Their progress was updated in real time on the Transcendent Forum.
Half an Hour, a new post appeared.
First attempt, failed.
They barely managed to block villain's opening assault. Through they avoided a complete collapse, several members were gravely injured. Afterward, abandoning the idea of clearing the instances, the team shifted to reconnaissance. Splitting up, they infiltrated different regions of Miller Family Fortress.
One member was hunted down and killed by the boss.
The remaining four survived long enough to exit.
Trial Instances allowed voluntary withdrawal. As long as participant confirmed the exit and survived for one minute, they would be safely expelled, and any injuries sustained inside would vanish the moment they returned to reality.
Talents, equipment, and preparation mattered. As long as a team wasn't instantly wiped out at the start, there was always room to maneuver.
The Gale Force team wasn't discouraged.
From the beginning, their goal hadn't been to clear the Instance.
There was simply too little information about Blood Battle Miller Family Fortress. Charging blindly would lead to annihilation. Their first run was a probe, nothing more.
And now, they had data.
Confident, The Gale Force Team publicly recruited additional S-Grade Awakeners, aiming to assemble an even stronger lineup. At the same time, they released key intelligence about the boss.
The villain's attributes hovered around 70.
His demonic cultivation was complete.
His swordsmanship was refined to perfection.
His combat power was terrifying.
Two hours later, with adjusted team members and upgraded equipment the Gale Force Team entered the instance again.
This time, the entire forum watched.
The Spectacled Youth refreshed the page obsessively, along with countless others. Every instance had a record board, first clears engraved at the top, followed by subsequent completions ranked by time.
Yet all ten Zero Order Trial Instance remained blank.
No one had cleared a single one.
When Gale Force returned, the result shocked everyone.
Second attempt : failed.
This time, they withstood the initial onslaught without heavy injuries. They stayed tightly grouped, refusing to give the villain a chance to isolate them.
But as time passed, the boss recovered.
Fully.
When the demonic swordsman unleashed his restored strength, team collapsed.
Only two managed to retreat in time.
The forum exploded.
Even the Gale Force Team couldn't clear it?
Was this instance meant for five SS-Grade Awakeners?
Or did it require an SSS-Grade monster to brute force it?
Many powerful teams quietly abandoned Blood Battle Miller Family Fortress, switching to other instances instead.
Pessimism spread like wildfire.
Yet the Gale Force Team refused to bow.
Their captain personally stepped forward, declaring that the second failure was merely due to underestimating the boss's recovery speed. Now, with sufficient intelligence in hand, they were certain victory was within reach.
This time, they didn't rush.
They refined their formation.
Optimized their equipment.
Prepared meticulously.
And it wasn't just this instance.
Difficulty was one issue.
Lack of information was the real killer.
It wasn't that Blue Star's Awakeners were weak.
A team of five SSS-Grade could brute force any Zero Order instance. Even slightly weaker lineup might succeed.
The problem was scarcity.
Such teams couldn't be assembled overnight.
Still, as intelligence accumulated, optimism slowly returned. May believed that the first clears were imminent.
Then, the Gale Force Team published a fiery declaration on the forum.
This time, they would succeed.
At the very moment...
A cold, mechanical voice echoed in every Awakener's mind.
[World Announcement : Congratulation to Noah Blackwell, Caleb Hunt, Brock Irons, Felix Drake and Ivy Winters for successfully clearing the Trial Instance : Blood Battle Miller Family Fortress. ]
The forum froze.
The Gale Force Team : "-_-"
"Huh?"
Everyone else : "?"
"Someone cleared it already?"
"And one of the them has the same name as me?"
The Spectacled Youth stared at the announcement, stunned, then clicked his tongue.
"What bad luck. The Gale Force Team made all that noise, worked themselves to exhaustion and someone else reaped the rewards."
He typed quickly.
"Honestly, this team should thank the Gale Force Team. Without their intelligence gathering and selfless sharing, could they have cleared it so smoothly?"
"Half the honor belongs to Gale Force Team."
"I suggest everyone on that team kneel once in gratitude."
Click. Send.
Just as he refreshed the page...
Two system notification rang out.
[ Congratulations on clearing the Trial Instance : Blood Battle Miller Family Fortress. Evaluation: F.
Rewards obtained : Growth Value X 10, Strength Crystal X 1. ]
[As this was the first clear, additional rewards granted despite negligible contribution:
Strength Crystal x 1 , Agility Crystal x 1, Constitution Crystal x 1, Spirit Crystal x 1.]
The Spectacled Youth froze. "Huh?"
He hadn't expected it, not in his wildest dreams.
When the Spectacled Youth finally realize he was part of the First Clear team, his scalp went numb. His gaze drifted to the post he had just sent to the forum, and his face instantly turned green.
The comment was still there.
Bold. Public. Mocking.
And worse...
Its popularity was skyrocketing.
Replies was pouring in, likes climbing rapidly, countless people clearly sharing the same assumption he'd made earlier.
Deleting it now?
That would be nothing short of a public confession.
After a moment of still silence, the Spectacled Youth made a decisive choice.
Play dead.
After all, The Transcendent Forum wasn't real name verified.
"Six hours..." he muttered inwardly, his heart pounding. "Who in the world could last that long inside that nightmare of an instance?"
Outsiders naturally assumed that the First Clear team had relied on information shared by the Gale Force Team.
Only a handful of people knew the truth.
They had entered the instance much earlier then Gale Force Team.
Slowly, his thought returned to his four teammates.
The yellow haired youth... discarded instantly.
The male and female college students, not a chance.
That left only one name.
Noah Blackwell.
Inside the instance Noah had been quite, almost invisible, but compared to the other three, he had been far more composed. Far more reliable.
Now that the instance was cleared, the answer felt obvious.
It had to be him.
----
A familiar system chime echoed in Noah's mind.
[Congratulations on clearing the Trail Instance : Blood Battle Miller Family Fortress.]
[Evaluation : A]
[Reward Received ]
-- Growth Value x50
-- Strength Crystal x5
-- Agility Crystal x5
-- Constitution Crystal x5
-- Spirit Crystal x5
[First Clear Bonus --- Contribution Exceeded Expectations]
-- Strength Crystal x10
-- Agility Crystal x10
-- Constitution Crystal x10
-- Spirit Crystal x10
-- Skill : Swordplay Proficiency
-- Material : Frigid Marrow Crystal.