The assessment mode of the Central Trial Ground is unknown, but those who can pass it must be geniuses among geniuses.
That made sense.
The entry barrier for the Central Trial/Strongest Trial was top-tier geniuses – one had to pass the first three trials of the Mythical Trial in Trial Ground No. 404 and be under sixty years old.
Exceeding the age limit was not impossible, but the older one was, the stricter the conditions. Theoretically, young myths under sixty had the best chance of obtaining this ticket.
And in reality...
Among the powerful factions of the Eastern Whispering Realm like the Red Lotus Empire, Ancient Moon Dynasty, and Seven Stars Alliance, only a handful of geniuses could obtain this ticket.
Most of their over a hundred myths in the Spark organization couldn't even pass the third trial. This was especially true for the peripheral myths recruited by Spark Academy.
However, he still managed to pull some strings through Miss Ruo.
As an examiner, Miss Ruo had the authority to issue tickets for the Strongest Trial to geniuses under sixty who had only passed the first two trials but had shown excellent performance.
These past few days, he had been arranging for the organization's myths to attempt the trials.
The competitiveness of these young myths who obtained qualification through backdoors was bound to be lower, but as long as they could enter the Central Trial Ground, they might receive a guaranteed reward.
For this reason, Fang You felt he had to work harder and go through Miss Ruo more often.
"This is also for humanity."
"Ah, yes, yes, yes."
"But, you have the authority to grant trial entry tickets. Is it the same for other trial grounds?"
Miss Ruo snorted, "How can ordinary trial grounds compare to our No. 404 Trial Ground? Only 101, 202, 303, and 505 can be compared to us. Of course, examiners in other trial grounds also have a few recommendation slots."
There were hundreds, even thousands, of trial grounds in the Kandara Empire.
Among them, some were damaged, some were lost for various reasons, and the remaining ones were secretly controlled by various overlord or powerful factions.
After all, not all trial grounds had the ability to move freely.
...
During this period, the presence of various overlord factions was very high. Streams of mythical light could often be seen flying across the sky above giant cities.
New mythical talents also appeared among the common people (ordinary factions).
The calamity had not truly descended, but the human world seemed to have entered a grand era, and the pain brought by the calamity tide not long ago had faded.
The myths did not fully believe in the world-ending calamity, but they were still preparing with all their might for the opportunity of the Strongest Trial Ground.
They did not know that the trial ground was about to emerge, but for them, one or two, or two to three years, was a very short period of time.
They were going to make a final push.
These days, overlord factions from the Western Whispering Realm approached Spark Academy, intending to conduct mythical-level sparring and exchange.
Sparring was good, as it could promote mutual improvement. For some strong individuals who had rarely engaged in same-level combat after becoming myths, they needed to make up for their insufficient combat experience through sparring and exchange.
Spark readily agreed.
The vast majority of Spark's myths had no experience of mythical-level life-and-death combat.
They had not even experienced a few proper mythical battles.
Even extraordinary myths like Illoxi and Xing Jinglei had not experienced many evenly matched battles; they mostly suppressed their opponents with sheer strength and momentum.
When it came to technique, they were absolutely among the best, but when it came to experience, they were not so good.
However, most of the time, they could defeat enemies with brute force, making experience seem less important. But it could not be ignored.
Yet, after a period of sparring, the Spark myths lost interest.
Xing Jinglei glanced at the weak myths from outside who had come to spar, and his desire to participate waned.
If he had time to bully weaker opponents, he might as well spar with Brother Black Blade, even though he was usually completely outmatched.
Ordinary Spark myths could fight back and forth with the myths from the overlord factions, achieving a fifty-fifty balance. However, it was only sparring, and there were too many considerations. While it could slightly improve their combat experience, there was no hope of experiencing life-and-death tempering.
It would be better to have internal sparring within Spark themselves!
Spark's own training grounds had a 'blood-locking' rule, so there was no need to worry about going too hard and being unable to stop oneself during sparring.
Before Black Blade was promoted to Eight Awakening, Xing Jinglei had fought with Black Blade several times in the Level Six training ground. Naturally, he had lost every time.
And although he would not be killed, with his last bit of life force locked, when he was defeated and retreated, he had already lost even basic self-healing ability. He could only be dragged away by a care puppet and taken to the heavy ward for recovery.
The battles were indeed exhilarating, but one moment of combat joy led to a day of soreness everywhere.
Xing Jinglei did not dare to provoke Black Blade for sparring too frequently.
The other myths were similar.
Their combat experience was indeed insufficient, but when they compared it, training their own skills, venturing into the Observer's Waterfall Dragon Vein Blood Pool, and attending Instructor Black Blade's lectures... these methods of improvement were faster.
Sparring? Meaningless!
Instructor Fang himself lacked combat experience even more.
If he could still discuss and exchange experience of demigod-level combat with his old friend Black Blade, then for high-level combat experience and power usage, he had no one to exchange with.
Qian Hong and the Secret Puppet could not be discussed.
Chi Yan? She was a typical example of having the hands but not the mind.
Even the use of high-level power was only a superficial exploration for Instructor Fang. He did not have much world power to squander, and his body and soul could not withstand it strongly enough. He could only simulate and conceptualize in his mind.
However, doing so could not even be called theoretical discussion.
"Forget it, let's draw cards."
The battle when Spark Oasis was upgraded to Level Nine, he became rich overnight, directly gaining over twenty million Destiny Points.
Some of it had to be invested in upgrading the oasis resource points, but a lot remained. These days, Fang You drew cards from time to time, spending a million a day.
He drew many treasures, such as Legendary Skill Cards, Legendary Skill Seeds, Secret Realm Stones, Infinite Boxes, and World Odd Stones.
Now, even if he drew an Azure-Red grade treasure, Instructor Fang remained unfazed.
Unless he drew something new.
However, there was nothing new. Let alone new Azure-Red grade strange artifacts/secret treasures, he instead drew a few 'Azure-Red ordinary' items – Azure-Red grade materials. They naturally possessed a strong charm of laws, but after all, they were just materials. Their value, let alone compared to the Tree of Life, Qian Hong, or the World Lord's Hand, was far inferior even to World Odd Stones or Infinite Boxes.
It wasn't as if their Spark couldn't find Azure-Red grade materials in wild, desperate places.
"This is definitely not because this instructor is too unlucky, but perhaps after drawing too much, the card pool has been diluted."
He had some guesses about the treasures obtained from the card pool.
One category was condensed by destiny power, such as skill cards and skill seeds.
Another category might be the plunder of destiny – obtaining some ownerless, forgotten, or fate-abandoned items. These numerous and varied treasures were not infinite, and it was reasonable that the more he drew, the more ordinary the card pool became.
By now, the proportion of skill cards and skill seeds drawn from the card pool had increased by 1.5 times compared to the early days.
Fang You pondered the power of destiny, slowly drawing cards, and watching the drawing CG repeat before his eyes.
His thoughts drifted, and he suddenly jolted.
"Wait, did something just flash by?"
It was rainbow-colored!
That dazzling color!
That wasn't...
The drawing CG reached its end. A treasure that had flashed by earlier was displayed with nine other treasures, shining with unparalleled colorful halos.
The appearance of the treasure under the halo...
It was another tower!
Fang You didn't care about its appearance; what mattered was its utility. He hoped it wouldn't be some 'rainbow ordinary.'
He calmed himself.
"Tower of Combat (Rainbow)"
"Category: Supreme Treasure"
"Description: A supreme treasure with immeasurable power, currently in a blank state."
"Ability: Can create any combat environment based on one's will and anchor the state of those within the tower; combat within the Tower of Combat will not result in death, and any injuries will be instantly healed regardless of severity; simultaneously, any individual fighting within the tower will drop conceptualized related items (these items are only visible to the tower owner and do not affect the combatants)."
"Note: The use of the Tower of Combat requires special energy. Please explore methods of replenishment yourself."
Fang You stroked his chin.
The Tower of Combat was different from the Pavilion of Time. Its ability was singular, and it seemed inconsistent with the noble status of a supreme treasure.
However, its ability touched upon many aspects.
"If I understand correctly, with this Tower of Combat, I can use my power without reservation for life-and-death combat. As a supreme treasure, its power limit must also be very high, but..."
Fang You felt that it was not just for simulated combat.
He entered the Tower of Combat.
In an instant, time and space shifted, and he arrived in a vast, blank expanse.
This was nothingness, the beginning.
Fang You spread his divine sense, which seemed to have no end.
He pondered for a while and then began to transform the blank environment. With a shift of his thoughts, the blankness receded, transforming into an endless grassland.
A gentle breeze blew, carrying the scent of grass and earth into his nostrils.
This was not an illusion.
Changing heaven and earth was the ability of the Tower of Combat. Moreover, it would fill in any imperfections in his conception during this process, making this world absolutely real.
He thought of the Book of Trials from years ago.
The Book of Trials had the ability to construct scenes and temper combat skills. It was a pity that the legendary Book of Trials was already outdated. Not only could the trial space no longer bear his strength, but even when he stepped into it, he could discern the illusion of the space at a glance.
As for the Tower of Combat, it had no limits.
Changing heaven and earth was only part of the Tower of Combat's ability. Fang You pondered for a while and then created two ordinary demigods.
Truly ordinary.
These two demigods had single skills, crude combat techniques, and no other merits besides speed and strength.
He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
"No, it's just that I haven't found the knack yet."
Fang You increased the power of these two demigods to a level that could threaten him.
Immediately, he fought against these two late-stage demigods on the vast grassland, one against two.
The plain collapsed in an instant, and the ground was penetrated layer after layer.
To be fair, these two demigods were qualified as sandbags, but their techniques were too poor. He saw through them at a glance, and the battle was effortless.
After stretching his muscles, Fang You snapped his fingers, and the two demigods disappeared. The collapsed plain reset, but at this moment, he was surprised to find several conspicuous small light clusters on the plain.
"Conceptual Light Cluster (Body)"
"Description: Absorption can improve personal physique, with an upper limit; cannot absorb light clusters dropped by oneself."
"Note: Absorption efficiency is related to compatibility (personality, abilities)."
"Conceptual Light Cluster (Lightning)"
"Absorption can improve the power of lightning-based skills, with an upper limit."
"Conceptual Light Cluster (Sword)"
"Absorption can improve the power of sword-based skills, with an upper limit."
"Conceptual Light Cluster (Manifestation)"
"Absorption can improve the strength of demigod manifestations, with an upper limit."
Fang You: "..."
These were precisely the moves he had just used!
The dropped light clusters varied in size and quantity. The most numerous were the lightning clusters, as he had been using lightning strikes throughout.
He tried entering the high-level posture again.
A smile spread across his face.
"The tower is not an illusion; all consumption is real and tangible, but no matter how much is consumed or how great the soul pressure, it can be reset with a single thought."
And when he entered the high-level posture and clasped his hands together to create a towering wooden forest, even law light clusters dropped.
It was a pity that he could not digest the light clusters he himself dropped.
This was not a problem either.
Instructor Fang was not a lone wolf. He immediately summoned Black Blade, An Jianyou, Illoxi, and others to try it out.
Since the Tower of Combat could also fix the combatants' ranks, Illoxi excitedly challenged An Jianyou.
Peak Seven Awakening vs. Peak Seven Awakening.
"I have already mastered the Law of Burning. How can I lose to someone of the same rank?"
Illoxi declared proudly.
...
Illoxi was defeated, losing without any suspense, defeated by An Jianyou's two eight-star strange evil babies.
Illoxi was crestfallen.
She muttered, "This is unreasonable."
An Jianyou glanced at the red clothes and white sashes that had shed many fragments, patting her chest, "So dangerous, I almost lost."
Whether she won or lost was not her primary concern, but Illoxi was too easily complacent. For her own good, An Jianyou felt she had to let Illoxi fully understand the dangers of the outside world, so she wouldn't fall into some desperate situation in the future.
"I must cultivate even more diligently, otherwise, when Illoxi breaks through to Eight Awakening, and I remain fixed at Seven Awakening, I might lose!"
One was motivated by defeat.
One was motivated by being narrowly defeated. Both had bright futures.
This was the benefit of the Tower of Combat.
Even if Illoxi was almost beaten to death the moment before, she could still jump around the next moment. Even if she was beaten by An Jianyou for another hundred matches, it would be fine... probably.
Fang You's attention was not on this. His gaze shifted downwards, and he saw a large pile of light clusters dropped by the two of them.
Several times more than what he had dropped earlier.
However, their combat duration was clearly shorter.
"Perhaps it's because their battles were more intense and evenly matched?" This was the Tower of Combat, where everything was born for battle.
Fang You summoned a light cluster from An Jianyou and touched it to his forehead.
A wisp of mysterious power flowed into his body.
"So that's how it is."
"My Ghost Control skills have become more adept, akin to gaining a slight bit of talent."
If one absorbed enough of a certain type of conceptual light cluster, it was not impossible for genuine talent to be born.
However, his compatibility with Miss An's light clusters was not very good. He primarily cultivated brilliant lightning and dazzling sword light, which clearly did not match An Jianyou, who controlled ghosts.
In the following days, Fang You continued to test the Tower of Combat.
Conceptual light clusters were only visible to the tower owner, but he could allow others to absorb and digest them.
However, there was an absorption limit, just like how ordinary people would feel full after eating too much. Absorbing too many conceptual light clusters would also cause bloating, and they needed to wait for a period before they could absorb more.
The drop rate was also similar.
During Illoxi's first match where she was dominated, both of them dropped many light clusters.
But for the second match, the number of dropped light clusters was only 70%, then 50%, 30%, and so on, decreasing.
It could be seen that there was an upper limit to the number of conceptual light clusters dropped by the same combatant. This limit might also be related to time and the change in strength.
Undoubtedly, the more combatants there were, the more the value of the Tower of Combat could be realized.
Although, consumption was also a problem.
The three Divine Sources he had recently acquired had barely covered the consumption of the Pavilion of Time. Now, another big eater of Divine Sources had appeared, leaving him both happy and conflicted.
Instructor Fang pondered how to maximize the utilization of the Tower of Combat.
...
The consumption of the Tower of Combat was, overall, slightly less than that of the Pavilion of Time.
Fang You then opened this supreme treasure to dozens of relatively promising Spark powerhouses.
Simultaneously, he awarded a batch of conceptual light clusters as rewards to those who performed exceptionally.
Days passed by in peace.
Beneath the surface of tranquility, undercurrents surged.
Human factions, ancient god factions, alien factions... and perhaps even evil god factions, with countless eyes focused on the impending emergence of Kandara's Strongest Trial Ground.
The history of Kandara was also being continuously unearthed.
In a certain hidden place,
The Moon Lord was a great being among ancient existences, ranking at the very top. She was among the first batch of ancient gods at the origin of the world, wielding authority over moonlight, night, and other domains. She once held multiple divine names such as 'Moon Goddess,' 'Goddess of the Empty Moon,' and 'Goddess of the Radiant Moon.'
However, now, she only had the title 'Moon Lord.'
This was related to the changes of the era.
Under the calamity of the evil gods, countless ancient gods perished. The Moon Lord also suffered severe injuries and gradually recovered after a long period of slumber. Later, she actively integrated mysterious powers, opening a new step on the almost solidified path of ancient gods.
But the Moon Lord knew that this power alone was still insufficient to resist the evil gods.
She had fought with the evil gods and knew how terrifying that corrupt power was.
"Humans also have merit, especially the Kandara Empire, which once flourished. This Lord wishes to obtain Kandara's secrets."
The Moon Lord had a favorable impression of humans, but not because of Kandara.
It was because...
Thinking of this, the Moon Lord cast her gaze obscurely, following a close connection, and saw a figure bathed in moonlight.
She had a sister, whose divine name was 'Goddess of the Silver Moon,' but she had long since perished, her soul completely destroyed, leaving only a trace of inheritance mark to be reincarnated.
The reincarnated body might no longer be the Silver Moon.
But even if it wasn't her sister, it was at least her sister's daughter.
The Moon Lord looked at the young girl with the tenderness of a mother of hundreds of thousands of years old.
"Little Yi Yue Luxi's promotion to myth at this age must be quite outstanding among humans. She might even surpass her peak in the future."
She then felt that she should give Little Yi Yue Luxi some special attention, so that she could gain more opportunities in the Kandara ruins.
Thinking of this, the Moon Lord mobilized a sliver of her power and pulled Yi Yue Luxi into a dream that was almost real.
She needed to test first to see Little Yi Yue Luxi's true level.
Well, she would set her own power to the early mythical stage, and exclude all laws and authorities.
The Moon Lord guided Yi Yue Luxi's thoughts, urging her to use her full strength to battle her.
Half an hour later,
Looking at her record of one win and three losses, the Moon Lord fell into deep thought.