Lin Ran frowned upon hearing this.
Then, he glanced at the real-time map provided by the event organizers.
It was then that Lin Ran realized that everything on the real-time map had stopped updating.
Whether it was the time, data, panels, or rankings, everything had frozen at about half an hour ago.
Huh?
System malfunction?
What were these Xiangchu people up to?
Lin Ran's mouth twitched, completely at a loss for words.
A system malfunction was one thing, but to malfunction for a full half an hour…
And for such a major event to occur in a survival match where blades were sharp and survival depended solely on a protective system, with no emergency measures.
Not even a single announcement or notification had been issued…
In these past thirty minutes, countless deaths had likely occurred elsewhere.
If the system had failed even earlier, right at the moment of the "Earth Explosion Star" technique, Lin Ran would have been responsible for five thousand lives!
Damn it!
Lin Ran cursed the Xiangchu organizers thoroughly in his mind.
He glanced at Su Quan lying on the ground again and began to ponder.
Given the current situation, the airdrop was probably also a bust.
There was clearly a major oversight outside the venue, and the severity of the situation was certainly not low.
So, what should he do…
After Lin Ran tried the communication function of his biological chip, he found it was still restricted.
This meant that the functions within the competition area had not entirely failed.
It was just that they might be in a peculiar state.
Luo Qingyan was safe, with the transcribed sealing inscribed in her eyes.
As for others, Lin Ran couldn't worry about them even if he wanted to.
Should he find a place to rest first?
As Lin Ran was silently contemplating, he suddenly sensed a device being activated within his divine power space.
The initiator of this device was Zhao Wudi, who commanded the Grizzly Special Forces, ostensibly serving the Dragon Country military, secretly held a position within Nightfall, and was currently taking orders from Lin Ran himself.
The meaning of this signal was…
After checking the status of his divine power space with his divine sense, Lin Ran smiled faintly.
This Zhao Wudi actually had some skills…
Then, he couldn't just sit idle either!
As for Su Quan, he would be left to fend for himself here.
A person who posed no threat to him was not worth worrying about.
Lin Ran cast his gaze southwest and leaped away.
…
Half an hour ago.
"Brothers, this is our last chance!"
Xu Zheng, leading his most loyal retainers and Zhao Wudi's elite team, stood at the edge of the venue for the freshman exchange survival competition – the City of Ruins – and gazed into it.
"In a little while, the restrictions on the City of Ruins will be lifted, and Xiangchu's network will be shut down…"
"And we can seize this opportunity to storm the City of Ruins!!"
Xu Zheng's expression grew more ferocious as he spoke.
"The family is already in a state of complete collapse… All the elders support Xu Sheng as the head of the inner family."
"They also unanimously approved Xu Sheng's choice for the head of the outer family – Lin Ran!"
"If we want to turn the tables, we must eliminate these two people."
"Heh heh… Do you think you can lay your hands on the heads of the inner and outer families of the Jiangdong Xu family?"
"As long as I can kill Xu Sheng and take down Lin Ran, the position of the inner family head will still be mine."
"And you will all become members of the new Elder Council of the Jiangdong Xu family!"
"A glorious future is within reach; it all depends on how hard you all work!"
By the end of his speech, Xu Zheng had almost bitten his teeth off.
This group of people was indeed Xu Zheng's die-hard followers.
After listening to Xu Zheng's less-than-passionate pre-battle speech, they became more passionate:
"Kill Xu Sheng! Take down Lin Ran!"
"Conquer Jiangdong! Achieve hegemony!"
"Kill Xu Sheng! Take down Lin Ran!"
"Conquer Jiangdong! Achieve hegemony!"
Xu Zheng was extremely satisfied with his confidants' performance.
After nodding at everyone, Xu Zheng turned his gaze to Zhao Wudi:
"Captain Zhao, we will be relying heavily on you for this operation!"
"You and your Grizzly Special Forces will be a great help to me!"
"If we succeed, I am willing to triple the price we previously agreed upon!"
Zhao Wudi immediately revealed a pleased smile:
"Rest assured, Young Master Xu, our Nightfall's principle has always been to do business for money."
"Since you are willing to pay such a high price to hire me, I will naturally not disappoint your expectations."
"A mere Lin Ran and Xu Sheng, with our entire force deployed, how could it be difficult to apprehend them?"
"Moreover, I have their real-time coordinates, allowing me to detect their every move."
"Once the City of Ruins opens, we will go directly to capture them!"
Xu Zheng burst into laughter:
"Good! Excellent!"
"Captain Zhao is truly my lucky star!"
"With you here, why worry about Lin Ran and Xu Sheng not dying?"
Zhao Wudi also smiled slightly and gave a signal to his 125 Grizzly Special Forces personnel.
These individuals immediately blended in with Xu Zheng's confidant troops, appearing as if they were ready to fight alongside them.
At this moment, as a resonant sound echoed from the front of the fortress, a black light barrier enveloped the stronghold.
The instant this barrier was erected, the sealing device of the City of Ruins finally failed.
Xu Zheng's eyes lit up, and he quickly waved his hand behind him:
"Charge! Brothers, let's go! Make haste and enter!"
"Our time is limited, we must act swiftly!"
However, strangely, there was no response from behind him.
Xu Zheng turned his head back in confusion and immediately saw a fist the size of a sandbag hurtling towards him.
In a panic, he tried to dodge, but it was too late.
With a crisp sound of bones shattering, Xu Zheng was directly punched to the ground.
It was then that Xu Zheng, lying on the ground, finally saw the attacker.
It was Zhao Wudi!
Xu Zheng was almost infuriated to death by Zhao Wudi. Just as he was about to angrily order his confidants to act, he was shocked to find that his confidants had already collapsed to the ground in a daze.
Zhao Wudi showed an honest and kind smile:
"No need to waste your energy, my dear Young Master Xu…"
"For the past two months, their food has been laced with my slow-acting anesthetic powder, and they are already gravely ill."
"To prevent you from noticing, I used a very small dosage each time!"
"Look! Look! The moment I released the activating mist of the anesthetic powder just now, they were reduced to fish on a chopping board."
As he spoke, Zhao Wudi squatted down in front of Xu Zheng and gently patted his head.