"The Sun Nation contestant has been declared dead. Extracting the punishment content for the Sun Nation now."
"Extraction complete. Punishment: Nuclear Catastrophe."
"Forty-one interstellar nuclear warheads will be deployed to bombard the entire territory of the Sun Nation."
"In accordance with the modified rules, the Destiny Battle punishment is now stored."
The cold, mechanical voice echoed in the minds of people across the globe. The world erupted in chaos, especially the citizens of the Sun Nation and neighboring countries like Eastern Horizon.
The Sun Nation was located on a peninsula next to Eastern Horizon, connected by land to its northeast and only a short distance from the Eastern Horizon capital. If Eastern Horizon's map were shaped like a rooster, the Sun Nation would sit at the rooster's chin.
"Whoa! The Sun Nation is getting nuked!"
"Forty-one warheads? Are they trying to flatten the whole country?"
"This is bad. That peninsula is really going to feel the heat now."
"Wait, my hometown is right near the Sun Nation! Will this reach us?"
"Bro above, I live right on the border of the Sun Nation. I guess the government will start organizing an evacuation soon."
"Better worry about this forty-one nuclear warheads hitting could shift the entire tectonic plate."
Amid the commotion, viewers flooded the Sun Nation live stream, causing the number of viewers to skyrocket.
The stream became a chaotic whirlwind, the comment section completely covering the screen. International viewers arriving in droves only added fuel to the fire.
"Stop spamming! I can't even see the footage!"
"Even if your contestant is dead, other contestants are still in the game. They can complete the Destiny Battle in his place!"
"Hurry! Show us how he died! Don't waste the information he bought with his life!"
Amid the chaos, the Sun Nation's live stream moderators acted. Soon, everyone could see the contestant on screen.
A young man in plain clothes lay on the ground, hands gripping his own throat. His pupils were wide, face pale, and lips turned bluish-purple. The pain etched on his face was unmistakable.
Struggle marks littered the surrounding grass, evidence of his final moments.
"Is this asphyxiation? Or was he controlled by something, forcing him to strangle himself?"
"This expression… it makes my hair stand on end. Thank goodness there are people around, otherwise I couldn't watch."
"How did he die? Can anyone figure it out?"
"Thanks for asking. Clearly asphyxiation."
"Stop stating the obvious. We know he choked, but the question is why."
The question of why he asphyxiated troubled both viewers and officials from multiple countries.
When the Destiny Battle streams began, officials didn't only monitor their own contestants they observed other countries' streams as well.
After all, they were all facing the same otherworldly environment. Each contestant's exploration could bring hope to others.
"General Liu, having cleared the Destiny Battle before, what's your guess about the Sun Nation contestant's death?"
In the Eastern Horizon stream, the host switched to the Sun Nation footage while asking General Liu.
"Based on my previous experience, it's highly likely the environment caused it rather than possession by spirits or monsters," General Liu said, reviewing the playback. "The core question now is which environmental factor caused it. Professor Ma should be familiar with such conditions."
Professor Ma smiled, ready to explain. "In a dense forest, oxygen depletion is theoretically possible. Everyone knows plants produce oxygen through photosynthesis, but plants also consume oxygen through respiration."
"Look here the forest is dense and dim. Sunlight is blocked by the canopy, so plants not exposed to light consume oxygen while respiring. That could lower oxygen levels in the forest."
"Are you saying plants are competing with humans for oxygen?" the host asked.
"On Earth, that would be nearly impossible. But this is another world. It's possible. There's an even greater possibility: miasma."
"Miasma?"
"Yes. In dense forests, rotting plants and animals release carbon dioxide and toxic gases. The Sun Nation contestant entered a particularly dense area where airflow was poor, inhaling these gases, which likely caused asphyxiation."
The logical explanation made the audience nod in understanding.
Then, one comment caught everyone's attention: "No, it should be mushrooms! I was watching White Eagle's stream. Their contestant was in a similar forest, but I noticed something different there were no mushrooms near White Eagle!"
Everyone paused, and the staff quickly compared the two streams. The difference was clear.
As the comment suggested, White Eagle's forest had no mushrooms, while the Sun Nation's forest was littered with mushrooms among grass, tree trunks, and rocks.
"Could it be fungal spores?!" General Liu exclaimed.
"You're thinking what I'm thinking?"
"Remember the punishment three months ago?" General Liu asked.
"Of course. It happened in Haidu City, Linhu Province, but it didn't cause widespread disaster. The military quickly contained it," the host said, unsure why General Liu asked.
"Yes. I was one of the commanders arriving at the scene. Though it seemed minor, it was terrifying. We discovered a white fungus capable of entering the lungs via respiration, parasitizing the body, and controlling actions. Victims lost rational thought but gained extraordinary physical strength."
Thinking back on that disaster, General Liu still shivered.
"Fortunately, those fungi couldn't survive Earth's environment. Most perished before a large-scale outbreak. Otherwise, the disaster could have destroyed Haidu City, even Linhu Province itself."
"So General Liu implies mushrooms, as fungi, could spread via spores and parasitize humans. If the forest is full of spores, asphyxiation is entirely possible," Professor Ma said, frowning. He worried about other contestants encountering this hidden killer, which was nearly undetectable without specialized knowledge.
Suddenly, a comment screamed: "Danger! Reina May is entering the mushroom territory!"
"Stop! One more step and it's hell!"
"Do you think she'll notice?"
On screen, the black-haired girl, Reina May, walked steadily forward. Just a short distance ahead lay the human Forbidden Zone, densely covered with mushrooms.
"Where there's a will, there's a way. Trust our contestant," Skyler said, clenching his fists tightly over his thighs.