The reporters had no choice but to leave dejectedly. Zheng Yiran, as the commander, very considerately said to the reporters, "Then our competition is over!"
Upon hearing this, the reporters knew they would be interviewed after the competition ended. This gave them a way to save face, so they quickly chimed in, "See you after the competition!"
"We wish you good luck!"
The few also smiled and said, "Thank you."
When the competition started, the Imperial Military Academy entered the arena first.
The audience was undoubtedly at its liveliest at this moment: [Didn't I arrive late?]
[Just in time, just in time!]
[It's the Imperial Military Academy again. Is the Imperial Military Academy this strong this year?]
[The Imperial Military Academy's odds are already 1:0.5. If they actually win the championship, those who bet before the match will be making a fortune!]
[The Imperial Military Academy has won two matches. To be honest, luck plays a big part. Championships aren't that easy to win!]
[Oh, a fan of which military academy has come here? Still talking about luck, luck so good they could turn the tide during the Tri-Service Alliance? You're too narrow-minded if you don't admit others' strength!]
This was only the third match, and the fan rivalry had already begun.
Upon entering the arena, Zheng Yiran surveyed the current environment.
"We are currently to the northwest of Blue Sea Star, and the finish line is to the east."
Zheng Yiran described the layout of the arena and the location of the finish line to everyone. After hearing her words, they pondered for a moment, and then Jing Yuan Cheng asked, "Is the finish line at sea?"
"Yes."
This was indeed what Zheng Yiran saw, so she told everyone, "Let's hurry up. There's only one boat at the finish line. If we're late, we might have to swim to pull the flag!"
Hui Xing Xiu, upon hearing that this was the designated finish line, grumbled, "Who came up with such a terrible idea!"
Watching the live broadcast, Xie Xue and Er Hu simultaneously touched their noses, resolutely refusing to admit that this was a result of their joint decision.
The arena on Blue Sea Star resembled a city. When the star beasts besieged the city before, the residents here had been evacuated. Coincidentally, upon hearing that this area was to be made into an arena, it was cordoned off and requisitioned.
Because of the star beast siege, the houses and buildings here bore some traces of attack.
Passing through this residential area, they reached the seaside, with the finish line flag in the center of the sea.
The group moved forward. There were no star beasts in this residential area. The only ones were star beasts deliberately placed here, and their numbers were not large, so to kill star beasts for points, they still had to go to the seaside.
Therefore, the group's pace was swift, moving forward without any hesitation.
[Why do they seem so familiar with this place?]
[I noticed that too. How did they know the sea was to the north?]
[Have they been here before?]
As the audience speculated, other teams also entered the arena according to the schedule. Sensing that there were no star beasts at the entrance, they all advanced without restraint.
When night fell, they no longer needed to set up tents like in the previous two matches. They could find any house here to spend the night.
[The arena on Blue Sea Star is quite boring. Why are there no star beasts!]
[I heard that Blue Sea Star experienced a star beast riot not long ago, and the residential areas were invaded. In fact, if you look closely at the buildings during the live broadcast, some have traces. I initially thought it wasn't as exaggerated as the news said, but seeing those marks, I believed it!]
[Then why are there only two star beasts now?!]
[This arena on Blue Sea Star is really terrible!]
Xie Xue, watching the live broadcast, got up and poured himself a glass of water to alleviate the awkwardness. Then he saw Er Hu returning and berated him, "Why did you only prepare so few star beasts? Couldn't you catch a few more and put them in!"
The audience thinks our Blue Sea Star is fooling them!
Comrade Er Hu felt very wronged! He defended himself, "Commander! It's not that I didn't want to catch them! Ever since those star beasts were attacked by the defense array, they've become smarter! They don't come to our Blue Sea Star anymore! It took a lot of effort to catch these few star beasts!"
After all, killing star beasts was much easier than capturing them alive.
Thus, due to the scarcity of star beasts, two days and one night passed. Currently, the highest-scoring team had just over ten thousand points. The Imperial Military Academy, having not encountered many star beasts, was in eighth place.
The real battle only began when they reached the seaside. Just as the Imperial Military Academy was preparing to board the ship, many military academies suddenly appeared from the side.
This greatly surprised the members of the Imperial Military Academy. Hui Xing Xiu asked in astonishment, "Where did you all come from!"
They were the first to enter the arena, and they hadn't been idle for the past two days, so how did these people catch up?
Wu Fei was the first to answer Hui Xing Xiu, "What does it matter if we sleep two fewer hours to catch up!"
Xiao Wu also said with a serious expression, "Without star beasts, it's much more convenient to drink nutrient solutions, so time is naturally saved."
Moreover, they too had reduced their sleep time by half to catch up.
Fei Ta also said, "It's nothing to stay up one night."
The audience in the Imperial Military Academy's live stream did not expect that everyone else had hardly slept and arrived at the seaside almost simultaneously.
[Are they all this dedicated?]
[Alas, one can only say to be prepared for danger in times of peace! The Imperial Military Academy is still a bit naive. They slept so soundly last night! Just because they won two matches, they're so arrogant.]
[It's not arrogance, is it? Who could have expected their opponents to be so driven!]
Indeed, while the students from other military academies were rushing forward with all their might, the audience watching through the live streams saw the Imperial Military Academy sleeping soundly. They felt thrilled, waiting for this very moment!
It was unclear if they had planned it beforehand, but all twelve military academies had arrived at the seaside. However, there was only one boat, and the finish line was in the center of the sea, still a considerable distance from the water's surface.
It seemed that this competition was about to turn into a life-or-death struggle!
However, the audience loved to watch such scenes. If there weren't a few rounds of fighting, it wouldn't be called a military academy league. The previous match, which was a comical blunder, was utterly boring.
But, what was the current formation? Was it one against eleven?
The audience looked at the unfolding situation, which seemed somewhat unexpected.
[What's going on? Eleven against one?]
[Oh my, oh my, oh my! What's happening? Why have they surrounded the Imperial Military Academy? Shouldn't they be trying to grab the boat first?]
Meng Huai and the others had arrived at the seaside first, but after they got there, from their left, right, and behind, the eleven military academies surrounded them in a semicircle.
However, the boat was outside the semicircle. Meng Huai and the other four were completely surrounded and could not leave by boat.
They were in a dilemma, caught between a rock and a hard place!