Chapter 1702: A Sincere Invitation
Starting from D-rank, where players can obtain news from other districts, they automatically enter the ranking list. D-rank players are generally ranked across several districts within their origin wormhole point, while C-rank players encompass the entire wormhole point's player base. The former is a ten-thousand-person list, while the latter is a twenty-thousand-person list. The twenty-thousand-person list for C-rank players carries significant weight, after all, a single district can have billions of people.
Xu Huo had looked at the rankings once before. He was ranked over four thousand on the twenty-thousand-person list for the E27 wormhole point. Although the rankings bring honor and challenges, that basically has nothing to do with players ranked at the bottom. Even if someone from another district wanted to pick a fight, they would definitely challenge those at the very top. There are too many people behind, too many names, nothing worth looking at.
And C-rank players are simply not impressive enough within the entire E-level wormhole point. Not many people care about the highs and lows of those at the bottom of the advanced player pool, but the rankings still exist.
District joint rankings, single wormhole point rankings, wormhole point joint rankings—they progress in order. The wormhole point joint ranking carries the most weight and also has the most people. Compared to the ten thousand in the district joint list and the twenty thousand in the single wormhole point list, the wormhole point joint ranking reaches fifty thousand.
Of course, these fifty thousand people are the strongest among dozens of same-level wormhole points. Even the last place can be considered a standout among same-level players.
The ranking is based on the ratings of instance dungeon completions. Therefore, the higher the rating of a single instance, the higher the ranking. To get on this list means performing at a high level in every single instance. With so many people in same-level wormhole points, just one instance with a low rating will immediately knock you off the list.
However, there is a portion of players supported by nations or families who continuously farm instances to level up. But their numbers are small, because many instance guides can guarantee a player an A-rank rating, but not necessarily an S or SS rank. Especially SS rank, which is often unrepeatable. Moreover, instances are not completely static; instance upgrades or downgrades happen from time to time. So it's not a matter of repeatedly farming a fixed set of instances for A or S ranks to improve your ranking.
Players who can make it onto the list are definitely regulars at S-rank or SS-rank ratings.
"What level of competition?" Xu Huo asked with interest.
"C-rank and B-rank," the hat player explained in detail. "Mainly C-rank players on the list. B-rank players are challengers, few in number, and mostly not on the list."
"Such competitions exist in many districts. Some players participate for the generous rewards, some for fame. Everyone has their own purpose, but the mortality rate is low, and they are very popular among ordinary people."
That made sense. Players who had legitimately risen to B-rank probably wouldn't perform for ordinary people just for a few advanced items.
"Such competitions generally look at the twenty-thousand-person list of a wormhole point. The wormhole point joint ranking can also be used, but that carries more weight, and ordinary players usually don't come to compete."
"Rankings from different wormhole points are different, but there is no clear superior-inferior relationship between them. So any twenty-thousand-person list from any wormhole point is recognized. Cross-wormhole point is fine too. As long as you're on the list, the base government hosting the event will verify it, conceal your origin wormhole point, and only reveal your nickname and rank."
"The district I'm going to this time is very mature in terms of player competitions. They hold them every year. Even if you don't compete, you can go and enjoy the atmosphere."
Xu Huo might not care about the competition rewards, but enjoying the excitement is human nature. The hat player felt that even without understanding these things, anyone would want to go and see.
So he stated his destination.
"What a coincidence, I'm also heading to District 019," Xu Huo said with a smile.
He wasn't the only one in the same carriage going to District 019. The woman in the shirt suddenly interjected, "District 019 has a developed economy. Why would they hire referees from outside the district?"
Being so wealthy and cooperating with the Game Government, they shouldn't lack referees.
"To avoid accidents and disputes, generally only players engaged in related professions can serve as referees for large-scale events," the hat player explained. "But the specifics vary by district. It's not always that referees are hired from outside."
Meaning that using referees from the organizing party might lead to unfair judgments. Additionally, players use items and traits during competitions. Close observation might lead to accidental injuries. Players with relevant professions are more convenient, not to mention that the hat player's referee trait seems tailor-made for this kind of occasion.
"Referees also assist robots and specialized event instruments, but humans are better at stirring up the audience's emotions." The hat player paused and added, "Also, accidentally injuring the referee is one of the highlights of such events."
Highlights are highlights, but there are certainly restrictions.
"You serve as a referee, doesn't that mean you don't have to do instances anymore?" Brother Yang suddenly asked.
"Not at all, I still have to do instances. Serving as a referee is just my side job," the hat player said with a smile.
The few people in the carriage fell silent for a moment.
How to put it... although players have professional classifications, no one has ever truly regarded it as a profession, let alone finding a side job after completing it.
It was clear that he loved his profession.
Xu Huo glanced at him a couple more times. Perhaps that was why his trait was so unique.
The robbery attempt fizzled out, and the fight didn't happen either. On the referee's arena that was slow to disappear, players from different carriages were all worried that advanced players might come to harvest them, so they held back and didn't cause trouble.
Just as everyone thought they would get off the train safely, on the second night, a carriage near the tail of the train lit up.
Accompanied by the sounds of xenomorph attacks, the illuminated carriage was eventually engulfed, quickly buried again by the darkness.
"The train hijacking alert hasn't been lifted yet. Could this be the work of those hijackers?" the scarred-eyebrow player asked.
The two people standing outside the door hadn't left yet, and the front and rear of the carriage couldn't communicate. Others couldn't probe the situation behind, so they had to focus on them.
The skyward little braid and the fire-borrowing female player didn't say a word, as if they had rotted away in the darkness.
Although it was the same train, the front and back couldn't connect, so no one meddled by spreading the hijackers' information widely. They only issued a warning to avoid being implicated themselves.
The situation behind didn't affect the front carriages. Another night passed quickly. By dawn, the hat player's arena trait finally disappeared. The golden-eyed player, who had been silent, appeared in the carriage aisle. But before he could do anything, the hat player, still brimming with high spirits, leaned in and asked them, "Want to fight?"
The golden-eyed player glanced at him, then shifted his gaze back to Xu Huo's face, and returned to his seat.
(Chapter End)