Sen Sha faced the onslaught of three desert scorpions. His figure blurred into afterimages as countless sand cannonballs spat from their mouths, engulfing everything before him like a torrential downpour. Yet, Sen Sha remained unfazed. These three desert scorpions were utterly different from any he had encountered before, though he couldn't pinpoint the exact difference. However, he was certain of one thing: the challenges ahead would only grow more difficult. He had underestimated this trial. Weaving through the barrage of attacks with remarkable agility, sand cannonballs whizzed past him. Sen Sha suddenly appeared before one of the desert scorpions, channeling all his strength into a single punch. The full might of his body erupted as the blow landed squarely on the scorpion.
*Boom!* An explosion echoed. Sen Sha had instantly killed it. It seemed his full power was enough to obliterate these three scorpions. Without hesitation, he unleashed three more punches. Two more sounds rang out, followed by continuous explosions. The three desert scorpions met their end before Sen Sha. He stood still, contemplating. If the enemies were meant to grow stronger, the next wave would consist of four scorpions, and their strength would be such that he couldn't defeat them with a single blow. He would have to fight with all his might just to overcome the previous three, let alone the upcoming four. Sen Sha remained frozen, fearing he might not be a match for the next wave.
Given the seemingly arduous nature of this trial, Sen Sha remained motionless. Meanwhile, Chen Tian's figure transformed into a streak of light, surging forward. He soon reached his intended destination: the seabed. The seabed was eerily empty, devoid of even a trace of sand, which struck Chen Tian as even stranger. It was precisely this peculiarity that led Chen Tian to deduce the true mechanism lay here. Chen Tian opened his palm, and the surrounding seawater began to swirl, forming a sapphire-blue water sphere. The sphere expanded continuously, soon reaching the size of a planet.
Chen Tian tossed the water sphere downwards. As it descended towards the seabed, immense power was unleashed, causing the seafloor to tremble. Chen Tian’s lips curved upwards. "So, it was here all along?"
Just as Chen Tian's water sphere was about to shatter the seabed, a blue beam of light shot towards the heavens. It directly collided with Chen Tian's water sphere, piercing through it and causing it to dissipate. A figure then hurtled towards Chen Tian, launching a sharp, blue beam of light. Chen Tian engaged, opening his palm to catch the incoming light and then casually flicking it away, sending the figure flying. Chen Tian turned to face the receding form.
It was an ethereal being, its body a vibrant blue, with a small and endearing frame. It appeared utterly charming. Chen Tian had to admit the creature was indeed cute, but cuteness wouldn't sustain him or make him stronger. Chen Tian said calmly, "So, you've finally revealed yourself?"
"You... you..."
With a resentful pout, the blue figure finally grumbled, "Fine, since you've caught me, this trial is ultimately yours. You must be my destined one."
"Destined one, the spirit of the Sea City is here. Do you accept the trial?"
Chen Tian's game interface popped up. He clicked "yes." Who would refuse a quest in a game? He clicked without even reading the quest details, a decisive move. The Sea Spirit nodded. "Destined one, you will now enter a trial space. The trial is divided into three layers. Only by passing all trials can you possess my abilities and power, and have me recognize you as master."
The Sea Spirit opened its palm, and a blue vortex materialized. Chen Tian stepped forward, and his figure vanished the next second. The vortex disappeared. The speed was so great that even the Sea Spirit couldn't react. The Sea Spirit sensed the trial had begun. How did it feel like it had been tricked? This person's power was so monstrous; wouldn't its trials feel like mere child's play? The Sea Spirit touched its forehead. Unlike the other three beings, it possessed its own thoughts and had been very cautious in choosing a destined one.
It had been so cautious, trying to avoid Chen Tian, yet Chen Tian had found it anyway. It seemed Chen Tian was indeed its destined one, and there was no escaping it.
Chen Tian entered the vortex. The space within was a vast expanse of ocean. Before the Sea Spirit could even speak, Chen Tian moved his legs. All the seawater in the ocean gathered above Chen Tian's head, forming a blue canopy of water. With a thought, Chen Tian caused the canopy to explode into steam.
The Sea Spirit was speechless. The first stage hadn't even begun, and it was already over. Chen Tian smirked. He possessed the ability to control energy; the entire ocean was his to command. The Sea Spirit's trial was far too simple for Chen Tian.
A vortex appeared, and Chen Tian entered it. The second stage was also over the ocean. This time, when Chen Tian activated his abilities, he discovered that the ocean's seawater could not be manipulated. This stage had slightly more rules. What Chen Tian didn't know was that the Sea Spirit had suddenly changed the rules. If Chen Tian could pass like this, it felt like the trials it had set were too simple, lacking any real difficulty.
*Wooooosh~*
A sound emanated from the ocean. A giant squid, composed entirely of seawater, stood before Chen Tian. As the Sea Spirit was about to speak, Chen Tian simply opened his eyes. The seawater squid exploded, turning into steam.
The Sea Spirit had just begun to speak!
"Does Chen Tian have to be this overpowered? This completely defies common sense!"
Chen Tian entered the vortex and soon emerged. The Sea Spirit watched Chen Tian with a fierce but cute grumble. A mission completion notification appeared for Chen Tian, granting him a series of items. However, what caught Chen Tian's attention was the presence of symbols from the stone tablet among the rewards. So, the intention was to place the symbols on the stone tablet. To find the symbols, one had to complete trials.
The Sea Spirit, clearly annoyed, turned into a stream of blue water and flowed into Chen Tian, merging completely with him. It didn't explain its purpose. The Sea Spirit was still angry. Chen Tian had completed the three stages so quickly that it hadn't even had time to speak. Chen Tian had completely looked down on it.
Chen Tian shook his head and murmured, "Rather childish."
Afterward, Chen Tian paid the Sea Spirit no further mind. The Sea Spirit was expecting Chen Tian to apologize, but Chen Tian wasn't considering it at all. Chen Tian swam upwards towards the surface of the pool. If one symbol required the completion of one trial, then four stone tablets corresponded to four trials. Chen Tian needed to find something similar to the Sea Spirit to obtain the symbol items. Chen Tian emerged from the pool, which rippled with beautiful water droplets and splashes. Chen Tian stood on the ground.
He extended his senses but couldn't detect Sen Sha's location. Had something happened to Sen Sha? Had he died or become trapped somewhere?
Chen Tian opened his friends list. Sen Sha's status was online. It seemed Sen Sha hadn't died, but he didn't know where he was. Chen Tian tried to send Sen Sha a message, but it received no response.
The Sea Spirit spoke, "There's no need to worry. Your friend is currently undergoing the trial for the second stone tablet."
Chen Tian felt relieved upon hearing this. He walked towards another direction. Chen Tian still needed to find the other two symbols. He carefully trod along the path.
Meanwhile, Sen Sha watched as the four desert scorpions dissolved into nothingness. He panted heavily, taking out some food and water from his backpack. His vitality was nearing zero, and he needed to replenish it. Fortunately, Chen Tian's house had an abundance of food and water, which he had stored in his backpack; otherwise, he wouldn't have made it this far.
"But next are five scorpions, and they should be even stronger. I need to find a way."
Sen Sha fell into deep thought. A direct confrontation was out of the question. The desert scorpions grew stronger with each stage. Moreover, Sen Sha noticed something: the scorpions were becoming more realistic as the trials progressed, as if evolving into genuine scorpions. This was why Sen Sha's initial attacks could instantly kill them, but later required more force, and eventually his full power. In any game, a monster's carapace provided a certain degree of protection.
The early desert scorpions' carapaces hadn't fully formed, making them equivalent to having zero defense. As their carapaces solidified and became more realistic, Sen Sha's attacks could no longer achieve instant kills. Sen Sha pondered. He couldn't use his skills here; he would need them later when facing a staggering ninety-nine hundred desert scorpions. Who knew what that scenario would entail? Skills were essential.
"Right! How could I forget that?"
Sen Sha opened his inventory panel. His backpack was filled with various materials. Sen Sha spotted a tooth. He took the tooth out of his backpack. Sen Sha had obtained this item but hadn't used it yet, saving it as a trump card. It seemed he would have to use it here. However, he still had another trump card. As long as he completed this trial, he wouldn't lose; instead, he would profit.
After finishing his food and water, Sen Sha rested for a while. His vitality recovered to a little over half. Sen Sha stepped forward. Before him, sand coalesced, forming five desert scorpions that advanced towards him. This time was different from before; these desert scorpions had learned to move, becoming increasingly realistic.
The desert scorpions he had encountered previously had remained stationary, firing sand projectiles. The current desert scorpions attacked proactively. Sen Sha picked up the tooth and blew on a section of it, causing it to emit a white light that pierced through all the desert scorpions.
Sen Sha said calmly, "It seems it can be used multiple times. This should be enough."
Sen Sha looked confidently at the tooth in his hand. The light on it had dimmed slightly, but the energy within was still sufficient for Sen Sha to use.
This was one of Sen Sha's trump cards, and anything that served as a trump card possessed extraordinary power.
With the help of the tooth, Sen Sha advanced. The previously difficult desert scorpions were now easily dealt with. Sen Sha finally reached the final stage: ninety-nine hundred desert scorpions. The tooth turned to dust.
The power within the tooth was completely depleted, just as Sen Sha had anticipated. Fortunately, he still had his skills.
A flurry of skill-based attacks ensued, with explosions and special effects filling the air. A vortex appeared before Sen Sha, and he stepped into it, finally passing the first stage.
Beyond the vortex was the familiar desert. Sen Sha wondered if the game developers had run out of ideas, fearing that all three trial stages might be set in the same map.
If so, teleportation was pointless.
"Second trial: Slay the Sand Giant."
The voice of the Sand Spirit echoed. All the sand in the desert converged to form a colossal giant. Sen Sha looked up in awe; it was incredibly tall.