Chapter 57: The Quest Rewards

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: The Quest Rewards

Twenty minutes after the professors broke through the external barrier, the remaining examinees successfully made their retreat from the island.

Back at the academy’s central plaza, the students materialized one after another. A specialized medical team immediately scrambled to tend to their wounds and check their vitals, ensuring they were stable both physically and mentally.

To the staff’s utter astonishment, however, not a single examinee suffered from physical trauma or psychological shock. The hostile infiltrators had been systematically slaughtered before they could inflict any real harm.

Aeon was sitting casually on a wood bench when he spotted Sophia and the others walking together. Waving his left hand, he called out to get their attention.

"Sophia, Alex! Over here."

Hearing his voice, the group turned toward the sound and spotted Aeon sitting on the exact same bench they had occupied before the exam commenced.

Even though night had fallen, vibrant neon lights flooded the plaza, illuminating the area. Furthermore, their cultivation bases were advanced enough that a low level of darkness did nothing to hinder their vision.

The group rushed over to Aeon’s bench and sat down. Sophia immediately broke out into a barrage of heartfelt questions. "Aeon, are you okay? Are you injured anywhere?"

Aeon smiled warmly, reaching out to gently pat her head. "I’m fine. Nothing happened to me at all. Those dark, blurry figures stepped in and saved me. What about you guys? I’m guessing the exact same thing happened to you as well."

Anastasia and Alex nodded in confirmation, while Elysaria spoke up. "Yes, we were saved by those blurry figures too. From what I can gather, it seems to be the exact same story for every other examinee." She glanced around the plaza, gesturing toward the various groups of students discussing their narrow escapes.

"I was saved too! The psycho who ambushed me was literally cut in half," one nearby examinee recounted to a crowd of listeners. "I thought I was a goner when his pressure paralyzed me. I couldn’t even breathe. Luckily, a blurry figure intervened, and in the next second, the attacker was cleanly bisected."

"Same here," an orc added, sharing his own experience. "I was just tracking down an Eldritch or another student to fight when I heard a strange noise behind me. By the time I turned around, a corpse was already hitting the dirt."

Similar conversations echoed throughout every corner of the plaza as the examinees eagerly debated the identity of their mysterious protectors.

Suddenly, Tharos materialized high in the air. His deep, resonant voice thundered across the plaza, instantly commanding the attention of everyone below.

"Silence."

The ambient chatter of the examinees and medical staff vanished instantly. Every eye locked onto Tharos as he slowly descended, hovering at a lower altitude so the crowd wouldn’t have to crane their necks to look at him.

"You have all endured a tumultuous ordeal tonight," Tharos began, his tone carrying a touch of dry sarcasm as he noted their pristine condition. "Not that it was actually that grueling for you, considering none of you sustained a single scratch. Still, it was undeniably a close call."

His expression shifted, turning solemn. "However, due to our internal oversight, you were exposed to grave peril that could have claimed your lives. For that gross negligence, the academy offers its deepest apologies to you and your respective families. We will not rest until we have thoroughly wiped clean this humiliation."

He paused for a long moment, letting the weight of his words settle over the quiet crowd.

"Now then, let us officially conclude this entrance exam. We will project the final standings immediately. As a reminder, we only accept the top 500 applicants. Anyone ranking below that mark will have to try again next year. Furthermore, since the exam was forced to conclude ahead of schedule, the academy will compensate each of you handsomely for the disruption."

With a sweep of his hand, an enormous holographic leaderboard flickered to life above the plaza, displaying the combined scores of both the written and combat portions.

[New Student Examination Rankings]

1. Aeon Astaraeas: [Combat: 38,800 points] [written: 100]

2. Seraphina Veylith: [Combat: 31,050 points] [written: 100]

3. Leonhardt Arclight: [Combat: 30,050] [Written: 60]

4. Evelyn Bloodborn: [Combat: 28,500 points] [Written: 88]

5. Varkun Ragnor: [Combat: 28,450 points] [written: 76]

6. Sophia Solaris: [Combat: 28,450 points [written: 77]

7. Elysaria Drakonius: [Combat: 27,850] [Written: 89]

8. Lunaria Auralith: [Combat: 26,550] [Written: 90]

9. Velzaria Morningstar: [Combat: 26,050] [written: 83]

10. Alex Storm: [Combat: 25,900] [written: 84]

11. Azreal Solcrest: [Combat: 25,000] [Written: 75]

12. Lyra Fenrir: [Combat: 25,000] [Written: 67]

13. Victoria Everhart: [Combat: 24,500] [Written: 72]

14. Garrik Ironforge: [Cimbat: 24,000] [Written: 70]

15. Jiang Han: [Combat: 23,800] [Written: 71]

16. Seo Yuna: [Combat: 23, 700] [Written: 70]

17. Dante Lockwood: [Combat: 23,500 [Written:69]

18. Aiko Amamiya: [Combat: 23,400] [Written: 68]

19. Adrian Ashford: [Combat: 23:100] [Written: 67]

20. Alistair Ashford: [Combat: 23:] [Written: 67]

-------

The examinees scanned the scrolling text frantically, hunting for their own names. Groups of the crowd erupted into cheers and ecstatic celebrations as they confirmed their placement, while those sitting from rank 501 onward slumped in crushing disappointment or broke down into tears.

Securing admission into Nexus Academy practically guaranteed a prosperous future. If two individuals with identical talent ranks were to clash, and one had attended Nexus Academy while the other had studied elsewhere, the Nexus student would win with overwhelming domination.

The institution’s curriculum was remarkably rigorous and heavily funded, systematically polishing every single facet of a cultivator’s growth—whether it was raw combat experience, theoretical knowledge, or tactical intelligence. It forged perfection, provided the student remained dedicated and trained relentlessly.

Back at the bench, Alex enthusiastically clapped Aeon on the shoulder, flashing a prominent thumbs-up. "Aeon, you are a monster! How did you even manage to pull that off? You took first place again!"

Alex’s eyes shone with pure astonishment. Sitting beside them, Elysaria looked at Aeon in an entirely new light, her gaze dancing between profound amazement and a hint of sudden shyness.

A subtle crimson flush crept up her cheeks as she voiced her curiosity. "Yeah, how did you do it? We possess the exact same talent rank, yet you managed to hoard over 38,000 points."

Aeon merely smiled, finally letting go of Sophia, who looked like she was about to swoon into a distant daydream. He answered their burning curiosity nonchalantly. "I’ve mastered my movement technique to the Extreme Micro Level. That’s really all there is to it."

"Whaaat?!"

The group gasped in unison, completely thunderstruck. Even Sophia’s eyes went wide, fracturing her joyful reverie.

Every cultivator present understood the immense weight of Extreme Micro Level Movement. For Aeon to scale that summit at the mere age of fifteen was a historical anomaly.

Throughout the entire 19,500-year history of Nexus Earth, the youngest person recorded to have unlocked that level of precision was a 35-year-old dark elf—and that monumental feat had occurred thousands of years ago.

Because a cultivator’s lifespan expanded as they climbed the ranks, even an ordinary F-rank cultivator across any standard path could easily enjoy an extra century of life.

Consequently, those blessed with high talent rarely stressed over the passage of time, focusing entirely on honing their skills at a measured pace.

[Cultivation Rank Lifespan are as follows across all three paths]

F-rank: 100 years

E-rank: 300 years

D-rank: 1,000 years

C-rank: 2,500 years

B-rank: 5,000 years

A-rank: 9,000 years

S-rank: 17,000 years

SS-rank: 29,000 years

SSS-rank: 45,000 years

Ex-rank: 67,000 years

Having access to such an extensive lifespan was effectively a form of functional immortality, giving rise to the popular world saying: ’If you can avoid a blade, you will live forever.’ Had the world been free of racial discrimination and cutthroat geopolitical conflict, every major empire would possess an eternal vanguard of ancient powerhouses guarding their borders for millennia.

Shifting his focus away from his companions, Aeon brought up his system interface, which hovered invisibly before his eyes.

[Chain Quest Completed Successfully.]

[Congratulations! You have received the following rewards:]

[3x Bond Slots]

[1x Random Box]

[1x Random SSS-rank Special Talent, Bloodline, or Physique]

[1x Random EX-rank Special Talent, Bloodline, or Physique]

[Would you like to claim your rewards now?]

Aeon had been anticipating this exact notification for a very long time. Without a single second of hesitation, he issued a direct mental confirmation.

’Yes.’

[Ding!]

[Retrieving rewards...]

[Would you like to to open all the random box rewards simultaneously?]

Aeon pondered the option briefly before replying, ’Yes, open them all.’

[Opening Random Boxes...]

[Ding!]

[You have successfully acquired:]

[Scarlet Bite Daggers] (Legendary Rank)

[Energy Recovery Pill] (Common Rank)

[Sin of Pride Devil Bloodline] (SSS-rank Bloodline)

[Dream Sovereign Soul Physique] (EX-rank Physique)

[Current Bonds: 4/7]

Aeon scanned the interface carefully, but the moment his eyes landed on the final two rewards, he could barely suppress a jolt of sheer excitement.

Maintaining his outer composure naturally, he kept a neutral expression and seamlessly blended back into the group’s conversation, though his mind remained entirely fixated on the system’s panel.

He was particularly intrigued by the concept of the devil bloodline and the newly acquired soul physique. Reclaiming a fraction of his focus, he queried the system mentally.

’System, what will happen to me if I integrate a devil bloodline?’

[Your baseline strength will increase tremendously, especially once your special talent, Infinite Evolution, eventually evolves it to the Infinite Rank. However, the most profound shift may not manifest in your physical strength, but rather within your personality.]

[Given that this is specifically the Bloodline of the Sin of Pride, you may naturally become noticeably more prideful than you are now. You will likely develop an instinctive, deep-seated aversion toward bowing, kneeling, or lowering yourself before anyone else.]

[However, do not be overly concerned, Master. Infinite Evolution will actively ensure that these behavioral shifts serve to benefit you rather than cause you detriment. Furthermore, you have me. I possess the capacity to completely filter out any adverse psychological corruptions while preserving the exact aspects that are structurally advantageous to your growth.]

Hearing the system’s reassuring assessment, Aeon felt a wave of relief wash over him. He recalled the extensive records concerning the devil race he had previously studied within both the Astaraeas family library and his private Archive.

To some factions across the cosmos, devils were universally condemned as evil; to others, they were viewed merely as an alternative power structure.

To Aeon, however, the most fitting description for them was simple: ’Crazy bastards.’

Technically speaking, they weren’t inherently malicious like the fanatic cultists of the universe, but their core biology made them far more volatile due to their instinctual natures.

The devil race stood as one of the apex forces commanding Nexus Earth and the wider known universe, operating as the undisputed rulers of the Abyssal Sovereign Empire.

The Abyssal Sovereign Empire was a monolithic domain where countless entities who cultivated Demonic Cosmic Energy chose to gather. While the devil race held the reins of governance, they were far from the empire’s sole occupants. Demons, dark elves, fallen angels, and any foreign practitioners who specialized in the demonic path populated their territories.

In the simplest terms, standard Cosmic Energy was the fundamental, neutral element permeating the universe—a clean template that could be cultivated unhindered by any living race.

Demonic Cosmic Energy, however, was fundamentally distinct. It represented ambient Cosmic Energy that had been thoroughly altered and compressed by the weight of Demonic Laws, imbuing it with a far more violent, unpredictable, and inherently destructive resonance.

Any being possessed of a compatible cultivation technique and a high enough talent rank could choose to cultivate it, regardless of whether they were human, demon, or dark elf.

The primary caveat was that Demonic Cosmic Energy acted as an emotional amplifier. If a practitioner already possessed a prideful streak, cultivating demonic energy would expand that arrogance tenfold. If they leaned toward lust, that urge would be dramatically heightened.

It was precisely this emotional exaggeration that led the rest of the universe to categorize them as unhinged. The energy didn’t necessarily drive its host insane.

It simply stripped away their inhibitions, ensuring their true colors were laid bare for the world to see.

-----

While Aeon remained deeply immersed in his thoughts, Tharos’s booming voice rang out across the plaza once more, pulling everyone’s attention back to him.

"Alright, then! Those of you who successfully passed the examination, proceed directly to the building on the left. An academy attendances will receive you there and escort you directly to your assigned living quarters. Be prepared to assemble tomorrow morning at exactly 7:00 AM for mandatory Student Orientation.

As for those of you who failed to pass, do not be disheartened. Your time will eventually come. Train harder and return to challenge the threshold next year. You lot are instructed to head to the building behind me, where you will receive a thoroughly satisfactory compensation for the disruptions encountered tonight."

With those final words, Tharos gestured toward the two distinct structures before vanishing from the sky in a swift blur.

Whoosh!

Aeon casually dismissed his system panels, firmly intending to find a private, isolated space before attempting to absorb the bloodline and the soul physique. He pushed himself off the wood bench, casting a calm gaze over toward Sophia and the rest of the group.

"Shall we head inside, then?"

With a collective nod, the group—alongside the remaining successful examinees turned toward the left building, ready to officially cross the threshold into the next Chapter of their academic lives.

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