The end of the world is approaching, I'm handing myself over to the country.

Deep underground, in the darkness, the air was stagnant, carrying a strange smell of rust and decay.

This is the withered throne, and also her underground palace.

In stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of the main cities of other players, this place is utterly desolate.

A figure shrouded in a black robe quietly appeared and knelt on one knee.

"Lord Wither, the 'players' are expanding their activity range. Their traces have been found in the 'Rotten Land' in the east and the 'Howling Swamp' in the west."

On the throne, Diaoling slowly opened his eyes.

"quantity?"

"They grew exponentially, and...they were all fearless."

"The fearlessness of ants is just another form of stupidity."

Wither rose from the throne, her bare feet stepping silently onto the cold obsidian floor.

"Keep an eye on them, record everything about them, but don't take action."

"Yes, sir." The figure in black robes blended into the shadows and disappeared.

Withered passed through the deep corridor and arrived at the bottom of the underground palace.

A door pieced together from unknown skeletons slid open silently as she approached.

Behind the door, in the deep darkness, only the faint sound of chains being dragged could be heard.

Zhou Jian was pinned to the wall by dozens of black spikes that had pierced his bones, unable to move.

The power of the authority of death was completely suppressed, and even suicide became a luxury.

Withering stood before him, the purple flames illuminating his pale, blood-stained face.

"Still won't you tell me? Your stubbornness is beyond my expectations."

"However, your companions seem to have forgotten about you."

Her voice rang directly in Zhou Jian's mind, carrying a chilling aura that seemed to rip out his soul.

"More and more players are appearing in my territory. They are keen on capturing some lowly beasts, and they fight each other to the death for a little bit of resources."

"You guys are really despicable and disgusting."

"But they seem to be doing very well."

"No one came looking for you, and no one mentioned your name."

"Nobody even remembers you."

Withered took a step forward and leaned close to Zhou Jian's ear.

"Your world has abandoned you."

Zhou Jian's eyelids twitched slightly, as if he was gathering his strength.

Wither continued to exert pressure: "Tell me, where does your ability to resurrect infinitely come from? I can mercifully grant you a true death, freeing you from this endless suffering."

Zhou Jian suddenly raised his head, his chest heaving violently, and spat a mouthful of bloody phlegm mixed with fragments of internal organs precisely onto his withered, flawless face.

Perhaps they never expected that the other party would dare to provoke them at this time.

boom!

Withered immediately attacked, throwing a punch that slammed heavily into Zhou Jian's abdomen.

The enormous impact shattered the wall behind it.

Zhou Jian twitched the corner of his mouth as if he were smiling, but instead let out a roar like a broken bellows.

The withering motion paused for a moment.

A flash of hatred crossed her eyes as she reached out and slowly wiped the filth from her face.

The fingertip stained with blood-tinged phlegm dissolved and annihilated the phlegm along with the surrounding space the moment it came into contact with the air.

"You're really stubborn."

The withered creature laughed, its laughter echoing through the underground palace, causing the skeletons on the walls to tremble.

"But it made me understand something."

She took two steps back and re-examined the stubborn fellow on the wall.

"Your strong reaction only confirms my suspicions."

"That treasure isn't in some hidden place, but somewhere you care about, or... it's related to someone you care about."

Zhou Jian's expression remained unchanged.

Withered turned away, her back to him.

Even if you don't say anything, you've already shown me the way.

"Your value has come to an end."

"As punishment, you will be trapped here forever, for all eternity!"

Wandering through the corridors, my withered thoughts fell into a long-standing confusion.

She doesn't understand.

Those weak "players" are clearly easily defeated. Even if they can resurrect infinitely, what good will it do?

Ants, no matter how many times they are resurrected, are still ants.

Why would those guys go to such great lengths, even sacrificing themselves, to completely isolate the Netherworld from that world called "Blue Star"?

What exactly happened to them there?

The passage was sealed off, history was buried, and everything became a mystery.

But it doesn't matter anymore.

The decaying leaves paused, opening their palms.

A wisp of energy, completely different from the death energy of the Netherworld Heaven, filled with chaos and instability, swirled and condensed in her palm.

She has found a new method, a crack that can tear the seal open from the inside.

Before long, the barrier that separates the two worlds will be completely breached.

At that time, all the mysteries will be solved in the face of absolute power.

Withered Five Fingers closed, crushing the ball of chaotic energy.

She doesn't need to understand the fears of her ancestors.

All she knew was that those people were like ants that hadn't even developed yet.

No matter what's there, just brute force it flat.

......

Safe zone, forging room.

A sparrow fluttered its wings and landed steadily on the counter in front of Lin Mo.

[Coordinate information collection complete.]

[All key nodes surrounding the Withered Palace have been located, and a 3D spatial map has been successfully constructed with an error margin approaching zero.]

The sparrow's voice carried a hint of smug satisfaction.

"Is the harvest finally complete?"

Lin Mo's voice was icy: "Now that the coordinates have been collected, it's time to settle some scores."

Sparrow: [What do you want to do?]

Lin Feng sneered, "What should we do? Of course, we'll settle scores and avenge our grievances! She dared to capture my people, so she'll pay with her life!"

"The Empress of Fate's injury also requires a King-level core, and I think hers is quite good."

Lin Mo stretched out his hand, and a virtual light screen unfolded in front of him.

On the screen, a complex and precise map of the underground structure slowly rotated, with countless red dots flashing within it, marking the patrol routes and troop deployments of the Withered Army.

At the very center, an area marked "strong energy reaction" was completely surrounded by layers upon layers of defensive barriers.

That's where Zhou Jian was imprisoned.

Lin Mo could sense even a fraction of the pain that Withering inflicted on Zhou Jian in the underground palace through some kind of hidden connection.

If she had killed Zhou Jian directly, they could have resurrected him, but she didn't.

Therefore, there cannot be a second Zhou Jian.

Zhou Jian is currently enduring a continuous torment that feels like it's tearing his soul apart.

Lin Mo raised his hand, his fingertips rapidly tapping on the virtual console.

Without the slightest hesitation, he directly accessed the system announcement module with the highest privileges.

【Ding! 】

A crisp notification sound rang in the ears of all players of Wasteland Era.

A massive scroll, radiating a dark golden light, was forcibly unfurled in everyone's view.

[Large-Scale Team Epic Quest: Thunder Rescue]