8 Chapter 8- New Tests
After asking many questions about the tower and the other things, his knowledge about the tower was gradually increasing. According to the boy, the tower had 134 floors that were separated into three areas. The inner area, the middle area, and the outer area.
The inner area was actually the place where the tests for regulars were held on each floor, where he was now. It was used exclusively for holding the tests to regulars who climbed the tower. Any unaffiliated person couldn't enter it to keep it from disruptions.
The middle area was the residential area for many wealthy and influential people, including the members of ten great families. It was also used to travel between the inner area and outer area. Xin himself had come from the middle area and followed Headon to become regular.
The outer area was the residential district of the tower inhabitants, in which there lived many native people. Each floor was huge and unlike the inner area, there were different cultures since various races thrived outside the reach of the influence of the ten great families.
Lighthouse was a cube-shaped tool to gather information, or even defend in a fight that was used by the light bearers. However, its main function is to help the light bearers to analyze information in the battle to give the best orders and support their teammates.
"So that's the tower and lighthouse, huh… also the ten great families are the greatest and the most influential power in the tower?" Liu Guanyi nodded as he processed the information and wondered.
"Ah, sorry, I forget! Actually, the ten great families are not the greatest in the tower. They are below the Zahard Empire as they served the Zahard Empire." Xin quickly added.
"Oh? And what's about this Zahard Empire? Why they serve under it, you said they hold great power and influence themselves?" Liu Guanyi curiously inquired.
"W-well, I don't know the reason. I just know that they have been like that since the ancient era." Xin said with a stutter as he nervously scratched his backhand with his fingers and hung down his head.
"It's okay if you don't know, I am just curious. It's not a big deal." Liu Guanyi patted his shoulder.
'This information is truly a lifesaver! It seems that my previous deduction was correct, Headon didn't test Xin but brought him here on the second floor instead. And the Zahard Empire and the ten great families, hmm?'
'I need to be more careful than I expected, maybe I should stay low for now? I don't want them to set their scrutiny on me and expose my origin until I have a proper foothold in the tower.' Liu Guanyi carefully thought.
He pondered over the information and weigh his options as he continued his small talk and rested with Xin in the corner of the hall while the others were talking to each other.
The hall's door suddenly opened as a black-haired man with a red suit came in and the hall became silent.
"Hello, regulars. I am Novec, the test administrator." The red-suited man calmly said with a stoic face.
As soon as the test administrator finished, the noise returned as many people whispered among each other, wondering and talking about the identity of the man.
"Hey, it is the test administrator is he a Ranker?"
"Maybe? I don't really know."
"Of course he is, idiot! Nobody can become an administrator except for Rankers!"
Tired of talking or didn't want to waste more time to shut their mouths, the administrator pushed one of his hands toward the regulars.
A bright blue transparent wall similar to the blue area with the giant eel suddenly materialized and pushed them all to the back of the hall.
"This is a wall made of high concentration Shinsu, you know it yourself. Anyone who could bypass it will be qualified to join the next round of the test. Does anybody of you lot have something to say or argue?" Novec directly took action and explained with an annoyed tone like he just wanted it to end quickly.
"What about him, sir?" One of the regulars spoke as he pointed to the only one left inside the Shinsu wall.
"Huh?!" Looking at where the speaker pointed at, his eyes grew wide as his previously stoic face vanished and changed into a shocked one.
'Shit! There goes my effort of staying low key…' Liu Guanyi cursed inwardly as he knew that he had messed up somehow when he saw all the regulars but him outside the wall.
'Hopefully, I would only be considered a bit more special.' He hoped.
"You passed! Just come here, kid." The administrator ordered.
"Wait, that's unfair! How come he doesn't have to join the test!?"
"Whoa, this is a blatant corruption! Did he bribe the administrator before?" Sounds of complaints came out one after another as the regulars witnessed the unfairness.
"Shut up! I'll kick anyone who still complains! Just do your test or get the f*ck outta here!" The administrator hollered.
The regulars instantly shut up and began to test themselves against the wall. When they poke the wall, it didn't give any resistance, but when they tried to pass their hands, the wall became hard and returned the inertia and pushed them back.
It took a while before one of the regulars managed to bypass it. Surprisingly for Liu Guanyi, it was Xin who did it. But after thinking about it, as a member of the ten great families although he didn't have the talent for lighthouse, he should at least be capable of this since the ten great families must have had something that made them special.
"Wow, you are amazing! How did you do that?" Xin came over and spoke with amazement.
"Well, I did a lot of training back in my hometown, maybe it pays off?" Liu Guanyi just shrugged it off.
"Anyway, can you tell me about Shinsu? It seems very important here."
"What, you didn't know about Shinsu?!" Xin said in surprise.
"Well, I came from a very backwater place in the outer tower, so I don't really know what exactly it is." Liu Guanyi casually gave out a reason.
They continued their talk until all of the regulars were tested, the result was surprising to say the least. From one hundred regulars only about half or so passed the wall. Some of the failed ones begged the administrator but he didn't give a f*ck about them and kicked them out of the hall.
Soon after that, Novec led them to an open field.
"The previous test was made to determine your talent. If you can't even adapt to that concentration level of Shinsu you lot are worthless anyway to even dream climbing the tower."
"Now, after I see you got the potential, I am going to see if you have the determination to keep climbing the tower regardless of what will happen in the way." Novec ruthlessly declared.
.
.
.
.
.
Liu Guanyi didn't get pushed out by the shinsu wall just like Bam since his natural shinsu resistance is very high. This is why he can move quickly in the White Steel Eel's nest without any problem.
