49 Apocalypse Rules

[The Holy Grail has been held for 30 consecutive minutes]

As the voice of Fire Thief rang out, every surviving team on the island stopped in their tracks.

"The Holy Grail... it never changed hands even once."

Almost everyone had assumed that under such fierce competition, the Holy Grail would change hands at least a few times. But that never happened.

The team that first found the Holy Grail held on to it until the very end.

All the teams that hadn’t joined the fray or participated in the competition now had the same thought: ’Is that team really that strong? Not a single team could defeat them and take the Holy Grail?’

Still, it wasn’t really their concern. The only real effect on them was that the challenge’s duration had been drastically reduced.

The challenge, originally scheduled for 24 hours, was now over in less than 10.

[The team with ownership of the Holy Grail has been confirmed. The first Ascender Challenge is now over.]

After Fire Thief finished speaking, all surviving Ascenders were pulled by Gravity, lifted off the ground, and sent flying high into the sky, just like when they were first teleported here.

[Team rankings have been determined based on total team points.]

[First Place: Shadow]

[Second Place: Adam, Matty, Eliza, Amanda, Claire]

[Third Place: Dragon Soul, Black Shark, Flying Eagle, Night Owl, Silver Fox]

[Fourth Place: Baqizi, Moon Fate, Wuyan Clan]

[Fifth Place: Snow White Traceless]

...

The list of members for the top ten teams appeared before every contestant, leaving them all in a state of profound shock.

"Shadow? Is that the same Shadow who took first place during the second Apocalypse Rule?"

"Him again?!"

"His team only has one person? First place in points all by himself? How did he do it!"

Somewhere in the air, the four women on Adam’s second-place team saw the top-ten list and were stunned. "Lucifer isn’t even in the top ten? And those guys from the Tulip Federation..."

"They must have failed while fighting for the Holy Grail. With their strength, it would have been easy to get into the top ten if they’d played it safe. A pity," Adam sighed. "That’s why I always say, the warlike will perish. Not even the strongest are an exception."

"But this ’Shadow’ is terrifying! It looks like he’ll be a powerful rival for you in the future, Adam!"

"Don’t say that, Amanda. I don’t like making enemies. If possible, I’d rather team up with him to fight against the Apocalypse Rules."

"...Adam, you’re too kind. People are going to take advantage of you one day!"

Adam didn’t say anything more, just smiled.

The five members of the third-place team were also discussing the rankings.

Their captain, Dragon Soul, said, "Of the five apocalypse squads from the Strategy Research Room, only our First Squad and the Fourth Squad made the rankings. The Second, Third, and Fifth squads all failed to place."

"The Third and Fifth squads have failed twice in a row now. Do you think they’ll be eliminated?" Silver Fox said.

"Hard to say. But the captain’s decision not to fight for the Holy Grail was undoubtedly the right one," Black Shark said. "With that many people in a chaotic brawl, the risk was just too high. It was more about luck than strength."

In a multi-team brawl, even a strong squad has its limits. If four or five other squads decide to gang up on you, there’s always a chance of an unexpected and humiliating defeat.

That’s why Captain Dragon Soul had decided to give up on the Holy Grail, prioritizing securing points to maintain their ranking.

Looking at it now, that decision had at least secured North Star Country a spot in the top three.

"Black Shark is right," Captain Dragon Soul said. "But I don’t think that ’Shadow’ relied on luck alone."

The other four nodded in agreement. You couldn’t defend the Holy Grail for 30 minutes on luck alone.

"Back during the second Rule, I remember a lot of videos circulating online... people who thought ’Shadow’ was from our North Star Country, hoping he’d reveal his secrets to clearing it. This ’Shadow’ has to be the same person, right?"

"Not necessarily. Only the numerical ID is fixed; nicknames can be changed anytime. There are probably eight hundred, if not a thousand, Ascenders named ’Shadow’."

Just then, Night Owl, who had been silent the whole time, spoke slowly, "After this challenge, the whole world will definitely be trying to find out who ’Shadow’ is. Moreover, to protect the Holy Grail this time, he must have exposed his abilities and items to many other Ascenders... If he uses those abilities carelessly in the outside world from now on, he’ll likely be identified."

"Heh, it’s rare for you to say so much, Night Owl. What, do you want to find him?" Silver Fox asked with a smile.

Night Owl said, "Of course. Who wouldn’t want to meet a powerhouse like that? Besides, if he really is from our North Star Country, the higher-ups will definitely want to recruit him for the Official Team."

[Top ten teams, ranking rewards have been distributed.]

[Contestant ’Shadow’s’ team, for obtaining ownership of the Holy Grail, receives an additional special reward.]

[The first Ascender Challenge hereby concludes. Teleportation commencing.]

As Fire Thief’s voice faded, a black hole appeared before everyone, just as it had upon their arrival, and they were sucked inside.

When light returned to their vision, they were all back in the locations they had left from.

Guan Tong stood in the supply storage room, a faint smile on his face as he watched the setting sun outside.

’This competition was definitely worth it.’

Without a doubt, he was the biggest winner of this challenge, bar none.

Even though his abilities as Silver Hunter—the Smoke Bombs, the High-Explosive Bombs, and Shadow...—were exposed to a certain extent and would surely lead to an intense search for him, it was all worth it compared to the rewards he’d gained!

He had used the fourth page of the [Wordless Book] to obtain his own personal, portable shelter; he had also enhanced Shadow’s five senses and strengthened Silver Hunter’s electronic interference ability... These were all massive upgrades for him.