The notifications flashed rapidly in front of Stark’s eyes, each one a reminder of the carnage they’d just unleashed on the Moonscorched Villagers.
[You have slain ‘Moonscorched Villager lvl500’, gaining 1,150,000 experience points!]
[You have slain ‘Moonscorched Villager lvl500’, gaining 1,150,000 experience points!]
…
The messages kept coming—32 times in total.
Stark and Sora had decimated every monster in their path, and the rewards reflected that.
Stark felt the surge of power course through his body as his level shot up multiple times.
[Your level has increased to level 107, granting you five skill points and a boost in stats.]
[Your level has increased to level 108, granting you five skill points and a boost in stats.]
…
[Your level has increased to level 110, granting you five skill points and a boost in stats.]
He was now level 110. The notification for his experience progress appeared:
[Experience: 4,327,000/8,900,000], and with it, another reminder of how much stronger he had become.
[Skill Points: 63]
Ding!
[Level 110 Reached: Pick a card!]
Usually, Stark would summon his ultimate clone, a trusted ally in making difficult choices, and the perfect partner to aid him in battle. But this time, something was different.
Fwish!
Only one card appeared in front of him, its back emblazoned with the symbol of a shield.
Curious, Stark reached out and took hold of the card, feeling a strange warmth as he grasped it.
[Domination has sensed your difficulties, and thus has decided to help.]
Ding!
…
[New Skill: Crimson Barrier (Mythical Passive)]
[Level: 1]
[Description: Crimson Barrier is a mystical shield that surrounds Stark at all times, acting as a second layer of protection. The barrier has its own HP pool of 250,000, absorbing all damage until broken. Once shattered, the barrier will take a full day to regenerate. Stark does not need to activate or maintain it; the barrier operates passively, offering him constant defense, even in the most dire situations.]
…
Stark blinked. “Whoa…”
It was as if the Domination system had sensed his struggle against the powerful foes in this trial and had granted him a massive protection.
The only other time he had received a defensive ability was much earlier, for one of the first perks of [Domination], and that one could only absorb a mere 5,000 HP.
But now, this Crimson Barrier could take up to 250,000 damage—and it didn’t even need to be activated.
It was always there, guarding him.
A shield that wouldn’t falter unless absolutely overwhelmed.
He felt the immediate comfort of knowing he now had a cushion of defense.
A small smile formed on his lips. “This is perfect.”
The new skill entered his arsenal, strengthening him further.
And just as he was reveling in this newfound protection, another notification appeared.
[You have eliminated all the ‘Moonscorched Villagers’ in your area. The ‘Moonscorch Effect’ has been removed.]
“Hm?”
[This means that your moonscorch percentage will go down in this area.]
“Oh.”
If you eliminate all of the moonscorched beasts in an area, then not only do you gain massive experience, but the effect of the crimson moons is also completely removed.
Stark glanced at the Moonscorch status indicator.
[4% Moonscorched]
.
.
[3% Moonscorched]
Luckily, the moonscorched effect was pretty damn weak, but Stark was confident that the trial played its card on the fact that the more you are hit, the stronger the effect becomes.
Him and Sora would need to protect one another to not get hit.
Sora, standing beside him, still looked battle-ready but calm.
She glanced at Stark. “Want to take a break to recover?”
Stark chuckled. “No, let’s keep going.” His tone was confident. “Let’s enter Termina.”
Sora nodded, and together they pressed on, knowing that the real danger had only just begun.
As they approached the entrance to the city, another message greeted them.
[Most of you should now understand how this trial works.]
[But I’m sure none of you are weak enough to die at the hands of the monsters.]
The tone of the message was almost mocking.
Stark braced himself.
[Introducing the “Key” task!]
[If you want to access ‘Termina’, the main city, you’ll have to eliminate three players.]
[Those who eliminate a player receive an overwhelming advantage.]
“Fucking hell…” Stark muttered under his breath.
It was just like the second trial—a ruthless demand to kill other participants.
He knew from experience that no trial in the Domination series was the same, but this one clearly wanted blood.
The system continued, laying out the harsh terms.
[Once three players are killed, the gates to the city will be opened, and no new moonscorched beasts will spawn in the Death Village, making it a ‘safe zone’.]
[Kill a player, and you’ll receive a ‘Moonscorch Cure’: Cures you of moonscorch completely for an entire day, meaning that even if you are hit, it won’t work on you (Trust me, you’ll need this.)]
Stark clenched his fists.
This was a cutthroat trial, even with all the monsters, the real threat was always going to be the other participants.
And now, they were all forced to turn on each other, at least, more than before.
As if that wasn’t enough, the final message made Stark’s blood run cold.
[Oh, and watch out for the sniper.]
Then, all the panels disappeared.
Wait, what?
“Watch out for the sniper?”
Most players were currently fighting, so they didn’t really have the time to watch the panels.
Stark and Sora was the only ones that had gotten rid of all their beasts this fast thanks to [Heaven’s Wrath].
“Maybe I should use my skill points…”
And just as he was about to focus on assigning his skill points, another restriction appeared.
Ding!
[You are not allowed to use skill points during this trial, as an item specialized for that will be revealed later!]
“Of course,” Stark groaned.
In this trial, you couldn’t just upgrade your skills mid-battle.
If you hadn’t prepared beforehand, you were stuck.
He was level 110 now, but that didn’t mean much if he couldn’t improve his skills.
Worse still, these participants weren’t ordinary, they were the best of the best, all at the top of their respective Domination levels.
[This trial has selected some of the strongest domination users in your level range.]
“Yeah, I get it now,” Stark muttered, realizing that he was truly up against the elite.
Quickly, Stark retrieved his spirits and began to move.
He didn’t know the identity, the skills, nor the names of any of the other participants, but surely he could manage.
He always did.
Reaching the end of the street he had been in, he noticed a sign that said [Villagers Street].
Probably related to the monsters he fought, which would also mean that the other participants each got a different type of monsters as well.
Beside the sign was a door.
[Use it to enter the main square, right before the city.]
[From there, you will be access all the other streets.]
This is how the beginning of the trial would force them to fight: the person that is fastest to get here would have an incredible advantage by taking their enemies by surprise.
“Haha…” and Stark was sure as hell about to use it to his advantage!
He pushed the two wooden gates open, and was greeted by the main square, which was surrounded by houses and crumbling buildings.
But he could also see the name of the streets from a distance.
[Ghouls Street]
[Rats Street]
[Birds Street]
Each participant was having their own battles.
Stark truly thought that arriving first would give him the push he needed to take down one of the participants and get a cure to his moonscorch.
But he soon realized, that in the trial, even those that arrive first get unfair treatment.
FWISH!
In the distance, too far for him to notice, the scope of a sniper had been on him right as he opened the door.
And less than five seconds later, a sharp, eerie sound echoed from somewhere far off.
BOOM!
Stark didn’t notice it immediately, but within moments, he felt the disturbance.
He had been targeted.
Not by a monster—but by something far worse.
Suddenly, a bright flash lit up the sky.
BOOM!
Before Stark could react, the sniper’s bullet struck him square in the chest, a massive blast of energy ripping through his Crimson Barrier and sending him flying backward.
-234,728!
The impact was brutal.
Stark hit the ground hard, gasping for breath as the searing pain of the sniper’s attack radiated through his body.
Even with the barrier, you still felt pain, and without it, he would have died, forced to use up [Crimson Healing] at the beginning stage.
His barrier had absorbed most of the damage, but it was already dangerously close to breaking.
The [Sniper] was here.
