Chapter 449 -449-The Rules of the Top Eight
After hearing these six rules, John couldn’t help thinking that the rules for the Top Eight were far stricter than anything they had faced before.
And it seemed the announcement wasn’t finished yet.
Sure enough, the voice of the Will of the Universe continued.
"Seventh."
"Restrictions."
"Contestants may not excessively contact non-participating members of their own faction."
"If any powerhouse belonging to a contestant’s faction is discovered interfering with the competition, providing any form of assistance, or helping the contestant increase their strength, the Will of the Universe will initiate a judgment procedure."
"Once a violation is confirmed, the contestant will immediately be disqualified."
"All rewards obtained by that contestant will also be revoked."
"Eighth."
"Any contestant who dies will automatically be considered eliminated and withdrawn from the competition."
"All rewards will be forfeited."
"These are all the rules for the Top Eight round of the Myriad Worlds Tournament."
"Contestants, you now have ten minutes to rest."
"Ten minutes from now, the Top Eight round will officially begin."
"You will be randomly transported through the River of Time."
John frowned slightly as he listened to the rules announced by the Will of the Universe.
"Why does this Myriad Worlds Tournament suddenly involve the Apocalypse Tribulation?"
Just as he began pondering the question...
information concerning the Apocalypse Tribulation suddenly surfaced within his mind.
So that was how it was.
The Apocalypse Tribulation had been created by those transcendent powerhouses.
Its target was every living being throughout the universe.
Of course, that statement wasn’t entirely accurate.
Not every transcendent expert had participated in creating it.
But without the tacit approval of the truly supreme existences, the Apocalypse Tribulation could never have appeared within this universe in the first place.
Those supreme powerhouses had created the Apocalypse Tribulation for one purpose—
to break through into an even higher realm.
John’s eyes flickered with realization.
Legend had it that once a Supreme surpassed the true body of the Origin of Laws...
they would gain the ability to eliminate the Will of the Universe itself and directly take its place.
In other words...
the Apocalypse Tribulation was an existential threat to the true body of the Origin of Laws.
Naturally, the Origin of Laws would never want a Supreme-level existence to appear above it.
That meant the Origin of Laws was innately opposed to those supreme powerhouses.
And now...
it would inevitably attempt to save itself.
It would interfere with the Apocalypse Tribulation.
Sabotage it.
Disrupt the plans of those supreme experts.
Only in this way could the true body of the Origin of Laws ensure that, before a Supreme was born, no one would possess the power to suppress it.
The laws would continue controlling the origin of the universe...
standing at the very peak and overlooking all existence.
Thinking this through, John couldn’t help feeling somewhat emotional.
There were truly far too many schemes and conspiracies hidden within the universe.
Even the final apocalypse of the cosmos could be deliberately manufactured.
And something as fundamental as the Origin of Laws itself could possess extraordinarily high intelligence and launch a counterattack of its own.
Compared to existences of that level...
someone like John was still nothing more than an ant.
If he were ever dragged into the plans of those two supreme sides...
his life could be sacrificed without the slightest hesitation.
His most urgent task was still the same—
become stronger as quickly as possible.
Strong enough that no one could casually sacrifice him.
At that thought, John made up his mind.
He had to take first place in this Myriad Worlds Tournament.
His thoughts gradually became clearer as he sorted through the various interests and dangers involved.
And in the end...
that was the conclusion he reached.
Then his attention returned to the rules of the Top Eight.
"All eight contestants will travel through the River of Time."
"We’ll be randomly sent either into the past or the future."
"Those sent into the past need to search for the root cause of the Apocalypse Tribulation..."
"The key word is ’search.’"
"It doesn’t necessarily mean we have to actually change anything."
"In other words, simply discovering where and how the Apocalypse Tribulation first began should be enough."
"For contestants sent into the future, the key requirement is survival."
John continued thinking.
"Because the future will be the era in which the Apocalypse Tribulation has already begun."
"Any existence below Peak Sovereign level will face the great judgment of the tribulation."
"Every living being will be dragged into it."
"If you survive the tribulation, you live."
"If you fail..."
"you die."
"So for the future timeline, simply surviving long enough is already an achievement."
"Relatively speaking, the past should be far more peaceful."
"The future, on the other hand..."
"will definitely be filled with danger."
John narrowed his eyes.
"I wonder which one I’ll be sent to."
"The past..."
"or the future?"
While John was thinking, the other contestants were also silently analyzing the rules.
Their conclusions were more or less the same.
At that moment...
Holly suddenly asked innocently,
"Why aren’t we allowed to contact the non-participating experts from our own factions?"
"Why can’t they help us at all?"
Odelle explained with a smile.
"Because this round isn’t just about experiencing the past or future."
"Whether we’re investigating the origin of the Apocalypse Tribulation or surviving for a certain amount of time..."
"those aren’t actually the most important parts."
"The true core of this round is increasing our strength."
Odelle continued,
"Think about it."
"No matter whether we’re sent into the past or the future, our factions should still exist during those eras."
"The Skyvault Consortium has experts capable of freely traveling through the River of Time."
"If they were allowed to help us, then wouldn’t our cultivation speed become ridiculously fast?"
"They could directly provide resources."
"Peak Sovereigns could personally lecture us on the Dao."
"They could hand down inheritances and techniques."
"For independent cultivators, that would be incredibly unfair."
"They don’t have powerful factions backing them."
"No one can provide them with the same kind of resources, teachings, or protection."
"Ohhh."
Holly finally understood.
Odelle had explained it clearly enough that she immediately grasped the point.
"But the rules only say we can’t deliberately or excessively contact experts from our own factions."
Hilt spoke at this moment.
"They haven’t completely forbidden contact."
"So we can still interact with them to some degree."
"We just need to control how far it goes."
"And it specifically says non-participants."
"That means contestants are still allowed to contact one another."
Hilt smiled.
"If we get separated, we can all head to the Skyvault Consortium and regroup there."
"That’s a great idea!"
Holly immediately brightened.
She had originally been worried.
After all...
she had absolutely no sense of direction.
If she were randomly transported to some completely unfamiliar place, she genuinely wouldn’t know what to do.
But after hearing Hilt’s suggestion, she immediately felt much more at ease.
No matter where she was sent...
she only needed to find the Skyvault Consortium.
Then she could simply wait for the others there.
Just then...
the voice of the Will of the Universe echoed once again.
"Contestants."
"Random transportation is about to begin."
"The eight of you will be randomly sent into the past or the future."
"Regardless of which era you enter..."
"your lives will be in danger."
"Survive."
"Break through."
"And claim the rewards that belong to you!"
"Transportation begins in..."
"Three..."
"Two..."
"One..."
"Zero!"
The instant the Will of the Universe finished speaking...
John and the other contestants’ vision suddenly blurred.
A faint rustling sound filled their ears.
Space twisted.
Time distorted.
The River of Time began to churn around them.
The teleportation...
had begun.