Chapter 563: The Individual Tournament 1

As the second day ended, the various teams and players returned to their resting areas. All the events had lasted 7 hours for the first day and the same for the second day in Boundless time, that was only 1.75 hours in real life each day. 

Adding in the 12 hours rest in between the days that amounted to 3 hours in real-time, by the time the third day of the event was ready to kick-off, only a gross total of 9.5 hours had passed in the real world. 

This was ideal, as the events were taking place over the weekend so most workers could watch if they so pleased, keeping in mind the helmets' 16 hours per day capacity. 

The third day began with Amber once again welcoming the now seated crowd with her usual flair. Today, she was wearing a Chinese Cheongsam that was a mixture of black and red, the hem reaching her ankles and the length split on one side to reveal her thighs. 

Anyone who had watched Chinese movies or played any Asian-made fighting game would tell you that this outfit had to be one of the top 5 sexiest attires a woman could wear. There were no downsides to it, and on a woman like Amber, it was a killer. 

"Welcome everyone! Today is the third day of the Inter-Player International Competition and it's a very good day! Apart from the Theory Battle that will be slated as the second event and the final event, the Guessing Game, we have a hot competition to start the day with!" 

Amber began as she waved to the stands. This time, without her prompt, the center of the field metamorphosed into a large stage no different from the one that handsome green alien from the future used in that his famous tournament in that old anime with the same old blond dudes. 

"That's right, today we will begin the Individual Tournament! Here, each player will be shuffled into groups, then compete against each other to determine their points! Each group will have 250 fighters, with a total of 4 groups. The top 8 in each of these groups will move on to the round of 32, where the eliminations stages will begin!" 

Hearing the rules, many faces changed. They knew that only 32 fighters would make it into the eliminations stage, but having such huge groups would severely limit the chances of more than a few compared to having plentiful groups. 

As usual, most could only grit their teeth and glared at Amber with red eyes that wanted to toss her into a meat shredder. The woman herself smiled brightly from all this hate and then clapped her hands. 

"These are the listings for the various groups!" 

The group listings were displayed. 

｢First Inter-Player International Competition 

Individual Tournament Group Stages. 

Group A: 

1. Heaven's Son - China 

2. Cold Summer - Canada   

3. Loving Aunt - Italy 

4. Brother Is Best (Bella) - France 

5. Kiran - India 

6. Deployed Soldier - Central Country 

7. Noble Soul - England 

8. Great Caster (Hera) - Japan 

Group B: 

1. Slim Fatty - Central Country 

2. Wee Cunt - Scotland 

3. Silent Walker - England 

4. Dreary Traveler - Brazil 

5. Shani - Ghana 

6. Rambunctious Buttlover - Canada 

7. Cobra - France 

8. Panty King - Japan 

Group C: 

1. Young Duel - France 

2. Tunder Power  - Mexico 

3. Sublime Notion - England 

4. Uno - Mexico 

5. Gentle Light (Lucia) - England 

6. Loli King - Japan 

7. Gentle Flower - Canada 

8. Kicked Bucket - Korea 

Group D: 

1. Joker - Canada 

2. Happy Scholar - England 

3. Killer Queen (Keira) - Japan 

4. Slight Breeze - India 

5. Warm Spring - Central Country 

6. Boyd - Ghana 

7. Maple Forest - Spain 

8. Essence Stalker - Mexico ｣ 

The groups were much larger than this, but each group was filtered by the most promising contestants in each of them, numbering 8. Your placement in this list was not random, but done based on your aggregate power and performance in the tournament so far. 

It was only the top 30 of each group who were shuffled about to give some semblance of intrigue, forcing spectators to guess who would come out on top. As usual, the betting companies went to work opening some bets for the game and many participated. 

"Now that the groups have been sorted out, we will move on to the individual battle assessment!" Amber began as she clapped her hand, the single arena splitting into four smaller copies. 

After that, she brought the 1,000 contestants on the field, their faces locked into frowns as they wondered how the group stage would be handled. With so many of them and only four arenas at once, how could they all fight each other once to determine rankings? 

Since this event also had a 3-hour timeline, there was no way it could work like this. Amber seemed to notice their confusion and tittered. For some reason, those VIPs for each country felt a bad omen in their hearts at seeing her expression. 

"Of course, the group stages won't feature a direct battle, as that would be too time-consuming and honestly, quite boring. We want excitement to be present when the top elites fight each other for the first time, no?" 

Amber waved her hand as three giant machines manifested on each of the four mini-arenas. The contraptions were about the size of a small car, looking like a cross between a power measuring machine and a professional force measuring machine. 

Seeing this, the various contestants and spectators had an idea of what Amber wanted to do, which left them speechless. Seeing that everyone got the idea, Amber clapped her hands with glee. 

"That's right! Every contestant in each group should use their strongest skill, technique or attack on the machine, which will record their output. Don't worry it's not calculated by raw force, but output, precision, and quality." 

Amber folded her hands behind her back calmly. "It doesn't matter whether you're a cleric, a warrior, or even a psychic. Just use your best skill or class-related ability on the machine, and it will award you points based on the powers of your skill compared to your class' average, your fluidity in using the skill, and its effectiveness on the target." 

Amber's eyes narrowed as she smiled thinly. "Choose the skill you will use very, very carefully." 

Hearing her words, the contestants knew that this was not a joke. Their chances of entering the final 32 rested on this, and interestingly, it had nothing to do with whether you had some Legendary Class or an overpowered skill, but how you used it. 

There were many, even among Umbra, who had powerful classes but relied on them too much and didn't have much in the way of technique. If Rina were here, she would fall into this category. 

This kind of test gave everyone a fair chance, especially those who had Common Classes but had owned the shit out of them, developing them beyond what such classes should be capable of. 

However, they had always been suppressed by the mighty Umbra whose players not only had powerful classes, but also Ranked up faster than the speed of light. Such players gazed provocatively at the members of Umbra, as few as they were. 

However, they were left with dismay when the members of Umbra from each country, who formed about 95% of all those arranged here, didn't even bat an eyelid. This made those other players feel apprehension, wondering what Umbra was all about. 

Well, it was normal for the members of Umbra not to be worried. Most people only saw the raw power of Umbra and secretly regarded them as a guild of privileged weaklings who could not reach where they were without their Guildmaster wiping their asses for them. 

Meanwhile, while Draco had helped Umbra, wasn't it the case that the fellow was always in one Unique Quest or the other? 

Just how many times had Draco actually sat down and led his guild members to do anything, apart from World Events? If anything, it would have been their Lady Boss who had actually disciplined them into who they were today! 

No, even that was looking at it from the wrong angle. 

From the very beginning, why was it that guilds like Kamisuo had 100,000 players with others even having more than that, while Umbra had limited their numbers? 

The answer was simple, their tests had always been designed to filter out the diamonds from the trash! Even Basic members who entered the guild had the power to lead a Rare guild, much less those ranked above. 

Every member of Umbra was a monster of talent, which was why there were so few of them. 

Because Draco was so secure in the fact that there was no trash in his guild, he had been able to invest as much as he had. As he continually blessed them - albeit indirectly - they would take those wings he gave them and use them to soar higher, which was what they always did. 

This was the confidence of the members of Umbra! 

The Individual assessment began immediately. Starting from the 250th place in each group, they went forward to use their most powerful skill on the machine, which would then almost immediately return a score based on their performance. 

None of the scores were trash, even for those at last place. However, they were quickly suppressed by the next contestants going forward, showing that the AI had done this intentionally to show the disparity to each member in an attempt to weaken their wills. 

Strong players would not be beaten down by this and would grow, while the weak ones would suffer from this and lose their will to progress. 

The AI hadn't done this for any particular reason that was profound or the like. It was just running an experiment and collecting data from it as usual. 

When the turns of those in the top 30 came, those in the crowd inched closer to the edge of their seats and looked on with solemn gazes. From here on out, regardless of the group, it was all Rank 3 powerhouses from the Expert member list of Umbra and above, or the core members of Kamisuo, Desecrators, Lorebinders, and Myriad Cards. 

Eventually, the various members struck with their best skills. It wasn't until 5 specific players struck that the machine started to have trouble and seemed like it was about to break. 

First was Kiran, the second was Deployed Soldier, third was Boyd, fourth was Slim Fatty and the last person, who also incidentally shattered the machine so completely that a score couldn't be given, was Essence Stalker. 

Seeing that he alone had destroyed the entire thing, the fellow smiled sheepishly and turned to Amber. He then pointed to the machine and stated: "All expenses on Draco." 

The members of Umbra all fell over after hearing this. Only Loving Aunt simply nodded her head, pleased that he was becoming more and more like a true member from their Lineage. 

Amber's lips twitched. "Well, no matter. Let us display the scores for the group stage and see those who are progressing in each group!" 

｢First Inter-Player International Competition 

Individual Tournament Group Stages. 

Group A: 

1.  Kiran - 2500 points 

2. Deployed Soldier - 2290 points 

3. Loving Aunt - 2285 points 

4. Noble Soul - 2174 points 

5. Heaven's Son - 2083 points 

6. Cold Summer - 1878 points 

7. Great Caster (Hera) - 1833 points 

8.  Brother Is Best (Bella) - 1811 points 

Group B: 

1. Slim Fatty - 2700 points 

2. Cobra - 2350 points 

3. Silent Walker - 2240 points 

4. Dreary Traveler - 2190 points 

5. Rambunctious Buttlover - 2100 points 

6. Shani - 1980 points 

7. Wee Cunt - 1783 points 

8. Panty King - 1782 points 

Group C: 

1. Uno - 2399 points 

2. Tunder Power - 2234 points 

3. Sublime Notion - 2212 points 

4. Gentle Flower - 2176 points 

5. Gentle Light (Lucia) - 2123 points 

6. Young Duel - 1988 points 

7. Loli King - 1654 points 

8. Kicked Bucket - 1623 points 

Group D: 

1. Essence Stalker - 4999 points 

2. Boyd - 2550 points 

3. Killer Queen (Keira) - 2347 points 

4. Warm Spring - 2238 points 

5. Happy Scholar - 2122 points 

6. Joker - 2121 points 

7. Maple Forest - 1877 points 

8. Slight Breeze - 1854 points.｣ 

The rankings were sorted out and it was clear as these who would be going on. It was largely the same as the AI had predicted, and those who had placed safe and wise bets got some little meat on their soup while others who had taken risks were wailing in pain and anguish. 

As for those who failed to go on, they could only grit their teeth and return to the waiting area unwillingly. Even though their accumulated points would still be added to their respective countries, they had already failed to make a decisive change in anything. 

"Now that the top 32 have been decided, let's look at the format for the elimination battles!" Amber announced with a smile, turning the four separate stages back into a single stage. 

1st Match: Brother Is Best vs Sublime Notion 

2nd Match: Heaven's Son vs Essence Stalker 

3rd Match: Slim Fatty vs Joker 

4th Match: Cold Summer vs Silent Walker 

5th Match: Warm Spring vs Dreary Traveler 

6th Match: Alpha Male vs Great Caster 

7th Match: Loli King vs Tunder Power 

8th Match: Panty King vs Kiran 

9th Match: Rambunctious Buttlover vs Happy Scholar 

10th Match: Noble Soul vs Slight Breeze 

11th Match: Deployed Soldier vs Wee Cunt 

12th Match: Gentle Flower vs Maple Forest 

13th Match: Shani vs Loving Aunt 

14th Match: Boyd vs Kicked Bucket 

15th Match: Killer Queen vs Gentle Light 

16th Match: Cobra vs Young Duel 

Once the match-ups were released, many realized that the eliminations round would be full of surprises. Those who were in the know of Umbra and the various abilities of their members especially gasped, realizing this devious AI had really cooked things up. 

Before they could even comprehend what they were seeing, Amber clapped her hands and spoke. 

"Each battle will last 3 minutes at most! Contestants may use any skills, spells, and abilities in their arsenal, which will be restored going into each match. You are also free to use your relevant in-game equipment to fight, as it is a part of your power." 

"Due to level and rank imbalances, everyone will be set to Rank 3, level 100 by default. Your points that are lost will be kept in storage, and for those who gain stat points, they will only be on loan for this tournament." 

Amber was about to get the matches going when she suddenly remembered something. "Oh, I nearly forgot, NO CONSUMABLES are allowed!" 

Those who had been smiling, planning on bombarding enemies with consumables and one-time use items like Loving Aunt who had countless Epic and Legendary poisons displayed sad grimaces. 

"Without further ado, let the first battle of the Individual Tournament Elimination Stages begin!" Amber announced grandly before moving aside. 

Sublime Notion and Bella were automatically beamed into the arena, standing equidistantly from each other. The two opponents sized each other up with cruelty in their eyes, both being evil-hearted maidens. 

"Little thing, on account of you taking care of Astarte before I got here, I can make things easy on you. Admit defeat and scram!" Bella commanded with an imperious gaze, her eyes flashing with disdain. 

Sublime Notion ignored her words and muttered lightly. "Hehe, this one is a yandere, right? Beating her up will be like slapping the face of that evildoer… hehe, haha, I must go all out! FOR VENGEANCE!" 

Sublime was not even looking at Bella like she was herself, but had overlaid the imagine of Riveting Night who was her heart demon, and became crazed. Bella's expression changed to alarm, and the battle was announced to have begun right at that moment. 

Immediately, Sublime shrieked like a banshee and raised both of her staves, casting out endless amounts of destructive spells. She wanted to see Bella- no, Riveting Night beaten, bruised, battered, and begging for mercy at her feet! 

Bella was horrified, but soon regained her calm as she fled into the shadows. She had the Legendary grade Ninja class which Eva had gifted her. The Lady Boss had acquired it on Shinoka when she had taken all the girls over during their playdate and had gifted it to Bella who she deemed compatible with it. 

The Ninja class was an Assassin class that was focused on a combination of stealth and trickery. It was not like Eva's old Shadow Assassin class that mixed magic and stealth, or Cobra's Slayer class that mixed stealth and execution. 

Where Bella once stood was a piece of log that was soon struck by the first wave of spells, being rendered into nothing within seconds. 

Substitution Technique! 

Sublime's eyes had long gone red from madness, the shorty cackling like some vile witch as she continually fired out hazardous spells one after the other. Nowhere on the entire stage could be described as safe, Sublime even going as far as damaging herself and her mana shield greatly just to carpet bomb the place. 

Substitution Technique! 

Substitution Technique! 

Substitution Technique! 

Substitution Technique! 

Bells gritted her teeth and used her life-saving skill four times in a row, achieving the maximum limit for the next 12 hours. Her face paled when she realized that while her skill allowed her to avoid the majority of the damage, there was still some lingering danger as Sublime had saved her Large-scale spells for last. 

Bella then made a flurry of hand signs before clapping her palms together. 

Shadow Clone Technique! 

Immediately, two copies of Bella appeared before her, standing right before her as they grabbed her and disappeared. Where the spell of Sublime should have evaporated them, it turned out another log as left there. 

Substitution Technique! x8 

Each Shadow Clone had all her skills and could use them itself, minus the skill that had spawned it. Otherwise that would lead to a game-breaking loop of Infinitum, but it still posed great trouble to those who wished to take Bella down. 

Take Sublime, she had emptied her arsenal of conventional spells, even the large-scale ones, and all of them had been wasted on substitution logs.