The Shining Star Above The Heaven

As the time for the next round finally came, the participants started to return to the arena. After waiting for a few moments, they finally gathered. The ones who passed into this phase were now fewer than seven hundred. From almost two hundred thousand to less than seven hundred, this showed not only the difficulty of the challenge but also the talent of these participants.

Once they had gathered again in the arena, Orlav, who was already floating above, observed the participants for a moment before he began to speak.

"Welcome back, participants. I think the break time was enough for you to rest, and now we will continue the tournament." He paused slightly.

"Now, I will tell you about the next phase of the tournament, and it will be much more fun for you, as this one will truly test your ability to survive. You will push both your body and mind if you wish to succeed in this phase," Orlav continued.

Suddenly, in the middle of the arena, a spatial portal appeared. The portal had a circular shape and a purple color. This caused the participants to look at it in wonder, while the spectators began to discuss it among themselves.

"I can sense complex space laws within that portal. That must be the portal to the secret realm that was mentioned earlier, but how could I not sense any spatial disturbance there earlier? If that portal is connected to the secret realm, there should have been some kind of sign I could detect." One of the outsiders spoke.

"I don't know, but since Aldrian the Great is said to be the one who created the secret realm, he might have done something so we can't sense the portal. Still, I wonder what kind of secret realm this is. I can't sense any energy leaking from inside." Another answered.

As the discussion continued, Orlav also carried on with his explanation.

"We give our thanks to His Majesty, Emperor Aldrian, who created this secret realm for us to use as the challenge ground. In this challenge, just like the earlier phase, each category will take turns. The participants must enter the secret realm, and inside, your task is quite simple." Orlav's smile grew brighter.

"What you need to do is collect as many crystals as possible within the time limit of two hours. The crystals you can gather are of different values, black crystals are worth 10 points, brown crystals 20 points, white crystals 30 points, red crystals 40 points, and yellow crystals 50 points."

"These crystals are spread across the secret realm, and you will find them in many places. Some may be easy to spot, while others could be hidden, forcing you to use your abilities to obtain them. We will also give you this bracelet…" Orlav then took out a bracelet from his pocket, engraved with intricate patterns.

"This bracelet has spatial storage, which functions as the place where you put your crystals. You must store any crystals you collect inside it."

"This bracelet also serves as your protection. Protection against what? Against anything. For example, the wild beasts inside. There are many kinds of wild beasts we have placed there, and they will be quite dangerous for you, so be careful."

"This bracelet can protect you from one fatal attack, but once that happens, you will be teleported out of the secret realm. In other words, you are considered 'dead' inside the secret realm and eliminated. This also applies if you are trapped by something, since the environment inside is not always friendly."

"This bracelet also has a manual teleportation function, which will instantly bring you out of the secret realm if you wish to give up, or if you feel that what you have gathered is enough and are confident about it, even before the time is up. But remember, only the top twenty will be able to continue to the next phase."

As Orlav said this, the staff began distributing the bracelets to the participants.

Zander also received his bracelet. He examined the silver-colored band, noticing the patterns engraved on it, which he believed to be formations. To be honest, he was truly amazed by this kind of artifact, as the creator had managed to engrave such small formations onto a bracelet. Just as Orlav had said, he could sense the teleportation function, and he realized he only needed to inject a small portion of his energy to activate it.

The other participants were also checking their bracelets, and when Orlav saw that each of them had received one, he continued.

"Once you enter the secret realm, there will be many projectors showing your movements, so everyone will be able to watch your performance inside. So do your best, participants!"

The participants' fighting spirit ignited once again as their eyes turned toward the portal.

"Alright, without waiting any longer, participants of the beginner stage may enter first. As for the rest, you may watch to get an idea of what awaits you. However, believe me when I say that trying to memorize the terrain of the secret realm through the projector will be useless for your challenge later. That is because we have already prepared a different secret realm for each category."

Hearing this, the spectators were astonished. Creating a secret realm itself was no easy task, and depending on the terrain or environment inside, the difficulty might increase sharply. They began to wonder what kind of environments these secret realms contained.

The beginner stage participants had already stood up and were approaching the portal. A few moments later, the first participant finally stepped into it, followed by the others. Once all of the beginner stage participants had entered, projectors suddenly appeared near the top of the stadium, allowing everyone to finally see what was happening inside.

The projectors clearly displayed the environment of the secret realm. It was a mountainous range, covered by dense forest. The realm also appeared vast, as the spectators could see the terrain stretching all the way to the horizon. Above it was a blue sky with clouds and even a sun, making the secret realm appear like its own separate world.

This left many in shock. The environment of the secret realm was identical to the outside world, which was truly astonishing. To create something like this, a cultivator would need to comprehend many laws, and even those at the peak of the pseudo-immortal stage could not accomplish such a feat.

At most, cultivators could only combine a few laws into a secret realm, enough for themselves or others to cultivate, to remain there for a time in hiding, or for other purposes, as long as they did not intend to live there permanently. Living inside a secret realm permanently was not recommended because of the lack of a fully supporting environment.

Unless the creator of the secret realm could duplicate the entire cycle of nature like in the outside world, there was no way anyone could remain there permanently. Yet to create something like that, the creator would need a profound comprehension of many laws and the ability to shape an artificial cycle of nature within the realm.

That was something nearly impossible, for mortals had limitations on how many laws they could comprehend and how deep their comprehension could reach.

That was why, when outsiders came to the Barisan Continent and discovered that many secret realms within the Eternal Sanctuary Forest resembled the outside world itself, they could not help but be shocked. Many said that these secret realms had been created by gods who descended to the continent in the past, and the outsiders believed this, for the stories of gods descending were also known among the outsiders.

If it were gods, perhaps they truly could accomplish such a feat, after all, they were gods.

But for Aldrian the Great to create something like those gods, how had he done it?

How many laws had that man comprehended? How deep was his comprehension?

Many questions began to rise, but the spectators quickly set them aside as the projectors finally displayed some of the participants. They appeared to be placed randomly once they entered the portal, each separated into different parts of the secret realm, with distances between them quite far.

The participants seemed to be checking their surroundings before slowly moving in different directions. Before long, one participant discovered a black crystal. He stored it in his bracelet before continuing his search.

Soon after, other participants also began to find crystals, with most of their first discoveries being black crystals. As time passed, some participants finally encountered the wild beasts within the secret realm.

"That is a Silver Armoured Rhino. From the looks of it, this one is still not fully mature, yet its power is already a threat to the Disciple stage. This level of beast is far too much for the beginner stage!" one of the spectators said.

"That is a Purple Stinger Scorpion. Its poison could even kill a Disciple stage! These beginner kids will be dead if they're stung even once!" another commented.

Many spectators began to think that this challenge was truly brutal, with beasts far stronger than the beginner stage roaming freely. The only way for the participants to avoid elimination was to escape as quickly as possible.

Unfortunately, some who accidentally encountered these beasts had no time to run. The beginner stage participants stood no chance, as even a single attack from the beasts was enough to "kill" them. Because of this, the first few participants were soon teleported out of the secret realm.

The moment they reappeared outside, their frustration was clear for all to see. They had been truly unlucky to meet such beasts. The monsters' speed was far too great for them to evade, leaving them with no choice but to take the fatal blow.

As time passed and thirty minutes had gone by, the first couple of participants finally encountered each other.