Chapter 263: Assessment
Chapter 263: Assessment
Ji Xinghuo could see that Xueming didn't want to say more, so he didn't press the issue.
Here, he could also submit Aether Crystals and True Dragon Coins as bidding funds. Alternatively, he could have items appraised by Xueming, and if they were deemed valuable enough, they would be accepted for auction and displayed on the auction house's list, for a fee, of course.
In any case, nothing here came cheap.
Without any Eternal Day Merit, Ji Xinghuo had no interest in the items others had put up for auction.
Leaving the Exotic Treasures Auction House, Ji Xinghuo did not immediately follow Xueming's instructions to head to the Arena in the City of Eternal Day to take the assessment.
He didn't want to rush into anything until he had a better understanding of the situation on Planet Earthcore.
As he walked down the street, Ji Xinghuo wandered aimlessly, scanning his surroundings with his electromagnetic induction ability. Soon enough, he found his target.
It was a bar located off the street, filled with many Highlanders.
To gather information as a newcomer, his best bet was to start with these natives, and this place seemed perfect for it.
Ji Xinghuo stepped into the bar.
Even in the daytime, there were dozens of Highlanders drinking inside, from various tribes, most of them followers of the Red Emperor. As soon as he entered, he could feel the dangerous atmosphere. For other races, this would not be a welcoming place, but the Red Emperor's followers were clearly in their element.
Ji Xinghuo's face was unfamiliar, and while some Highlanders glanced his way, they quickly lost interest.
With his fierce-looking appearance, no one would suspect him of being an outsider.
"Drink!"
"If you don't finish this cup, I'll smash your head in!"
The bar was noisy, with loud shouts and the occasional raucous laughter of Highlander women, along with plenty of foul language and insults.
Ji Xinghuo sat at the bar and ordered several cups of Bloodwine. After downing them, his face turned slightly red.
Then he struck up a conversation with a Highlander sitting next to him.
This Highlander was powerful, a Tier 4 Steel Warrior, and although he kept his Eternal Day badge hidden in his waist pouch, it didn't escape Ji Xinghuo's electromagnetic induction ability.
Ji Xinghuo casually steered the conversation towards the topic of Eternal Day Merit and Planet Earthcore.
As expected, this Highlander was an Eternal Day Guardian and knew the inside story.
However, for some unknown reason, he was reluctant to speak about the situation on Planet Earthcore. Still, the bits and pieces of information he let slip were enough for Ji Xinghuo to confirm that this wasn't a trap set by the Crystite Tribe, and that outsiders could indeed go to Planet Earthcore to earn Eternal Day Merit.
In the bar, Ji Xinghuo spoke to several other Highlanders and learned more or less the same things.
"You won't speak of it?"
"Or is it that you can't speak of it while in the City of Eternal Day?"
Over two hours later, Ji Xinghuo walked out of the bar, his mind filled with questions.
It was clear that the Crystite Tribe had imposed a gag order regarding Planet Earthcore and had used some means to prevent those who had been there from revealing the truth.
Ji Xinghuo looked around, realizing that beneath the bright and majestic exterior of the City of Eternal Day lay too many secrets.
"I'll just have to go and see for myself."
"Since they could return safely to the Stellar World, it proves that Planet Earthcore isn't as dangerous as it seems."
Ji Xinghuo had made up his mind.
He was usually not one to act impulsively, but those treasures at the Exotic Treasures Auction House were too enticing. The Paradise Diamond, Clone Twin, and other items all held great appeal, and they all required Eternal Day Merit to bid on.
A moment later.
Ji Xinghuo arrived at the Arena in the City of Eternal Day.
The hexagonal arena had a diameter of over 300 meters, similar in size to a Super League stadium on Earth, but it wasn't very crowded. Most of the seats in the spectator stands were empty, with only four to five hundred people sitting idly by, watching the battles taking place in the center of the arena.
Ji Xinghuo observed the scene for a while.
The battles happening in the arena were part of the assessment for becoming an Eternal Day Guardian. On one side were legendary powerful beings from the Crystite Tribe, taking turns as examiners. The test began with a timer, and those who could last for 3 stellar marks were considered to have passed. Three stellar marks were roughly equivalent to three and a half minutes on Earth.
Many took the assessment, but very few passed.
After watching for over half an hour, Ji Xinghuo saw only three people succeed, a ratio of less than one in ten.
"I want to sign up."
He walked to the edge of the arena and spoke to a Crystite Tribe member, presenting his Eternal Day badge.
The examiner took it and looked at it in surprise. Ji Xinghuo already had an Eternal Day badge, yet he hadn't taken the assessment? Nonetheless, he quickly registered Ji Xinghuo and nodded. "When your name is called, go to the arena."
Ji Xinghuo put away his badge and waited by the side.
Several minutes later.
"Kuiye!" the Crystite Tribe member in charge of registration shouted, "It's your turn."
Ji Xinghuo walked silently into the arena.
A figure flew out from a room above the arena and landed with a loud thud several dozen meters away, their true form revealed as the light faded.
"It's you."
Ji Xinghuo's eyebrows rose.
The Crystite Tribe member standing before him was Mingyu, the guard who had brought him into the city the day before.
Mingyu explained expressionlessly, "I'm on rotation as an examiner today. Seeing that it's you, I thought I'd test your strength, but it's not because I'm targeting you specifically."
"Oh."
Ji Xinghuo didn't think much of it and removed the Ice Vein Axe from his back, holding it in his hand.
However, he took the assessment seriously.
From his interaction with Mingyu the day before, he already knew that this humanoid Crystite Tribe member was a Halo Warrior. Based on the fluctuations in his etheric energy, he was a legendary-level being.
Halo Warriors were not common on Earth.
But in the City of Eternal Day, one in five Crystite Tribe members was a Halo Warrior, and almost all of them were humanoid.
The core ability of Halo Warriors was "Light Energy," which allowed them to convert all stellar power into light energy. This type of energy was extremely domineering in nature, encompassing strength, defense, speed, explosive power, and recovery. It was well-balanced and immensely powerful, while also rejecting most other abilities, only able to fuse with skill-type exotics.
The strength of a Halo Warrior was heavily dependent on the strength of their light energy, or stellar power.
The higher their tier, the more light energy they required.
So, aside from a small number of skill-type exotic abilities, Halo Warriors would mostly choose Aether Sensitivity and Aether Affinity for their fusion opportunities, as many as possible, to stack the effects and hasten their stellar power cultivation and recovery, converting more light energy.
This class template was quite closed off and lacked advanced professions.
Mingyu stood there bare-handed, his body adorned with a layer of intricate armor that seemed to grow from his very being, his expression still indifferent as he said, "I'm starting now."
The Crystite Tribe member by the arena pressed the timer.
Boom!
As his voice fell, five light rings appeared on Mingyu's body, and he shone brilliantly. His speed skyrocketed as he transformed into a beam of light, shooting straight towards Ji Xinghuo.
He didn't bother with fancy moves and simply threw a punch.
Stellar power compressed in his fist and then erupted.
Burst Punch!
This was one of the most common exotic abilities of Halo Warriors, where their punch erupted with tremendous power, accompanied by the relentless destructive force of light energy that could pierce through anything.
Most Superhumans wouldn't dare to block this punch and might not even be able to see the attack coming.
But in Ji Xinghuo's eyes, it wasn't that terrifying.
He had already activated his Hyperthought, choosing a threefold neural reaction acceleration, which slowed down all motion in his eyes by three times. When Mingyu's punch burst through the air and reached him, Ji Xinghuo closed his eyes and sidestepped to the left, but only by a single step.
The fist grazed by, and the light exploded, but it didn't cause any blinding effect on Ji Xinghuo.
Boom!
The air ruptured, and a shockwave blasted out.
Ji Xinghuo ignored the shockwave that hit his body and kept his eyes closed. His twin-bladed battle axe had already descended, forcing Mingyu into an unavoidable situation.
Mingyu half-turned and blocked with his arm.
Clang!
The axe blade slashed against the armor on his arm, sending sparks flying. The Ice Vein Axe, imbued with the 'Heavy Strike' ability, doubled its power upon impact and also unleashed a frost that sent chills through the air.
Ji Xinghuo had only used eighty percent of his strength for that axe strike.
Mingyu's arm shimmered with light energy, deflecting the axe, but a dent was left in his armor, and he was pushed back by the recoil, stumbling over a dozen steps. Mingyu also retreated two steps from the impact and couldn't pursue, so he lifted his left hand, palm facing Ji Xinghuo.
A beam of light shot out from his palm.
Pulse Beam!
In his retreat, Ji Xinghuo promptly lifted the Ice Vein Axe to block the beam's strike.
The beam contained overwhelming energy, forcing Ji Xinghuo to retreat even faster, almost getting blasted off his feet.
Mingyu, however, had regained his balance, and his light energy erupted again. Boom! He shot forward like a cannonball, chasing after Ji Xinghuo.
In an instant, he was right in front of him.
"Hah!"
Ji Xinghuo's feet plowed two grooves into the ground as he finally managed to steady himself. At the last moment, just as Mingyu's fist was about to land a hit, he roared and unleashed an Ice Roar.
The Ice Vein Axe erupted with countless frost shards, instantly exploding towards Mingyu, who was now very close.
The light energy and frost collided.
Mingyu's body stuttered, and that punch ultimately didn't land with full force. The low temperature and frost didn't affect him much, but as he broke through the Ice Roar's shockwave, Ji Xinghuo had already sidestepped to his side, and the twin-bladed battle axe slashed horizontally, aiming for his neck.
This time, Mingyu didn't have time to block.
The axe heavily chopped onto his neck, shattering the armor, piercing through the light energy protection, and cutting into the crystalline skin beneath. The tremendous force left a deep gash.
"Ah?"
A gasp rose from the audience.
Mingyu was sent flying, the beam of light flickering, as he hastily created distance between himself and Ji Xinghuo.
Over a hundred meters away, Mingyu touched his neck.
Crystite Tribe members were naturally endowed with sturdy bodies akin to crystal, but essentially, they were still a type of life form. They had blood flowing within them, needed to breathe, and required sustenance, although their blood differed from humans, they breathed not oxygen, and consumed minerals for food.
Mingyu felt a blue liquid, his blood.
He was bleeding!
"That was close!" Mingyu felt a sense of lingering fear. Crystite Tribe members didn't sweat, and their facial expressions weren't very expressive, but the horror in his eyes was evident.
If that axe strike had been any stronger, his head would've been chopped off.
Mingyu looked at Ji Xinghuo across from him. "He's only Tier 4, yet he could threaten my life. No wonder Huyi sees him differently."
"Are you going to continue?" Ji Xinghuo asked, brandishing his battle axe.
"You've passed the assessment."
Mingyu glanced at the timer on the sidelines. It hadn't even been one stellar mark yet, and although he felt a bit embarrassed, he calmly acknowledged Ji Xinghuo's strength.
After saying that, Mingyu flew up and landed in the room above the arena, looking a bit disheveled.
Ji Xinghuo snickered inwardly.
Mingyu was actually very strong, but he happened to be a Halo Warrior, heavily reliant on close combat and martial arts. Ji Xinghuo, on the other hand, had Microscopic Perception and Hyperthought, and his strength was sufficient to break through light energy protection. It could be said that he completely countered Mingyu.
Of course, if it had been a real life-or-death battle, Ji Xinghuo wouldn't have found it easy to kill Mingyu either.
Ji Xinghuo walked to the edge of the arena.
The Crystite Tribe member in charge of registration gave him an approving look and said, "Our tribe needs powerful Eternal Day Guardians like you. The next batch heading to the mother planet will be notified on your badge."
(End of Chapter)
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