The sudden sound caught the attention of Iris and the Grand Elder, who quickly looked back up at John with shocked expressions. However, both quickly breathed out a sigh of relief upon seeing John still standing on the fifteenth step. It was not that they didn't want him to succeed, but that they were becoming weary from being shocked over and over.
Clearly the banging sound was him standing up from his seat and putting it away. The pressure of each step was immense, and even the slightest of movements caused extreme force on the steps.
"I thought he had advanced when he made that sound, but it seems as though he was just standing up. Maybe the pressure and soulpain is becoming too much for him to lounge around like that, and now he's taking the fifteenth step seriousl-"
Bang!
John's foot pressed forward and slammed onto the sixteenth step, causing Iris to cut off her words before it was finished. Iris's expression turned from one of surprise to one of exasperation, as she once again sighed deeply.
"Watching John take this test might be more exhausting than actually taking it," Iris muttered softly as she sighed once more.
Meanwhile, the Grand Elder next to her remained absolutely silent as he watched John's each and every move. He was already on a step that was higher than any Heavenly Lightning Sect talent in history, and such a thing was beyond monumental.
The Grand Elder had never expected such a thing to occur today, but was slowly but surely putting the pieces together as to who John could be.
"The Asura of Annihilation," the Grand Elder sighed softly. "We cannot say yet if he truly is the Asura, but if he manages to reach the top ten list, then perhaps Sect Leader Thunderzen finally accomplished his goal."
On the steps, John had spent over an hour studying the pressure of the fifteenth step. Each second resulted in a soul pain being inflicted on him, but his incredibly durable soul was able to resist it.
'My soul may not be the strongest when it comes to attacks, but cultivating in front of the holy gate and sinister gate has raised its defense to an absurd level. It's the perfect thing needed for this trial, as I'm not trying to break through the comprehension stage with pure soul power, but instead resist the soul pain for long enough for my comprehensions to understand the pressure and move through it.'
After comprehending the fifteenth steps energy and pressure, it was as if a door had opened up for John to move forward. He immediately took the opportunity, and moved forward onto the sixteen step. The soul pressure instantly faded, relieving him of the constant headache he was experiencing, while an incredible pressure pressed down on his dantian once more.
A smile appeared on John's face as he breathed out a sigh of relief.
'Compared to the last step, this step truly is quite relaxing.'
The sixteenth step tested the dantian of the cultivator, and to withstand this pressure, one would need to have a twelve times compressed dantian. It was considered common knowledge in the Yuan Continent that ten dantian compressions was the natural limit of cultivators, a realm reserved only for the greatest of geniuses.
This knowledge was not incorrect, as the natural ability for any cultivator regardless of race was ten dantian compressions. However, things such as bloodline abilities or innate abilities were exceptions to this rule, which would allow cultivators to ascend beyond their natural limits.
Upon stepping on this step, John paused for a moment to feel its might as it crashed down on his dantian. While it was not constricting him at all, even he could start to feel the pressure building up.
'So, this is the step that mysterious Asuros achieved. This pressure is quite terrifying, and his dantian is most likely twelve times compressed dantian. He must be incredibly strong!'
John closed his eyes for a moment as he allowed his soul to recuperate.
'I'll rest here for a moment and allow my soul to recover. While the previous step didn't do much harm to it, I can tell that the eighteen step will be quite challenging to get through. Just how monstrous were the talents of the past to get to that step, especially the Jade Dragon-God Emperor. Not only did he get to the eighteen step, he also surmounted it and reached the nineteenth step. I wonder just how terrifying the last step is to stop even someone like him.'
John paused for a few minutes on the sixteenth step, while Iris and the Grand Elder watched in silence. They had learned by now to not make any assumptions, as John seemed to make them look foolish at the worst possible moments.
His pause on the sixteenth step lasted for quite a while, making both of them internally think that maybe he was starting to reach his limit.
Bang!
Bang!
However, as they both expected, once he started moving again, John blasted through the sixteenth and seventeenth step, and found himself on the eighteenth step. Once again he came to a pause, but instead sat down in a meditative position this time instead of lounging on a seat.
Despite remaining silent, Iris's face lit up once again with shock as well as exhaustion, as John easily slammed through steps that most could only dream of ascending to. Meanwhile, the Grand Elder stared intently at John for a moment before a deep sigh escaped his lips.
"Ahhh, it seems as though he truly may be the Asura of Annihilation. It appears as though the peaceful times afforded to this world are soon to be shattered. Sect Leader Thunderzen said our sect's future would become linked with the future of the Asura, and either rise to the peak of this world, or fade from existence for all time. I suppose the time to find out has finally come."
On the step, John assumed his meditative position, as it was the position that allowed him to best fall into a meditative trance. His soul linked with his dantian artifact, which allowed him to instantly fall into a pure meditative trance, which was something most cultivators only experienced a few times in their entire lives.
John felt his comprehension rate surge upon doing so, but the pressure of the step seemed to want to shatter that comprehension. The pressure and energy slammed against his soulspace, causing sharp and excruciating pains to assault his mind and soul.
John grit his teeth as he resisted the pain, and focused his all on comprehending the truth of the step.
The hours passed by as John sat there motionlessly, while Iris and the Grand Elder watched without moving an inch.
An hour. Two hours. Four hours. Eight hours. Half a day.
Twelve hours passed by, with John not moving a single muscle. To both him and the two watching him, it felt as if time had almost frozen. Doubt slowly started to creep into the minds of Iris and the Grand Elder, as John had not made any progress at all.
Neither knew the tribulations his soul was experiencing right now, but they could guess at how excruciating enduring twelve hours of incredible soul pain would be. However, they could see his face become more and more pale while his body started to shake slightly, indicating that he was beginning to reach the end of his endurance.
Iris clasped her hands in front of her chest as she watched on with anxiousness, as she was truly hoping for John to succeed. However, the fate of that success was now in question.
After eighteen hours, John's soul felt as if it was becoming numb, and was soon on the verge of shattering. Even with his incredible soul defenses, he was starting to reach his limit. His teeth chattered against each other as he struggled through the pain. It was like searing hot knives pressing into his brain and soul, nearly sending him over the edge.
'Just a bit more, I can almost understand this step!'
Flare!
John flared his soul power and divine sense to the absolute maximum as he made one final bid to press through this step. Even reaching this step was only accomplished by a handful of individuals through the entire history of the world, and John was beginning to understand why all but one failed.
Even with his incredible training aids given to him by his mysterious father, he was on the verge of failure.
'Just a bit more!'
John had comprehended almost all of the steps energy, but needed the last bit to break through. It was like the door to the next room was in front of him, but moved away from him at the last moment before he could open it.
The pain of the test continued to assault his mind, driving him closer and closer to the edge. A wave of fatigue and pain washed over John and his body swayed slightly as his mind reached its limits, while his eyes suddenly snapped open, and he suddenly stood up.
The pressure blocking his way seemed to part like an open door before him, and John wasted no time in pressing forward.
Bang!
His foot lifted up and slammed onto the next step, shaking the formation steps and surrounding land. Even the walls surrounding the area trembled from the might of the step.
John brought the rest of his body onto the step as he successfully made it to the nineteenth step at the very last moment. If he had taken just a few minutes longer to comprehend that step, he would have failed and have been knocked off the formation steps.
However, he had succeeded. For only the second time in the history of the Talent Testing Steps, the nineteenth step had been reached. However, his celebration lasted for only a singular moment as he felt an absolutely horrifying pressure approach him.
