Sienna Blake didn't need to say anything.
The entire world was already staring at Dragon Nation's feed.
The desert ahead had turned violent—sand erupting upward, rolling like a living tide as it surged toward Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw.
A roaring wall of sand.
Something crawling beneath it.
Something fast.
And yet—
Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw kept walking.
No panic. No hesitation. No visible fear.
They moved forward at the same steady pace, straight toward the incoming storm.
The chat detonated.
"ARE YOU TWO INSANE?! RUN!"
"Where's that IQ 170 now?! Is this what genius looks like?!"
"He froze up! He's terrified—he's not speeding up at all!!"
But the sand was already close enough that viewers could clearly make out the shapes beneath it—
countless writhing shadows, moving in packs.
And then a new voice cut through the moment.
The Will of Blue Star spoke again.
Only Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw heard it directly—
but the livestream displayed the same information as a bright banner across the screen.
[Congratulations. Dragon Nation competitors Adrian Vale and Raven Shaw have encountered a Divine Domain lifeform. Analyzing… Analysis complete.]
[Name: Crimson Sandstalkers (F-)]
[Traits: F- class Divine Domain lifeforms. Pack-dwelling. Omnivorous.]
[They seem to be in constant motion—roaming without territory. Wherever they pass, they leave ruin.]
[One alone may not be threatening. But when they appear in a swarm… they qualify as a natural disaster.]
The moment the description appeared, Dragon Nation's chat went from panic to outright horror.
"Pack-dwelling? Omnivorous? That means they eat people too, right?!"
"Yeah… that's exactly what it means…"
"Just crawling underground causes a sandstorm like that—if a person gets caught inside…"
"You'd be stripped to bone in seconds."
"It's not even day one and we hit something like this? Dragon Nation is doomed…"
Over in Pineapple TV's studio, the mood hardened.
Sienna Blake's voice dropped half an octave.
"So the Forbidden Zone really is that dangerous…" She turned slightly. "Captain Cole—have you ever seen anything like this?"
Captain Cole went quiet for a moment, eyes fixed on the feed.
"I've run desert operations more than once," he said slowly. "But a creature with destruction on this scale… I've never seen anything like it."
He exhaled.
"This isn't just dangerous. It's… beyond common sense."
Dr. Hart nodded grimly.
"In a situation like this, retreat is the best option."
Derek Vaughn immediately jumped on the opening, smug and loud.
"Weren't you just saying this kid has an IQ of 170? Even an idiot knows you run here. So why isn't he moving? Don't tell me his '170' is negative."
The studio fell into another brief, painful silence.
No one dignified it with a response.
Back in the Forbidden Zone, the Crimson Sandstalkers were closing in.
And then the Will of Blue Star spoke again—this time to all competitors, everywhere.
A gold banner flashed across every nation's feed.
[Detected: First-time encounter with a Divine Domain lifeform. Activating the Points Leaderboard.]
[Reward: As the first recorded discoverers of a Divine Domain lifeform, Dragon Nation competitors receive +100 points.]
[Current Rankings:]
[#1 — Dragon Nation: 100]
[Others: 0]
The world went still.
Then it erupted.
Dragon Nation's viewers were half ecstatic, half terrified.
"WE'RE FIRST?! Dragon Nation is number one?!"
"Wait—how are we 'first'? Other teams were already moving around!"
"Maybe they weren't close enough to trigger the system analysis?"
"Stop talking—THEY'RE EVEN CLOSER NOW!"
"First place doesn't matter if they die!!"
As if answering them, the Will of Blue Star continued.
[Leaderboard updates once per week.]
[Rewards will be issued based on rank.]
[#1 — Guaranteed D+ Chest]
[#2 — Guaranteed D Chest]
[#3 — Guaranteed D- Chest]
[#4 and below — No guaranteed chest]
[Chests can be upgraded by earning points. Every +1000 points upgrades the chest grade once.]
[For nations ranked below #3, the same upgrade rule applies, but upgrades start from F- Chest grade.]
[Chest rewards may include (but are not limited to): attribute increases, Divine Domain weapons and items, Divine Domain skills, and other special rewards.]
[In short: if you can imagine it, a chest can contain it.]
The chat went nuclear.
"Attribute points?! Like actual system stats?!"
"Special weapons? Is this where we get a dragon-slaying blade?!"
"Skills too?! Teleportation? Invisibility? Flight?!"
"If Dragon Nation holds first, our competitors could become gods!"
"SHUT UP—rewards don't matter if they can't survive to claim them!!"
Through all of it, Adrian Vale didn't flinch.
The sandstorm wall was close enough now that the world felt like it was vibrating.
Yet his face remained calm—almost bored.
If anything…
there was a trace of curiosity.
A faint, dangerous interest.
He watched the Crimson Sandstalkers closing in.
Then, unconsciously, he licked his lips.
Because the creatures carried a scent—
a strange, rich aroma that was more tempting than anything he'd smelled since becoming a ghoul.
Not blood.
Not meat.
Something… different.
Something that made the hunger in his bones wake up and lean forward.
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