Chapter 54: The Final Test: Part 3

Chapter 54: Chapter 54: The Final Test: Part 3

#A/N: My bad, guys! I made a mistake with the timeline earlier and didn’t give the examinees enough time to fight the Eldritches and rack up points. I’ve already fixed that continuity error back in Chapter 52. Right now, Aeon and the other examinees have plenty of time to hunt down monsters and gain points!

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Ten hours before the academy’s security breach alarm blared...

In a desolate, untamed region of the island, Aeon stood face to face with a D+ rank Eldritch. The majority of its massive physique resembled that of a tiger, but it had mutated in a deeply sinister way.

From its shoulders sprouted two additional heads. The one on the right resembled a savage wolf, while the left bore the distorted features of a monstrous panther.

All three heads possessed pairs of glowing crimson eyes, each radiating an insatiable hunger and unadulterated murderous intent. Its tail was that of a gigantic scorpion, its venomous stinger arched high and pointed directly at Aeon’s chest.

To make its appearance even more nightmarish, eight long, twisted spider legs erupted from its spine, anchoring it firmly to the earth.

Its sheer presence was oppressive enough to make weaker beings collapse in terror. Anyone lacking sufficient mental fortitude would have been utterly overwhelmed by fear alone, their bodies giving out before the creature ever needed to strike.

ROOOOOOAAAAR!

The monster roared, its gaze locking onto Aeon’s cosmic eyes. This was a Dread Tiger Eldritch. While they weren’t a common breed, a Dread Tiger mutated by hunting other magical creatures, absorbing their essences to transform into a grotesque chimera.

Seeking to deny Aeon any opportunity to counter-attack or flee, the Dread Tiger lunged forward.

Whoosh!

Aeon remained perfectly still as the beast descended upon him, its razor-sharp claws slashing down millimetres from his face, poised to slice him into ribbons. Yet, a fraction of a second before contact, Aeon shifted his body to the left. The evasion was so blindingly fast and flawless that the monster didn’t even realize its prey had vanished from its trajectory.

Capitalizing on the opening, Aeon counter-attacked the airborne beast. Channeling a devastating punch capable of leveling an entire town, he delivered a brutal uppercut straight into the Dread Tiger’s underbelly.

BAAAAAM!

Without understanding how it had happened, the Dread Tiger felt its internal organs instantly crush and squeeze inward. The impact folded its massive body into a sharp V-shape, sending it rocketing into the sky.

Tens of meters above the ground, the creature hacked up mouthfuls of blood from all three throats, completely disoriented. Forcing itself to regain composure, the wolf and panther heads frantically scanned the surroundings, while the central tiger head peered downward.

The tiger head immediately locked eyes with Aeon, who was staring up at it with a faint smile. Before it could react, his figure vanished from sight.

Whoosh!

With out giving the Dread Tiger any chance to recover, Aeon materialized directly above it. Shimmering golden energy instantly gathered in his hand, rapidly solidifying into the shape of a single-edged sword. Without a moment’s hesitation, Aeon swung the blade downward.

Shing! SLICE!

The blade cleaved through the Dread Tiger’s dense hide in a singular, fluid stroke, splitting its colossal body cleanly in half.

ROOOOOOAAAAR!

The two halves of its enormous carcass crashed heavily into the dirt, shaking the ground beneath as a final, agonizing roar escaped its three throats.

Aeon drifted down, landing effortlessly beside the bleeding, lifeless Eldritch. With a casual flick of his wrist, he dismissed the weapon, converting it back into raw golden energy that scattered into the air.

What Aeon had just utilized was the Metal affinity he had copied from his Nihilborn two weeks prior. Thanks to his Infinite Evolution Talent, the affinity had already evolved into an Infinite-rank affinity. This evolution allowed him to control his affinities with absolute authority, even under restrictions that should have made them impossible to use.

"Luckily, it seems creating weapons using my affinities doesn’t violate the sub-quest’s rules. But I shouldn’t push my luck beyond this," Aeon sighed in relief. He recalled the strict rules of the sub-quest, which dictated he could only employ the combat strength of an average D-rank cultivator.

He then tapped his Astral rune to review his score. The holographic screen flared to life, displaying an impressive total of 11,050 points.

Curious, he scrolled down to the live scoreboard located beneath the rules section.

[Current Leaderboard Ranking]

1. AEON ASTARAEAS — 11,050 points

2. SERAPHINA VEYLITH — 950 points

3. SOPHIA SOLARIS — 850 points

4. ETHAN VALE — 800 points

5. VARKUN RAGNOR — 750 points

"Hmm... the competition is quite fierce," Aeon murmured, tracing his fingers along the screen. "I wonder who this Seraphina is. Could she belong to the Angel race? It’s impressive that she’s outperforming Sophia, considering Sophia is a Dragon whose entire physique, bloodline, and special talents are related to combat."

Seraphina had caught his attention earlier when she unexpectedly tied his score on the written examination. Seeing her trailing closely behind him in the combat test only solidified his suspicions. She likely possessed a Divine-rank talent, a highly ranked bloodline, a unique physique, or a special talent.

’Heh. I’ll have to inspect your status later, Miss Seraphina. If you possess the right qualities, you will make a perfect candidate for my next bond. Do not disappoint me,’ Aeon thought, a devilish smirk playing on his lips as he anticipated the potential gains.

Over the past two hours, he had systematically hunted down exactly twenty Eldritches. While a few were D-rank, the vast majority occupied the F and E-rank baseline.

His efficiency was entirely due to his passive telepathy. Even though these Eldritches were generated for the exam, they possessed a baseline intelligence and emotional spectrum, ranging from primal animalistic instincts to cognitive capacities complex enough to plan, adapt, and make decisive tactical maneuvers.

Because he could sense their thoughts, and monstrous emotions, tracking their exact locations was trivial. Furthermore, his vision allowed him to spot targets from hundreds of miles away,through the passive effects of his Special Talent, Infinite Eyes of Omniscience (Effect 1: Omniscient Eyes) and his Endless Devouring Dragon Bloodline (Effect 3: Infinite Dragon Eyes), which functioned flawlessly even while remaining unactivated.

He had already pinpointed several D-rank and C-rank Eldritches, mapping out a route to kill them before other examinees could intervene.

The overwhelming majority of the participants didn’t even possess a D-rank cultivation base. Only a select few had crossed that threshold. Even those elites wouldn’t be foolish enough to blindly provoke a C-rank Eldritch.

In truth, Aeon himself wouldn’t have attempted it if not for the vast accumulation of experience he had gathered over the past 1,825 years. Since his true power is sealed and limited to the combat capacity of an average D-rank cultivator, the Dread Tiger alone would have claimed his life, let alone a C-rank monstrosity.

Fortunately, he possessed movement technique he had honed to absolute perfection over nearly two millennia.

Movement techniques varied wildly depending on the practitioner; some mirrored the erratic nature of lightning, others the fluidity of wind, or the volatile nature of fire. However, they all shared the same fundamental progression:

1. Basic Level Movement

2. Refined Level Movement

3. Perfect Level Movement

4. Micro Level Movement

5. Advanced Micro Level Movement

6. Extreme Micro Level Movement

True mastery of movement wasn’t merely about running fast or dodging a strike. It was the control and execution of the entire body. It was the art of running, moving, evading, and attacking using minimal effort to yield maximum results.

From simple, flashy movement to the point where they became virtually imperceptible. A microscopic twitch of a finger, wrist, or shoulder could carry the localized momentum of an astronomical impact.

Aeon, however, had long since transcended those defined boundaries, stepping into an uncharted domain: Atomic Level Movement.

His physical control had reached a microscopic scale, allowing him to adjust every fiber of his body with absolute precision, concentrating his power into a singular, devastating point whenever he pleased.

Shaking off his thoughts, Aeon turned away from the bisected carcass of the Dread Tiger and ventured deeper into the wilderness. His eyes were set on his next target. A C-rank Eldritch.

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Meanwhile, back at the academy’s observation command center, the professors monitored the examinees’ performances across multiple holographic feeds, actively evaluating their techniques.

"The Human Federation has birthed a truly exceptional genius this year. His swordsmanship is remarkably elegant and precise. It won’t be long before he manifests a Sword Intent. He must be one of the examinees blessed with a Divine-rank talent," Chen Hao remarked, his eyes locked onto a screen showing a black-haired human teenager engaged in a fierce duel with a colossal green serpent.

"Indeed," another professor concurred, nodding in agreement. "Many of these examinees are demonstrating immense potential. Take this Titan boy, for instance. He is relying entirely on his bare fists, yet every single punch he throws carries a tremendous, crushing force. Judging by the golden energy coating his fists, he has already comprehended Fist Intent," another professor added from the corner, immediately drawing the attention of the rest of the room.

"Already? At his age?" a beastman professor asked, taken completely by surprise as his feline eyes widened.

The professor who had pointed out the titan teenager replied, "He is the fifth prince of the Titan race from the Valtorran Empire—Varkun Ragnor."

Upon hearing the name, the surrounding faculty nodded in understanding. His incredible achievements made perfect sense now, despite his youth and lower cultivation rank.

"If he is Emperor Orthan Ragnor’s son, then his talent is unquestionable," a dwarf professor chimed in, confident in his analysis. "Within the Titan race, the Ragnor tribe is universally recognized as the most gifted. There is a reason they rule the entire Titan domain. At this rate, he might very well claim the top rank."

The other professors mumbled in agreement, but the elegant, sweet voice of Clara suddenly echoed through the tense room.

"I wouldn’t be so sure. Look at the live scoreboard. Aeon Astaraeas is currently dominating the top spot with 11,050 points," Clara stated. Her vivid green eyes remained locked on the terminal showing the recording of Aeon effortlessly taking down the Dread Tiger.

Following her gaze, the other faculty members pulled up the global ranking interface on their respective holograms. Sure enough, Aeon’s name sat comfortably at the very peak.

They were momentarily paralyzed with shock, struggling to comprehend how a single examinee could accumulate over ten thousand points in a mere two hours. Before they could even voice their disbelief, Clara’s voice rang out again.

"Furthermore... look closely at how he evaded the Dread Tiger. His movement technique has already reached the Extreme Micro Level."

Clara herself was visibly shaken. Though she is a mage, she was fully aware of the sheer prestige and weight that Extreme Micro Level Movement held among warriors.

In fact, among the elite professors she worked alongside and the powerful warriors she had encountered throughout her life, many had never even brushed against that boundary. It was the absolute dream of every martial artist to master Extreme Micro Level Movement within their lifetime.

Hearing Clara’s staggering words, several professors completely lost their composure, surging out of their chairs as a collective cry rang out.

"What?! That is completely impossible!"

It defied all logic that a fifteen-year old teenager could master The Extreme Micro Level Movement that took most martial artists centuries to grasp—with many still failing to achieve it before old age.

Amidst the chaos, a professor named Tharos began to tremble violently in his seat. He suddenly burst into a wild, echoing laugh. His lips stretched wide into a devilish, ecstatic grin.

"Hahahahaha! Extreme Micro Level Movement?! Aeon Astaraeas, was it? This is getting interesting... VERY INTERESTING! HAHAHAHA!"

Hearing his unhinged outburst, the surrounding professors cast looks of absolute annoyance and disgust his way, openly cursing him under their breaths.

"Crazy bastard. Can’t he control himself for even a single second?"

"Fucking masochistic battle-maniac..."

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While the professors changed words back at the command center, a completely different scene unfolded deep within the island’s untamed wilderness.

A breathtakingly beautiful girl with long, half-golden and half-black hair sat perched casually atop the carcass of a five-meter tall mutated bear. Behind her back, two pairs of striking golden-and-black wings swayed gently in the breeze.

She was Seraphina Veylith-a Regressor.

At that moment, she was pulling up the ranking system on her Astral rune. The exact second her eyes landed on Aeon’s name occupying the number one spot, her cheeks flushed a deep, vibrant crimson. A wild, fiercely adoring smile spread across her face.

"Soon, my hubby... we will meet very soon. I cannot wait to see you in this timeline! Kyaaaah!" Seraphina squealed happily, giddily bouncing her dangling legs against the flank of the dead bear in pure, unadulterated excitement.

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