Yes...praise me more senpai
"Keep quiet while I fight. I don't want to be distracted." Lineir said and Yu gave his assent. He took the first step and then exploded into action aiming for the first altar!
Dang Dang Dang!!
Thunderous footsteps rang out from the metallic floor as Lineir dashed across at top speed. He had thought about maintaining a stealthy position, but as soon as he stepped on the bridge he felt some sort of formation activate and the lanterns began to flash red! He was sure the monsters would be alerted to his presence so while he maintained an alert mindset and was prepared to activate an evasive technique at any time he focused on pure speed rather than stealth! All was quiet for a moment but then a splash sounded on his left.
Whump!
Lineir juked forwards and rolled as a long thin tentacle filled with sharp rotating hooks slammed into the bridge where he had been standing. It was vaguely squidlike, perhaps 30 meters long. As he watched it slid off and fell back into the water.
"Weaker than I expected. Perhaps I should face this first challenge head on!" Lineir pressed his hand down on the bridge. Overtime his body had healed mostly. Of course the mental scar was still open and weeping, affecting his psyche but he could still fight with a great deal of power. As a matter of fact, after unleashing numerous tribulations as trump cards in the Hells, now that he had recuperated, his cultivation had risen to the peak of the Late Divine Realm. Unfortunately it was not very stable due to his mental state and the insane number of backlashes he had suffered but he was actually more powerful than before, stability aside.
"Come at me!" Lineir heard another slight splash as the tentacle broke the waters on the other side of the bridge this time. He leapt into the air to meet it head on!
Darkness Lightning Slash
A thunderous arc crashed into the fanged tentacle which flailed wildly as it was deeply cut into.
Puchi
The tentacle was severed at the middle. It dropped onto the bridge and flopped into the water sinking into the depths. Lineir thought he heard a slight shriek but it could have just been his imagination. All was still as whatever presence was beneath the waters receded back into the depths. The lanterns stopped flashing as brightly and returned to a ghostly ephemeral green fire.
"I guess that means I passed" Lineir thought as the first altar lit up on the left side of the bridge. He paced over and sat down examining the exquisite writing on the tablet. Ornate midnight blue ink filled hand-etched runes which pulsated gently despite their age. Crossing his legs and palms he began to perceive their meaning. After some time he opened his eyes again. They shone with a new light as comprehension dawned upon him. He shook his head.
"This technique, Eight Arms Naga Warrior is not suitable for me at all. I can remember it but studying it would be a waste of time. How disappointing." He said quietly as he stood back up. However, though he found the technique to be of little use he did not despair. There were countless techniques lining the length of the bridge. Provided he had sufficient strength and talent he would surely find one which suited him, probably more.
"Not for you? As I recall this tablet was the Eight Arms Naga Warrior technique. It allows the user to manifest Eight Arms and strike with the flexibility and unpredictability of a Naga. You are right though, it would be a waste for a warrior such as yourself to practice it. Absolutely unsuited to your current swordsmanship. The style you use is very intricate, I wonder where you learned it?" Yu asked but Lineir just shrugged. He felt no need desire to explain his relationship with the Bladelord or the Heaven's Edge Style which had casually been handed to him. "Ehh? No matter Lineir, no need to tell someone whose already dead. Just remember, the third tablet contains the Hematoma style. I can already tell from your mastery of Darkness that it will suit you. You definitely will not come back from this empty handed if you can make it there. Beware though, the monsters' strength increases at an unbelievable rate between each successive altar. The next one will be far stronger! Stay sharp!" As Yu gave him advice Lineir felt like he was back in Nithos with the squad once more. It was a comforting feeling, like returning to his childhood. Alas he would never again get a chance to fight alongside his comrades.
"Got it." Lineir replied succinctly. Then he stepped onto the next section of the bridge and the lanterns began to flash red once more!
Splash!
This time Lineir felt a hungry intent lock onto him as soon as he entered the territory of the beast. This one had been waiting for him to come! He saw a great gleaming body leave the water and soar into the air, perhaps twenty meters long. This was a great carp! It soared up as if trying to leap over the Dragon's Gate and opened its mouth which was large enough to swallow Lineir whole. He felt a sudden sucking force on him locking down the area as the carp was actually instinctively able to attack with Spatial Laws!
"Mmm?" Lineir also instinctively reacted with his own Laws activating his Darkness Qi which suddenly gave his body a great unmovable weight. Like a heavy rock he stuck to the bridge and took up a stance with his blade arced over his head and his free hand forward. The massive carp approached with surprising speed, however it didn't expect Lineir to be completely unmoved by its spatial devouring ability. At the end of the day, though it was a Magical Beast, it was still a carp!
Sssssssssssshing!
Lineir suddenly released the Darkness Qi on his feet and dashed to the side running the black blade along the side of the carp's gleaming flank. He flayed it from chest to tail, sparkling dark blood splashing into the air! The carp soared past and entered the water, a brief red spot blossoming before fading away. The lanterns returned to green and the next altar on the right lit up. Lineir slowly paced over. His only response,
"This seems too easy..." He said emotionlessly. Yu was also puzzled,
"Mmm the beasts are definitely easier than when I came here I think. Perhaps their difficulty changes depending on the cultivation level of the challenger?" He said and Lineir shook his head.
"Perhaps you're right brother, but you were probably not at that much higher a cultivation level than me when you attempted this. There's something strange about this trial." He said before sitting down to meditate on the tablet. Once again the tablet pulsed with inky blue liquid and illuminated itself for him.
"Carp's Great Devourer. Another ability which is fairly useless for me. While I certainly can use it, my innate skills with darkness already supersede the mysteries of this technique. I can only continue onward.
"Don't worry, the next one should be the tablet which I gleaned the mysteries to derive the Hematoma technique from. Its abilities will definitely satisfy you. Watch out though, this guardian will be far more powerful. Even if the trial's difficulty has been scaled back this one should not be underestimated!" Yu warned but Lineir just stepped forward callously.
"Nothing to do but face it head on." He brandished his sword and the lanterns signaled his coming to the monster below. It did not immediately break the surface but Lineir got the impression that he was being watched from the water somewhere. If he could activate his Madness Eyes he would be able to see it but as he was he could only pace down the length of the bridge and wait to be attacked. Suddenly he felt a great accumulation of energy from the water nearby on his right. It felt oddly familiar...
"Where have I felt this before?" He thought as he spun and blocked with the black blade. A ball of Darkness and Water Qi rushed at him and he quickly did something he normally would not and channeled Flame Qi into the Darkness Blade. The flaming sword and the ball of dense dark water met and exploded as the blade parted through the ball! Lineir felt his feet slide back on the bridge as he was almost blasted off the bridge! This beast was on a different level than the last two! Vaguely he caught sight of a head with its maw opened in the water.