The higher one advanced, the greater the difficulty of ascension.

Only by finding ways to grow stronger outside of dungeon rewards, such as cultivating techniques or receiving support from one’s nation, could one continue to raise their rank.

However, for most civilizations, becoming stronger through methods outside of dungeon rewards was simply not realistic.

The Purple Profound Civilization was a clear example of this.

They had no national rewards, and the effects of cultivating techniques were extremely poor. They could not even handle Difficult Dungeons properly. The vast majority of their people were stuck at the third order, with only a handful reaching the fourth order, and not a single fifth order expert.

Blue Star’s situation was relatively better. After all, they had received national rewards multiple times, making them far stronger than the Purple Profound Civilization. Their upper limit was higher, and Noah believed that Blue Star had far more third order and fourth order Awakeners, along with at least a few fifth order experts.

In the future, as they received more national rewards, their upper limit would rise even further.

After checking the attribute crystals, Noah shifted his gaze to the item rewards. There were three rare grade items...

"It seems my luck in this run is just average," Noah said, feeling a bit speechless.

The highest quality reward in a third order Trial Instance was only rare grade, which was acceptable. However, with his Level 9 Refinement, there was a chance to obtain higher quality dungeon rewards.

This time, however, it did not take effect.

Noah had no choice. Even with Level 9 Refinement, the probability of obtaining higher quality rewards was not very high, and it was far from guaranteed.

He had originally considered using a temporary privilege to select a specific reward.

But now, he had dismissed that idea.

Using these privileges in a Trial Instance would be too wasteful. If his luck was poor, the highest reward he could obtain would still be rare grade, which would be enough to make him cough up blood. It was far better to save them for the Advancement Instance. The Extreme Difficulty Advancement Instance would surely not disappoint him.

"Exit the dungeon."

...

Blood Dark Fortress.

Looking at the defeated beast tide below and hearing the system prompts in their ears, Rose and the others remained calm, but Ethan and the other newcomers were completely dumbfounded.

Although Lily had followed Noah into a Disaster Instance once, this was her first time entering a Trial Instance, and she was equally stunned.

"It’s over just like that?"

"It’s over," Rose replied with a firm nod.

"Didn’t expect that, did you?" Zarra giggled. "If Noah hadn’t given us time to farm contribution, he could have cleared it in an instant by himself. So when you follow him into a Trial Instance, don’t overthink things. Just attack freely and farm contribution. Big Brother has our backs anyway."

Ethan and the others were at a loss for words.

They thought about how they used to clear dungeons. First, they would gather information, then formulate strategies, identify the Boss’s weaknesses, plan how to deal with the smaller monsters, eliminate as many elite monsters as possible, and finally face the Boss. The entire process required extreme caution, because a single mistake could lead to a complete team wipe.

Now, however, they simply charged forward.

The experience of running dungeons was completely different, like the difference between heaven and earth.

Just as everyone was filled with emotion, they received the prompt to exit the dungeon.

At the same time, on Blue Star:

[World Announcement: It has been detected that Blue Star Awakeners have cleared the Nightmare Dungeon within the time limit, demonstrating outstanding performance. Noah, Ethan, Rose, Smith, Lily, Olivia, Leo, Aurora, Zara, and Claire have obtained the title Pioneer.

All Zero Order Awakeners in Starfall Country receive +20 to all attributes, all First Order Awakeners receive +200 to all attributes, all Tier 2 Awakeners receive +2000 to all attributes, and all Third Order Awakeners receive +20000 to all attributes. The probability of Starfall Country citizens awakening high level talents is slightly increased.

Awakeners in other countries receive the following rewards: Zero Order +10 to all attributes, First Order +100 to all attributes, Tier 2 +1000 to all attributes, and Third Order +10000 to all attributes.]

"Here it comes. The national reward I’ve been looking forward to has arrived once again."

"Great God Noah, long live."

Everyone on Blue Star who heard the system prompt erupted in cheers.

Above Starfall Country, endless Transcendent Aura poured down through the cracks, spreading across the world. As the aura continuously flowed into their bodies, everyone’s strength increased significantly.

In contrast, the Demonized Monsters hidden across Blue Star showed clear signs of discomfort as the Transcendent Aura passed through them. A large number of weaker first order Demonized Monsters exploded and died, while the aura of tier 2 monsters dropped sharply.

"The national reward for the first clear of this Nightmare Dungeon is on the same level as the first clear of High Difficulty."

Noah pouted.

He could understand it. It was normal for the special rewards of Trial Instances and Advancement Instances to differ. At the very least, compared to the first clear of a Difficult Dungeon, this national reward had been doubled.

"I wonder if there are any special rewards beyond the national reward."

Noah felt a hint of anticipation.

The first clear of a Difficult Dungeon only granted a national reward, enhancing the overall strength of the civilization but offering beyond that.

However, the first clear of High Difficulty and Extreme Difficulty Advancement Instance were entirely different.

In addition to the National Reward, they also provided special benefits such as early revelation of arrival points, allowing civilization to prepare in advance, the unlocking of Disaster Instance with greater risks and rewards, and increases in civilization potential, which raised the overall growth limit of the entire population.

Because of the additional rewards, their significance far exceeded that of ordinary instance clears, influencing not just individual strength but the future development of the entire civilization.

After all, the Nightmare Dungeon was one level higher than the Difficult Dungeon, so there was a chance it would offer extra rewards.

He did not have to wait long.

Soon, a new system prompt sounded in the ears of everyone on Blue Star.