Emery didn't want to take any risk, not when he had reached this far. Therefore, he unhesitantly decided to instantly use his second stage transformation. Fearing that the act wasn't enough to save him from the predicament, he also used [Battle Howl] to further increase his prowess.
HOOOWWLLLLL!!
Immediately, a series of notifications appeared in Emery's mind.
[Battle power increased 30 points]
[Battle power increased 10 points]
[Battle power 180]
Thanks to his transformation ability, not only did Emery's speed increase, his strength and endurance also increased, which descred the pain when the stones hit his body.
As the newfound strength coursed through his entire being, Emery quickly went into action. He started to block and punch some of the stones he couldn't avoid, while dodging the remaining to preserve his condition.
HOWL!
[You have passed level 7]
[Your physical score 8000 – rank 42]
As if he just leaped over a massive guld, Emery discovered his rank immediately shot to the sky and passed over 30 acolytes. Apparently, not many privileged acolytes had the ability to withstand the ten times gravity, while simultaneously dodging the stones coming in their direction.
Emery would definitely suffer the same fate, as the thirty people now below him if he didn't have his transformation ability. Now that he was still brimming with power, he quickly faced the next level.
[Level 8 will soon begin]
[Gravity Space activated: 30 times gravitational force applied]
Not only did the gravity level increase exponentially, the walls also opened up again and added ten more instruments to the fray, bringing the total instruments that were about to fire at Emery to 40. As if that wasn't enough, the projectiles fired by them had changed again into white crystal-like stone.
Splat!
One of the stones managed to hit Emery's left shoulder while he was still trying to adapt to the sudden change in gravity. It flew right through his flesh and created a glaring hole that one could see blood starting to flow profusely like a rushing river.
Despite the piercing pain, Emery quickly stomped his feet and dashed around the room, avoiding the rest of the stones.
10 seconds under this new wave of stone onslaught, Emery realized how his numbers had gone up again.
[Your physical score 8210 – rank 36]
Five more seconds passed, and the number changed again.
[Your physical score 8350 – rank 32]
When he reached the 18 seconds mark, a dozen stones already hit their mark and punctured various parts of Emery's wolf body. His entire body was covered by his own blood. The next moment, he fell to the ground.
Everything turned dark.
[Physical Test concluded]
[Your physical score 8460 – rank 28]
When Emery opened his eyes, he found he was apparently still inside the virtual space, as what greeted him was the same circular dome-shaped porcelain white room. The room had returned to its initial state, where there were no more instruments pointing their barrel at him.
Emery was panting, even though the test was only virtual, the sensations were all real, including the mental shock that came after one experienced death.
All of a sudden, a voice echoed through the room. It took Emery a few moments before he realized it was Magus Ramona's voice.
"As expected from the Savage Acolyte, the Champion of Magus Game!!"
Evidently, Emery in his [Fey Transformation – stage 2] managed to clutch the rank 28, meaning he was physically stronger than the other 71 acolytes below him. This was certainly a good result, but this also made him wonder what kind of people were the other 27 above him.
Then suddenly, he thought of the Titan's Bloodline holder Sigurd and the Dragon Bloodline Zach. The two of them, who respectively had a monstrous body of their own right, were probably among these 27 people, but the real question was: what rank were they?
Moreover, Emery realized something during his deep contemplation.
With this kind of test, an acolyte with superb speed-type battle art technique, as well as proportionately strong body could still breeze through level 8. The same could be said for those who only had a body that was durable enough to withstand the barrage of stones, as one only needed to endure until the instruments stopped shooting.
"The test is still not over though, Emery!" Magus Ramora's voice resounded. "You need to complete another one, the spirit test."
Emery took a deep breath as he closed his eyes. Opening them again, he said in a determined tone, "Alright, I am ready. Bring it on!"
His vigilance immediately rose to the maximum, as Emery was waiting for anything else to come out from the walls just like before. However, he was bound to be disappointed, as the porcelain white walls, instead of opening, turned black and started to sparkle with light.
The sight reminded him of the view of the night sky in Fey Village. All of a sudden, Emery found himself standing in the middle of the space, surrounded by the stars.
[You are now entering the spirit test]
[Level 1 will soon begin]
Emery watched as one of the stars around him came closer to him. It didn't look particularly threatening, but the closer it got the more uncomfortable he felt.
He tried to figure out what was making him uncomfortable and realized the bright light from the stars was the culprit. As it got close, Emery could clearly see the real form of the star. The light emitted by the bright orb put some kind of pressure on him, which produced an uncomfortable sensation.
"A spirit attack!"
Fortunately, the spirit attack wasn't like Klea's or any other spirit attacks that came in suddenly and rapidly. On the contrary, it took its time by approaching slowly but surely.
The orb continued to make its way to Emery and stopped when it was one meter away from him. He felt his dual cores being warmed by the light, followed by a tickling sensation of pressure. Afterwards, a notification appeared in front of him.
[You have passed level 1]
Another orb moved and got closer to Emery, until it also stopped one meter away from him. He endured the pressure radiating from the two orbs for several more seconds, before the notification telling him he had passed the level appeared.
The same process basically happened when level 3 and 4 started, but Emery quickly found himself in trouble at the latter, as the pressure grew exponentially stronger at that level. After his time at level 4, his body was sweating bullets, while his double cores beat rapidly as if they were about to explode.
[You have passed level 4]
By this point, the uncomfortable sensation had grown until it reached a height Emery never imagined it could reach. His mind was in shambles and started spinning around, however, it was not until level 5 that his rank started to show.
[Your mental score 5720 – rank 98]
Worst of all, the number rose very, very slowly; miles of differences compared to his result in the physical test.
Emery actually thought he would be much better off getting hit by those dozen white crystal-like stones again, than being put under such a spirit onslaught. This agonizing sensation that slowly gnawed on his very being was surely something he didn't want to experience any longer.
Even so, Emery still hadn't given up. Rousing both of his cores to their maximum potential, he gritted his teeth and continued to endure the trial he was put into. Only a few minutes had passed since he had started the spirit test, but he felt as if he had been here for hours or even days. Finally, the notification he had been waiting for appeared.
[You have passed level 6]
[Level 6 will soon begin]
[Your mental score 6120 – rank 94]
Emery was preparing himself to endure another round of suffering, when he suddenly felt as if the shining orbs were staring at him. He didn't even have a chance to think about what happened, before he 'saw' them suddenly entering his mind and destroying his spirit core.
Without him realizing what had happened, everything went dark.
[Spirit Test concluded]
[Your mental score 6330 – rank 91]
[Calculating your new ranking from the physical and mental score…]
[Congratulations! Your final rank is 68th]
At the same time as the last notification appeared, Emery returned to the real world, where his body was lying in the tube-like chamber. Afterwards, the tube-like chamber was opened and he noticed that Magus Ramona was staring at him.
"Too bad… I was hoping to see more," Magus Ramora smiled. Noticing the complicated expression on Emery's face, she said, "Don't be too disheartened. Rank 68 is still something, especially for someone like you, who is the only rank 8 acolyte in the privileged class."
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Written and Directed by Avans, Published by NovelFull,
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