When the meteor swarm from a distant galaxy struck, interweaving their trajectories to create a magnificent brilliance of stars at an incredibly high speed, it signified the beginning of Perpetual Night's Lament's operation.
"Night's curtain of slumber, interweaving dreams of stars, I command you all in my identity as a witch—"
In the Twilight Garden where the wisteria rested, dozens of dazzling magic arrays were fully deployed.
The world's rhythm submitted to the witch, dancing gracefully in mid-air with her movements.
Ancient and delicate magic books automatically flipped open without wind, quickly turning from the beginning to the end, making a pleasant rustling sound of pages and arousing mysterious spell ripples.
At the same time, the meteor shower was invisibly manipulated amidst the boundless cosmos, altering its trajectory and transforming into beautiful star flowers, blooming towards City A.
When the people of City A raised their heads to behold the tiny stars on the night sky's border...
When the seated witch opened her eyes, revealing a charming and enchanting smile...
When the players' conflicts resumed, reshaping the power structure of the Sequence Game...
"—Celestial Phenomenon Birth."
As the witch's words ended or began...
The rules descended!
...
...
—"Rank A, 91st"
—"Rank A, 95th"
—"Rank A, 73rd"
When Qingxian, Himizuki, and Lian, the A-Rank players of the Sequence Game, confronted each other in the southern district of City A.
The world was still unaware of the cruelty of the Sequence Game, indulging in the breathtaking sight of the meteor shower.
The evening breeze caressed Lian's soft black hair, swaying her black evening gown. Her smile became more enchanting, playful, and full of profound meanings...
"Oh my, the game of hide-and-seek is over~"
Lian effortlessly danced with the giant purple crystal scythe, twirling it as if it were a pen.
Standing on top of the towering spire, she was even more enticing than the purple moon, where danger and beauty intertwined.
On the other side of the triangular confrontation, before the gun formation constructed with blood rose and golden phoenix patterns.
Eighteen classical firearms unfolded like folding fans, waiting for the intentions of the red-eyed girl.
"I heard you've been pursuing 'Shadow' recently?" Himizuki looked at Lian with a mocking gaze. "I really didn't expect that one day you, a woman like you, would stoop to seeking love."
"What's wrong with being humble for love?" Lian showed no signs of anger and instead appeared pleased. "Mocking a goddess seeking love, what a sight for the single ones."
Himizuki raised an eyebrow but didn't respond, standing with crossed arms on top of the skyscraper. The classical gun formation behind her represented vintage luxury and untouchable elegance.
At this moment, the meteor shower, led by the witch, was about to strike, and the protective formations of Country Z responded accordingly, exhibiting an esoteric aura that overlooked the world...
Qingxian, of course, had no time for small talk.
The pressure of a practiced cultivator enveloped her surroundings, her gaze icy, as if trying to pierce Lian's heart and consciousness.
Drawing her personal sword from the void, Qingxian's frigid sword light seemed to cut through space...
Qingxian focused all her lifetime of comprehension into the next strike.
Raising her hand, wielding her sword, resonating with the heavens.
Above the tranquil night, it was the fate no practitioner dared to defy.
As Qingxian confronted Lian, the latter smiled fearlessly, her beauty reminiscent of a purple butterfly in the summer night.
She also lifted her arm, but this time, she held the mythical Amesist's Scythe, a giant scythe merging amethyst and darkness.
The evening wind roared, and her black hair fluttered...
The magnificent purple magic transformed into a sudden cyclone, centered around Lian, dominating the vast sky of City A.
Until it left a scar on the world, where the moon once hung.
Amesist's Scythe lightly hooked onto the moon, and Lian threatened the world in this manner.
In the next moment, she made a hushing gesture, accompanied by her most enchanting smile.
"—'Heaven's Weep'—"
Decimating all in its path mercilessly.
Lian beautifully swung the Amesist's Scythe, starting from the moon and effortlessly tearing apart the world!
In an instant, the protective formation was severed, revealing the full spectacle of the meteor shower!
...
...
Slurp—
In a street-side stall in the western district of City A, Fujitani Nisuke took a big bite of his braised beef noodles, savoring the thick and mild broth.
But in the next moment, a powerful B-Rank aura erupted in the northern district, causing him to pause and look seriously towards the abnormal sky.
Without a word, Fujitani Nisuke immediately abandoned his unfinished noodles, stood up, and reached for his transformation device to hurry to the location.
However, after running a few steps, the dispirited office worker returned to the stall and placed a ten-dollar bill on the table in front of the stunned stall owner.
"The noodles were delicious, no need for change!"
The stall owner snapped back to reality, picked up the bill, and panicked, "Wait, you still owe—"
By the time they looked up, Fujitani Nisuke had already vanished.
...
...
In the North District of City A, at the Public Security Bureau.
The police officer on night duty received a call from his home.
"Rare to see a meteor shower, won't you come and watch it with our son?" It was his wife on the other end of the line.
"What's the matter?" His boss, who was inspecting the work, asked.
In a serious tone, the officer replied, "Sir, can I have a three-hour leave?"
"Hmph." The boss snorted, "I've already told you before, I won't approve your leave. We are police officers, how can we—"
Suddenly, he stopped.
The boss sighed and said slowly, "Oh well, work half an hour more, then you can go. I'll cover for you."
"Thank you, sir!"
"Go, go, go, don't call me 'sir,' it makes me sound like I'm in the mafia."
Meanwhile, the boss had also rejected his wife's call a moment ago.
...
...
In a hidden underground research facility within a corporation, a bright white light illuminated the experimental space in front of the silver-metallic prison.
Separated by specially reinforced glass, Death's Leader sat face to face with a researcher.
The German man, sitting on a stool with his legs crossed, had long white hair, a kind and gentle appearance, and seemed like an honest middle-aged man enjoying his retirement.
But his "Rank D, 1st" sequence title constantly reminded others that he was an extremely dangerous containment subject.
"Do you find ranks to be a boring concept, and is that how you feel about it?" Death's Leader was conversing with the E-Rank researcher who was containing him as if he were a life mentor.
The researcher also smiled amiably but did not answer Death's Leader's question, and behind him, the clones continued their work as scientific tools.
"For me..." Death's Leader adjusted the direction of his beret with one hand. "The concept of ranks is indeed a boring one..."
However, he swiftly changed the subject and pointed directly at the researcher himself:
"However, for you low-level ability users, ranks mean everything..."
"And so what?" The researcher pushed his glasses up. "We will soon completely analyze your super-speed regeneration and become immortal, won't we?"
"Hahaha..." Death's Leader laughed, leaning forward with one hand propped on his thigh, gazing at the researcher.
"So, you should look more closely, try to understand—"
"You should know that this space is completely sealed, utterly secure, and not something you can—"
Ignoring the researcher's warning, Death's Leader finished what he wanted to say:
"—the terror of ranks..."
At that moment, as the meteor shower successfully breached the protective formation of City A, the rules of the Sequence Game descended with an unchallengeable aura!
"Game on, B-Rank Sequence Game ready."
"Eligible ranks: B-Rank and below."
"Confirmed number of participating players: All eligible players in the North District of City A."
"Scene solidified, rules generating."
"Rule one: The game is reality itself."
"Rule two: The sequence is the conflict."
"Rule three: Welcome to the Sequence Game of Death's Arrival (The Witch's Message)."
A series of rules were instantly generated, excluding all A-Rank players from the Sequence Game. Finally, Death's Leader took action.
"Hahaha—" It was a laugh of unrestrained joy and impatience for carnage.
"You cannot break through—" The researcher's confident words were cut short.
—Bang! An incredibly heavy gunshot echoed in the sealed space!
"Single Soldier Armament."
"Rank: B"
"Item holders can manifest various types of enhanced single soldier military weapons, with different cooldown times for each weapon."
"Note: Military armaments that surpass the laws of physics, ignoring the defenses of players below B-Rank."
Death's Leader decisively and effortlessly aimed at his own head, ending his life!
Immediately after, outside the prison, a researcher observing the tissue samples through a microscope suddenly underwent a mutation!
"Hahaha—Is the research hard?" Small pieces of flesh rapidly regenerated into organs at an incomprehensible speed!
As Death's Leader ended his life, the regenerating cells in the minuscule tissue sample rapidly accelerated. Laughing amiably, Death's Leader wielded his assault rifle and sprayed the whole room!
"Field barrier—""Notify the outer area—""Ugh—"
By the time the brief greetings were over, no survivors remained in the laboratory. Bloodstains vanished along with pale blue data into the void...
"I miss the days when I shot B-Rank players. Good evening, world..."
Death's Leader chuckled as he dusted off the ashes from his clothes and walked nonchalantly towards the outer area of the research facility. His figure was terrifying...