Chapter 236: One Hit
Although the officials haven't explicitly explained the difference between the 'Individual Combat Power Ranking' and 'Individual Comprehensive Strength Ranking' lists, nor have they released the ranking criteria or reference data, Mo Tan has pretty much figured it out by now.
Simply put, 'Individual Combat Power' refers to a player's inherent combat ability, and the stats on their character panel should be the sole criterion for judgment. For example, Cordova, ranked second, who is currently beside Mo Tan, is a Rune Body that can directly brawl with an adult dragon like Feimigeer. While Mo Tan doesn't know how strong his base attributes are, he's clearly not weak; among players, he could definitely be called an unparalleled general.
But Cordova is only ranked second…
Mo Tan subconsciously felt a jolt of alarm. He couldn't imagine who could possibly surpass Cordova and claim the top spot in just one month since the game launched. After all, Comrade Old Ke, with his Rune Body, was naturally powerful; if he had a bit more luck, he would clearly be a protagonist.
Although he couldn't learn skills, level up, or acquire other professions, his extremely formidable physical qualities, coupled with a large number of various runes that concentrated the essence of Tian Zhu Mountain's technological power, were not just for show. At present, the average player, who is only at the level of a low-tier professional, couldn't even break his defense.
Such a person is only second…
The one above him must be the person who previously instantly killed Cordova in the Southeast Continent.
“And even after being upgraded to V1.5 by Master Lu Wei, he still couldn't win?”
Mo Tan was a little taken aback. He suddenly felt that this game might not only have bugs on him; otherwise, how could someone play to that extent within thirty days? Just thinking about it felt like cheating…
In any case, the Individual Combat Power Ranking should mean just that. Mo Tan, whose character only has a quarter of the normal online time, naturally had no hope of making the list, and he was quite open-minded about that.
What surprised him was that he actually made it onto another list, and his ranking wasn't low…
No.17: Tan Mo – chaotic neutral – Thief. This line of text hung high on the Individual Comprehensive Strength Ranking.
Although he already knew when he switched accounts during the day (game time) and had already analyzed the reason, Mo Tan still found it hard to believe at this moment.
After all, from any perspective, Tan Mo was just a character whose strength was equivalent to a low-tier Thief. If his combat power were truly calculated, he probably couldn't even beat Huo Yan Yang, who focused on support.
But he was ranked seventeenth in the 'Comprehensive Strength' recognized by the system.
After eliminating all impossibilities, Mo Tan came to only one conclusion…
Nothing else, only money.
Yes, money. Mo Tan felt that the character 'Tan Mo' should be the richest player in the entire Innocent World. Six hundred thousand gold coins is no small sum anywhere; even the Violet Empire's nine autonomous territories only collect a few million in taxes annually. If this money were online, he could probably buy a house like Yi Dong's family, no problem. Of course, it might be a bit difficult in B City and S City, but it would definitely be a huge sum…
Everyone knows the marvel of money; if used properly, there's almost nothing that can't be bought (O. Henry perfectly illustrated how money can buy pure, un-mercenary love in 'The Gift of the Magi'). While it may not be omnipotent, it's certainly enough to make a few ghosts grind some millstones.
So Mo Tan felt that the system was likely including 'property' in the Comprehensive Strength Ranking. This makes perfect sense; he believed that if he took hundreds of thousands of gold coins to a reliable, professional, and powerful assassin organization to take down Cordova, that big brother, who is second in the Individual Combat Power Ranking among players, would probably have a tough time surviving.
Of course, even without that, he might still court his own death.
“But if the system were even smarter, no, has that aspect already been considered…?”
Mo Tan narrowed his eyes slightly, his thoughts drifting.
He was now very curious whether his 17th place in the comprehensive strength ranking was directly due to the six hundred thousand gold coins, or the 'lethality' of his character, Tan Mo, combined with the chemical reaction produced by those six hundred thousand gold coins.
To give a simple example, at the end of World War I, fifty million gold marks could allow any European family to relocate to the American region, buy a house, a car, and land, and live a good life for one (or several) generations. However, the same fifty million gold marks, if received by a different person, might be used to recruit soldiers and horses to launch a revolutionary coup capable of wiping out the entire ruling family.
This is the gap in realm…
He just didn't know if the system had factored in Tan Mo's realm.
In comparison, Yu Cheng, ranked fifth in comprehensive strength, was easier to explain. Although she was a support class and didn't have much money, she was blessed by both the Goddess of Light and the Darkness Goddess, making her one of the only two Saintesses of the Dawn Sect, a genuine God-blessed one who had appeared after decades. Just invoking the Goddess's name would bring in followers by the squad.
As for Ji Xiaoge, ranked tenth in comprehensive strength… well, the more you think about it, the scarier it gets, the scarier it gets… so let's not think about it too much…
Incidentally, the top spot in the Comprehensive Strength Ranking was also a ???, a Black Wizard.
“But the fact that only a small number of players can hide themselves on the leaderboard is truly strange. What exactly are the specific conditions…?”
Mo Tan was still deep in thought, but two seconds later, Yi Dong interrupted him with a slap: “Hey, Kang Lan and Little Yu are about to start, quick, look, look~~”
“Huh? Oh.” Mo Tan reacted, then quickly walked to the edge of a floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the two people on the Arena below.
This was a private room in the public Arena established by Kang Lan, accessible only by friend invitation. Inside was a spacious area where simple tables and chairs could be generated at the host's will. Outside the north-facing floor-to-ceiling window was a large ring. Everyone could choose to watch from the window or view from a specific angle on a virtual screen inside the room, which was very convenient.
In a private room, the host can set rules such as the number of combatants, battle map style, win/loss criteria, and time limits. Then, participants are teleported into the Arena to fight, while others watch from the room, eating snacks. They can directly see data such as both sides' health, stamina, magic, and various effects on their bodies. This allowed Mo Tan to finally find a sense of 'playing a game' rather than 'living a life' in Innocent World…
Quite rare.
However, Kang Lan didn't set many rules for this match; it was a simple 1v1, unlimited time, whoever's health reached zero first lost, and the battleground was just the default Arena.
Mo Tan thought he was very wise to do this. After all, for Cordova, who was second on the combat power list, even in a jungle terrain more suited for Kang Lan, he still had a great chance of winning. So, it was better to use the default Arena without any advantageous rules; even if he lost, it would be considered fair and square.
Three seconds later, under everyone's gaze, the air wall in front of them disappeared, and the match officially began.
Kang Lan didn't say a word, raising his hand and firing an arrow.
“Wait a moment.” Cordova, however, casually ‘swatted’ away the arrow, which glowed faintly, and loudly called out, “Just wait a moment~”
Kang Lan was startled by the opponent's action just now, his already not-so-calm heart trembling a bit, but he still forced himself to ask calmly, “What's up?”
“Well, you see, there's quite a big gap between us, so how about this…?”
Cordova smiled in a particularly showy, arrogant, and unkind way: “I'll let you hit me for a while first, and then I'll fight back when you're almost done. How does that sound?”
“Damn it! This is unbearable!” Comrade Xiao Kang instantly flared up, pulling out a huge, winged, feather-decorated, two-handed iron crossbow with sparks emanating from its string. He roared, “It's decided! Take this arrow!”
Pwoosh!
A half-meter-long iron arrow, trailing several streaks of fire, shot out and instantly appeared in front of Cordova's chest, then abruptly transformed into a ball of explosive flames, engulfing him whole.
Kang Lan's first move was his strongest skill currently available—【Phoenix Devour】!
Before the fire light had dissipated, another crimson arrow arced strangely from the sky, transforming mid-air into a shimmering large net that enveloped Cordova.
Skill 【Lob Shot】 + 【Sky Net Arrow】 + Hand-crafted 【Fire Spider Arrow】
Everyone watched as the almost inescapable net precisely covered Cordova in the firelight, then it too began to burn, emitting a series of crackling explosions.
“Fire spider silk has very poor toughness and isn't very strong, but under high temperatures, it becomes exceptionally tough and viscous, while also continuously triggering small-scale fire element impacts, oh~” Kang Lan chuckled, then slowly vanished from his spot, reappearing simultaneously half a meter behind Cordova, holding a crooked wooden staff: “Vine Bind!”
Over a dozen vines, each as thick as a person's forearm, burst from the ground, tightly coiling around Cordova, who was still caught in the fiery spider web. Immediately, they surged into flames, as if transforming into a brightly burning torch.
It's not over yet!
Kang Lan took two light backward hops, quickly increasing the distance between himself and his opponent. The wooden staff he used for his priest skills was already hanging behind him, and two short crossbows appeared in his hands as if by magic, and then…
Puff puff puff puff puff puff puff puff puff!!!!
Accompanied by a series of crisp explosions, at least thirty to forty arrows shot out in an instant, their frequency only slightly slower than Ji Xiaoge's Gatling Valkyrie!
The dozens of arrows did not follow a fixed straight line, but rather flashed out from various angles, accompanying Kang Lan's peculiar footwork. Other than their fixed target, Cordova, there was no discernible pattern.
【Rattlesnake Tracking Arrow】
【Splitting Light Step】
【Flower Leaf Imprisonment】
【Multi-Shot】
【Vitality Absorption】
【Traction Arrow】
【Strong Light Arrow】
【Afterimage Step】
Arrows flying everywhere, the elusive Kang Lan, dazzling arrow shadows, and tricky, strange divine arts intertwined into a large net. Cordova in the middle looked exactly like a wooden stake; besides being bombarded by a continuous stream of attacks until he was indistinguishable, he remained as quiet and stable as a training dummy.
“If this continues, he's going to be at peace, isn't he!?” Yi Dong pressed against the glass, eyes wide, sighing. He found that even with all his might, he couldn't catch Kang Lan's incessant movements, and in his ears, there was only the seemingly endless whistling of arrows: “Can Cordova still move?!”
Wan Yang glanced at the status of the two on the light screen and shook his head, “I don't know. Kang Lan has been continuously performing suppressive fire. The various slowing effects on Brother Xiao Yu have almost never stopped. Even if his Ranger skills are on cooldown, he uses spell skills to compensate. His control chain is too good.”
“Hmm, but Comrade Kang Lan's magic and agility seem to be quite high.” Yu Cheng also glanced at the light screen, pursing her lips in confusion: “It's been so long, and he hasn't stopped at all, has he? He doesn't seem to have drunk any potions either…”
Mo Tan, standing beside him, spread his hands and narrowed his eyes, explaining, “He hasn't stopped, but he hasn't been using skills the entire time either. It's just that Kang Lan's rhythm is so good that even with a lot of normal attacks interspersed, they appear extremely threatening. If you look closely, his weapon changes have also been continuous; dual crossbows, heavy crossbows, bows, and staves are constantly being rotated, and the attack effects are all different. It feels like he's constantly casting skills…”
“This guy wasn't just bragging before.” Yi Dong sighed, smiling bitterly, “I used to think that with my recent big improvements, I was at least a quasi-high-end casual player. Now it seems, in front of Kang Lan, I probably wouldn't even last two minutes…”
Ji Xiaoge nodded, hugging Ji Xiaodao's shoulder and praising softly, “So strong, oh.”
The latter shook her head slightly: “Oppression and suppression style of play, high consumption, low damage. He won't win.”
Ji Xiaoge flapped her wings: “Huh? Really?”
“Yes…”
Below the stage
【Phantom Heavy Arrow】, heavy crossbow normal attack, short crossbow normal attack, 【Chaotic Arrows】, longbow normal attack, longbow normal attack, 【Headwind Arrow】!
Kang Lan was getting more and more excited and smoother with each hit. His fighting style, as Ji Xiaodao said, was a suppressive one. Although his attack frequency was extremely fast, the damage dealt was not very high. His main goal was to give the enemy no breathing room, relying on various skill-added effects and traits to frantically expand his advantage, constantly depleting the enemy's speed, patience, buffs, and health.
He felt he had completely suppressed Cordova! Suppressed for a long time! He was about to win!
But the problem was…
“Why isn't he dead yet!?”
Kang Lan launched another full set of chain attacks centered on 【Phoenix Devour】, thinking somewhat puzzled.
And then…
“Hmm, are you about done hitting me?”
A low voice came from within the flames.
“!?”
Kang Lan, without thinking, activated his freshly cooled displacement skill and retreated rapidly!
But…
Bang!!
With an explosive sound, a colossal figure, wielding a massive, bladed staff, charged forward like an unstoppable armored vehicle!
【Brute Force Overload Mode】 + 【Normal Attack】
Boom!
“You have been defeated.”
The cold system prompt sounded in Kang Lan's ears; his original 100% health had instantly dropped to zero.
The towering figure, like an iron pagoda, stood in the giant crater in the center of the Arena, holding the ferocious staff upside down, with dark red light still swirling around him, not dissipating for a long time…
Except for Ji Xiaodao, everyone, including Mo Tan, was dumbfounded.
5 minutes and 27 seconds after the match began, Cordova made his move.
5 minutes and 28 seconds after the match began, the match ended.
One hit, to decide the victor.
Chapter 233: End