The moment Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw pressed their palms against the Divine Tree, the world answered.
A brilliant seven-colored pillar of light erupted from the canopy and speared straight into the sky—so clean and violent it looked like it was trying to punch a hole through the heavens.
In a blink, the forest changed.
With the Divine Tree as the center, everything within several kilometers was dyed in radiant color—ground, trunks, mist, even the air itself—like the world had been dipped into a prism.
Adrian and Raven withdrew their hands at the same time.
Neither of them knew what came next.
Reward? Trap? A creature waking up?
They both retreated several steps on instinct, eyes lifted to the sky-splitting beam.
Raven breathed out softly, almost under her breath.
"…It's actually beautiful."
And she wasn't wrong.
This wasn't Blue Star neon—no buzzing, no artificial glare. The colors were pure, layered, and strangely "clean," the kind that made your eyes feel refreshed just looking at them.
In the livestream, people collectively lost their minds.
"THIS IS INSANE—THE TREE IS GLOWING!"
"Don't call it 'glowing' like it's a flashlight—this is ART!"
"Screenshot! Screenshot! I'm making this my wallpaper!"
"Peasants take screenshots—smart people are screen-recording!"
"Screen-record guy, please send me a copy—I was staring too hard and forgot to hit record!"
"Okay but… what does it mean? Any experts here?"
"It's creepy, but it's the Divine Domain—creepy is Tuesday."
"Do you think the tree will stand up and start beating Adrian and Boss Raven?! With this aura, it could be SSS-rank, no joke!"
"Someone gag the jinxer. Tape his mouth shut. Don't let him speak."
Above them, the seven colors continued to intertwine and braid—merging, separating, then pulsing again with a rhythm that felt almost alive. The clouds overhead turned into a layered rainbow sea, but somehow even prettier than an actual rainbow, like the sky was wearing ceremonial robes.
Raven stood under it with wide eyes, all composure momentarily gone—like a kid seeing fireworks for the first time.
Adrian wasn't admiring the view.
He was watching for the tell—holding that knife-edge alertness where even a single leaf twitching wrong could make him move.
Time passed.
Slowly, the light began to dim.
The pillar thinned, shrinking from a sky-filling column into a narrow beam—then into a thread—then into nothing.
A breeze drifted through.
The canopy rustled lightly.
The Divine Tree still glimmered faintly along its vines… but the world around it returned to normal as if someone had turned off the filter.
Adrian scanned the surroundings once.
No creature.
No chest.
No portal.
No "Congratulations."
Nothing.
For the first time in a while, even Adrian's expression twitched.
"…That's it?"
The livestream went from worship to confusion in half a second.
"Huh? What just happened?"
"After THAT kind of special effects… nothing drops?"
"Is the Divine Tree trolling them?"
"Pretty is pretty, but it doesn't fill your stomach…"
"Did they seriously get baited into a light show?"
"Don't cry, my angel Adrian—mommy hurts for you…"
"NO MALE MOMMY. I'm saying it again—NO MALE MOMMY!"
"Maybe the reward is underground. Dig up the roots?"
"If you want to dig, YOU go dig. Don't you touch my Adrian."
"Did you see the aura? Touching that tree wrong is basically asking to get deleted."
"Be honest—this is Will of Blue Star being stingy."
Then one line got spammed until it became a wall:
"I'm a law-abiding Dragon Nation youth. I did not participate in that sentence. If anything I said was inappropriate… arrest him, not me."
In the forest, Raven's face actually showed confusion—rare enough that the audience almost treated it as a miracle.
Then—her expression snapped.
She reached into her wide cloak and yanked out the leather treasure map without hesitation.
The same map that had dragged them through illusions, wrong turns, and near-death trouble.
Raven unfurled it fully, eyes locked.
Adrian leaned in.
And the moment the camera caught it—
the livestream detonated.
Because the map had changed.
Somehow, without anyone touching it, four points had appeared.
Marked clearly.
And one of them—
was exactly where they stood right now.
"WHAT?! The map updated—FOUR MARKS!"
"Holy crap, they're standing on one of the points!"
"This map is such a jerk—so it didn't show anything before and let them run around like idiots?!"
"Calm down—map is in Boss Raven's hands. They have the monopoly. They can just follow the remaining points."
"Sure, but getting played is still getting played."
"Stop arguing—look at them. They're not even mad. They look excited."
And it was true.
Raven's mouth lifted into a bright, almost girlish grin.
To her, the meaning was obvious.
Harder chain → bigger payoff.
And more importantly—
this map existed only in their hands.
Whatever reward sat at the end of those points wasn't "contested."
It was already halfway in their pocket.
Raven turned to Adrian, tapping the map lightly.
"Looks like we only get the final reward after we hit all the marked points."
Adrian glanced at the map, then at her, and gave a single, decisive nod.
That was all Raven needed.
She rolled the map up, tucked it away, and immediately started moving—no delay, no hesitation.
Dragon Nation HQ
Back on Blue Star, Dragon Nation's high-level command had been watching the Divine Domain feed closely.
An older official—everyone simply called him Elder Long—leaned back in his chair with a rare, satisfied ease.
"Seems like there's an even bigger reward waiting for them."
He wasn't wrong.
Right now, Adrian and Raven had reached a level where S-rank threats weren't "terrifying"—they were problems with solutions.
Even SS-rank creatures had already proven they weren't untouchable.
Elder Long exhaled slowly, the tension that had lived in his spine for days finally loosening.
"I've worried about those two for so long… it's good to finally breathe."
A nearby general—General Zhao—laughed loudly, the kind of laugh that rattled the room.
"Now Elder Long can focus on dealing with those bastards in the God-Nation Alliance! Hahaha—"
Elder Long's smile didn't reach his eyes.
Reality still had teeth.
He shot General Zhao a look so sharp it could cut steel.
"You trying to make me die earlier?"
"How could I!" General Zhao waved both hands quickly, still grinning. He knew it was a joke… mostly.
Elder Long motioned, and a secretary hurried over—Secretary Chen, posture stiff, head lowered, ready to report.
Elder Long's voice went colder.
"Any movement from the God-Nation Alliance recently?"
Secretary Chen answered quickly.
"After the Blue Star Deathmatch began, they publicly declared they would defeat Dragon Nation in both the Divine Domain and reality. After that—no obvious movement."
"Good," Elder Long said flatly. "No movement is best."
He snorted once, and for a split second, the room felt like the temperature dropped.
The old man's posture still carried age, but the pressure that radiated off him belonged to someone who'd stared down nations.
"Let them talk," he said. "If they cross the line for real…"
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
The eyes around the table turned hard and quiet.
The intent was clear.
Livestream Frenzy
On the public side, the mood was completely different—chaotic, giddy, confident.
"Whatever Angel Adrian decides, mommy supports!"
"Whatever Boss Raven decides, husband supports!"
"You two—are you planning a couples trip to climb a peach tree?!"
"I can already picture the reward after they hit all four points—my heart's racing."
"And Dragon Nation has already gotten huge benefits from earlier rewards… how do we repay them? (suggestive)"
"Repay with what? You can go be a cow or a horse somewhere else. Adrian and Boss Raven are NOT coming back to farm."
Then a more cautious comment appeared, and it spread fast:
"Wait… Will of Blue Star is literally broadcasting Boss Raven's map changes. Won't other countries see the points and rush there first?"
Immediately, people piled on.
"That doesn't work. Viewers are on Blue Star. They can't send info into the Divine Domain."
"And even if they could—who else can handle S-rank creatures?"
"A D-rank water rhino already had them crying. S-rank is instant game over."
"In Divine Domain creature fights, Dragon Nation's contestants are the only ones who look human."
"I've always been proud to be born in Dragon Nation… now I feel lucky."
"I wonder what the people who switched nationalities are feeling right now."
"That 'switched' is generous. If I had to guess, they're crying and begging to come back."
"And they're not coming back. Dragon Nation doesn't take back traitors."
God-Nation Alliance Conference Room
Elsewhere, a meeting room burned hot with anger.
A heavyset leader—Li Dapu—slammed his palm down so hard the cups rattled and tipped.
"I don't care how you do it," he barked. "Get that information to our people inside the Divine Domain!"
He was talking about the treasure map.
They had been watching Dragon Nation's feed too.
They saw the map update.
And jealousy had twisted every face in that room into something ugly.
Li Dapu snapped at his staff, threatening consequences that made the air go tight.
A battered secretary took the brunt of it until Li Dapu finally leaned back, breathing hard.
"Get out," he muttered. "I'll think of another way."
The secretary bowed deeply—ninety degrees—then practically ran out.
Li Dapu folded his hands and stared at the table like it had personally insulted him.
"Everyone," he said, forcing control back into his voice. "What's our play?"
A balding official from Eastern Isles—short, round, eager—stood up quickly. He wasn't brave. He was opportunistic.
"First," he said smoothly, "the map is in Dragon Nation's hands. We can't change that right now."
"Second," he continued, "their two contestants' strength is… obvious. If I'm blunt, our contestants in front of them are paper—poke once, they tear. Taking the map by force is impossible."
No one argued.
Because it was true.
But the humiliation still sat in their chests like a stone.
The balding man leaned forward, voice turning sharper.
"However—this Deathmatch will produce fifty survivors. Each nation has sent their best, including… certain 'special individuals' and recent scientific achievements."
A few eyes brightened.
He pressed the point.
"If we wait, the Divine Domain's guarding creatures will only grow stronger. And once our elites emerge from the Deathmatch, it won't be impossible to surround Dragon Nation's contestants."
He smiled, thin and mean.
"Before deployment, many of us already issued the same order: if you encounter Dragon Nation's contestants—kill on sight."
The room's mood shifted.
Not confident.
But hungry.
Li Dapu stared at the screen with slow, satisfied intensity.
"Good," he said. "Let's hope Dragon Nation's contestants don't die to creatures first."
He paused, smile widening.
"That would be… boring."
Blue Star Deathmatch: Match Three Approaching
As the third Deathmatch match neared, the livestream audience surged again.
"Ah, the familiar black screen—go check if you washed your hair! If not, hurry!"
"The first two matches were satisfying—Dragon Nation crushed them cleanly!"
"This time, everyone in other countries is praying they don't draw Dragon Nation."
"Or else they die. No survivors."
"Honestly Dragon Nation matches are too boring. Too fast. Too clean. Not even time to get hyped before it's over…"
"Bro—friendly fire. Your knife is already in. Handle it."
"Old rules—put an enemy uniform on him."
The screen flared bright.
The arena returned—same stone platform, same cold air, same star-sprinkled void overhead.
A white flash.
One contestant arrived early.
The light faded, revealing a man who looked… painfully ordinary.
No dense muscles.
No shining weapons.
Just a loose, slightly wrinkled suit—like someone dragged him straight out of a street-side office.
The livestream paused, then erupted.
"What is this? Did he just get off work?"
"I thought this was a corporate meeting at first."
"No offense—I'm just curious how this office worker survived his country's selection. How weak is that nation?!"
"Too relatable. I'm already clocking in."
"Stop talking—my boss just told me to fix a bug. This idiot keeps editing my code. If it runs, don't touch it!"
"Quit."
"Quit."
"Quit."
The jokes were still rolling when—
another white flash ignited on the opposite side.
The second contestant arrived.
And the moment that light began to fade…
the chat's tone started to change.
Because before anyone even saw his face—
they felt the pressure.
A presence that didn't belong on the same stage as an "office worker" at all.
And in that instant, one thought slammed through the livestream like a wave:
Was this… really a Miracle Nation contestant?
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