Chapter 154: Miracles and Magic Do Exist!
Elysian Realm.
Pardofelis looked at the holographic pop-up in mid-air in surprise and couldn't help but exclaim:
"As expected of the Boss, she actually sent her own livestream link into the externally closed Elysian Realm. How did she even do that? It's truly incredible."
She reached out and tried clicking the link.
In the next second, an incredibly clear livestream image greeted her eyes.
In the bottom left corner, several large words scrolled by: 'For Plot Purposes, Please Do Not Take Seriously!'
"What a huge stage. When did the Boss prepare this? I didn't receive a single shred of news about it."
Pardofelis's attention was quickly drawn to the massive stage within the screen.
When two hosts walked out from behind the curtain and she saw their appearances clearly, she said in shock: "Aren't those Snake Sister's two former research assistants? I remember they and Sister Hua were in charge of Project EMBER."
Elysia's voice came from behind her: "It's Fuxi and Nuwa. They look quite happy. Oh my, seeing the smiles on their faces makes me feel a bit happy too."
"Sister Ellie, when did you get here?"
Pardofelis turned around and found that Elysia wasn't alone.
"Sister Nia and Sister Eden, you're here too."
Aponia and Eden nodded slightly, both looking at the screen behind Pardofelis that didn't belong to the Elysian Realm.
Aponia, who had integrated herself into the Elysian Realm, had sensed an unfamiliar data stream the moment Pardofelis received the link.
Coincidentally, Aponia was discussing how to coax the shut-in Mobius out with Elysia and Eden at the time, so the three of them came over together.
"We aren't the only ones here."
Elysia called out toward a nearby corner: "Dr. Mobius, don't hide. Now is a rare opportunity. Don't you want to learn more about the sweetheart 'you' have taken a liking to? Moreover, Fuxi and Nuwa have appeared in the current civilization era. I believe it won't be long before 'we' can meet in reality. Just thinking about it is exciting."
"Snake Sister is here too?! Sister Ellie, you must protect me."
Pardofelis quickly hid behind Elysia, then fearfully poked half of her small head out.
"Don't worry, Pardo. The considerate Dr. Mobius wouldn't hurt you over something like this," Elysia comforted.
"Elysia, you need to understand one thing. She is she, and I am I. Although we are both Mobius, I am not the same as that sentimental version of her."
Mobius walked out from the corner, cutting ties with the version of herself in reality.
That perverted lily loli-con had absolutely nothing to do with her!
"So, is this also the doing of that woman named Lierre?"
After saying that, Mobius looked at Fuxi and Nuwa on the screen, a flash of nostalgia passing through her eyes.
The changes in the Elysian Realm naturally couldn't be hidden from Mobius. Although she didn't particularly want to see others, her sense of responsibility and desire for exploration forced her to leave her laboratory.
Main Arena.
Fuxi, dressed in white with a steady temperament, swept a glance at the crowd below. Her gaze paused for a second on Fu Hua and the two Ji Xuanyuans before she spoke: "Welcome, participants, to the 7th Unrestricted Fishing Tournament. I am Fuxi, one of the hosts for this event."
"I am the other host, Nuwa!" Nuwa, dressed in black ancient clothing with a lively and cheerful personality, took over: "Next, please welcome the organizer of this competition and the fair referee, Ms. Lierre!"
The two turned simultaneously toward the center of the stage.
Under everyone's fervent gazes, Lierre, wearing her classic green tracksuit, walked up the steps. The word 'Fairness' on the chest of her clothes was incredibly conspicuous.
Seeing this, Bronya whispered a complaint below: "Mama Lierre's fashion sense is truly unique."
Others felt a bit speechless after seeing it as well.
In the crowd, Fu Hua gazed at Fuxi and Nuwa on the stage with great surprise, a faint, almost imperceptible smile appearing on her face.
Reuniting with old friends always brings a thousand words to say, but the timing wasn't right.
On the stage.
"To uphold the fundamental principle of fairness, as the organizer, I will issue a special item to every participant. This item will be your reliance for the competition and a symbol of your status as a participant. It cannot be removed during the competition."
Lierre stood between Fuxi and Nuwa and snapped her fingers.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
Dozens of golden light orbs flew out from behind the curtain, drawing golden trails in the air before arriving in front of the twenty-four participants in an instant.
The light orbs dissipated, and an exquisite Cross brooch floated in the air before each person, golden light surfacing on it from time to time.
"What is this actually for?" Tesla held it in her hand, scrutinizing it up and down.
With her knowledge, other than knowing the material used to make this was Soul Steel, she didn't find anything special about it.
"This is our reliance for the competition? Just this little thing?" Kiana played with the brooch, guessing in total confusion: "Could this be a fishing rod?"
It was a fishing competition, after all.
Wendy tried pinning the brooch to her chest. Immediately, she discovered to her surprise that her Divine Power was being restricted!
At this moment, Lierre on the stage began introducing the functions of the brooch to everyone:
"These brooches are called the Proof of Courage. The ability of this item is very simple! When a person's conviction is strong enough, the Proof of Courage will provide the wearer with powerful strength!"
"This includes, but is not limited to, physical enhancement, generating powerful items, temporary Herrscher Authority, time suspension, instant teleportation, and so on."
"Similarly, if the wearer's conviction is insufficient, not only will they not receive help from the Proof of Courage, but it will also restrict the wearer's own power!"
"And the so-called conviction can be for the sake of winning the championship, or simply for the sake of winning, even for the sake of friendship. No matter what it is, as long as one's conviction is firm enough, they can stand out in the competition!"
"Everyone has conviction, so in relative terms, this adheres to the principle of fairness. Everyone is now at the same starting line."
"In summary, this is an arena for a clash of convictions. No matter how much powerful strength a participant possesses themselves, it will not play a decisive role in this arena!"
To put it simply: miracles and magic do exist!
Shouting about friendship, bonds, the future, and so on can truly create miracles!
Kiana quickly pinned the Proof of Courage to herself. Feeling a steady stream of power surging in, she couldn't help but exclaim: "This really is a good thing!"
With this, she wouldn't have to worry about dragging Durandal and the others down.
Durandal felt her body being strengthened and looked at Lierre with a gaze of admiration: "As expected of Lord Lierre, she can even bring out this kind of bug-level item."
Rita echoed: "After all, Lord Lierre is someone respected by all scholars in Schicksal. She has brought more than one miracle to Schicksal."
"Power is surging up continuously. This time, I'm definitely taking a championship back, hahaha!" Rozaliya clenched her fists, feeling the robust strength, and her small face turned red with excitement.
She laughed loudly, falling into a wonderful fantasy.
"This... I'm the only one being restricted?"
Wendy saw many people's reactions and blinked her eyes in confusion.
"And me." Gabriel lay on the table like a salted fish and raised her right hand.
She really couldn't get motivated.
If the prize were a top-tier AAA game that hadn't been officially released yet, she could perform an on-the-spot power-up for everyone!
"Being restricted..."
Rozaliya's laughter stopped abruptly upon hearing this. She snapped her head back and asked with a stiff expression: "Um, you guys aren't joking with me, right?"
Wendy and Gabriel shook their heads at the same time.
Crack.
Rozaliya froze in place as if struck by a bolt of lightning, her entire person turning grey.
What happened to the hidden powerhouses?
How did she unknowingly end up having to carry two people...
With a team like this, could she win?
"Pfft..."
Liliya covered her mouth and started laughing.
However confident Rozaliya was just now was exactly how pathetic she looked now.
Schicksal Headquarters.
"The Proof of Courage is truly interesting. I wonder if it can be popularized among every Valkyrie in Schicksal?" Otto looked at the Proof of Courage on the screen, a deep interest in this brooch rising in his heart.
Most of Schicksal's Valkyries did not lack the conviction to support their battles.
If popularized, Schicksal's strength would increase several times over.
But if this Proof of Courage had no upper limit...
"Why didn't Lierre invite me to participate in this competition?" Otto shook his head slightly, helplessly suppressing the restless thoughts in his heart.
Elysian Realm.
"Randomly increasing the user's strength based on their conviction... not only can it use Herrscher Authority, but it even involves the domain of time..." Mobius's expression grew solemn.
The more one understood this person Lierre, the more unfathomable she felt.
"Every once in a while, the Boss suddenly brings out something that shocks people. It seems this time is no different," Pardofelis said.
Aponia said: "Perhaps, with Ms. Lierre's intervention, Project Stigma, which Kevin is executing, will conservatively have more than a 50% chance of leading to failure."
"Isn't that quite good?" Eden took over and said: "If Kevin is successfully stopped, that would mean Lierre already possesses the ability to oppose the Herrscher of Finality. This time, perhaps someone truly can defeat the Honkai head-on."
Honkai had brought misfortune and despair to too many people. No one didn't want to end Honkai completely and move the shadow looming over Human Civilization.
"Sister Eden has the same thoughts as me." Elysia showed an expectant expression: "I really want to meet Lierre right now, and then sit down together for some afternoon tea."
After seeing the soft and cute Lierre, she subconsciously thought of little Griseo.
She felt a bit like patting Lierre's head and then pinching her cheeks to improve their relationship.
"You're too optimistic, Elysia. Whether Lierre is friend or foe is still unknown. I advise you not to look forward to it too early," Mobius said pointedly.
"I believe my eyes won't misjudge a person. And rather than saying I'm too optimistic..."
Elysia chuckled: "It's that you're too pessimistic, Mobius. Who in the Elysian Realm doesn't know about you and Lierre right now? You should give Lierre at least a little trust."
"I just said it! She is she, and I am I! Do not lump us together!"
"Fine, fine, I understand. Since you plan to draw a line between yourself and the other Mobius, why not stay here with us and see how the other Mobius performs?"
Mobius actually wanted to refuse, but because she felt curious about Lierre, after some internal struggle, she ultimately chose to stay.
Main Arena.
"Now, I will begin announcing the competition rules."
Lierre cleared her throat and said: "When the competition starts, red circles of varying color depths will be marked on the map. The darker the red circle, the more dangerous the intensity of the 'fish' schools within that range. Correspondingly, the Points will be higher..."
When the 'fish' in an area are all caught (killed), a boss will automatically be born. After successfully defeating it, a large amount of Points will be obtained.
After successfully defeating all bosses in the area, a hidden easter egg will be triggered, summoning a world-class ultimate boss worth 100 million Points.
The competition is divided into three stages.
The first stage is the adaptation period. The organizer will assign a certain number of sea areas divided by red circles to each participating team. The types of 'fish' might be different, but the difficulty and acquired Points are equal.
The second stage is the contention period. A new sea area will be displayed on the maps of all participants. Various teams will need to compete with each other and show their true capabilities.
The third stage is the decapitation period. Bosses of unknown strength will randomly be born on the map. Because the Points for killing a boss will be credited to the team that lands the final blow, participants must not only kill the boss quickly but also prevent others from stealing the kill!
Note: only 'fish' within the red-circled areas provide Points.
After deciding the top three, rewards will be given to the participant who contributed the most within the team.
In other words, not only are the eight teams competitors, but the three members within each team are also in a potential competitive relationship.
"O-one hundred million Points for a boss?" Theresa was a bit stunned.
The condition to decide the top three only required one team to accumulate 1,000,000 Points. Unless Lierre intended to give them away for free, it would definitely not be easy to accumulate 1,000,000 Points.
Based on this, looking at this boss worth 100 million Points, one could guess how high the difficulty of the raid would be without even thinking.
Most importantly, this hidden easter egg was bound to be triggered.
Because all eight teams present wanted to win the championship, they would definitely think of various ways to add Points to their teams during the second and third stages.
Lierre also seemed to know this, and directly displayed some information about the final boss on the three giant monitors in the back.
"There is one and a half hours left until the competition begins. During this time, I will announce part of the background story regarding the hidden boss."
As soon as Lierre finished speaking, the three huge screens behind her displayed a photo.
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T/N: If you spot mistranslation, do tell me.
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