What Are You Worth, That You Dare Represent Spirit Lake?

The two people who appeared were a man and a woman. The man was tall, strong, and handsome, dressed as a swordsman.

The woman's appearance was relatively ordinary; she looked to be in her thirties. However, her deliberately worn, beautiful sky-blue robe, paired with a wizard's hat that was almost half her body size, managed to give her a touch of cuteness.

The woman was stronger than the other, approaching the late stage of level two. However, the moment the handsome young man dressed as a swordsman emerged from the bushes and discovered Ronan's presence, he immediately shielded the witch woman behind him with a wary expression, suggesting that the two were a couple.

Ronan glanced at the two of them indifferently and continued walking forward.

Not long after, light footsteps sounded behind him, and a woman in a blue robe, panting, stood in front of Ronan, bowing apologetically. "I'm sorry, sir, Lawrence isn't really part of our circle, and he doesn't know many of the rules. We didn't mean any disrespect to you."

Ronan shook his head, indicating that it was nothing.

The woman repeatedly apologized to Ronan. The collar of her robe was very low, and each time she bowed, it "inadvertently" revealed a large expanse of her white cleavage.

Ronan frowned slightly, ignored the woman, and walked past her.

A few breaths later, the faint sounds of two people arguing seemed to come from behind. A man was shouting, questioning someone loudly, and a woman was yelling angrily—"You insisted on coming with me!" "Damn it! If you want to die, don't drag me down with you..."

After passing through the bushes several times, it became completely quiet.

There were quite a few wizards here seeking qualifications, and Ronan encountered several more. Apart from one Third Level Wizard, the rest were all around the mid-to-late level two.

Everyone was on high alert and disappeared immediately after Ronan was spotted. Perhaps there was more than one path leading to the location of the gatekeeper of the Spirit Lake.

After walking for about two hourglasses, Ronan used his spiritual power to detect a large group of wizards gathered in a valley ahead. If nothing unexpected happened, his destination should be there.

Stepping into the secluded valley, and following the moss-covered stone path for a short distance, Ronan came to a small flat area.

A giant banyan tree, whose age is unknown, stands at one end of an open space, half-bent and collapsed, with layers upon layers of dense branches and leaves, through which only faint sunlight filters in.

A dozen or so people dressed as wizards stood scattered under the giant banyan tree, and deafening snoring could be heard coming from beneath it.

Ronan's appearance caused some people to turn their heads to look at him. The crowd quickly dispersed to a small area, Ronan walked over calmly. Only then did he realize that the snoring was coming from the trunk of a banyan tree. There, patches of protruding black bark gathered together to form an extremely old face, with its mouth wide open and closed, looking like someone was fast asleep.

No one spoke in the room, including several Third Level Wizards. Everyone stared at the sleeping banyan tree face in front of them, as if waiting for something.

Several more groups of people arrived one after another, including the witch and swordsman couple that Ronan had encountered before. The two seemed to have reconciled, with the witch in the blue robe practically clinging to the handsome young swordsman.

Noticing Ronan's gaze sweep over him, the young swordsman instinctively hugged the witch in his arms even tighter, but she made a move to break free and gave Ronan a smile.

"We have enough people."

Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd, belonging to a thin, gray-robed Third Level Wizard, "Now you can wake the gatekeeper."

A few soft hums came from the side as a response. The gray-robed wizard turned his gaze to Ronan. Ronan said nothing, so the wizard took a few steps forward, walked to the old man's face on the banyan tree trunk, and respectfully addressed him, "Lord Tataka, Lord Tataka."

The call was drowned out by snoring, a process that lasted for several minutes. Ronan suspected that the gray-robed wizard's mouth was almost dry before the deafening snoring slowly subsided.

With a rustling sound of branches and leaves shaking, the banyan tree face groaned as it awoke from its deep sleep.

"How long have I been asleep? You guys have already gathered twenty people so quickly?"

"Yes, Lord Tataka, there are already twenty people here."

The grey-robed wizard answered respectfully.

The gatekeeper, named Tataka, lowered a branch and vigorously rubbed away the few clumps of resin that had formed at the corners of his eyes, then squinted and scrutinized everyone in the arena.

Finally, his gaze fell on one of them, and he said coldly, "You, you don't count! This little brat with almost no wizarding talent will only waste Tataka's precious time here..."

All eyes on the field were focused on the young swordsman who had come with the blue-robed witch. The blue-robed witch almost instantly distanced herself from him.

The swordsman, who had been singled out, was stared at by dozens of indifferent eyes. His handsome face turned bright red, and even the blue-robed witch who was with him refused to pay him any attention. In the end, she could only retreat in resentment.

After driving away the swordsman youth, the Gatekeeper Tree-person Tataka counted the number of people again before nodding and slowly saying, "Now you can all show your sincerity one by one, and I will judge whether you are qualified to enter the Spirit Lake."

Ronan was still pondering the meaning of the Gatekeeper Tree-person's words when the gray-robed wizard who had awakened the tree stepped forward first, respectfully offering a ring that emitted a faint spatial fluctuation.

Unexpectedly, the Gatekeeper Tree-person only glanced at it before its gaze swept over, and it said indifferently, "Next."

The gray-robed wizard's expression changed instantly. Just as he was about to say something, several branches fell from above, blocking him and setting him aside.

At this moment, someone stepped forward with a sneer. He was one of the few Third Level Wizard present. This person took out a basket of fruits that emitted a strange fragrance.

The Gatekeeper Tree-person's eyes lit up at the smell of the fruit, and it eagerly grabbed the basket with its branches and leaves, poured it into its mouth, and chewed until the juice flew everywhere.

"Alright, alright, it's Tataka's favorite dish. You've passed the test, stand aside for now, and I'll arrange for you to enter later."

The Third Level Wizard presented the rare fruit walked to the side with a smile, his smugness barely concealed. It was clear that he had done his research beforehand and knew how to gain the gatekeeper's so-called approval.

The third wizard then stepped forward. Ronan frowned as he watched the scene unfold.

"What's this? Do you have to win the favor of the gatekeepers before you can even get into the selection process?"

"Many schools of thought had similar rules in the past, so it's not surprising. The original intention was simply to make later wizards understand the value of passing on knowledge."

Alazan answered in his mind.

"I'm completely unprepared, but I really want to go in. Do you have any good suggestions?"

Ronan saw that most of the wizards' carefully prepared "gifts" were scorned by the Gatekeeper Tree-person, while a level two wizard was granted entry by telling a very lame joke. The rules for passing this level were simply unpredictable.

"You can try using magic stones; most magical creatures have a need for them."

Ronan nodded and said nothing more.

Of the more than twenty wizards, five were granted permission to enter. Two presented gifts that the Gatekeeper Tree-person liked, one told jokes, and one cleaned the tree's old, worn skin. The witch who came with the swordsman youth passed through in a way that was quite unexpected—she took off her robes in front of everyone and showed the Gatekeeper Tree-person her rather attractive, voluptuous body.

Because Ronan didn't step forward, it wasn't until everyone else had tried that it was finally Ronan turn.

"Alright, how are you going to show your sincerity now?"

After a round of "offerings," the Gatekeeper Tree-person's tone and demeanor were vastly different from before, now filled with an air of superiority and impatience. It looked at Ronan and used a few crooked branches to pick at its tree-hole-like ears.

"Let me state upfront that Lady Tataka is not interested in men."

Upon hearing this, the blue-robed witch standing among the group of those who had passed through couldn't help but proudly puff out her unusually full breasts.

"Smack—"

A low-level magic stone struck the Gatekeeper Tree-person's protruding nose with precision, then bounced off and rolled several times on the ground.

"Open the door."

Ronan lowered his hand, looked calmly at the tree-man in front of him, and spoke.

"Well"

The Gatekeeper Tree-person stopped picking its ears and stared at Ronan with a bewildered expression. The other wizards on the field were also stunned.

At this moment, the area under the banyan tree was eerily quiet.

"What did you say?"

"Splash splash splash—"

The ancient banyan tree rustled, and the tree-man seemed to rise from the ground, his aged face close to Ronan's. "What did you just say? Repeat it again."

"I said, open the door."

Ronan casually pointed to the magic stone on the ground, then added earnestly, "Please hurry up."

"Swish swish swish—"

The next breath, the dense, cloud-like foliage above everyone's heads and the ground beneath their feet all trembled.

An intensely suppressed rage erupted from the giant banyan tree in front of everyone.

"Insolent brat! You've successfully angered me. On behalf of Spirit Lake, I will teach you a lesson you'll never forget..."

"Roar--"

The enraged tree-man let out a huge and terrifying roar, causing the void to tremble. The entire old banyan tree on the platform was uprooted from the ground, and countless branches and vines grew rapidly like Witch's hair, surging towards Ronan from all directions.

All the wizards on the platform paled and quickly retreated.

Ronan alone remained unmoved, his expression still calm and serene.

"It seems your method isn't working very well, Alazan."

"."

Alazan silent.

"Then we'll have to try my method."

After Ronan finished speaking, he took a step forward, facing the countless banyan tree branches and vines that were attacking him like giant pythons and spears.

Within his Consciousness Space, a Spiritual Power Crystal lit up, followed by a second, a third, and so on. Eleven Spiritual Power Crystal bloomed simultaneously, and a rich, amber-like golden halo was suddenly released from his body.

"Boom!"

An invisible and terrifying pressure field spread out, and the void twisted in an instant. Her long, white hair broke free from the restraints of her hair ornaments and rose silently.

Ronan walked forward step by step, like a rising golden sun piercing through the dark clouds, countless branches and vines were pulverized by the Spiritual Force Field he naturally emitted. "What are you? You dare to represent the Spirit Lake?"

"If I have to grovel and beg for a way to enter, then I'd rather not go to this Spirit Lake."

A calm yet chilling voice echoed in the small space, terrifying the fellow wizards. Some trembled as they uttered the word "Dawn?"

The Gatekeeper Tree-person Tataka, roared angrily, but in a moment all the turbulent branches and vines suddenly subsided, and a huge banyan tree giant knelt down on one knee, tearing open his chest with both hands, revealing a blue vortex-shaped entrance.

The tree-man faced Ronan and spoke in a deep but respectful voice.

"Congratulations, you are the only one who passed the test."

The gates of Spirit Lake are open to you.