After leaving the team, the adventurer ladies regretted it deeply

From chaotic disarray, a delicate magic circle gradually formed.

The array took shape, and a blue light enveloped Lin Da.

A gust of wind blew past, the weeds swayed, and dry leaves lightly floated up into the air.

Inside the valley, Lin Da's figure had already vanished.

...

Half an hour later, the previously silent Ninefold Mountain Region echoed again with the sounds of beastly roars and birdsong.

The terrifying presence that had enveloped adventurers' heads disappeared.

A new commotion erupted between the adventurers and the Demons.

Who indeed was that mysterious Light Rank sweeping through the Ninefold Mountain Region?

Many adventurers had seen that shadow.

Also, a few Demons who escaped calamity brought the news back to the city.

This matter immediately caused a huge uproar.

A Light Rank, deep in essence, suspected to be of Ultimate Light Tier, Level 59.

Yet, it appeared in the 20th floor of the Great Mystery Continent...

Such an event had not occurred in thousands of years.

Due to the distance, people only knew that the individual was wearing a black coat and wielding a sword.

How did this Light Rank enter the 20th floor?

Or did they, by some stroke of fortune, break through from Moon Rank directly to Level 59?

As people calmed down, they began searching for clues.

The starting point of the mysterious person's appearance was near a purple light column.

Several courageous adventurers and Demons rushed towards that area.

Among them was Willy from the Steel Blade Adventure Team.

Arriving in the valley, the first thing he saw was a ground full of mutilated corpses.

The stench of blood was pungent, attracting many wild animals that were clambering on them feasting.

Looking at the hellish scene before him, Willy was dumbstruck.

Among the bodies, there were many familiar faces.

Giant Shark Adventure Group, Difeng, ranked 201 on the Moon List.

Black Tiger Adventure Group.

Beast Adventure Group.

All of them were well-known adventure teams from the Six-Layer and Seven-Layer Mountain Regions.

And there was also a man carrying a blue Great Sword.

The vice captain of the Masked Ball, Yifeng!

All these people had the same manner of death: a fist-sized hole in their chests, their hearts pierced and their flesh charred.

While examining the bodies, Willy's hands trembled slightly.

There were about two hundred bodies, not counting those that couldn't be found.

From the positions where the bodies fell, it was clear the Demons were clever in choosing different directions to escape.

Willy, familiar with several Light Ranks, understood their capabilities. He could conclude that an ordinary Level 59, unless Moon Ranks stood still, couldn't possibly kill so many.

"Such prowess, certainly not something a newly promoted Light Rank could achieve!"

Willy leaned more towards the second guess.

The individual had entered the 20th floor by some special means.

But none of the strong characters at the top of the "Light List" used black flames.

The truth was elusive and perplexing.

Since this matter was of great importance, Willy took out a Teleportation Stone and returned to the city to report the incident to the local Adventurers' Guild.

The president was woken up in the middle of the night and was quite irritable when he entered the meeting room.

However, upon hearing about the mysterious Light Rank appearing in the 20th floor, his expression changed dramatically!

"To think such a thing could happen..." the president muttered to himself, his eyes filled with shock.

There were only two possibilities for the truth.

Either an amazing encounter brought the person from Level 49 to Level 59.

Or the person had mastered a special method to enter the 20th floor.

Of course, there was an outlandish scenario where the person used magic items to temporarily possess the power of a Light Rank.

However, after careful consideration, everyone dismissed this possibility.

Magic items that could elevate a Moon Rank to an Ultimate Light Rank simply did not exist.

After excluding the impossible options, only the first two remained.

If it were the former, the Mystic Continent might gain a new legendary figure. This genius must be protected promptly to avoid assassination by the Demons.

If it were the latter...

This person had mastered a method to ignore the rules of the World Tree and enter the 20th layer as someone of the Light Rank...

Both the Mystic Continent and the Devil's Continent would go mad over this!

Whoever could first master this method would be able to rule the Great Mystery Continent of the 20th layer.

If the World Tree were likened to a sky-reaching water pipe, controlling the 20th layer would be like a giant hand seizing a section of the pipe.

The opponents' people would be stuck in this section of the pipe on the 20th layer, making it difficult for them to advance.

It might seem to be just a mysterious Light Rank killing a few hundred inconsequential Demons on the 20th layer — on a continental scale, a few hundred at the Moon Rank isn't much, and the Demon King's Castle wouldn't feel much pain.

But what they cared about was the truth behind this incident!

That night, both the Royal Capital and the Demon King's Castle took action.

They mobilized their hidden agents in each other's continents, fully committed to spying.

The Royal Capital dispatched the Judgment Knight Order to be stationed in the southern region of Cangqing Province, while the Demon King's Castle urgently moved personnel from the Hunting Hall into Black Deer Province.

Through the World Tree in these two areas, one could appear near the purple light pillar.

Whether the Judgment Knight Order or the Hunting Hall, all members were at level 49. They deliberately stagnated, serving as spearheads for the 20th layer of the Great Mystery Continent.

In their youth, all members were renowned experts on the Moon List.

For the sake of the continent, they gave up hopes of advancement and voluntarily remained forever at the Moon Rank.

Entering the 20th layer was akin to a destroying torrent.

That night, controlled by a Sacred Rank adventurer, flying dragons took members of the Judgment Knight Order and the Hunting Hall to the local World Tree.

At four in the morning, the Royal Capital issued a decree: They must find out the identity of that mysterious Light Rank! If the person showed up voluntarily, they would be treated as a Legendary Adventurer!

Half an hour later, an agent of the Royal Capital in the Devil's Continent sent back a message.

It turned out that the Demon King's Castle had also issued a decree. Any Demon who killed or captured the Light Rank alive would be rewarded with a complete set of Ancient Level equipment!

The Ancient Level ranked above the Legendary Level, each item capable of causing a bloodbath on the continent.

Yet the Demon King's Castle promised a set for the killing or capture of the opponent!

Area 175 in the Ten Thousand Mountains became red-hot.

The top Moon Ranks from both continents flocked to this location.

This unremarkable corner of the Ten Thousand Mountains suddenly became a convergence of turbulent clouds.

At the same moment.

In the Devil's Continent, within a city shrouded by thunderclouds.

This place bore a name that reverberated like thunder among countless Demons.

The Demon King's Castle!

The strongest among the Demons, leading the people to rise and resist adventurers... His Majesty the Demon King slept here.

Perpetual thunderclouds shrouded the city above, with serpents of twisted lightning striking the earth, permeating the air with the pungent smell of sulfur. Magic Elements were like restless volcanoes floating in the air, ready to rip apart the Magic Circuit inside any careless adventurer.

Below the Light Rank, no qualifications even to enter the outskirts of the Demon King's Castle existed.

Four castles of distinct styles guarded the majestic Demon King's Castle in the center, with the city layout strikingly similar to that of the Royal Capital on the Mystic Continent.

The former was the residence of the Four Great Dukes, while the latter housed the "Four Heavenly Kings," the four strongest Demons under the Demon King.

One of the castles was predominantly gold, decorated with colorful stained glass, resembling a church in appearance.

Inside the hall, a woman wearing a white mask and black robe kneeled on the ground, trembling in fear.

"Heavenly King, the images in this Recording Stone must be mistaken?

He should be dead, correct?"

"If he is still alive, what are we fighting for..."

Desperation and insecurity filled the woman's eyes.

Her slender fingers clutched the ground tightly, nails and flesh separating, with searing pain eroding her brain.

Only this way could she temporarily forget the scene from the 20th layer of the Great Mystery Continent.

"Lady Bai Mian, you have done well. I will recommend you to His Majesty as the next of the Twelve Belongings."

The woman on the throne of bones, wearing a thin black veil with swathes of pale skin showing, smiled as she spoke.

The woman's voice was like a gentle spring breeze, soothing Lady Bai Mian's spirit.

The enormous pressure on Lady Bai Mian's heart shattered, and she felt a lightness wash over her.

"You may leave now."

"Yes."

As if forgetting all her worries, Lady Bai Mian walked out of the palace in a daze.

Meanwhile, the woman on the bone throne lazily propped her chin and crossed her long legs, placing a Magic Tablet Instrument on top.

Curiously, a blurred image in the Magic Tablet Instrument reflected a man in a black trench coat carrying a peculiar great sword.