At the same time, when the Black Hawk was entangled with the level 5 elite monster, the Soul of Vengeance, the Papaya Star Spirit and the Whisperer also encountered different monsters.
Although the attributes and skills of these monsters varied, they all had one common characteristic: they were extremely difficult to deal with.
This was no coincidence.
In fact, when each survivor descended into this world, the generated terrain was quite similar for everyone. The number of clouds in each area was roughly the same, and there were elite monsters unique to each area. Aside from a few hidden beings, these elite monsters were the strongest in their respective areas.
For example, the Grayrock Wolf that Han Xing encountered in his first area—he had to defeat it to move on to a new area.
However, that Grayrock Wolf was merely equivalent to a novice village boss. Compared to the monsters that Black Hawk and Whisperer were facing now, it didn't seem as difficult.
Now, because Whisperer and the others were ahead in progress, they had finally come up against the strongest beings in their region and had all fallen into fierce battles.
While everyone eagerly awaited the appearance of the final victor, something unusual happened. After waiting for over an hour, the top three in the rankings suddenly stopped accumulating points, as if they had agreed to halt at the same time.
In the chat channel, many people were puzzled.
"What's going on? Why has the leaderboard stopped moving? Did the top three agree to take a nap together?"
"Don't rush. Maybe they're all taking a break and preparing for the final sprint."
"That's possible. But with things like this, do you think there will be any surprises in who takes the top spot?"
"Stop dreaming. Whisperer has a massive lead. The first place is definitely his!"
However, someone disagreed, saying, "Earlier, Galaxy had a huge lead too. Everyone said he'd definitely get first, but what happened? He couldn't even hold on to the top 20."
"Galaxy? That guy was just lucky. He's not someone worth mentioning."
No one refuted this. Ever since Han Xing fell out of the top 20, there hadn't been many voices supporting him.
At that moment, someone suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? Galaxy is back in the top 20!"
"What?" Many survivors were astonished.
"643 points! What was his score before?"
Since most had stopped paying attention to Han Xing, no one knew his exact previous score, but it was clear that the increase was significant!
Still, some who held grudges against Galaxy dismissed this with disdain. "So what if he's in the top 20? He's still almost 300 points behind Whisperer. It'd take him at least a day to catch up!"
"Yeah, Galaxy doesn't stand a chance. No need to discuss him anymore."
What they didn't know was that Han Xing had gained nearly 200 points in just three hours!
Even Whisperer, a skilled mage, couldn't match that terrifying speed.
Although these people hadn't noticed, Cheng Jianyong had been keeping a close eye on Han Xing's ranking.
When he saw Han Xing's meteoric rise, he eagerly asked in their chat group, "Brother Xing, are you starting to push forward?"
At that moment, Han Xing was happily following behind 'Coal,' effortlessly racking up experience points.
He smiled and replied in the group, "Yes."
Cheng Jianyong immediately got excited, "Haha, I knew Brother Xing was waiting to explode at the end! Shen Yun, look at this—a 200-point jump in three hours. That's insane!"
Shen Yun, also shocked, exclaimed, "Damn, that's fast! Brother Xing, did you take some kind of miracle drug?"
Han Xing laughed, "Yep, I took something. I've got more if you want some."
Shen Yun reflexively declined, "No, no, I'm still young. I don't need that kind of stuff."
Cheng Jianyong chimed in, "Haha, Brother Xing, keep those to yourself. Me and Yunzi are in great shape; we don't need those pills. We can still fight 300 rounds every night!"
But Han Xing, with a strange tone, teased, "Are you sure? This medicine works wonders. One sip, and you'll be bursting with energy!"
Shen Yun quickly turned him down again.
However, Cheng Jianyong cautiously asked, "Brother Xing, is that stuff really that powerful? How about you give me some?"
"Hahaha!" Han Xing burst out laughing. "I knew Cheng Jianyong, the married man, couldn't hold up! Look, I've got him admitting it!"
Shen Yun joined in the laughter, and Cheng Jianyong looked thoroughly embarrassed.
At that point, Han Xing said, "Alright, I'll stop teasing you."
He then sent them both a trade request.
With puzzled expressions, the two accepted.
But when they saw Han Xing had given them 20 bottles of Primary Life Elixir each, they both gasped in shock.
"Hiss…"
Cheng Jianyong, finding it hard to believe, said, "Life Elixirs!"
With a bitter smile, he added, "So Brother Xing, this was the 'energy-boosting medicine' you were talking about?"
"Yep."
Han Xing laughed. "I wasn't lying, was I? I've tested these—they work wonders!"
"As long as you're not missing a limb or killed outright, one bottle will bring you back from the brink."
"If you guys can raise your constitution a bit, you won't even need to worry about getting hurt. You could go head-to-head with those monsters!"
At this, Shen Yun hesitantly asked, "Brother Xing, are you saying…"
Han Xing nodded, "That's right. We're going to change our strategy. With Life Elixirs in hand, we can fight more aggressively and challenge the clouds with boldness."
"I've seen your rankings. Shen Yun, you're at 27, and Cheng Jianyong, you're at 36. If we go all out, getting into the top 10 shouldn't be a problem for you both!"
Upon hearing Han Xing's plan, the two were both shocked.
But Cheng Jianyong gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it! With Life Elixirs and Brother Xing's strong support, forget top 10, I'll smash my way into the top 3!"
"I'm going for it!"
Shen Yun also got excited, exclaiming, "Let's go!"
As the three top-ranked players faced powerful enemies and stalled, Han Xing and his friends rocketed up the rankings.
643 points…
674 points…
712 points…
It seemed like every few minutes, his territory points would increase again.
This terrifying pace naturally caught the attention of many survivors in the chat.
"Look! Galaxy's rank just jumped again. He's 13th now!"
"So fast! It's been less than half an hour, and he's gained over 70 points. That's insane!"
"Damn, should we say it's Galaxy's godlike skills? As soon as he makes a move, he blows our minds!"
Discussions about Han Xing reignited in the chat channel.
However, some people who still resented him sneered, "So what if his points are rising fast? He's still more than 200 points behind Whisperer. I've told you, he's got no chance."
"Yeah, and who's to say his rapid gains aren't just down to luck?"
"Good luck won't last forever."
At that moment, no one stepped up to argue.
But some noticed the changes in the rankings of two other players.
Someone among the survivors exclaimed, "Look! 'Lone Warrior' and 'Cloud Skybright' are also climbing fast!"
"I just saw them increase by over 40 points in half an hour!"
"What?"
The chat channel was filled with gasps of astonishment.
At the same time, someone seriously remarked, "Looks like everyone's starting to sprint at the final moment!"