This statement was not an exaggeration; in fact, it was somewhat conservative.

Many trialists felt that the defensive capability of their safe houses had increased by a level.

It was for this reason that, starting from the second day, the number of casualties among the trialists rapidly decreased.

Another important point was that on the second day after the restrictions were lifted, they were reimposed.

The number of demons in the Dark Lands was thus temporarily fixed.

As time passed and the trialists continued to hunt, the number of demons would gradually decrease.

"Thankfully, the most difficult time has passed. Having refined the safe house, I can now withstand stronger and more numerous demons, greatly increasing the safety factor."

"These past few days, I’ve been utterly exhausted, not daring to close my eyes for a moment.

Otherwise, I could easily have ended up a corpse!"

"There were just too many demons, and they were too dangerous; we can’t relax just yet..."

For many, the previous two days were like a nightmare, with the shadow of death lingering.

Fortunately, the most dangerous time had passed.

As long as one wasn’t extremely unlucky, constantly striving to improve and survive until the end was entirely feasible.

In addition, more trialists began to use their safe houses to counterattack the demons.

They couldn’t kill the powerful demons, but they could eliminate some of the ordinary ones.

Soon, trialists began acquiring numerous super Source stones.

On the third day, a first-level trialist successfully advanced to a second-level trialist.

This was the first such case in the Dark Lands.

The news was announced by the system.

The first trialist to advance to the second level was of significant importance.

The previous second-level trialists, who had started at that level, were not included in this count.

For a time, this news caused a huge stir among all the trialists.

"Envious, they advanced so quickly!"

"We can’t fall too far behind, just five super Source stones for an upgrade!"

"If others can advance to the second level, why can’t we, right?"

"Damn right, just go for it..."

"If we reach the second level, our safety factor will increase, and the likelihood of passing the assessment tasks will also be much higher! The situation ahead is still not optimistic. What we’re encountering now are just some weaker demons. Those terrifying demons haven’t shown up yet!"

"That’s true, among the demons that escaped from the city earlier, there were obviously some particularly strong ones, but they haven’t appeared yet. We can’t be too careless or relax!"

...

Soon, there was a steady emergence of second-level trialists.

Even more remarkable, on the seventh day, the first third-level trialist appeared!

"What? A third-level trialist? Really? Is it Waldo? After all, with his strength, it shouldn’t be hard for him to reach the third level!"

"It’s not Waldo, it’s Howell! He was a second-level trialist before, and now he’s finally become a third-level trialist!"

"So it’s him, I know him. But why hasn’t Waldo reached the third level? I always thought he would be the first third-level trialist."

"Who knows, maybe Waldo had some physical issues. After his continuous battles with the three-eyed natives and other second-level trialists, even with his great strength, he must have been injured!"

People analyzed with certainty.

"Considering Waldo’s previous actions, I have reason to suspect that Waldo must have been injured at his core. Until his injury heals, he can’t advance to the third level. Maintaining his current strength is already quite impressive!"

"Really?"

"Just guessing, it’s up to you to decide what’s true."

...

"Heh, a third-level trialist has emerged..."

Waldo also saw the system announcement, but he was somewhat disdainful.

If he wasn’t mistaken, this third-level trialist probably only used about a dozen super Source stones.

Such third-level trialists, though they have transformed their bodies into undead forms, have a low degree of transformation, making further advancement very difficult.

"Ruining his own future!"

Waldo shook his head.

But on second thought, this was a natural human tendency.

Just advancing to the third level was already quite difficult.

Who would pursue a perfect transformation?

That kind of confidence was unique to Waldo.

Others?

They wouldn’t even dare to think about it!

"It won’t be long before there are many more third-level trialists."

"I’m currently just a second-level trialist, but well, my second-level is a bit different..."

Waldo smiled slightly.

Although he was only a second-level trialist.

But all other second-level trialists combined might not be a match for him.

That third-level trialist named Howell would definitely not be his opponent either!

Waldo was confident about this.

At that moment, Waldo’s eyebrows raised as he looked outside the safe house.

Three more demons were charging towards him.

"Another delivery of super Source stones."

Waldo smiled slightly.

In these past few days, he had collected nearly ten super Source stones.

With just eleven more super Source stones, he could advance to the third level.

And he could perfectly transform into an undead body.

With a smile, Waldo conjured a ball of flame in his hand and hurled it outside the safe house like a meteor.

Boom!

In the massive explosion, flames soared, lighting up the night. The three demons were instantly blasted to death!

They were just ordinary demons, only slightly stronger than a first-level trialist.

Waldo could kill them with just a flick of his fingers!

"Too bad, no super Source stones..."

Waldo searched around but, not finding any super Source stones, shook his head in slight disappointment.

...

Elsewhere, more than a hundred miles from Waldo, a slender figure in white appeared.

He looked to be in his twenties, with a delicate and young, yet extremely pale face.

The most bizarre aspect was that his head was not on his neck but held in his hand.

With each step, energy surged and winds howled, leaping from the foot of the mountain to the peak!

A pair of hollow eyes stared at a nearby safe house...

"Hahaha, great, I’ve finally advanced to a second-level trialist!"

"As a second-level trialist, even if a third-level demon comes, I can hold out for a while.

Advancing to a third-level trialist is just a matter of time!"

Inside the safe house, Padilla laughed heartily.

His voice thundered like rolling thunder.

He flicked his fingers, crackling like firecrackers, resonating throughout.

Violent currents rampaged around him.

Every move he made carried immense power.

It seemed as if everything in the world was under his control, easily capable of destroying anything.

If a demon appeared before him, he was confident that he could explode its head with just a flick of his finger.

"This feeling of being filled with power is just too wonderful! Is this what it feels like to be a second-level trialist? More than ten times stronger than before!"

Padilla’s eyes sparkled brilliantly, shining brightly.

Yet, he was unaware that danger was looming...