A sudden ambush shocked everyone present.
By the time the crowd came to their senses, the archer had already turned into a whirlwind and vanished from the scene.
In the distance, members of the Heavens Hall quickly rushed over.
They carefully investigated the spot where Chen Jun had died and disappeared.
"Logically speaking, Chen Jun wouldn't go out leveling without any remaining uses of a resurrection scroll, let alone without carrying such a crucial item. So how did he get permanently erased just like that?"
As Wu Haotian finished speaking, Ouyang Ling'er interjected,"Idiot! Didn't I just say it? It's the Mark of Death."
"The Mark of Death is a special, extremely rare, and forbidden type of treasure. When attacking an enemy with it, if the attack lands a fatal blow, it bypasses any chance of resurrection and directly causes a permanent kill."
Everyone present gasped in shock.
"There's something this terrifying in the otherworld?"
Lin Tian commented insightfully, "Obviously, the mastermind wanted to silence him."
At this moment, Liyue sighed and said, "We were finally getting closer to the truth, but now the only lead to the mastermind has been cut off."
Zhang Yue, however, noticed a key detail and asked Ouyang Ling'er, "The ability to vanish like the wind—what profession has such a trait?"
Ouyang Ling'er, knowing Zhang Yue was referring to the archer who disappeared as a whirlwind after assassinating Chen Jun, briefly consulted some information and concluded, "An epic-level class: Wind Chaser!"
Zhang Yue glanced at Ouyang Ling'er and continued asking, "Does the Empire Guild have any Wind Chasers?"
Ouyang Ling'er checked the records and replied, "Yes!"
"Among this year's newly promoted professionals in the Empire Guild, there's one Wind Chaser."
So, the truth became evident.
"The Empire Guild indeed has connections to the Eastern Empire's lackeys."
"But we don't have enough evidence to expose them," Lin Tian analyzed. "If even Ice Emperor couldn't detect it, this suggests that the person in the Empire Guild holds a very high position and influence. If we recklessly report this, it might backfire on us."
Ouyang Ling'er clenched her fists and said resolutely, "Fine, I'll risk my life to gather evidence."
"I, Ouyang Ling'er, can tolerate a homewrecker, but I absolutely won't tolerate a traitor to the nation."
"Mark my words, if I catch you, I'll make sure you regret it."
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
A whirlwind swept through a forest, transforming into a male archer clad in green chainmail.
The archer opened his messenger and sent a message to a friend: "Boss Xu, Chen Jun is dead. Should I continue targeting the Beast Tamer, Zero?"
Shortly after, Boss Xu replied, "Leave him alone."
"Zero has considerable influence. Even Moon Mark, Seraph, and Ice Emperor are watching him. Targeting him now would expose us."
The archer expressed concern, "But Zero seems to be investigating the origin of the God-Binding Curse. I'm worried—"
"Now that the only person in the know, Chen Jun, is dead, there's nothing to worry about," Boss Xu said dismissively. "He can't trace it back to us. Besides, as someone from the Empire, he doesn't have the qualifications to investigate us."
"Ignore him for now. When he truly poses a threat to us, I'll deal with him personally."
The archer complied, "Understood!"
That night, countless people had a sleepless night.
Because tomorrow marked the opening of the 100th Global Professional Tournament's World Finals.
As the saying goes, "The rise and fall of the nation lies in the hands of every citizen."
Amid great anticipation, the next morning finally arrived.
At 9:50 AM, only ten minutes remained before the start of the competition.
Global live streaming was already underway.
Audiences across the country gathered in front of TVs, tablets, smartphones, and even kids' smartwatches to watch the broadcast.
In the Eighth World, Ghost Domain.
Zhang Yue was slaying ghosts while pulling up the live broadcast.
The first image he saw was the team of 100 Dragon Nation participants, led by the top three experts: the warrior Moon Mark Messenger: Moon Mark, the knight Ice Emperor: Ice Emperor, and the mage Heaven's Sacrificer: Seraph.
Besides Moon Mark, Ice Emperor, and Seraph, who had all reached level 500, undergone nine class changes, and attained legendary-level professions, the remaining participants were all around level 490, having undergone eight class changes, and were epic-level experts.
This assembly of top-tier professionals radiated such an imposing aura that even through a screen, one could feel their immense power.
As everyone knew, the World Finals were divided into three phases.
After matching teams from two different nations:
1. Phase One: Monster Slaying Competition
• Each side sends 30 participants to a specific map. In this map, PvP is disabled. Players gain points by slaying monsters.
Simply put, the side with the higher monster kill count wins this phase.
2. Phase Two: Knockout Duel
• Each side sends another 30 participants (those who participated in Phase One cannot join). Players face off in one-on-one duels. The loser is replaced by the next team member until all members of one team are defeated.
3. Phase Three: Endless Slaughter
• The remaining 40 participants from each team are sent to a final map. Points are awarded for each kill against the opposing team.
The phase ends when time runs out.
On the battlefield, Ice Emperor, clad in golden armor and exuding an awe-inspiring aura, addressed Moon Mark and Seraph beside him:
"Same plan as always. Angel, your high AOE burst damage makes you ideal for leading the first phase. Moon Mark, with your unparalleled dueling skills as the nation's top micro-control expert, you'll handle Phase Two."
"I'll take care of Phase Three!"
Each phase carried equal importance.
The points earned in each phase directly affected the final standings. If one phase yielded too few points, no matter how well the other two were performed, the team could still lose the match.
Thus, teamwork was paramount in the finals.
Unless, of course, there was a peerless expert capable of earning such a massive lead in one phase that it overshadowed the rest.
Such individuals, however, were extremely rare—only three in the world were capable of this.
Ghost Swordsman: Elfa from the Lighthouse Nation,
Hell Dragon Rider: Restiev from the Bear Nation.
and Frost King: Kwon Ji-hyun from the Cold Nation.
[T/N: I will be using these names instead of realm country names to diminsh as much prejudice as possible. But, keep in mind, I am only a translator]
Before Zhang Yue's rebirth, these were the only three mythical-level professionals in the world.
At exactly 10:00 AM, the competition officially began.
[Ding~ The 100th Global Professional Tournament: World Finals has officially started. The system will now match opponents for each participating nation]
[Ding~ Attention Dragon Nation participants: Matching is complete. Your opponent for this round is Alpine Nation. The match will begin shortly. Please prepare]
[T/N: Also, I would like some opinion on whether I should continue to change the country names or you would like them to be as they are in the original. I will proceed with majority]
🥳Joining keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance Chapter through .