I am the Arcane Archer, and all my skills are self-created.

The system announcements kept scrolling by.

It wasn't just one line, but a dense, continuous string of them, stretching from the sky above the arena into everyone's field of vision, so thick it made everyone's eyes blur.

[Player "Seeing Through the Fog" from District 21 killed player "Caesar" from District 1, earning 10 points.]

[Player "Seeing Through the Fog" from District 21 defeated player "Raymond" from District 9, earning 10 points.]

[Player "Seeing Through the Fog" from District 21 defeated player "Flora" from District 3, earning 10 points.]

……

There are sixteen in total.

Without a single second of pause, it was all the same person's name.

The arena's public chat channel remained silent for nearly ten seconds after the last announcement.

ten seconds.

In this fast-paced chaos, everyone understands what ten seconds of silence means.

Then, the channel crashed.

"Am I seeing things? Caesar is dead?"

"Flora is dead too? Just from that one arrow?"

"My God, what is that dark red ball? That's not an ordinary skill, is it?"

"One arrow, sixteen kills, all top-tier experts. What exactly is this guy's profession?"

"He is an Arcane Archer, an Arcane Archer from District 21, a new district that has been open for less than a year."

"I don't believe it! How could an Arcane Archer produce such an effect? ​​This isn't a skill an Arcane Archer should have!"

Nobody can say for sure.

Because it's really hard to explain.

In everyone's mind, Arcane Archer is a trash class.

But after that dark red singularity fell, there was a vacuum within a radius of fifteen meters.

Caesar's sword shield, Raymond's dragon blood barrier, and Flora's three-layered elemental shield—none of them held up.

What was that? It wasn't a "skill" in the conventional sense.

That was a space that collapsed on its own.

Some veteran players posted long analysis posts in the channel, trying to explain the logic of that arrow using the existing skill system, but they stopped halfway through each one because they found that it couldn't fit into any framework at all.

This thing is not in the framework.

……

Inside the Thousand Gold Pavilion, the members of the Myth Guild switched to a God's-eye view and watched Li Wu's battle scene the entire time.

When the sixteen kill announcements rolled out, the lobby was silent for a full three seconds.

Steel Shield was the first to react.

He slammed his hand on the table, making such a loud noise that it almost attracted the attention of the people in the next room.

"I knew it! I fucking knew it!"

His shout snapped everyone in the hall out of their daze.

Then everything boiled over.

Immovable as a mountain didn't utter a sound. He simply sat in his chair, slowly exhaled, and murmured, "One arrow, sixteen..."

He had seen many scenes outside the arena, but this number still made him feel that all his previous imagination was insufficient.

The bull sat silently in the corner, his eyes fixed on the screen, the cup in his hand crushed without him noticing.

The essence of that arrow was to redefine the meaning of the word "skill".

Lin Hai sat in the back row, holding several guild accounts in his hand, but he had no interest in looking at them. His eyes were fixed on the big screen, and he kept trying to suppress his smile, but he couldn't.

He knew exactly what this battle meant.

During the guild war, the battle report of "one person breaking through the city" made the name of the Myth Guild famous throughout the 21st district.

But District 21 is still just District 21.

Today is different.

Today, it's the entire server. All thirty-six regions, tens of millions of players, are focused on this supreme arena battle. They all saw those sixteen kill announcements. They all saw that name from a new server, less than a year old.

Lin Hai put down the accounts, took out his communicator, and began sending messages to various media outlets.

The most important thing now is to edit the footage of this battle and send it out before the match ends.

……

In the ruins.

Those survivors who were not affected by the [Burning Star Return to Ruins Arrow]'s domain were now pressed against the stone pillars of the ruins, not daring to breathe too loudly.

They watched as the sixteen people were swallowed up by the singularity, leaving not even a complete shadow behind.

One of the mages from District Six was crouching behind the collapsed stands, covering his mouth and trying to slow his heartbeat.

He had been playing in his server for three years, fought countless PVP battles, and seen countless strong players, but he had never experienced this feeling before.

That's not "much better than me".

That's "not even on the same level".

He peeked out and glanced at the ruins.

The person standing at the edge of the pit had turned around and was scanning his surroundings.

His movements were casual, like someone taking a stroll after dinner, glancing at the scenery along the way.

That composure sent chills down the monk's spine.

He pulled his head back, silently making a decision in his mind:

Today, regardless of his score, he doesn't plan to cause any more trouble.

Surviving to the end is winning.

……

Li Wu stood in the center of the ruins and looked around.

There were quite a few survivors, but they were all huddled up. He could sense that most of the gazes coming from all directions were of the kind that said, "I'm just passing by, don't look at me."

He didn't take the initiative to go looking for it.

It's not that we can't, it's that there's no need.

This is exactly the situation he wanted.

He wasn't here to play a game of hiding and tactical maneuvering. He's standing here, in the most conspicuous spot, to lure those who want points to come to him.

Kill as many as come.

This is the most efficient way to score points.

He glanced down at his score.

First place on the individual leaderboard: Foggy View (District 21), points: 310.

Second place on the individual leaderboard: Caesar (Region 1), points: 110 (already eliminated).

Second place on the individual leaderboard (after update): Flora (Region 3), points: 100 (eliminated).

He knocked out the original second and third place winners.

The current second-highest scorer is an assassin from District 20, with only 90+ points.

He was nearly two hundred points behind her.

Li Wu noted down the number, put away the Arcane Bow, and walked deeper into the ruins.

He needed to find a slightly higher vantage point to facilitate further reconnaissance.

He hadn't walked more than a few steps when he received a message from Hua Zitong.

"Good job. Don't overdo it, be careful."

Just these twelve characters.

Li Wu stared at the message for two seconds and replied with three words.

Don't worry.

Then put the communicator away and continued walking.

He knew that Hua Zitong was watching the battle situation outside, and he also knew that she wouldn't say "be careful" for no reason.

There's more to this than meets the eye.

She was reminding him that he was now the target of everyone's criticism, and that his future opponents would be different from those before—not just ordinary players who were just there for the fun, but those who had actually studied his combat videos.

He remembered the reminder.

……