100% DROP RATE : Why is My Inventory Always so Full? - Chapter 229

Chapter 229: Chapter 229 – Order of Entry
When Lucien and Marie reappeared in the arena, the Astral Chains around their ankles unraveled into drifting lights.

The moment those lights faded, a wave of cheers, gasps, and rushing footsteps surged toward them.

The first to reach them was the Verdant Veil contingent.

Their cloaks fluttered as they surrounded the pair. Their usual discipline cracked under sheer excitement.

“Brother Wolf! Sister Wolf!”

“You two were incredible out there!”

“That key trick—by all heavens, what kind of brilliance is that?!”

Half the group practically crashed into them, grabbing Lucien’s shoulders, hugging Marie, and pounding their backs like shameless proud relatives.

Their eyes weren’t the same as before.

Before, Lucien and Marie were just talented juniors.

Now… they were looking at them like future legends.

Someone in the back yelled.

“We KNEW you two were special—BUT NOT LIKE THIS!!”

“IF YOU LEAVE THE VERDANT VEIL WE WILL CRY, YOU UNDERSTAND?! CRY!”

Marie, still drunk on victory, puffed out her chest and rubbed her nose.

“Hehe! It was fun!”

Lucien sighed like a man resigned to surviving permanent chaos.

Eirene stood at the front. Her expression was calm as always… but a faint warmth softened her eyes.

“You performed beyond expectations,” she said quietly. “And… thank you. You honored the Verdant Veil today.”

Then her gaze drifted sideways, drawn by a sharp stare from across the arena.

Lilith.

She clicked her tongue.

Eirene’s eyebrow twitched.

The tension was almost visible.

Just then, the Obsidian Collegium Scholars approached with their usual reserved dignity.

The elder scholar stepped forward, hands clasped.

“Congratulations, Wolf Juniors.”

The junior with the third eye followed, gaze bright with unhidden fire.

“Wolf Brother,” he said to Lucien, voice steady, “I lost again this time. I want another fight with you. A proper one. Next time… just you and me.”

Lucien’s lips curled.

“Next time, then. A friendly one. I’ll actually warm up for that.”

The junior nodded, satisfied.

The rest of the scholars chuckled under their breath at the exchange.

A ripple brushed the air.

The Starforge Cartel approached next.

Lilith walked at the head. She was calm now though the faint edge of leftover pettiness lingered in the tightness of her shoulders. She let her gaze travel up and down Lucien before her expression softened in a way that made a few people blink.

Her cartel members traded glances.

Eirene visibly frowned.

“Little darling,” Lilith said, folding her hands behind her back, “I’ll deliver the rewards I promised. Before the expedition. I don’t break deals.”

Marie immediately stepped forward.

“And mine too! Don’t forget!”

Lilith laughed softly.

“Of course.”

Then her lashes lowered a fraction.

“And my offer stands. Join my cartel. Both of you. You’d fit right in.”

Her cartel members eagerly nodded behind her, practically waving at Lucien and Marie like they were trying to pitch the world’s most suspiciously enthusiastic membership.

Eirene took half a step closer to Lucien… subtle as if she merely adjusted her position.

Lilith took half a step closer as well… absolutely not subtle.

The two women’s gazes met.

They smiled. But there was an unspoken promise in their eyes that said if not for witnesses, mountains would already be falling.

Marie leaned in toward Lucien and whispered, “They scare me more than the black-robed women.”

Lucien exhaled. “No comment.”

Before they could retreat even five steps, the rest of the powers moved in.

Sects. Clans. Nations. Mercenary bands. Even a few mysterious factions whose affiliations were… foggy at best.

They closed into a loose circle as their voices overlapped.

“Join us, precious talents!”

“Our sect will provide resources. Become an elder candidate in our clan!”

“Our kingdom values talent like yours! We’ll give you land, titles, and position.”

“Our Grand Elder wishes to personally invite you!”

“Our sect head hopes you’d consider—”

The tones varied.

Some laced with admiration. Some crackling with jealousy.

Others stayed quiet and guarded, assessing them like volatile treasures.

A few… carried a strangely focused interest that felt almost clinical.

Marie’s eyes darted from face to face.

“Luc,” she muttered under her breath, “are we treasures? Why is everyone looking at us like loot?”

Lucien replied dryly, “We are loot.”

The pressure at the front thickened as more bodies pressed in.

The Verdant Veil members immediately stepped forward, forming a barrier.

“Step back,” one of them said sharply.

“They just came out of a deadly trial. Give them room to breathe.”

On the opposite flank, the Starforge cartel guards mirrored the motion.

“Move aside. If you want their heads intact, don’t trample them.”

Seeing both major merchant group shielding Lucien and Marie at the same time sent another wave of whispers through the stands.

“They’re being protected by two merchant giants…?”

“Their futures are basically guaranteed.”

“If both a consortium and a cartel are willing to stand in front for them…”

Marie’s tail practically wanted to wag.

Lucien’s sigh deepened.

…

Across the arena, away from the crush of people, something else caught Lucien’s attention.

The two black-robed women were making their way back to their group. Their steps were steady but faintly off like they were still recalibrating after the chaos.

Their leader stood waiting.

He rested a hand on each of their shoulders in turn.

The robed women straightened as if the contact had anchored them.

Lucien’s gaze brushed past them and collided with the leader’s.

He didn’t feel hostility.

Just a quiet weight. A thoughtful examination. As if the man were trying to understand what Lucien was.

Marie nudged his elbow.

“Do we… wave?”

“No.”

“Correct answer.”

…

Farther along the right side of the arena, two familiar outlines lurked in the shadows of their own factions.

Ignathar of the Nephralis Sect and Vanur of the Varkhaal Sect.

They leaned in close to their elders, whispering something too low for anyone else to catch.

Their gazes weren’t admiring.

Something in their posture tightened the back of Lucien’s neck.

He resisted the urge to look their way for too long, choosing instead to pretend he hadn’t noticed.

•••

The buzzing crowd swelled again—

And then a deep, resonant hum rolled through the arena.

The noise thinned instantly.

Solar Concordium’s voice spread through the air as if the arena itself had become his echo.

“Now then,” he said, “shall we reveal the Top Ten Finalists?”

Light gathered high above, forming a massive screen.

The entire arena collectively held its breath as the rankings appeared.

10th — Dawnblade Duo

9th — Scarlet Disciples

8th — Sskavyrn & Partner

7th — Silent Monastery Monks

6th — Black-Robed Women

5th — Obsidian Collegium

4th — Lilith & Partner

3rd — Lythrae & Moonlit Maiden

2nd — Verdant Veil Wolves (Lucien & Marie)

1st — SHAVED-HEAD TRAITOR & PARTNER

The moment the first place image fully formed, the arena broke.

“BALD MANNNN!!”

“THE LEGEND HIMSELF!!”

“THE UNSEEN DEMON OF THIS TRIAL!!”

Half the crowd cheered like they’d just witnessed their favorite villain win.

The other half booed like they’d been personally scammed.

On the side, his partner… the man who’d been unconscious for half the trial… now stood upright beside him, basking in the glory like it was his birthright.

“That’s right!” he shouted, puffing out his chest. “I TRUSTED HIM THE WHOLE TIME!”

Stunned voices echoed from nearby seats.

“You were unconscious the whole time.”

“Shut up,” the partner replied proudly. “I chose loyalty.”

The shaved-head traitor only wore that same smug, trouble-born smirk.

Solar Concordium raised his voice once more.

“Silence.”

The single word slammed through the arena like a gavel.

The roar died down in seconds.

“This trial,” he said, “was unlike any challenge set in previous generations.”

His gaze turned toward the sky as though looking at something only he could still see.

“The Ruin of Stillness belonged to the Eternal of Stillness,” he continued slowly. “A being whose disposition was… unique.”

Behind him, faint geometric sigils unfolded in the air like quiet constellations.

“The Eternal believed in stillness only after chaos,” Solar Concordium said. “Only when the world had been pushed to the brink, when motion and noise had exhausted themselves… could true stillness be born.”

Murmurs and gasps spread through the stands.

“So that’s why…”

“It matches the ruin’s nature, then…”

“I designed this final trial with that in mind,” Solar Concordium went on. “To reflect that personality. To strip away safety. To filter out those who could not stand in chaos… and highlight those who could find clarity in the storm.”

His gaze swept past the top ten, pausing for a heartbeat on each face.

“You endured that storm,” he said. “That alone suggests you may fare better in the Ruin.”

The arena roared with renewed energy.

Then his tone shifted, deepening.

“Your final order of entry into the Ruin of Stillness has now been determined.”

A hush fell again.

“The order follows the very concept of Stillness,” Solar Concordium explained. “One enters… the world must settle… and only after the ruin calms may the next step through.”

He let the words settle over their minds.

“Each placement will enter ten minutes apart,” he announced. “No exceptions.”

The outcry was immediate.

“Eternal Master, why longer than usual?!”

“If we’re later, what will be left for us?!”

“This favors only the front runners!”

Solar Concordium simply waited until the complaints tangled together and began to choke on themselves.

Then he answered…

“The Eternal of Stillness is an enigma,” he said. “And her ruin is not as simple as you all imagine. If you enter too quickly… the ruin will not shift.”

He looked toward the horizon.

“If you rush in without allowing stillness to return between entrants,” he said, “then stillness will swallow you. And you may never find the path back out.”

The protests died like someone had cut their strings.

Silence, cautious and sober this time, spread across the seats.

Slowly, nods began appearing.

“That makes sense…”

“So if they flood it, it turns into a trap…”

“All right. That’s… fair, actually.”

The tension bled into acceptance.

“It is simple,” Solar Concordium said. “Clear. Easy to follow. And necessary.”

He continued…

“After the top ten have entered,” he said, “those ranked eleventh to twentieth in Trial Two will follow. Same interval. Ten minutes per group.”

From the mid-ranked sections, a wave of relieved cheering erupted.

“At least we’re still early enough—”

“We still have a chance to get decent ground!”

“After them,” Solar Concordium went on, “will be those who were eliminated in the battle royale phase.”

A second surge of noise filled the air, hopeful this time.

“And finally…”

His eyes brightened, pupils rimmed in light like miniature suns.

“…any Celestial Realm practitioners or guests who did not participate in the trials, yet still wish to enter… will go last.”

The arena buzzed at once.

“That’s fair.”

“The juniors really get the chance to move first this time.”

On a raised platform, the two Celestial Race proxies stepped forward. They nodded solemnly as Solar Concordium spoke again.

“Our Celestial proxies will monitor this arrangement,” he said. “They will stabilize conflicts. They will enforce the order. And they will ensure fairness.”

The two Celestials radiated calm like anchors in a storm.

They were the balance to this chaos.

Solar Concordium lifted both arms, drawing the crowd’s focus one last time.

“The expedition toward the Ruin of Stillness will begin in one week.”

The words landed like thunder.

“One week to prepare,” he said. “One week to forge alliances. One week to gather every resource and sharpen every plan.”

He paused, then added.

“And a final piece of advice. The Astral Chains you wore in Trial Three were not a whim. They exist to teach you something vital.”

He let the memory of those chains sink back into every contender’s bones.

“When you enter the ruin,” Solar Concordium said, “do not leave your group. Do not wander alone. No matter what happens, stay with the people you entered with.”

His gaze hardened.

“If you break formation,” he said, “you will invite trouble you are not ready for.”

The weight of that warning pressed into every heart.

Then the tension broke—

Gasps. Murmurs. Excited shrieks.

A buzzing, feverish anticipation rolled through the arena.

One week.

One week to breathe. One week to scheme. One week before the Ruin of Stillness opened its doors.

The trial was over.

But everyone could feel it—

The true battle was only just beginning.