<h4>Chapter 429: The Finals</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>As Studios <strong>Editor: </strong>As Studios


    The group matches wereing to an end. The situation was bing clearer. Long Sky was in eighth ce, and Temple of God was in ninth ce; their point difference was not a small one. Temple of God had to get a huge win in order to surpass Long Sky, but the next match was between the two of them. This meant that no matter who won and who lost, there would definitely be one side that qualified.


    Many Chinese spectators felt their hearts being squeezed. They all hoped that all three Chinese teams could enter the top eight, but the situation was a very difficult one. This internal battle was expected since the grouping was decided, but when it really happened, they were still nervous about it. Group C was filled with strong teams, so it was very difficult to gain points. Many teams that had the chance to qualify did not even enter the top ten, so Long Sky and Temple of God’s result was already quite good.


    Some yers calcted the points and came up with a conclusion that made the people feel veryplicated. Long Sky had more points. If they deliberately held back and lost this match, giving Temple of God enough points, Temple of God would be able to jump to the seventh ce while Long Sky would drop to the ninth ce. In that case, Long Sky’s point difference with the eighth-ce team would be very small. The matchesing up for them was easier than those for the eighth-ce team, so there would be a very high chance for Long Sky to get back to eighth ce. This way, there was a chance for both teams to qualify.


    The worst oue of the internal fight would be Temple of God winning with a slight advantage and only getting a few points while Long Sky lost and did not get any points. This would mean that this round was a waste and did not produce many points. Not only would Temple of God’s situation remain unchanged, but Long Sky’s ranking would also be unstable.


    Working together secretly was the only way to achieve the best results.


    However, this was just the thoughts of the fans. Hao Tian had never been someone who would do such things. His professionalism made him go all out against any opponent, and it was absolutely impossible for him to fake the match. His personality was very simple and direct, so he did not want to bother about these things.


    Long Sky did not n to hold back at all. This internal battle was tragic and intense. Both sides had armor and were simr in strength. The oue of this battle was Long Sky getting the upper hand and winning, defeating Temple of God and making their ranking more stable.


    Temple of God’s hope to qualify was destroyed by Long Sky.


    A part of Temple of God’s fans immediately became enraged. They scolded and med Long Sky and even made it into a matter of betrayal. However, most people, including a portion of Temple of God’s fans, did not agree with suchments. They felt that Long Sky did nothing wrong. This was apetition, andpetition meant going all out; ying fake matches was an hical act, so there was not much to discuss when they lost after giving their all.


    Of course, Temple of God stood on the side with moral high ground, telling the fans to not me Long Sky, saying that they were the ones that did not perform well. Of course, it was impossible for them to be not upset; their journey in the International League hade to an end, but theirpetitor continued their journey by stepping on their corpses. However, Temple of God had always been very realistic. The situation had already been determined, so there was no need to be angry about it. The problem that they thought of was preventing more losses, which was what Li Ge was good at. He was proficient in building a good image and guiding thements.


    Under Li Ge’s lead, not only did they deliberately not fight seriously in thest few matches, but they changed their tactics and fought more fiercely and aggressively. It felt like they knew that they had no chance to qualify, so they stopped being so cautious and yed the game their way. More importantly, their goal was to give the impression that they wanted to make sure the opponents did not get too many points from them, which meant that they were indirectly helping Long Sky drag the enemies down, building an image of never giving up and showcasing the spirit of teamwork. Then they found someone to make this kind of ‘deduction’ in the forums and lead the others to agree. Temple of God’s image became positive and selfless instantly; they were on the peak of the moral high ground. When people talked about Temple of God, they all praised them.


    This way, not only did they receive fame and a better name, they also reduced the negative impact of not qualifying. Furthermore, they used this method to create a contrast between them and Long Sky, who defeated their fellow countrymen, emphasizing how ‘virtuous’ they were. The Temple of God superiors were somewhat satisfied with this result.


    Of the fourrgest clubs in China, Temple of God was the mostmercialized club. If losing the battle would give them more benefits, Han Xiao did not doubt that they would do that.


    As thest match ended, the qualified teams were decided.


    _____________________


    1. Devil


    2. Dynasty


    3. Hydra


    4. Key


    5. Tulips


    6. Kangaroo Boxing


    7. Rose Knight


    8. Long Sky


    _____________________


    Dynasty had the best performance in the group stages. Around the middle of thepetition, they surpassed Devil and took first ce, but in thest few matches, they held back purposely and dropped to second ce. This was because the battle in the finals was determined ording to the ranking of the group stages. If Dynasty was ranked in first ce, their opponent would have been Long Sky, who were ranked in eighth ce, which would not be good. Therefore, after discussing internally, Dynasty decided to drop one ce. However, everyone knew that if Dynasty wanted to, they could absolutely have maintained their unbeaten streak and entered the finals without losing a single match.


    This ranking waspletely different from the one in Han Xiao’s memory. Han Xiao’s existence had a butterfly effect and changed the situation of the league. He vaguely remembered that one of the top eight in his previous life was Korea’s Kimchi, but Kimchi was now below tenth ce and had been reced.


    There were many strong teams in the top eight that had shone brightly in every season of the league in his previous life. Sadly, their novice was very distant, otherwise Han Xiao would have drawn those pro yers into his faction. Their ability toplete missions was very dependable.


    In the top eight, only China and America had two teams qualifying. Dynasty had been the only one in the top eight in his previous life, but Long Sky was now qualified as well.


    In the Singles, Frenzied Sword qualified in fifteenth ce, and King Admiral qualified in sixth ce. There were two Chinese yers qualifying as well. With strong teams and highly skilled yers from so many areaspeting on the same stage, getting this result was amazing.


    The Gxy Times did an episode focused on analyzing the performance of the teams that qualified, predicting the future situation in the finals. They came to the conclusion that three teams had the highest potential of bing the champions—Devil, Dynasty, and Key. With the match system being Best of Five, every team would definitely use all their trump cards and target the opponent in any way possible.


    The schedule of the finals was released. The first round was Key versus Tulips.


    During the group stages, Han Xiao had stayed in Juberly Hub and temporarily rejected the partnership invitations from other mercenary groups, letting his team rest. He was not doing nothing; he had built more machinery, guided Aroshia,manded the Sunil Division to do other missions, and helped Herlous inbat training.


    Now that the group stages had ended and the ranking was up to his expectations, Han Xiao did not focus on the details of thepetition anymore. No matter what results the teams got, it would not impact him much. He continued to expand the business scope of the mercenary group.


    It just so happened that the Head Butler of the Floating Dragon Ind, Jenny, had sent him a supply mission. The Logistics Manager Haier had requested a new batch of resources. The seller’s team was on a Godoran colonized in the Gavin Star System, so they required Han Xiao to escort the goods.


    Ames almost did not manage anything at all; Jenny had always been the one dealing with all matters. Compared to the other three beyond grade A individuals in the Shattered Star Ring, Ames was the most carefree in terms of making his forces stronger. The other three more or less had armies, while Ames only had a group of guards. The ck Star Mercenary Group was the only externalbat force under hermand, but they were actually just running errands. After all,pared to thoserge fleets, a medium mercenary group was as insignificant as a speck of dust.


    Floating Dragon’s protection did note free; his ck Star Mercenary Group was Floating Dragon’s field team on paper, so they often had to do some errand missions such as escorting supplies, chasing enemies, collecting intel, and so on. It was simr to the daily missions of a faction; it did not have a high experience reward and was mainly meant for increasing the faction favorability. Han Xiao’s faction favorability with Floating Dragon was already at 2,100 points, and the rtionship had be [Friendly].


    Han Xiao brought the others and headed out. As the yers used Gathering Crystals to enter the match, they were not limited to one location, so they acted together with Han Xiao.


    Although thepetition was important, following Han Xiao was crucial as well, or there would be no one to repair their armor.