Crimson-gold clouds swirled within a space several hundred meters in diameter, their energy condensing into a brand-new projection.
This was a giant man three meters tall, who exuded a fierce and domineering aura just by standing there. When he launched his charge, it was like a Berserk giant rhinoceros charging in, creating a huge rumbling shock.
Faced with such an opponent, Lancelot remained calm and unmoved. Arcs of electricity flashed across his body as he moved sideways like a phantom, dodging the giant's attack while simultaneously delivering a powerful whip kick to his waist.
This whip kick was so fast that it shattered the air, creating a loud bang.
The giant, kicked in the waist, bulged out of his eyes, his body snapped backward, and then he flew away with a whoosh. Lancelot seized the opportunity to chase after him and launch a fierce attack, shattering him into countless fragments of light.
"Level 350, let's continue!" Lancelot muttered to himself as he began the next trial.
Outside, when Lancelot cleared 350 steps, almost everyone was shocked.
It's important to know that the weakest opponent on the 350th step of the Holy Sword Stairway is at least a mid-to-lower Tier Six in terms of combat strength.
If he's unlucky, he might even encounter a projection of a mid-to-upper -Tier Six. Lancelot's ability to successfully pass the test means that this freshman, who has only been enrolled for five months, has actually grown to the Tier Six in terms of combat power.
Even at the most prestigious academy like Holy Sword Academy, the combat strength of ordinary graduates is only at the Tier Six.
Elite graduates can reach Tier Seven.
A few are of the Tier Eight.
Very few are at the Tier Nine.
Only one student in several graduating classes can reach the Legendary rank before graduation, making it one of the most prestigious achievements on the Achievement Ranking.
Upon completion, the college will award 100,000 academic credits in a one-time payment.
"He's still going. Just how many levels does this guy plan to climb before he stops?"
"It seems we all underestimated Lancelot. As expected of the first Innovation School Joint Entrance Examination champion in the history of the Alliance, his rate of improvement is simply incredible."
The crowd buzzed with discussion. Even the students wearing pain masks at the betting tables temporarily suppressed their heartache and stared intently at the changes on the leaderboard.
Many people couldn't help but feel a sense of unease, as if they were witnessing the rise of a Legendary.
Meanwhile, news of Lancelot's ascent of more than 350 steps on the Holy Sword Stairway spread like wildfire throughout the academy, drawing large numbers of students and causing the plaza to become increasingly crowded.
Raquel's eyes darted around slightly, and he started betting again, this time on whether Lancelot could reach level 400.
According to general rules, a 400-step Holy Sword Stairway projection indicates that the combat power has already reached the threshold of the Tier Seven.
There is a huge chasm between High-Rank Transcendent and Mid-Rank Transcendent.
Although Lancelot continued to move steadily and make steady progress, there were still very few people who believed he could reach level 400. A large number of credits were poured into the betting pool, and Raquel was all smiles.
He planned to leave after finishing this job, otherwise he might easily get beaten up.
Of course, this is on the premise that Lancelot can reach the 400th step; otherwise, Raquel won't be able to leave even if she wanted to.
In fact, Raquel himself wasn't very confident about this.
All his actions were directed by Lancelot, including the setting of the betting odds.
Lancelot deliberately slowed down during the challenge to maximize his Raquel Circle credits.
There's no other way. Life is tough, and academic credits are hard to earn. You can't let any opportunity slip by. Once you miss this chance, it will be much harder to use information asymmetry to earn academic credits again.
Having not truly witnessed Lancelot's strength, Raquel was still somewhat uncertain.
However, this guy has one advantage: no matter how much he has opinions or doubts, he will resolutely carry out Lancelot's orders, regardless of whether they are right or wrong.
It was precisely because of this that, over the past five months, Raquel and Lancelot had gradually built a relatively solid relationship of trust and developed some tacit understanding. Unless absolutely necessary, Lancelot would not replace him again.
There was a lot of noise and discussion outside.
Inside the Holy Sword Stairway, Lancelot continued his relentless advance.
Along the way, Ability Energy, spellcasters, martial artists, warriors and other Transcendent professionals were all smashed to pieces by a pair of Iron Fist. He fought his way through the levels and reached the 400th level with almost no rest.
Golden energy gathered and transformed into a figure wielding a sword.
With a flick of his wrist, the man wielding the knife moved with the blade, instantly sweeping hundreds of meters across the area. The blade's light sliced through the air and gusts of wind, like a beautiful silver ribbon.
However, beneath this beautiful and captivating flash of the blade lies a deadly threat.
Tier Seven combat strength.
Lancelot instantly assessed the opponent's strength. In his opinion, the swordsman's physical strength was average, but his swordsmanship was exceptionally exquisite, and his Energy Manipulation was meticulous.
The flashing blades filled the sky; upon closer inspection, one could see that they were countless fine threads linked together to form a silver net of blades, impenetrable and blocking Lancelot's movement from all directions, making it difficult for him to maneuver within the Finite Space.
"Your swordsmanship is excellent, and your Energy Manipulation skills are superb, but..."
Seeing the dense blades of light sweeping towards him, Lancelot narrowed his eyes slightly, planted his legs firmly on the ground, and suddenly his fists swelled to twice their original size, becoming like two heavy hammers enveloped in Steel Feather.
If it can't be moved, then it won't move!
Speed beats speed, strength beats strength—who's afraid of whom!
The moment the blades were about to strike, Lancelot blocked them with his hammer. His movements were neither fast nor slow, yet he effortlessly deflected all the blades, his actions possessing a unique beauty of effortless grace.
Bang!
The silver blade net shattered inch by inch, but Lancelot's figure remained unmoved, standing like a mountain.
"Not bad attack power, but unfortunately, I'm not what I used to be." Lancelot glanced at the subtle knife marks on the Steel Feather and launched a counterattack.
Seeing this, the man wielding the knife nimbly turned around, his long sword spinning and dancing, creating streaks of light at an incredibly fast speed. Countless streaks of light converged and transformed into a sword dragon, roaring angrily to the sky, actually attempting to counter the attack with an attack.
"Come!"
Lancelot exhaled, a faint, genuine smile on his face.
For him, fighting was not boring, but rather full of fun, especially close combat, where the slightest mistake meant the difference between life and death. The thrill of dancing on the edge of a knife was more intoxicating than anything Western Capital.
Boom!!
The twin hammers slammed down like meteors falling to earth, shattering the sword dragon with a single blow. At the same time, Lancelot took a step forward, forcefully squeezing and occupying all the space in front of the swordsman. His powerful physique, like a meteor falling to earth, smashed the sword light, along with the swordsman himself, to pieces.
Step 400, cleared!