The Prime Shadow and Guildmaster stared at the formation projection, both silent for a while. The Guildmaster shook his head in disbelief and then picked up his cup of tea, sighing at what he saw.
"This boy is something else," the Guildmaster said. "To think he would approach the soul trial in such a…direct way. He's the complete opposite of what it means to be an assassin, and his ability to assess situations and find the optimal solution is quite lacking if I'm to be brutally honest."
"True," the Prime Shadow said, "a true assassin would avoid battle as much as possible, and quickly assess the situation. All those who passed the soul trial did so quite quickly, as its mostly a soul talent test. If you have the required soul talent, you can see through the illusions and find the exit. If you do not, you have no chance of finding it, and can only perish within, fighting against an enemy that you cannot see."
"His power is beyond impressive, but he's not an assassin," the Guildmaster said after sipping his tea. "Even if he passes the Heaven's Shadow trial successfully, I'm not sure he's a suitable candidate to be your successor.
The Prime Shadow smiled lightly upon hearing this.
"When you were in the soul trial, did you ever consider doing what he did?" the Prime Shadow asked.
"Doing what he did? You mean killing everyone on the battlefield while ignoring the hidden attacks?" the Guildmaster asked. The Prime Shadow nodded his head, his light smile still lingering on his face.
The Guildmaster thought for a moment, and then shook his head.
"No," the Guildmaster said firmly. "I assessed the situation, and saw through the illusion quite quickly. Much faster than this boy did at least."
"And why did you not consider the trial to be a battle trial? One that tested combat prowess instead?" the Prime Shadow asked.
"Because if that trial had truly been a battle trial, it would have been impossible to-" the Guildmaster stopped speaking, instantly catching onto what the Prime Shadow was hinting at.
"You think this boy is brutish and too straightforward to be an assassin, because to you, there was only one solution to this trial," the Prime Shadow said. "The thought of killing everyone on the battlefield didn't even cross your mind, or anyone else's for that matter, as it was completely insane to consider. While you would have been able to accomplish such a feat as well, although with much greater difficulty, you didn't even consider the possibility of it being a combat testing trial. However, for this boy, his combat prowess makes such a thing not only possible, but frighteningly easy. He sees the world from a completely different perspective than the rest of us, making impossible tasks look like normal ones to him."
The Prime Shadow took a sip of tea while closing his eyes, enjoying the tea fully.
"Just be glad this boy fell into our lap, and not the enemies," the Prime Shadow said. "Imagine if they had managed to obtain such a talented youth, and raised him to full power. That would have been quite troublesome indeed."
The Guildmaster shivered at the thought, then fell silent, realizing the Prime Shadow was completely right. John's straightforward methods were not because he could not think like an assassin, but was because none of the trials had been dangerous enough to make him tackle them with caution and care.
The Prime Shadow chuckled lightly as he watched John appear in the fourth trial area, about to start the next trial.
"I look forward to speaking to this boy afterwards, should he pass all the trials. I would much like to hear the story of this youth, to figure out how it's possible for someone to possess such an unbelievable level of talent," the Prime Shadow said.
"You think he'll just tell you all his secrets?" the Guildmaster asked skeptically.
"No," the Prime Shadow said, smiling softly. "But even then, talking to this youth should be quite interesting. Even if he does not reveal his secrets, what he is willing to reveal should be quite interesting to hear."
The Prime Shadow's gaze then narrowed slightly, watching John start the next trial.
"Now for the verbal trial," he said. One of the two trials the Prime Shadow considered it possible for John to fail.
…
John's vision went white for a moment, and then remained so as he found himself standing in a world of white. The void of white stretched outwards in all directions for infinity, with nothing else visible.
John frowned, wondering what sort of trial could possibly take place in such an empty realm.
Two chairs suddenly appeared before him, and one the farthest one sat a humanoid figure. It was carved from some sort of marble-like stone, and had no features at all, making it quite odd to look at.
"Sit," the figure said to John, gesturing to the other seat opposite it.
John frowned and inspected the area, sending his divine sense in all directions. He woudlnt be so careless in the trials again. His divine sense detected nothing suspicious.
"There are no tricks to this trial," the figure said, voice monotonous. "This trial is a verbal trial."
"A verbal trial?" John asked. It was the first time he had heard of a verbal trial, whatever that was.
"Yes," the figure said. "A verbal trial. I will ask you several questions, and you will give me an answer. State the correct answers, and you will pass. State the wrong answers, and you will fail, and be destroyed."
"What kind of bullshit is that?" John grumbled. "I can die just because I say the wrong thing? Fuck that."
"If you refuse to comply, you will be destroyed immediately," the figure said, its monotonous tone in conflict with the severity of its words.
An angry scowl appeared on John's face, as this trial completely ignored his strong points. However, it appeared as if he had no choice, and so he sat on the chair a moment later. As he did so, he felt the chair ignite with Qi, surging into his body.
"There is a formation in this chair," the figure said before John took action, "that will determine the truth of your words. Lying is impossible."
"Is that so," John grumbled, settling back down, still scowling with anger. "Well, get on with this stupid trial then. Ask your questions."
'Verbal trial? What a joke,' John thought to himself while he waited for the first question. 'If they think I'll accept death for failing such a trial, they're fucking mistaken. That mysterious man will have to come here himself to finish the job if they think I'm going to accept death so easily.'
"First question," the marble figure said, "what is the most important thing to you?"
