"Congratulations to all of you for passing the first round of trials," the Automaton announced.
"Those who cleared it should already feel the improvement in their mastery over the Laws. The rewards from the first stage have subtly influenced you."
Several of them slightly nodded.
Indeed.
The past three months had been harsh. But the gains were immense. Their control over their respective Laws had deepened considerably.
The Automaton glanced cautiously at Yun Jin while speaking.
Everyone else had benefited greatly, but Yun Jin... her comprehension of the Yin-Yang Primordial had already gone beyond what the first trial could offer. She was the only one who probably hadn't gained much. If Yun Jin brought that up now, he'd feel utterly humiliated.
Yun Jin nodded slightly as well. In truth, she had gained something. During the final stage, she comprehended the method of Yin-Yang transformation. This allowed her to advance through the third layer of the Yin-Yang Codex, revealing a broad, open path. This was highly significant for Yun Jin.
She had not tried to steal the spotlight, which moved the Automaton somewhat. He glanced at Di Xiao.
"See, she's not the kindest to you, she's the kindest to me."
Di Xiao was baffled by the Automaton's look, wearing an expression of confusion.
Why?
Was there a problem with him?
Or perhaps it was because he had demonstrated astonishing power during the trials, thus drawing the Automaton's focused attention? It could only be that.
Di Xiao instinctively straightened his posture.
The others looked at him with subtle envy. Being singled out by the Automaton might bring some advantage.
"Next is the assessment for the second stage," the Automaton said, holding the control console and pressing a button.
Immediately, a high-tech iron door slid open to both sides. A row of robots entered in perfect formation. Ten robots stopped in front of the six participants. Each was marked with a number from one to ten.
"These ten challenge robots are your examiners for this round," the Automaton explained. "Depending on their assigned numbers, their strength ranges from mid-Tribulation to peak Mahayana. Lower numbers indicate greater strength.
Additionally, these robots control a certain degree of Yin-Yang Law. The stronger the robot, the deeper their grasp."
The Automaton paused. "You may choose one robot as your opponent."
Na Jia glanced at Yun Jin and smiled. "This round seems to test raw strength. In terms of pure power, you might still be lacking."
No wonder the Automaton had singled out Di Xiao. In terms of overall power, he had the highest chance to take the first spot this round.
"After this stage, the top three in trial points will advance to the final round. The rest… are eliminated," the Automaton continued calmly.
Only three of the six could advance to the final stage.
Everyone's expression shifted slightly.
Current trial points:
Yun Jin had ten points, at the top.
Then Di Xiao with five points.
Next were Cang Li and Na Jia with two points each.
Man Sen and Yu Shi Yi had one point each.
Judging by the points, Yun Jin's ten was almost impossible to surpass.
Di Xiao, with five points and the strongest among the six, had effectively secured a spot.
The remaining four would fight for the last place. The difference between one and two points was narrow, keeping Man Sen and Yu Shi Yi motivated.
This last spot was still up for grabs.
"Now, challengers will select robots starting from the lowest trial points," the Automaton instructed. "If a challenger selects Robot Ten and succeeds, they may then challenge Robot Nine, and so on. A failure ends their attempt."
Everyone's eyes flickered.
Given this rule, starting with the weakest robot was the safest strategy. Moreover, later challengers could observe the earlier battles, gaining experience. This explained why challengers with higher points went last. The advantage of high trial points was clear.
"Yu Shiyi and Man Sen are tied for lowest trial points, so they are at the end," the Automaton continued. "One will be randomly chosen as the first challenger."
The Automaton's eyes flickered rapidly between the two names.
Finally, he tapped his head.
The name was set.
"The first challenger is… Man Sen!"
Man Sen looked at his name on the screen and showed a trace of regret.
But…
This was a battle. First or not, it didn't matter.
He walked forward calmly and said, "I choose Robot Ten."
A mechanical arena rose in the center of the room. Robot Ten immediately appeared on the stage.
Man Sen took a deep breath and asked, "May I use pills I've refined?"
If not, his combat power would be severely limited.
The Automaton nodded. "Yes. You may use your own pills and talismans. Additionally, alchemists may use crafted magic tools; others cannot use tools."
Man Sen relaxed slightly. Using pills would suffice. He stepped onto the arena.
A giant countdown appeared above.
"Three."
"Two."
"One."
A strong glass dome enveloped the arena.
The challenge officially began.
Yun Jin watched with great interest.
She was curious about this new fighting style, the Combat Flow Alchemist.
As the battle began, several pills appeared in Man Sen's hands. He swallowed them immediately. Moments later, his muscles bulged, his height slightly increased.
Man Sen shouted and charged at the robot.
Robot Ten was only a mid-Tribulation machine. Man Sen had not used rare pills. The pills he took were a "budget combat set."
Though an alchemist, Man Sen fought wildly, relying only on his fists.
Yun Jin noticed a faint golden glow on his fists, a sign of his Law comprehension.
Man Sen had reached peak Mahayana, while Robot Ten and Yun Jin were only mid-Tribulation.
In theory, Robot Ten should not withstand a single punch. But when Man Sen's fists landed, Robot Ten merely swayed slightly before stabilizing. Its body remained completely undamaged.
Man Sen's expression changed. This robot was unusual.
"The robots' bodies are extremely tough," Di Xiao observed grimly. "Ordinary attacks cannot destroy them."
On the arena, Man Sen's fists rained down. Robot Ten silently endured. When Man Sen stopped, the robot's body shimmered with light, yet showed no damage.
Man Sen's face darkened completely.
His attacks were ineffective!
A mid-Tribulation robot, and yet this extreme?
Before he could comprehend it, Robot Ten, previously on the defensive, suddenly launched an attack.
===
I'm not sure if I've ever said this before, but one of my favorite game genres is MMORPGs.On PC, I play Guild Wars 2, and on Android, I've been playing Gaia Odyssey, A3: Still Alive, and Lineage 2: Revolution. That was back around 2020, I think? So yeah, about five years ago. Oh, and SAO IF too!
I started playing Gaia Odyssey and A3 right when they launched in my country, and I've been playing SAO IF ever since.
My usernames? I use Richark for Gaia and A3, and Rikhi for Lineage and SAO IF. My Richark character's around level 200, while Rikhi is somewhere around 350 (I think? Maybe? I kinda forgot lol).
Anyway, I seriously love Gaia Odyssey. It's just light and fun to play.
And A3? The story and graphics? Damn, they're so good. So pleasing to the eyes.
And SAO IF—I've always loved Sword Art Online, especially versions that let me customize my avatar (I love that I can choose the gender instead of being stuck as a male MC). That's also why I play Fatal Bullet on PC.
These three games, I downloaded and played them all the moment they officially launched here.As for Lineage, honestly... I forgot why and when I started playing it (please don't judge me 😭).
So anyway, I started translating and uploading here about five months ago—around June—and since then, I haven't really touched my mobile games. The last time I played was early August.Then today (Oct 23), I opened my games again on my laptop since my phone storage's full and my laptop still has some space.
And guess what? Out of nowhere, I got a mail notification in A3 saying the server will shut down on 2025/11/18.
I was SHOCKED. Like, what the actual fuck? That's less than a month away!!
God, I'm so stressed about it. I mean, the game's honestly so damn good—the story, the visuals, the characters, everything!
It hurts knowing it's ending.
Then I opened Gaia Odyssey and saw a notice about a big update coming on December 2.At least that one's still alive, but man… my A3 character.I even made a guild there, got it up to level 4, and I was the guild leader, dammit! Now it's been demoted back to level 1—probably because there aren't enough active players anymore. Still, it's such a waste. Seriously, what a shame...
Like... dayummm.
Ugh...
This is actually the second game I've played that's shutting down.
The first one was Uta Macross Sma-Pho De-Culture (歌マクロス スマホDeカルチャー), a Japanese rhythm game for the Macross franchise. That series is legendary—mecha, war, songs, and love triangles all mixed together.
It's kinda like AKB0048—mecha, idols, and space battles.