TL: GoldenLung
In the blink of an eye, the Huang's arrangents had been finalized, and the round-robin stage was about to begin. The drawing ceremony had concluded, and Huang Yuanlang personally delivered the results. For Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu, the outco couldn’t have been better—the greatest advantage being that they were placed in the sa group. The entire draw process had been completely random.
Those advancing to the round-robin were the top one hundred contestants from the elimination stage. Aside from the Higher Dragon Clan mbers, the rest were all elite figures among the Mid Dragon Clan.
Even if mbers of the Lower Dragon Clan perford exceptionally well in the elimination rounds and successfully ascended as dragons, they still had no chance of entering the next stage. Each group consisted of ten contestants, aning everyone would face nine matches. This format was the best way to assess a competitor’s overall strength. In the end, the top three from each group would advance to the finals and earn qualification for the Dragon Knight trials. Though the round-robin wasn’t an elimination format, the competition would undoubtedly be fierce.
Advancing was everything. Every Higher Dragon Clan contestant would go all out during this stage. The reason it was considered fortunate for Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu to be in the sa group was simple—they could support each other.
Matches in the round-robin would proceed one after another without breaks. An opponent Lan Xuanyu faced might very well be Bai Xiuxiu’s next opponent. This created significant room for strategic maneuvering.
Of course, there was also the possibility that Lan Xuanyu would face Bai Xiuxiu. In that case, he could deliberately hold back, allowing her an easy win. But all of this depended on one premise—Lan Xuanyu had to be capable of defeating the other opponents in their group.
“I’ve gathered information on your groupmates over the past two days,” Huang Yuanlang said. “I’ll analyze them one by one—it’ll be very helpful for planning your strategy.”
“With the two of you in the sa group, your chances of advancing together increase significantly. After discussing with my father, we believe you may need to adopt a more ruthless approach.”
Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu exchanged a glance. Lan Xuanyu asked, “Clan Leader, what do you suggest?”
Huang Yuanlang narrowed his eyes slightly. “My group is full of strong contenders. I have no chance of advancing, so everything depends on you two. Your group also has several powerful opponents. To be honest, I’m not sure you can defeat them—especially Xiuxiu. So, Xiuxiu, your goal should be to fight for third place. Accumulate as many points as possible against weaker opponents, and with Lan’s support, you still stand a good chance.”
“Lan, Xiuxiu’s advancent depends heavily on your cooperation. When facing opponents you can defeat, you must injure them as severely as possible—leave them unable to recover in ti for later matches. Do you understand what I an?”
Lan Xuanyu’s eyes flickered, and he nodded. Of course he understood—if he crippled opponents early, Bai Xiuxiu would have a much easier ti defeating them later.
Huang Yuanlang continued, “The family has put in trendous effort to ensure your advancent. The draw itself was supervised by Dragon Knights, so we couldn’t interfere—but we did manage to adjust the match order.”
“In the first match, Xiuxiu will face the strongest opponent in your group.”
“The next three rounds will be against weaker opponents. anwhile, Lan, your first three matches will also be against those sa weaker opponents—in the exact sa order. That ans, Xiuxiu, you can intentionally concede the first match. Then, you have a strong chance of winning the next three. With Lan giving you one additional win, that’s four victories already.”
“Based on past patterns, six wins almost guarantees a top-three finish. In the remaining matches, you’ll face two opponents Lan has already weakened. Win those, and you’ll advance.”
Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu were both stunned. They hadn’t expected the Huang Family to have the ability to manipulate the match schedule of the round-robin stage.
The order of matches was crucial—it could directly influence the outco. Clearly, this arrangent had been specially designed for Bai Xiuxiu.
Sensing their reaction, Huang Yuanlang smiled. “This isn’t just the family’s effort. Lord Luo Lan also provided significant support. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have been so easy. He’s very pleased that you signed the thousand-year contract with the family. He praised you as loyal and grateful, and he’ll strongly support your path to becoming Dragon Knights.”
“The best scenario is for Xiuxiu to serve as Lan’s mount and enter the top thirty together. Once in the top thirty, contestants are allowed to fight while mounted.”
“However, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, if Xiuxiu fails to win matches she should have won early on, then in the final match, Lan should not hold back.”
“Second, Lan—if you make an unexpected mistake, you may also choose not to yield the final match to ensure your own advancent. Your qualification is the top priority.”
“Lastly, if both of you advance together, aim for the top six in the finals. The rewards for the top six are extrely generous. You’ve already experienced the benefits of Dragon Crystals and Dragon Marrow. All top-six contestants receive them—the higher the ranking, the greater the reward.”
“And if Lan takes first place, she’ll gain a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity to enter the Dragon Realm. Lord Luo Lan asked
to tell you—if you win first place, he has a special gift for you as well.”
Lan Xuanyu nodded. The advantages of signing the thousand-year contract were now becoming evident. The Huang Family was fully supporting them, and they had the backing of the Dragon Knight Luo Lan.
But… should he really aim for first place?
Lan Xuanyu glanced at Bai Xiuxiu. He rembered the promise he had made to her.
Bai Xiuxiu smiled faintly and asked Huang Yuanlang, “Big Brother, if we take first place, as his mount, can I also enter the Dragon Realm with him?”
Huang Yuanlang chuckled. “Of course. In a sense, a mount is part of a Dragon Knight. This would be a shared honor.”
“Then we’ll definitely give it our all,” she said, smiling at Lan Xuanyu.
Where you are, is where I’ll be.
Her words echoed in Lan Xuanyu’s mind. He already understood her feelings.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves thinking about winning the championship,” Huang Yuanlang interrupted. “Take it one step at a ti. The round-robin stage won’t be easy. While your group isn’t as terrifying as mine, your opponents are still formidable.”
“Let
introduce them.”
“In your group, there are two Interdiate Dragon Clan mbers. Though they’re among the best of their tier, Lan should have no trouble dealing with them. I’ve arranged them as Xiuxiu’s second and third matches, so I won’t go into detail. As long as Lan doesn’t hold back, Xiuxiu should handle them easily.”
“Now, let’s talk about the third-weakest contestant…”
“He’s a Higher Dragon Clan mber, about as strong as I am. His na is…”
At this point, Huang Yuanlang blushed slightly before continuing his analysis.
It was clear that the Huang Family had taken this Rising Dragon Competition very seriously. They had thoroughly investigated every opponent Lan Xuanyu and Bai Xiuxiu would face.
As Lan Xuanyu listened, his expression gradually grew more serious. Especially when Huang Yuanlang described the abilities of the Higher Dragon Clan mbers, Lan Xuanyu couldn’t help but frown.
The strength of their opponents was undeniable.
Qi Tianlong was far from the only contender for the championship—there were many others on his level.
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