Prologue 51 (Part 1) How Badly Do You Want It? (7)

A wall of sand covered Gramanos's Amalganom's front and back as sge ran forward. The ground would not allow her to stay for more than 3 seconds on one spot because of the blistering heat. But, besides her already bloody feet, she reached the stairs with spoked landings and she did not want to stop because she needed the momentum to cross over.

Shlick

Shlick

Shlick

The piercing spikes sunk into her feet with each rising step but she kept her eyes on the ring in the air.

Shlick

Shlick

Shlick

She imagined the satisfaction when she won, the change of status that would allow her unleash her masochistic tantrums upon the nations.

Shlick

Shlick

Shlick…

When she reached the final step, she roared as she leaped though a ring.

RUMBLE!!!

Thunder struck at the defensive sand barrier and still penetrated it to hit her, making her buckle as she fell.

Crack!

Her hip was pit of joint because ber body had already been repositioned because of he lightening bolt. But she could not wait because of the heat of this area that was worse than the last. 2 seconds were all she could limp as she gritted her teeth and sauntered forward in crumpled haste.

She realised that she could not run and make a jump without 2 good legs. So she had to run around in loops as she coild not stay on the same blistering hot spot. And she ran in circles…

…until she heard a…

Click.

Now adjusting her run again she leaned forward and blazed through penetrating cuts that perforated her soles.

She leapt again through the ring.

RUMBLE!

This time 2 bolts struck her but she had locked herself in a box of sand so that what disrupted her rhythm was the not the lightening, but the shockwaves produced from the overlapping thunder.

Luckily though, she did not break her hip bone this time. And she jumped to her feet but out of necessity, because the heat she felt would not let her relax for a second.

The air shimmered and each sweat dropped to the ground became steam.

Snarling, she fueled her doubt into anger and pushed forward until she found the stairs in her vision. Gramanos Amalganom did not remember the journey to the stairs, neither did she remember going through another ring in the air. However, the thunder rumbling in her system almost made her cough up blood even though the lightning had been thoroughly blocked and negated.

RUMBLE!!

She fell wrongly but righted her self and jumped to her toes when she was stably on her feet. Half a second was enough to get her feeling like her skin was boiling directly on the fire without a pot between them.

Her bloody feet were now thoroughly seared, but letting herself rest was not an option. So, the Royal Sphinx could only egg herself forward with a will born of the hope of eventually reaching some hopeful finishing point.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could not make it through

Land.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could not make it through

Land.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could not make it through

Land.

Gramanos Amalgamom's skin was beginning to be left back with every passing step as the lightning began breaking through her defense.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could now hit her in its myriad numbers.

Land.

She stumbled when she landed but quickly upright herself with a jerk of hr torso when she realised that her hands on the ground would be a terrible idea.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could now hit her in its myriad numbers.

Land.

It was tempting to let her knees hit the ground but she started and forced them back to a straight stance before running again. The air now looked as if she was thoroughly underwater and she had to force in air through her mouth and nostrils as she felt choked by the density of heat in the air. The ground too was now white hot and running only added injuries that her cultivation healed.

Gramanos Amalganom could now only allow her senses to guide her because she was not willing to allow her eyes to be stung by relentless pouring sweat from her scalp and forehead.

Shlick!

Shlick

Shlick

Remembering to sneak a peak when she hit the stairs, she was surprised about her unspoken gratitude for the pain she was now dealt.

Shlick!

Shlick

Shlick

The Gramanos Sphinx next felt Thunder shake up her landing which fell on her back which she made into a roll. Her hands had lost a layer of flesh as she stood up.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could now hit her in its myriad numbers.

Land.

The floor was so bright that even after running for a while she had to look where she thought was up before she could discern the ring which meant that the stairs was also in that direction.

Burn

Pierce

Jump

Struck by thunder after lightening could now hit her in its myriad numbers.

Land.

Gramanos Amalganom fell on her face and tris getting up when she saw that her hands fingers had fused onto each other and he had half a left foot. The other was tested and bent in a funny way. The hair on her scalp was also entirely gone and she had lost all the fat in her body.

Wheezing, because she saw that the brightness of the ground and the growing intensity of the had made her miss these damages, the Royal Sphinx jumps to her feet to see she had passed through a membrane.

She looked around and hoped she could wait for the next round.

Allowances.

1.

Passing the 1st Run Means you can use Ko-jin *internally* for one of the tracks.

Unused

2.

You can rest until fully healed before you begin.

Used

3

Ko-jin can be used externally.

Used

4 you can rest fully before you begin

Sleepwalking still Counts as exercise – ha!

She read that line and narrowed her eyes before making assumptions in her head and then drinking the RestrictionTribulationPotion . Next, the Royal Sphinx made her way towards the next membrane. Then, she laughed because lady luck had finally decided to show her grace.

Sphinx had ability of hypnosis, though theirs was directed to sand.

But the 2nd step to that technique was hypnosis on self. Unlike the one Uniah Gramanos had used in the match against Kazu Nini, she could give it adequate adjustments so that it would benefit her.

Looks like she would have to use her 2nd Allowance already. Well, she was already 5 tracks in. So, she might as well roll the dice. Thus, at the surprise of the viewers, she simply stepped forwards and did not use any allowance in her disfigured state.

When she passed through the membrane their eyes widened like understanding.

Beneath her, and beneath a rope that extended all the way for 1,000 meters, were knives and spears and sharp objects that faced the sky. And just when she was about to walk down the tight rope, she noticed that there was a rain of GhostNeedles dropping down silently and nicking at the rope so that less would remain each second she hesitated.

But that was not all, Gramanos Amalganom had her vision blur for a second and she noticed that there was Sleeping Gas in the air.

Se chuckled and used an allowance.

"*Self Hypnotic Art: Consciousness Pyramid Model.*"

Right as her eyes became glazed, her what was left of her charred and burnt lips spoke as if she were a robot or had no soul.

"Super Conscious- 100% Reflex"

"Pre Conscious – 100% Muscle Memory

"Conscious – 0% Rest for a half an hour and scramble for the membrane if not already out. But if already out, then instantly awaken."

"Unconscious – 100% Sleep Walk"

"Sub Conscious – 100% Adapt"

Walking at a steady pace, Gramanos Amalganom began walking the tight rope ignoring the GhostNeedles which ate away at the rope and her skin. That is the ones she did not dodge to the bst of her ability while he walked the tight rope.

At certain intervals when the rope was mysteriously yanked, she would flip and catch it with her claws. Some moments had her using one hand, the other 2.

When the roped began to loose deth and swayed form side to side, the Sleep walk began looking like he was drifting and performing a wonderful dance.

When the breadth of he rope was beginning to close in, she turned her body sideways and walked in graceful twists and turns of 1 leg over the other. At some point, it even resembled ballet.

And this eas with her previous scars of the former track that had not healed because of he TribulationRestrictionPotions that she had to ingest before each trial.

While the onlookers were astounded and Uniah Gramanos was wondering if she should make the last trial to be that Gramanos Amalganom would teach her the wonderful technique, it was otherwise uneventful.

Gasps of admiration would have preceded heavy awe on how the Gramanos family were indeed worthy of their name dor both branch and direct families, but Uniah Gramaos had made things clear.

The Royal Noble Sphinx saw the technique and wondered how it would have helped her in her fight against Kazu Nini. In fact, if Gramanos Amalganom failed, she might keep her as a lap dog.