Players are coming, fortunately I have a time travel simulator

Zhou Ning continued to look at the post:

"At noon today, the IEF (International Esports Federation) announced the official opening of the first Apocalypse Professional League. The prize pool will be determined by the total sales of Apocalypse gaming helmets and submersible capsules. 60% of the total sales will be added to the prize pool and distributed to all participating players. This will be the largest international high-level competition in history with the highest prize pool. Apocalypse welcomes you to join!"

"The first Apocalypse Professional League will have twenty-seven IEF member countries participating, including China, Japan, South Korea, the United States, Britain, France, Russia, Germany, India, and so on..."

"The first Apocalypse Professional League will have two competitive modes: individual competition and team competition."

"The individual competition is a single-player competition. The arena terrain is randomly selected by the system, and players compete one-on-one to determine the winner. There are no restrictions on the use of any props."

"The team competition is a five-on-five match. The arena layout is randomly selected by the system. The winner is the one who completely destroys the opposing team. The use of summoning magic scrolls or magic scrolls above level 5 is restricted."

"Qualifying Stage: Any Apocalypse player can register. The recommended team size is seven players: five main players and two substitutes. A double-elimination system is used. The top eight teams will start in the winners' bracket, while the bottom eight will face off against each other. The winners of the bottom eight will then enter the losers' bracket, facing the losers of the first round of the winners' bracket. The competition will be divided into national divisions. Five teams will advance from the major divisions, and four from the minor divisions, for a total of 7 teams to determine the world champion."

"The locations for the preliminaries are as follows: Braxton: Darklan Royal Arena. Ruins: Willik Temple... Sifarik Kingdom: Falik Glory Arena."

"The venue for the main competition: Kingdom of West Farik: Farik Glory Arena."

"Registration for the preliminaries begins today. We hope all players will sign up and start the glory of Apocalypse together."

Zhou Ning couldn't help but look a little strange, but he also felt a hint of excitement in his heart. The optical computer had actually dared to hold preliminaries in Docklands despite the catastrophe. He was truly impressive. But this might also be his opportunity. Compared to the previous minor skirmishes, this was now the start of a true arms race.

Now the highest-level person in the whole world is his number one bootlicker Jinse. As long as he takes care of her deliberately and with her hard work at the level of an emperor, she can reach level 4 in 5 to 40 days at most.

At the latest, it will not exceed 7 days. In this case, I have to release some awesome skills as soon as possible, so as not to be exposed when facing warriors and knights who gradually emerge after level 30.

After a brief thought, Zhou Ning decided to open the Armament Haki and Observation Haki skills directly in his personal and guild shops. After some thought, he also added [Gun Fighting Technique: Psychic Counterattack] to the mix. He planned to launch it tomorrow. Otherwise, he'd likely be forced to add extra hours today.

These skills can be regarded as one's own special abilities, their strength far exceeds the standard, and they can be matched with each other. The observation Haki can be used to identify the opponent's attacks, and the mental counterattack can forcibly interrupt the opponent's spell casting and attack movements - as long as the player is not clumsy, he can definitely show off.

……

Besides the players, Rich Burke's minions also arrived. After greeting Zhou Ning respectfully, Berg, the boatswain who had been working with Aaron Ingersoll, took over the alchemy shop. The others, following Zhou Ning's instructions, began acquiring nearby businesses and attempting to establish a temporary guild headquarters.

Zhou Ning's eyes were moist. To be honest, he had been waiting for such help for a long time.

Next, he will transfer the rights to sell some low-level skill books to NPCs, and it is time for him to make money without doing anything.

Not long after, Zhou Ning noticed that the guards' carriage stopped not far away, and Sherlock jumped down from the carriage with a serious expression.

Zhou Ning finished the sale at the right time. After explaining the next arrangements to Rich Burke, he ignored the players' wails and walked towards Sherlock, leaving only a meaningful sentence: "Come back tomorrow, there may be some unexpected surprises."

Surprise?! The surrounding players' eyes lit up. Wayne never lied! Some players even foolishly approached to chat him up, trying to trigger a hidden quest. There was even a transvestite player, heavily made up, falling flat on her face, trying to be cute and win Zhou Ning's favor. I wonder if she was the one who said before the server launch that she wanted to create a female character as her wife. Isn't this hilarious?

After giving several players -5 favorability points in a row, Zhou Ning finally walked to Sherlock's side.

"Let's get in the carriage and talk." Sherlock said with a slight heaviness.

"What's going on?" The two of them sat down in the carriage, and the carriage started slowly with a creaking sound. Zhou Ning asked at the right time.

"I originally wanted to investigate Chris Fisher, and I actually found out a little bit. He's a merchant from the Kingdom of West Farik. He previously worked as an adventurer and participated in the war against the werewolves in the southern jungle of West Farik. He came to Brighton over a year ago and has good relationships with many of the upper echelons. But when I was about to investigate further, I received a notice from above: this haunting incident has been handed over to Darkley Field for handling, and we no longer have the authority to investigate further."

Duckley Yard? Zhou Ning pondered for a moment. Duckley Yard, similar to modern Scotland Yard in Britain, was the name for the Docklands Police Department in the capital of Braxton. It was responsible for security in the entire Docklands area, about 200 yards from the House of Lords, and was usually under the House's responsibility. The problem was, Duckley Yard wasn't usually responsible for extraordinary events.

"I know what you're thinking. Normally, Darkland Field wouldn't get involved in supernatural events, but this time it involves politics, which falls within Darkland Field's purview. Similar hauntings have even occurred at Darkland Fortress and Milne Palace, where His Majesty the King resides." Sherlock said with a heavy face.

"Therefore, when the top leaders proposed to transfer authority, the Japanese guards could not participate in the investigation of this matter."

"Of course I will continue to investigate in my own way, and I will inform you of the results as soon as possible."

Zhou Ning nodded helplessly. It was another senior executive... He didn't know how to react for a moment.

But the incident of the suspected Ascendant ritual building was a thorn in his side. His sense of responsibility made it impossible for him to ignore it. After thinking about it, he asked, "Do you know anything about the situation at the Dockland State Workhouse?"

"You suspect the Docklands National Workhouse is connected to Chris Fisher? That's a clue." Sherlock quickly pulled out a small notebook from under the carriage seat and flipped through a few pages before saying, "There have been several suspected supernatural murders at the Docklands Canal Workhouse, but the investigations yielded no results and the cases were dropped. There were also cases at the Trade Zone Workhouse. I need to go back to the Sunwatch headquarters to look up the details. Are you free tonight? I'll come see you."

"Yes, wait for me at Xilin Grocery Store. I'll come find you." This was an urgent matter, so Zhou Ning couldn't say he didn't have time. While this might just be a game, it was more than just a game to him. Considering he had to escort Spark Lambert to meet his father later, he would have to find Sherlock himself later.

Looking at the time, it was already around five in the afternoon. This place was not far from the church square, so Zhou Ning chose to say goodbye to Sherlock, get off the carriage and walk over.