Chapter 17: The Trial Rewards!

“… Is that a medicine bottle?”

Ain squinted at the small crystal bottle rolling down the azure pyramid, unsure of his conjecture.

It was clearly a medicine bottle, but he couldn’t fathom its appearance at this moment. Well, he had thought of something, but he ceased this train of thought immediately, opting to wait instead.

Soon, the crystal bottle’s little adventure concluded.

Unintentionally spawning some hope, Ain arrived beside the crystal bottle and picked it up. The bottle was labeled as ‘Twilight Detoxification Pills.’

With a deep and haggard breath, he poured a couple pills onto his palm before using Scan.

[Name: Twilight Detoxification Pill]

[Aspect: Wood]

[Rank: Rank-2]

[Grade: Normal]

[Aspect Traces: Wood 76.3%, Poison 19.5%, Water 3.2%, …]

[Description: A good antidote for many Rank-2 poisons. It’s very effective against most poisons below Rank-2. Mostly ineffective against poisons above Rank-2.]

The results of Scan appeared in his mind. Ain closed his eyes, breathed in deeply, before exhaling all his complications away.

“It’s really the antidote…” He affirmed.

This was one of the conclusions he’d arrived at upon first spotting the crystal bottle.

Carl did have precautionary antidotes against Mason. However, in his final moments, he purposefully concealed them under the canvas of sand. He then clutched the Pious Forest Spider’s venom in his right hand.

Whether from a lack of antidotes or from the Pious Forest Spider’s venom, in Carl’s heart, Ain was destined for a poisonous death. Without the antidote, Mason would’ve been the reaper, and if Ain mistakenly consumed the Rank-2 poison, it would’ve been Carl.

Unexpectedly, the azure pyramid’s appearance unraveled Carl’s machinations. The Twilight Detoxification Pills were dug out by the pyramid, ultimately landing in Ain’s palms.

“Wooo…!” Nox’s cheerful voice sounded as it appeared after Possession was canceled.

Ain consumed one of the pills without hesitation. The Rank-2 pill dissolved before even reaching his stomach, his aether guiding the medicinal effects to detoxify the toxins. A strange collusion between a gentle warmth and a frigid chill engulfed his body.

After a while, Ain consumed another Twilight Detoxification Pill. Using the Chronarch Precept to circulate his aether seemed to accelerate the process. Moreover, the medicinal effects of the Scarlet Healing Pills were still present, working in tandem with the antidote for his recovery.

The green snake was estimated to be at Rank-1. Its venom offered no resistance to the Rank-2 antidote.

As the pain and discomfort were eliminated, Ain gradually sank into a natural meditative state.

Nox was placed on lookout duty. It observed their surroundings while spinning at a slow, leisurely pace. It’d already recovered to its peak with the Prismatic Void Stone’s nourishment. At the moment, the black stone was comfortably floating within its body.

An hour unknowingly elapsed. Ain’s consciousness returned to the surface as he slowly opened his eyes.

“Phew…” He took a deep breath, exhaling the turbid air from his lungs to welcome a chilled breath. In one swift motion, he was back on his feet, putting his body through some basic motions.

“Some of the fatigue is still present, but the pain has mostly subsided. The poison has also been detoxified.” Ain pondered after inspecting his physical condition. The wound from the snake bite had mostly healed, while his estimation for the broken ribs was established on the dwindling pain. The Scarlet Healing Pills had mild effects but consuming a batch of them surely helped.

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“Wooo…?” Nox asked about their next course of action eagerly.

“Yes, I’m in good condition. Let’s go take a look at the rewards.” Ain answered with a smile. Nox returned the Prismatic Void Stone before taking its place on his shoulder. He’d already noted the black stone’s great effectiveness toward Nox’s recovery. It could be useful in the future.

Ain initially planned on climbing the pyramid, but an inadvertent glance at Carl’s body caused him to pause.

A few minutes later, he returned to the large archway with several bags. He’d just finished looting Carl and Mason’s bodies. Their food and medicinal supplies were long depleted, and he was already aware of their remaining belongings. His shopping trip was brief.

He’d grabbed the empty bags, some survival supplies, and several thousand starcoins.

Ain also obtained new shoes. His sole pair wasn’t faring well even before the kidnapping. Since Mason’s size was closer to his own, Mason’s leather boots silently switched owners.

He’d taken a fancy to their leather armor as well, but the Rank-0 puppets’ onslaught had left them tattered. They’d hinder more than protect in their current state.

“Alright, Nox. Let’s head up.”

“Wooo…!”

Ain passed the large archway with steady footsteps and began his trek to the pyramid’s peak. Amidst his customary caution, expectations for the rewards were stirring his excitement.

“I’ve been in this trial for several days already. I should be able to leave after obtaining the final rewards, right?” He pondered. Thinking of his time here, another matter suddenly came to mind, “When Carl first saw me, he said it’d only been a few hours since he’d killed me… But I clearly spent several days before encountering them again…”

This matter was initially ignored due to urgency. Now that he had some time, he finally began thinking about it. He recalled everything he could about Carl and Mason as if watching a fast-forwarded movie. Their appearances, words, actions, battles…

Soon, relevant pieces of information began to stand out.

When his aethercore was extracted, the two spirit masters had failed to comprehend the Chronarch Precept’s prelude from the ancient stone monument.

During the recent battle, they didn’t exhibit any signs of Temporal Blitz, letting the Rank-1 puppets run amok.

Alongside Carl’s statement, the answer was apparent.

“Carl and Mason weren’t true participants in this trial. They never learned the Chronarch Precept or Temporal Blitz.”

“Our experiences, except for the first hallway, and even the flow of time, must’ve been vastly different.”

Chronarch Precept and Temporal Blitz were both time-aspect techniques. The trial’s theme was obviously time. A time dilation wasn’t too outlandish.

He believed his conclusion must be the truth or close to the truth. Of course, he was still unsure of one matter.

Is someone consciously controlling all this?

If he’d only suspected this before, now his suspicions were greater. A lot could be attributed to the trial’s predetermined mechanisms but…

… The antidote’s timely appearance is too much of a coincidence.

Even if Ain knew of Carl’s hidden antidote, Carl hadn’t stayed stationary during his rampage. The antidote could’ve been concealed within a large region, large enough for Ain to succumb to the poison before discovering it. If not for the pyramid’s timely appearance…

After all this time, the mysterious controller’s motives shouldn’t be harmful, right?

This trial was too elaborate and magical just for the purpose of harming him.

To Ain, recent events were as exciting as they were dangerous.

Experiencing a time dilation was a little peculiar as it wasn’t easily distinguishable. However, the prospect of manipulating time was marvelous. Before he’d fantasized about becoming a spirit master. Now he fantasized about controlling time.

Ain was enthusiastic but Carl’s wretchedness was a valuable lesson. He was preparing for the worst while hoping for the best.

These thoughts occurred instantaneously, not hindering his journey to the top.

The azure pyramid was hundreds of meters tall, yet the roof above still remained distant. It was a testament to the azure hall’s vastness.

Ain climbed at a leisurely pace, only reaching his destination half an hour later.

At the top, he was met with a smooth square platform. There were four spheres of azure radiance quietly floating in the middle.

“Are those the rewards?” Ain wondered. There was nothing else here besides these radiant balls of light.

He’d already decided to trust the trial. He lacked the ability to consider alternatives anyway.

Ain reached for one of the bright spheres. Just as his fingers entered the floating sphere, a bright azure light flashed, leaving a solid object in his hand.

“Hmm? The Puppet Command Token?” He was surprised. The Puppet Command Token had reappeared. It was a dark wooden short sword with a blunt edge. When he touched it, a beam of light originated from the sword, entering his glabella.

Information about the new Puppet Command Token appeared in his mind. Ain also used Scan concurrently.

[Name: Puppet Command Token]

[Aspect: Aspectless]

[Rank: Rank-1]

[Grade: ???]

[Aspect Traces: Fire 6.2%, Water 6.0%, Earth 6.1%, ...]

[Description: This artifact can command ten puppets. One Rank-0 puppet will be unlocked at each rank. Puppets can be nurtured to higher ranks. The puppets’ aspect will be determined by the resources used to nurture them. The puppets cannot exceed the artifact’s rank. The artifact’s rank is bound to its owner’s rank. The artifact’s owner is Ain Weisman]

Ain widened his eyes in surprise. The Puppet Command Token had changed! Moreover, it wasn’t bound to the trial anymore!

At first glance, the artifact seemed to have weakened significantly. From controlling a thousand puppets to only ten. However, this quantitative weakening was incomparable to the qualitative enhancement.

The puppets could now be upgraded! Although their numbers and ranks were dependent on him, the artifact would only become stronger as his rank increased!

“This new Puppet Command Token is too powerful. Each puppet could be like an additional spirit pet…” Ain was happy with this reward. He’d already imagined countless possibilities, especially with his absolute control over the puppets.

“The first reward is already so amazing. What about the others?” With excitement, he reached out for the second azure sphere.