Chapter 19 Testing magnificence
The group pressed deeper into the darkening forest. The canopy above grew thicker until only thin shafts of sunlight filtered through the leaves. Sabine stayed pressed close to Vandal, clinging tightly to his arm the entire way. Every few steps, she glanced nervously over her shoulder, her fingers tightening whenever a branch snapped in the distance.
Clara walked a few paces ahead, her back straight and her gaze sharp, head tilting slightly at every unusual sound.
After nearly thirty minutes, Clara stopped in front of a massive ancient oak. Its trunk was wider than three men standing side by side. Thick moss and hanging vines draped over the bark like a living curtain. To any ordinary traveler, it looked like nothing more than another tree in an endless sea of green.
Clara placed her palm flat against a specific knot in the wood and whispered softly, her voice carrying a reverent tone.
“Faith sees what the eyes cannot.”
The bark shimmered. A vertical seam split open silently, revealing a narrow passageway glowing with soft silver-white light. There were no levers or hinges, only pure resonance answering her command.
Clara stepped through without hesitation. Sabine tugged Vandal’s arm and pulled him after her. The moment they passed, the tree sealed itself seamlessly behind them as though it had never opened.
The passage sloped gently downward before opening into a hidden clearing enclosed by a shimmering barrier. The air hummed with suppressed power. Clara raised her bracelet and touched the barrier. It rippled once, then faded away like mist, allowing them to pass.
Clara glanced sideways at Vandal. Her lips curved into a smile that sent a chill crawling down his spine. “This place is hidden and well protected, considering the kind of work we do here.”
Uniformed patrolmen moved through the area with sharp, watchful eyes. As the group stepped onto the stone path leading toward an elegant courtyard and grand hall, many of those eyes turned in their direction and lingered.
Clara spoke without looking back. “Boy, consider this place your home, just as Sabine has. You will be tested in that hall. I wish you luck.”
Vandal frowned, his jaw tightening. “But I really don’t want to join any group. Why must I?”
Clara’s smile stayed fixed on her face. “One thing you need to learn quickly is that you must belong somewhere. If you don’t, you become easy prey. No matter how strong you are, a lone lion without its pride will eventually fall.”
She led Vandal to seats near the front of the hall. In a flash, a line of people streamed in and took their places. Among them was a robed elder walking beside a sharp-featured blonde-haired boy.
The moment Vandal’s eyes met the blonde boy’s, he felt a prickling pressure across his skin, as if invisible swords were pressing against him. What piercing eyes, he thought. His aura feels like it’s stabbing me.
“Clara, I see you’ve returned with Sabine… and who is this dirty-looking brat?” the robed elder asked, his lips curling into a contemptuous grin.
Clara answered calmly, “He is someone who killed a Wind Echo Leopard with a single shot. He destroyed its head completely.”
The robed elder burst into loud laughter. “Clara, you jest! I never knew you had such a sense of humor. Taking care of Sabine has clearly made you soft.”
“I do not jest,” Clara replied coldly. “Now please excuse me.”
The elder smirked. “Well, at least we will soon see who is more useless, Sabine or this stray you dragged in.”
He turned to the blonde boy. “Jaden, my boy, let’s take our seats before Aunty Clara kills us with her eyes.”
The elder and the blonde boy moved toward the middle of the hall.
A tall man named Dapo Shu stepped forward, his voice booming through the hall. “Welcome, true believers and warriors of the Unseeing Faith! We are gathered here for the annual talent testing. Only the most gifted will train as enforcers and bring glory to our faith. Average talent will serve as seekers. Low talent will become preachers and spread our gospel, which is the way and the truth!”
Dapo Shu raised his right hand. A small silver ring on his finger glowed with dazzling white light. He waved it once. The ground trembled, then a large polished white stone bell, half a meter tall and a full meter wide, rose smoothly from the floor in front of the altar.
That’s definitely a space ring, Vandal noted, but it looks far inferior to mine.
Dapo Shu explained that the white stone bell would ring and produce colored waves that would reveal the element and strength of one’s echo fragment. The brighter the color, the stronger the resonance. A luminous meter beside it would measure the talent from tier zero to tier seven.
“Now, participants, step forward and discover your path,” he announced.
Clara leaned toward Sabine. “You will go after those two.”
The first youth placed his hand on the stone bell. A dull blue light wave appeared.
“Hmm, average talent. Water-type echo. Tier three,” Dapo Shu announced, stroking his white beard.
“Next.”
The next boy placed his hand. A weak brown light wave glowed.
“Low talent. Tier two. Earth-type echo.”
“Next.”
Sabine stepped onto the stage.
“Place your hand on the stone bell,” Dapo Shu instructed neutrally.
The moment her palm touched it, a bright metallic blue wave of light burst forth, shining with impressive intensity.
“Excellent!” Dapo Shu smiled for the first time. “Tier five. Guard-type. You are qualified to become an enforcer. Take your seat in the reserved section.”
Clara’s face lit up with pride. “Well done, my Sabine.” She cast a pointed look across the hall at the robed elder, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
“Next,” Dapo Shu called.
“Jaden, my boy,” Yung called, his voice booming across the hall, “you’re up next. Go out there and show them the difference between the strong and talented… and the weak and incompetent. Make me proud.”
“Yes, Master,” Jaden replied, his voice low and steady. He stepped forward, gaze locked on Vandal with pure contempt twisting his features. Disgust rolled off him in waves as he climbed onto the stage.
The moment his palm touched the bell, a thunderous crack split the air. A blinding surge of electric-blue light erupted outward, forcing the entire crowd to shield their eyes and turn away.
Dapo’s eyes widened, his hands trembling with excitement. “Excellent! Simply excellent!” he shouted.
“Thunder-echo! Tier-6! One of the rarest elemental echoes in existence!”
Gasps rippled through the audience, followed by stunned murmurs of awe.
Vandal’s brow furrowed. Rare elemental types? Up until now, he had only witnessed water, earth and wind echoes, then there was that strange purple fire. This was something entirely new.
Clara turned to Vandal. “Vandal, you will go next. With the way you instantly killed that Wind Echo Leopard, I know your talent will qualify you as an enforcer. I want you to continue looking out for Sabine the way you did in the forest.”
“I will do my best,” Vandal said.
He stepped onto the altar and placed his hand on the stone bell.