Darian counted five beast-like creatures charging at him. They had weird shapes, like a mashup of different wild animals. They weren't real like the serpent — just creations from the Array — but even so, they gave off a seriously oppressive vibe.
His mind kicked into high gear. All the trials he'd faced up to now might not have directly improved his fighting skills, but they sure had taught him how to think fast and look for options.
He took a deep breath...
And then froze for a second — lightning sparked across one of the beasts up ahead. The moment his eyes locked onto it, he felt the wind shift behind him — the damn thing was already flanking him.
It was insanely fast, and he didn't have time to properly defend. He just threw a punch with everything he had.
*BANG!*
He got launched, smashing hard into the wall.
Luckily, no follow-up attack came. Darian felt his bones nearly snap, but somehow, his body was way tougher now.
He pushed himself up quickly and channeled the last bit of power from the ring into his forehead...
Right then, the seven stars inside him all pulsed in sync.
He didn't have much energy left, so fighting the same way he took down the serpent wasn't gonna cut it. Hoping for a miracle, he redirected that power into the two rings on his fists.
He didn't have any white or black energy in him right now, but he remembered that dungeon where he'd met Niara.
Back then, he'd used his ring's power on them, and he had felt the two rings could do different things. He'd never had the chance to test or study them properly… now was the time.
"!"
The second the rings got hit with that power, the seven stars synced with them. Suddenly, Darian noticed something different in the environment — something he hadn't picked up on before.
'The seven elements… this entire Array is soaked in them. And they're all top-tier!'
Before, with that calamity-level slug body, he'd also been able to feel the elements around him. But now, in his original body, after unlocking the Seven Elemental Stars Physique and activating the black and white rings...
'Damn... I can feel even more than I could with that other body…'
He was stunned for a moment, then it hit him — in that other universe, all the Spiritual Guardians were only using 30% of their power. Now he had access to everything...
'Getting that calamity-level body back then… it was all thanks to my curse…'
Now he was sure — the two rings on his fists could control natural elements to some extent. Back when he created the slug body, he'd thrown everything he had into it and instinctively gathered a massive amount.
Now, with the support of the elemental stars in his body, it all felt easier to understand and use.
He pieced all of this together in just a few seconds — the five enemies were already closing in, attacking from all directions. It was gonna be a full-on group strike, no space to dodge or counter.
'All the elements here are insanely high-level... way different from what I found back in that universe… of course, this is the Chromaraic God's Training Array.'
Darian activated the rings, and the stars in his body responded instantly.
"That's it!"
He grinned, feeling like everything around him could now be manipulated with ease. Back in the slug's body, he could only control the weaker elements. Now, everything had changed.
'I need speed,' he thought, recalling the book and everything he'd learned from it. He quickly tried channeling the lightning element, the same way the beast had done earlier.
Sparks started crackling around him.
'This is way too explosive… if I try to use it like this, I'll lose control… it's too rough… wind!'
He shifted over to the wind element, and faint green runes began glowing around him.
*ROAR!*
The five beasts let out a furious roar and charged.
Darian had an idea. It was all or nothing.
Suddenly, his whole body lit up.
*Whoosh!*
It was like he teleported at high speed, slipping right between the beasts' claws and jaws. He reappeared outside their Array.
"Nice! I'm calling this Tempest Blink," he said, excited.
The wind runes had guided the lightning exactly where he needed — smoothly and precisely. He just had to choose a point within a certain range — a channel of wind would open, and almost instantly, he'd be shot through it by the lightning's force.
It was a bit of a rough technique… If someone could sense wind element properly, they could probably guess where he was going. But he'd just made it up, and he knew he could polish it later. Against these fake enemies, though, it was already more than enough.
He kept testing it, getting more and more pumped.
The ring barely used any power; most of the energy came from the elements around him.
Sadly, he was sure that outside this divine Array, he wouldn't be able to use the technique nearly as easily.
After a few minutes, Darian decided not to bother trying to kill the beasts anymore. He just kept dodging their attacks.
He was training his reflexes and mastering Tempest Blink. He wanted to reach the point where he could move and react completely on instinct. This technique was gonna be key for pushing further into this trial.
The Force of Thunder wrapped around his body as he moved through the arena. Surrounded by five enemies, the situation was ridiculously dangerous. They moved in simple ways, and their patterns were getting easier to read, but still — there was a strange kind of coordination between them.
If his reactions slipped, even for a second, or if he made one wrong move, they'd all hit him at once — and he'd probably be done for. That first solo hit had just been the trial giving him a warning shot.
Two hours passed.
Darian remembered something Niara had told the newcomers. By watching closely and dodging nonstop, he finally spotted the beasts' weak point.
Right before attacking, their bodies would tense up slightly. It was a super obvious sign — and who knew, maybe the trial had been designed that way on purpose to give participants a fair chance.
Totally focused on evading, Darian stopped backing away after every charge. He chose to stay right up close. He felt more confident now; his control over the technique had gotten sharper.
He started moving back and forth in the tight spaces between the beasts, ramping up the danger even more. It was like dancing on the edge of a blade.
*Whoosh!*
Half an hour went by without him getting hit once, and finally, Darian smiled.
"Thanks, everyone. I kinda feel bad doing this after all the hard work you put in for me… but, goodbye."
Darian moved the fire runes that had been quietly surrounding the beasts for a while now. He'd set up the trap — now it was time to trigger it with lightning — the same explosive combo he'd used before.
With a thought, he used Tempest Blink one last time to get clear.
**BOOM!**
The entire arena shook, and dust filled the air.
Seconds later, Darian felt the seven stars inside him pulse.
Intense heat wrapped around his body again. But this time, there was a calm, satisfied smile on his face. It was the dawn of his true potential.
Once things settled, he clenched his fists, feeling the new power flowing through the Seven Elemental Stars Physique.
He had just reached level 2.