Alistair looked around he was the only contestant that had arrived.
" You are fast, most people stay a little longer, it's only been ten minutes. You've broken a record," the guy in a red suit came in saying to him. He looked at the portal behind the door then turned to look at the man silently.
" most of the people do not like killing themselves," he said with a smirk.
While they were talking the system panel Appeared Infront of him
( you have completed the quest)
( Rewards automatic soul absorption with in ten meter radius, 3 soul power,5 intelligence points, ten spirit stones and 5 unattributed points)
He smiled at that going through the illusion really given him bonuses.
While he was looking at the panel the door portal trembled and a red haired boy walked out, he looked around silently and went to sit by the corner. He glaced once at Alistair a surprised look appeared.
A black haired girl came out next. She headed straight to the boy who had come out earlier.
" I knew you would be the first," she said cheerfully as she sat near him. The boy shock his head and pointed at Alistair who had been looking at them. The girl was surprised.
" But .." she started but he shut her down.
More contestants started to come out of the portal one after another. Some were visibly trembling, others were crying while most of them were silent. The portal door closed with a bang.
" We only had two hundred contestants remaining, that's quite a number," the man in red said while looking around.
" you have ten minutes to rest before we start the next test," he said smiling menacingly.
" But.." A boy among the crowd started to protest but his head was blown way. Those near him water splattered by blood and his brains. Scared screens filled the room as everyone tried to move away from the body as it sprayed more blood.
Alistair looked on delightful as he saw his experimental coming to life. The a glowing ball of light floated out of the boy's body. Alistair stretched out his hands. The light flew straight to him and hang on his hand . He looked at it as it changed colors not knowing what it meant.
(Detected mortal soul – absorb )
He swallowed it. The familiar pain came as his body as his body converted the soul into energy. His muscles rearrange themselves. He could feel them tearing apart and coming back together as his strength increased.
Alistair didn't moved or make a sound as the pain assaulted him. He looked on as the other contestants moved away from the body looking at the red suit wearing man who was laughing.
" Times up, legs go for the next test," he said.
A door opened and they were led out of the room to outside.
Alistair looked out. The sun had just set and the sky was painted crimson and orange. The building they were in was made of concrete and had been built in a concave shade. It looked more of a storage unit than a testing area. The walls were painted black blending well with it's surrounding and the darkness .
The built at the bottom of a tall mountain, forests could be seen every where. Black leaves which was unusual for Alistair sway as the trees moved.
The trunks were large and some looked like sleeping giants. He felt as the forest itself was alive. Some trees were coiled around each other as though they were intertwined while others looked as though they were screaming.He knew they were in the middle of nowhere .
He could see the shift in the air as the other participants registered what was before them. Small groups had already been formed among the participants. The strongest had a group of followers sucking up to them . Mostly looking for protection.
Alistair was alone, the earliest stunt had scared any potential friend away not that he needed any. . Relations were a burden, if it came he would embrace it with open arms but he will not chase such fleeting indulgence , every one lived through the passage of time and they were never meant to stay in one area.
" At the top of the mountain the sect stands ," the red suited man said. The participants looked at the gloomy mountain," but you have to be there by morning failure means you are eliminated."
Most of the participants swallowed. " in addition there are lamps around the mountain, it will be a token of entry to the sects." He said smiling.
" we have a few more rules regarding that," he pointed at a bord that appeared out of nowhere.
Rules
You have to be at the top of the mountain by sunrise
One lamp goes off every hour.
Once a lamp if taken it has an owner unless it becomes ownerless
One lamp if picked will destroy all your memories.
Only the strongest can survive .
If a lamp breaks it goes off.
Alistair looked at the rules on the board carefully. So the lamp was an entry token. Only by killing can one make a lamp ownerless, so people can snatch lamps from each other but if you meet a desperate one they might break the lamp .
Alistair looked as they subconsciously divided into groups. He could guess that not all of them had taken into consideration if the forest had wild beasts or not.
" Hi," the girl with black hair came to him followed by the red haired boy," my name is Christina and that's Edward, do you want to go together?" Alistair didn't answer. She looked at him then clicked and walked away.
They were led to bottom of the black mountain where the air smelled stale the smell of decay. The large mountain looked down at them as though they were nothing but ants.. a platform made of bones that looked eerily human stood Infront of them fire flickering.
" The alter controls all the flame , it goes off at down and with each lamp off the alters heat will reduce. The heat keeps the beast's in the forest at bay," the red haired man said.
Only a hundred will reach the sect.
If any survive.
For those who crave power had to sacrifice cause a hand that cannot snuff a life cannot hold power within a demonic sect.
He smiled, things were getting more interesting.
A hundred lamps emerged from the alter rotating around it . The participants looked on mesmerized.
" This lamps will be your judges, so bring one before dawn to prove your worth," the man in red said behind him the lamps spiraled upwards like fireworks, casting an eerie reflection on the black mountain then with practiced wave of his hands he released them.
The lamps scattered like fireflies disappearing into the fog filled Mountain, sinking into ravines, hiding in caves, behind sleeping beasts and ruins across the mountain.
As if on cue , darkness covered the sky blanketing the already ominous mountain.
The test had begun. The participants started the climb
...
The moment they stepped on the mountain, the air shifted they could feel it in their bones the mountain was alive. Whispers came from ever direction tempting them with the location of the lamps, tapping into their deepest desires.
At first the first step ,fog wrapped around their legs coiling touching them like hands . Some of them screamed too scared to observe their surrounding, the mist was basically harmless to them .
They walked forward, trees morphing into different shapes trying to reach for them but most of the contestants jumped out of their reach.
Then it happened one of the boys walked away from the crowd quietly, Alistair followed, other contestants saw what he did but assume him .
The contestants, Jeremy, had applied to join the sect voluntarily . He had a gambling addiction and was swarmed with too much debt to go on living where he had.
The demonic sect had paid most of his debt before he had been picked up. He'd wanted power, never wanted to feel as small as he felt when he was being chased around to pay his debt.
He moved the other tests had been hard but he was confident that he would join the sect. The demon lord seemed to be in his side . While in the forest he saw it , a blue lamp flickering hanging in the air.
He looked around at the others but he noticed that no one had seen it.
That was his chance the moment he got the lamp he would be able to join the sect. Climbing the mountain was a piece of cake.
Alistair looked as the boy moved forward as though entranced by something, then he saw it a flickering red lamp hanging there. He was not tempted, he could not be bothered to look for a lamp at the very start.
Before the boy reached the lantern a mouth opened right below the place he was standing. He disappeared without a trace.
Alistair heard a gasp, he turned around and saw the Cristina and Edward, had followed him. Alistair had heard them since earlier but had assumed them since they seemed to want to act as though they were quite.