萝莉社

Eventually, Cain reached the golden mark, but there was a deep frown on his face. Unlike the previous trials, this one felt different for some reason. It was as if he had yet to reach his limit.

‘It doesn’t make sense. I gave it everything I had.’

After some thought, Cain sent the command and was teleported out of the Pillar of Speed. He did not even bother to glance at the cadets and soldiers watching him and immediately focused on the Cadet Ranking.

N°1 Swift Air – Early Level 5

N°2 Silent Lightning – Limit Level 4

N°3 Saint of Killers – Late Level 4

A speed equal to a Late Level 4 Wave Warrior was very impressive, but when Cain saw that, his frown grew.

Cain couldn’t care less about his position in the ranking, but he felt dissatisfied when he saw that his top speed was still within the boundaries of Level 4.

.....

Unlike the previous pillars that drained every iota of Astral Wave in him and left him completely exhausted, there was still plenty of energy left in Cain after the trial.

He did not wait a second before putting his hand in the Pillar of Speed, vanishing again.

That behavior surprised the cadets and soldiers looking at Cain. Nothing would change in a few minutes, and they saw no point in doing it again.

A couple of minutes later, Cain appeared outside the pillar and immediately turned toward the Cadet Ranking. He could not help but clench his fist when he saw that everything remained the same.

Cain put his hand in the was sent back into the pillar, only to appear again a few minutes later. He did it again and again, making odd expressions appear in the people watching him.

“Hmph, despite his talent, he is just a child.” The blonde soldier with Lumir and Zamir did not hide his voice and ensured everybody listened to him.

Uriel saw that people focused on him and showed a dignified expression before continuing with his words.

“On the battlefield, someone that doesn’t know how to recognize his limitations and take the same flawed path would only lead people to their death.”

Everybody already knew that Uriel had bad blood with Cain, but that did not mean his words were wrong. There was no perfect leader, and everybody made mistakes, but someone who could not recognize them was definitely no one they would want to follow.

Despite the change in the way most people were looking at Cain, a group still showed nothing but respect. Lurin and the small group that fought by his side against the horde of Wave Beasts had absolute faith in his abilities. They knew that every action he took had deep meaning behind them.

Cain noticed how the soldiers and cadets began to look at him, but he did not stop and kept trying. He did it almost thirty times before being forced to rest due to his depletion of Astral Wave.

As he refilled his Astral Wave, he took a deep breath and went through all his endeavors.

‘I don’t understand. Why do I feel so firmly that I can do better?’

Cain was not stupid and knew he would gain nothing by retaking the trial. No technique or skill in his memories could help him with it.

‘Wait! My memories!’

A flash of enlightenment appeared through Cain’s eyes. He had nothing that could help him move faster, but there was something in the boy’s memories that was useful.

The boy could do all sorts of wonders with his mind, manipulating elemental forces better than any Essence Wave Cultivator and enhancing his body with the world’s energy with more proficiency than any Astral Wave Cultivator.

Cain would have gained nothing from them if they had been only images. But in those memories, he felt everything the boy did and knew how this one manipulated flesh and energy.

Cain could not do most of those things as he could not mimic the outrageous mental power of the boy, but there was one technique he could try. It was very basic and only involved control over the heart and brain.

Slowly, a smile appeared on his face as he went through those memories and remembered every tiny detail. As someone that reached the First Realm in the Ego Eternal Path of Power, he had a terrific memory.

Although he was eager to train it, Cain would not do it in the open, so he put his hand over the Pillar of Speed and vanished.

As soon as Cain entered the pillar again, the cadets and soldiers continued with their derogatory remarks. Of course, since he did not care when he could hear them, why would they bother him now?

Cain adopted a meditative position inside the white corridor. Since the test would only begin once he crossed the black line, he could stay here as long as he wanted.

Slowly, he went through every single second of the memories during which the boy created the technique. As he analyzed it, Cain noticed a wonderful thing.

Instead of learning from scratch, Cain felt he remembered something he had already mastered but had forgotten due to the passage of time.

The technique itself contained two parts that Cain must trigger simultaneously. The one involving the brain consisted of releasing several drugs that pushed your body to a hyperactive state. The other focused on the heart, concerning heart rate acceleration and increase in blood pressure.

Cain erased any unnecessary thoughts and focused solely on the technique. The technique only required using his Ego Wave to achieve granular control over his brain and heart.

He started with his heart, and raising his heart rate and blood pressure to the level required for the technique was not that complicated.

However, things got a little tricker when he started with his brain’s chemistry. Luckily, he just had to mimic the boy’s actions, and everything went smoothly after a few attempts.

After roughly an hour, Cain stood up and took a deep breath before triggering the technique.

Cain’s heartbeats grew louder by the second and soon were so mighty that they echoed through the white hall. He saw his skin growing red, giving him a ferocious appearance, and felt he could achieve incredible speed even without using a single iota of his Astral Wave.

A large smile emerged on Cain’s face when he felt the changes in his body and perceived the might he had gained.

“Hahaha, this is awesome.”

Cain began to laugh, making him look like a fiendish creature, and as he saw his new appearance, a contemplative expression appeared on his face.

“What should I call this technique?”

Although the original creator was the boy, this one never gave it a proper name. Cain found nothing wrong with naming the technique since he and the boy were supposed to be the same person.

Cain thought for a moment before coming up with a name that, according to him, was perfect.

“Asura Form: First Gear.”

After patting himself on the back for coming up with what he considered a name worthy of generating awe in all who heard it, Cain walked to the black line.

Cain made his Wave Cloak explode at full power and focused his Astral Wave on his legs and spine before activating Lightning Armament. He then adopted a sprint position before flashing forward with all he got.

—

The soldier and cadets were waiting for Cain to get out, but as the minutes went by, the gossip only grew worse. The Trial of Speed did not take more than two minutes, but Cain had been there for over an hour.

“Hahaha, he must be too embarrassed to show his face and doesn’t dare to come out. He is arrogant and conceited, yet at the slightest setback, he falls into a spiral from which he can not return.”

“Hmph, that temperament is not fit for a soldier of the Imperial Military Force. Following someone like that into battle would only get you killed.”

Lumir and Zamir did not waste the opportunity and had been yelling negative remarks about Cain this entire time. The duo then saw how the young man appeared outside the pillar, with a pale face and blood leaking from the corner of his mouth.

“Hahaha, what a pitiful look. He must have run into a wall inside the trial. So foolish, don’t you think, Lord Uriel?” Zamir continued laughing as he spoke to the blonde soldier but immediately noticed something weird when this one did not reply.

“Lord Uriel?” Zamir saw the shock in Uriel’s eyes, and as he followed this one gaze, he saw the changes in the Cadet Ranking.

“Im... impossible.” Zamir could not believe what he saw.

N°1 Saint of Killers – Middle Level 5

N°2 Swift Air – Early Level 5