As the speech drew to a close, the Supreme finally revealed the tangible rewards.


    "Even though we have sacrificed much for a greater goal, leading to fewer legendary and demigod yers umting merit…"


    "The Hall of Valor will never concede defeat!"


    "This time, those who rank high on the merit leaderboard will receive des from the Hall of Valor, directly awarded by the [Tanscendence] system!"


    …


    The moment these words were spoken, a wave of excitement rippled through the crowd below.


    Previously, those demigod and legendary yers had merely echoed the sentiments of the three Supremes, their hearts showing little reaction.


    Now, they were eagerly opening the event panel to check the details. Sterl was among them; he quickly clicked into the event page, and indeed, the rewards had been enhanced.


    The top one hundred in the merit rankings could ess a special store, and the quality of this contribution store would increase for the top fifty, top thirty, top ten, and the top three.


    When Sterl opened the highest-quality contribution store, he was astonished to find an Iridescent-Level item, specifically…


    A third of the [Rebirth of All Thoughts], with the option to choose which one-third he wanted.


    This item could be exchanged for those who reached the top three in the merit rankings.


    However, each person could only make one exchange in the contribution store; selecting [Rebirth of All Thoughts] meant they could not choose any other item.


    This meant that if Sterl secured a top-three position, he could piece together two-thirds of [Rebirth of All Thoughts]…


    "Wait!"


    "What if the other two yers with high merit rankings also choose [Rebirth of All Thoughts]?"


    "I can utilize the [Consume] effect of the Fate Token to significantly enhance this Iridescent-Level skill!"


    A n began to form in Sterl''s mind… He could find a way to manipte others… to set a trap!


    Of course, aside from the rewards from this contribution store, the top ten in merit rankings would also receive Valor Contribution Points and purple coins as rewards.


    Achieving a top-three ranking would even allow the yer to make a wish to the Hall of Valor, which, as long as it wasn''t too outrageous, would usually be fulfilled.


    If he managed to take first ce in the merit rankings…


    The Hall of Valor wouldn''t offer any additional rewards, primarily because it was clearly stated that a mysterious organization from the upper realms would summon the first-ce leaderboard winner to personally present grand prizes.


    Sterl quietly closed the event page, feeling a sense of anticipation about what that mysterious grand prize could be.


    Though he often reminded himself to keep a low profile, his smooth journey so far had led him to subconsciously believe that first ce on the leaderboard was a certainty!


    …


    The Supreme''s speech came to an end, or perhaps it hadn''t quite ended yet.


    Boom! Boom!


    Outside the city, several massive and intensely radiant energy balls struck the walls of The Blood Red Fortress, creating deafening explosions and shockwaves.


    The demigod yers fared rtively well, but many of the legendary yers were thrown off bnce and even sustained minor injuries.


    Clearly, the demons were not nning to give the inhabitants of the main world a moment to breathe. After gathering their forces, they immediatelyunched a fierce attack. They understood their window of opportunity was limited; if they could strike while the main world yers were still unsteady, they might stand a chance.


    Meanwhile, several Supremes from the Hall of Valor and other factions took action simultaneously, quickly erecting protective formations to shield the walls. The subsequent attacks from the demonic army were all blocked by the shields, preventing any further assault.


    High above, these Supremes roared together, "All troops, advance!"


    Sterl divided his forces into two paths.


    His clone joined the military team and surged toward the battlefield. The sight was quite spectacr.


    A thousand-strong team flew high in the sky, resembling a stream of meteors rushing towards the distant, ravenous demonic army. There was no time to head to designated defense zones; they needed to repel this first wave of enemies first.


    Meanwhile, Sterl''s main body was in a secluded corner of the city, opening his mailbox.


    The [Tanscendence] mailbox function allowed yers to send resources to others instantly for a cost of purple coins. However, in hell, even the golden documents were slow to react, and the mailbox function seemed sluggish as well.


    The email had been sent three hours ago, but Sterl had just received it.


    There was no content in the email, just a single line:


    "Confirmation that there is no danger, but it may be that we cannot trigger it."


    Indeed, this was the key that Gloria had sent to Sterl, delivered through Sosia and Sonis to reach him.


    Sterl chose to take out the item.


    At that moment, the golden keyy quietly in his hand, emanating strange waves of energy.


    [Key of the Realms]+


    [Description: A key originally crafted from special materials, capable of opening the door to a peculiar space. After being damaged, it was repurposed by the Earth''s human race to store information.]


    [Effect: Helps you open a secret space.]


    Sterl was left speechless.


    "Do you take me for a fool?"


    He was exasperated.


    This key was supposed to open a special space, but who knew whether it contained secrets or a group of strongmen ready to ambush Sterl?


    It was impossible for him to use it safely.


    No matter how curious he was about the secrets of the Earth''s human race, this was not a risk he was willing to take…


    However, noticing a point symbol on the key, Sterl tentatively added a point.


    This time, it triggered a burst of radiant evolution.


    Apanied by a spectrum of colorful light, the key''s appearance didn''t change, but it gained an additional function.


    [Effect: ①...


    ②You can use this item to open a gate to "the upper realms," with this effect usable a maximum of two times, after which the item will be permanently destroyed.]


    "Ah?"


    Sterl was taken aback; he felt as though he had unlocked something extraordinary…


    The upper realms; he didn''t understand much about it.


    Yet, the gods of the Hall of Valor all yearned for a chance to venture into the upper realms.


    The value of this key was likely beyond imagination.


    "This wave of power isn''t just from my cheat; it''s that this key itself has such capabilities. It''s just damaged and unusable; my point allocation merely repaired it."


    Sterl murmured to himself.


    At this moment, he decisively—


    Stored the key away in his small world as if he had never obtained it.


    In the upper realms, there were probably divine-level beings in abundance; there was no need for Sterl to go there and court disaster.


    Having dyed for a moment, outside the city had already turned into a brutal meat grinder.


    Sterl sensed through his clone''s perspective, and at this moment—


    The demonic army shed violently with the legendary and demigod yers, engaging in a frenzied battle. The monsters summoned by the hellish consciousness, whilecking in raw power, had been forged in the brutal environment of hell, resulting in gruesome skills and spells.


    Many demons were burning their own life force as the price, transforming into terrifying attacks.


    Where Sterl''s clone was located, a demigod was entangled by several legendary demons, and those demons had actually killed one of their own, converting that fallenrade into a chain that trapped the demigod for a moment.


    This was no big deal on its own.


    But then, the other legendary demons suddenly self-destructed!


    They converted all their life force and strength into a one-time lethal assault.


    Even with overwhelming power, the demigod next to Sterl''s clone was heavily injured.


    Then, out of nowhere, a half-body demon charged in, wielding a steel de that sliced through the air like a blood-red scythe, piercing directly through!


    The already wounded demigod was forced to use his life-saving item.


    Then he was targeted by several legendary demons…


    Boom!


    After another round of self-destruction, this unfortunate demigod perished!


    Sterl could only watch in shock…


    Mainly because such a smooth series ofbos would be tricky even for him to handle.


    "This is… war…"


    He suddenly recalled a famous admonition from his past life.


    "In war, everyone will die like dogs…"


    Even demigods could fall victim to chaos in an instant.


    And around his clone, it wasn''t just the demigod from the main world facing disaster; some demigod demons were also caught up in skirmishes with many legendary yers from the main world, unable to escape in time.


    As a result, they were easily in by the main world''s demigods with a tinum skill, an unjust death indeed.


    Then came…


    A group of legendary yers from the main world, who had originally been engaging the legendary demons, were caught in the aftermath of a sh between two demigods above, resulting in all of them being violently killed.


    The Supremes from various major factions were also taking action.


    Sterl was puzzled—


    With all the Supremes mobilizing, leaving no one behind to guard the home front was fine; The Blood Red Fortress wasn''t worth defending. The main goal was to crush the forces of hell entirely.


    But surely there had to be someone to keep an eye on the members from the upper realms, right?


    After the Supremes took action, the battlefield became even more chaotic; it was clear that the demons also had Supreme-levelbatants.


    The shockwaves created by their shes were world-shattering!


    Sterl''s clone was forced to flee in a panic to avoid being killed by the aftermath.


    Yet nearby, the allies he had just met a few minutes ago had already been wiped out…


    At this moment, Sterl wasn''t just reflecting on the unpredictability of war; he was searching for those formidable enemies.


    After the initial chaos, he finally spotted his target.


    To the west side of the main world coalition''s forces, yers from the three major factions were mingling together, facing arge group of demigod-level demons and hellish yers.


    Without hesitation, Sterl disguised himself as the mysterious demigod who had previously appeared and used Shattered Void, swiftly teleporting closer to the battlefield.


    However…


    As soon as he arrived, he felt a bit exasperated.


    Earlier, he had observed this area from a distance with his clone and noticed the high intensity of the battle.


    But in reality, they weren''t just having a wild time fighting the demons.


    Instead, after stepping out of the safety zone, the yers from the three factions were not only defending against the onught of demons and hellish yers but were also letting old grievances resurface, leading to infighting.


    Hiding in the shadow world, Sterl saw that the yers from the Hall of Valor were the most unfortunate. As the main force of the nominal coalition of the three factions, the Hall of Valor yers were at the forefront—


    Of course, this was also a lucrative position; they could take down any monsters first.


    However, the problem was that many of the Hall of Valor''s demigods had just engaged with the demons when chaos erupted behind them—