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

Hua Zitong put down her baton and looked at Li Wu.

"You remember?"

"Of course I remember." Li Wu leaned against the sand table, arms crossed. "I'm not uneducated. Origin Realm has been running for twenty years, and the five super guilds are recognized as the strongest forces in the entire server. I did my homework before entering the game."

He stretched out one hand and raised each finger one by one.

"The Flower Language Guild in District 18, the Iron Blood Alliance in District 1, the Sword and Rose in District 5, the Blood Wolf Guild in District 9, and the Rise of the Storm in District 13."

"The major guilds in our 21st district are all branches of it!"

Hua Zitong nodded slightly.

"Each of these five companies has more than 10,000 core members, and their affiliated guilds and alliances together have hundreds of thousands of members."

"More importantly, more than half of the players who reach the maximum level across the entire server come from these five guilds."

Li Wu paused here, then turned his gaze back to the sand table.

"Let me ask you this: this Titan Extermination War is touted as a server-wide world event with ridiculously generous rewards. Logically, the five major super guilds shouldn't be absent from such an event."

He tapped the guild list on the sand table with his finger.

"But I've looked it over twice, and there isn't a single one."

Hua Zitong fell silent.

"Heavenly Punishment Guild, Elemental Council, Dragon Knight Legion... these are indeed top-tier teams in their respective regions. But compared to the five super guilds, they're several levels below." Li Wu looked directly into Hua Zitong's eyes. "So I want to ask you, where are those five? Why didn't any of them show up?"

The meeting room was silent for a few seconds.

Hua Zitong walked to the window and looked at the street scene of the Never-Ending City outside.

The players coming and going on the street were busily preparing their supplies for the expedition, completely unaware that their guild leader was asking a question that concerned the entire game's dynamics.

"You know about the Realm of Gods, right?" Hua Zitong asked.

"I know." Li Wu nodded. "It's the ultimate challenge area for levels 150 and above. It's known as the most difficult part of the Origin Realm, and very few people can clear it."

"That's right." Hua Zitong turned around and leaned against the window frame. "About a year and a half ago, the first batch of players broke through the entrance to the God's Domain."

Who were the first people?

"The leader of the Iron Blood Alliance, the Iron Blood Emperor."

Li Wu remembered the name.

"The Iron-Blooded Emperor led his core team of twelve into the Realm of Gods. It was the most-watched live stream in the entire server, breaking viewership records."

"and then?"

"For the first three hours after they went in, everything was normal. They encountered an unprecedentedly strong enemy, but thanks to teamwork and equipment advantages, they made it all the way to the second level."

Hua Zitong's tone was calm, but Li Wu sensed something was off.

"The live stream signal dropped at the end of the third hour."

Li Wu frowned.

"It wasn't that the system cut off our communication; all means of communication became completely unusable. Guild channels, private communications, and even the avatars on our friend lists all turned gray," Hua Zitong said. "Just like the six months you disappeared in the Arcane Wasteland."

Li Wu narrowed her eyes.

"Since then, the Iron-Blooded Emperor and his twelve-person team have never come out again."

silence.

Li Wu was processing this information.

"At first, everyone thought it was a bug, or a special mechanism of the God's Realm," Hua Zitong continued. "The Iron Blood Alliance used all its resources to figure out how to get the person out, and the other four super guilds also sent people to investigate. But there was no way."

"And then what happened? Did other guilds get arrested too?"

Hua Zitong gave a wry smile.

What do you think?

Li Wu remained silent. He knew the answer.

Faced with unknown challenges, true top players will not back down; they will only forge ahead one after another.

"That's right." Hua Zitong confirmed his guess. "Three months after the Iron-Blooded Emperor went missing, Hua Yufengyin, the guild leader of the Flower Language Guild, led his elite team in. The purpose was to rescue people and explore at the same time."

"The result is the same?"

"Same here. A few hours after they went in, all communications were cut off, and they couldn't get out."

Li Wu's expression turned serious.

"After that came Wolf King of the Blood Wolf Guild, Rose of Sword and Rose, and the Wind and Cloud Overlord who rose again, one after another leading people in."

With each name Hua Zitong uttered, Li Wu's brows furrowed deeper.

"They haven't come out yet?"

"All have lost contact. As of now, over three hundred top-tier players who have reached the maximum level are trapped in the God's Realm. This represents 80% of all players who have reached the maximum level on the entire server."

This number made Li Wu feel a sense of gravity for the first time.

Three hundred max-level players.

What does this mean?

This means that most of the top combat power in the entire server is trapped in one place.

"So now these guilds outside, including Heavenly Punishment..." Li Wu said slowly.

"They only rose to prominence after the five major super guilds were absent," Hua Zitong continued. "Eternal Spear is indeed very strong, but if Iron Blood Emperor were still around, he wouldn't even be able to get into the top three in the first district."

Li Wu understood.

It's like when a group of tigers come down from the mountain, the monkeys start fighting over the hilltop.

It's not that monkeys aren't strong; it's just that compared to tigers, the gap is too big.

He walked up to the sand table and stared at the points of light on it for a long time.

When was the last time someone attempted to enter the realm of the gods?

"Six months ago, shortly before you entered the Arcane Wasteland," Hua Zitong said. "After that, the five major super guilds announced that they were suspending all exploration operations in the God's Realm. Their remaining members went into a conservative operational mode and basically stopped participating in external activities."

"Conservative operation?"

"Yes, their core members are all locked up inside, and the rest of the group is leaderless. The five super guilds are now more like five empty shells; they have fame and resources, but their most capable members are gone."

Li Wu closed his eyes and pondered.

Hua Zitong observed his expression but remained silent.

She knew Li Wu needed time to process this information, and she also knew he would definitely ask that crucial question next.

Sure enough, ten seconds later, Li Wu opened his eyes.

Do you think they're still alive?

Hua Zitong had thought about this issue long ago.

"The system didn't send any death notifications. The status on the friends list is offline, not that the character has been deleted," she said. "My personal judgment is that they are probably still alive, just trapped."

"Just like I am in the Arcane Wasteland."

"right."

Li Wu remained silent for a while.

He recalled his experiences in the Arcane Wasteland: the will of Erling, the thirty-six towers, and half a year of training.

He was cut off from the outside world before he went in and was unable to come out.

But he eventually got out.

What about those who are trapped in the realm of the gods?

Will they be able to get out?

When will it be released?