Chương 229

The boat bumped against a smooth, glowing crystal shore.

"We're here," Chief Thalassa said. He pulled the oars in and stared at the glowing temple doors. He looked deeply unsettled.

"If Kaelen was only the guardian of the fourteenth island... then who in the world is waiting on the fifteenth?" Neria shook her head. Her hands were gripped tightly together in her lap.

"The old texts are vague about this place. It was said that the champion of the past waits here but the Past Champion Lord Kaelen was the guardian of the 14th trial. If Lord Kaelen wasn't the final trial... then even I do not know what is inside." Rudra stepped out of the boat.

"We're about to find out," he said.

"Stay here." He walked up the crystal steps and pushed the heavy doors open. [You have entered the Fifteenth Trial of the Orca Archipelago!] [Endure the onslaught of the Apostle of the Asterion for 10 minutes!] The inside of the temple was a quiet crystal grotto filled with warm, golden light. Floating in the middle of the room was a translucent old man in plain robes. His eyes were closed. His hands were tucked casually into his sleeves. [Phantom of the First Deep Sage (Legendary)] [Level:???] [Health: 10, 000, 000 / 10, 000, 000] Rudra stared at the numbers floating above the old man's head. Ten million health. If this was a giant boss monster, he wouldn't think twice about it. But for a humanoid Named NPC, that amount of health was insane. The old man looked kind and peaceful, but the sheer pressure filling the room was heavy. It made Rudra's skin prickle. It was actually far more intimidating than Vritra. The serpent has been giant, majestic and strong.

But this old man just existed, and the room felt like it belonged to him. A golden prompt popped up in Rudra's vision. [The presence of the Deep Sage has been detected!] [The Deep Sage Class Quest "The Qualifications of the Deep Sage" has been generated!] [The Qualifications of the Deep Sage] [Difficulty: Class Quest. Countless years ago, the First Deep Sage realized that just using others' techniques and magic against them wasn't enough. He wanted to control the battlefield and stop his enemies from using their own magic and techniques. This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work. Through his constant gathering of knowledge, he created a territory called the 'Sage's Domain.' Inside this space, any magic and technique he understood would just unraveled into harmless energy. Now the phantom before you possesses 5% of the First Deep Sage's original strength and wisdom. Endure its trial and earn the First Deep Sage's acknowledgment. Quest Clear Conditions: Earn the First Deep Sage's acknowledgment. Quest Clear Reward: One of the hidden pieces of the Deep Sage, 'Sage's Domain', will be unlocked. Quest Failure Condition: Death Quest Failure Punishments: Wisdom -100, Title 'Unworthy'] Rudra read the Class Quest and immediately accepted it. Ten million health was only five percent of the original legend's power? That was crazy.

Not to mention the existence of the [Sage's Domain] skill made him quite greedy for it. Rudra then realised just how high the upper limit of this class was. He gripped his heavy metal staff. Rudra wasn't worried about the quest failure punishments as he would just find a way to pass like he did so many times so far. He just needed to beat him to get him acknowledged.

"Let's see what you've got," Rudra said. He dashed forward using [Abyssal Step]. He wanted to control the space right away. [Pressure Zone]. Moisture in the air surrounding him grew heavier, meant to slow the old man down and improve his stats. The Phantom simply opened its eyes. [Sage's Domain]. A clear, invisible wave expanded from the old man. The moment Rudra's [Pressure Zone] touched the wave, his spell vanished. It directly dissolved into tiny blue sparks.

[Your skill 'Pressure Zone' has been analyzed and dismantled.] [You cannot use 'Pressure Zone' while the target's domain is active.] Rudra frowned. Magic was out. Fine. [Avalanche]. He brought his dark metal staff down in a heavy overhead swing. He wanted to stack his momentum and end this quickly. The Phantom didn't dodge. It didn't even cast a shield. It just raised a bare hand and caught the metal staff. BANG. A loud crack echoed through the room, but the staff stopped completely. Rudra's eyes went wide.

Endless Learning. Rudra suddenly remembered how his own class worked. Gaining knowledge permanently raised physical stats. Since this old man was a fully established legend, his physical strength and stamina were keeping up with his ridiculous Intelligence and Wisdom. The Phantom twisted its wrist. It smoothly pushed the staff to the side, throwing Rudra completely off balance. Before Rudra could fix his footing, the old man stepped in and struck Rudra in the chest with an open palm.

[You have suffered 145, 000 physical damage!] Rudra coughed up blood. He flew backward and slammed hard into the crystal wall. He dropped to the floor, gasping for air. He scrambled up. He raised his staff to block, but the Phantom was already there. The old man raised a fist and started swinging. Rudra got pushed back with every hit. He couldn't build momentum. His spells were useless. He was just getting beaten down.

Despite his [Super Sensitivity] flaring several warnings, he couldn't react in time and could only barely hold on. Desperate, Rudra activated the skill related to his eyes. [Legendary Sage's Eyes]. He stared directly at the old man's hands, hoping the system would show him a weakness to the domain.