The Third Trial – Part 1

As the lead examiner confirmed that all students had lined up according to their respective power levels, he signaled for the examiners to take their positions, ensuring fair evaluation and preventing any form of cheating. However, at the second row where the Beast Tamers of Bronze rank stood a voice suddenly rang out.

"Ye Feng, are you sure you're in the right line? You wouldn't want your test scores to suffer, would you?"

Ye Feng remained silent, showing no reaction. He simply stood in his place, ignoring the surrounding chatter. But his friend, unable to tolerate the taunts, snapped back immediately.

"Maybe you should worry about yourself first before worrying about others!"

Another student scoffed, adding mockingly, "And if you mess up, don't expect Major He Lianqi to clean up after you like always."

Ye Feng clenched his fists tightly. Fury surged through him, his eyes burning with suppressed anger. The air around him grew heavy, thick with tension. The examiners, sensing the growing hostility, quickly gave the order to commence the trial before a fight could break out.

In the first row reserved for Silver-rank Beast Tamers one of the examiners called out.

"Gu Tian!"

The moment he heard his name, Gu Tian stepped forward, his footsteps echoing through the examination hall. The examiner continued.

"Summon your beast."

Gu Tian spoke softly.

"Grim."

BOOM!

An overwhelming aura of darkness and death erupted from Grim's form, swallowing the entire battlefield in an eerie, suffocating presence. The air turned ice-cold in an instant, sending shivers down the spines of the students. Even some of the examiners instinctively took a step back, their breaths quickening as a deep, primal fear settled into their bones.

Ye Feng, standing nearby, felt his body tremble uncontrollably. His heart pounded wildly against his chest. It wasn't just fear his instincts screamed at him that if he ever had to fight this beast… he would die.

Shen Ya, observing from the sidelines, narrowed her eyes as she recognized Grim for what it was. "So this is the pre-evolved form of the God of Death… I've never seen it in person before. Even though it hasn't reached its full form, its aura remains just as terrifying as the legends say."

Wu Shuang, too, watched the scene with keen interest, though his thoughts were more analytical. When he tried to scan Grim's stats, all he got was a blank screen.

[Name: ???]

[Power Level: ???]

[Abilities: ???]

[Potential: ???]

[Evolution Path: ???]

Wu Shuang frowned slightly and muttered, "Damn system," before shifting his gaze to Gu Tian, intrigued.

Gu Tian then issued a cold command. "Merge with all undead."

Without hesitation, Grim absorbed the energy of all the undead it had previously raised in Gu Tian's personal realm ten in total. Its deathly aura surged to an even higher level, darkening the surroundings further.

Gasps and whispers broke out among the students.

"This is insane... What the hell is that thing!?"

Ignoring the commotion, Gu Tian raised his hand and gave his next order. "Attack the test dummy."

BOOM!

Grim lifted its cursed blade and slashed, unleashing a massive black energy wave infused with death. The air itself seemed to scream as the attack streaked toward the Silver-rank test dummy positioned in the center of the field.

186,852.

The moment the dark energy wave made contact, a bright red number flashed across the test dummy's display.

Silence fell over the entire testing ground.

Examiners' eyes widened in sheer disbelief. Some even stumbled back a step, their faces pale. Students gawked, mouths hanging open.

"W-What… did I just see?" one stammered.

"This has to be a mistake… right? I'm dreaming, aren't I!?"

The head examiner swallowed hard before speaking in a hoarse voice. "In all my years of overseeing this exam, I have never witnessed a number like that."

"The highest record in history before today was 85,570... set last year."

But then, something even more shocking happened—the number on the screen continued to rise.

186,852.

286,852.

386,852.

...

...

686,852.

...

An examiner, staring at the screen in horror, murmured, "That's… dark energy corrosion?"

...

...

986,852.

BOOM!

The test dummy, unable to withstand the relentless onslaught, exploded into countless fragments, scattering across the battlefield.

A deafening silence blanketed the room once more. No one could process what they had just witnessed.

The examiner overseeing the Silver-rank tests struggled to find words, but before he could speak, the head examiner stepped forward and declared loudly.

"Gu Tian SSS+ rank."

The examiner who had been about to speak hesitated, looking at the head examiner as if he wanted to protest. But in the end, he simply recorded the score.

Moments later, another test dummy was brought out to replace the destroyed one. The examiner took a deep breath before calling out.

"Wu Shuang."

Meanwhile, the head examiner glanced toward the other lines and shouted.

"What are you all waiting for!? Begin the tests!"

His command snapped the students out of their stupor. They hastily returned to their tests, but murmurs and whispers still filled the air.

"What… what the hell was that?"

"What kind of beast does Young Master Gu have!? I've never seen an undead-type like that before."

"Neither have I…"

Another student muttered in disbelief, "That attack… it could probably rival a Gold or even a Platinum-rank attack."

For the first time since the start of the trials, an unshakable truth settled into the hearts of everyone present

Gu Tian was on an entirely different level.