"We never should have let him draw. He has the worst luck!"

Daniel Hale had arrived as well. Out of fifty total matches, his own son had somehow managed to draw the very first one!

Now, not only did they have no time to prepare, but they couldn’t even watch other matches to learn from their experience.

"I didn’t do it on purpose..."

Leo Hale said with a pained expression. If he had known, he wouldn’t have drawn.

"The first match is the first match. It doesn’t matter.

I believe everyone is already prepared."

Nina Jacobs said.

The competition used an elimination format, which meant they would need to compete in a total of four matches.

The first round would whittle fifty teams down to twenty-five.

And their opponent for the first match was a team called "The Aegis Gang."

Both teams had the same number of members, and due to venue limitations, they had to select five people to compete.

Nina Jacobs had already chosen the roster: Chase Gallagher, Wayne Abbott, Warren Ramsey, Alaric Fletcher, and Elara Dolan.

Their Superpowers were Wind/Speed, Earth, Wood, Gold, and Fire Element, respectively.

"You all just need to perform as you normally do."

Nina Jacobs said, seeing that they were all a little nervous.

She didn’t plan on competing in this match.

"Right, just perform as usual."

After hearing Nina Jacobs’s words, Wayne Abbott calmed down a bit.

He waved to his wife, Rosamund Hayes.

He would definitely take this match seriously.

The group walked to the waiting area, while the rest, like Leo Hale, sat in the spectator seats, both nervous and excited.

Nina Jacobs, however, noticed that Althea Coleman wasn’t there.

"Captain, do you think Elara can do it?"

Eleanor couldn’t help but worry about Elara Dolan. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

None of them had expected Nina Jacobs to pick Elara Dolan for the first match.

"She’ll be fine."

Nina Jacobs looked at the serious expression on Elara Dolan’s face in the distance.

Elara Dolan’s Superpower Value in the system wasn’t low at all.

It was probably her timid, submissive personality that made her seem so inconspicuous.

On many of their recent zombie-killing excursions, Elara Dolan’s kill count had been far ahead of everyone else’s.

It was just that no one else had noticed.

Of course, perhaps even she herself hadn’t realized it.

For Elara Dolan, she needed to win. This victory was crucial for her.

However, at that moment, the opposing team switched out three of their previously announced competitors.

"Why are they switching people out?"

Leo Hale also noticed the commotion over there.

The competitors were chosen by the teams themselves, so naturally, they could be changed before the match began.

But why change the roster now, after it had already been decided?

"There’s one possibility. They know what our Superpowers are."

Holden Shaw was also staring at the spot.

Information about the Superpower teams wasn’t public, and they had been deliberately practicing in secluded areas.

Plus, the lineup was only chosen right before the match. Logically, they shouldn’t know the Superpowers of Elara and the others.

"It’s fine. They can handle it."

Nina Jacobs’s expression was calm, as if she had already foreseen this situation.

"It’s a best-of-five series, so we only need three wins to take the match.

But I heard their team isn’t weak. They formed way back in the shelter days."

Daniel Hale said.

Stella had only been formed recently, and people like Wayne Abbott were new additions.

He had thought Nina Jacobs would compete, which would have given them at least some guarantee of success.

But unexpectedly, Nina Jacobs had no intention of participating.

He had also heard about the base’s rating system. If Stella was eliminated in the first round, it would make things very difficult...

"The Aegis Gang, is it?"

Nina Jacobs sneered. ’Pulling cheap tricks before the match. I’ll remember them.’

The match began soon after.

The arena was large enough for two pairs to compete simultaneously.

The referee announced the rules of the match.

The match was a friendly Superpower spar. Neither side was allowed to inflict life-threatening injuries.

A competitor unable to fight back would be declared the loser.

A competitor knocked out of the designated area would be declared the loser.

A competitor who exhausted their Superpower would be declared the loser.

In the five-person duel, the first team to win three matches would be the victor. If any match ended in a draw, an overtime round could be held.

First to compete were Wayne Abbott and Warren Ramsey.

Their opponents were also two burly men.

When the referee announced the Superpowers of both sides, an uproar went through the audience.

Wayne Abbott was an Earth Element, and his opponent was a Wood Element.

And Warren Ramsey, the Wood Element, was facing a Gold Element Superpower User.

"Wood counters Earth, and Gold counters Wood. Stella is probably going to get completely crushed."

"Is Stella really not going to substitute anyone?"

"It’s already started. They definitely can’t switch now. They’ll just have to tough it out."

"We got supplies from them last time and said we’d cheer for them... It’s over, it’s over..."

"..."

Listening to the surrounding chatter, Eleanor grew even more worried.

She glanced at Nina Jacobs sitting beside her, only to find that she didn’t seem worried at all.

In the arena, Wayne Abbott’s Earth Shield had already been pierced by a Wood Element Vine.

Just as he was about to be entangled by the Wood Element Vine, Wayne Abbott grabbed hold of it.

"What do you think you’re doing?!"

The man opposite him frowned, watching as his Wood Element Vine was rapidly encased in a hard film.

"Nothing much. Just wanted to teach you a lesson.

Wood may break through soil, but the weight of dense earth is not something you can overcome so easily!"

The encased Wood Element Vine seemed unable to bear the weight of its hard shell and instantly shattered into several pieces!

A volley of Stone Spikes shot toward his opponent’s position.

The man used his vines to block, but the Stone Spikes were too sharp and easily pierced his vine barrier.

Just as the man dodged quickly toward another spot, Wayne Abbott let out a soft chuckle.

A sphere of gravel had formed on the ground at some point. Chased by the Stone Spikes, the man stepped right into it and immediately fell.

Just as he was trying to get up, he saw several sharp Stone Spikes hovering right in front of him.

The man instantly froze, not daring to move an inch.

The whistle blew right on time.

Wayne Abbott wins.

Watching Wayne Abbott walk off the stage, the man spat on the ground.

But Wayne Abbott wasn’t angry in the slightest. ’Nina Jacobs was right, after all.’

’Even though there are elemental counters between Superpowers, they mean nothing in the face of true skill and experience.’

He looked over at Warren Ramsey’s ongoing match and saw that it was also about to end.

Although his opponent’s Gold Element could sever Warren Ramsey’s wood thorns...

...Warren Ramsey could conjure his Superpower far faster than his opponent.

"Haha, think you can cut them all?"

Warren Ramsey could feel his opponent tiring. A few Gold Spikes hit his Wood Shield but lacked any piercing power.

Three minutes later, the referee blew the whistle.

"Congratulations to Stella on winning two out of two matches."

The announcement echoed through the arena, and Daniel Hale’s eyes lit up.

"I didn’t expect them to be so strong, even though they joined the team late."

Daniel Hale chuckled happily.

There were still three matches to go. They only needed one more win.

"Their skills were never weak to begin with."

Nina Jacobs said.

A team that could rescue Daniel Hale from a place swarming with zombies couldn’t possibly be weak.

Eleanor also clapped excitedly.

"This is great, Althea! Abbott and the others both won," Eleanor said.

"Yes, they both won."

A flash of coldness crossed Althea Coleman’s eyes.

Next up were Alaric Fletcher and Elara Dolan.

’She refused to believe these two could win as well.’

In the arena, Elara Dolan looked at the Water Element Superpower User across from her and clenched her fists to steel herself.

Her fists were trembling slightly, but it wasn’t out of fear.

On the contrary, she was a little excited.

Because the person who had been sparring with her for the past few days was none other than Wendy Marshall, a Water Element user.