The Second District War
It didn't cause much of a stir at the time, but just a few minutes ago—
Survivor "Ye Zizhen" pinned a message using [World Channel Pinning Permission x1].
That's very interesting. Ye Zizhen is known for posting accurate, sometimes even Prophecy, tips, though they often require hindsight to understand. He would never waste his precious pinned privileges for no reason, just to emphasize a personal choice.
After the message was pinned, the number of comments exploded:
[Ye Zizhen, what does this mean?]
[Received! Not bringing it!]
[Ask the mud horse! Just follow along.]
[Although the expert may have given me a hint at some cost, most of my strength is still in the Sanctuary! (crying)]
[You should have said you weren't bringing it! I even upgraded the special building specifically for it...]
[...]
Su Luo silently browsed the rapidly scrolling comments, already having a general idea of what was going on. He casually turned off the noisy World Channel, giving one last glance at the statistics:
[It is recommended that professionals post at least one message to facilitate statistics; as of the 41st, 304,679 professionals have posted.]
"Over 300,000 professionals, that's pretty good, it's just that the World Channel chat is too noisy all the time."
[Group 7: Su Luo, Song Shige, Jing Yunxin, Guizishi]
[The District War is about to begin. Survivor to return to their Sanctuary and wait.]
[Those who have not entered the Sanctuary will only be teleported to the Survivor themselves.]
[Teleportation countdown: 00:10:00]
[Number of groups registered this time: 27549]
[Assigning battlefields...]
[Your group's battleground ID is: 1314]
[Transferring...]
[Battlefield has been built]
[Theme of this District War: Defense]
[Defend against attacks and protect the [Tinder] on the central altar. Once the [Tinder] is extinguished, the entire team is eliminated.]
[The attack will prioritize targeting Sanctuary placed along the path.]
[Temporary ranking list for this District War: [Guardian Rankings]]
[Special Rule: Sanctuary entering the battlefield have "Near-Destruction Teleportation" privileges]
[Note: Entering Sanctuary on the battlefield will trigger a "Near-Destruction Teleportation," and the Sanctuary's owner will be Severe Punishment!]
[Important Note: The [Tinder] strength of the teams participating in the Continued Battle will inherit the state from the end of this District War.]
[Team points are awarded based on: successfully defending against waves and the strength of the [Tinder] District War.]
The higher the team score, the higher the final ranking in the battlefield. If teams have the same score, the ranking will be based on the strength of the [Tinder]...
[The rules for obtaining individual points in this District War are: individual contribution percentage × team points + ranking bonus points]
[Each District War has a different theme and a different points system.]
But strength is the foundation of everything.
Do everything in your power to survive.
[Currently in the preparation stage, time limit: 30 minutes. Countdown: 00:29:59]
Su Luo did not close her eyes.
The instant the teleportation ended, he immediately noticed the anomaly in his surroundings.
An Ethereal of darkness, as if even "existence" itself had been stripped away.
Turning around, she saw Song Shige, Jing Yunxin, Guizishi beside her.
Behind the four was an ancient stone altar, with a cluster of faint, flickering flames floating in the center.
That is [the Tinder].
It emitted a dim, yellowish light, barely illuminating an area of about twenty meters around it; beyond that, there was "absolute darkness," where even light was completely Annihilation.
Su Luo tried to extend her Divine Power outwards, but the moment she touched the edge of darkness, it vanished like a mud ox sinking into the sea, completely severing the connection.
Unlike the darkness of the Land of Darkness, caused by the absorption of light, this was simply nothing at all.
Looking around, they couldn't see Jing Yunxin and Guizishi's Sanctuary.
"The system is prompting me to choose a location to place the Sanctuary," Jing Yunxin said softly, and Guizishi nodded in agreement.
Song Shige did not respond, but frowned and stared at the boundary between the firelight and darkness, his eyes serious.
"Don't rush to set up the Sanctuary," Su Luo said, walking towards the desolate outside world. "Let's see what this is first."
He mobilized his Mana, his Heart Fiend Blood Qi, and even his newly developed "Heartfire"... but all his power vanished silently the moment it came into contact with the darkness, without even a trace of feedback.
Whatever goes inside disappears into thin air and can never come back.
The darkness we see is simply because everything, including light, has disappeared.
Su Luo thought for a moment, exchanged a glance with Song Shige, and then pointed to "darkness" with her finger.
The fingertip disappeared the moment it touched the boundary.
It's not a fracture; the cut surface is exactly the same as the junction of firelight and darkness, and the cross-section is as smooth as a mirror.
Su Luo remained expressionless, her internal energy flowing, Natural Elements surging, and new fingertips rapidly Regeneration.
Song Shige also stepped forward and made the same attempt. The result was exactly the same; the flesh and blood at his fingertips simply disappeared.
Su Luo raised an eyebrow.
What is that outside the firelight? Song Shige's Talent was barely utilized; the attack was judged to be so high that it seemed to completely ignore Song Shige's own maximum attack power.
"It's somewhat like a cut in space itself, but without the ripples of space, so why was it dispersed by the [Tinder]..." Su Luo thought of Layton's "Space Blade".
"It could also be some kind of conceptual thing." A few drops of blood flowed from Song Shige's finger, but it quickly grew back.
"Is it possible that the map simply didn't load?" Guizishi, who had watched the whole thing, couldn't help but voice his guess.
Su Luo and Song Shige both turned around and glanced at him, but said nothing.
You know what, it's actually quite possible.
"Yunxin, what are the Sanctuary placement options provided by the system?" Song Shige asked.
"Four directions, corresponding to four preset defensive paths." Jing Yunxin brought up the System Panel. "Attacks will come from these paths. After placing Sanctuary, the enemy will prioritize attacking the Sanctuary. If there is no Sanctuary on a certain path, the attack will be directed at [Tinder]."
Su Luo nodded, walked towards the altar, and reached out her hand towards the faint flame.
[Tinder (Normal)]
Protect it, nurture it well.
[Enter?]
[Whether]
Su Luo glanced at the panel and selected "Yes".
The next moment, consciousness was detached, and the scene before my eyes changed, and I found myself in a bright hall.
In the center of the hall was a huge round table, around which sat several indistinct figures. Above them was a chandelier of indeterminate material, with the number 1314 clearly printed on its shade.
He looked down and saw that he was sitting on an ordinary wooden chair, unable to get up.
There were three more identical chairs next to them, presumably for Song Shige and his two companions.
"My consciousness has been pulled into an independent space... Is this the interior of the [Tinder]?" Su Luo understood, and with a single thought, she could return to her original body.
He landed calmly, and the person opposite him looked up and nodded slightly to him across the round table.
"Greetings, Your Excellency Scholar."