"Go inside and bring all the explosives and the bows and arrows." Xia Sahui issued the firm command to everyone present.

  The Unawakened exchanged brief, apprehensive glances before scattering into the temple's interior to comply. Cai Hong was the first to return, hauling a heavy, clinking satchel. Over the course of their long journey, they had collected a significant number of these explosives, the quantity was to the point where each of them could take ten and there would still be a few left.

  Xia Sahui picked up one of the metallic sphere explosives, and threw it toward the nearest house, her movement almost similar to a baseball player.

  Boom!

  The sphere exploded, but there was no sign of any life. The side of the house was probably empty.

  She picked up another and repeated the same. Fortunately, this time, as soon as the sphere blew up, a figure shot forward with high speed, dashing frantically toward another building.

  Unfortunately for him, the plain was just too large. There was no cover to hide behind, he was exposed.

  By this time, everyone was already back with their weapons.

  "Go ahead and take the point," she said to Cai Hong. "Repeat like this. Don't compete among yourselves—whoever demonstrates superior skill earns the elimination. Let individual competence determine the victor."

  Cai Hong nodded slightly as he quickly took the aim and shot an arrow.

  Shiu!

  The Unawakened below kept running until an arrow hit him in the back, and he was sent tumbling on the ground. Cai Hong didn't let the opportunity slip by and continued firing the arrows.

  But the youth on the ground was way too resilient; he pulled out the arrow, took a few healing pills, and once again continued moving forward, his movements faltering but determined. A few of the following arrows missed due to him running around in unexpected patterns but all it did was delay the inevitable, as all of his energy was drained and he was shot seven times.

  In the meantime, the others also began doing the same, they chose a part of a building and started blowing up those structures.

  …Within merely half an hour, the entire area had been transformed into an inferno. Smoke and flames dominated the landscape in every direction, the acrid stench of burning wood and stone permeating the air.

  All things considered, they had found and killed eight Unawakened hiding in these houses. Though the number was low, the efficiency with which they cleared this zone was way higher than anything they had done earlier.

  In the process, they had also destroyed all the hiding spots nearby which meant that those who enter the central zone later on will have much worse odds, their survival chances dwindling with each passing moment.

  …

  Deep within the forest, Lu Yi navigated through the dense foliage with practical ease, hands tucked inside his pocket, worry-free. He had already killed many and wasn't in any hurry to reach the center. His goal was to be the last survivor and get those points. And for that to happen, the lesser the number of survivors, the higher his chances.

  There wasn't much to do, so he kept looking at the survivor count and the map. It was currently sitting at 98 survivors, which was quite insane.

  …Walking through the landscape, the sun gave way to the moon. It was night, but he didn't rest and kept moving, his silhouette moving through the trees.

  Soon, the moon set and the sun came up once again, painting the sky in shades of rose and gold.

  It was slightly unexpected that he wasn't attacked even a single time during the time he passed through the forest—but it made sense—anyone who made it this far wouldn't throw it all away by attacking a monster that appeared to have jumped out of a storybook.

  Slowly, the forest started thinning. Trees that had previously grown in dense clusters now stood increasingly separated, gaps widening between their trunks. Looking at the map, he realized that he was almost out of the forest, the tree line behind him.

  He looked at the survivors once again:

  [75/500]

  Another thing he noticed was that he was already inside the next safe zone.

  In front of him were large open plains, he scaled one of the taller trees and observed. There were a few buildings and structures out in the distant.

  Another thing to notice were the two temples and multiple black remnants left near both. It wasn't any huge task to understand what had transpired—what was a huge task was the dilemma on how to reach the center.

  Lu Yi was sure that he'd get noticed, the moment he gets out of the forest. He looked at Xia Sahui's temple, thanks to them being in a location directly between the center and the mountains, he was able to easily determine which was which.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  "Hmm?" Suddenly he remembered something and quickly checked the map. "Oh, looks like I won't need to worry about getting discovered."

  He was already in the range of Xia Sahui's temple, so he was able to see it marked on the map, and luckily, they were barely outside the next safe zone which meant they would be forced to run the next time.

  The destruction would start at midnight; he'd already made up his mind to move at night, and if possible, finish the game the next day, which meant he'd need appropriate sleep and peak condition.

  Finding himself a thick tree, he hollowed out the trunk and entered the tree, it took some time but not much.

  He then used Massless to materialize the necklace of the Waveless, and wore it. He had not worn it earlier because he was deliberately trying to get noticed, so that someone would attack him and he'd get more points, but currently, he didn't want to get found sleeping inside a tree.

  He then covered the entrance properly, and went to his slumber, the sounds of the forest fading into the distance as sleep claimed him.

  …

  At the temple, Xia Sahui looked at the map and bit her nail, the gesture betraying her anxiety. It was over. Everything was over. This was the last day, and she had to make a decision. She had already given Hua Yong and the others permission to reach out to the other temple but it would take them some time.

  Amidst the stress, she opened the survivor count:

  [67/500]

  …

  Hua Yong and the group ran through the vast plains while keeping an eye on the surroundings in case someone attacks from any of those houses or buildings. They kept their distance going as far as to slightly circle around the plains. And surprisingly, nothing happened. It seemed that as long as they didn't go near those houses, the people inside wouldn't cause any conflict.

  After an hour of sprinting, they reached the other temple. The inhabitants of the temple, of course, noticed them, but when the group looked properly, there was only a single girl standing near the edge.

  "Greetings" Hua Yong looked upward and asked with a polite and soft voice. "We are from the other temple. Can we talk to the guardian of this temple?"

  "I am the Guardian." The girl replied, staring down at them. "What do you need from me?"

  "Then I guess we can talk with you in a better environment than this" Hua Yong's smile was thin. "Would you mind lowering the temple and have a talk with us?"

  "What do you want to talk about? Tell me, otherwise I have no reason to give you an opportunity to infiltrate the temple."

  "I am Hua Yong of the Hua family; do you still want to decline me?"

  "Yes."

  Hua Yong was a bit startled about the immediate rejection—but didn't falter, his expression remaining composed despite the refusal. "Then have you heard about the monster?"

  "Alright, we can have a talk." The girl yielded instantly.

  She went inside and a few minutes later the temple began descending.

  After the temple settled on the ground, Hua Yong's eyes shone slightly as he carefully entered inside, but the shine died the moment he saw the person sitting on the throne in the middle, his expression shifting from triumph to recognition to something that might have been fear.

  The others beside Hua Yong also felt the change in his expression.

  "So—" Zhang Ling asked with a monotone voice, his gaze fixed on the newcomers. "—what about this monster that you wanted to talk about, Hua Yong?"

  "Greetings, brother Zhang Ling." He nodded his head slightly, giving a firm greeting.

  …

  Back at the temple, Xia Sahui still contemplated her next decision, but after what felt like an eternity, she finally saw Yao Ming return to the temple, his form appearing on the horizon.

  "Where are the others?" Her voice was sharp, urgent.

  "There is a slight complication. The other temple is inhabited by Zhang Ling of the Zhang family. Hua Yong and the others are not dead, but he decided that we stay together and kill some more survivors to let the temple guardians obtain their position in the top 50."

  "How many survivors were there in the temple?"

  "Three—one girl who is the guardian of the temple, and one more guy controlling the temple, and Zhang Ling himself."

  "What?!" She exclaimed, before finally letting out a sigh of breath. "Sigh…"

  If the other party was actually Zhang Ling, then Xia Sahui had no reason to compete in the game any further. The last survivor would absolutely go to him. She was smart, she knew that the clan head's family was not a joke, their power absolute, their reach endless. Not to mention the sudden decrease in the survivor count a few days ago, she immediately made the connection.

  As for the monster—it hadn't even appeared yet—she knew the best decision was to not take the risk and instead play safe, her survival instincts overriding her ambitions.

  She still opened the survivor count before anything:

  [59/500]

  The survivor count was the last confirmation Xia Sahui needed. She decided to stay as the guardian, the choice was hard, but it was the most logical one.

  She gave Zhu Yan, Wan Reira, Xu Qin, and Cai Hong orders to go with Yao Ming and join Zhang Ling, while she remained at the temple by herself.

  They followed the orders and went out together, their forms disappearing into the distance, leaving her alone.

  …

  The hours passed slowly, the survivor count also went down with each passing moment.

  By the time it was night—the cracks had already reached the temple.

  Both temples were empty except for a single inhabitant in each. In one temple was Xia Sahui, and in the other was Ren Ai. It wasn't that Zhang Ling didn't have anyone better to give the temple to, it was just that Jin Qing wanted to fight the monster together with him, and refused the role. So, naturally, it went to his other subordinate. Hua Yong neither had any guts nor any right to ask for the temple, so he also didn't get it.

  Slowly, the moon crept high in the sky, the moment it reached the peak—

  Rumble.

  Lu Yi could feel the slight tremors, being this close to the edge. He came out immediately, and climbed the tree once again and sat on a branch.

  Everything was covered in the dark veil of night. Sitting there for a moment, he heard a few sounds from behind. It seemed like there were still some who were coming out of the forest.

  He opened the survivor count:

  [52/500]

  'Hmm—should I help them?' He considered it.

  Grabbing the trunk for support, he stood on the branch. He faced backward toward the forest and jumped.

  A few powerful leaps from one tree to another, he caught onto a branch—his fingers wrapping around the bark, and hung from the tree with a single hand, his body swaying gently in the night breeze.

  Then, deliberately, the hand slipped, his feet touching the earth with the softness of a cat, the grass cushioning his descent.

  He was standing directly behind two Unawakened, crouched inside a bush, their forms hidden among the leaves as they tried to get a good look of the plains ahead.

  Without any rush, Lu Yi used Massless to summon two daggers, the weapons materializing in his hands like ice forming from nothing.

  "What do you think?" The female Unawakened asked her companion, her voice carrying a note of triumph despite their precarious situation. "We have nearly made it to the top 50—isn't it amazing?"

  Meanwhile, the companion wasn't so enthusiastic: "We still haven't made it in. Don't celebrate too early—"

  Slash! Slit!

  With two clean slashes across the backs of their necks, both died without knowing or understanding what had happened.

  The bodies collapsed forward, tumbling out of the bush and onto the open ground, the grass staining with blood. Soon the human shapes dissolved into wooden chests. The next time they wake up, they'd definitely be confused.