Novel Full Chapter 163: The Divine Academy’s Examination Event [4]
Chapter 163: Chapter 163: The Divine Academy’s Examination Event [4]
Ding!
[You are currently in first place with 2,029 Points.]
Leon glanced at the ranking window floating in front of him and smiled slightly.
His score had crossed the two-thousand mark after the massive battle they had just fought.
Celeste wasn’t far behind either.
She was now sitting in second place with 1,547 points.
For comparison, the player in third place only had 1,045 points.
The gap between them was enormous.
At this stage of the event, catching up to Leon or Celeste would be almost impossible.
Even if someone managed to kill several players quickly, the difference in points was simply too large.
Leon closed the ranking window.
“Let’s keep going,” he said with a grin. “At this point we could probably sit around and do nothing and still win… but let’s not risk it.”
Celeste nodded without hesitation. She clearly didn’t mind continuing the hunt.
The thrill of battle still lingered in her eyes after the fight they had just finished.
Without wasting any time, the two of them began moving again, searching for any remaining players nearby.
A few minutes later—
Ding!
[Only 5,000 Players remain.]
Leon whistled softly.
“Damn.”
The event had entered its final stage.
However, things would slow down from this point onward.
Earlier, players had constantly run into each other because there were so many participants.
Now that the number had dropped so much, finding enemies would become harder.
Many players would also start hiding to survive longer.
Leon looked ahead and then pointed forward.
“Go,” he ordered calmly, the twenty-five skeletons he had summoned immediately reacted, “Kill anyone you find.”
The skeletons spread out across the area like a small hunting squad.
Leon smiled slightly while watching them leave.
Having twenty-five summons was almost like commanding a small army.
Even if some of them were destroyed, it didn’t really matter. They could simply respawn after one minute.
Meanwhile, Celeste had her own way of searching for enemies.
She turned toward the small phoenix resting on her shoulder.
“Pyra,” she said calmly. “Use [Flame Sense].”
The small phoenix chirped in response.
A moment later, its body burst into brighter flames.
Fwoosh!
Pyra shot into the air like a streak of fire.
Leon raised an eyebrow. Celeste noticed his interest and explained.
“[Flame Sense] allows Pyra to detect people by sensing the heat coming from their bodies,” she said. “It means no one can really hide from us.”
Leon blinked in surprise, “Damn.”
That ability was extremely useful.
Even players hiding underground or behind obstacles could still be detected if their body heat gave them away.
Leon quickly thought about how to use that advantage. Then he smiled.
“Let’s head back to the [Canyon of Death],” he said. “Anyone who survived this long by hiding is probably there.”
He paused for a moment before adding,
“And after that… we’ll go to the [Citadel of Dusk].”
Celeste nodded. The two of them began running toward the canyon.
Along the way, they encountered two unlucky players who were attempting to travel quietly through the plains.
Neither of them survived more than a few seconds.
Eventually, after several minutes of running, Leon and Celeste arrived at the edge of the canyon once again.
The massive cliffs stretched downward into darkness.
Celeste looked toward Pyra, “Try again.”
The phoenix hovered in the air and activated [Flame Sense] once more.
A few seconds passed. Then Celeste grinned.
“Found some.” She looked toward Leon, “Do you want to…?”
Leon shook his head slightly, “You can go,” he said.
“My position is basically guaranteed now,” he explained. “Right now the goal is making sure you keep second place.”
Celeste smiled, “Alright.”
Leon still ordered several skeletons to accompany her.
Even if she was strong, having extra help never hurt.
Without another word, Celeste jumped down into the canyon.
The skeletons followed her immediately. They disappeared into the darkness below.
Leon stayed above the canyon, watching the surroundings carefully.
If anyone tried escaping from below, he would intercept them.
He also occasionally glanced at the notifications connected to his summons.
If one of the skeletons died, he would know instantly.
Luckily, nothing unusual happened.
Around fifteen minutes later, Celeste jumped back onto the edge of the canyon.
She looked extremely satisfied.
“I killed thirty of them,” she said while laughing slightly. “They were all hiding like rats.”
Leon raised his eyebrows, “…Damn.”
It wasn’t exactly Leon’s style to hunt people who were hiding and avoiding combat.
But the event forced everyone into this situation.
Survival meant eliminating others. So he simply accepted it.
Time continued to pass.
The hours slowly slipped by as Leon and Celeste continued hunting.
The number of remaining players kept dropping.
Ding!
[Only 3,000 Players remain.]
Later—
Ding!
[Only 1,500 Players remain.]
And eventually—
Ding!
[Only 500 Players remain.]
At this point, the event had slowed down dramatically. A kill only happened every minute or so.
The remaining players had adapted their strategies.
Some players formed massive alliances of nearly one hundred people.
Their goal was simple: overwhelm anyone they encountered with numbers.
Others chose the opposite approach.
They fought alone or in very small teams because they trusted their own strength.
Leon and Celeste belonged to the second group.
Slash!
Leon cut through the chest of a player who had attempted to ambush him.
At the same moment, Celeste stabbed another player who had been fighting alongside him.
Both enemies disappeared instantly.
Leon glanced toward the participant counter.
Beep!
[Players left: 487.]
He sighed, “It’s going to take forever at this point, I wish we could just eliminate everyone else instantly.”
Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.
The remaining players were either hiding extremely well or traveling in large groups.
All Leon and Celeste could do was continue hunting while waiting for the number to decrease.
At least one thing was certain: their positions in the ranking were now completely secure.
The third player, [DemonBeast], and the fourth player, [MightyElf], were far behind them.
Even if those players somehow eliminated dozens of enemies, they still wouldn’t reach Leon or Celeste.
That meant the best rewards for the event were already within reach.
As long as Leon and Celeste didn’t get eliminated themselves.
“Alright,” Leon said.
Fwoosh!
He and Celeste dashed forward again.
This time they were heading back toward the [Citadel of Dusk].
If any players were still hiding, that fortress would be the perfect place.
On the way there, they encountered several more players.
Each of them was quickly eliminated.
Ding!
[You have entered the “Citadel of Dusk”]
The dark fortress stood before them once again.
By now, roughly eleven hours had passed since the event began.
It was very likely that many players had chosen this location as their final hiding place.
“Use your [Flame Sense] again,” Leon asked, “But watch out, in this place, they can both hide and ambush.”
At the same time, Leon activated one of his own abilities.
Vision Enhancement!
His eyes glowed faintly.
The skill allowed him to see more clearly in the deep darkness surrounding the fortress.
Ding!
[Players Left: 407.]
’Only a few more…’
The two of them stepped into the citadel. Dark corridors stretched in every direction.
Broken walls and ruined towers created endless hiding spots.
But Pyra’s ability made searching much easier.
Whenever the phoenix detected body heat nearby, Leon and Celeste would move toward the location.
One by one, hidden players were discovered.
Some tried to fight. Others tried to run. None of them succeeded.
Nearly an hour passed as they explored the citadel.
Eventually Celeste stretched her arms slightly.
“So… do we keep looking?” she asked with a grin.
Then she added, “We’ve been fighting for almost twelve hours now.”
Even Celeste, who loved combat, was starting to feel tired.
Pyra also looked exhausted.
The small phoenix chirped weakly before returning to rest inside Celeste’s chest.
Her body disappeared into the glowing [Pet Space].
Leon nodded, “Yeah, alright.”
He looked around the dark fortress one last time.
“We already did what we wanted anyway.”
Then he added,
“Let’s go somewhere that isn’t this depressing.”
Celeste laughed softly.
The two of them exited the citadel and returned to the nearby forest.
They walked through the dense trees of the [Divine Jungle].
For a few minutes, everything seemed quiet.
Then suddenly—
The forest opened up. They stepped into a clearing neither of them had seen before.
The moment Leon saw what stood there… He stopped walking.
At the center of the clearing stood a massive demonic beast.
Its enormous body towered above the trees. Dark energy pulsed around its skin.
Its glowing eyes slowly turned toward them. Celeste felt a cold chill run down her spine.
The creature’s presence alone was terrifying.
Leon, however, simply raised his sword calmly. A faint smile appeared on his face.
’Oh well.’