Chapter 618: The Final Gambit

There he is! Quick—kill him!

He’s badly injured! His Spirit Energy is nearly spent!!

Halt your ranged attacks! Do you want to kill us as well?! Charge in!

On the chaotic battlefield, hordes of Third-Stage Awakened were sprinting about like hyenas. As Yenir zipped by at high speed, many began to despise the Japanese Battle Zone Awakeners.

It wasn’t for any other reason—when the second fighter recognized that the weapon in Yenir’s hand was none other than the Japanese Battle Zone’s signature artifact, everyone realized that Yenir’s near-invincibility was all thanks to this weapon!

The Divine Wind state is just too overwhelming! Even though taking action would shatter it and leave him open to attacks…

Yet Yenir, armed with the Heavenly Cloud Sword, had an absurdly high defense! Just when the enemies managed to concentrate their fire on him, he absorbed several hits and slipped right back into his Divine Wind state!

The sheer might of this weapon had many Peak Third-Stage fighters utterly captivated!

These stupid Japanese Awakeners somehow enabled the Huaguo People to stealthily climb the ranks—and even claim the top spot!

They were all shocked when a super genius supposedly appeared in the Japanese Battle Zone, but it turned out to be nothing more than a sham!

Faced with ridicule from all sides, the Japanese Battle Zone’s Deputy Captain could only endure in silence.

Fortunately, Yenir was gradually losing ground as his injuries worsened. It looked like he couldn’t hold on for much longer.

After all, when surrounded on all sides, no weapon—no matter how powerful—can turn the tide.

To them, Yenir’s outrageously op gear granted him insane power. If it were any stronger, it would be utterly unfair!

Unlike the other Awakener factions who were growing excited at the thought of snatching the gear, Kudo—who had once despised Yenir the most—was now urgently ordering his teammates via voice chat to back off.

“Be careful! Yenir is the First Divine Warrior! If he’s wielding the Heavenly Cloud Sword, he definitely has another skill up his sleeve!”

“If he dares to show up and seal his fate, he must be ready to sacrifice himself!”

“Unless something goes wrong, he’s clearly planning to drag all the Battle Zones down with him before dying, so that his country can claim first place!”

They all knew which rewards Yenir had cheated out of.

With Yenir’s injuries worsening even as the tide turned, Deputy Captain Kudo grew increasingly anxious.

He understood the unique nature of that Skill Book!

Sacrifice Awakeners—sacrifice themselves! That’s how one ultimately gains unparalleled combat power!

Although by the rules a sacrifice requires one of their own from the Battle Zone and must be triggered within the Japanese Battle Zone, Kudo was convinced that Yenir’s bizarre appearance and prolonged setup meant he’d already prepared a contingency!

Otherwise, why go to such extremes? Otherwise, why throw oneself to death?!

Especially since, unlike other Battle Zones who mistakenly believed that Yenir’s defense and combat prowess came solely from his legendary suit…

In Kudo’s estimation, that was nothing more than an amplification following a sacrifice!

That damned pig was already ready for mutual destruction!

I must admit, thanks to Kudo’s remarkable knack for piecing things together, he’d managed to grasp half the truth.

“Captain, are we supposed to steer clear of his final burst phase?!”

“And then clean up the battlefield?!”

“Exactly!”

Ignoring the fact that many Peak Third-Stage fighters had noticed their subtle moves, Kudo drew a deep breath, his eyes blazing with fervor and excitement.

Even though their Battle Zone had suffered heavy losses—and they had learned the utterly humiliating truth that Yenir was the First Divine Warrior—this, paradoxically, meant they might end up as the final victors!

Once Yenir initiated his ‘self-destruct’ and fought the other Battle Zones to the death, wouldn’t they reap the benefits and clinch first place?

Not only that, but his gear after death would also drop as valuable loot!

That would render all their losses inconsequential!

Watching Yenir’s determined expression—which seemed to mask a desperate, almost staged struggle—only confirmed Kudo’s suspicion that it was all a ruse!

Ha! That bastard probably never expected that the Japanese Battle Zone had long seen through this astonishing conspiracy!

Of course, for Kudo, his only remaining concern was the other four Battle Zones.

“Those Vietnamese and Southeast Asians just mysteriously vanished once the fighting started.”

“They lured us here on purpose and even tricked us into fighting each other…”

“Now that I think about it, there’s a high chance these three Battle Zones have teamed up with the Huaguo People! Maybe Yenir sacrificed his gear after death to persuade them to deceive us!”

“So… the final showdown is bound to be intense!”

“Once that kid unleashes his final burst of power, we must act immediately to snatch his gear!”

With his overwhelming knack for envisioning outcomes, no one realized that Kudo had seen through it all like a true sage!

Soon enough, events unfolded exactly as Kudo had predicted.

The battlefield shifted in an instant.

Under the relentless assault from Third-Stage fighters, Yenir suddenly roared in anger. In that moment, his aura transformed, and a massive, shadowy phantom—like swirling black mist—abruptly appeared behind him.

“You think… you can kill me?!”

Just like a mid-level boss in a dungeon, Yenir’s strength surged in the eyes of the charging Peak Third-Stage fighters.

“Boom!!”

In an instant, a massive black sword materialized in the sky, slamming down with lightning speed!

“Judgment!”

They felt the terrifying, supersonic howl of its impact.

A swarm of Third-Stage fighters was taken aback, and the few Peak Third-Stage combatants nearest the impact—engaged in Lost Soul Rampage—instinctively fled.

For a moment, the entire battlefield seemed split into three parts.

One group of Peak Third-Stage fighters, locked down by Judgment, desperately maintained their shields, terrified of being knocked out in a split second.

Another group, convinced that Yenir was on his last legs, shouted for a continued assault.

The rest were the ecstatic Japanese Awakeners.

In their eyes, that sword was Yenir’s final trump card—a last-ditch effort to drag everyone down with him!

But…

it all felt rather underwhelming?

There wasn’t time to think any further.

Amidst his furious roars, every Third-Stage fighter believed Yenir was doomed.

“Boom!!”

“Boom!!”

With the two explosions, the Doctor—unfortunately chosen at random by Yenir—was forced to endure the Judgment Sword.

Doctor Ling, on the other hand, was pummeled by a barrage of attacks from a swarm of zealous Third-Stage fighters determined to kill her.

Blinding bursts of Spirit Energy suddenly illuminated the entire sky.

In a heartbeat, nearly all Third-Stage fighters felt as though Yenir’s aura had vanished instantly!

And at that moment, Kudo—who had been waiting for his chance—broke into a beaming smile, barely containing his excitement as he charged forward!

Before anyone could react, this was his final opportunity!

Yenir was dead!

“Charge! Charge in, West Asia Squad!”

He snapped back to reality.

With their faces streaked with dust from being flung by the final Judgment explosion, the West Asia Squad realized that the decisive moment had arrived.

Just as the Japanese Battle Zone had anticipated, once he regained his senses, he hurriedly ordered his team to charge forward and snatch the gear!

This kid is so hard to kill! Under a hundred-person assault, he managed to battle through so many Third-Stage fighters!

If they don’t secure the gear, it would be a colossal loss!

Damn, even Peak Third-Stage Mutants aren’t this tough to kill, right?!

However, just as the four Battle Zones all snapped back to reality and instinctively charged toward the burning flames,

a familiar aura, accompanied by a light chuckle, suddenly echoed through the air.

“I told you—you can’t kill me.”

No sooner had his words fallen,

Yenir—who everyone thought had been slain by a barrage of attacks—appeared as if reborn from the blood and flames.

In an instant, the entire battlefield fell deathly silent.