BXBX NOVEL Chapter 364: 5th Stage
Cedric stood in the middle of a raging battlefield of lights and explosions. His clothes were fluttered by the harsh winds, and his hair wildly danced with it.
A veil of golden light could be seen on his body; it clung to his skin, preventing the harmful substances of his surroundings from making direct contact with his skin.
Meanwhile, colorful streaks of light orbited around him like stars. They sometimes shot out to intercept something before obediently returning to him. He's also holding a long sword wreathed in golden flames.
His barefoot walked on the cracked and charred battlefield. He looked as if he's taking a leisurely stroll while the world around him screamed and howled in pain and suffering. His appearance was a stark difference from his environment.
Sometimes, the sword in his hand will turn into a blur. It's as if there's an illusion that it moved, but not really. This was because it happened too fast, causing anybody's senses to be fooled. Moreover, his execution was so utterly graceful and perfect that it caused a natural phenomenon.
The world itself was forcibly sychronizing with his movement, forced to acknowledge the work of art that is Cedric's swordsmanship. Its opinions don't matter in the face of this man's sheer mastery over the art.
One has to know that this world does not welcome him at all. To this realm, Cedric was an enemy that needed to die. It's not a matter of importance why more than it is a requirement.
This isn't like the small planet that Cedric previously encountered. This one was much larger and way stronger than that one. He knows this because this world has killed him hundreds of times by now.
Moreover, this world might only be just as big as a medium-sized star, but in terms of quality, it surpasses several solar systems. Even a single creature this world created could turn into a nightmare if placed on low-tiered worlds.
If you ask him, Cedric wouldn't even come anywhere near this world at all. Not only was it hostile to him, it is also completely inhabitable for a creature like him. If it weren't for this being part of the trials, you wouldn't see him here at all.
That said, it's quite fortunate that after this day, he wouldn't see this place again.
Cedric has grown too powerful for this place to deal with him. He could just stand still in place and let the world throw everything it could at him and it wouldn't have mattered. By the end of the day, Cedric will certainly outlast this world just through sheer physical durability alone.
Just by standing still, he could force this world to blow itself up. There's really no need for him to do anything at all.
The only reason he's actively competing with it was because of revenge. This world did kill him several hundred times in a row. This might've desensitized Cedric, but it didn't curb his desire to at least return the suffering he experienced from it.
"It's time to finish this," Cedric muttered under his breath.
He held his sword with both hands and mobilized his energy. The fluctuations of his power quite literally caused time and space to stagnate. The world itself seemed to be watching with bated breath as he performed his next move.
Cedric's aura flared so high that he seemingly turned into a sun. Above him, a sea of golden flames gushed out and formed the shape of a gigantic sword. It looked as if it was made from molten gold and adorned with precious gems like a ceremonial sword.
With a grunt, Cedric stabbed his sword on the ground. And at the same time, the gigantic sword above him plunged into the ground, piercing the world all the way to the other size, shattering its core along the way.
Cedric could vaguely hear a pitiful wail around him, but he closed his heart to it. He ignored its suffering and channeled his strength to completely set the world ablaze, making sure that not even a speck of it would remain.
Total Planetary Anihilation. This was his task. He couldn't let this world have any kind of remains, not even a speck of cosmic dust.
The world-ending sword not only pierced the world, it also set it on fire. The burning heat contained the aspect of anihilation. It's destructive capabilities burned everything away to nihility.
At some point, the sea of golden flames died out. Cedric found himself standing in the void, still in the previous position he was in.
He scanned his surroundings carefully, making sure that he didn't miss anything. When he determined that he truly couldn't sense any remains of the world, he just purged, released a breath, and stood up straight.
Cedric looked up and made a decision.
That's when everything around him began changing. He saw square tiles flipping around, revealing an unblemished white paint. Not long after this, he found himself standing in an endless sea of white space, the very same space that he always sees whenever he enters the trials.
Then he heard a chirpy mechanical voice in his head, saying:
[Congratulations, Dawnbringer! You've passed the 5th Stage of the Spirit Trials with flying colors!]
[Please return to the lobby for the settlement of your achievements.]
A relieved sigh escaped from his lips as he heard this declaration. Wasting no time, Cedric willed his consciousness to return to the lobby.
In a blink of an eye, he found himself extracted from the trial space and standing in front of the doors leading to the trials. He heard a few chimes in his ears, and a bunch of system messages appeared that swarmed his vision.
Cedric read each one and took note of it. He dismissed most of the messages save the profile page, which reads:
** Enjoy more content from m-v l'e|-NovelBin.net
[Challenger Profile:]
Name: Dawnbringer
Age: 40
Race: Human
LE: 3-star Grand Solar Warrior
Potential: SSS
Achievements: Trial of Mind (5th Stage) - Cleared; Trial of Body (5th Stage) - Cleared; Trial of Spirit (5th Stage) - Cleared
Points: 1,819,215
**
"Nice," Cedric muttered softly as he gently massaged his sore shoulders.
Right, he's currently at the Tower of Prodigies and just finished clearing the 5th stage of the trials. With things back home being stable and the space pirates behaving rather well, he had time to go here. This time, he stayed until he reached the 5th stage of the trials.
The one he finished just now was the Trial of Spirit.
The contents of the trial were divided into two stages; first, he had to raise a small dimension and turn it into a holy land. He was given a few tools to start with, but the rest was up to him. And the second part was to personally destroy that same realm he himself raised, making sure that not even a speck of cosmic dust will remain of it.
By now, anybody with a few brain cells could tell just how demanding this trial was. It tested not only his power and capabilities but also his morals.
It seems cruel, and that's because it is. Fortunately, everything was only a simulation, or else this would have a heavier psychological burden on him.
But, as difficult as this trial was, it's also the most rewarding. Just now, he received a total of one million trial points from it. In comparison, the 5th stage of the body trial and the mind trial only netted around 800,000 points combined. But that might also be because the other trials weren't as challenging as this one.
Pausing for a bit, Cedric decided if he should stay in the tower for a few more days or leave right away because he missed his home a little too much.
Counting the time, Cedric stayed here for more than a thousand years. It's the longest seclusion he has ever done. He endured everything for the sake of rushing through the trials and obtaining more rewards.
But even after so long, he only reached the 3-star Grand Solar Life Evolution stage. A mere increase of two small realms in a span of a thousand years sounds unacceptable for others, but Cedric didn't dare to complain because he did it without excessive consumption of resources. He reached this realm through sheer effort and willpower.
Sure, he had some supplements here and there, but that was nothing compared to the consumption of other geniuses like him.
Instead of spending points to buy more resources he could use to increase or boost the speed of his cultivation, he used his points to buy things that could aid his home instead.
He didn't mind the slow cultivation speed because, all things considered, it's still actually really fast. Besides, he values building a solid foundation more than recklessly charging ahead.
[Notice!]
[Challenger, it is determined that you have reached a turning point in your trials.]
[We sincerely suggest that you return home and spend time with your loved ones. Or at the very least, ground yourself by returning to your reality.]
[This is because moving forward, you will be arriving in the tower with your physical body.]
[This means that the next time you return here to take the 6th Stage of your trials, you'd be present in body, mind, and spirit.]
[Of course, you also have the option to withdraw, and we won't hold it against you. Everything depends on your decision in the end.]
[We are just reminding you that in case you want to continue, you're bound to face more risk to your safety. That's all.]
[Please enjoy your time back home. We will wait for you until you reach 500 years old physically. If you failed to show up before then, we will take it as a sign of your withdrawal.]
Cedric raised his brow after reading all this and said,
"Well, that sounds ominous."