Inside the Heaven Ascension Platform.
Xu Jintang was still locked in combat with the burly man in black.
This challenge took longer than the previous one.
However, it was still ended by Xu Jintang within ten minutes.
After being knocked down, the figure of the burly man in black slowly disappeared from sight.
The familiar notification sound rang out:
"Bite--"
"Congratulations on your successful challenge! The next level of the challenge will automatically begin in ten minutes. Please prepare yourself."
Xu Jintang shook his wrist, then immediately sat down cross-legged to begin recovering his mental energy.
Song Tianqi was also attempting the challenge at the same time, finished his challenge three minutes later.
However, relatively speaking, his challenge speed is still far above average.
The announcement of the successful challenge rang out outside the Heaven Ascension Platform.
The passersby were shocked once again.
"They successfully cleared the fifth level in less than ten minutes. These two are incredibly strong!"
Do you think Heaven Ascension Platform will result in a loss for us this time?
"They probably won't lose money; even if they reached the eighth floor, they'd only get a reward of three thousand star coins."
The speed at which Xu Jintang and his companion cleared the obstacle course attracted even more onlookers.
Those who had previously attempted to climb this Heaven Ascension Platform were also drawn to it.
One of the former challengers, hands on his hips and a skeptical look on his face, pushed his way through the crowd. "So you guys are starting to use these kinds of gimmicks for the Heaven Ascension Platform now? Are you kidding me? What kind of skill level do you need to get past the fifth level in under ten minutes?"
He had challenged the Heaven Ascension Platform several times before, so he naturally knew how terrifying the enemies were after the fifth floor.
Let alone solving it in ten minutes, being able to solve it within twenty minutes is already considered exceptionally capable.
The staff on site immediately stepped forward and explained with an impartial expression, "Rest assured, our Heaven Ascension Platform challenge event never involves cheating or fraud."
The challenger sneered, "Then why weren't the fight scenes of these two challengers released today? Who knows if you just randomly picked two people from your own ranks, deliberately lowered the difficulty for them, made it seem like the challenge was easy, and then attracted other hotheads to buy your tickets to take the challenge."
Upon hearing this, the passersby who had initially just come to watch the commotion immediately realized what was going on.
"Yeah, I was wondering why these two challengers weren't playing by the rules today, and they were both incredibly aggressive. Maybe they were both planted."
"Seeing how fast those two were rushing just now, I almost couldn't resist buying tickets. Now that you mention it, it's actually a bit creepy to think about."
"My God, even a major tourist attraction like the Heaven Ascension Platform is starting to scam people to make money off ticket sales?"
The staff on site panicked immediately upon seeing this situation.
He quickly raised his hand to signal everyone to calm down, "Please rest assured, everyone. Our Heaven Ascension Platform has been in business for so many years and has an absolutely excellent reputation. We have never cheated or committed any fraudulent acts. Please trust us on this point."
"Then show us their battle footage, let's see how those two manage to push through the levels so fast."
The staff member looked embarrassed. "Well... since the challenger chose not to show the video, we can't just give you the video to watch without respecting their privacy."
The former challenger scoffed, "Tch, if they won't let us see, then it proves I was right."
Once a challenger reaches the fifth level, they can choose to have the battle footage shown to the public.
Those who dare to challenge the Heaven Ascension Platform are all there to show off; almost no one will deliberately keep the battle footage a secret.
This unusual behavior made everyone increasingly suspicious that it was a case of self-promotion within the Heaven Ascension Platform.
The staff were left awkwardly on the scene, trying to explain, but no one believed them.
Until the announcement of the successful challenge rang out again.
The previously noisy scene instantly fell silent.
Everyone stared in disbelief at the Heaven Ascension Platform.
The shimmering golden light had now moved to the seventh floor, indicating that the two challengers would be attempting to reach the seventh floor next.
"No, it's understandable for the people inside the Heaven Ascension Platform to do marketing, but isn't this speed of completion a bit unbelievable?"
"I'm increasingly convinced that those two challengers who went up just now were arranged by someone inside the Heaven Ascension Platform."
As everyone was discussing this, Song Tianqi also successfully passed the test and reached the seventh floor.
Everyone: "..."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on the foreheads of the staff on site.
His smile had frozen, and he awkwardly raised his hand to silently wipe away his sweat.
If he hadn't already confirmed with his colleagues that the two people inside were indeed not from their team, he would probably be wondering if it was all a hoax.
Before long, news spread that the Heaven Ascension Platform was a fake marketing ploy, attracting a huge crowd of onlookers.
The massive crowds put even more pressure on the staff.
He quietly wiped the sweat from his brow and turned to send another message to his colleague to confirm. "Are you sure those two challengers inside weren't planted by us?"
Colleague: [Really not.]
The staff remained even more silent.
He sighed softly and raised his hand to wipe the sweat from his brow again.
How did he end up in this situation?
"Dude, say something! We've already made it to the seventh floor, and you still won't admit it was an internal marketing ploy?"
"At least give us an explanation. We can't even see the battle footage, and so many of us are waiting."
The staff member kept wiping his sweat and explained, "How about this, if everyone still has doubts, we'll wait for the two challengers to come out and confront them face to face, okay? If we've done anything sabotaging from within, we'll definitely apologize."
These words temporarily silenced the scene.
All eyes turned to the Heaven Ascension Platform.
At this moment, Xu Jintang, who was still challenging himself, was unaware that chaos had broken out outside.
Once the break was over, the familiar burly enemy in black reappeared before him, and the challenge continued.
Xu Jintang stood up, slowly clenched his fists, and as he looked up, he quickly rushed towards the other side.
This round of challenges was clearly more difficult than the previous ones; a full twenty minutes passed without the announcements ringing out again.
The crowd, who had been stunned into silence, breathed a slight sigh of relief.
"I knew it! If this round takes another twenty minutes, it'll look too fake."
"Just wait, they'll probably come out from the eighth floor soon. We'll confront them face to face then."
About four minutes later, the announcement that Song Tianqi had successfully completed the challenge rang out.
The onlookers were already used to it, so their reaction wasn't very intense.
Just then, Xie Gaoyi and his companions, who had gone out for a stroll to clear their heads, happened to be walking towards the Heaven Ascension Platform.
After losing the game, Xie Gaoyi and his four teammates were in a very low mood.
The military academy instructors were worried that the pressure would be too much for them, so they gave them two days off to relax.
"Strange, why are there so many people here today?" The team member wondered, looking into the crowd.
Xie Gaoyi, holding a cup of crushed ice cream, looked up at the scene and said, "Let's go join the fun."
After squeezing for a long time, Xie Gaoyi and his group finally managed to reach the bottom of the Heaven Ascension Platform.
Many people are still discussing and condemning the fact that the Heaven Ascension Platform was faked by having an insider.
After listening for a while, Xie Gaoyi and the others finally understood the ins and outs of the whole matter.
"To be able to successfully challenge the sixth level in just over ten minutes, that's not just terrifying, that's downright freakish." Xie Gaoyi shook his head and muttered, then continued sipping his cold drink.
The team member hesitated and asked, "So it really was a marketing tactic devised by someone inside the Heaven Ascension Platform?"
Xie Gaoyi turned to the team members, "Have you ever tried Heaven Ascension Platform?"
Three of the team members immediately nodded, "We've tried it, but we couldn't get past the seventh floor."
"Me too, the enemies become increasingly terrifying after the seventh floor."
Xie Gaoyi's eyes lit up with interest. "I've never tried this before. How about... I go and join in the fun?"
"Why not give it a try? It wouldn't be a loss if we could reach the eighth floor. With the captain's strength, the minimum should be the eighth floor, right?"
"Let's give it a try, we came out here to relax anyway."
Xie Gaoyi gulped down the entire glass of cold drink and then threw it into the trash can.
He clapped his hands and strode towards the ticket window.
The team members exchanged glances and immediately followed with great interest.
"Hello, I'd like to buy a ticket."
The staff at the ticket window were taken aback.
Despite the noise outside, people are still coming to buy tickets.
She snapped out of her daze and quickly forced a smile, "Okay, just a moment."
Half a minute later, Xie Gaoyi received his ticket and went directly to the entrance of the Heaven Ascension Platform.
Although there were many onlookers nearby, they immediately and consciously made way for someone to take on the challenge.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, Xie Gaoyi passed through the entrance barrier.
"Drop--"
"Challenger number 975 has begun the challenge."
With the addition of another challenger, the crowd's enthusiasm surged once again.
"Another one? Is this a greenhorn? Or did they send someone else in from inside the Heaven Ascension Platform?"
A new round of discussion continues.
About five minutes later, the announcement that Xie Gaoyi had successfully passed the challenge began to ring out.
He was a little slower than Xu Jintang and the other two in clearing the levels, but his efficiency was still quite good.
Immediately afterwards, Xu Jintang once again took the lead in completing the challenge of the seventh floor and rushed into the eighth floor.
The crowd, already used to it, didn't react much, only casually remarking, "Wow, that's fast, they've already reached the eighth floor."
Just when everyone thought the challenger was going to continue breaking the record, the announcement came that the challenge was over. "Challenger number 973 has decided to stop the challenge. The record for the eighth floor is about to be broken."
As soon as he finished speaking, a dazzling golden light began to flash on the eighth floor of the Heaven Ascension Platform.
A new gold-plated name instantly appeared on the light screen floating next to the eighth floor: [ Mask Squad Foodie ].
A short while later, the announcement that the second challenge had ended was broadcast.