Having personally experienced the true power of the Third Divine Vein, Max could not help but feel deeply satisfied.

As the violent energy of the Vein of Strength gradually settled within his body, he slowly flexed his fingers while feeling the terrifying physical force still coursing through his muscles and bones. Even now, every movement carried an explosive sense of power, as though his body had transformed into a weapon capable of crushing mountains barehanded.

What truly surprised Max was the sheer amplification the Vein of Strength provided.

The increase was far beyond what he had initially expected.

Before opening the Third Divine Vein, Max already possessed frightening physical strength due to his Black Dragon Chaotic Bloodline, his Dragon Scales Transformation, and the terrifying boost granted by his five thousand Draconic Essences.

Yet now—

The Vein of Strength had elevated that raw power to an entirely different level.

"If I combine the Vein of Strength with all five thousand Draconic Essences and activate Dragon Scales Transformation at the same time..." Max thought quietly to himself.

A faint glint appeared within his eyes.

"Then just how terrifying would my physical strength become?"

Even Max himself found it difficult to estimate the answer.

The thought alone was enough to make his blood stir slightly.

However, he quickly pushed the idea aside.

There was no point thinking too deeply about it now. The Survival Trial had only just begun, and there would be plenty of opportunities later to fully test the limits of his strength.

Soon, Max’s gaze shifted toward the ranking screen floating before him once again. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

[Name: Max Morgan]

[Killing Points: 6,820]

[Rank: 3]

Max raised an eyebrow slightly.

Even after eliminating so many participants and obtaining such a massive number of killing points in one go, he was still only ranked third.

This immediately sparked his curiosity.

"Who exactly is above me?" he muttered softly.

Almost as though the system had heard his thoughts, another translucent screen suddenly appeared before his eyes.

It displayed the current rankings in detail.

[Rank 1: Jonathan Myres — 15,672 KP]

[Rank 2: Ray Willer — 10,357 KP]

[Rank 3: Max Morgan — 6,820 KP]

[Rank 4: Julie — 5,632 KP]

...

"Hm," Max murmured quietly as he looked at the list. "So it’s Jonathan and Ray."

The results themselves were not particularly surprising.

Jonathan Myres was the strongest true disciple of the Violet Star Palace and one of the most powerful participants in the entire Smelting Trial. As for Ray Willer, Max had already expected him to climb the rankings quickly considering both his strength and personality.

However, Ray’s name reminded Max of something else entirely.

"That reminds me..." Max thought calmly. "Ray specifically said he intended to hunt me down."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"But how exactly is he planning to kill me?"

Within the Soul Sealing Painting, death was not real death. The moment a participant was defeated, their soul would simply be expelled from the painting and returned safely to their physical body outside.

In other words, being killed here only meant elimination from the trial.

Nothing more.

"So where does his confidence come from?" Max wondered briefly.

Ray’s earlier words clearly carried genuine killing intent.

It did not sound like mere provocation.

For a moment, Max considered the possibility that Ray possessed some unknown method capable of affecting souls directly within the Soul Sealing Painting. However, after thinking about it for a while, he ultimately stopped dwelling on the matter.

No matter what schemes Ray possessed, Max had absolute confidence in his own strength.

If Ray truly came looking for him—

Then Max would simply crush him directly.

With that thought, Max calmly continued moving deeper into the forest.

Seven colored lightning flickered faintly around his body as his figure traveled rapidly through the massive world inside the Soul Sealing Painting. Along the way, he occasionally encountered scattered monsters or small groups of participants, but none of them were worth slowing down for.

Some participants fled the moment they sensed his aura.

Others tried attacking him greedily after noticing his ranking.

Every single one of them ended the same way.

Eliminated instantly.

As time passed, Max gradually moved farther and farther from the region where he initially entered the trial.

Then suddenly—

His eyes narrowed slightly.

In the far distance, beyond the endless sea of ancient trees, he spotted something enormous rising into the sky.

It was a tower.

A massive black tower stood towering over the forest like an ancient giant. Its height was so absurd that even from an enormous distance away, it remained clearly visible above the treetops.

The tower radiated a strange oppressive aura that immediately caught Max’s attention.

"Hm?"

Curiosity appeared in Max’s eyes almost instantly.

"What is that?"

Without hesitation, he changed direction and began moving toward the tower.

The closer he got, the clearer the structure became.

The tower looked ancient and weathered, as though it had existed for countless years. Dark stone covered its entire body while strange glowing symbols occasionally flickered across its surface.

However, what truly surprised Max was not the tower itself.

It was the chaos surrounding it.

Even before fully arriving, Max could already hear the sounds of explosions, weapon clashes, and furious shouting echoing throughout the area.

Boom!

A violent shockwave erupted near the lower levels of the tower while countless figures fought fiercely around it.

When Max finally arrived close enough to properly see the scene, even he became slightly surprised.

Hundreds of participants had gathered around the tower.

The surrounding area had turned into complete chaos.

Disciples from various forces were fighting everywhere while blood stained the stone ground surrounding the tower. Techniques continuously exploded through the air while screams and angry roars echoed endlessly.

Some participants fought desperately against one another while others climbed rapidly upward along the outer structure of the tower itself.

Only then did Max notice something unusual.

The tower was filled with caves.

Countless cave openings existed across the outer walls of the massive structure, stretching from the lower sections all the way toward the heavens. Some caves glowed faintly while others radiated dense spiritual fluctuations.

And the participants...

Were fighting madly for them.

"Get lost!"

"This cave belongs to me!"

"You think a trash disciple like you deserves a cultivation cave on the upper levels?!"

Boom!

A young man was blasted directly off the tower after losing a battle, his body crashing violently into the ground below.

Elsewhere, several participants worked together to force another group away from one of the higher cave entrances.

The higher the cave—

The fiercer the fighting became.

Max quietly observed the chaotic battlefield before him while his eyes slowly narrowed.

Clearly—

Those caves were extremely important.