Chapter 61: This Pillar...

"This trial is definitely rigged."

Acting solemn, Yelin walked over, squatted down, and poked Isabella's face. She didn't wake up. He gave her arm a slightly firmer pinch, but still no reaction.

"Stop being so hands-on. That's the Third Princess. If anyone finds out, you'll be beheaded for insulting the royal family."

Siajte rolled her eyes, her heart filled with unavoidable anxiety. Right now, they had absolutely no clue how to break through to the final floor.

In about ten more minutes, the evil gaze would gather once again, and Yelin and Isabella, lacking their protective amulets, would be in extreme danger.

Fortunately, the Exterminators on this floor had all been cleared out. As long as the gaze couldn't kill directly, everything was still manageable.

Since Isabella had landed face-first when she was dropped down, they first had to flip the distinguished princess over, then force-feed her a Worldly Pender to test whether it was effective against the unconscious state.

"Cough, cough! What kind of dubious liquid did you make Her Highness drink?"

Covering her mouth and coughing while spitting, Isabella woke up, her face flushed and somewhat embarrassed.

The dignity of the Third Princess of the Delos Empire was completely gone...

First, coveting the Apostle's treasure, she had rushed to the top, only to be grabbed by the ankles and dropped down by the Exterminators twice—both times landing face-first.

If that were all, it would be one thing, but these people whose treasure she had originally tried to "snatch" not only showed no blame now, but had even used a mysterious potion to revive her.

The princess's face burned hot, half from the pain, half from embarrassment.

"It works, but there's no way to guarantee sustainability. A ten-second duration is simply too short. Don't forget there are still Exterminators above. It's impossible to deal with the Exterminators, guard against the gaze attack, and keep using Worldly Penders all at the same time."

After a detailed and careful discussion, Siajte admitted that even with her full state activated, drug buffs engaged, and potions consumed, she couldn't manage ten seconds of effective attack.

If it were thirty seconds, they might take a gamble, but there was also no guarantee whether the Exterminators would remain friendly afterward and toss them down by their legs again.

What if they just chopped them up instead? What if they were thrown straight out of the Floating Castle?

"I have many royal secret treasures on me, but without exception, none of them work. Perhaps only an Awakened one can glimpse the secret?"

Perhaps out of shame, or simply realizing that she truly had no other options by herself, Isabella began actively offering suggestions and strategies.

"Not necessarily. Saghat probably won't let an Awakened one come up. If professionals still have a chance to change their ultimate techniques and forge a new path, then Awakened ones have practically finalized the path they must walk. In other words, an Awakened one would fail the purpose of the trial."

To experience the feeling firsthand, Yelin grabbed a bottle of Worldly Pender and stepped toward the final floor.

Hum...

The moment he stepped onto the highest floor, a nearly crazed wave of drowsiness devoured his rationality, eroding his limbs and bones, while a sense of utter helplessness surged from the depths of his heart.

So sleepy... So tired...

He used the Worldly Pender, and the drowsiness and helplessness were instantly swept away. But just as he walked toward a closed Eye of Sin, the armor of dozens of Exterminators in the center of this floor began to change color—they were waking up!

"No way, no way, this is impossible."

Gritting his teeth, he used another Worldly Pender, staggering forward as he dropped an RX-78 Pursuer, attempting to use mechanical force to cleverly destroy the Exterminators and the Eye of Sin.

Before the Pursuer could take a few steps, however, the ground suddenly cracked open to reveal a fist-sized eye, which flashed a laser from within, instantly melting the Pursuer into a puddle of liquid metal.

At the same time, the mysterious books and strange dragon horns floating atop the two Eyes of Sin were naturally etched into his memory.

Anything left behind by the Apostle Bakal undoubtedly possessed extraordinary value.

Afterward, waiting until the next gaze of the Eye of Sin, they still found no way to break the current stalemate.

Creek...

Bang!

Because both gazes of the Eye of Sin had targeted Yelin, Siajte took a gamble and handed her own amulet to Yelin.

Events proved her gamble correct: cracks first appeared on the surface of the amulet, followed by a direct, shattering explosion.

"It solves an immediate crisis, but not being able to get up there isn't a solution either."

Just as Yelin was worrying to the point of considering going back down to ask Sharan and the old man for help, Mael seemed to have made an accidental discovery.

"Klahe, what delicious thing do you have in your pocket? Migo keeps nudging your pocket with its horns."

Klahe's clothes were still the blue fashion vest Yelin had given her, featuring two small pockets on either side that were very convenient for holding things.

"What good food could I possibly have? In my pocket... Ah, right, right! A glowing stone I picked up. It might be a magic stone. I even wanted Yelin to attach it to my belt."

Klahe happily took out the magic stone. This blue magic stone, floating on the second-to-last floor, emitted a soft cyan glow, though a hard outer shell on its surface remained closed, hiding the stone's attributes.

This magic stone was also one of her most important gains in the Sky Castle.

Cupped in her palm was a baby-fist-sized magic stone with an uneven surface and pointed ends on both sides, glowing faintly.

"Wait, this thing..."

Yelin took the magic stone and frowned. It had a somewhat familiar scent.

"There seems to be an extremely formidable energy within its interior, but the amount that leaks out is minimal."

As a competent single-attribute fire elementist, Pinuo gave her own evaluation, though she also didn't know what kind of item this was.

"Let me try."

Under the effect of the Fifth Element, the outer shell of the mysterious magic stone gradually peeled away, and the leaking energy grew increasingly intense.

Just as everyone's eyes were fixed on the magic stone, a pillar of light shot up from the ground, and the magic stone actually floated into the air, right at the center of the radiance!

Yelin and the others had to step back to avoid the sudden glare, while feeling utterly speechless inwardly. Was the stone Klahe grabbed actually the key to the upper floor?

Hum!

Boom!

The pillar of light came and went quickly. Everyone hurriedly shifted their gaze back to the magic stone, only to be struck with utter astonishment the next second.

The magic stone was gone! In its place stood a massive, mud-gray, cylindrical stone pillar, exuding an ancient and heavy aura.

"What is this thing? The magic stone turned into this?"

Luna poked the stone pillar with her finger. It was about five meters tall, and three people might not even be able to wrap their arms around it.

"Damn, the trial is actually something like this."

Yelin smacked his forehead. Seeing this familiar pillar shape, he finally remembered what was going on.

Isn't this motherfucker a Hell Pillar? Summoning the four muscle-bound demon lords of the Abyss, defeating them to reap equipment rewards—the only way to obtain top-tier equipment back then, countless people obsessed with that single flash of light...

As for that stone, it wasn't a magic stone at all, but a Demon Invitation Stone used to open the passage for the Abyss demons to travel!

Bakal's trial turned out to be defeating Abyss demons. Well, that makes sense; only something like this barely matched Bakal's status.

Through all hardships and trials, please drop an Epic!

Give daddy that flash!