Light and darkness intertwined, following the guidance of the Scepter of Hope within him, Green found himself in this seemingly unchanged Skeleton Land.

"Still sleeping?"

Although a few figures had already scattered across Skeleton Land, none of them were the Casket Ascenders familiar to Green. These were clearly challengers who had arrived early to await the start of the contest gathering, about seven in total, not a large number, indicating it was still early.

Green’s arrival caught the attention of several people, his unrestrained strength waves were truly vast and overwhelming.

"Hmm... then let’s wait a bit more."

Muttering to himself, Green simply sat down right there, falling into a state akin to meditation, slipping into slumber.

Over a long period of time, Green completed all the experiments that could be done from his accumulated knowledge, except for the opening of the seventh layer of the Life Key’s Wild Instinct ancestor transformation and some experiments that the Dimensional Esophagus couldn’t provide the necessary resources for; everything else had reached Green’s personal limit.

As for the research on the Life Key, Green’s progress required some time for specimen selection and cultivation, something not achievable in a short period, relying solely on diligence.

This kind of idle slumber state, akin to passive evolution creatures, was something Green could never imagine before.

Reality proved that this was the process of being digested by the Endless World, irreversible and unavoidable, no matter how much one gained, without the ability to leave here, one would ultimately be seen as an ancient treasure by future generations, without meaning.

...

The Coffin of Hope Gathering Place wasn’t particularly renowned.

Unlike the Piercing Gate, which saw hundreds or thousands of exiles gathered for long periods, only a conventional gathering every thousand years occurred here, with four Casket Ascenders stationed long-term, awaiting the emergence of stronger ones to replace the weaker ascenders, opening the Coffin of Hope.

On this day, the time for the once-every-thousand-years gathering arrived again.

"Hmm... another thousand years have passed, hopefully, there will be some surprises this time."

The Poisonous Flame Centipede awoke from slumber, immediately sensing an overwhelming boredom, weariness, and despair, an inescapable dark future of being digested by the Dimensional Esophagus, sometimes wishing to sleep forever, never facing this brutal reality again.

Yet this thought only flashed by.

A true strong one, how could they be cowardly!

With a "puff," the Elemental Body of the Poisonous Flame Centipede turned into dark red smoke from deep underground, drifting up through the gaps in Skeleton Land, gradually gathering into a multi-legged centipede form over ten meters long, its dark red elemental body boasting eyes of dark green flame, emerging as the last Casket Ascender.

"Hmm, the number of challengers this time seems much lower than previous ones; hopefully, this won’t be another pointless awakening."

The Poisonous Flame Centipede glanced around roughly, seeing barely two hundred challengers of various forms, then suddenly noticed the Paper Man beside it hadn’t responded, which was truly odd, considering the Paper Man should be the most gentle among the four Ascenders compared to the Demon Doll and the uncanny creature.

In bewilderment, it glanced downward, noticing the one-meter tall Paper Man made of brightly colored paper scraps, staring intently in another direction. The nearby Demon Doll and uncanny creature were the same!

"Hmm? That’s..."

The Poisonous Flame Centipede looked in the direction, despite twenty or more exiles of various forms visible, including a mountain stone monster over several hundred meters large, excessively bulky for the Dimensional Esophagus, yet it couldn’t block the mysterious figure where light and darkness converged.

Even in the most stable and calm state of energy slumber, it still resembled a volcano ready to erupt at any moment. The Poisonous Flame Centipede had no doubt this terrifying being would explode with world-annihilating energy in the next instant!

"He finally came back..."

The Paper Man muttered, making the Poisonous Flame Centipede shudder with dreadful surprise, "Who is he? Such a strong energy reaction, these exiles beside him are like candles under the blazing sun. No wonder only half the number of exiles has gathered compared to past meetings; anyone sensing the existence of this guy’s power probably got scared away."

"I’m not a match."

The uncanny creature, rarely speaking, suddenly said after the Poisonous Flame Centipede finished speaking.

Pure white like milk, in an uneasy gelatinous form, with a dozen crimson tentacles extending from its milky body, floating in the air, leaving its true appearance unknown.

"Several eons ago, when I and the Demon Doll had different companions among the Casket Ascenders, possibly your predecessors among the Ascenders, namely the Gurdum Bone Monster and Quad-Blade Arm Warrior. This mysterious existence calling itself the Oblivion Sorcerer emerged bizarrely from the Dimensional Gap during a rule chaos of the Dimensional Gap. At that time, his presence wasn’t particularly strong, lacking the intent to challenge the Ascenders, and he left the gathering. Who would have thought..."

The Paper Man paused, then with a shock and indescribable excitement, proclaimed, "Over forty thousand years have passed, I never thought he would truly return, possessing such immense strength! I’ve finally held on to this moment; with him and the Demon Doll, we have a hope for ascendance this time!"

The Paper Man’s Soul Will was already showing signs of lethargy, barely able to persist for another one or two thousand years at most.

Dimensional Gap!

Hope for ascendance!

Hearing that this Oblivion Sorcerer emerged from the Dimensional Gap, the Poisonous Flame Centipede and the uncanny creature shuddered deeply, well-acquainted with the absurd, indescribable phenomena triggered once each millennia at this Coffin of Hope Gathering Place, far beyond the terrible illusory realm of the Dimensional Esophagus.

Knowing what escaping that place meant, it was beyond the imagination of ordinary life forms.

As for the hope of ascendance...

When long-held dreams surface in reality, the Poisonous Flame Centipede, the uncanny creature, and even the Paper Man fell into silence. For with the appearance of this Oblivion Sorcerer intending to join the Casket Ascender challenge, it meant one Ascender would be replaced.

And that one would inevitably be one of the three of them!

"The time is about right."

The half-destroyed Demon Doll spoke in a low tone, a hint of excitement apparent in its voice?

Compared to the first time Green met it, the Demon Doll’s destroyed side had clearly spread, leaving less than half its face, the other half barely holding a few strands of black smoky ashes, looking terrifyingly sinister, instilling spontaneous heart palpitations.

"Then let’s begin!"

Following up the conversation, the Paper Man murmured with excitement.

Then the four glanced at each other before scattering, vanishing underground to activate a matrix designed specifically for the Coffin of Hope.

...

Having slumbered for over a century, Green suddenly opened his Three-Colored Light Eyes, sharply realizing there was a massive emotional collection apparatus beneath Skeleton Land.

"Is it beginning?"

Everyone felt a response, gazing at the grey misty sky above.