Outside the Trial Gate, a temporary building had been erected by the United Council right next to the ancient temple. The highest floor was a wide, arc-shaped hall with rows of desks arranged in tiers facing the center. Each seat bore the emblem of a Safe Zone, independent city, or faction qualified to participate in this year’s trial.
The scene looked much like a grand conference, except instead of documents or microphones, each person had three to five light screens projecting live footage from inside the Trial Gate.
Thanh Lien sat in the highest chairman’s seat.
The scroll from earlier had been set aside. In her hand was a small white teacup, thin wisps of steam rising before her face. Since the participants had entered the gate, Thanh Lien had said almost nothing. She only occasionally sipped her tea and glanced across the constantly shifting screens.
One screen on the right was showing Ethan.
He stood amid the crowd, Laira on his right, Ruo Yan on his left. The Measurement Sphere had sprouted two eyes and a large mouth, its shrill laughter continuous enough to make most participants unconsciously keep their distance.
Thanh Lien watched that screen for a few more seconds before shifting her gaze to another area. However, it wasn’t long before her eyes drifted back.
The movement was subtle, but Xue Ji, seated in the Silver Moon City section below, happened to catch it. She raised her glass to her lips, the corner of her mouth curving slightly, but said nothing.
In the remaining rows, discussion had already grown lively.
A representative from Safe Zone 3 looked at the spherical creature on the screen and frowned. "Last year it was just an ordinary Measurement Sphere. It had no consciousness, let alone the ability to speak."
The person beside him leaned back in his chair, eyes still on the screen. "The Trial Gate has never been completely identical from year to year. As long as the core rules haven’t changed too drastically, there’s nothing surprising about it."
"I’m more interested in who’ll come out on top this year."
The moment those words were spoken, the topic immediately shifted.
On a nearby screen, the image of a young woman wearing light blue combat attire appeared. On her back was a crescent-shaped weapon with two sharply curved tips, its blades continuously surrounded by faint streams of blue-green wind.
The representative from Zone 1 lifted his chin slightly. "Irino reached Silver tier ten three months ago. Her Crescent Wheel is an Epic-rank Wind-type weapon, and her compatibility has already reached the point where she can utilize nearly all of its power. That weapon alone is enough to place her among the frontrunners."
The person from Zone 4 immediately laughed. "Having a good weapon doesn’t guarantee a win."
He pointed toward the screen beside it.
A gray-haired young man sat on a boulder, eyes closed, arms crossed before his chest. A long saber wrapped in red cloth lay across his thighs. Even without being drawn from its sheath, wisps of deep crimson blood energy occasionally seeped from the gaps.
"Roamer has also reached Silver tier ten. His Blood Saber is likewise Epic-rank. If we’re purely talking about destructive force in a single strike, I don’t think Irino can beat him."
"Those two might not even be the strongest."
A voice from the Zone 7 section cut in, making several people around turn to look.
The Zone 7 representative was watching Cassian on screen, his expression full of confidence. "Cassian doesn’t have an Epic weapon, but he possesses S-rank Acceleration and A-rank Body Metallization. Used separately, neither ability is particularly exceptional compared to those two, but when combined, it’s a completely different story."
Someone frowned slightly. "Metallization is only A-rank."
"But Acceleration is S-rank." The Zone 7 representative placed both hands on the table. "The higher the speed, the greater the kinetic energy. A normal body can’t withstand the impact force when he accelerates to his limit, but Metallization solves that exact weakness. When Cassian uses both simultaneously, his body becomes the weapon."
Several people gradually fell silent.
The argument had no flaws.
Irino.
Roamer.
Cassian.
Those three names had been mentioned more than any others even before the Trial Gate opened.
A representative from a small city sitting toward the back glanced across the screens and suddenly asked: "What about Ethan Ashford?"
The atmosphere around them slowed slightly.
"The one who was hunted by Zone 7?"
"That’s right." The person pointed up at Ethan’s screen. "I heard his first Partner is Mythical."
A man from one of the major clans immediately scoffed. "So what if his Partner is Mythical? The first round allows Partner assistance, but the goal is still to produce a single complete attack. If he himself is weak, his Partner’s strength might not fully convert into a score."
Another chimed in: "Besides, the Partner Mystery Box is inherently the hardest development path. Resources have to be shared, and leveling speed is affected by the Partner. He just got lucky and pulled a Mythical Partner, that’s all."
"I still remember the initial data. Ethan Ashford awakened later than his younger brother, and his level before that was nothing noteworthy."
"And yet Xue Ji gave him Silver Moon City’s only slot?"
A few soft laughs rang out.
Xue Ji, seated below, heard every word clearly, but she merely swirled the glass in her hand, showing no intention of explaining.
Right then, an elderly man sitting near the front row suddenly spoke up: "I’ve seen his Red Dragon fight before."
The laughter gradually died down.
The old man looked at Laira on screen, his expression growing more serious. "That Partner is very powerful."
"Mythical is obviously powerful."
"That’s not what I mean." The old man slowly shook his head. "The time I saw her fight, from start to finish, she was never pushed to the point of having to use her full strength."
The person sitting next to him furrowed his brows slightly. "You’re sure?"
"I have no reason to lie." The old man looked at Ethan and continued: "There’s something else too. The stronger a Partner is, the greater the resources needed for growth. If Ethan were truly just a useless Awakened, a Mythical Red Dragon couldn’t have grown this quickly."
This time no one immediately argued back.
Thanh Lien, who had been raising her teacup to her lips, paused slightly. Her eyes once again shifted to Ethan’s screen.
Only after a moment did she calmly resume drinking.
...
Inside the Trial Gate, the atmosphere was anything but calm compared to the outside.
The Measurement Sphere hovered in midair. Its round eyes rolled back and forth, its large mouth curved into a chilling grin.
"Hit me! Come on, hit me! Kekeke..."
Nobody moved.
The young man who had nearly been bitten was still standing dozens of meters away, his face pale, the hand gripping his weapon trembling slightly. Before, he’d wanted to test whether the sphere was truly dangerous. But now, that mouth full of teeth had been more than enough to kill any desire to get close again.
Just then, a new notification panel appeared in midair.
[Supplementary rules.]
[Each person has 60 seconds to complete the test.]
[Failure to attack within the allotted time: Death.]
[Attack power below 1,000,000 units: Death.]
[The timer begins when the participant enters the testing zone.]
Everyone’s expression changed instantly.
The young man from before widened his eyes. "What?"
The sphere immediately swiveled toward him. Its misshapen eyes curved upward, and its mouth stretched even wider.
"One minute. Don’t attack, you die. Attack too weakly, you also die." Its hoarse voice echoed across the arena. "Kekeke... Which one do you want to pick?"
The fear on the young man’s face was gradually replaced by anger. He gripped the sword in his hand tight, grinding his teeth as he glared at the sphere.
"You’re just a strength-measuring tool. You really think I’m scared of you?"
He stomped hard against the ground and charged forward. The people standing nearby immediately backed away, none of them intending to get in his path.
The sphere didn’t dodge. It simply watched him and kept grinning.
The young man had barely covered ten meters when the arena floor beneath him suddenly let out a small sound.
Click!
Ethan’s eyes narrowed at once.
Precise square lines appeared around the young man. The entire floor surface within a radius of several meters split into hundreds of cubic blocks, which then simultaneously rose from the ground.
The young man flinched and immediately channeled all his strength into his legs to leap out.
But it was too late.
The stone blocks from all four sides moved at once.
"Wai..."
BOOM!
Everything crushed inward.
The heavy sound made several people instinctively look away. Blood instantly sprayed through the gaps between the stone blocks, splattering in red streaks across the floor.
A few seconds later, the cubes slowly separated and sank back down.
In the center, there was no longer a complete body. Only shredded flesh, blood, and a segment of weapon bent beyond recognition lay on the stone surface.
Laira frowned slightly. Ruo Yan standing beside her also turned cold-faced.
Ethan watched the arena floor seal itself shut as if nothing had happened, growing even more certain of his earlier suspicion.
The Measurement Sphere was absolutely not just a strength-testing tool.
The spherical creature spun around once, then looked at everyone. Its mouth full of teeth stretched wide to both sides once more.
"Kekeke... Failure. Anyone else want to come up?"
This time, nobody stepped forward immediately.
One million units had previously been nothing more than a number on a notification panel. But after witnessing that young man’s fate, everyone now understood perfectly that number was the line between life and death.
After a moment, the faint ring of metal sounded.
Irino stepped out.
She reached behind her back and touched the center of the Crescent Wheel. A gust of pale blue wind immediately coiled around the weapon’s blades, making her hair drift gently to one side.
"If no one else wants to try, then I’ll go."
Chatter immediately broke out.
"Irino."
"Zone 1’s representative."
"Finally someone’s stepping up."
Irino had taken just two steps when an arm suddenly blocked her path. She stopped, her gaze shifting to Cassian standing beside her.
Irino looked at his arm, then lifted her eyes, narrowing them slightly. "Something you need?"
Cassian smirked. "No rush. Let me go first."
"I stepped out first."
"I know." Cassian didn’t withdraw his arm, simply looking at her calmly. "That’s why I’m asking if you’d like to yield."
The air around them tensed slightly. Those standing nearby unconsciously moved further away. Even though neither had entered the testing zone, both were among this year’s most highly regarded candidates. Nobody wanted to accidentally get caught up in it if they clashed right here.
Irino looked at Cassian for a few seconds, then unexpectedly smiled. She held onto the Crescent Wheel and voluntarily stepped aside.
"Fine."
Cassian raised an eyebrow slightly.
Irino watched him, curiosity appearing in her eyes. "I’d also like to see whether your S-rank Acceleration is really worth all the talk."
The corner of Cassian’s mouth curved upward.
"You’ll see."
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