CHAPTER 174: CHAPTER174-RANK UP SUCCESSFUL

What happened next could only be described as utterly bizarre.

The colossal City of the Undead was suddenly split into 21 identical clones!

Without hesitation, Daniel executed all 20 of the copies in rapid succession.

At the same time, a black-colored admission ticket materialized in his hand.

Looks like his luck wasn’t too bad after all—even after offending the Luck Goddess, he still managed to get the Undead Land Admission Ticket he needed.

With his objectives complete, Daniel turned to the remaining original City of the Undead.

"I know you have consciousness," he said calmly. "Now I’m giving you two choices—either become my servant or be destroyed. You decide."

Upon hearing this "offer," the entire City of the Undead began to tremble violently.

Was this guy serious? Did he just say he was giving it two options?

How was that even a real choice?

What other option was there?

...

Unnoticed, the sun had already set.

Overhead, the blood moon had once again risen into the sky.

But tonight was unlike any other.

On what was supposed to be a pitch-black sky, streams of silver moonlight now flowed gently like water—an ethereal, slow-moving cascade that tore faint rifts through the night.

From those torn seams in the darkness, a golden radiance seeped out.

The blood moon in the sky began to dim.

And then—without warning—it began to shake violently.

Suddenly, countless eyes emerged on the surface of the blood moon.

These eyes had no pupils, their entire whites flooded with an eerie crimson hue.

All of them—thousands upon thousands—turned in unison to gaze down at the world below.

Every race across the land saw this terrifying phenomenon.

The elation from recent strength increases evaporated instantly, replaced by dread.

The Millennial Apocalypse was coming.

Even the celestial bodies—the stars, the moon—had begun to act restlessly.

Beneath their feet, the abyss also began to churn with activity.

The terrifying creatures of the abyss were now clawing madly at the barriers, trying to break free.

But something still held them back. They could only climb so far before an invisible force stopped their ascent.

Faced with such terrifying changes, the Human Emperor was alerted immediately.

At that moment, his expression was more solemn than ever before.

After a moment of contemplation, he slowly raised a finger.

A massive sphere of divine light appeared at its tip, shooting forth and crashing down into the entrance of the abyss.

In the blink of an eye, scores of abyssal creatures were torn to shreds.

But only moments later, another wave of monsters surged up again, relentless as ever.

The Human Emperor sighed, preparing to strike again—

—but just then, a system prompt appeared before him:

[Human Advancement Path — Mission Complete]

[You may now perform the Advancement Ritual to promote the Human Race to a Mid-tier Species.]

[New Level Cap: 250]

[6-Star Adventurer Unlocked]

He froze at first, then smiled in relief.

"This must be Daniel’s doing again. Who else could accomplish something so utterly insane?"

Wasting no time, the Human Emperor stepped into an Anygate and teleported directly to Castle Mington.

The Advancement Ritual could only be conducted there.

No sooner had he arrived than a message popped up on his communicator—from Daniel.

But instead of instructions regarding the ritual, Daniel had a completely unrelated request:

He wanted the Emperor to find an awakener with a contract-type talent.

"Contract talent?" The Emperor frowned. "Isn’t that one of those useless, bottom-tier skills?"

...

Meanwhile, at the Royal Society, the pinnacle of human scholarship and research, the top minds of the species were working day and night without rest.

The Artists they had captured earlier had already confessed nearly everything they knew.

Only now did the humans truly understand how terrifying this race of Artists had been.

Their research went far beyond "twisted." It was madness incarnate.

They weren’t just scholars—they were lunatics, wielding knowledge that could destroy entire worlds.

And of all their horrific projects, only the Primordial Core Weapon had been completed.

The rest—the truly monstrous creations—were still in the experimental stages.

That humanity had remained oblivious to such looming dangers until now was deeply unsettling.

Fortunately, Daniel had intervened, utterly annihilating the Artist race and bringing back massive quantities of their materials and research.

Among these discoveries, one project stood out:

"Crossing the Abyss to Reach Oden Continent"

For all human scholars, this proposal was revolutionary—full of promise and practical application.

If they could actually reach the Oden Continent, perhaps they could secure reinforcements from the humans living there.

If both sides united, the power of humanity would be multiplied manyfold.

And when the Millennial Apocalypse did arrive, the race would finally have a fighting chance.

The reality was that the impending disaster was not just Daniel’s burden alone.

All across the realm, awakeners, researchers, and even ordinary civilians were contributing in whatever way they could to secure the future of humankind.

The strange phenomena in the sky had become undeniable.

For most people, the Apocalypse had always been just a legend. After all, who lives for a thousand years to verify such things?

But now, the oppressive atmosphere and bizarre celestial changes had shattered any illusions.

Something terrible was coming—and everyone could feel it.

Still, even in this final hour, the strong among humankind had not given up.

They raced against time, delving deeper into underground labyrinths to further hone their strength.

One elite team, made up of various human kings, had just achieved the impossible:

[Endless Mountains – Hell Mode: Cleared]

They had attempted this dungeon countless times in the past.

Each time, they had failed.

But after converting to the Infinite Divine Temple, their power had surged dramatically.

When they challenged the labyrinth again, they breezed through it with shocking ease.

At that very moment, labyrinth records were shattered across the world.

Countless ancient and unsolved labyrinths were finally being cleared for the first time in history.

Even the most daunting Hell Mode dungeons, once thought unbeatable, were now falling like dominoes.

Simultaneously, many users began sharing tips and techniques through the communications network—specifically about how to better utilize the blessings granted by the Infinite Divine Temple.

From commoners to elite warriors, everyone was doing their part for the same goal.

And the Infinite Divine Temple had become a universal pillar of strength, empowering them all.

Then, at that moment—

every single human being received a universal system prompt:

[Human Race Rank Up Complete – Now Promoted to Mid-tier Species]

[New Level Cap: 250 Unlocked]