A week later, at the rented manor in Silver City:
"Are you ready?" Maximus looked at his wives who were positioning themselves comfortably.
"We're fine," Erica said.
"We're alright too," the others said.
"Remember, you don't have to force yourself if you can't pass the trial," Maximus said softly.
"Anyway, you can take the test again 10 years later."
"You too, dear. We would rather come back to the sunburnt plateau than see you hurt," Erica said.
"Yes, we still have our children. We don't need a prosperous life here, as long as we have you. That's all that matters," Hazel said.
"Don't worry, for me passing this trial is a sure thing," Maximus gave them a confident smile.
"Don't forget what you promised me," Isabella said to him secretly.
"I know," he replied.
His relationship with Isabella is now official. Although they hadn't had an official wedding, she was already satisfied, feeling very welcomed into the family.
Seeing that everyone is in place, he looked at the remaining countdown.
As for his confidence with the trial, just looking at his accumulated Life and Potential points, he was sure of passing any trial with ease.
[Life Points: 631,330]
[Potential Points: 5,270,288]
In another room in the house:
"Where are Dad and Mothers?" Lyala asked as she didn't see the adults.
"They're going to start the trial for Origin Arcana Institute," Edwards said, who came here a few days ago to take care of the kids.
"What's that?" Lyla asked.
"It's a school to teach adults," Edward simply said.
"Oh, can we also go there?"
"No, you need to wait until you grow up," Edward said as he patted her head.
"Then can we watch them?" Lyla asked cutely
"Yes, of course. Wait, let me set it up for you," Edward took out his token and paid EGCC for the viewing experience.
Normally, you can't watch it, but as money fanatics, EGCC had ways to find loopholes.
Plus, their connection to the Mage Alliance, Order of the Arcane, who set up this trial, made things easier.
In the Virtual world, Celestial Ascent Path:
"It looks grand," Maximus murmured as he looked around.
The whole place has a main theme of white, adorned with giant statues that penetrate the clouds.
In front is a giant stairway made for giants, that you can't even fathom when it will end.
"There are so many people," Rose, one of his wives, said.
"Indeed, it's hard to imagine that there are almost a quadrillion of people here," Maximus couldn't help but nod.
Although there is a sea of people here, it doesn't look crowded at all.
"Maximus, over here!" A call came from behind.
"It's you, Griffin," Maximus said with a smile.
"So these are my sister-in-laws," Griffin smiled as he greeted Maximus's wives.
"You're not authentic at all, having so many beautiful wives and not introducing one to me," Griffin muttered to Maximus.
"No way, you don't have my charm," Maximus teased the muscular man.
"By the way, these are my senior brothers and sisters. They are here to retake the test," Griffin introduced the ones behind him.
"Oh, hello seniors," Maximus said politely.
He noticed that they were either tier 4 or tier 5 based on their spiritual aura.
They were manifested in this virtual world using spiritual consciousness so it's easy to tell their strengths.
"Hello, I heard Griffin talk about you a lot," one of Griffin's senior brothers said.
"By the way, I'm Fawn. You can ask me about the trial if you have any questions," Fawn said with a smile.
"I heard from Griffin that Celestial Ascent Path is a test of will, but how exactly is it tested?" Maximus asked.
"The Celestial Ascent Path tests how tough your soul is."
"I'm sure you've heard of mana amplitude," Fawn confirmed.
"Yes, it's the manifestation of your accumulated knowledge that can multiply the power of your spells and skills regarding mana," Maximus answered.
"That's right. If mana amplitude can multiply your power, then toughness of will can multiply the defense of your spirit," Fawn said.
"Unfortunately, although there are training manuals regarding the cultivation of soul toughness, it's very slow and difficult to start."
"However, the Celestial Ascent Path is made for just that. Besides testing how tough your soul is, it can also help you temper it."
"This is where the two methods of clearing the trial come in."
"Two methods?" Maximus asked.
"Yes, there are two methods to clear the trial."
"The first is time. You can slowly hone your soul toughness with the help of the Celestial Ascent Path."
"But this is not advisable, as the trial only lasts for a month."
"Only a seeker can use this method to temper their soul hoping to pass Official Student Assessment which is 100,000 steps."
This got Maximus's eyes lit up.
Isn't it his system specialty?
With the amount of life points he has, he can bulldoze through this kind of trial.
"What about the second one?" Although he was sure he could pass using his system, he was still worried for his wives.
For him, Life points are a versatile form of time energy that he can use arbitrarily.
But for others, the use of Life points is limited; He can only use it to extend their life or consume it violently without any benefits.
"The second method is the main way of passing the trial," Fawn explained.
"You need to accept the illusion trial of each stair step. After passing it, your soul will be blessed, making it tougher."
"Otherwise, if you fail, the blessing will turn into a curse eroding your soul."
"It's fine if it's just the early stage, as you can still recover from the loss without much damage."
"However, the further you go, the more damage of the failure will be."
"Thank you, senior, for your advice," Maximus said sincerely.
"It's alright," Fawn waved his hand.
"Make sure not to force yourselves," Maximus turned to his wives and said.
"It's alright, dear, we know our limits," they reassured him.
Seeing that they listened to him, he heaved a sigh of relief.
Although he could perfectly heal their souls even if they were damaged, he could do nothing if they lost their lives.
While they were talking to themselves, the white theme of the virtual world suddenly darkened.
"It's the dean," Fawn murmured.
"Dean of what?" Maximus, who was beside him, asked.
"It's the Origin Arcana Dean, a tier 9 Primordial Mage," Fawn said solemnly.
"Oh? How can a tier 9 mage have time for this little trial?" Maximus asked, puzzled.
"I heard that the Dean has countless clones in Origin Arcana, from inconspicuous mortals to dominating mages and knights."
"This also forces the students to curb their arrogance. After all, who knows if the one you bullied now is one of the Dean's clones?" Fawn thought in horror.
Who knows if Maximus is also one of his clones, and the other girls too?
After all, the beauty of that quality is very rare, yet there were eight of them bundled together.
If it were not for the ongoing trial, he would like to break the wall and get himself one or two of Maximus' companions.
As for being a friend of Griffin, he just sneered at it.
He only accommodated Maximus for the sake of getting the admiration of these beauties.
But now, seeing the Dean and remembering the rumors, his arrogance and complacency are gone.
Thankfully, he didn't do anything rude as of now and still showed his gentlemanly side.
In the sky of the virtual world:
"Hmm... the students this time are not bad," Fealan Blackthrone, the so-called dean, murmured as he looked at the people below.
Although he can't know their exact aptitude, being a peak Primordial Mage, nothing can hide from his eyes.
"Tsk, is that the son of little Nolan?" Fealan said to himself as he noticed someone with a Rank 9 Primordial potential.
The "little Nolan" he mentioned is a Tier 9 Cosmic Knight.
As for why he calls him "little," with his peak strength and 99.99999% comprehension of the darkness law, there are only a few who can match him.
"It's another beautiful seedling for this world," Fealan murmured with a glint in his eyes.
This gives him hope for the path of this world.
"If it were not for this damn world," Fealan sighed.
Fealan could only sigh at the weakness of this world.
When he reached this state countless epochs ago, coupled with a few others, they noticed that they could no longer advance.
This is the limit of this world.
This nearly gave them despair; although they are immortal, without further paths in front of them, they will be assimilated with the world sooner or later.
Fortunately for them, with despair came unity.
The Arcane Continent called for the other three continent's peak powerhouses to gather together to think of a solution.