all the slots to increase contestants."

"..."

The Dragon Country High Command saw more and deeper.

An Ke's strength made the pressure on the contestants who would enter the National Fortune Game next very small; at first glance, it seemed great.

It could make other Foreigners jealous and envious, a big win over them.

But that was also where the fundamental problem lay.

If they went in with a mindset of playing, they might drag An Ke down, allowing other countries to catch up or even surpass them.

And more people meant more variables.

There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand readers' eyes.

What if they disagreed and internal strife broke out?

Never underestimate the stupidity of some people, and never try to understand everyone's thoughts.

So, the Dragon Country High Command was now a bit worried that An Ke, this college student, might lack experience in dealing with people.

Inside the live broadcast.

"80 slots." An Ke stroked his chin.

Immediately after, he unhesitatingly exchanged all 80 slots for national destiny items.

20 slots for 4 blue energy particles, and 60 slots for 6 revival coins.

This way, An Ke's count of blue energy particles reached 10.

And the number of revival coins reached 8.

As a side note, the number of all-purpose upgrade cards was 4.

Let other people into the National Fortune Game?

Stop joking!

What if 80 people came in and all 80 were idiots?

Wouldn't he be driven to death by anger then?

He couldn't just kill them, and their deaths would cause punishments to fall on the country, making everything he had done before go to waste.

Maybe some talented people would appear who could help him build the Camp better.

But An Ke didn't like to leave decisions to luck.

Leaving not a single slot avoided all possible future trouble.

This was called once and for all.

Besides, he could have 8 more lives; why wouldn't he do it?

An Ke was now the focus of global attention, and this decision of his caused a worldwide sensation.

"Not leaving even one slot, exchanging them all for national destiny items??"

"Isn't this being too overconfident?"

"Does he think he can thrive in the second stage of the game all by himself?"

"Hilarious! Does he really think he can have the last laugh relying on a bunch of animals?"

"Beasts are always beasts; they can't handle the big stage. Otherwise, how could Blue Star be dominated by humans?"

"This choice by the Dragon Country Kid is quite good; it gives us a chance to surpass them."

"He really thinks he's omnipotent. Just wait until our Wa Country surpasses you; you Dragon Country people will be crying."

"Dragon Country people, take a good look at the person you worship; this is how he treats you."

"He won't let you into the National Fortune Game; you can only watch him eating, drinking, and enjoying life through a screen."

"How pitiful! He doesn't care about you at all."

"..."

The fifty contestant slots, or even more, made many Foreigners stand tall again.

They sneered at An Ke's move of not leaving any slots for Dragon Country Contestants, and even tried to sow discord.

"Damn! What the hell is An Ke doing?"

"With such a big advantage, he still didn't leave any slots."

"So he really just wants to enjoy life himself and not give us a chance to enjoy it!"

"I thought An Ke was a decent guy before, but I didn't expect such a disgusting move."

"Selfish guy!"

"No! Is there something wrong with you people above?"

"Boss An has contributed so much to our country; it's bad enough you're not grateful, but you're actually insulting him?"

"You believe whatever others say?"

"Are you brain-dead, lacking the ability to think for yourselves?"

"I finally understand why Boss An didn't leave a single contestant slot."

"I understand too. He was definitely afraid that the randomly selected contestants would include these 'extraordinary' talents."

"Motherf*cker! I really want to find you guys offline and beat you up."

"I can't take it anymore, @Dragon Country General."

"..."

The Dragon Country General replied instantly: "I've already had people record everyone who just cursed at An Ke."

"I'll give you citizens an explanation right here."

"These people will have their Dragon Country citizenship revoked directly and will be made to leave Dragon Country within a week."

"We can't let a few pieces of rat sh*t ruin the whole pot of porridge."

"Is everyone satisfied with this judgment?"

"Not satisfied!"

"Right! I'm not satisfied either; their entire families should have their Dragon Country citizenship revoked."

"Exactly! Only severe punishment can teach these idiots a lesson."

"..."

At this moment, the world came crashing down for those who had just insulted An Ke...

...