[Dimensional Bullet Screen Zone]
'Why don't you look behind you? Look behind you!'
'Chen Kong: Guys like you are at most a 'loli' in our Embers~'
'A surprise attack and a counter-surprise attack? Chen Kong is learning to be sly.'
'Where did Chen Kong learn this underhanded trick? It's so hard to guess.'
First, Tavis used the 'Fungal Hotpot' to create a clone that deceived Chen Kong.
Then, Chen Kong turned the tables, using his Dream Weaver ability to copy Ye Shenlin Star Source, Past Phantom, creating a special clone that deceived Tavis in return.
The sudden reversal allowed Chen Kong to instantly eliminate Tavis, the strongest member of the four-person team.
Without Tavis's crowd control, the remaining three Second-Tier Star Envoys immediately recognized the danger and scattered.
The hastily formed, fragile alliance inherently suffered from low trust.
Once the core member was eliminated, the alliance naturally crumbled, with everyone fending for themselves in the face of imminent disaster.
Seeing the crisis resolved, the faint blue Star Energy around Isabel turned into scattered light particles and vanished into the air.
She then raised her hand to smooth her slightly ruffled skirt, pressing her hands against the edge of the fabric at her hips, and slowly sat down on the grass.
Even after just enduring a fierce battle, her posture and grace as a corporate heiress did not falter, showcasing her nobility.
Chen Kong walked over to her, his gaze falling on her wrist.
"Isabel, why don't you throw away that Tear of the Stars?"
The blue crystal was still glowing, its coordinates shared in real-time on the map, like a beacon that could attract trouble at any moment, guiding other competitors eager to advance.
In response to Chen Kong's question, Isabel glanced at him and said with an arrogant tone, "Idiot, if everyone threw away the Tear of the Stars like you did, how do you expect Vivian and Liu Ma to find us?"
"...I see."
Chen Kong was stunned by this answer.
He only now realized that the reason Isabel had continuously held the Tear of the Stars was not due to some naive stubbornness of a rich girl unaware of the world's dangers.
Instead, she was deliberately using her own coordinates as a 'signal tower' so that her scattered teammates could follow the location to find each other.
Although Isabel usually maintained her aristocratic demeanor.
To gather everyone, she willingly placed herself in danger, becoming a target for others.
In this regard, Chen Kong was even less courageous than she was.
Thinking this, Chen Kong scratched his head, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed.
He had been worried that Isabel would get into trouble because of the Tear of the Stars, but he hadn't expected her to have a complete plan all along.
Over the following period, whether their luck was too good or simply there weren't many competitors nearby...
They did not encounter any further danger and waited until two familiar figures appeared.
"Kong! Isabel! Are you two okay!"
Liu Ma ran over, saw the elimination wristbands on the ground, and then saw the two of them unharmed, immediately breathing a sigh of relief.
"It's a good thing we followed the Tear of the Stars coordinates to find you. Otherwise, we wouldn't have known where you were!"
Vivian pushed her glasses up. The tactical tablet showed that the coordinates of the four had converged.
"Now we have two Tears of the Stars. Next, we can find a hidden place to wait until the final moment to make our move."
Chen Kong nodded, his gaze sweeping across the distant sea of grass.
Although the gathering of the four of them filled him with confidence for the remainder of the assessment.
He still felt that this seemingly calm qualifying match would not end so simply.
Because in this assessment, there were still some monsters who enjoyed watching the show.
[Middle Plain of the Luminous Grass Sea]
[One hour after the assessment began]
"Phew..."
On the Luminous Grass Sea, a competitor wearing gray tight-fitting clothes was desperately sprinting.
Star Energy exploded beneath his feet, leaving a string of shallow footprints.
As he ran, he kept looking back, as if watching something utterly terrifying.
However, following his line of sight, the grassland was empty. There was nothing there but the fluorescent grass swaying in the wind.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, his foot seemed to be tripped by an invisible force. He stumbled forward, falling heavily to the ground.
Then, a pair of black tactical boots stepped on his wrist. The camera slowly pulled up along the boots.
In the frame, Tendo wore a black eye patch, his black trench coat fluttering in the wind.
In his hands, he already held five or six Tears of the Stars.
The blue crystals refracted tiny light fragments in his palm, being toyed with casually by Tendo, as if they were mere playthings.
Meanwhile, Caroline followed Tendo like a dutiful secretary, showing no mercy for the miserable competitor on the ground.
In her eyes, this person seemed to be no more noteworthy than a roadside stone.
Tendo crouched down, looking down at the competitor lying prone on the ground, his tone carrying a careless mockery.
"Stop running. It's pointless."
"I'll give you two choices. One: give me your Tear of the Stars."
"Two: be eliminated by me, and then give me your Tear of the Stars."
Hearing this, the competitor trembled all over.
He looked up at Tendo. Although the other party wore a harmless smile, the eyes concealed by the eye patch made him feel as though he was being stared at by an unspeakable monster, making even breathing difficult.
"Why... You already have enough Tears of the Stars to pass the assessment. Why are you still hunting us?"
Indeed, at this moment, the competitor described Tendo's actions as a literal hunt.
Not for gain, but purely for pleasure.
However, Tendo's answer to this question was very simple.
"Nothing much. I just find the current assessment a bit boring. I want to make things more lively here."
"Just because of that?"
The competitor looked at Tendo in disbelief, seemingly unable to comprehend his reasoning.
In response, Tendo stood up and kicked the competitor on the ground.
"Look, everyone is either hiding or secretly forming alliances. It's no fun at all."
"But if I collect most of the Tears of the Stars, don't you think they'll become a bit more proactive?"
Hearing this, the competitor's face turned pale.
He finally understood that the person in front of him didn't care about the assessment at all.
He was merely treating this qualifying match as an interesting game.
They, the competitors, were just 'toys' used by the other party for entertainment.
However, his approach had one major flaw.
"Aren't you afraid that others will team up to deal with you?"
Hearing this, the smile on Tendo's face suddenly became incredibly bright.
At the same time, his next words were the last thing the competitor heard before he was eliminated.
"I hope they do."
Under the pressure of an invisible force, the competitor's wristband immediately turned gray, and the person was transported out in a surge of illusory fluctuation.
Tendo played with the newly acquired Tear of the Stars in his hand and looked up at the distant horizon.
"Who should I find next...?"