MMORPG: Rise of the Primordial Godsmith

Chapter 1614: Breaking Barriers: The Third Trial (9)

”...15,” said Ataraxia in response to Aeramis’ question, a hint of embarrassment appearing on his face.

Although he had already done his best to reduce the number as much as possible, the young man felt that he had reached the minimum number of movements the skill could have the moment he reduced it to 15.

Considering that the movement skill he haphazardly grabbed from a skill pavilion back then had less movements than the skill he made, Ataraxia felt as if he disappointed Aeramis’ expectations in making a powerful False Intent-tier skill on his first try.

Unfortunately, with him not having enough experience in creating personal skills in the first place, even with [Perception of the Grand Origin] helping him get more used to the process in less time, the young man was limited to reducing the number of movements to that amount.

In his mind, if he were to gain more experience in creating personal skills, as well as gained more control over the concepts he infused into the skill during the creation process, he felt that it wouldn’t be long until he got his hands on a False Intent-tier skill that had less than 10 movements.

Nevertheless, with the slight disappointment he felt towards his final result, Ataraxia expected the creator of the entire inheritance to show the same level of disappointment after hearing his response.

However, rather than be greeted by the sight of a frown that had that emotion slathered over it, the young man was instead greeted by the sight of Ataraxia looking at him with incredulity.

”15...?” murmured the man in response, his focus continuously shifting between Ataraxia and the ground beneath him. ”Did you just say... you made a False Intent-tier skill with only 15 movements?”

”Yes...?” Seeing Aeramis look at him with shock and surprise instead of the disappointment he expected, it was no surprise that his response to the man’s question contained a hint of confusion and curiosity. ”Is that... good?”

”It’s not just good,” replied Aeramis after regaining his bearings, only to then look at the young man with a huge smile on his face. ”It’s amazing. Astounding, even.”

”The fact that you were able to make a False Intent-tier movement skill with only that many movements on your first try is nothing short of a miracle,” the man continued, showing no hesitation in praising Ataraxia for his feats.

”For reference, the most powerful movement skills I know at the same tier only have around 20 movements at most.”

”Yet, the movement skill you created has five less movements than any of them.”

”You’ve just created a movement skill that’s more powerful than the ones I know, Ataraxia,” said Aeramis, his gaze towards the young man now containing a hint of excitement and anticipation. ”Now you’re making me curious as to what kind of skill you’ll show me on your second and third attempt.”

”...”

Unsurprisingly, after hearing that what he made was actually the greatest possible result one could hope for while making a False Intent-tier movement skill, Ataraxia looked back at the man with his mouth wide agape.

Taking a bit of time to wrap his head around the entire situation, the young man soon snapped back to reality, letting out a long exhale as his eyes began to glisten with anticipation and delight.

’Since Aeramis says that the skill I made is more powerful than the strongest movement skills in his memories, then that means I’m bound to reach the limit of the third trial on my first attempt, no?’

With this thought lingering within his mind, it did not take long for the two to get into their rightful places, allowing Ataraxia to officially undergo through his first attempt on the third trial.

”Before I have you showcase the abilities of the movement skill you’ve created, keep in mind that there are four sets of criteria I’ll be looking at to determine your score for this trial.”

Saying these words to the young man, Aeramis briefly took in a deep breath before continuing.

”The four criteria that I’ll be testing your movement skills on are the following: speed, maneuverability, adaptability, and stamina.”

”Although I’m certain that each criteria is pretty self-explanatory from the names themselves, it would be better to give me a bit more detail on each one to let you understand what I’m looking for in your skill.”

”For speed, I’ll be looking at the maximum velocity you could achieve with the skill, as well as the time it takes for you to achieve said maximum velocity.”

”As for maneuverability, I’ll be looking at the number of stone pillars you dodge in one movement,” continued Aeramis. ”Both the desert and swamp region have the same number of pillars, so you’re free to choose between the two while I’m assessing your skill’s ability in that area.”

”On the other hand, I’ll be checking your skill’s adaptability by having you go through the three types of terrain I’ve arranged, which would be the desert, the swamp, and the series of hills and mountains at the far end of the clearing.”

”Of course, the last criteria I’ll be testing you on, as well as the most important one in my opinion, is stamina,” said the man, his expression calm. ”I’ll be looking at how much energy it takes for you to execute your skill’s movements, as well as how long you could keep those movements up before becoming exhausted.”

”For each of the criteria, I’ll be grading each one from a scale of one to five, with one being the lowest, and five being the highest.”

”As long as you achieve a score of at least two on all four criteria, you’ll meet the minimum threshold necessary to proceed to the fourth trial.”

”Any further questions?”

Though he remained silent while Aeramis was in the midst of explaining the third trial’s mechanics, the young man shook his head in response to the latter’s final question.

Faintly nodding in acknowledgment of Ataraxia’s reply, the man closed his eyes for a bit before sending a great portion of his energy out to cover the entire clearing.

Whoosh!

Making sure that even the nooks and crannies littered throughout the clearing were under his full surveillance, it was only after confirming full coverage did Aeramis give the young man a go signal, prompting the latter to start his preparations.