Thunder World

White Night was currently assessing the improvements brought by the equipment.

A prompt from the Game System suddenly sounded:

[You have reached the maximum level for Fourth Turn, triggering the prerequisite mission for Fifth Turn—Tracing the Source of Thunder.]

[Mission World: Lei Jin World (Gathering place for High-Tier Civilizations, Danger Level: S+)]

[Mission Objective: Collect 10 Thunder Source Shards (Current Progress: 0/10). The shards are distributed in the cores of Thunder Veins across the world.]

[Mission Reward: Unlock the Class Change Authority for Fifth Turn, and receive the exclusive map for Lei Jin World.]

[Warning: Lei Jin World contains top-tier professional players from multiple civilizations. Some civilizations harbor hostility towards professional players from low-tier civilizations. Please proceed with caution.]

White Night raised an eyebrow. Instead of a trial within the Eternal Divine Tower, he had to go to a new world to collect shards?

He opened the map that the Game System had just issued. It showed the distribution of Thunder Veins in Lei Jin World, and the densest areas flickered with red light—that was the approximate location of the Source Shards.

"High-tier world, multiple civilizations..."

His fingertip traced the "Chaotic Thunder Territory" on the map, the place where the shards were most concentrated. "I'll check this place first."

Without hesitation, he activated a teleportation talisman. His body transformed into a faint purple bolt of lightning and disappeared into the void.

When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in Lei Jin World.

The sky here was dark red, and the air was saturated with violent Thunder Law energy; taking a breath felt like electricity was surging through his throat.

The ground consisted of black rocks, and silver-white thunder magma flowed through the crevices. Stepping on it produced a sizzling sound.

The distant mountain ranges displayed twisted thunder patterns. The peaks were perpetually shrouded in thunderstorms, and faintly, he could see the shimmering luster of shards within the lightning.

That was the aura of the Thunder Source Shards.

White Night followed the map's guidance and walked toward the nearest Thunder Vein node.

He hadn't walked far when a shout of rebuke suddenly came from ahead.

"Scram! This Thunder Vein is the territory of our Starfall Civilization. How dare you people from the Holy Light Civilization try to lay a finger on it?"

A man wearing dark purple battle armor kicked away the White-Robed Priest blocking his path. The star patterns on the armor flickered, emitting the aura of a Fourth Turn peak expert.

He was toying with a Thunder Source Shard in his hand, which emitted a faint buzzing sound in his palm.

The White-Robed Priest clutched his chest, his face pale. "Thunder Veins are public property of heaven and earth. Why should the Starfall Civilization monopolize them?"

"Because our Starfall Civilization is stronger than yours!" The man in dark purple armor sneered. He suddenly raised his hand, a streak of starlight flashed, and a bloody hole appeared in the White-Robed Priest's glabella. The priest fell stiffly to the ground. "Ants from a low-tier civilization dare to talk about rules with me?"

The surrounding Starfall Civilization professional players burst into laughter. No one cared about the corpse of the Holy Light Civilization priest.

In Lei Jin World, weakness meant one could be casually eliminated.

White Night originally intended to bypass them, but the dark purple armored man caught sight of him, his gaze instantly turning contemptuous. "Blue Star Civilization? What kind of civilization is that? I've never heard of it before. Someone from such a small civilization can actually come to Lei Jin World?"

He took a few steps toward White Night, sizing up the eternal holy armor, and scoffed, "The Thunder Law aura on you is decent, but it's wasted on trash from a low-tier civilization like you."

"I'm in a good mood today. Strip off that armor, hand over everything in your storage space, and I'll spare your life."

White Night's eyes chilled slightly; he couldn't be bothered to waste words.

He raised his hand, and a bolt of grayish-black lightning shot directly toward the man's glabella.

"Seeking death!"

The man grinned ferociously, raising his hand to summon a dark golden shield engraved with the Starfall Civilization emblem. "You dare attack the Starfall Civilization? I'll make you..."

Before he finished speaking, there was a crisp "crack." The dark golden shield shattered like paper, and the lightning pierced his glabella without any resistance.

The man's smile froze on his face, and his body fell stiffly. The Thunder Source Shard in his palm rolled onto the ground, emitting a faint glow.

The surrounding Starfall Civilization professional players were stunned. Their companion was a "Star Guard" of the Starfall Civilization, a peak Fourth Turn combatant, yet he was instantly killed in one move?

"Kill him! Avenge Lord Kalen!" A Star Fall Warrior wielding a spear roared and charged forward. The spear was infused with the dual power of starlight and thunder, aiming straight for White Night's heart.

White Night sidestepped to avoid the attack, and the Eternal Demon Blade slashed out a blade light with a backhand strike.

The blade light swept past, and the spear snapped instantly. The warrior's body was neatly sliced open from shoulder to abdomen. The blood splattered on the black rock and was instantly vaporized by the lightning.

"Who else?" White Night's voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable pressure as he scanned the remaining Star Fall professional players.

Two individuals exchanged glances and attacked simultaneously. One released a starlight barrier trying to trap him, while the other condensed a thunder fireball aimed at his back.

A thunder pattern flashed beneath White Night's feet, activating Time-Space Thunder Step. His figure left three afterimages within the barrier, and simultaneously, the blade light swung back, cleaving both men and their skills into pieces.

"Madman! He's a madman!" The remaining Star Fall professional players retreated in terror, none daring to step forward again.

This Blue Star player completely disregarded common sense. Knowing they belonged to the Starfall Civilization, how dare he still kill them?

Just then, a flurry of footsteps came from the distance.

A group of professional players in dark golden battle armor rushed over, led by a one-eyed man. The star patterns on his armor were denser than Kalen's, and he wore a "Star General" emblem on his chest.

"Who dares to harm my Starfall Civilization people in the Chaotic Thunder Territory?" The one-eyed man saw the corpses on the ground, and his sole eye suddenly narrowed. "Kalen and the others... did you kill them?"

White Night didn't speak, he just bent down and picked up the Thunder Source Shard dropped by Kalen. The shard was icy cold in his hand, containing incredibly pure source power.

[Obtained Thunder Source Shard *1. Current Progress: 1/10]

"You're asking for death!" The one-eyed man erupted in fury. "An ant from a low-tier civilization dares to kill a Star Guard of my Starfall Civilization? Today, I will ensure your soul is utterly extinguished!"

He raised his hand and waved. The fifty Star Fall Warriors behind him simultaneously released their starlight, and countless streaks of dark purple starlight condensed into a massive net, enveloping White Night.

This net contained the Starfall Civilization's spatial confinement power; even Fourth Turn peak experts would struggle to break free.

White Night's eyes turned cold, and the Thunder Law within his body operated at full power.

The blade of the Eternal Demon Blade swelled to five zhang in length, and the grayish-black blade light was mixed with faint purple spatial streams of light.

That was the power of "Spatial Penetration," fused with the Projection Law of the Thunder God.

"Thunder: Boundary Breaker."

The blade light struck the massive starlight net. There was no earth-shattering collision; the net instantly fragmented into billions of light dots, like thin ice sliced by a sharp blade.

The momentum of the blade light did not diminish, and it slashed directly toward the one-eyed man.

The one-eyed man's face drastically changed. He hurriedly summoned a weapon—a round shield covered in star patterns.

As soon as the round shield deployed, it was struck by the blade light. The shield surface instantly dented, and the star patterns shattered piece by piece.

He let out a muffled groan, was sent flying backward by the impact, crashed into the Thunder Vein rock in the distance, and spat out a large mouthful of blood.

"You... you dare to kill a Star General of the Starfall Civilization?" The one-eyed man was both shocked and enraged. "Our Starfall Civilization has a hundred Star Marshals in Lei Jin World! If you kill me, they will surely tear you into ten thousand pieces!"

White Night walked toward him step by step. The lightning dripping from the blade carved tiny pits into the ground. "Star Marshals? If one comes, I'll kill one. If a hundred come, I'll kill a hundred."

Fear flashed in the one-eyed man's eyes. He realized the Blue Star player in front of him did not care about the deterrence of the Starfall Civilization at all.

He suddenly pulled out a purple token from his storage space. The token was engraved with the words "Star Fall" and emitted terrifying energy fluctuations.

This was the Starfall Civilization's distress signal, capable of summoning nearby Star Marshals.

But just as he raised his hand, it was struck by a bolt of grayish-black lightning. His entire arm, along with the token, instantly turned to char. The lightning spread along his arm, engulfing his whole body in the blink of an eye.

"Ah—!"

The scream abruptly ceased. The one-eyed man was reduced to a pile of charred remains. Only the "Star General" emblem continued to flicker, but it was quickly and completely annihilated by the lightning.

The remaining Star Fall professional players were scared out of their wits. They turned and fled, not even daring to retrieve their companions' bodies.

White Night did not pursue them. He walked up to the Thunder Vein rock the one-eyed man had crashed into, condensed lightning on his fingertip, and tapped it lightly.

The rock instantly crumbled, revealing the second Thunder Source Shard embedded inside—it was larger and shone brighter than the previous one.

[Obtained Thunder Source Shard *2. Current Progress: 2/10]

He put away the shard and looked up toward the area where the thunderstorms were denser in the distance.

Within the lightning there, he could vaguely see the emblems of more civilizations flickering, but his eyes were calm, and his steps did not falter.

Anyone who blocks him from collecting shards must die!

...