A few hours after Alex received his announcement about his tier 4 advancement task; another one appeared before him.
Actually, it appeared in front of everybody.
[Global Announcement: 1 in-game month (2 weeks in the real world) have passed since “Universal Descent” launched, and it has been deemed appropriate to allow more players to enter.]
[The number of beta testers has increased from 20 million to 100 million.]
“Oh, yeah,” Alex had almost forgotten because of everything happening, but something like that indeed was happening.
This announcement, in the real world, appeared on every single TV and electronic device, no one able to miss it.
And even those that did would know soon enough as someone from their surroundings or they themselves had a [Rune Bracelet] appear around their wrists.
[You can now go inside of ‘Universal Descent’.]
Word spread like wildfire, and anticipation filled every corner of Earth as people were on their knees, begging to be selected.
Humans all over the world were ecstatic at the chance to enter Universal Descent, especially with the number of testers jumping from 20 million to an astonishing 100 million.
An additional 80 million people would soon get a chance to access the game.
For humanity, this was monumental.
Millions of players who had only dreamed of logging into the game now saw it as a possibility.
Those who were selected could hardly contain their excitement.
But Alex viewed the news from a different angle.
To him, this was an influx of potential enemies.
With millions of new players, it was inevitable that some would possess SS-level or even SSS-level talents.
Such power could complicate things for him, as he’d be forced to contend with far more high-level threats.
It was without saying that a major part of the powerhouses in his previous life came from the second batch of beta testers if not the third.
He knew of a few players with talents that could give him serious trouble, but he couldn’t take action just yet.
His current priority was to prepare for the looming [Demon Invasion].
With only a few days left, he didn’t have the luxury of tracking down potential rivals.
…
Actually, something strange happened for the first time to Alex.
The day after the reveal of the increased amount of beta testers, he tried to yet again use [Potential Extraction] on one of his items.
In this case, it was the [Fragment of the Guardian’s Crest] (Mythical) he got from the [Guardian Leader] inside the dungeon’s 25th floor.
But… ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
[You have tried to use “Potential Extraction” on the “Fragment of the Guardian’s Crest”…]
[It has failed; this item cannot be enhanced.]
To his frustration, the attempt actually counted against his daily use of [Potential Extraction].
He would have to wait until the following day before trying again.
Undeterred, Alex planned to use it on a different item, figuring he’d had bad luck.
The next day, he tried again, this time on the [Blood Altar], an item he had obtained from a [Fate Gift Box] that allowed him to summon a Tier 7 monster.
This item held significant potential, so he was certain it could be enhanced.
[You have tried to use “Potential Extraction” on the “Blood Altar”…]
[It has failed; this item cannot be enhanced.]
Once again, the extraction attempt failed, and he lost a daily use of the skill.
It was baffling; he’d never encountered items that couldn’t be enhanced.
After two failed attempts in a row, he gave up on enhancing either of these items, focusing on those he would get later.
…
6 more days passed after that, giving Alex the time to upgrade another of his skills to [Max-Tier]: Thunderclap Bolt.
[Do you want to upgrade “Thunderclap Bolt” (Advanced) to “Thunderous Strike” (High-Tier)?]
Ding!
[Do you want to upgrade “Thunderous Strike” (High-Tier) to “Fury of Thunder” (Max-Tier)?]
“Yes,” he said again with a grin, knowing the power boost this would bring.
[You have evolved your skill to “Fury of Thunder” (Max-Tier)]
[Fury of Thunder: Unleashes three lightning strikes from the sky. Each strike deals 150,000 points of damage + 100% of spirit to the target, with a 50% chance to stun. Consumes 60,000 mana. 10-second cooldown.]
The boost was immense.
And Alex could already imagine how effective “Fury of Thunder” would be against the demons.
Each lightning strike would devastate his enemies, especially with the chance to stun.
With a satisfied smirk, he stored this newfound power for the battle ahead.
…
As the days passed, Alex continued to prepare.
And at last, the day of the attack arrived.
A new system message flashed before his eyes:
[Tier 4 Advancement Task: Today is the day.]
[3:47:21 before the attack.]
A countdown timer appeared in front of him, ticking down the hours, minutes, and seconds until the invasion.
Alex took a deep breath, knowing that this was the final stretch.
He obviously informed Fox Tribe immediately, and the [Ice Fox Queen] nodded, her eyes steely with determination.
She and Alex had been stamped by the [Demon Hater] curse/effect, meaning that they should manage much better against these beasts.
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Plus, Alex had his undead army, which also had that same [Demon Hater] effect, as well as Alphox and the Undead King’s [Death Call].
They weren’t going into this fight unprepared.
Alera instructed the Fox Tribe residents to stay inside their homes and only defend themselves if necessary.
They were told to only fight for their lives if escape was impossible, and if they were surrounded, otherwise they would need to run.
Alex, however, had no intention of letting the demons get that far.
With a grim expression, he watched the countdown tick closer to zero.
[Demons to kill: 10,000]
[5:00]
“They’re gonna come from everywhere, but our village has a barrier around it,” Alera shouted to Alex, “That barrier has 50,000,000 HP, if they destroy it they’ll be able to enter, but we have to stop them!”
“Right.”
Without wasting time, Alex raised his arm with a determined look on his face.
“Rise, my undead,” he whispered.
Fwish! Fwish! Fwish!
One by one, they emerged, spectral and skeletal warriors loyal to his command.
[+80 Skeletons, +13 Grand Skeletons, +4 Bony Knights, +3 Spectral Wraiths]
“Form groups of ten, led by one or two of the stronger undead. Defend the village at all costs,” he instructed.
Each of his undead soldiers nodded, determination burning in their eyes.
In different parts of their bodies, Alex could notice that the emblem of the [Demon Hater] was there.
The timer continued to tick down.
[1:00 minute left.]
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
In the distance, explosions rocked the earth, many rifts opening around the village inside the [Mystical Forest].
This was how the demons planned to attack.
And as expected, hundreds upon hundreds of them came out of the portals, each one of them looking strong and wielding a weapon.
“ALRIGHT, LET’S DO THIS!” Alex shouted, his voice booming over the sounds of chaos.
He took a deep breath and raised his arm, feeling the static charge of his recently upgraded skills.
Fire Meteor, Oblivion Strike and Fury of Thunder.
He was ready to use them to win.
[Low-Level Demon Clan – Level 300]
The demons approached in waves, then they all stopped right before reaching the barrier.
“Abandon this village and become slaves of the demons,” the biggest demon of them all, probably the commander, shouted, “None of you have to die!”
“FUCK OFF,” Alera shouted.
“So it is like this,” Grayar, the low-level demon clan commander sighed, “Demons, erase this village from the map.”
“SIR, YES, SIR!”
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The magical shield flared and pulsed with each impact, but it held strong.
[Tier 4 Advancement Task: Defend the Village.]
[Good luck.]