After lunch, Caleb began to take stock of the rewards he had obtained from the Dystopia Instance.
They included: Mewtwo,
Without a doubt, the greatest reward from this Instance run was Mewtwo. Adding Mewtwo immediately propelled Caleb from a ranking beyond 20 000 to the top position on the leaderboard, earning him the unique title of first place: 'Extreme Realm'.
Setting aside the two items related to Giratina for now, Caleb turned his attention to the Lifespan + ???.
'What does this mean? Could it be that I've gained immortality?'
Legend has it that when the horns on Xerneas' head emit a rainbow-colored light, it shares eternal life.
Caleb seriously contemplated the consequences of his own immortality...
After settling in the Pokémon world, he would watch his familiar friends grow old and pass away one by one, until eventually, he would be the only one left in the world.
'No, that would be far too cruel.'
Caleb shook his head, pushing that bleak image out of his mind, and decided to deal with it later.
He then turned his gaze to his points balance.
162 000 points. He was one step closer to the 990 000 needed for the ticket.
If the upcoming battle royale went smoothly, that number would increase by another 100 000, turning 162 000 into 262 000, taking another significant step forward.
Moreover, since the battle royale offered only rewards and no penalties, it was a guaranteed profitable event no matter what.
Caleb calculated in his mind how many more points he needed to save up to reach 990 000. Then he stood up, placed the Gracidea flower in a vase, and placed it on the glass display.
His collection had grown by one item.
The glass display was already filled with an assortment of miscellaneous items, most of which were rewards he had obtained from Instances, such as Black Sludge, Leaf Stone, Gardevoirite, Super Rod, and so on...
After organizing the items on the display into categories, Caleb clapped his hands in satisfaction and sat down on the sofa to examine the specific effects of the Extreme Realm title.
- Extreme Realm: A King-tier title, exclusive to the player ranked first on the leaderboard. Players equipped with this title gain one opportunity per month to enter the Extreme Realm for special training...
The moment Caleb touched the title, its description began to change:
[Extreme Realm: Break through limits, strive for the peak! Above the strong, there are even stronger!]
[Verifying player identity…]
[Verification successful.]
[Congratulations to player Caleb Chase for officially activating the Extreme Realm. Within the Extreme Realm, players can freely select simulated battles from various Instances, challenge powerful enemies within, and undergo extreme training!]
[The Extreme Realm is divided into two difficulty levels: Hell and Nightmare. Each difficulty level has 15 tiers. Each tier cleared rewards players with generous prizes, including but not limited to
[Enter the selection interface?]
"Yes!" Caleb affirmed.
[Entry successful! Current difficulty: Hell.
Clearing Hell difficulty unlocks Nightmare difficulty!]
[Hell Chapter]
[Tier 1: Celebi! The Forest Illusion, Pokémon Dominated by Darkness! (Unlocked)]
[Tier 2: Wind, Flower, Snow, and Moon! Attack, Legendary Birds! (Locked)]
[Tier 3: Great Tsunami! The Battle Against Dark Lugia! (Locked)]
[Tier 4: Special Chapter! Challenge the Dragon Master, Lance! (Locked)]
[Tier 5: Special Chapter! Mt. Silver, Red Sun! (Locked)]
…
[Tier 14: Fierce Battle! Land and Sea! (Locked)]
[Tier 15: Special Chapter! Freeze Everything, Mask of Evil! (Locked)]
[Enter Tier 1 Hell chapter Extreme Realm? Defeating the enemies within will unlock Tier 2 Extreme Realm.]
«Note: All items are disabled. Only one Pokémon can be brought in per attempt. Failure incurs no penalty. No limit on challenge attempts...»
Seeing these harsh rules, Caleb grew curious about what the inside was actually like.
'Since there's no penalty, it should be fine to go in and take a look.'
With that thought, Caleb to enter along with Celebi, who had just landed on his shoulder.
The next second, everything before him dramatically changed.
This was a dark and deathly silent forest. The sky was covered with an eerie red glow, and there was not a single sound around. Everything was like hell, appearing utterly terrifying.
Celebi sensed something wrong and nervously clung to Caleb's arm, cautiously observing the surroundings.
Caleb looked at the dense, gloomy thickets around him and thought: The atmosphere is just a bit scary.
This environment, this sky, this ambiance... it would be perfect for shooting a horror film.
As Caleb walked forward, he surveyed the surroundings.
The name of this Extreme Realm Instance was: Celebi! The Forest Illusion, Pokémon Dominated by Darkness...
"If I'm not mistaken, defeating Celebi would unlock the passage to the next tier. But where is Celebi?"
There were no hints given.
"Bi…" Celebi felt dark energy beginning to surge from all around, making it even more nervous.
"Don't be afraid." Caleb comforted it.
As he spoke, he reached out to push aside the thicket blocking the path ahead. But the next moment, he felt the ground vanish beneath his feet, and his entire body plummeted downward.
*Ding!*
[You have died from falling. Retry challenge?]
"What just happened? How did I die from falling?" Full of confusion, Caleb selected 'Yes'.
The next second, he returned to the starting location once again.
Caleb plucked the Celebi clinging to his arm and asked, "Can you sense the other Celebi's location?"
"Bi…"
The poor Celebi let out a faint cry.
The dark energy in this forest was too concentrated. It couldn't sense anything, it wasn't even able to communicate with the forest.
Seeing its expression, Caleb said, "If you're scared, we can go out first and let Dragonite or one of the others come over."
After saying this, Caleb thought Celebi would gladly agree, but to his surprise, it firmly refused the suggestion. Instead, it put on a serious face, flew a circle around Caleb, and cried out with full determination:
"Bi bi lebi!" (I can fight too!)
Caleb: "…"
"Alright, then let's continue exploring further."
This time, Caleb chose a different direction.
With Celebi leading the way and Caleb following behind, they passed through a few obstructing thickets before Caleb once again felt the ground vanish beneath his feet.
*Ding!*
[You've fallen to your death. Retry challenge?"]
'Dammit!'
Caleb couldn't believe it. He decisively selected 'Yes'...
The next second, he and Celebi returned to the starting point for the third time.
This time, however, he didn't act rashly. Instead, he pointed upward and said, "First, fly up and observe the surroundings, then come back and tell me what you see."
"Bi!" Celebi nodded with a solemn expression, then fluttered its wings and flew up toward the sky...