The beam of lightning crashed into the youths below, and John closed his eyes as it did so. He was unsure of why the dragon had attacked them, but knew he would not be able to resist its overwhelming power.
However, his eyes soon slowly opened as he felt the dragon's power wash over him. Unlike the devastating power he had expected, the lightning from the dragon danced over and within his body in a gentle manner. It was like a gentle lightning rain falling over his body, washing it clean and making it be reborn anew.
"What is going on?"
Wherever the lightning went, it would slightly alter his body, reminding him of the process he had felt when he trained the Celestial Lightning Script. Although the change he felt to his body right now was almost insignificant to what happened with the Celestial Lightning Script in the Lightning World Trial, he could still feel a change.
His body, which was a Lightning Attribute Body, began to become even more attuned to lightning. On top of that, John could feel his lightning comprehensions slowly rise as the dragons lightning washed over him.
"How profound!"
All the other youths also felt something similar, although the changes to their bodies and comprehensions were even more pronounced than Johns.
Most of them had no affinity or comprehensions towards lightning, and so the changes taking place within their bodies were drastic, as they were a clean slate being molded.
The process continued for several minutes, before the dragon closed its mouth and stopped bathing the youths in his lightning breath. It roared once more before it spread its wings and took to the sky. A violent wind tempest was kicked up within the courtyard, and the dragon flew high into the sky before it sped off in a certain direction, out of the view of all those in the crowd.
After the process was done, each youth closely inspected their bodies, and were stunned by the results. While they had not attained a lightning attribute body, their bodies were much more aligned with lightning nonetheless. They could feel a greater affinity towards it, and their comprehensions had grown drastically.
"Congratulations," The Sect Leaders voice sounded out, causing the youths to all stare up at him. Their eyes were filled with wonder.
"You have been bathed in the Vital Lightning Essence Breath of our Heavenly Lightning Dragon. I'm sure each and every one of you has felt their bodies become more aligned with lightning Qi, and your lightning comprehensions grow as well."
The youths all nodded their heads eagerly in agreement. They all felt the immediate changes in their body. Such a thing was beyond their wildest expectations, and they were starting to see why the Heavenly Lightning Sect stood at the very top of the continent.
The Sect Leader paused for a moment before continuing.
"As was mentioned at the start of the trial, the top youths are to be rewarded for their efforts. Those being specially rewarded are those who placed in the top ten to become Core Disciples, and you will each receive your rewards according to your rank."
Excited expressions appeared on all those who had become Core Disciples, while a sour look appeared on one of the youths. He stepped forward and bowed to the Sect Leader, and was about to speak out when the Sect Leader cut him off.
"I know what you are going to say, and there's no need to say it. The boy who was dragged through the Trial of Pain will become a Core Disciple as well, as luck is just as important as talent in the cultivation world," Sect Leader ThunderZen stated clearly.
The boy frowned slightly, unhappy with the response he was given. "Sect Leader, I understand your decision, but isn't what they did cheating? Can't anyone just drag their followers through in future trials, and claim all the top spots?" The boy asked, trying to find a hole in the Sect Leaders answer.
ThunderZen chuckled lightly as he turned to look directly at John. He was clear on exactly what had happened in each trial, and was impressed by what John had accomplished.
"Such a thing could happen in the future I suppose, but it's highly unlikely. To forcefully drag someone through like that, the person doing so would feel double the pain, one for their trial, and one for the trial of the one being dragged. So I ask you, can it really be considered cheating when such a disadvantage is placed on the person doing so?" ThunderZen asked.
Everyone's eyes widened slightly, and all the youths who had seen John in the Trial of Pain turned to stare at him. He had breezed through the trial as if it was nothing, and now they were finding out he had experienced twice the pain they had felt during the entire process. They shuddered at the thought of feeling more pain than they had felt during the trial, and many stared at John in a new light.
Some stared at him with a newfound respect, while others stared at him as if he was a monster.
The boy who had stepped forward shuddered at the thought of experiencing double the pain during that trial, and found no way to argue it.
The Sect Leader smiled and spoke out once more. "Besides, we had a casualty recently, and a new spot just opened up, so you may take the final Core Disciple position."
The boy's eyes lit up and he bowed and thanked the Sect Leader for his decision. The boy who had been killed recently had come eighth, and it was true that there was a new spot available. Being that the one who stepped forward had come eleventh, it was only natural that he moved up into the Core Disciple slot that had opened.
Adam's face lit up at hearing that he would keep his core discipleship, and his face beamed with pride once more. John rolled his eyes once more.
"Now then, we shall address the Core Discipleship rankings. These have been calculated by our Elders based on your performances in each of the four trials, and your rewards will vary depending on your rank."
The Sect Leader waved his hand, and a large stone tablet suddenly materialized above his head. There were ten names written on it, each with a corresponding ranking. All eyes in the crowd and group of youths immediately darted towards the tablet, and the Core Disciples quickly read the tablet, eager to see their rankings.
John casually read the tablet, and found his name amongst the others.