Chapter 280: Chapter280-The Second-Stage Illusion Trial

Warzone 1.

The kill notifications ringing in Daniel’s ears surged endlessly like a raging tide.

By the moment the realm-wide announcement sounded, his kill count had already broken through the thirty-thousand mark!

"Thirty thousand magical beasts..."

The corners of his mouth curved upward, carrying a faint smile.

Each Warzone contained a total of ninety thousand magical beasts, yet he alone had slaughtered a full third of them, firmly standing above every other contestant!

Furthermore, all thirty thousand magical beasts he had massacred were low-grade Divine-grade beasts. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Of the remaining sixty thousand, the overwhelming majority were mid-grade and high-grade Divine-grade beasts. Only a scattered handful of low-grade beasts remained throughout the zone.

The difficulty of killing mid-grade Divine-grade magical beasts compared to low-grade ones was like the difference between heaven and earth.

In other words, every single contestant in Warzone 1 had been thoroughly screwed over by Faustus.

If they wanted to advance, they would have no choice but to grit their teeth and tackle those mid-grade and high-grade hard targets.

"Since victory is already firmly within my grasp, there is no need to waste any more effort."

Daniel had no intention of spending his time and energy gnawing away at those hard bones.

The efficiency was low, and the risks were high.

Without the slightest hesitation, he chose to activate the second stage of the elimination round.

Just then—

[Realm-Wide Announcement: The first contestant to enter the second stage of the elimination round has appeared!]

[Congratulations to Faustus, contestant of Canaan Starfield from Warzone 1, for becoming the first powerhouse to advance into the second stage!]

The instant the realm-wide announcement exploded across the battlefield, every contestant in Warzone 1 looked as though someone had forcibly stuffed a mouthful of bitter herbs down their throat. Their faces darkened until they were nearly black.

Faustus, that damned bastard!

"Wait... Does that mean only mid-grade Divine-grade magical beasts and above are left for us to hunt now?"

One expert looked utterly lost, his voice trembling.

"Heh... Mid-grade and above? You want to kill them? More like they’ll kill you!"

Another expert’s face was as gloomy as water. Inwardly, he had already cursed Faustus a thousand times over.

"Damn it! That bastard Faustus took every easy magical beast for himself and left all the troublesome ones to us!"

"I quit! How are we supposed to keep competing like this? I admit defeat!"

"Lord Faustus, you’ve cut off our path forward!"

Another contestant looked as though he was on the verge of tears.

The experts in the other Warzones were equally shaken, and heated discussions erupted everywhere.

"How long has it even been since the competition started? Faustus has already entered the second stage?"

"Faustus ended the competition the moment he entered the field. This is absurd!"

"With someone that powerful here, who can possibly suppress him? He stands alone at the very top while the rest of us have all become mere foils. Is this even a competition anymore, or is it just his one-man performance?"

"I would rather face an ancient Dark God in the abyss than compete on the same stage as Faustus."

"The most terrifying part is that he has not even gone all out yet. The goal we are desperately fighting for is something he can reach with a casual wave of his hand!"

...

Whoosh—!

Faustus suddenly appeared within the map of the second stage.

The Realm of the Holy Spirit was profound and unfathomable. Not only was its first layer more than ten times vaster than the great world outside, it actually concealed multiple layers of space within itself!

The second stage of the elimination round was located in this second spatial layer.

"Are all Divine-grade secret treasures this wondrous?"

Daniel pondered inwardly, his curiosity toward Divine-grade secret treasures deepening even further.

As long as he secured first place in the competition, the Divine-grade skill book and the Divine-grade secret treasure would both fall into his hands.

He looked around.

As far as his eyes could see, the entire area was filled with circular stone platforms, each roughly a meter in diameter.

There were platforms upon the ground and platforms suspended high in the sky. They were packed densely throughout the space, stretching endlessly into the distance with no end in sight.

"What are these things?"

A glimmer flashed through Daniel’s eyes.

At this moment, he was still the only person in the second layer.

He casually selected one of the stone platforms and sat down cross-legged upon it.

Almost at the same moment, the rules of the second stage flooded into the depths of his mind.

So that was how it worked.

Those circular platforms were exceptional auxiliary treasures designed to temper one’s Mental State. They allowed powerful individuals to hone their Mental State within illusions, thereby strengthening themselves.

The rules of the second stage were surprisingly simple.

After accepting the trial of the Dreamscape Platform, whoever could escape the illusion and awaken in the shortest amount of time would achieve the best result.

The first two thousand contestants to awaken would advance. Everyone else would be eliminated.

Daniel calmed his mind and began circulating his mind power according to the instructions provided by the rules.

Before long, he felt his eyelids grow as heavy as if they had been filled with lead.

Then he fell into a deep sleep.

...

Outside the competition grounds, in the spectator arena.

Since Daniel was currently the only contestant in the second spatial layer, he naturally became the center of everyone’s attention.

"Lord Coleman’s secret treasure, the Realm of the Holy Spirit, is truly extraordinary. In particular, those Dreamscape Platforms can rightfully be called a sacred land for tempering one’s Mental State."

"Indeed. I believe these juniors will all benefit tremendously from them."

The Oracle-grade of Aurora Starfield spoke with a smile.

"They will certainly gain many benefits, but it is also extremely easy to become lost within the illusion."

Chanelle, the Oracle-grade of Canaan Starfield, smiled faintly.

"If a contestant becomes too attached to the opportunities within the illusion and delays their progress in the competition, they may very well risk being eliminated instead."

"Do you all think Faustus might become the first to awaken?"

The Oracle-grade of Viridis Starfield asked.

"That is difficult to say. There is something rather uncanny about that brat Faustus."

The Oracle-grade of Alba Starfield gave a bitter smile.

"If he becomes lost within the illusion, then he would be far too foolish. How could the second stage possibly compare to the Spirit Tower in the third stage? If it were me, I would decisively abandon the trial inside the illusion and rush straight toward the Spirit Tower instead."

The Oracle-grade of Aetno Starfield laughed.

"You are worrying over nothing. The contestants do not understand the Realm of the Holy Spirit. The benefits of the Spirit Tower may indeed be the greatest, but they have no way of knowing that."

"Precisely. Forcibly breaking free from the illusion is extraordinarily difficult. Merely preserving one’s rationality within it is already no easy feat."

"This stage is most advantageous to contestants who specialize in Mental State cultivation and illusion arts."

"Eris of Lumina Starfield may even be able to surpass Faustus. After all, she is one of the finest masters of illusion techniques!"

...

Before long, a second powerhouse appeared in the second layer of the Realm of the Holy Spirit.

"Faustus..."

Harris glanced from afar in Daniel’s direction before hurriedly choosing a Dreamscape Platform and sitting down cross-legged.

I absolutely will not lose to you in this second stage, Faustus!

He instantly entered the proper state.

Whoosh—!

The third and fourth contestants appeared one after another.

Udi of Copper Starfield cast an indifferent glance at Daniel and Harris. The proud look on his face immediately vanished.

He pursed his lips, then casually found a place to sit down.

Igor of Maritim Starfield studied Faustus with great interest for a moment before selecting a platform of his own.

The fifth, sixth, and seventh contestants arrived almost simultaneously.

Eris of Lumina Starfield, along with Mosi and James of Canaan Starfield!

With perfect mutual understanding, Mosi and James chose the two platforms adjacent to Daniel’s, sitting down on his left and right respectively.

The eighth, ninth, and tenth contestants followed close behind.

They were Flora and Julian of Samuel Starfield, Silas of Viridis Starfield, White Wolf of Alba Starfield, and Coldstar of Aetno Starfield.

Once they saw the situation clearly, they each silently selected a Dreamscape Platform and sat down.

At this point, every nine-star contestant from the various Starfields had arrived!

A long while later, a disheveled figure finally appeared on the scene.

The moment he arrived, he glared viciously at Daniel’s back.

Had Faustus not slaughtered practically every low-grade Divine-grade magical beast in Warzone 1, he would never have been forced into such a miserable state.

It was none other than Elysi!

"Faustus... You damned bastard!"

With a bellyful of rage and nowhere to vent it, Elysi selected a Dreamscape Platform and sat down heavily upon it.