Chapter 212 – Assessment Complete

The Ascension Ladder—this was Mu Lin’s aspiration for the future.

Naturally, he currently lacked the ability to ascend to the divine realm. In fact, he couldn’t even guarantee whether this operation would succeed.

To his relief, he ultimately succeeded.

With a Divine Soul merely at the Spirit Sea level, he forcibly elevated his rank and Divine Soul to the Gang Condensation tier through a dual elevation method.

Yet, he also failed.

His sparse Divine Soul simply couldn’t support such a lofty rank. The moment his rank was elevated to Gang Condensation, Mu Lin could feel his emotions being diluted.

In almost the blink of an eye, Mu Lin’s emotional memories became incredibly indifferent, as if he had lost all human sentiment.

This was normal. If Mu Lin’s current Divine Soul were likened to a drop of ink, Sha Refinement would be a basin of clear water. When ink enters clear water, it becomes diluted, but traces of the ink remain visible.

Gang Condensation, however, was different—it was like a small pond. When ink enters a pond, it leaves no trace at all.

Apart from his emotions turning indifferent, Mu Lin now faced another problem—his Divine Soul was collapsing.

The foundation of a Spirit Sea-level Divine Soul simply couldn’t support the skyscraper that was Gang Condensation.

Within a few breaths, Mu Lin’s forcibly elevated Divine Soul would collapse into nothingness.

Nevertheless, despite the numerous challenges, one thing was clear: Mu Lin now possessed a Gang Condensation-level Divine Soul. Even though his emotions were diluted to nothingness, and even though this Gang Condensation state would last only a few breaths, Gang Condensation was still Gang Condensation—entirely different from Sha Refinement.

Moreover, although Mu Lin’s emotions were diluted, the command he issued at the final moment was executed.

Raising his finger, Mu Lin inscribed a Talisman in the Void for the second time. This time, it was still “Stabilize.”

And this “Stabilize” was, without a doubt, directed by Mu Lin toward the Blood Moon Core.

“Roar!!”

The moment the character for “Stabilize” was successfully inscribed, the Blood Moon Core sensed the danger and, for the first time, turned its attention to Mu Lin, this insignificant ant.

Simultaneously, upon detecting the threat, it attempted to evade or resist.

Unfortunately, all efforts were futile.

The “Stabilize” character inscribed in mid-air had no physical form. It passed straight through various Spells, ignored the vast sea of Qi and Blood within the Blood Moon Core, and ultimately, this “Stabilize” character was deeply imprinted into the depths of the Blood Moon Core’s Divine Soul.

“Hum…”

Struck by the “Stabilize” character, the Blood Moon Core’s movements instantly stiffened. Although its lofty rank prevented it from being completely immobilized, the “Stabilize” character still had an effect on it.

Now, it moved like a dazed child, its speed slowed by more than tenfold.

Under such circumstances, the battle at the core was naturally reversed.

With its slow and rigid movements, the Blood Moon Core could only endure Xue Ying’s relentless assault.

However, Mu Lin did not witness this final scene… Forcibly elevating his rank came with severe backlash. After releasing the “Stabilize” character, Mu Lin’s Divine Soul completely collapsed into nothingness. As his Divine Soul shattered, Mu Lin’s figure emerged from the Tower of Illusory Heavens.

For Mu Lin, this assessment had come to an end.

Yet, emerging early did not sadden him, nor did he even care about the results of this assessment.

What concerned him more was the final experiment.

“I never expected the backlash from forcibly elevating my rank to be so severe. I can’t do this again—it’s pure recklessness.”

“However, forcibly elevating one’s rank is not feasible, but stabilizing the hyper-state into a normal state is not entirely without hope.”

Meanwhile, Mu Lin was gathering information from the final trial.

Beside him, the gazes of the crowd were fervent as they looked at him.

Leaving early did not affect everyone’s evaluation of Mu Lin. The Blood Moon Core, the monster king of Gang Sha Unity, was never meant for Mu Lin and his peers to deal with.

His failure was expected, but his final move to control the Blood Moon Core was surprisingly impressive.

“He actually managed to control that monster. Mu Lin’s strength and potential are even higher than we imagined,” someone remarked.

Others quickly rushed toward Mu Lin to greet him.

“Young Master Mu, I am from Anping City…”

“Young Master Mu, I am the manager of Jade Province’s Treasure Pavilion. If you have time, please visit the Treasure Pavilion for a chat…”

“Young Master Mu Lin, my family has a daughter…”

Whether seeking to befriend Mu Lin or introduce their daughters to him, for a moment, the area around Mu Lin became chaotic and noisy.

The clamor made Mu Lin, already exhausted from overexerting his Divine Soul, turn even paler.

Fortunately, noticing Mu Lin’s discomfort, his team leader, Dongfang Ya, quickly stepped in and dispersed the crowd around him.

“Quiet, everyone. Mu Lin needs rest now. Whatever you have to say, wait until he’s recovered.”

Releasing her own aura, Dongfang Ya cleared the people around Mu Lin.

This scene allowed Mu Lin to breathe a sigh of relief, and he quickly thanked Dongfang Ya, saying, “Thank you, Teacher.”

Dongfang Ya waved off his gratitude, replying, “I should be the one thanking you. You’ve accomplished a great feat for Anping Academy this time.”

As she spoke, she looked Mu Lin up and down with a mix of surprise and admiration, her gaze filled with astonishment.

“To be honest, I never underestimated you and always had faith in you. But even so, I estimated that securing fifth place would be a great achievement. The result you achieved now is something I wouldn’t have dared to dream of.”

Mu Lin replied, “It’s all thanks to your excellent teaching.”

This made Dongfang Ya roll her eyes.

“Don’t flatter me. I know my own limits. Everything you’ve achieved is the result of your own hard work.”

After exchanging a few words with Dongfang Ya, Mu Lin, whose Divine Soul was still strained, was led away by this seemingly petite but steady teacher to rest.

Naturally, Mu Lin had no objections.

Once inside the resting room, Mu Lin fell into a deep sleep as soon as he touched the bed.

His exhaustion led him to make a decision.

“From now on, I must avoid using the Ascension Ladder unless absolutely necessary. The toll it takes is too great.”

…

His overexerted spirit caused Mu Lin to sleep soundly as soon as he lay down.

After what felt like an eternity, he gradually woke up.

Looking around, he noticed that it was already dark outside, and Yan Yunyu was by his bedside, taking care of him.

Seeing her, Mu Lin asked directly, “You’re out too. Is the assessment over?”

“Yes, it ended four hours ago. That monster was ultimately killed by Miss Xue Ying.”

Such an answer was not beyond Mu Lin’s expectations. As he massaged his head and got up from the bed, he casually asked, “I see. What about the assessment results? Have they been announced?”

“They’re already out.”

“What rank did I get?”

…

While the awakened Mu Lin was chatting idly with Yan Yunyu, countless people outside were also discussing matters related to him.

(End of Chapter)