It seemed much of the knowledge that humans had of the floating land masses they called Nests were in the wrong. The landmasses were called Spiritual Lands by the knowledgeable ranks of beasts, with the dense essence that continued to birth monsters being a constant trial of power.
It was a brutal trial where those that were defeated were used as the fuel for the victors to continue rising. After a significant time period has passed where higher ranking beasts appear, the Trial of Supremacy will take place.
This trial differed depending on what tier the Spiritual Land was, with Tier 1 blessed lands having trials most fit for those just entering the EPIC level. Only those at that level or lower could possibly participate in the trial, with anybody above it being qualified.
The trial for a Tier 2 Spiritual Land was even more rigorous, where similar levels of power as Tier one were required, but the trials were much harder. I haven't yet found out the specifics for Tier 3 Spiritual lands, but they were most likely a battlefield of LEGENDARY individuals.
The current Skypeak Nest I was in was a newly upgraded Tier 2 Spiritual Land, with 15 powerful EPIC beasts meeting the requirements to participate in the trial. Ever since the upgrade though, even though the chances of success had increased, it had become much harder and none of the beasts had been successful.
This was where I came in. The transparent figure that I still do not know the name of had been monitoring the Spiritual Land she had upgraded, waiting for the rise of a LEGENDARY beast to bolster the defenses against demons. The ones who had opted to take the trial could not make it past the 2nd stage.
When I took down the white-furred beast who was a participant of the trial, it granted me the right to take his seat. The time after that, they just waited for me to come back, before the [Emperor Penguin] acted to transport me to this location. This was deep underground, at the center of the Spiritual Land. It was a wide expanse of frozen land that stretched out for miles and enclosed all around.
I looked towards the evened out surface around us, and then at the EPIC beasts in the surroundings. I then asked the transparent red figure still floating in the skies.
"What is the first stage of the trial?"
"The first stage is to simply defeat an opponent of the same level during the trial. The trials after that...will have increased levels of difficulty. If you agree to take on the first stage and onward, you are staking your life and you cannot back out. Even if you are defeated you will have to remain and continue trying for years to come as your power grows. If it happens that you die...well, that's that."
My thoughts quickly moved at this new information and I replied before long, bringing the cold blade in my hands close to me as I spoke.
"When do we start?"
"Haha, I like that confidence! All the beasts here have tried and failed to pass the second level. It is simply too rare for a being with a powerful unique skill to be borne, so I have high hopes on you making my work here a success.."
At the wave of her hands, another rumbling ensued around us as a large golden door rose from the ground.
"This door will transfer you to the pocket in space where the trial will take place."
I looked to the golden door, and then to the menacing beasts that were giving me contemptuous looks all around. This was especially so for the cold Emperor Penguin that had its head raised high and looking down arrogantly. Its eyes turned into cold slits as its voice rang out beside my ear.
"A human has never before qualified for this trial, and there won't be one that passes it. Pray that among your opponents...you do not meet me."
The beasts backed away at the motioning of the transparent figure that I turned to and asked,
"What might be the identity of the one I've been speaking to all this time?"
The figure in the air stalled a bit as an elegant smile bloomed.
"My identity? You'll be worthy of finding out if you pass the trial successfully. Good luck, human."
The transparent red figure remained still in the air as I looked towards the golden door and moved forward. She held no aura, but I could still feel bells ringing in my head whenever she made a threat earlier. But this trial...I was looking forward to the surprise it would bring once I've cleared it successfully. Guaranteed advancement to the LEGENDARY rank? Haha, let's see what gifts you will be putting on my lap!
I moved without hesitation and placed my large incarnation's hand on the golden door, my figure disappearing soon after.
---
The transparent woman floating in the skies looked at the disappearing human that was transferred to a different space as her lips perked into a smile. She only had a small amount of her consciousness sent to these frozen lands to observe the invading demons as well as bolster the strength of the beings here.
She thought it would be a pity if the small kingdom that the humans had created was wiped away so easily, so she was magnanimous enough to try and provide them reinforcements through the Trials of Supremacy.
Who knew that the humans would shoot themselves in the foot and continue to reduce the number of beasts in the nearby Spiritual Lands that could have participated in the trials over these last decades, making her task of finding a talented one that could pass the trial extremely hard.
By spending some of her treasures, she successfully elevated the tier of this Spiritual Land as well as the other 2 that have yet to find an owner in these northern lands. She was able to watch the production of a few powerful EPIC beasts in these three Lands, but they still were not powerful enough. She was about to give up and see if any of the forces would have a powerful hero to spare amidst this war to send them to the north.
That was her thought process until this human made his appearance. From a weakling to someone of significant strength, this very quick process was observed by her personally whenever he landed on the Spiritual Land.
The fact that the world had blessed this human with a unique Devor Class ability made him very special. She hadn't seen a minor species favored with such a talent in the hundreds of years she has lived. If it appeared within the ranks of the Mythical Beast clans, that would be in the norm and she wouldn't bat an eye. But this was a human...so how would he fair against this trial normally meant for the most powerful of beasts?
What made him all the more interesting was the fact that his mind was not encroached and consumed after he absorbed the essence of a being that had already consumed one of the demons' horrendous products of Abyss Magic, the Power Jewel.
Her fair face turned stern as she recalled the terrible power the demons continued to show as the war continued.
She would give them no leeway and completely decimate their forces as time passed. Not another inch of the Beast World will they continue to lay a claim to. All of those invaders had to die!