Based on just appearance, it was just a regular sword. It was not adorned by anything special like gems or anything of the sort. Furthermore, if it was an assessment, how could an assessment for new students involve awesome weapons; that would just be cheating.
However, he could just keep those words to himself, since there was no way to stop the test once it started unless Xiao Lin gave up, which would be exactly what they wanted.
He could not give up!
Xiao Lin temporarily stopped his assault and thought to himself. The alchemical being would not attack by itself, but at the same time, he still only had five minutes. Since that was the case, he decided to try using Ruin.
Xiao Lin breathed in and once again activated Miracle, his gaze turning abnormally cold, causing the officials looking on to widen their eyes, reevaluating Xiao Lin.
‘Flame Wave Sword!’
That time, Xiao Lin no longer held anything back, unleashing his full force under the Ruin state. The flames suddenly enveloped half the training hall, going as high as several dozen meters, as if a dragon was lunging at the alchemical being.
The examiners were all shocked, and a few of them even retrieved their own weapons as several waves of light could be seen, all of them preparing their defenses.
The oppressive explosion reverberated within the training hall as the waves caused by the sword aura raised the temperature by quite a bit. Xiao Lin let out a few breaths; the move had cost him quite a lot of energy, but what shocked him was that the examiners by the side did not seem to have been affected.
Of course, Xiao Lin did not really consider the rest of them when he used the skill, but they had still only used their own weapons to completely block his sword aura.
The steam quickly dispersed, and the bronze alchemical being still stood there, unmoving. Its surface had some obvious burn marks, causing it to look even more worn down, but the large heavy sword was in front of its chest, and it seems relatively unharmed.
‘What sort of joke is this!’
Even if that level of an attack was ineffective, then Xiao Lin only had the Dragon Breath Sword left, but that skill cost even more energy, and Xiao Lin’s current state might not be able to handle it. Even if he really managed to destroy the statue, he would definitely collapse from the exertion, and the examiners would definitely consider him to have failed.
Xiao Lin’s gaze darkened, and the examiners by the side composed themselves after the initial shock, loudly proclaiming, “There are only two minutes left!”
“Don’t force yourself! Even if you fail this time, that doesn’t mean you’ll be held back a grade. As new students, you all have a chance to retake your tests, and you’ll be able to get to the second year just the same. Your monitor position will not be affected either,” the man once again said, his tone still sly, but it was much more composed than last time.
Xiao Lin obviously did not notice the change in the examiners attitude at the time, but even if it was just retaking the test instead of being held back a grade, Xiao Lin still could not accept it.
“It’s useless to just rely on sword aura; that sword is made from a very special material.” A cold voice could suddenly be heard next to Xiao Lin’s ear, as if it were right next to him. Xiao Lin almost jumped in surprise, but he forced his surprise down when he saw the white-robed Silverlight appear.
Silverlight had not come out of the storage ring since he went back to Dawn Academy, and Xiao Lin had put the matter aside due to being busy preparing for the tests. He did not expect Silverlight to suddenly appear at such a time.
Xiao Lin’s gaze was strange as he looked at Silverlight, then looked again at the officials not far away. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but Silverlight once again spoke. “There’s no need to look! Unless I will it, with their standards, they will not be able to see me.”
Xiao Lin then recalled that she was a ghost. Strictly speaking, Planet Norma’s ghosts were not completely invisible, but they still needed to be seen with skills or certain special magical items. It was obvious that the examiners would not expect a ghost to be there, let alone such a powerful one.
“What should I do? If Sword Aura is useless, then should I use magic?” Xiao Lin whispered.
“Idiot! There will be no effect as long as it’s an attack consisting of pure energy. That toy is basically immune to energy.” Silverlight’s tone was a bit strange, but Xiao Lin could not make it out at that moment. Xiao Lin was shocked that the military actually brought something like that out just to mess with him.
Even if Xiao Lin was just a new student, he still understood that energy immunity was something only high-grade weapons could have. It could even be considered Legend rank.
‘The military really thinks highly of me!’ Xiao Lin thought mockingly to himself.
“Listen to me! This type of material actually has its faults. Energy immunity comes at a very big cost; the material itself is actually very weak, so it can’t defend well against physical attacks.”
Xiao Lin understood. It meant that long-ranged attacks were useless, and he would have to engage in melee combat. He muttered a word of thanks before rushing in with his sword. His speed was shocking under Ruin, but the statue’s reaction was not slow, and it almost immediately blocked him.
Xiao Lin immediately raised his blade, trying to pierce through its defenses, but the moment he clashed against the heavy sword, his wrist suddenly felt numb. The tip of his sword had been cut through by the massive force, and he immediately retreated.
After moving back a few steps, he asked, “Didn’t you say physical attacks would work?”
“It’s useless if you’re just relying on your dull techniques! Defeating a defense of this level requires more proficient sword techniques.” Silverlight seemed to understand sword techniques very well.
Xiao Lin paused, suddenly recalling that the examiner had said that he would not be able to pass without elementary swordsmanship. Now he understood that those were not empty words. They were actually a reminder to him.
“What are you doing talking to yourself?” the examiner once again said. “You’re left with one minute.
Xiao Lin was only a beginner when it came to the sword. Even if he already had quite some battle experience, his skills still were not up to par. He was very clear on the fact that he had always relied on Miracle and Ruin’s explosive strength to defeat his foes, but there was actually no technique behind them.
Basic Swordsmanship actually mostly emphasized just the foundations of sword movements, such as piercing, slashing, pulling, raising, pressing, flicking, and thrusting. From LV 1 to LV9, it was just getting the body used to those moves. Currently, Xiao Lin had already mastered the basic movements, but he still could not call them real sword techniques.