Chapter 263

Chapter 263

After the introduction, the opening ceremony came to an end. The emcee exited, and the solemn, dignified music that had played at the very beginning resumed, drowning out the noise from the audience.

The Star Alliance Chairman walked to the center of the venue. When he stopped, the music ceased, and the entire venue fell silent. The chairman saluted solemnly and declared, "For peace, for the future, for the land we possess, for our freedom!"

"The Resource War officially begins!"

The moment he finished speaking, cheers erupted into the sky.

On the highest platform, the team leaders led their members away.

The audience cheered as they followed their favorite teams. The first round was a squad battle, featuring star players and elites from various countries, allowing everyone to enjoy their performances.

Many also chose the official main perspective, which was generally more straightforward.

Soon, only the leaders of various countries remained on the platform, as the venue's central scene had transformed into the resource battle arena set up on the neighboring star.

Baide turned and led the Graths into the passage behind him. This passage led directly to a small mother ship, which would take them to the competition site.

Lakeley had been waiting early in the passage. The passage sloped downward, and when he heard footsteps and looked up, Baide's cape billowed behind him. Ye Mo walked slightly behind and to his side, with Deenlie and the others trailing behind.

They resembled a pride of lions that had rested long enough, poised and driven by hunger, ready to rise and hunt.

The Graths were silhouetted against the light, and beyond them sat Norton, his back to them, not turning around.

Only the staff, Lakeley, and the people in Lakeley's room witnessed this scene.

From a great distance from the Graths, Lakeley captured this moment.

Then, they entered the passage. Deenlie and Herli split off from Baide and the others, heading into a different passage.

"That's so intimidating! My legs are already shaking. They're usually fooling around and seem unserious, but they really step up when it counts."

"Why did two leave?"

"So cool! I take it back—I should never have mocked Baide for being unreliable. His daughters, sons, and grandsons all seem so dependable."

"But even so, don't be fooled by their seemingly reliable appearance! They still haven't equipped their Mecha Buttons! Mecha Buttons! Once the Resource War starts, they can't contact the outside. Are they really going to rely on their bare bodies to withstand mechas?"

"They really didn't bring them. I thought they'd equip them later. Ye Mo managed to face a mecha with his body before, but that relied on his incredibly strong physique. It's not something to rely on lightly. If one genius could change everything, Kainan would have Leisa, and it wouldn't have come to this."

"It's over, it's over. They've already gone up. The random coordinates are probably already assigned."

...

The neighboring star was very close. At the mother ship's speed, they arrived in just a few minutes. The entire planet served as the competition arena.

On the main screen, the host was passionately introducing: "Alright! Enough chitchat. Welcome to our squad battle venue! This time's theme is—Old Ruins!"

"Just as the name suggests, an abandoned city with towering buildings, long-deserted underground spaces. It's an ideal place for hide-and-seek, and it can also accommodate the massive size of mechas!"

The visuals shifted to show the competition site, with the mother ship already visible in the sky.

"Oh! It looks like they've arrived. Welcome our contestants!"

From one of the mother ships, a smaller warship detached, as if a switch had been flipped. Then, one by one, warships bearing different insignias detached from the mother ships. They would lock onto random coordinates and descend to the ground simultaneously.

As the warships streaked across the sky like meteors, the host quickly said, "The rules are simple this time. Each person counts as one point. Eliminate an opponent to earn one point, which goes to the team's name. If a whole team is eliminated, they're out. Additionally, to add more excitement, this squad battle requires holding flags!"

"None of you want to see a coward who's good at hiding advance, right? The flag-planting points are concentrated in several tall buildings within one city. Flags are provided in unlimited quantities by each country. You need to plant a flag for at least 24 hours. On the final day, anyone without a flag gets disqualified!"

Clearly, this rule aimed to concentrate all teams in one area.

"This is thrilling! The previous rounds were just wandering around—boring."

"What are you saying? It's all strategy. Calling someone a coward is unnecessary. For the sake of the country, anything is possible. Get a new host; this guy sucks."

"While the rules are exciting, they only favor the strong countries. I'm torn—some of my favorite teams are strong, others weak..."

"I hope my favorite teams all come back alive."

...

Inside the Grath warship, Adrian stood at the door, more irritable than usual, itching for a fight. "It's too slow! Can't we just jump down?"

Baide placed his hand on Adrian's shoulder.

"Patience, you're scaring little Xiruil. Don't rush, my child."

"You liar."

Adrian glanced at Ye Mo, then looked back. "Cyril's not scared."

Though he said that, his voice was lower than before.

Baide moved to the back, picked up one of the many flags, and hoisted it onto his shoulder. The Grath flag fluttered above his shoulder.

"Alright, let's go. For our Adrian."

Upon hearing this, Adrian immediately crouched, placed his hands under the door, and forced it open with sheer strength.

The warship was still a good distance from the ground.

Adrian leaped down without hesitation.

"Oh, another disobedient child. Fine, Adrian will act alone, responsible for guerrilla points."

Baide placed his arm across the doorway and looked at Arnold and the others. "You don't want to stay by your father's side either? I'm so sad."

He quickly got serious. "Nuo An, take that area. Elia, the west side. Jacob, the east. Do your best, especially Jacob—don't slack off. The lowest scorer will be punished."

Three voices responded simultaneously: "Understood."

Baide deliberately added, "Did I miss anyone?"

Ye Mo poked out from behind Arnold, looking eager, lining up beside him.

"Ah, it's our little Xiruil. You're too short; I almost forgot. Let me think carefully. What should you do? How about guarding the flag? That's simpler."

He handed the flag over. Ye Mo took it seriously. "I'll give it my best shot."

Baide stepped aside, and Arnold, Jacob, and Elia also moved past. As Arnold passed, he said earnestly, "Don't bully Ye Mo."

Even while jumping, Arnold worried: did Ye Mo understand that the most dangerous person in this arena for him was Baide?

Lakeley was frozen in place. Since Adrian had jumped down, he had been in this state. "They... jumped down?"

"I'm stunned. Did they equip mechas or landing protection devices that we just didn't see?"

"In all these years of watching the Resource Scramble, this is the first time I've seen a move like that. Although it seems like they can control their position to some extent, even with landing protection devices, it's still very dangerous!"

"Isn't guarding the flag the hardest part? Or did I misunderstand?"

"No, you didn't. Don't doubt yourself."

"On the other side, Baide waved Ye Mo over."

"Alright, it's our turn. Jump toward the center, Cyril. If you're off target, I'll have to pull you over—that'd be embarrassing."

"Ye Mo hummed in acknowledgment, took a few seconds to carefully confirm his aim, then leaped down. He was now an experienced jumper from battleships."

"Lakeley, hurry! We're about to jump! Follow him quickly!"

"Lakeley's face went blank."

"..."

"Ye Mo landed on the outskirts of the flag-guarding area. Baide had vanished."

"Lakeley seemed a bit weak, checking the coordinates again. "Good, landed in Zone One. The landing spot is very close to the center.""

"He actually jumped. Even though it's a holographic world, the Resource Scramble's version doesn't let you adjust the realism! It was the same as jumping in the real world. Luckily, he could adjust the pain setting and had pre-set it to follow Ye Mo."

""Jumping like that without a second thought—Lakeley's a madman. I'm following him. (Did anyone get that on mic?)""

""I'm telling you, Grath's got some tech we don't know about. No way a normal person could pull that off.""

""Top-ranked solo players should be able to do it, right?""

""Isn't having just one flag too risky? Just now, Cyril was already guarding the flag the moment he landed—it really limits his movement. And he's the only one guarding the flag! The flag placement points in the defense zone are insanely dense! And way too few for all these countries to share.""

"The moment Ye Mo landed, he ducked into a building and peeked outside cautiously. All the mother ships had scattered on landing. He recalled this area had a dense cluster—based on their earlier path and trajectory, a few should be right around here."

"Although flags were supplied in unlimited quantities, Baide had only taken this one flag. He needed to be cautious."

"Ye Mo heard a mecha power up, then several clashes. Over there, a brief skirmish had already occurred. He sketched a 3D map in his head. "Better grab some supplies and then take a quick detour.""

"Without any interference, he could just run straight to the flag zone and make it fast."

"Baide stood on a distant high-rise rooftop, shielding his eyes with his hand. "Pretty sharp.""

"He turned and looked toward the direction of the recent skirmish. The mecha had already been packed up. Baide waved. "There's someone over here.""

""He should be able to see me, but it's getting dark. Just in case, I'll leave some marks along Ye Mo's route, Baide figured.""

"..."

"Kainan."

"Kainan's view had been following Leisa. He had gone out alone to scout the area and then returned to the temporary shelter—an inconspicuous abandoned aquarium. There were no supplies inside, and it wasn't suitable for an overnight stay."

"All the team members were in a small room on the first floor."

"As soon as he came over, he was almost immediately surrounded, like a parent swarmed by chicks."

"The young people looked relieved, as if they'd finally found their anchor, but they still spoke in hushed voices. "Captain, you're finally back.""

""What was that noise earlier? Captain, I'm a bit scared.""

""Is everything alright?""

"Leisa smiled. "No, don't worry. I checked the area—there's nothing out there. We're safe for now. That noise was probably just a quick scuffle.""