Chapter 1022: Upper Realm! New Soil Territory!
Boom!!
When Ling Zhan's spear pierced through the Holy Light Guardian's head, it marked the successful completion of this trial.
Crushing a level 300 guardian with level 200 power.
Sounds unbelievably ridiculous.
Probably no one would believe it if you said it aloud.
But if that person is Ling Zhan, then everything suddenly makes sense.
Even in his final moments, the Holy Light Guardian probably never imagined this level 200 human could be so terrifyingly powerful.
With the guardian's fall, the golden palace began to twist and collapse.
Eventually…
The space transformed into a world of clear blue sky.
Beneath Ling Zhan was the blue sky, and above his head was also the sky.
At the end of this sky world stood a grand void gate radiating magnificence.
Ling Zhan knew—that gate led to the Upper Realm.
"Congratulations, Ascender!"
"You have completed the trial!"
"You have earned the right to enter the Upper Realm!"
The vast voice of the Spirit of the Nether Domain Ruins echoed.
It's worth mentioning…
There were no rewards for clearing this place.
After all, this wasn't a regular dungeon—it was a qualification trial dungeon.
Clearing it only earned you access—not any gear, experience, or items.
But that's fine…
Ding!!
[Detected: Host has defeated the level 300 Holy Light Guardian. Time: 42 seconds…]
[Congratulations, Host. You have completed the 'Ascension Excellence' mission!]
[Now distributing system rewards!]
...…
Ling Zhan received system task rewards on his end.
From quest trigger to battle start to end—barely under one minute total.
Absolutely absurd.
Ding!
[Reward 1: Your level will increase to 210!]
[Reward 2: All your talents will be upgraded from SSS-rank to 'Heaven Void' rank!]
[Reward 3: Holy Resurrection Potion x5!]
"That's unexpectedly generous…"
Ling Zhan glanced over, slightly surprised.
In his eyes, the mission was way too easy to complete.
He thought the rewards would just be scraps.
Didn't expect the system to give out something so generous!
He had just gotten his talents upgraded to SSS-rank, and now after completing the Ascension Trial, they got bumped up to Heaven Void.
That's a little outrageous.
But maybe it's because now he's entering the Upper Realm—SSS-rank wouldn't be enough anymore, so the system issued stronger rewards.
Also…
Ling Zhan's trial completion time was too perfect.
Cleared the trial in 42 seconds.
That broke the record among lower realm Ascenders.
"My dad told me, Ascenders from the lower realm usually take several days to complete the trial."
"But Master finished in under a minute…"
Meng Shuang murmured in awe.
Fastest Guardian kill in history.
Probably a one-of-a-kind record.
Just as Meng Shuang said.
Completing the trial in under a minute was indeed perfect and triggered the system's top-tier rewards.
So it makes sense for the system to offer such rich rewards.
"Let's go…"
Ling Zhan said blandly, then headed toward the endless void gate.
With his divine beasts in tow, he arrived before the gate.
Without hesitation, he stepped through.
Buzz!!
Immediately, Ling Zhan felt an overwhelming, terrifying force descend upon the void gate.
He and his divine beast girls were completely teleported after a second or two delay.
...…
...…
Upper Realm.
Fourth Cosmic Domain.
New Soil Territory, Kos Port.
Kos Port was connected to an endless Sea of Void.
But it was nothing like the lower realm's Sea of the Void.
The lower realm's sea was lifeless, vast, dim, and suffocating.
Sink into it and it's like falling into an abyss—no bottom, no creatures in sight.
But the Sea of the Void in the Upper Realm…
Sunlit, blue skies.
Countless birds and beasts soared and chirped; in the sea, schools of fish leapt joyfully.
Brimming with life, bustling and prosperous.
At the port, a large group of finely dressed nobles were meditating with their eyes closed, quietly awaiting a certain moment.
Also, many curious class-transferred players came to spectate and gossip.
Why were so many nobles and Professionals gathered here…
The reason was simple—Kos Port linked to many lower realm star domains.
For Professionals from the lower realms to reach the Upper Realm, they had to pass the trial over the Sea of the Void, then land here through the void gate.
In fact, there were nobles waiting here nearly every day.
The reason was simple—to scout the newly ascended Professionals from the lower realms.
If someone had outstanding talent and potential, they'd offer generous terms to bring them in as retainers, give them resources, and help them rise.
If the potential was average, they'd be hired as mercenary fighters.
If talent was poor—they'd get passed over.
Some people found this puzzling…
If someone could ascend, shouldn't their talent be decent?
But in reality, ascension didn't guarantee good talent.
Many Professionals from the lower realms relied on time grinding to level up.
Some could clear the trial dungeon, but their aptitude was mediocre—even with resources, they might never rise.
Additionally…
Human Ascenders were highly likely to be sent back to the Old Soil Territory.
The Old Soil Territory…
Was the current residential zone of humans in the Upper Realm.
It's worth noting…
In the Upper Realm, humans were considered the weakest and most useless race by default.
The entire Upper Realm had four Cosmic Domains, ranked from first to fourth.
The Fourth Cosmic Domain was the lowest tier.
Professionals here ranged from level 200 to 350.
The higher the tier, the higher the levels of the Professionals.
In the first through third domains, all races had their Professionals—except humans.
Only the Old Soil Territory in the Fourth Domain was inhabited by humans.
Also…
There were humans in the New Soil Territory too—but only as servants hired by nobles.
Human servants had some advantages over other races—at least they looked cleaner.
Of course, servants, mercenaries, and retainers all had vastly different statuses.