Chapter 1179: Each Has Compromises, Suspected Drow

The first match of the Snow Melting Competition 【Spell Duel】, without any suspense, Angelin wins!

The subsequent order of challenges is arranged according to the seating order of the four parties' representatives; after Ilfaran finishes challenging Netheril, it is Netheril's turn to challenge Yierlan.

After that, it is Yierlan challenging Cormanthor, and finally, Cormanthor challenging Ilfaran.

This cycle continues until all forty participants have finished competing, at which point the rankings are determined based on the number of wins per country.

……

As the competition continues, when Xia Duo discovers that the Cormanthor Mage challenging the Ilfaran Mage is also so harmonious, he immediately understands that the Northland Alliance has likely already reached an agreement, or is discussing the key points, and is not far from a deal.

Otherwise, even if Cormanthor were willing to compromise, if Ilfaran were not, there would be no way!

Combined with previous speculations, Danzo is the party facing the greatest pressure from the Drow; perhaps both sides have made compromises, which is why there is such a harmonious situation now.

It is just that Ilfaran holds too deep a grudge against Cormanthor, or more accurately, against Aryvandaar, so even if they have effectively compromised, their attitude has not changed much.

It is similar to the feeling of "although I hate you, I have no choice but to cooperate with you."

……

Since it is all harmonious exchange, Xia Duo no longer pays attention to the specific details of the battles, just waiting to see the records compiled by Niya after the competition ends.

After all, opportunities like this—being inside a Mythallar and being able to observe a semi-plane that is deeply integrated with a Mythallar to one's heart's content—are rare!

When he first entered the Arena, he had already discovered and confirmed that the semi-plane where the battle platform is located is a man-made semi-plane with a very balanced Element Affinity.

Aside from the new information of a new semi-plane sample, more importantly, there is the evolutionary process of the semi-plane from the Plane Root to the plane space.

Currently, Xia Duo is researching how to Create Demiplane; the role that a natural semi-plane like the Yellow Sand Semi-Plane can provide is very limited, and perhaps more of the essence of the planes can be studied from this one.

But in terms of creating a semi-plane, one man-made semi-plane sample is more useful than ten natural semi-planes.

"It's just a pity that I cannot enter the battle platform space myself to take a look!"

Although due to the special setup of the Micro Magic Net within the Arena, all spectators can clearly see everything inside the battle platform space, including the Magic Net environment and even the Plane Root.

But after all, this is still separated by a layer of Mythallar, and there is no knowing if there is any information filtering in between; it is far less detailed and profound than the information obtained from on-site investigation.

But in any case, having something to see is better than having nothing to see!

……

Approaching noon, the competition does not pause and continues, and Xia Duo still maintains his focused state of observing the semi-plane, occasionally picking up a pen to write down key information in his notebook.

"Are you hungry? Do you want to eat something?" Niya's voice rings in Xia Duo's ears.

Xia Duo looks up at the sky; he doesn't even need to check the 【Magic Moment】 to know it is almost noon. He was focused on observing all morning, but he was also thinking, and his stomach was already growling with hunger.

Glancing at other areas of the spectator stands, when he sees people already taking food out of their Dimensional Bags or small packages beside them to enjoy, Xia Duo feels even hungrier.

"I am a bit hungry, let's eat something first!"

Xia Duo takes dry rations out of his Dimensional Bag, hands a portion to Niya, and then begins to eat on his own.

It is difficult to maintain high-level magical focus while eating; one could watch the competition, but if one cannot see the full details, this competition is more akin to a Trick, and it is not as interesting as watching the audience in the venue.

Like last year, Xia Duo notices the group of Dwarves first this time; except for the Dwarf Prince sitting in the first seat of the upper tier, the rest of the Dwarves are huddled together.

Almost all of them are wearing armor and carrying hammers; they are short and have no necks, looking just like a beer barrel with a hammer hanging on the side—it is hard not to attract attention!

However, compared to the Snow Melting Competition last year where a Dwarf got drunk in the Arena, these Dwarves are much better behaved this year.

It is not just because their Prince is present; perhaps there is also the factor of the Drow.

Under the cover of their thick beards, it is difficult for Xia Duo to observe the specific expressions on their faces from a distance, but judging by their behavior, they seem quite anxious.

Even the Dwarf Prince, who is behaving normally, seems to Xia Duo to be burdened with heavy thoughts.

Besides the Dwarves, the most eye-catching ones in the venue are the Elves; compared to last year, too many Elves have come this year.

Xia Duo does not count them one by one, just roughly tallying them; there are at least five or six hundred, and besides humans, the most numerous in the venue are Elves.

Compared to the Elves, only a dozen or so Dwarves have come, shrinking by half compared to last year!

This seems to prove from the side that the pressure underground is great, and they are not very willing to spare a dozen or so Dwarves to come and watch the competition.

As for the Elves, with their large population, even if three or five hundred more came, it would be no issue; the population of Yierlan alone is no less than that of Netheril.

Not to mention, this Snow Melting Competition has three Elven Kingdoms participating; besides Yierlan, there are also Cormanthor and Ilfaran.

If it were not for the fact that the host city is Seventon, perhaps humans would be the minority.

……

Xia Duo's gaze does not linger on the Elves for long and soon turns to the humans, but this state does not last long; he always feels something is wrong, so he turns his gaze back to the Elves again.

At first, Xia Duo only thought it was because he was too focused on and too nervous about the Elves, which caused him to feel strange, but soon, he discovers that the situation is indeed not quite right!

The Elves are mostly watching the competition quietly, occasionally communicating in low voices with the companions beside them; this is not surprising, as humans are the same.

But the problem is that Xia Duo discovers one individual behaving abnormally among a group of Elf Mages wearing Yierlan-style clothing.

Actually, looking closely, that Elf Mage does not appear any different from the other Elves, but Xia Duo just feels that he is not normal.

And this judgment itself is also very abnormal!

It is more akin to an intuition, an inspiration, or in other words, Subconscious Information that has broken through to the Conscious Mind!

With such an anomaly, Xia Duo naturally wants to trace the source; through his Memory Retrospection ability, he continuously traces back his memories to compare with that abnormal Elf.

Soon, he discovers where the anomaly lies—

That Elf's every move, seemingly inadvertent and seemingly very relaxed, is actually always in a state of defense and cannot fully relax.

If it were only this, then that would be that, and Xia Duo would not have specifically traced his memories for him.

In fact, many Elf Sword Singers present can achieve this kind of subconscious defensive state; even many Sword Singers, from the moment they enter the Arena, keep one hand on their sword hilt even while watching the competition.

But the problem is that the Elf's behavior actually carries subtle Drow characteristics!