Leon slowly scanned the massive hall of the Advanced Divine Temple, his sharp gaze moving across the countless players gathered within.
Tens of thousands were seated or standing in groups, waiting for their turn before the [Divine Stele] at the center of the chamber.
Despite the sheer number of people present, one familiar presence was missing.
Emilia was nowhere to be seen.
He checked again, this ti more carefully, but there was no sign of her blonde hair or calm aura among the crowd.
’Still in her advancent task,’ he concluded inwardly.
It had already been more than a full day since she entered her assessnt.
Given her talent and temperant, Leon had to assu she got the S-Rank challenge, aning it probably took a long ti.
After all, if she had failed and died during the trial, she would have respawned here by now and likely attempted the A-Rank assessnt instead.
’Maybe she did fail once and tried again,’ Leon considered briefly, though there was no way for him to confirm it yet, and he doubted it.
Regardless, speculating further would not change anything.
His own assessnt awaited him, and focusing on that was the smartest move.
He began walking toward the [Divine Stele], the structure radiating faint divine energy as players approached it one by one to receive their assessnt ranking.
As always, the area around it was crowded.
A loose queue had ford, though "queue" was a generous term, since players constantly shifted positions, trying to inch closer.
Leon took his place without complaint.
While waiting, he opened his status panel to review his current attributes and overall Combat Power.
[Constitution: 11,001 ( 2,900 10,426)]
[Strength: 12,793 ( 7,450 40,486)]
[Agility: 10,644 ( 5,750 8,197)]
[Spirit: 15,364 ( 10,650 52,028)]
[Combat Power: 99,604 ( 295,624)]
"Oh wow."
Even he had not expected the total to climb that high.
His base Combat Power was nearing one hundred thousand on its own, and with all equipnt bonuses and sub-talents factored in, the additional increase pushed him dangerously close to four hundred thousand.
The attribute enhancent sub-talents he had acquired played a massive role in this surge.
And since the S-Rank assessnt only required around 300,000 Combat Power, he knew for sure he’d be able to complete it rather easily.
Ahead of him, players continued stepping forward to touch the Divine Stele.
Fwoosh!
[B-Rank]
Fwoosh!
[D-Rank]
Most outcos were average.
The majority of players received B, C, or D-Rank assessnts, reflecting the natural distribution of talent in the [Lower Domain].
Occasionally, soone would achieve an A-Rank, prompting brief murmurs of admiration from nearby players.
But S-Rank results were very rare.
Eventually, the line thinned, and it was finally Leon’s turn to step forward.
However, just as he prepared to approach the stele—
A sudden commotion erupted behind him.
"HOLY SHIT, IT’S TITAN!"
"WHAT? HERE?"
"Eternal-Level world? I thought they were all in the [Eternal Domain] already!"
Leon turned slightly, watching as the crowd instinctively parted to make way for three imposing figures.
Each of them stood around two ters tall, their crimson skin gleaming faintly under the temple’s divine light.
Curved horns rose from their foreheads, and their physiques were built like walking war machines.
"Oh," Leon muttered quietly. "It’s these guys."
He had seen them once before in the [Novice Divine Temple], right before leaving it, though they had never interacted.
Back then, they had already drawn attention simply by existing.
As said before, they were from [Fated Star], an Eternal-Level world.
And that fact alone explained the crowd’s reaction.
Most players believed that individuals from Eternal-Level worlds advanced extrely quickly, often skipping the struggles of the [Lower Domain] and reaching the deepest regions of the [Higher Domain] or even the [Eternal Domain] in record ti.
They were born with higher base stats, better resources, and far more refined innate abilities.
Seeing them here at the final assessnt of the [Lower Domain] was unexpected.
Leon did not bother using [Appraisal] on them.
It would not reveal aningful information, and more importantly, they would sense it imdiately.
Instead, he simply observed.
Titan, clearly the leader, carried a massive hamr resting casually over one shoulder.
His aura was dense and steady, like a mountain waiting to collapse.
To his left stood a woman with sharp eyes and a playful smile, magical energy swirling subtly around her body.
And to his right was a heavily muscled man whose arms looked capable of crushing stone pillars barehanded.
They were undoubtedly the strongest individuals in this temple hall.
Or they would have been, if Leon were not present.
As they approached the stele area, a man from the eagle race spoke up nervously.
"Hey, wait a minute, why are you cutting in fr—"
He never finished the sentence.
In a blur of motion, the muscular "Fated" man, which is the na of the race of the people from [Fated] star, grabbed him by the collar and hurled him backward.
BOOM!
The eagle man slamd into the ground and went unconscious instantly.
"I made sure not to use enough strength to kill him," the muscular man said casually, brushing dust from his hands before scanning the rest of the crowd with a grin. "But if anyone else wants to try stopping us, feel free."
Silence fell imdiately. No one moved or spoke.
The trio continued forward until they reached Leon.
"You can use it after I’m done," Leon said calmly without turning around.
The reaction from the surrounding players was imdiate shock.
Was this human insane?
Even if killing was forbidden inside the [Advanced Divine Temple], violence was allowed.
That ant these Eternal-Level individuals could break his limbs, and humiliate him publicly as long as they stopped short of death.
Why provoke them?
Leon, however, had no interest in theatrics. He simply wanted to finish his assessnt and move on.
From his previous life, he knew that most individuals from Eternal-Level worlds were raised with overwhelming pride.
They believed themselves superior by default.
Many of them eventually submitted to gods, becoming so of their most powerful servants thanks to their already imnse [Combat Power].
If he could eliminate future threats like Titan and his companions soday, it would only benefit him. But not here.
As Leon extended his hand toward the Divine Stele, the muscular Fated man stepped forward with a laugh.
"I don’t think this human understands," he said. "I’ll deal with him."
Titan’s expression shifted slightly as he observed Leon more closely.
"Ralph, wait—"
But Ralph had already moved.
His fist shot forward with explosive force, the air cracking from the sheer pressure behind the punch.
Leon saw it clearly. To him, the attack was almost slow.
He sidestepped effortlessly, and Ralph’s fist smashed into the ground instead, causing fractures to spread across the stone floor.
"Good strength," Leon comnted evenly. "My turn."
And before Ralph could react—
SLASH!
The [Power Sword] flashed once. Ralph’s arm separated cleanly from his body.
The [Power Sword]’s blood heart blessing was still active after all.
Which ant that Leon’s attack held the power of exactly 121,458 strength, or around 240,000 Combat Power.
Almost no one present could withstand such a blow directly.
Ralph staggered backward, staring at the stump where his arm had been.
"ARGH!"
He might have died if Leon had aid differently, but the temple’s rules prevented that.
Titan moved instantly.
He punched Ralph squarely in the chest, sending him crashing into the ground.
"I told you to wait," Titan said coldly. "Listen next ti."
Even Ralph, despite his arrogance, flinched under Titan’s glare.
"S-Sorry."
Titan then turned his attention back to Leon, his eyes sharp and calculating.
"Go ahead, human," he said with a faint smile. "We won’t disturb you."
Leon held his gaze for a mont, then turned back toward the stele.
This ti, he placed his hand on it.
The Divine Stele began to hum softly as divine energy gathered within its surface.
Seconds stretched into nearly a full minute as the power accumulated.
Leon fully expected an S-Rank. Nothing more.
But then—
Fwoosh... BOOM!
An explosion of light burst from the stele, so bright that countless players were forced to shield their eyes.
Shockwaves rippled through the hall as divine bells echoed across the chamber.
Above Leon’s head, a massive golden panel materialized.
[God-Rank]
The entire hall fell into stunned silence. Leon blinked once.
"Huh?"
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