Chapter 86: Demonstration & Copying
Aurelius’ enhanced Intelligence had long since granted him a photographic memory.
His thought process was far beyond that of ordinary people and even most Awakeners, allowing him to process information at an astonishing speed.
Therefore, it didn’t take long before he digested the information flooding his mind.
Within moments, his tightly shut eyes opened again.
A light flashed within his azure pupils. A thoughtful look appeared on his face as he subconsciously stroked his chin.
The information he had just received had come directly from the trident Relic.
It granted him a rough understanding of the situation.
As Selene had previously mentioned, an Awakener needed to seek its approval before they could wield it.
Suppressing the cold and reaching this point was only the first step toward accomplishing this.
The serpent beside Aurelius had done so as well.
But that was only the beginning...
Aurelius raised his head.
The intricate patterns entered his sight once more.
They elegantly danced through the air, weaving in and out of the dense white mist, looking breathtakingly beautiful.
Yet their beautiful appearance was not where their true value lay.
According to the information he had gotten, these patterns were runes integrated with insights regarding three different abilities.
In simple terms, they were similar to the Skill Books Aurelius had once found in the Academy’s Library.
The only difference was that the Skill Books were written in plain English. As long as he memorized them, he would obtain the skill within.
Meanwhile, these patterns required him to decipher them first.
The final trial for obtaining the trident’s approval was based entirely on this.
The "challenger" had twenty minutes to decipher the patterns, integrate their contents, and master the skills hidden inside of them.
If they succeeded, the Epic Relic would be theirs to take.
If they failed, however...
Aurelius glanced toward the serpent. The result of failure needed no further explanation.
’It’s no wonder the serpent failed. It would be strange if a monster managed to decipher these runes and master the skills in less than half an hour.’
Aurelius shook his head, feeling that this trial seemed to discriminate against monsters. Only humans and special individuals among the monster race had a chance to succeed.
Regardless, he didn’t dwell on these thoughts for long.
He turned toward the runes and focused on one of them as the information had previously stated.
The moment he did, fragments of information flowed into his mind.
Yet unlike what he had obtained from the Relic itself, this information seemed garbled.
Like a thread that had been tied into a ball, it needed to be slowly untangled and pieced back together before one could truly see its contents.
Aurelius felt a headache the instant he tried to do so.
Even with his high Intelligence, he found it extremely difficult to place this information in the correct order.
’Is passing the trial really possible? Or is it merely an indirect method for this Epic Relic to kill people?’ he couldn’t help but complain inwardly.
In fact, he understood the reason very well.
Epic Relics were not something just anyone could possess.
Even Rank 4 Awakeners needed to be extraordinary to have one, while only at Rank 5 could they claim one with absolute certainty.
The difficulty of gaining their approval could be imagined.
Aurelius quickly concluded that someone of his level couldn’t comprehend all three skills before the twenty-minute timer was up.
At least, he couldn’t do so with his current Rank and Intelligence stat.
Despite this, Aurelius showed no panic.
For ordinary Rank 2 Awakeners, comprehending the skills was impossible even if given days, let alone less than half an hour.
However, he was far from ordinary.
He had not reached this point based on luck. He had things to rely on.
’Thankfully, I’ve already advanced. If I had remained at Rank 1, I would have been completely stuck here.’ Aurelius thought.
Then, he raised his head and stared at the runes one more time.
This time, his expression was calm and unhurried.
A complicated pattern flashed deep within his azure eyes.
The Taboo Arcanist’s signature skill—Arcane Insight—was activated!
Aurelius’ field of vision rapidly shifted.
Most of the surroundings remained the same.
Whether it was the plain, the frozen monsters, or even the trident itself, nothing had changed about them.
Yet there was one key difference.
The floating patterns in front of him were now different. Or rather, they could no longer be considered patterns.
In his cognition, they had transformed into tiny illusory figures.
As his gaze settled on one of them, the figure suddenly enlarged.
The plain seemed to have vanished, with the figure occupying his entire vision.
Its characteristics remained hidden. It was impossible to make out its true appearance.
Only the fact that he was a man could be seen.
Aurelius didn’t focus on this matter for long.
Subconsciously, his gaze moved toward the trident in the unknown man’s hands.
Seemingly sensing his gaze, the man suddenly thrust the trident forward.
Water emerged from behind him and heeded his call, transforming into a boundless sea that plunged forward.
The water filled Aurelius’ entire field of vision, as though a tsunami was ready to crash upon him.
Even the sense of danger was there. His instincts screamed for him to move aside.
Before he could do so, however, the waves suddenly faded away.
As if time had turned back, the illusory figure returned to its original appearance. Its grip around the trident remained relaxed.
Everyone would think that the previous scene had been an illusion.
However, Aurelius knew very well he had not been entranced.
Not only because the figure started moving again soon after, reenacting the previous scene, but also because of the progress bar flickering at the edge of his vision.
The Arcane Insight’s function to copy skills had been activated!
Every time the figure performed this set of movements, the progress bar would advance.
Slowly but surely, a complete skill began to take shape within Aurelius’ mind.