Lin Chen soared overhead on a Griffin Knight, his sharp gaze scanning the remains of the insect hive.
Finally, in a well-hidden crevice, he spotted a fist-sized iron shard.
[Strange Iron Block]
Description: A peculiar iron shard buried within the hive. It seems... rather useless.
But Lin Chen knew better. In his past life, another Lord had confirmed this item was one of the keys needed to unlock the secret dungeon.
An average Lord would easily overlook it.
Even those who did collect it might simply discard it as junk.
What made it trickier—there were three such shards in total.
Only by collecting all three and inserting them into the proper locations within the dungeon could one open it.
Mess up a single step, and you'd miss the hidden reward entirely.
So...
"Move out. On to the next one!"
Lin Chen stored the shard and waved his hand, leading his army straight to the second hive.
Time was tight—no time to rest.
After a ten-minute rapid march, they arrived at the second hive.
Just like before, they repeated the strategy from earlier.
After efficiently taking down the hive and sweeping the area...
They found the second iron shard.
This one was gray-brown, dirty, and misshapen—looked more like a chunk of broken rock.
Most players wouldn't give it a second glance.
With the second shard secured, there were forty minutes remaining before the realm closed.
No time to lose—Lin Chen and his forces charged toward the third insect hive.
They repeated the baiting and swarming tactics—drawing enemies away in waves, thinning them down, then launching an all-out assault.
The third hive soon collapsed in a thunderous explosion, and in that moment, a system notification echoed in Lin Chen's ears:
"You have eliminated all corrupted insectoids and destroyed all three hives. You have fulfilled all requirements to complete the [Vicious Insectoid] Green Hidden Realm."
"You have successfully cleared the Green Hidden Realm [Vicious Insectoid] and will receive the following rewards:
10 million Basic Resources, 1 million Food, 5 Platinum-Grade Equipment Chests, 1 Tier-4 Troop Chest, 50 Subject Refresh Cards, 20 Racial Soul Essence Chests."
"Time remaining until realm closure: 00:16:23. Do you wish to exit now?"
Boom— a massive haul of rewards landed in Lin Chen's inventory.
Before he could even inspect them, a World Announcement suddenly blasted across all players' screens:
"The X Country Lord [Evernight] has successfully cleared the Green Hidden Realm [Vicious Insectoid].
As the first player to complete a Hidden Realm, the following First Clear Rewards will be granted:
10 million Basic Resources, 1 million Food, 2 Diamond-Grade Equipment Chests, 3 Random Troop Chests, 20 Subject Refresh Cards, 1000 Equipment Enhancement Stones, 1000 Skill Stones."
The announcement repeated three times in a row.
It wasn't just a flood of resources—it was an earth-shattering publicity wave.
For several seconds, the world chat went dead silent.
Then—
"Holy crap holy crap holy crap! What's a Hidden Realm?! Someone explain!!"
"Idiot! Evernight is raiding Hidden Realms now? This is insane."
"Aish! So there really are Hidden Realms in this game world? B Country players, let's become the second nation to conquer one!"
"LMAO, the Koreans are daydreaming again. How adorable."
"Damn you X Country dogs, who do you think you're mocking?!"
"Obviously, you guys. What, mad about it?"
Just as another international flame war was about to erupt in chat—
A second World Announcement burst out:
"The N Country Lord [Adam] has successfully cleared the White Hidden Realm [Giant Rabbit Burrow].
As the second player to complete a Hidden Realm, the following rewards are granted:
5 million Basic Resources, 500,000 Food, 1 Diamond-Grade Equipment Chest, 2 Random Troop Chests, 10 Subject Refresh Cards, 500 Equipment Enhancement Stones, 500 Skill Stones."
"N Country Lord [Adam] has successfully cleared the White Hidden Realm..."
The chat froze again—then erupted in laughter:
"HAHAHA! Just three minutes too late! So close and yet so far!"
"Evernight, that was beautiful. I wonder what kind of mental trauma Adam is going through right now."
"Don't wonder. It's pitch-black despair, guaranteed!"
"Also—did anyone notice this? Evernight cleared a Green Hidden Realm. Adam only cleared a White one!"
"WTF, you're right! Evernight completely outclassed him!"
"Total domination. Evernight crushed Adam. Pure bliss!"
The X Country players were celebrating harder than if they had personally cleared the dungeon.
Their chat turned into an all-out mockery festival.
Meanwhile, far away in the Giant Rabbit Burrow, Adam stared at the chat.
His face was flushed red, then turned ashen.
His blood boiled.
His heart pounded.
His hands trembled.
Three minutes.
Just three damn minutes.
If not for those three minutes, he would have been the first in the world to clear a Hidden Realm.
But Lin Chen had stolen it all.
The spotlight. The glory. The history-making moment.
And if that weren't bad enough—
Lin Chen didn't just beat him.
He beat him by conquering a higher-tier Green Hidden Realm, while Adam's was only a lowly White one.
And to win that, Adam had sacrificed over 100,000 Tier-2 troops.
The cost was astronomical.
And he still didn't get first place.
The first is a hero. The second? A clown.
Lin Chen became the hero.
Adam? The punchline.
If they'd been separated by a day, or even an hour, maybe it wouldn't sting so bad.
But three minutes?
That was the kind of defeat that didn't just hurt.
It humiliated.
"EVERNIGHT!!! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU!!!"
Adam roared in fury—Then disconnected from the game on the spot.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]