Archean Eon Art
chapter-87

Chapter 87: Ninth from the Bottom

Translator: CKtalon Editor: CKtalon

The sloppy man smiled and said, “Senior Sister Qingyu, don’t ask too much of them. These geniuses haven’t served in the military. They will perform much better after five years on the battlefield.”

“What we need are geniuses. Cultivation time for geniuses is very precious. How can we let them slowly hone themselves on the battlefield?” said the cyan-clothed woman.

“We can discuss and determine the ranking after the second trial is over,” said King East River. “Let’s begin the second trial. This is the most important test.”

“Yes.” The cyan-robed woman and the sloppy-looking man nodded.

There was only one final test left.

If the demon-slaying was to determine geniuses’ true combat strength and combat talent, the second trial was to determine a genius’s potential.

…

The geniuses were floating again. They flew with the Godfiends and finally landed on a vast mountain.

“I’ll give you an hour to rest.” King East River looked at the exhausted geniuses. Many geniuses had bandaged their bloody wounds. “In an hour, we’ll carry out the second trial! This is Archean Mountain’s final assessment. Once it’s over, we’ll decide the twenty who will be admitted to Archean Mountain.”

Meng Chuan and company sat down in lotus positions immediately. Quintessential Essence circulated through their bodies as they recovered their energy.

“It’s the final assessment.”

“Archean Mountain Godfiends must reach the Great Solar realm at the very least. If one doesn’t have the potential to become a Great Solar Godfiend, there’s no need to nurture them.” Marquis Southcloud and the other Godfiends chatted by the side. Although there were many Godfiends in the Great Zhou Dynasty, most of them weren’t Great Solar Godfiends.

The Great Solar realm was the Body Tempering Godfiend lineage’s theoretical limit.

For instance, Fairy Meng, Yun Wanhai, and others were only outer sect disciples of Archean Mountain. They were lucky enough to become Godfiends. Most of them were Indestructible Godfiends. Even Jadesun Palace Lord was only at the second Firmament—the Indestructible realm. Jadesun Palace Lord came from Archean Mountain. He cultivated a powerful Godfiend body and had a robust foundation. This allowed him to withstand simultaneous attacks from a third Firmament demon monarch and multiple second Firmament demon monarchs.

This was the standard of Archean Mountain disciples. With a strong foundation and strength, one could typically stay alive even if they were fighting someone one realm higher! Furthermore, reaching the Great Solar realm was just the first goal.

Jadesun Palace Lord was very young. Ultimately, he was far from reaching his limits. He was temporarily in charge of defending an ordinary city.

…

Meng Chuan recovered as he restored his Quintessential Essence fully.

“An hour has passed.” King East River’s voice rang out.

The geniuses sitting cross-legged opened their eyes. They immediately stood up and looked at King East River. Their families and friends, as well as the many Godfiends, were filled with anticipation.

“The final trial is to test your heart.” King East River pointed at a huge altar in the distance. The altar was a four-cornered pyramid. Each side was lined with over a hundred steps, and they continued to the top. The altar was made of limestone, and there were mottled marks on them. Clearly, it had a long history.

“This is the Darkness Altar. Once you step onto the altar, you’ll find yourself trapped in darkness. You need to maintain your lucidity in the darkness. The higher you go, the more outstanding you will be. If you sink into the darkness, you will fail.”

“Alright, let’s begin,” said King East River.

Meng Chuan and the others hesitated for a moment before they split up and walked up to the Darkness Altar. There were twenty people on each side. Soon, someone took the first step up. A faint black fog immediately rose up from the limestone steps and seeped into the person’s body. The person trembled, and he hesitated for a moment before continuing to advance. The others also climbed the altar step by step. Black fog rising from beneath their feet seeped into their bodies.

Boom!

Meng Chuan took a step forward. A faint black fog rose from the limestone steps and seeped into his body, quickly spreading towards his head.

Meng Chuan felt his head spin. He felt like he was in a nightmare. Many demon monarchs and bloodthirsty Skydemons charged over. The demon monarchs and Skydemons had terrifying auras that far exceeded Demon Monarch Poison Pool’s. Meng Chuan felt his body stiffen as though it was very difficult for him to move.

Walk. Continue walking. It’s all an illusion. An illusion. Meng Chuan persuaded himself constantly. He forced his body to move, but his body was stiffer than an 80-year-old man. He struggled to advance.

As he took a step forward, the black fog—that seeped out from the limestone steps—increased. It constantly entered his body, affecting his body, soul—everything.

The illusions also grew stronger. The impact on his body was even stronger. Meng Chuan tried his best to control his body and advance.

…

Every genius walked very slowly. The higher they went, the slower they became.

On the eighth step, one genius stopped moving. He was motionless for fifteen seconds before the black fog completely engulfed his head. His eyes turned pitch-black, and the whites in his eyes were gone.

The cyan-clothed woman frowned when she saw this. “His willpower is too weak. How can someone with such willpower reach the Realm of Soul? How can he become a Great Solar Godfiend?”

In all kinds of skills such as saber arts and sword techniques, there was the Unity realm, the Realm of Force, and the Realm of Intent. Meng Chuan was presently pursuing Saber Intent. The fourth realm was the Realm of Soul.

Whoosh. King East River waved his hand, and an invisible force enveloped the genius, removing him from the altar.

The genius left the Darkness Altar, and the black fog quickly receded into the altar.

Without the black fog affecting him, the genius regained his consciousness. Only then did he realize that he was the only one not on the altar. Dazedly, he stood still. I’m the worst in the final trial?

Soon, there were two youths that stopped at the tenth step. The black fog enveloped their heads, and their eyes turned black without any white visible. They were moved away from the altar.

“All Archean Mountain Godfiends become Great Solar Godfiends unless we die in battle,” said Marquis West Sea as he watched. “When they participate in the assessment, they are almost twenty years of age. They should have at least 30% of the willpower needed to reach the Great Solar realm, right? To not have 30% of the required willpower means their chances of becoming a Great Solar Godfiend are slim.”

“Their potential is too low,” the other Godfiends agreed.

Regardless of how strong a Godfiend’s foundation was or how talented they were in combat, they would usually be eliminated if their results in the final trial were terrible.

Willpower was very special. Sometimes, a mortal could have strong willpower. Sometimes, even a Godfiend wouldn’t have shocking willpower.

One genius after another stopped in their tracks.

“They need to reach the 30th step at the very least. If they can’t reach it, their willpower would be too weak.” The Godfiends watched.

“Huh?”

All the Godfiends’ expressions changed. The spectating families and friends also revealed looks of astonishment.

The thin Ji Yuantong—with a pair of huge hammers on his back—stopped on the 17th step. He stood still as the black fog gradually gathered around his head.

“No way!?”

“Ji Yuantong, he, he can’t be…”

The Godfiends were astonished.

He was one of the two most dazzling geniuses in this year’s entrance examination. His physical talent was definitely the best. His spiritual perception talent was also rather good, second only to Meng Chuan! He was one of the rare geniuses that would only appear once every ten years in Archean Mountain.

But he had actually stopped at the 17th step?

“Go on up.” The sloppy man frowned, his eyes filled with anxiety.

Ji Yuantong trembled slightly as if he was struggling. However, the black fog gradually gathered around his head, and his eyes gradually turned black. In the end, there was not a single hint of white…

He was like a statue—motionless.

“Ji Yuantong stopped at the 17th step?” The Godfiends were heartbroken. They were overjoyed every time they saw a peerless genius. It meant that they might have a powerful companion in the future. Ji Yuantong had only reached the 17th step in the final trial, and it truly disappointed them. They were left anxious.

“Sigh.” King East River shook his head gently. With a thought, Ji Yuantong flew off the altar and was brought to the ground. Ji Yuantong came in ninth from the bottom in this trial.