ch52- Rising Power
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The golden Warbeast had indeed been formidable. The initial hit that reduced Alex's health by 333 points was its doing, but the damage was instantly reflected back due to Alex's "Sword Reflect" skill, which sent the full force of the blow back to the monster. Normally, surviving that counter would have allowed the Warbeast to forfeit the battle, but its attack had a stun effect, and that moment of vulnerability gave Alex the chance to finish it off with a single, lethal strike.
Luck seemed to be on Alex's side, or perhaps SR-class monsters just had a naturally higher drop rate. After defeating the golden Warbeast, Alex was rewarded with an SR-class gem—a rare and valuable item.
With this SR-class gem in hand, Alex knew he could upgrade his weapon, the "Violet Abyss Blade," even further. Eager to test out the enhanced power, he quickly queued for his next matches, spending just three minutes dispatching four more opponents. With these victories, Alex secured his first five consecutive wins of the day, qualifying him for the upcoming "Global Combat Tournament."
Back at the square, the crowds watching Alex's matches had grown numb to his overwhelming power after witnessing him deal more than 15,000 damage in five consecutive battles. Many were left speechless by his display of strength, and before long, a wave of admiration swept through the audience, with more people joining the "Alex Fan Club" and becoming his devoted followers.
Even the various guides, including Quinn Farris and the others, were left astounded by Alex's meteoric rise in power. While they had encountered high-output players in the past, the fact that Alex had reached such staggering levels just days into the "game" was mind-boggling. No one, not even the luckiest players, could have imagined achieving over 10,000 damage within ten days of the game's launch.
Compared to Alex, the others' battles were far more challenging. Many were still struggling through their first rounds, and only a few had managed to secure two victories. Even those who won were hesitant to rush into another fight, choosing instead to rest and carefully strategize their next move.
As the night wore on, something unexpected occurred in East Sea City. A sudden tremor shook the entire area, causing a stir among the inhabitants.
"What's going on? Is the city under attack?"
"Monsters already? This can't be happening on the first day!"
"No, wait, it's not an attack! More people are joining the city!"
Sure enough, new announcements flashed across the city's system:
**[City Announcement: Sixth Academy has successfully conquered White Rock Mountain and joined East Sea City!]**
**[City Announcement: Sixth Academy player James Yang has become a member of the East Sea City Council!]**
**[City Announcement: East City Elementary School has applied to join East Sea City!]**
The flurry of announcements left many people puzzled. After some discussion with the newcomers, it became clear what had happened. The Sixth Academy had spent the entire day fighting to capture White Rock Mountain, a resource point with a massive number of powerful monsters. After suffering heavy casualties and an exhausting battle, they had only succeeded late in the afternoon. Once their resource point was claimed, they were immediately incorporated into East Sea City.
As for East City Elementary, they hadn't conquered a resource point. Instead, they applied to join East Sea City because its population cap had increased to 18,000 due to the addition of new resource points.
Over the next few hours, two more settlements that had conquered resource points joined East Sea City, further expanding its boundaries and increasing the population cap to 24,000. By the end of the night, the city's size was equivalent to a small town.
The celebrations continued late into the night, as the city's residents reveled in their newly established city and the joy of reviving fallen comrades. At 11 p.m., the first round of the "City Combat Tournament" officially came to an end.
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**East Sea Combat Tournament Announcement:**
1. **137 players** have completed seven days of five consecutive victories and earned the right to participate in the **Global Combat Tournament**.
2. The **Global Combat Tournament** will begin tomorrow evening with the first elimination round. More details will be announced then.
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Out of all the contestants, only 137 players from East Sea City qualified for the global event, with many of the city's strongest fighters having been eliminated in the final rounds. However, Alex wasn't the only one to qualify—both Chris Lee and Sarah Yang had also secured their spots in the global tournament.
In addition to the tournament announcement, the second in-game event was revealed:
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**Game Store Limited Sale Event:**
1. **N-class source stones** and **N-class spirit stones**, rare items that can enhance potential and bloodline levels, will be available.
2. The **Belos Set**, a special equipment set designed to counter monsters, will be available daily to greatly boost player power.
3. Exchange points or merits for special reward packs, including rare **R-class** and **SR-class** items.
Note: Full details can be found in the city shop. The city shop feature will unlock once East Sea City reaches Level 2.
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It was clear that the second event was a "pay-to-win" opportunity, and although the exact details were still unknown, it was certain that the rare items would come at a hefty price. And before they could even participate, East Sea City would have to reach Level 2 to unlock the city shop feature.
The night ended with a buzz of excitement, and by the next morning, many players were already up and preparing for a new day of battles. Thanks to the three new resource points captured the previous day, East Sea City now had eight total, leaving just two more needed to reach the Level 2 city milestone.
At the Lord's Mansion, Alex and his team were also rising for the day. Finally having their own rooms with proper beds, many of the students relished the comfort and nearly overslept. Some were only pulled out of bed by more disciplined friends.
Alex himself almost stayed in bed, but his internal clock had gotten him used to early mornings. He decided to get up and start the day.
The previous night, after the tournament ended, Alex had sought out Quinn Farris with the **Violet Abyss Blade** and the new SR-class gem. At the time, Liam and the others were watching Sarah Yang's match, so Alex had gone alone, avoiding the envy his classmates would no doubt have felt.
Quinn, now accustomed to Alex regularly bringing out rare and impressive items, had thought nothing of it—until he saw the result of the enhancement. Even for Quinn, it was difficult to believe the transformation.
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**Violet Abyss (SR-class +6):**
**Description:** A legendary starting blade, its name will echo throughout the world!
**Effects:**
1. Attacks deal 10x bleeding damage with a 100% chance to inflict the Bleed effect.
2. **Violet Shadow:** Upon activation, speed is increased by 100%, and attacks have a 60% chance to trigger a 3-9x critical hit. Cooldown: 30 seconds. Duration: 5 seconds.
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The blade, now shining with a faint golden glow, had been elevated to a weapon that could only be described as "god-tier."