"The Primordial Undying Tree is gazing at those who entered its realm.]
A wave of shivers rushed through the group of geniuses when they received the prompt. A good portion of them even took the time to warily glance around, trying to spot the tree that was apparently watching them.
But it was a futile effort. Damien knew this well. If the tree was anywhere in the general vicinity, there was no reason for the message to pop up in a system window. And if the tree didn't want to make its gaze known, there was no way they'd ever know they were being watched.
"How insanely powerful…" a soft mutter left his lips.
Even Feng Qing'er subconsciously nodded at his words. This kind of power wasn't something they could imagine. They doubted even the Beast Kings had the ability to send messages through the system.
[The Primordial Undying Tree watches the outsiders.]
[The Primordial Undying Tree shakes its branches]
[The Primordial Undying Tree decides to speak.]
Damien's eyes sharpened.
[The Primordial Undying Tree administers a trial.]
A new form of text appeared in the eyes of the geniuses.
[Trial of Stars]
[Although there are a myriad of ways for the Primordial Undying Tree to test those who enter its realm, and a myriad of ways for their worthiness to be proven, there is one thing that trumps all else.
Strength.
In this world, there is nothing more important than strength, and for the first elimination round, the Primordial Undying Tree will be testing just that.]
Suddenly, 100 bright flashes of light appeared in the sky like stars. After showing their splendor for a second, they began to fall.
"What?!"
"They're aiming for us!"
While some of the geniuses panicked at the rapidly approaching stars, Damien and Feng Qing'er simply stood and watched them descend.
When those 100 stars reached a point near the geniuses, they split into formation and shot into the foreheads of all those present.
100 stars. 100 geniuses. It was obviously preordained.
The foreheads of those geniuses shone with starlight before the scene settled down. Now, there were dull silver star tattoos on each of their foreheads.
[100 stars representing 100 contestants. Within the lands of the small realm, there are a plethora of different beasts and species. Every time one kills another within the realm, their star will grow. The rate of growth depends on the strength of the opponent.
If a contestant kills another contestant, they will be able to absorb half of the light of the latter contestant's star. The star colors are ranked as follows: Silver, Gold, Purple, Black, White.
Only those with Black Stars by the end of the given time period will be able to move on to the next trial.
Trial Duration: 1 year.]
Damien's eyes narrowed. 'As expected, it's an elimination round.' When he looked at the geniuses around him, he noticed that each and every one of them was eyeing the others with concealed greed.
He shook his head. 'These idiots.'
Naturally, the fact that killing another genius would allow them to absorb half of their starlight was too enticing of an offer for them to refuse, but the fact that they were so obviously showcasing their greed over just this much was pathetic in his eyes.
They didn't even have starlight at the moment, so what was the point of all this tension they were creating? It was counterintuitive to the max.
But Damien wasn't of the mind to care about this. 'A year?! This trial alone will take a year?! Shit!'
He wanted to leave the forest in 7 months at the latest. No, he had to. The Empyrean Dragon Realm opening was at that time, and no matter what, he needed to show up there.
With all the benefits he was gaining from this trip to the 3000 Beast Mountain Range, he no longer cared much for the treasures of that realm, but that wasn't why it was important.
'Rose…'
She would be there. For the first time in a year, he would be able to see his beloved. He had no idea how long the Empyrean Dragon Realm would stay open and he also had no idea what would happen after it ended. Either way, there was no way in hell he was going to miss the opportunity to see the woman he had been missing with all his heart.
He gritted his teeth in frustration. 'What can I do?' This was a realm made by a tree that vastly outstripped him in power. From the start, it was made clear that the only way to leave this realm was when it closed or through death.
'Fuck!'
Damien lamented his fate. An entire year in this trial, and even more time in the rest of the trials. By the time he edited this realm, the outside world would've changed already.
The war on the horizon, the movements of the Nox, Devil worshippers, and Wicked Sects, they were all things that would become increasingly prevalent in the coming times.
Not to mention, if they didn't contact Tian Yang around the time they were supposed to exit the mountain range, he'd likely charge into the fray to save them. And if that happened, the outside world would lose a powerhouse because of them.
'I can't let that happen.'
Damien racked his brain for a solution. 'Right, that could work.' He turned his gaze to the other geniuses.
'If they die, if the number gets reduced to a point where the entire purpose of the trial becomes futile, perhaps it will allow us forward earlier.'
A dense bloodlust began to slowly radiate from his body. It was so palpable that the air around him seemed to become dyed red.
'Good. This plan will work. It has to work.'
Inky black dragon scales showed signs of protruding from his flesh. His eyes were almost engulfed in that blood-red color.
But at that moment, he sensed something else.
'Eh?'
It was weak and so ethereal that not a single other person was able to sense it, but he felt it clearly. It was so jarring to him that it snapped him out of his bloodlust.
The other weaker geniuses felt a cold sweat run down their backs. They didn't know where the feeling was coming from, but they felt for a second that they were being stared down by a horror-inducing beast. It was a visceral feeling that made them think death was on the horizon.
Many geniuses raised their guard when that feeling suddenly vanished. Evidently, this trial would be anything but simple. The beasts here must be incredibly powerful.
The crowd slowly dispersed from the area they were in. The trial had already started, after all. Every second from this point forth would count.
Feng Qing'er cast a strange look towards Damien before turning and departing as well. As expected, she had been aware of where the previous feeling originated from.
A hooded figure watched the commotion from the back of the crowd. Inconspicuously, a smile formed on their face. "Hehe, how interesting." Soon after, that figure disappeared as well.
A few moments later, only Damien was left in place, so deep in thought that he hadn't even realized that he was now alone.
