Run Away, This Civilization Is Cheating!

This also resulted in a massive following for Ellie.

Terms like "Healing Angel," "Life Goddess," and "Angel Sister" had already become widespread on the internet.

Even Ellie herself found it somewhat unbelievable.

Because she always kept a stern face, her words were likewise unpleasant, and her personality was not at all endearing.

However, the human girl, responsible for acquainting her with this civilization quickly, told her that within this civilization there existed a saying called "beauty is justice," and her type of character was referred to as "tsundere." She suggested that Ellie should spend more time online since there were all kinds of strange people there...

Ellie did not understand but was deeply shocked.

But no matter what, being accepted was always better than being rejected. Their civilization had been destroyed, and as Contractors, they were essentially now part of this civilization.

At this moment, the words spoken by Ellie had caused a momentary silence in the venue.

Many people turned their eyes to Shen Hao.

Although her statement was somewhat cruel, in the face of an even more merciless Trial, there was no room for kindness to begin with. Some of the proposals laid out in front of Shen Hao were even more ruthless and heartless.

And after deliberation, Shen Hao also made his decision.

"Dispatch spaceships and personnel, but only for observation and intelligence gathering; do not initiate contact for now," he said.

"Yes," the others acted swiftly.

Having an authoritative leader does indeed provide convenience in terms of efficiency. Shen Hao could make decisions quickly on matters like this.

"Ellie, stay behind," Shen Hao then turned to look at Ellie.

"Yes," Ellie immediately tensed up.

"On the latest report you submitted yesterday, it detailed the ’data competition’ of the multi-civilization Trial as well as the ranking rewards," Shen Hao pulled out a report, "but the specifics are vague, and given the huge disparity in strength among civilizations, on what basis are these rankings determined?"

Indeed, Erin Ellie’s memory was gradually recovering, and the report they had submitted contained details that piqued Shen Hao’s interest.

That was the so-called "ranking rewards."

According to her, the first multi-civilization Trial they experienced had been the third Trial, where all civilizations faced a powerful enemy from beyond their planet. The Civilization Trial would assign rankings based on the performance of each civilization, even of each Chosen One, over a period, to distribute rewards.

In other words, even if it was not a type of Trial where they fought to the death, there was still a competitive element in Trials involving multiple civilizations.

Shen Hao could not help but pay close attention to this.

Considering the current situation, it was unknown which civilizations would participate before the actual Trial began.

Some powerful civilizations might just make an appearance.

In this competitive ranking scenario, the more powerful a civilization, the more likely it is to become an enemy.

"Master," Ellie was clearly nervous when facing Shen Hao alone, "many specific memories have become blurred, but we vaguely remember one thing: the Civilization Trial adjusts the difficulty based on the actual strength of a civilization. Even within the same type of Trial, the challenges faced by a powerful civilization would be tougher.

The invasion our civilization faced was far more severe than other civilizations, and the ranking system would have discounts to that effect. Weaker civilizations showing enough perseverance, luck, and courage may also stand a chance to make a comeback through rewards."

Is that so?

Shen Hao nodded his head. Discover stories at empire

That, at least, seemed reasonable.

The Civilization Trial’s rules featured some contradictory intentions, but one thing was sure: its purpose to sift and nurture civilizations meant that even weaker ones should have hope.

"If you recall more details, write up a report immediately or contact me directly. You should be able to use some technological devices by now; they say your learning ability is quite remarkable," Shen Hao looked her over briefly.

It seemed there was a way to retract her wings, for now she wore a high-collared sweater with a long skirt that highlighted her tall and perfect figure, appearing completely as a modern woman on the street, despite being slightly tall.

It seemed she was adapting quite well.

"Yes," Ellie noticed Shen Hao’s gaze and tensed up a bit but quickly relaxed a lot more and her tone softened significantly, "Master, your civilization possesses astonishing creativity, and many aspects amaze us. Maybe the current strength is not strong yet, but it has higher potential than ours."

"Hmm," Shen Hao nodded slightly and chuckled, "Erin is more articulate than Ellie."

Indeed, the person had switched again. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Ellie is just not very good at expressing herself and has grown somewhat weary of others’ expectations," Erin smiled faintly and chuckled, "In the past, many believed that the Path of Life should entail selfless devotion and be filled with love, but that’s not quite accurate. In fact, it’s death that makes people cherish life more."

"At least that’s how it is with you," Shen Hao seemed to recall something and asked, "When you were extracted, the data said that you were unable to unite until the end? But now, you seem to be getting along just fine."

After the question was asked, Erin lowered her gaze, her expression visibly saddened but she still managed a smile, "It’s just some laughable reasons, and although change is futile, it can still offer some comfort."

Shen Hao nodded.

There was no comfort.

In the face of the destruction of a civilization, any comfort was meaningless, especially since the people he recruited were meant to be helpers, strong individuals, not those who would dwell on the past.

Clearly, Erin’s emotional intelligence was not just a little higher than Ellie’s; that smile was her way of conveying her attitude to Shen Hao.

"All our strength must be focused on enhancing our abilities," Shen Hao said at last, "The trial won’t be too far off."

Indeed, with the appearance of a new planet, everyone felt a sense of crisis.

Even without extensive media coverage, the sense of urgency was palpable.

Advancements in various fields accelerated further, with most of the global population mobilizing quickly. Even places previously lacking in order were now forcibly establishing it, and wartime policies persisted. A minority of dissenters, even criminals, faced compulsory suppression.

The globe was rapidly entering a new order.

Eight days passed, and then another planet appeared.

This planet was slightly larger than their own, blanketed by an endless expanse of dense forests. It was a sea of green, though it was unclear whether this was caused by the trial or the planet’s natural state.

Fourteen days later, the fifth planet appeared.

The appearance of this planet caused tension for everyone for a while because there were numerous large technological constructs floating in its outer space, resembling "Space Cities." It was clear the civilization on this planet possessed an advanced level of technology.

However, when many expected this fifth planet’s civilization to send out spaceships, or at the very least probes to other planets for surveillance, nothing happened.

Then, ten days later, the sixth planet.

This planet was considerably large, on par with the previously mentioned "Planet No.1," shrouded in thick atmosphere and clouds, and very close to their own planet. It sat on the opposite side of "Planet No.3," sandwiching their world in between, so much so that its presence was clearly visible in the daylight sky.

Additionally, this planet exuded a strong life force.

Oceans, continents, forests—it had it all.

The land area even encompassed half of the entire planet, suggesting vast material wealth.

It was on the sixth day following the appearance of this sixth planet that Shen Hao suddenly looked up, furrowing his brows.

He felt a wave of transcendent fluctuations coming from "Planet No.6."

The characteristics were similar to magic power. Although not particularly strong, its range was incredibly wide, covering nearly half the planet.

"Is this a type of detection magic?" Shen Hao squinted, sensing more carefully.

It indeed was a large-scale detection spell, crudely searching for Extraordinary Elements and high-energy transcendent reactions.

But the ability to conduct such a wide-ranging detection across such vast distances, even if it was only a vague detection, revealed a considerable level of strength in this domain.

This was indeed a very powerful civilization.

During this time, Erin Ellie had recovered some of her memories. According to what she said, indeed, some civilizations were very strong from the start. Although they faced more severe trials, such already powerful civilizations had the capability to resist disasters in a strong and comprehensive manner, increasing the likelihood that they would survive the trials and quickly become stronger.

This put even greater pressure on the human race.

Then, for over forty days, there were no changes.

It had been almost three months since the last Civilization Trial officially ended.

A period that was once brief now felt incredibly long.

Some experts surmised that there might have been new planets appearing during this time, perhaps on the other side of the sun. If they orbited the sun at the same speed, it would indeed hide their presence from observation.

Regardless, their task remained unchanged: to fully digest all the technologies and goods purchased from the marketplace, rapidly enhancing their own strengths.

Thus, thirteen days passed.

The Chosen One interface quietly changed at this moment.

A new interface appeared.

[Ranking]

Indeed, it was the ranking that Erin Ellie had mentioned would emerge in a multi-civilization trial!

Clearly, this meant that the trial was finally about to begin!