In a state of semi-consciousness, John vaguely saw a figure appear within the giant egg, wielding a massive axe, fiercely splitting it open.
The figure then stood tall, raising the heavens with one hand and stomping the earth with the other. His body continued to grow as the sky and earth separated, and everything around became clear and bright.
John jolted awake, his eyes snapping open. Yet, his surroundings remained shrouded in darkness he could neither see nor feel anything.
It was as if everything that had just transpired was nothing more than an incredibly vivid dream.
“Was that Creator creating heaven and earth?” he muttered to himself. The scene he had witnessed perfectly mirrored the legendary myth of Creator’s creation of the world.
He felt a subtle understanding stirring within him, yet it remained elusive, just beyond his grasp.
“Keep going!” he urged himself, once again immersing his mind in contemplation, trying to grasp the fleeting insights.
…
On the Sky Ladder in the Secret Area of Skyline Continent.
Curses and insults filled the air, accompanied by the rumbling sounds of explosions. These were the sounds of the Shadow Clan’s elites being erased by the rules of the Secret Area.
Other races’ elites were also among the casualties.
In their desperate attempts to survive, many had resorted to all manner of unscrupulous tactics, ruthlessly cursing and humiliating those ranked ahead of them.
Tony watched the scene unfold, clicking his tongue in silent disapproval.
Of course, several others had tried to provoke him, but he paid them no mind.
Tony was not some natural-born genius. His achievements had been hard-won after years of struggle.
Moreover, he had been trapped in the Abyss for over a millennium, a place comparable to hell itself. Surviving there had steeled his heart to be unimaginably resilient. Mere taunts and insults couldn’t faze him.
“The time should be almost up,” he calculated. His current rank was 35th, but if he wanted to live, he needed to advance at least two more places.
He was in rough shape, covered in blood, and had already climbed over three thousand steps of the Sky Ladder, reaching the limits of his endurance.
“My Immortal Golden Body hasn’t been triggered yet, nor has the Lifesaver talent bestowed by the Godslayer. Advancing a few more places won’t be a problem,” he murmured to himself, not in any hurry to keep climbing. Instead, he sat down on one of the steps, focusing on
recovering his demon power, preparing for a final push.
“What’s the matter? Out of strength already? For a demigod to have made it this far is impressive, but it’s still a shame,” a mid-tier god from the demon race remarked as he passed by, his tone filled with mock pity.
“Hmph!” He snorted coldly, too uninterested to bother responding.
On the Sky Ladder, nearly all challengers had reached their limits, and the rankings were becoming hard to change.
Cand-Dragon held a high rank on the ladder, standing alongside Nine-Tails, Lincoln, and Beelzebub.
There were also seven strong members from the Shadow Clan nearby.
The Jolyne figure had fallen far behind, but fortunately, they were still within the top thirty- three, so they weren’t in immediate danger.
“I wonder what rank Tony is in now?” Cand-Dragon couldn’t spot Tony anywhere, which made him feel uneasy.
“Don’t worry,” Nine-Tails reassured him, “The Master copied an SSS-tier Lifesaver talent for him. There’s no way he’ll fail to secure a spot in the rankings.”
Her tone carried a hint of envy. She could sense that John possessed several powerful SSS-tier talents. For a demigod to have such monstrous strength, it was definitely related to those abilities.
Unfortunately, her relationship with John wasn’t close enough yet for him to share such talents with her.
Cand-Dragon nodded, his gaze fixed on the Sky Ladder, where both John and Blood Moon were out of sight.
Those two were far stronger than anyone else.
He couldn’t help but wonder aloud, “I wonder how far Godslayer has climbed by now.” Nine-Tails sighed with a hint of regret, “It’s a shame there aren’t any extra rewards for the ladder rankings. If there were, the Master would surely collect a ton of elemental essence.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Cand-Dragon said, “The final challenge is the real danger.” He already knew the rules of the last stage-an all-out brawl where they would fight to seize the elemental essence.
No matter how much essence one gathered in the previous stages, it wouldn’t enhance their power during the battle. And if they died, they’d lose all of their essence.
On the ladder, Blood Moon had also reached his limit. Unable to climb any higher, he unlocked his sealed senses.
“No one else around?” he muttered, scanning the area and seeing no trace of John. A smirk spread across his face.
“Hah! A weak human trying to compete with me?” He chuckled arrogantly, convinced he had left John far behind.
Currently ranked first, and with the test nearly over, he saw no reason to push himself further.
[System Notice: Sky Ladder test will conclude in three minutes.]
At that moment, the system’s announcement echoed, and the crowd went wild. Especially those ranked below thirty-three-they started surging forward recklessly.
“Hey, you motherless brat, climbing like you’re in a hurry to be reborn, huh?” Furious shouts
echoed from below, followed by explosions and a mist of blood.
Many Shadow Clan elites were enraged, attacking without any restraint.
Some couldn’t withstand the pressure of the Sky Ladder and their bodies exploded under the
crushing force.
Fortunately, any god-tier being could still resurrect as long as their soul remained intact.
However, immortality wasn’t absolute. Once someone died too many times and their soul was damaged, they could still face true death.
After hearing the system prompt, Tony went all out, charging forward with everything he had. But before he could take more than two steps, the terrifying pressure of the Sky Ladder killed
him instantly.
[You have been instantly killed by the Sky Ladder’s pressure. Lifesaver talent triggered: 10 seconds of invincibility granted.]
The notification flashed as a golden light enveloped Tony’s body.
“Huh, this is pretty similar to my Immortal Golden Body. It grants damage immunity,” he
said, surprised but not panicking.
The Lifesaver talent could trigger up to five times, meaning he had fifty seconds of invincibility in total.
Tony decided to wait until the final forty seconds before making his final push.
If he reached a height he couldn’t maintain, he wouldn’t be able to last long.
And by waiting, he wouldn’t need to reveal his Immortal Golden Body skill.
With his plan set, Tony quietly counted down the time.
By now, he had fallen out of the top fifty, with most of the Shadow Clan elites ahead of him.
Several other challengers had hit their limits and were hurling insults at the Shadow Clan
members.
Tony frowned, annoyed at how vile their insults were-even worse than his own.
As the challenge entered its final minute, everyone became even more frantic. Quickly, only forty seconds remained. Tony knew it was time. He sprinted forward with
everything he had.
Boom!
With a single step, the immense pressure of the Sky Ladder crushed him again. Immediately, the Lifesaver talent triggered, bathing him in golden light and granting him
another ten seconds of invincibility.
“This is almost too easy,” Tony smirked, ignoring the shocked and anxious glances from those around him. With the crushing force weighing on him, he continued climbing quickly.
He passed the 50th rank.
Then the 45th.
40th.
35th…
But as he climbed higher, the pressure from the Sky Ladder grew exponentially stronger. Even
with the invincibility from his Lifesaver talent, his progress slowed significantly.
“Just a little more!” he muttered, calculating his rank. He had reached 34th place.
One more person, and he’d secure his survival.
However, to be safe, Tony decided to push ahead at least two more spots.
“You Beast Clan demigod, you’re too weak for this. Just give up already. You’ll die soon
enough anyway,” a Shadow Clan elite ahead of him shouted, fear evident in his voice as he
tried to rattle Tony.
Tony didn’t bother to respond. He steadily overtook the man and, with a smug grin, said, “Sorry, but you’re the one getting eliminated.”
“No! Bastard, get back down here!” The Shadow Clan elite shouted in panic, launching a
desperate attack to stop Tony.
Boom!
Predictably, the rules of the Secret Area instantly obliterated him.
Only ten seconds remained in the Sky Ladder challenge.
Tony resurrected once more, glancing at another Shadow Clan elite just ahead of him. Gritting
his teeth, he chased after him.
The elite ahead noticed and panicked, immediately trying to climb faster.
“Don’t worry!” Tony called out quickly. “You’re ranked 32nd. Even if I pass you, you won’t
die.”
“Really?” the Shadow Clan elite hesitated, uncertain. He had indeed reached his limit and couldn’t advance any further.
“Of course!” Tony sped past him, letting out a sigh of relief as he turned back and grinned. “Idiot, I tricked you. You’re getting eliminated too.”
“Damn! You’re dead, you bastard!” The man roared in anger, realizing he’d been played. With
the test about to end, he recklessly tried to unleash a skill against Tony, ignoring the rules of
the Secret Area.
Boom!
Before he could even finish casting his skill, the rules struck him down.
“Moron, can’t even calculate ranks properly.” Tony sneered, looking down at the spot where
the 33rd-ranked challenger had just fallen.
“Thanks for that,” an Angel Race elite called out from below, letting out a relieved breath and
casting a grateful glance at Tony.
“Hmph, no need for thanks,” Tony grunted coldly, responding indifferently.
He recognized the Angel Race elite-Grey, an upper-tier god.
While Tony wasn’t particularly fond of the Angel Race, they were certainly more tolerable
than the Shadow Clan.
[Sky Ladder Trial has concluded.]
The system prompt appeared, and the overwhelming pressure that had been weighing them
down vanished. The Sky Ladder itself disappeared as well.
The restriction on flying was lifted, and everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief as they
descended to the ground.
Cand-Dragon and the others quickly found Tony, immediately asking, “What rank did you get?”
“Rest easy, I’m ranked 32nd. I’ll be fine.” Tony exhaled deeply, feeling immense gratitude toward John.
Without the Lifesaver talent, even if he had exposed his Immortal Golden Body skill, he doubted he could’ve made it into the top 33.
“What about Godslayer?” Tony asked, realizing he hadn’t seen John and growing curious.
The group froze for a moment before hurriedly scanning the area.
“Nothing,” Cand-Dragon shook his head, frowning deeply.
“Do you think something might’ve happened to him?” Nine-Tails looked up at the sky,
concern filling her eyes. The Sky Ladder had vanished, and everyone had returned-except for
John.
She worried that John had pushed himself too far, unable to withstand the pressure and
getting obliterated by the Sky Ladder.
“Impossible,” Tony refused to believe it. John was the savior foretold by Ben’s prophecy, and with the disaster still unresolved, there was no way John would fall here.
Jolyne spoke up as well, “Let’s wait a bit longer. There’s been no prompt from the Secret Area.
It seems like this test isn’t quite over yet.”
The group paused, realizing she was right. Normally, the test would transition immediately
to the next stage once it ended.
The Shadow Clan elites also sensed something was off.
One of them glanced toward Blood Moon and said, “My lord, Godslayer seems to have
disappeared.”
“Could he have died during the Sky Ladder trial?”
“That lucky bastard,” one sneered.
The Shadow Clan members were visibly pleased by the thought, reveling in their
schadenfreude.
However, Blood Moon’s frown deepened. He didn’t believe John had perished.
Moreover, he had noticed the same delay in the system’s prompt.
Having challenged many Secret Areas before, this was the first time he had encountered such
a strange situation. Something was clearly not right.