Space rippled violently as the purple-robed youth unleashed his saber strike. The powerful blade-qi smashed into the Testing Screen, causing it to tremble—but the screen held firm and did not shatter under his attack.
With such a powerful attack, everyone expected the rebound force to injure him. But to their surprise, the purple-robed youth spun rapidly and flew toward the edge of the arena, using the recoil to his advantage and avoiding harm. The crowd was taken aback by his skill.
In everyone’s mind, one thought popped up: expert! All eyes were on the youth, eager to see what his combat score would be. Yet the purple-robed youth merely frowned slightly, as if unsatisfied with his own strike, his gaze fixed on the Testing Screen.
A flash of white light appeared on the screen, revealing a number. The crowd gasped—this was the highest score so far: eighty-six points. It proved the purple-robed youth’s talent was truly formidable.
He was only at early-stage Nether Emperor realm, so scoring this high was no easy feat. The Testing Screen treats every contestant equally—higher cultivation means you need greater attack power to score well. Hitting eighty-six showed just how extraordinary that saber strike was.
“Combat score: eighty-six points. You have two more attempts—want to try again?” the elder asked the purple-robed youth.
“No need. That was my highest score—I doubt anyone can surpass it. Let’s leave it at that,” the purple-robed youth replied coolly. His words were arrogant, and many contestants who hadn’t tested yet felt a surge of discontent.
The purple-robed youth then left the arena, and a white-robed youth stepped up next. On the VIP platform, King Grant Gu looked a bit disappointed—he’d expected his son to reach ninety points. Eighty-six was the highest so far, but with so many contestants left, it was anyone’s guess who would end up first.
“King Gu, your son did well! Looks like first place is his for sure. When the time comes, Serene will have no choice but to pick your son. Congratulations!” King Warren Lin said with a smile.
“King Lin, don’t jump to conclusions so quickly. There are still plenty of contestants who haven’t tested yet. Among the strong, there’s always someone stronger—maybe an even greater talent is waiting in the wings. This test measures potential, not raw strength. If it were about true power, no one could match my son, but when it comes to potential, it’s hard to say,” King Gu replied.
King Lin chuckled, "You don't need to worry. If anyone scores higher than your son, I'll personally help you cut him down. That way, you won't have any worries. Of course, if King Zhao still refuses to recognize the situation, Serene Nether City is in for a good show."
King Gu just smiled faintly and said nothing. He knew exactly what King Lin was up to. Even though the three powers were united for now, it was all about mutual exploitation. He couldn't be bothered to argue about these things.
On the arena, exclamations and sighs kept erupting. Some passed the test in one go, while others tried three times, only to be struck by the screen's violent rebound and end up seriously injured—yet still failed to qualify and were ruthlessly eliminated.
Time flew by in the tense, fierce elimination rounds, and soon it was afternoon. Only two people remained before Chase Chu’s turn. Even his palms were starting to sweat a little.
The highest score so far was still the 86 points earned by King Gu’s purple-robed son. No one had managed to break that number. Second place was 84—a full two points behind.
Second place was also a youth, from a hidden sect. He’d tested twice: 81 points the first time, 84 the second. He didn’t dare try a third, because the rebound from his second attempt had already left him badly injured.
If he tried a third time, his score might drop into the seventies or even lower. That would just be humiliating, so he wisely chose to quit.
At this moment, Evan Chu watched Chase intently. Chase’s cultivation wasn’t that high, but Evan had personally awakened his bloodline and fully opened his Hidden Divine Meridians. He was confident Chase’s combat value would be even greater.
The Testing Screen’s score was calibrated for each realm. Otherwise, any Nether Emperor could casually crush a Nether General’s full-power strike. The score really measured potential, not just raw power.
Soon, the two ahead of Chase finished their tests and were eliminated. Now it was his turn. He strode quickly onto the arena and stopped in front of the Testing Screen.
During the previous tests, a few beast clan contestants had transformed into their true forms to take the test, but only one managed to pass. It definitely added some excitement to the event.
Up on the viewing platform, Evan Chu, King Zhao, and Princess Serene all stared intently at Chase. Princess Serene, in particular, was completely focused on him, making several of the qualified contestants—including the purple-robed youth—feel jealous and unhappy.
Chase glanced at the Testing Screen, then drew a white longsword from his storage ring. He didn’t have any powerful martial techniques to use—his father’s arts were too profound and required special opportunities and physique, so he still hadn’t learned any unique skills.
He quickly circulated the Nether force inside his body. But Chase now had not just one kind of energy—he possessed three: his own dragon power, Immortal Spirit Force, and Nether force. All three existed in his dantian, yet there was no mutual repulsion, though they hadn’t fused either.
At first, Chase had been shocked by this situation, but now he just accepted it. As long as there were no side effects, he believed he would eventually fuse all three powers. Once that happened, his strength would skyrocket, and he’d break through several realms at once.
Chase slashed out with his sword, then used the rebound force to flip in midair and land steadily on the stage. Plenty of people could do this move, but the rebound always came so suddenly that most failed to react in time.
After landing, Chase waited for the number to appear on the screen. When the light faded and the score popped up, he couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed.
"Combat value: seventy-five! That’s a pretty good score! You still have two more chances—want to keep going?" the supervising elder asked gently. He’d already taken note of Chase’s impressive answer in the Literary Gate, and now, seeing such a high combat score, realized this youth was truly gifted in both mind and martial arts.
"Yes!" Chase replied calmly, but his gaze was already locked on Princess Serene up in the VIP stands…