Return Of The Strongest Player

Randy and Arthur's heads jerked towards Dino, who seemed unaware of the gravity of the words he'd muttered. He casually scratched his head, traversing slowly across the desolate world alongside the other two.

"The silver wall…" Arthur said, glancing at Randy, who glanced back with a knowing look plastered over his face.

Randy nodded solemnly. Silence descended upon the area for a few seconds, alerting Dino of the discrepancy in the atmosphere. He awkwardly turned around, staring at Arthur and Randy, who were silent.

"What's going on?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.

Arthur and Randy explained the "silver wall" situation, and the three headed toward the outskirts of the desolate world almost immediately. Their steps were light, and traversing across the crimson soil was not difficult.

There were a few natural obstructions, such as empty craters or tiny hills, but those were scaled easily. After Randy's lack of mana was considered, it took the group almost an hour to approach the outskirts.

They were still an hour away from the silver wall, but their footsteps suddenly halted.

"Is that…" Randy muttered as his expression brightened. The shadows of two newbies were visible in the distance. One was encompassed in blood and wounds, while another was supporting the former.

They were barely distinguishable, and Arthur and the others were only able to identify them once they neared the two.

The person encompassed in blood was Jenny, whose expression was dim. Cuts and bruises lined her skin, and although severe wounds were tied using clean clothes, they dyed the "makeshift bandages" crimson.

Dark circles were present beneath her eyelids, along with temporary wrinkles that made her seem incredibly old.

The one supporting her was Harry, whose forehead was covered in sweat. His muscles were tensed at all times, and supporting Jenny's weight was becoming increasingly difficult as time passed.

One couldn't imagine the elation Harry felt once he spotted Arthur, Randy, and Dino.

"Help," he croaked, pressured by Jenny's body weight. The former, in an attempt to conserve mana, had overly fatigued his physical body. Randy placed Jenny on the ground, while Dino scouted the area.

Arthur healed a few of Jenny's wounds but conserved most of his mana. Once the latter was healed to the point where she could take over, Arthur withdrew his crimson aura, letting out a sigh.

The second tier was not progressing how Arthur expected.

His gemstone count was quite low, while he hadn't even reached Level 2 of the desolate world yet. Although he could traverse the world whenever he wished, the gemstone count was an aspect that worried him.

Either someone was monopolizing the gemstones, or those who possessed them had already reached Level 2.

However, both aspects were minor when compared to the issue regarding the anomaly. Arthur was certain that the anomaly prevented 90% of newbies who were destined to become players from achieving their goals.

By monopolizing the gemstones to a large extent and outright killing almost all of the newbies, the anomaly gained total control of the second trial, achieving victory after becoming the absolute ruler of the desolate world.

Arthur glanced at the others.

'Only Harry was supposed to survive this,' thought the crimson-eyed man. 'I don't know any of the others, which means he was the only one who managed to escape the anomaly's tyranny and become a player.'

Although, even that was suspicious.

Harry was one of the weakest.

Considering that most of the members of "Stars Of Tomorrow" perished during the second trial, he shouldn't have been capable of becoming a player. Yet, somehow, he managed to attain the title.

'But, that could be because the members sacrificed themselves for him, or he used them as meatshields. The former seems more likely, considering Harry's just personality and his moral-influenced decisions.'

Arthur prevented himself from overthinking, as that would lead to him weaving a web of problems within his mind. The crimson-eyed man, although experienced, was not omniscient by any means.

His judgment was limited, and so were his mental and physical prowess.

Once Jenny had recovered, she relayed information about Heather to the group, shocking them all. It seemed almost everyone had had a dangerous encounter during the second tier of the second trial.

'Pure teleportation…' Arthur let out a bitter chuckle internally. 'This is going to be difficult.'

*

Gusts of winds containing specs of dust and tiny pebbles swept across the desolate world, fluttering the clothes of those who traveled outwards, towards the outskirts of Level 1. This was akin to regressing.

Once they discovered information about Heather and Neon, their journey towards the silver wall was inevitable. One reason was revenge, and another was curiosity. The third and most important reason was Arthur's knowledge, which he hadn't disclosed to anyone.

After an hour of traversing across the lands, Arthur and the others finally arrived at their destination. In the distance, a large, silver wall encased the newbies in a hellish, apocalyptic world that progressed in temperature towards its core.

The core was Level 3.

The wall emanated a dim glow, reflecting the faint light that illuminated the desolate world. Arthur was not certain where the light originated, but he wasn't one to question such meaningless aspects of an ecosystem.

Well, it wasn't a healthy ecosystem, and seemed to be the remains of a long-lost civilization.

"There they are," Harry announced, his gaze falling over the two figures in the distance. It was Heather and Neon.

Arthur and the others approached the two, alerting them almost instantly. Immediately, Neon assumed a defensive stance, unsheathing his sword. His eyes contained immeasurable confidence and determination.

On the other hand, Heather's eyes were as tranquil as a lake on a peaceful day. She seemed unperturbed by the arrival of hostile forces, and simply remained in a meditative stance, gazing at the newcomers.

"I knew you would come, but hadn't expected your arrival to be so soon. I expected a longer reunion, and then, perhaps a gemstone-gathering session before you finally noticed something was amiss."

As Heather completed her speech, countless blue windows appeared before Arthur and the others.

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