Chapter 345: Remember to Stand Further Away in Your Next Life

ROAR!

A sudden dragon's roar echoed, and in an instant, Nightshade and Crimson Chain both felt a shiver run through their spines.

Looking up, they suddenly saw the massive body of the Thirty-Six Winged Armageddon Black Dragon soaring overhead.

It was then that they realized: Zhang Yue hadn't left. Instead, he had lured them here using Sakura as bait.

Accompanied by a scorching dragon flame, Nightshade and Crimson Chain reacted swiftly, retreating just in time to avoid the attack.

The Armageddon Black Dragon then landed directly in front of Sakura.

Zhang Yue used a displacement ability to teleport from the dragon's back to the ground.

Worried about his identity being exposed, Crimson Chain pointed at Sakura and quickly said to Zhang Yue, "It's her! It's all her scheme! President, I swear, I had no idea about any of this!"

Nightshade chimed in, "Yeah, that's right! We had no clue she was colluding with the Easterner. If we knew, we would've stopped her for sure!"

Zhang Yue smiled faintly, turned to look at Sakura, and asked, "Is that true?"

Sakura lowered her head, remaining silent.

She didn't know what to say.

The Qin family had saved her life and raised her.

It seemed like she wanted to use her own life to repay the Qin family's kindness, taking all the blame to ensure Crimson Chain's survival.

She also hoped that through her sacrifice, Crimson Chain could turn back before making an irreversible mistake.

What she didn't realize was that Zhang Yue had already seen through everything.

At this moment, seeing Sakura's silence, Crimson Chain said to Zhang Yue, "See? She admits it herself!"

"This has nothing to do with the two of us. If my father had known she still harbored feelings for Eastern Nation, he never would've raised this ungrateful wolf."

Zhang Yue nodded and said, "If that's the case, then I'll rid the nation of this pest myself."

As he spoke, Zhang Yue retrieved a Mark of Death from his storage space, which Sakura had previously given him, and imbued it into his extraordinary staff.

He locked onto Sakura.

BOOM!

In the instant he cast the spell, Zhang Yue suddenly changed direction, targeting Nightshade instead.

SSS-Class Voidless: God-Slaying Curse!

A radiant beam descended from the sky, piercing through Nightshade's body. The damage was a staggering 3.843 million—enough to kill him ten times over—instantly clearing his full health bar.

One moment, Nightshade was watching the scene with amusement. The next, his eyes widened in disbelief as he looked at Zhang Yue. 'Dude, did you miss? She's over there...'

Zhang Yue replied calmly, "You were standing too close to me. Remember to stand further away in your next life."

As soon as he finished speaking, Nightshade struggled futilely before disintegrating into ashes.

Seeing this, Crimson Chain was utterly terrified.

Nightshade, even in death, naively believed Zhang Yue had made a mistake and accidentally killed him.

But Crimson Chain wasn't foolish.

It was obvious Zhang Yue was targeting both of them.

Seizing the brief moment when Zhang Yue was preparing a second Mark of Death, Crimson Chain quickly pulled out a scroll from his storage space and crushed it.

In the next moment—

RIP!

A spatial rift tore open behind Crimson Chain.

The combination of the Mark of Death and the spatial rift fully confirmed that Crimson Chain was the mastermind.

Staring daggers at Zhang Yue, Crimson Chain declared, "I will fulfill my mission, even at the cost of my life!"

"Zero, I will destroy you!"

With that, before Zhang Yue's attack could reach him, Crimson Chain leapt into the spatial rift and vanished.

Unfortunately, the Mark of Death couldn't stack, and only one could be used at a time.

Otherwise, both Nightshade and Crimson Chain would've died together just now.

Zhang Yue thought about using the Turbulent Waves ability from his artifact, Heart of the Ocean, to track and chase through the spatial rift, but it was too late.

Crimson Chain had been meticulous. After passing through the spatial rift, he immediately closed it.

He escaped, but he wouldn't get far.

Zhang Yue wouldn't spare anyone who betrayed the Dragon Nation.

At this moment, Zhang Yue turned to Sakura.

"Why?"

Sakura thought Zhang Yue was asking why she had been willing to sacrifice herself to protect Crimson Chain and Nightshade, so she replied, "The Qin family has been kind to me..."

Zhang Yue clarified, "I'm asking, you had many chances to use the Mark of Death against me and let the world boss finish me off. Why didn't you?"

Biting her lip, Sakura lowered her head and remained silent for a long time before saying, "When I was four years old, my family was annihilated. It was the Dragon Nation that saved me and gave me a second chance at life."

"I've lived in the Dragon Nation for fifteen years. This is my home, my country. I couldn't betray it..."

Zhang Yue asked, "If that's the case, why did you still participate in this operation?"

Seeing Sakura's conflicted expression, Zhang Yue could roughly guess.

She probably didn't know at first. By the time she found out, she was already deeply involved, forced to continue under threats and coercion from Crimson Chain and Nightshade.

Sure enough, in the next second, Sakura confirmed his thoughts. "I didn't plan for this. I don't even know when Brother Qin Ye started colluding with Eastern Nation."

"Growing up, I've always been terrified that my identity would be discovered because I know the Dragon Nation has always been hostile toward Eastern Nation..."

As she spoke, Sakura looked up at Zhang Yue and said earnestly, "Kill me. I've done something unforgivable to the Dragon Nation. I deserve to die..."

Zhang Yue glanced at Sakura and said, "You should be grateful you haven't truly crossed that line yet."

"Take care of yourself."

With that, Zhang Yue rode his dragon and left.

First, Sakura hadn't committed any substantial wrongdoing.

Second, according to the information Ouyang Ling'er had gathered, Sakura had previously worked as a healer and saved at least a dozen critically ill Dragon Nation citizens from death.

Lastly, the real traitor, Crimson Chain, had escaped. If necessary, Zhang Yue could use Sakura to track him down later.

Returning to the Hell Clan's main city, Zhang Yue immediately logged off.

By then, the members of the Heavens Hall had already finished dinner and returned online to grind.

Zhang Yue went alone to a small restaurant outside the guild headquarters for dinner, sending a message to Ice Emperor as he ate: ["Keep an eye on Longcheng, the Qin family."]

Shortly after, Ice Emperor replied: ["That Qin family—are you referring to Qin Shou?"]

["Yes."]

Ice Emperor was puzzled. ["What's going on with the Qin family?"]

["Treason."]

Just two words, but their weight was enough to make Ice Emperor, who had been sipping water, almost crush her cup in shock.

["Got it. I'll send someone to investigate immediately."]

After a pause, Ice Emperor asked, ["By the way, how's the progress in the World 15? Have you found the remaining scrolls?"]

Zhang Yue replied, ["I've collected three. Just one more to go."]

["Three in one day?"]

Ice Emperor was stunned.

["No wonder you're Dragon Nation's newly crowned top player!"] he exclaimed in awe.

After finishing his meal, Zhang Yue returned to the guild and logged back in.

The next goal was clear: complete the realm quest, conquer the Hell God Clan's challenges, and obtain the final scroll.

Thus, Zhang Yue accepted a mission within God Capital and set off.

The plan was simple: finish all the Hell Clan's quests by tonight.

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