Only One Last Step Remained

Black Market Headquarters, Nameless Town.

Under the night sky, Isaiah stood by the window, gazing in the direction of De La Town.

"Mr. Isaiah, we have prepared everything you requested." At that moment, a Black Market merchant came up behind him and gave a respectful bow. "We have arranged the items in their designated positions according to your requirements. Once the time is right, they will activate automatically. You need not worry about them."

"Is that so?" Isaiah nodded with a smile. "Then I truly must thank you for the trouble."

"It is our honor to serve the strongest Sorcerer of this age." The Black Market merchant smiled as well. "And this is the legendary Stars Array. If not for you, perhaps we would never have had the chance in our lives to witness the splendor of this legendary magic formation."

"I believe it will not disappoint you."

The Stars Array was the Star Relic Sect's strongest magic formation. It could convert the power of the stars into the power of a Star Relic Warlock to the greatest possible extent.

As long as a Star Relic Warlock stood within the Stars Array, his power was nearly limitless. Thus, there had always been a saying outside: a Star Relic Warlock within the Stars Array was the closest thing in this world to a god, unquestionably the strongest.

However, the conditions for setting up the Stars Array were extremely harsh. It required not only all kinds of expensive and rare materials, but also a considerable amount of preparation time and a sufficiently clear night sky.

It was precisely these layers of restrictions that forced the theoretically strongest Star Relic Warlocks to remain tucked away at the fringes of the continent in reality.

And Isaiah was planning to set up the Stars Array in Nameless Town in preparation for the battle the night after tomorrow.

This had also received strong support from Contract Land. Thus, as Contract Land's Black Gloves, the Black Market merchants had covered all the expenses for the formation and helped Isaiah turn their headquarters into the core of the Stars Array, awaiting the arrival of Spotless Night.

Of course, the Black Market merchants were doing this to prepare for their future "whitewashing." They hoped to gain the support of the Star Relic Church, so naturally they spared no effort.

But to Isaiah, everything he was doing now was merely an act.

Because after obtaining Visas's right eye, Isaiah had long since ceased to need the Stars Array to receive power. The Star Sea was within his eye.

This allowed Isaiah to remain at his peak no matter when or where he was. To him, the Stars Array could not even be called icing on the cake.

But that did not mean he had no need for the Stars Array. On the contrary, he still needed it badly. Only, his purpose had changed. Now, he needed the Stars Array to disguise himself.

After all, if he directly displayed extraordinary power outside the Stars Array, would he not be carving the words "I have corpse fragments too" right onto his forehead?

He was not Luo Qi. There was no way he would expose his own identity like that.

That was why Isaiah had chosen Nameless Town, under the watchful eyes of countless people, for this attack on Tongue and Luo Qi.

He wanted both to obtain what he desired and to have a legitimate reason for doing so, proving his own innocence.

Then the script of "with the help of Contract Land and the Black Market, he relied on the Stars Array during Spotless Night to successfully deal with two criminals wanted by Contract Land" was undoubtedly the most suitable.

That way, no one would suspect his identity, even if he obtained the most benefits.

This was the grand performance Isaiah had carefully constructed.

Both the Stars Array and Spotless Night required two days to arrive.

So all that remained was to quietly wait for time to pass.

Three Sound Cut!

An impassioned melody rang out, and three enhanced Wind Blades flowed from He Wei Ni Ya's fingertips, slicing through the night wind toward the four Players relentlessly pursuing her.

The four Players immediately raised their staffs in response. A graceful ensemble Movement Spell sounded, and a faint barrier rippled through the air.

The Wind Blades struck the barrier and rapidly melted away like ice dropped into boiling water.

Then they changed the melody, and the rippling air barrier transformed into arrows of wind that swept toward He Wei Ni Ya with a howling chill.

But He Wei Ni Ya merely gave her staff a light shake. Before they could even discern what melody it was, the racing arrows of wind vanished without a trace.

"They disappeared?"

"No, that's not it!"

The "vanished" arrows of wind suddenly shot out from behind them. Though they sensed the attack, those whose reactions were half a beat too slow were still struck and fell to the ground covered in blood.

"Damn it!" Seeing this, the leading Player could not help but curse. "We're not even on the same level!"

Just as he said, they and He Wei Ni Ya were not opponents on the same level at all.

Players were absolutely the profession in this world that depended most on talent.

No Silver Sound Player could ever compare to a Golden Sound Player, much less He Wei Ni Ya, who possessed seven Golden Sounds.

No matter what kind of Movement Spell they used, as long as He Wei Ni Ya used the same one, their Movement Spell would directly merge into hers because her notes were of a higher rank.

As long as He Wei Ni Ya knew which melody formed the Movement Spell they were playing, she could freely replace it, weaken it, or even directly alter its effect.

This resulted in them being utterly crushed by He Wei Ni Ya despite holding advantages in numbers, age, and experience.

Honestly, sending people like them to hunt down He Wei Ni Ya was making things difficult for them.

Because even within Holy Sound, they were not considered the most elite Players. The entire troupe combined could not even scrape together many Golden Sounds.

And the reason they had been sent to Contract Land as Guardians was precisely because they were not exceptional enough. In Holy Sound, the truly formidable Players were all direct descendants of the major families. Why would they give up their comfortable lives as noble lords to become Guardians in Contract Land, never able to return? Was it not better to remain superior to everyone else in Holy Sound forever?

Of course, thanks to the person before them, most of those former highborn nobles had gone to accompany the Lord of Holy Sound during the upheaval several months ago. Otherwise, they would not have been transferred back from Contract Land.

Before that, no one who entered Contract Land had ever been able to leave.

Ah, he seemed to have gone off track.

After narrowly dodging another of He Wei Ni Ya's casual attacks, the leading Player began pondering again.

Something was wrong. Why were they the only ones chasing He Wei Ni Ya now?

According to the original plan, they were supposed to cover for the forces of the other three major churches.

So where were the other three major churches? Why was it only them?

Who had told them to make their move again?

The leading Player suddenly felt somewhat lost.

He vaguely remembered that before entering the town, they seemed to have encountered someone. That person had said something to them, and then they had come here and begun hunting He Wei Ni Ya.

But who was that person?

No matter how hard the leading Player tried, he could not remember. Then he suddenly felt a chill below his waist. He instinctively lowered his head and discovered a huge gash across his abdomen, blood pouring out without stop.

He had been hit too.

His body tilted, and he fell as well.

He Wei Ni Ya stopped and looked at the last Player who had fallen, frowning slightly.

That was all?

When these Players had pursued her, He Wei Ni Ya had never used her full strength.

Because she felt that this group was far too weak. Most likely, they were bait, while the true pursuing force was hiding in the shadows, waiting for her to expose a weakness before striking.

So He Wei Ni Ya had reserved part of her strength to guard against them.

Yet even after she had eliminated the entire troupe, no reinforcements had emerged.

What was going on?

He Wei Ni Ya knew there were at least forces from three major churches in this town. Where were they?

Why had they only sent this half-crippled Holy Sound group? Were they simply watching from the sidelines?

"Swish, swish, swish."

Just as He Wei Ni Ya was puzzled, a series of footsteps rang out.

She turned around and finally saw Rhine's Knights rushing out from the street corner. They looked hurried, as if they had only just arrived, nothing like an ambush.

What exactly was going on?

Had they deliberately waited until Holy Sound's people were finished before appearing, or had they simply arrived late?

Before He Wei Ni Ya could figure it out, another thunderous boom rang out.

He Wei Ni Ya turned and saw a familiar burly man appear before her.

"Tongue... He Wei Ni Ya, you're finished!" Luo Qi nearly let it slip.

He Wei Ni Ya looked at Luo Qi's face, then slowly lowered her gaze to his bare right hand, which had only one finger remaining.

"Oh~" He Wei Ni Ya said. "Looks like you are determined to give me your last finger too."

Luo Qi's expression stiffened, and he was so furious that he nearly rushed forward to fight He Wei Ni Ya to the death.

Fortunately, his sound judgment—and his clear understanding of He Wei Ni Ya's strength—allowed him to forcibly suppress the urge to fight her desperately. At the same time, he kept warning himself inwardly.

Don't fight to the death. I'm not here to fight to the death.

He only needed to cooperate and drive this woman toward Nameless Town.

And not only could he not fight to the death, he also had to make this woman understand that he was not here to fight to the death. Otherwise, who knew whether this damned Tongue would go mad and directly fight him to the death.

With that thought, Luo Qi sneered. "You should be grateful. You are not my target. The one I truly want to kill is someone else, so..."

Then he gave He Wei Ni Ya a look that said, "You understand."

Luo Qi thought He Wei Ni Ya would understand what he meant—Tongue, I'm not fighting you. The one I really want to kill is Ulu, so let's put on a show tonight. I won't fight you to the death, and you don't expose me either.

But He Wei Ni Ya clearly did not understand. Watching Luo Qi wiggle his eyebrows at her like a lunatic, she could not help but frown and wonder whether she had damaged his brain when she beat him up the night before last.

Before He Wei Ni Ya could make sense of it, another series of piercing sounds came from behind her.

He Wei Ni Ya turned and saw several Eternal Nightmare Cultists leap high into the air, spreading their arms at the same time as though embracing the night sky. Then several enormous cracks surged out from their chests, filled with bizarre, indescribable things that had never been seen in the real world.

Dream Shards!

Were these Eternal Nightmare Cultists trying to drag her into a dream?

He Wei Ni Ya immediately raised her staff. Violent note energy danced at its tip.

On the surface, He Wei Ni Ya was preparing to deal with these Eternal Nightmare Cultists, but in truth, her attention remained fixed on Luo Qi behind her.

These Eternal Nightmare Cultists were merely a feint. The real threat had to be Luo Qi.

So He Wei Ni Ya deliberately exposed a weakness to Luo Qi. The moment he attacked, she would be able to launch a counterattack at once.

But this time, Luo Qi displayed remarkable restraint. He did not move as the Eternal Nightmare Cultists continuously expanded the Dream Shards until they connected with one another, seemingly about to swallow everyone present into the dream.

He did not move when He Wei Ni Ya raised her staff, preparing to attack the Eternal Nightmare Cultists.

Even when He Wei Ni Ya finished preparing and unleashed a Movement Spell, he finally moved.

But instead of attacking He Wei Ni Ya, he took two steps back, looking as though he feared being caught in the blast.

This left He Wei Ni Ya greatly surprised.

Why was this guy being so cautious? Or did he think these Eternal Nightmare Cultists were already enough to handle her?

He Wei Ni Ya could not think of an answer for the moment, but since Luo Qi had retreated, she no longer held back.

With a light tap of her staff, the air beside her rippled, and Ai De Wen's figure appeared. Blue ripples were caught between his fingertips—it was that Forbidden Knowledge.

"Get in there!"

Ai De Wen directly threw the Forbidden Knowledge into the fully expanded Dream Shards.

The Dream Shards began to twist the instant they touched the Forbidden Knowledge, then cracked apart inch by inch, startling the Eternal Nightmare Cultists into shouting.

"Ai De Wen, you bastard! You're throwing filthy things into the dream again!"

"Don't run! We'll kill you right now!"

Ai De Wen could not be bothered with them. Seeing the Dream Shards collapse, he immediately shouted at He Wei Ni Ya, "Now! Run!"

With that, he turned and sprinted in the only direction without pursuers.

Seeing Ai De Wen flee just like that, He Wei Ni Ya hesitated briefly before following him.

Of course, she did not believe Luo Qi would simply let her go. She still gripped her staff tightly, ready at any moment to deal with Luo Qi's attacks and any ambushes that might emerge around them.

But to her surprise, Luo Qi had no intention of pursuing her at all. He merely stood there quietly watching. And after their Dream Shards were destroyed, the Eternal Nightmare Cultists who had loudly declared that they would kill Ai De Wen made no further move either. They simply remained where they were and watched the two flee farther and farther away, until they escaped De La Town.

"That acting was far too terrible."

Outside the town, Mina, who had witnessed the entire pursuit, let out a soft sigh.

"Any normal person would sense that something was wrong."

There had been far too many unexpected developments tonight. Mina was not sure whether, after all this, Teacher Isaiah's plan could still proceed smoothly.

But no matter what, she still had to report it to her teacher.

Mina raised her hand, preparing to use the star chart to report to Isaiah.

But at that moment, a gentle male voice sounded beside her ear.

"You have already reported it, haven't you?"

Mina froze, and confusion flashed through her eyes.

"I... already reported it?" she murmured. Then realization dawned on her. "Oh, I already reported it to Teacher."

Then she turned and left, leaving Bai Wei alone to gaze at the distant He Wei Ni Ya and Ai De Wen.

"Good." He chuckled softly. "The audience is in place. Now... only one last step remains."