Heir of Synthesis: The World Mage

Seeing Priam reach the top gave countless people hope. They pushed themselves to the limit to climb, but some couldn’t even reach the second part before being eliminated.

With every passing moment, more people were eliminated. Currently, less than twenty thousand were still persevering on the staircase, and most of them had already reached the middle section.

As for Priam’s allies, their steps never stopped.

”Actually, there’s no need for them to push themselves that hard. As long as they keep moving forward, slowing down would save energy.” Uswyn shook her head as she watched Priam’s allies climbing quickly, sparing no effort.

”They know that,” Priam said lightly. ”They’re not fighting against the staircase, but against themselves. That’s why they’re climbing so fast, to overcome themselves. Our origins are humble. They know they can’t relax and have to give 110% in everything.”

Priam murmured, feeling the determined gazes of those three, who, from time to time, looked up to motivate themselves, as if they didn’t want to fall too far behind him.

Back when they were still preparing to go to the Divine Plane, when they received the race’s Ancestral Art, all of them had already understood that they had received a once-in-history chance.

They could truly go very, very far. For that, they couldn’t relax and had to follow Priam’s steps as closely as possible.

Dandara was a separate case, besides having only been recruited recently. Because of that, Priam didn’t mind forcibly bringing her along.

As for the other three, they didn’t hold back at any moment, climbing as fast as they could.

They felt exhausted, but they were doing it on purpose. The more tired they were, the more they could explore their potential... that was the masochistic lesson Priam and Flaris always used, and Shione and Lumiere had learned it. They were using their powerful negative emotions to push themselves forward.

Flaris, obviously, stood out the most, since she was carrying someone with her.

...

Six hours later, Flaris, Shione, and Lumiere finally arrived, almost at the same time.

They practically collapsed onto the ground, exhausted.

At that moment, Dandara had chaotic emotions in her eyes as she watched this group. She could never have dreamed that she would find people willing to help her, and even treat her well, like anyone else.

Without them, she wouldn’t have passed this second test.

”Just make sure you never disappoint us.” Suddenly, Shione’s dry voice echoed, waking Dandara from her daze.

”Yes... I’ll do my best.” She answered, lowering her head slightly.

...

More and more disciple candidates started arriving. Some of them fainted as soon as they reached the top and relaxed.

So far, only six thousand people had passed, and there were still many people persevering on the staircase.

Suddenly, Uswyn announced:

”There are still three hours left. The people who are still on the staircase should work hard.”

Hearing that, many people’s expressions changed. They were climbing at a turtle’s pace, and with time almost running out, the pressure immediately increased.

As a result, many gave up immediately. They knelt on the steps and were thrown directly out by the inscription.

Those people felt there was no hope, and that continuing to struggle had no meaning.

One after another, figures were eliminated. Only six thousand continued and resisted bravely, unwilling to give up.

”Idiots, I gave up, and I was already on the 900th step. For them to stupidly keep going on the six-hundredth step, there’s no hope at all,” someone mocked. ”Worse, the humiliation of losing at the end, after so much useless effort, will be many times more painful.”

At the very top, Priam couldn’t help but feel admiration when he saw those people still bitterly persevering, despite there being no hope.

He snorted dryly. Those idiots on the ground who had given up were still far too immature.

No matter the world or your position, in life, you’ll always get screwed over a thousand times, but if you don’t give up, eventually you’ll make it. Sometimes, your victory isn’t exactly what you planned. And after so much effort, you discover that your journey brought you many other wonderful things that weren’t the destination you had originally aimed for.

In short: as long as the results hadn’t been announced, the opportunities were still in their hands. The only way to lose was to give up. Even if it was only a small and fleeting chance, it was still an opportunity. Not giving up was, in itself, a remarkable strength of will.

...

Hours later.

”Time is up,” Uswyn announced.

The few people who were still persevering on the staircase... now had a sad light in their eyes.

As for the people who had already given up a long time ago, seeing those idiots who had fought until the end bitterly frustrated only made their contempt grow.

But...

Suddenly, Uswyn smiled at the young people sitting on the steps.

”Congratulations. According to the rules, anyone who is on the five-hundredth step or above when time runs out will also pass.”

”What?!”

Everyone was surprised, not daring to believe what they were hearing. This was especially true for those who had crossed that threshold before, but still chose to give up before time ran out.

The nearly five thousand who were on the Staircase began to cry tears of joy and emotion.

Now, out of the initial 40 thousand, in total, a little less than 12 thousand had passed the second stage. It was even far less than half, just as Uswyn had predicted before.

Five thousand of them were people who had refused to give up, even though they were already desperate. They knew there was no hope, but they couldn’t bring themselves to surrender.

The young people who failed or gave up didn’t dare make a single sound. They would never forget this lesson for the rest of their lives.

Without wasting time, Uswyn led all the people who had passed with her. At the top of that mountain, there was an immense teleportation inscription.

”Congratulations on your victory in the second stage. Follow me; the final test will be inside the outer sect.”

Everyone moved, and the 12 thousand easily fit inside the immense circle of the inscription.

In seconds, they disappeared.

On the other side, as soon as space stabilized, everyone felt the incredibly dense Ether in the air hit them head-on.

The Ether was like a sea surrounding them. All their pores opened and greedily absorbed it.

Priam was shocked to discover that the Ether inside the sect wasn’t just dense; it also seemed to contain something he had never felt before. He was unable to describe it.

That entire group appeared in a sunlit forest. Uswyn went ahead, showing the way, and everyone followed her down a long trail. The sides of the trail were lined with ancient trees that vibrated with vitality.

After a few kilometers, a plaza appeared. The plaza was huge and also very bright.

At the center, there was an enormous statue of a man. It was simple and majestic, looking like a god gazing at the sky.

”Sovereign!”

Some recognized him and shouted in reverence toward the statue.

As for Priam, he narrowed his eyes, observing the figure in the statue in detail.

’Finally, I’m taking my first steps toward closing the distance between us. Today, I’m just an ant, and you are millions of kilometers away from me... but one day, I’ll manage to reach the same level as you.’