Chapter 88: 88

The geniuses on the Darkness Altar all had black fog—which seeped into their bodies—rising from beneath their feet .

Meanwhile, Ji Yuantong regained consciousness . Ji Yuantong’s gaze swept around him . Only nine people have been eliminated? His heart sank . I’m ranked 92nd out of a hundred people?

How proud was he?

He had been supercilious towards his peers since he was young . He couldn’t care less about his siblings . His family clan also nurtured him with all their might, hoping that the Ji family would produce another powerful Godfiend .

He had regarded Meng Chuan as his only competitor in Archean Mountain’s entrance examination . However, he was ranked near the bottom for the final assessment .

Their wills are all stronger than mine? Ji Yuantong looked at the geniuses above him . Many of them had never consumed natural treasures before . He had thought nothing of them in the past, but these geniuses were slowly advancing step by step . As for him, he had already been eliminated .

…

Ji Yuantong’s potential needs to be greatly reconsidered . I hope there won’t be any accidents with the others that have strong Godfiend foundations . This was a common thought shared by many Godfiends .

Archean Mountain valued Godfiends with strong foundations, high cultivation realms, and good combat talent . They hoped that the geniuses wouldn’t be lacking when it came to willpower .

One after another, geniuses collapsed as they ascended the altar .

“Hahaha…”

The Godfiends suddenly laughed . This was because among these geniuses, the youngest genius—Yan Chitong—had stopped at the 22nd step . His eyes had also turned pitch-black . King East River smiled as he moved Yan Chitong down .

“Marquis West Sea, your son is not bad . ”

“That’s right . To be able to reach the 22nd step of the Darkness Altar at the age of thirteen is already very impressive . ”

“His mind is still maturing . He’s very outstanding for reaching the 22nd step,” commented the Godfiends while smiling .

Yan Chitong was still a teenager . However, Ji Yuantong was already an adult . An adult’s mind was typically mature, but he only reached the seventeenth step . This truly broke the hearts of many Godfiends .

I actually lost . Yan Chitong returned to his senses as well . He couldn’t help but clench his fists indignantly as he stared at the geniuses still on the Darkness Altar . However, when his gaze landed on Ji Yuantong, he grinned .

…

The 30th step was Archean Mountain’s minimum requirement for their future Godfiends . Fortunately, the other geniuses—who they thought highly of—with strong Godfiend foundations had all achieved the minimum requirement . Among 100 geniuses, 26 had failed to reach the 30th step .

“Huh?”

“Chu Yong also stopped?”

The Godfiends frowned slightly .

The former number one genius of the capital, Chu Yong, stopped at the 38th step . His eyes turned pitch-black, and he stood still like a statue . Although he had passed the demarcating line, his result of 38 steps was very mediocre . It was below average amongst the 100 geniuses .

But following that, Princess Li Ying and Jin Huan—whose speed was second only to Meng Chuan—stopped at the 39th step .

“What?”

“The three of them stopped in succession . ”

King East River and the others frowned slightly . Other than Yan Chitong, those with robust Godfiend foundations numbered ten . They were none other than Chu Yong, Yan Feng, Meng Chuan, Yan Jin, Zong Sha, Li Ying, Jin Huan, Ning Yibo, Dong Fang, and Ji Yuantong . Apart from Yan Feng having a fortuitous encounter, the rest were specially nurtured by their family clans .

Their cultivation realms and Godfiend foundations were extremely profound . Ji Yuantong had broken many people’s hearts after halting on the 17th step . Chu Yon had stopped at the 37th, while Li Ying and Jin Huan had stopped at the 39th step . Their results were below average . Soon, the brawny Dong Fang stopped at the 43rd step . He was considered average, ranking fiftieth .

“Out of the ten geniuses with robust Godfiend foundations, half of them are below the 50th step . ” The Godfiends watched calmly . This was something they had expected . One’s Godfiend foundation and talent had nothing to do with willpower . Of the 100 geniuses, 61 didn’t reach the 50th step . It was normal if half of those—with strong Godfiend foundations—to fail to reach the 50th step . The ratio was expected .

…

Time passed .

The geniuses advanced up the altar step by step .

Ning Yibo stopped on the 59th step and was moved away from the Darkness Altar .

Oh? When Ning Bo regained consciousness, he raised his head and saw that the slowest remaining genius on the Darkness Altar was at the 60th step . There are still 18 geniuses left on the Darkness Altar .

Among the geniuses he paid much attention to, only Meng Chuan, Yan Jin, Zong Sha, and Yan Feng were still climbing the Darkness Altar with great difficulty .

Meng Chuan felt like he was in a nightmare that he couldn’t wake up from . He could sense his body, but it was like he was in a trance .

These are all illusions . They are all fake . Continue walking . Meng Chuan tried to maintain clarity of his mind and forced his body to continue moving .

Illusions constantly barraged his mind, making him feel like he had fallen into an abyss . He was starting to confuse his real memories with the illusions . It was as though the illusions were real .

Wake up . Stay awake . Meng Chuan roared angrily . You can’t hold on because of these puny illusions? You want to kill all demons with such willpower?

He was furious . He was angry about being affected by the illusions . However, no matter how angry he was, his memories became blurrier as his consciousness sank deeper into the illusions . The illusions became closer and closer to reality .

In one illusion, he was a soldier . He and his companions faced the overwhelming horde of demons on the battlefield . His companions died one after another .

I can’t stop them . I can’t . How can I withstand so many demons alone? I’ll be killed . He and his remaining companions were gripped with fear . Countless demons surged towards them . He only had a few allies left by his side . His comrades were torn apart, and their blood splattered on his body .

Fear and despair filled his heart .

Eventually, he was the only human alive on the battlefield! All his comrades lay dead as countless demons charged at him ferociously .

There was no hope! It was over!

How can this be me? So weak and so fearful! How can this be me?

An angry roar sounded in his heart .

He felt pure anger .

He was angry at his weakness, angry that this was all fake!

Even if I—Meng Chuan—were to die today, I’ll continue killing until I drop . If I can kill one demon, I’ll kill one . If I can kill ten, I’ll kill ten . Meng Chuan roared inwardly . I, Meng Chuan, will never fear demons! Even in death!

Meng Chuan’s will condensed, and he escaped the illusions . His perception of his body grew clearer . Meng Chuan regained some control over his mind, and his memories became much clearer .

He remembered that he was still walking on the Darkness Altar .

Continue walking . Remember Eastcalm Prefecture . Remember those weak civilians that used their bodies to block the demons for their children . Remember how Third Elder sacrificed himself for the young clansmen .

For generations, people have charged forward . I’m also one of them . How can I be afraid of demons? I once swore an oath to kill all demons! I’ll first sever my weakness and fear!

Meng Chuan’s will continued to condense as he continued climbing the altar .