Chapter 602: Shifting Alliances

Entering simultaneously?

“No, they entered just seconds after us?”

Landing on a rooftop, Yamamoto Yokichi quickly regained his senses and immediately spotted a towering beam of light in the distance.

Listening to the System’s prompt, he instantly realized that the other party was from the Southeast Asia Joint Battle Zone—and according to the System’s ratings, they were just a bit stronger than his team.

Yet, upon realizing this, his face showed not the slightest worry. Instead, he scoffed dismissively as he glanced at his comrades behind him.

After all, his team consisted of seven Peak Third-Stage fighters along with ninety-three Third-Stage Advanced warriors.

Their formation and tactics were no different from those of the South Korean Battle Zone.

“Captain, it seems the System didn’t even factor in your combat prowess…”

“Even those Southeast Asian monkeys are rated above you.”

Bang!!

In a flurry of flashes, a young man clutching a dagger and clad in black equipment laughed as he nonchalantly took down several zombies on the rooftop, then dramatically pointed toward the distant beam of light.

Like Yamamoto Yokichi, they couldn’t care less about the System’s ratings.

Having entered with deliberately low evaluations, their combat strength would utterly crush those Southeast Asian monkeys!

“Alright, but don’t get too complacent.”

“Those from Southeast Asia are this close—they’ve definitely spotted us.”

“Get ready—we’re heading over to confront them right now!”

With swift decisiveness, once quickly adapting, leader Yamamoto Yokichi swept away his look of disdain to rapidly scan the other data.

This time, aside from himself, the only other Peak Third-Stage dispatched was the young man standing before him.

Though he hadn’t held the Peak Third-Stage title for long, his mastery of stealth and assassination ensured that his prowess was never outmatched.

Among the five regular Peak fighters, he, as the main attacker, could individually match at least two of his peers. Likewise, the young man was on par with two of his level—together, their true combat strength equaled that of nine to ten Peak Third-Stage warriors!

In ambush skirmishes, they fearlessly confronted enemies even when outnumbered two to one!

Not to mention, the seamless coordination between him and the young man was an absolute nightmare for the country’s Awakeners in this battle!

Huh!?

“There are three up ahead? The first from the Huaxia Battle Zone?”

As the team quickly adjusted their formation and prepared to move toward the Southeast Battle Zone, commanding officer Yamamoto Yokichi suddenly paused—a mix of surprise and resigned acceptance crossing his face as he checked the System’s data.

The entry information was glaringly displayed.

And the Huaxia Battle Zone had already entered quite early.

Meanwhile, the other team members reviewing the intel were equally stunned.

“Captain, are those Chinese really this weak!?”

“Looks like the intel was right about their internal issues! That kid really went into the national battle all by himself, with no support!?”

As he spoke, a Third-Stage Advanced Awakener’s eyes flashed with murderous intent, his face alight with ecstatic glee.

Compared to the information from the South Korean Battle Zone, they had unexpectedly obtained far more accurate intel before entering!

The internal strife within Huaguo is undoubtedly real—it’s just unclear how deep the infighting has become!

The source of their intel was none other than the Huaguo Military!

Moreover, thanks to hints from a group of mysterious figures, they learned that Huaguo was so clueless as to send their very first tier—Yenir—into the national battle!

Rumor had it that the kid had offended too many, and he was sent in as a scapegoat!

At first, they thought it was unlikely—after all, Huaguo’s internal strife wasn’t usually this intense. But judging by what they saw now…

“Damn it, Captain! Should we go after those Chinese and take them out?”

“They’re the weakest! And that kid ruined our plans last time—I’ve been itching to take him out!”

Emotion welling up, a Third-Stage Advanced Awakener couldn’t help but grip the longbow on his back tighter.

His younger brother had once entered a confrontation dungeon only to fall victim to Yenir’s cunning tactics. Never having had a chance for revenge, hearing that Yenir was leading the weakest contingent of the Huaguo Military sent his excitement soaring!

Regardless of Southeast Asia…

Observing his excited teammates, Yamamoto Yokichi suddenly realized the immense value of this intel.

Historically, Huaguo’s ratings weren’t too shabby—they always managed to send in a group of Peak Third-Stage fighters.

But this time, they again sent that kid in, ranking him last. He could probably guess what went wrong just by looking at his toes!

Yenir is nothing more than a disposable pawn!

Huaguo’s internal strife is so severe that they can’t muster any more Peak fighters!

Rather than sending a few peak fighters to their deaths, they’d be better off ditching that kid altogether—time to concede this round!

Logic as simple as that.

Moreover, in no time, Yamamoto Yokichi, much like the initial strategies of Korea and Vietnam, realized the immense value in capturing Huaguo’s people!

By cross-referencing the intel and confirming Huaguo’s internal situation, they deduced that first taking out the Huaguo would not only net them free points but might also open up opportunities to later invade Huaguo!

This was nothing short of tremendous news!

Compared to the nearby Southeast Asia Joint Battle Zone, the value of eliminating the opposition paled in comparison to the rewards of targeting the Chinese!

With that realization, Yamamoto Yokichi took a deep breath and decisively changed his mind.

What’s the point in fighting the Southeast Battle Zone?

Perhaps they could track them down and join forces to hunt the Huaguo!

Knowing their strength, convincing those Southeast Asian monkeys to cooperate would be a piece of cake!

But just as he was carefully contemplating how to team up with those Southeast Asian monkeys, the dagger-wielding young man of equal rank suddenly let out a soft ‘eek’.

“Captain, I noticed on the leaderboard that those Chinese, Koreans, and monkeys have already been engaged…”

After checking his score panel, the young man quickly approached Yamamoto Yokichi, his eyes filled with puzzled curiosity.

On the leaderboard, the weakest Huaxia Battle Zone surprisingly topped the list—scores likely earned by taking down one Peak Third-Stage fighter and twelve Third-Stage Advanced warriors.

The Vietnam War Zone ranked second—having taken out two Third-Stage Advanced fighters?

As for the South Korean Battle Zone, even though those Koreans were supposed to be stronger than the other two zones, they hadn’t taken a single life and ended up at the very bottom.

This bizarre scene left Yamamoto Yokichi momentarily dumbfounded.

But after a brief pause, he furrowed his brows slightly before breaking into an easy smile.

“It should be fine.”

“Based on the order of entry, I suspect the Vietnamese were the first to chase down the Huaguo—only for the South Korean Battle Zone to join midway?”

“Seeing things go sour, those monkeys and Chinese didn’t hesitate—they attacked the Koreans first, repelling them.”

“Afterwards, the Vietnamese likely feared that if they clashed with those Chinese pigs, the Koreans might take advantage, so all three parties ended up keeping each other in check.”

That was the most logical analysis.

With lightning-fast reflexes, Yamamoto Yokichi grinned confidently—as if he could already see how events would unfold.

After his swift analysis, his lips curled upward as he said:

“Those Chinese may be weak, but sometimes, they sure know how to play the balancing game.”

“This is exactly the sort of trick they’d pull off!”

“Chances are, the three sides are facing off somewhere. If we move in, it’ll be a total sweep!”

Despite his confidence, Yamamoto Yokichi was completely sure of his judgment.

Yet, upon reflection, that very logic made him realize that they really needed to join forces with the Southeast Battle Zone.

To take down all three of these weak foes, relying solely on their own strength wouldn’t be enough.

With that in mind, he decisively raised his hand and ordered sharply:

“Let’s move! First, go meet up with the Vietnamese monkeys! If they’re on board, we’ll hunt down those Chinese together! At worst, we’ll give them a bit more credit!”