Free Web NovelChapter 676: The First Victim Is Chosen
One minute passed.
By that point, the situation inside the training area had changed completely.
Kaelvar was still on one knee, but both hands were now pressed against the ground to keep himself from falling any further.
Azton had lasted slightly better. He remained kneeling with one hand braced against his thigh, breathing heavily as sweat rolled down his face.
Oriana was sitting on the ground.
Her usual calm smile had completely disappeared, replaced by an exhausted expression as she struggled to steady her breathing.
Iris had both knees against the floor. Flames still flickered weakly around her body, but even her proud dragon instincts could no longer force her back up.
Varka had eventually stopped resisting and simply fallen backward onto the ground.
Strangely enough, she was still grinning. "Hahaha... fuck. This is great."
Feron stared at her from across the training area. "You’re insane."
Varka laughed weakly. "You already knew that."
Loraine and Erlin were both sitting on the ground as well.
Loraine’s golden hair had fallen messily around her face, while Erlin had closed her eyes and focused entirely on controlling her breathing.
None of the eight candidates had passed out.
Every single one of them was still conscious.
They were kneeling, sitting, or lying on the ground, but their minds had endured Rovak’s bloodlust.
Only Feron remained standing, though calling his current condition standing was probably being far too generous.
His legs were shaking badly, his entire body swayed from side to side, and his unfocused eyes made it look like he could collapse at any moment. Somehow, however, he was still upright.
Rovak looked at him with clear approval. "Hahaha! Not bad, young master!"
Feron tried to grin, but the result looked absolutely terrible. "Of... course."
Varka immediately laughed from the ground. "You look like shit."
Feron slowly turned his head toward her. "At least... I’m still standing."
Varka’s grin widened. "For now."
Feron’s body swayed dangerously.
Everyone watched him.
He nearly fell forward, somehow recovered, stumbled two steps backward, and miraculously managed to remain on his feet.
Feron slowly raised one shaky thumb. "See?"
Kaelvar stared at him from the ground. "Damn."
Azton gave a slow nod. "Impressive."
Feron tried to look proud.
Unfortunately, his legs were shaking so badly that the effect was completely ruined.
Garion looked over the group with a satisfied expression.
Eight candidates.
Every single one of them had reached the absolute peak of the Awakening Realm.
More importantly, none of them had lost consciousness even after enduring Rovak’s bloodlust for an entire minute.
Their conditions were terrible, but their wills were clearly strong enough.
Garion was just about to tell Rovak to stop when he suddenly noticed two figures nearby.
Slifera and Elisa were lying completely motionless on the ground.
Garion blinked. "Ah."
He looked at them for a moment.
Unlike the other eight, both of them had completely passed out.
Slifera was lying face-first against the floor, while Elisa had somehow managed to collapse more gracefully on her side.
Garion rubbed his chin. "Well..."
Rovak glanced toward them and burst out laughing. "Hahaha! They finally died!"
Alira immediately looked at him. "They’re not dead."
Rovak nodded. "I know."
Alira frowned. "Then stop saying it like that."
Rovak shrugged.
Garion walked closer and looked down at the unconscious pair.
It did not take him long to understand what had happened.
Slifera and Elisa had already spent the past several days going through God Gym’s training.
Their bodies and minds were simply too exhausted, and being forced to endure Rovak’s bloodlust in that condition had pushed them over the edge.
Garion turned back toward Rovak. "That’s enough, Rovak."
Rovak immediately withdrew his bloodlust.
The crushing red aura surrounding his body disappeared almost instantly.
Everyone reacted at once.
Several exhausted sighs of relief filled the training area as the eight candidates finally sprawled across the floor without caring about their appearances.
Even Feron immediately collapsed onto his back.
Garion crossed his arms. "All of you passed."
Several expressions changed immediately.
Kaelvar forced himself to sit up slightly. "That’s it?"
Garion raised an eyebrow. "What? You want Rovak to do it again?"
Kaelvar immediately lay back down. "No."
Rovak laughed loudly.
Garion grinned before continuing, "This wasn’t meant to test how strong you are. I already know you’re strong."
His eyes moved across the entire group. "I wanted to see whether your minds would break the moment you faced something terrifying."
No one interrupted him.
Garion glanced toward the unconscious Slifera and Elisa. "Those two don’t count. They’re already half-dead from training."
Alira sighed. "You’re the one who made them join."
Garion only chuckled. "Yeah."
He did not look guilty in the slightest.
His attention returned to the eight candidates. "The point is, all of you can join the hidden ultimate training."
Several exhausted faces immediately brightened.
Despite their terrible condition, every one of them quickly focused on what Garion was about to say next.
Garion raised one finger. "However, there’s something you need to understand first."
The group became silent.
"The hidden ultimate training is private."
Several people frowned.
Garion continued, "Only one person can go through it at a time."
Kaelvar raised an eyebrow. "One at a time?"
Garion nodded casually. "Yeah. Only one. No one else can see what happens inside. During the entire training, there will only be you and me."
The candidates exchanged glances.
For some reason, that sounded far more dangerous than they had expected.
Garion looked toward Kaelvar. "Tomorrow, you’re going first."
Kaelvar froze. "Me? Why me?"
Garion shrugged. "Because out of everyone here, I know you the most."
Kaelvar’s expression became strange. "You watched me fight twice."
Garion nodded. "Exactly."
Kaelvar’s mouth twitched. "That’s not much."
"It’s more than everyone else." Garion waved one hand casually. "Just don’t worry about it. You’re already here, so you might as well do it."
Kaelvar could only sigh.
For some reason, however, a chill suddenly ran down his back.
Garion looked over the rest of the group. "As for all of you, don’t worry. Every single person here will get a chance."
His gaze briefly moved toward the unconscious Slifera and Elisa. "Yes, even those two idiots."
Rovak laughed.
Garion continued, "Only one person can enter at a time, so the rest of you will have to wait for your turn."
Feron weakly raised one hand from the floor. "Can I spend that time relaxing?"
Garion looked at him. "No, you can’t."
Feron frowned. "Damn."
