994 Battle in the Dark 2 (1/2)
”The Water Mirror level is already nearing the peak of everything that normal people can reach, and that's still not enough?” retorted the invigilator.
”It depends on his talent. The Inherited Level is a major obstacle, if he can't cross it, then everything will be for naught.”
”That's true, too.” The invigilator nodded in agreement. ”But it's rare to see a young kid with such a high level of battle skills, especially in a place like this. Even I haven't reached the battle realm he's at, if this kid is lucky enough to pass the second stage, I guess I'll give him a little bonus.”
”That's up to you. But I'm guessing he can't pass, based on his current abilities,” replied that voice calmly.
”Well, I think there's a possibility.” The invigilator smiled.
”It's impossible, he definitely can't pass. You would need to be at least a Level Five Energy Machinist to just barely pass, your judgment is wrong.”
The fact that his judgment was rejected just like that made the invigilator feel as though he was losing face.
”I really hate that decisive tone of yours! Anything could happen out in the world, how are you so sure that your judgment won't be wrong?” he said angrily.
”I might be wrong, but the chances of that are a hundred thousand to one. And when it comes to martial arts realms, it's ten million to one.”
”If you're wrong, then you have to call me 'Grandpa' for a day, and if I'm wrong, I'll call you 'Grandpa' for a day. Do you dare take the bet!?” said the invigilator loudly, pointing to the sky.
”...Could you be more childish?”
”I'm asking you, do you dare to bet on it or not!?” The invigilator was known for being shameless, just a look at his mischievous smile would tell anyone that he was on to something.
”I won't play your games. If I lose, I can consider giving this kid some access to the special privileges section of the resource vault,” that voice said calmly.
”Coward!” The invigilator chuckled.
”My grandson is as old as you, if I lose and have to call you 'Grandpa', I'll really have lost face!” said that voice, exasperatedly. ”On the other hand, based on age alone, you should call me Grandpa.”
”You're just five hundred years older than me, so what?” said the invigilator contemptuously.
”Just five hundred years, you say? A lot of the lower-level Energy Machinists can only live for five hundred years, that tone of yours...”
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”These trails...”
Garen stared at the faint ripples left behind by the Black Mudskipper King's constantly wagging tail, concentrating with all his might.
The statistics from the Energy Machine Imprint's large-scale calculations quickly recreated the many details of the force exertion technique in his mind.
He had once reached the realm past that of the King of the Century back in the Totem World, and now he was finally utilizing that power again after having it lay dormant for so long. To normal Energy Machinists, these force exertion techniques were something they could only dream about, and there were many principles they just would not be able to wrap their heads around, since this technique manipulated blood qi to an astounding degree. But to a grandmaster of blood qi usage like Garen, each of these obstacles could be quickly overcome, and solutions found.
The rhythmic whirlpools formed by those many ripples were recreated in Garen's mind, separated all the way down to the tiniest detail, before they were reconstructed again and again, in order to try out new combinations.
Hah!
A scratch appeared on Garen's shoulder, and by then he had already destroyed all the black mudskippers, with only the Black Mudskipper King left. But by then, the Black Mudskipper King's speed had also reached a ridiculous extent, such that even Garen could barely see its shadow.
He could just only see the many explosive ripples it left in its wake.
And at the same time, Garen slowly attempted to adjust the vibrations in all of his muscles and internal tissues that were used to exert force, such his bones, ligaments, and tendons.
This was a show of absolute control over his own body, the depth and level of this control showing the true essence of his martial arts realm.
The biggest difference between a person and a martial arts grandmaster was the extent to which they could control themselves.
Even if a normal person had the same body, they could only control their limbs and their mind. A powerful grandmaster was different, they could even surpass the external form and control their internal organs, and the even stronger ones could even control their endocrine secretions, the speed of their blood flow, their heart rate, turning their circulations on and off at will, et cetera. These tiny micro-controls allowed a martial arts master to create an unbelievable effect using the same resources.
And Garen was one such master.
Now that he was in this pinch, if he could not find the way to overcome the Black Mudskipper King, he might not be able to get off with just injuries.
The high-speed battle between him and the Black Mudskipper King took up a lot of Garen's stamina with every passing second, his chest breathing in large amounts of oxygen as though it was a set of bellows, the sound clearly audible in the dark space.
Garen had already calculated it carefully, he would be able to last ten minutes more at the most. If the time passed and he still could not figure out a way, then he would have no choice but to be eliminated.
The resources on the Spirit Mothership were all peak-level resources that even the sects could not get, Garen would not be able to accept being eliminated just like that.
He was aware of his own condition, with the physical state of this body, it would take him at least ten years or more to get to Level Five. If he could not find a good way to increase his potential, the prodigies at the same level would leave him so far behind in the dust. As for the test in the City of Nagadako, the talent he showed was that of a twenty-year-old becoming a Level Three Energy Machinist. Others thought that he relied on his talent to get there, but he himself knew very well that he had used his Intelligence points, and even then, he could only be called a prodigy in the early stages. Towards the end, the growth in his Intelligence would never be able to keep up with the real peak-level talents. After all, he had forcibly raised his Intelligence using those potential points.
And this Spirit Mothership would be a very good opportunity for him.
As his mind kept turning, all of Garen's muscles also began to tremor and shake uncontrollably.
Bam!
The Black Mudskipper King waved its tail, and created another explosion in mid-air, its speed increasing explosively as it shot straight for Garen's head.
Just then, in that instant, Garen's eyes caught a glimpse of the ripples from the waving of the Black Mudskipper King's tail. The muscles in his right hand distorted and shook into a strange state.
”Found it!!”
Abruptly, Garen's right hand quickly darted up, like a poisonous snake shooting out of the grass. It instantly jabbed towards the Black Mudskipper King that was shooting towards him.