Chapter 2696 Appointing Leaders in the Selection!
It was never just the Radiance citizens whose morale needed to be boosted. The members of royalty also needed to re-discover their confidence.
The Radiance Federation's circumstances had undergone tumultuous changes over the course of the dead spirits crisis. The Radiance Federation's royalty had tried their best but were unable to make effective progress.
It could be said that most of the impactful progress stemmed from Lin Yuan.
At first, the Radiance Federation's royalty had been somewhat confident. But after the dead dimensional lifeforms appeared and the Dead Decay Earthworms lost their effectiveness, the dead aura rampantly stole lives, and the Radiance Federation's royalty became increasingly nervous.
But now, the demon insects had wholly changed the circumstances and gave the humans the upper hand for the first time during the dead spirits crisis.
The Moon Empress was not at all surprised by Cicada Song's message. She already knew how capable the demon insects were at absorbing death aura.
Moreover, the demon insects were continuing to multiply underground.
The more the Moon Empress thought about it, the more terrifying she found the demon insect species to be.
On more than one instance, she had already been grateful that the crisis came from the dead spirits and not the demon insects. Otherwise, the demon insects that could consume everything and anything might end up eating the entire main world.
The Moon Empress had confirmed with Lin Yuan that he had complete control over the demon insects. It was only then that she was set at ease.
Previously, Lin Yuan was Sequence #91 of the Radiance Hundred Sequence. But now, he had climbed up to Sequence #1.
Lin Yuan no longer had any chances to issue challenges. He could only be challenged by others.
After Lin Yuan, there were still 90 members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence who had yet to issue challenges, and the Radiance Hundred Sequence reranking had to go on.
But after Lin Yuan's four consecutive stunning battles, the rest of the battles seemed rather tame. None of them reached the standard of Lin Yuan's battles.
However, after the temporary cloud of disappointment passed, the excitement levels rose again.
Every member of the Radiance Hundred Sequence was a household name in the Radiance Federation. All of them had their own signature feys and battle styles.
This was the first time that the Radiance Hundred Sequence reranking was being held publicly. It was a visual feast for the Radiance citizens.
So this was the true power of the Radiance Federation's younger generation! Numerous veteran experts could not help but sigh in shame.
As the thrilling battles took place, Tian Ningning became the busiest person in the Radiance Federation.
She personally checked every dueling record to ensure that they were accurate.
She only managed to let out a sigh of relief when the final battle was over, and Liu Jie had defeated Xia Qing to take the position of Sequence #3 of the Radiance Hundred Sequence.
At the very least, her workload would not be increased because of the Radiance Hundred Sequence reranking's dueling records.
The teams she was leading were producing the dueling records far too slowly.
The dueling records' relevance and efficacy were time-sensitive. If Star Web's officials produced the dueling records too slowly and others produced them first, Star Web's officials would come across as lazy.
Tian Ningning immediately contacted Liu Hao. She hoped that he would be able to send more help.
In the past, Liu Hao viewed Tian Ningning with derision. He believed that she was only able to make it this far because she was Lin Yuan's exclusive reporter.
But after working together, he got to know of her capabilities and could not help but think to himself that it was no wonder that Lin Yuan had chosen her!
Despite leading such a large team, she was still able to ensure that she performed her tasks well. Not only was she efficient, but she had yet to make a single mistake.
…
The spectators were almost vibrating with excitement as they watched the consecutive battles.
However, none of them were sad when the Radiance Federation reranking came to an end because they knew that up next was the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection, Radiance Knight selection, and Radiance Envoy selection.
They would be able to watch Lin Yuan in action again during the Radiance Envoy selection.
Normally, the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection would only take place a few days after the Radiance Hundred Sequence reranking. But due to the urgency of the matter, the selection this year would take place half a day after the reranking.
As Sequence #1 of the Radiance Hundred Sequence, Lin Yuan needed to enter the selection as a leader. Hence, he did not have time to meet with his friends.
Liu Wencheng told Lin Yuan and the rest seriously, "In your previous Radiance Hundred Sequence selection, you only represented yourself. But now, you will have to shoulder the responsibility of promoting members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence. We are bestowing this responsibility on you, so you have to treat it with careful reverence!"
Liu Wencheng received the message from the Moon Empress half an hour ago. He understood her meaning.
In actuality, he never intended to maintain this new format for too long.
In three to five years, once the Radiance Hundred Sequence had completely new members and was no longer defined by martial force, Liu Wencheng could retract this responsibility from the first ten ranks of the Radiance Hundred Sequence.
Ever since the Radiance Sacred Hall was established, Liu Wencheng had been in charge of it. He had even watched the Moon Empress and the rest grow up.
As a wise person, he could think comprehensively in every matter.
After speaking to Lin Yuan and the other top nine rankers of the Radiance Hundred Sequence, Liu Wencheng began thinking about where to position them.
The arrangement of their positions was critical because Liu Wencheng could not allow the spectators watching the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection to think that the dead spirits crisis was trivial.
Liu Wencheng was going to simulate a realistic environment modeled after the Dead Spirits Well. Hence, the positioning was crucial. If there was an issue with the positioning, there was a high possibility that one of the top ten members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence would end up dying.
This would not only be a blow to the reputation of these members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence but would also affect the confidence of the Radiance citizens.
It was known that not everything could always go as planned. Liu Wencheng needed to put a lot of careful thought into the matter if he wanted to ensure he did not hit any bumps along the road.
Eventually, he decided to place Lin Yuan and Liu Jie on opposite sides of the boundaries. These two positions would be under the greatest pressure. The remaining eight members would be lined up in two rows of four along the other two sides to share the load equally. This was the most stable formation.
However, this would mean that Lin Yuan and Liu Jie had to handle the same load that was being shared among the other four.
Liu Wencheng seriously told Lin Yuan and Liu Jie, "The two of you will be sent to the most dangerous positions. It will be just as laborious as handling a Dead Spirits Well on your own. The only difference between this and an actual Dead Spirits Well was that all of these dead spirits would only have Diamond and below power."
Lin Yuan and Liu Jie looked at each other. The two of them were unafraid of swarm battles. All Lin Yuan needed to do was release Red Thorn, and Liu Jie could release a few insect-species carcinoma feys to suppress the swarm.
"Don't worry, Your Excellency. We will definitely take proper responsibility for this duty!" Lin Yuan paused before continuing. "There are still three hours before the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection begins. I need to leave to make preparations to evolve my feys."
Liu Wencheng's lips curled into a smile as he nodded. It was definitely good news that Lin Yuan's feys could evolve again!
"Go ahead. Don't forget to be back half an hour before it begins. The Star Web broadcast will begin half an hour before the selection begins. You will need to head in early to wait."
Liu Wencheng was not strict with the members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence when it came to such small matters. As long as the main events were not delayed, he was understanding when it came to urgent matters.
…
Lin Yuan immediately returned to the Return from Faraway Mansion and summoned Shiny to the breeding room.
Next, he laid out all the dragon liver, phoenix blood, and other spiritual ingredients that Shiny needed for its evolution before returning to the Radiance Sacred Hall.
Lin Yuan was really looking forward to this Radiance Hundred Sequence selection.
This was because he had yet to have many opportunities to visit the Dead Spirits Wells and personally experience the might of the waves of dead spirits.
The last time he was there, the dead spirits crisis had only just begun. But now, the situation had already changed completely.
Furthermore, Lin Yuan had participated in the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection as a candidate who had to compete with the others last year. But this time, he was an invigilator.
He was more than willing to gain a detailed understanding of the power of the Radiance Federation's younger generation now that a year had passed.
…
There was half an hour to prepare before the event actually began.
Xia Qing coughed softly to Lin Yuan before seriously saying, "In the past, Grandfather often praised your capabilities, and I am also aware that you are exceptionally strong. I saw your battle with the Freedom Federation envoy group last year. I thought that there would be a stalemate between us for some time. But I never expected to suffer such an utter defeat at your hands!"
Xia Qing's voice was laced with bitterness, and she sounded stiff. It seemed as though she could not swallow her defeat to Lin Yuan!
But those who were familiar with her knew that she was being shy. Her voice was only coming up this way because she was panicking. Normally, her voice did not carry any emotion.
Lin Yuan hurriedly said, "You are already sufficiently strong. If your Misfortune Fighter's bloodline takes another step forward, Chimey will be no match for it!"
Lin Yuan could clearly see the respect and admiration in Xia Qing's eyes as she spoke. This was the same way that he used to look at seniors in his previous life.
Xia Qing pursed her lips and said pragmatically, "Lin Yuan, you don't have to consider my feelings. Even if you don't use your full power, you will be able to beat me very quickly as long as you are determined to do so.
"Don't forget that you only used two feys while I used four during our battle! One of them was even my sacred source lifeform!
"I used to think that the only member of the younger generation stronger than me is you. But even Liu Jie is stronger than me! It's true that your bird-species fey won't be able to unleash its full potential against the army of insects."
After she was done speaking, Xia Qing silently walked off to the side and replayed the battle between herself and Lin Yuan.
The members of the Radiance Hundred Sequence, including Lin Yuan and Liu Jie, did not know Xia Qing well.
This was because they were not nosy or interested in gossip and because Xia Qing was not the sociable type.
Hence, the first impression that she gave was one of arrogance.
However, after what she said today, all of their ideas of her changed completely.
Although she was arrogant, she was able to face her failures objectively and admit her issues.
These were all virtues that the elites of the younger generation rarely possessed. This showed that she was pure-hearted.
Lin Yuan walked over to Liu Jie and patted his shoulder. "Big Brother Liu, if the attack from the Halberd Corner Sky-Defying Rhinoceros Beetle hits its mark, not even Immortal Breed feys will be able to escape without being seriously injured!
"If I was in that ball of sand, I would have died regardless of how many metals the Source Sand produced to try and protect me!"
Liu Jie had already adjusted his mindset. He no longer associated his value with his combat power. Instead, he was going to focus on the functions of his abilities.
As a result of this change in mindset, he regained his confidence. "Lin Yuan, I have a few carcinoma feys. When we return, help me to pick two of them that will be suited for my formation!"
Gao Feng had also become an A-rank spirit qi professional. The Breeze Hibiscus, two Spirit Spring Lilies, and Yellow Spring Lily had evolved to Suzerain/Myth. He was able to use the strength of his feys' bodies to defeat opponents.
If he were still a B-rank spirit qi professional, being a pure support-type spirit qi professional might have caused him to lose and have to participate in the Radiance Hundred Sequence selection again.
Lin Yuan used to think that a spirit qi professional's development could be skewed in one direction if he were part of a stable team. But now, he knew that the right thing for spirit qi professionals to do was to pursue well-rounded development.
An expert could go down their paths with companions, but the companions were more for encouragement rather than support.
Gao Feng was slightly laid back and did not have much motivation. His personality suited being a pure support-type spirit qi professional.
Long Tao had been focused on managing Coiling Dragon's Valley.
Although he had adjusted his mindset, one's mental strength was limited.
This time, he lost to Wang Fan and almost lost to Shi Xu as well.
As a result, he decided to set aside managing Coiling Dragon's Valley and focus on increasing his individual power. He did not want his personal power to end up lagging because he devoted himself to Coiling Dragon's Valley's affairs for the next few years.
These peers who used to be weaker than him were now experts whom he had to struggle to catch up with. He did not even have to think of closing the gap between himself and Lin Yuan.
Nonetheless, they were all disciples of members of royalty, and he had yet to lose the chance to catch up to Zong Ze, Gu Lang, and the rest.