Chapter 1607: 1607. Cool

Noah couldn't do much with the fifth book, but that reward still taught him something. Its lessons didn't only involve the workshop. They even explained ways to improve the fake cores.

Of course, Noah didn't need those teachings for himself. His centers of power were nigh-perfect due to the influence of the black hole. Still, his companions might need some work at some point, and he wouldn't dare to miss that knowledge.

Noah reviewed the teachings of the fifth book while the army approached the sixth layer. The energy contained inside the head also flowed toward his black hole while the clearing of the pyramid reached its last phase.

Absorbing energy in the upper tier wasn't easy, especially since Noah was still in the gaseous stage. It would take him time to absorb that power, but he wasn't in a hurry to complete the process.

Noah was confident that the energy inside the head would push his body into the middle tier. A long sleep would follow that breakthrough, and Noah couldn't allow that during the exploration.

The group was mostly safe inside the pyramid, but they didn't underestimate the power wielded by rank 9 existences. Noah and the others were unaware of Radiant Eyes' condition and whereabouts, but they didn't dare to waste time anyway.

The state of the sixth layer left the entire army speechless. Pearl had confirmed that the Balrow family didn't explore much of that place, but its current condition was far different from her reports.

All the trials in the sixth layer were empty. The army couldn't find a single room that still featured defenses. Someone had overcome every test and snatched the resources hidden behind them.

'He did a great job,' Noah thought while countless empty rooms crossed his vision.

Peal had confirmed that the pyramid was empty before their arrival. The only expert in the sixth layer was Alexander. The expert had cleared all the tests on his own while the army was busy in the fifth layer.

King Elbas did his best to find the path toward the deeper parts of the layer quickly. He unraveled the maze and led the army in front of the last trial, where they found a familiar face waiting for them.

Alexander sat in front of the last trial. His aura was a mess of magical beasts' faces and violent shockwaves. His influence almost hurt his companions, but he suppressed it as soon as he sensed their arrival.

"You really went all-out," Noah commented while studying Alexander's poor condition.

"The Legion needed my help," Alexander laughed. "Suffering this much for my organization is nothing."

Noah could sense Alexander's resolve inside those words. Most experts abandoned their organizations once the ninth rank became close, but Alexander was the opposite. His selflessness intensified together with his cultivation level.

"Can we help out in the trials?" Noah asked, but Alexander limited himself to shake his head.

The expert wasn't underestimating his companions. Alexander had long since realized that most of the newcomers were monsters, but his recent experience inside the sixth layer made him decide to keep them outside of the tests.

"You wouldn't be able to surpass the initial tests," Alexander explained. "Leave everything to me. I'll take care of this layer and complete the inheritance."

Divine Demon and the others wanted to complain, but they couldn't say anything in that situation. They had also sensed Alexander's resolve, and they didn't want to disrespect it.

"Open your mind," Noah eventually sighed. "I'll take care of as many ethereal creatures as possible before leaving the rest to you."

"Don't go overboard," Alexander whispered while revealing a broad smile.

"You can't say that after clearing a whole layer by yourself," Noah replied. "You could have left something for us."

"These are the resources gathered in the previous tests," Alexander ignored Noah's last words while handing a space-ring to Wilfred. "I shouldn't die, but don't try to approach the test at your current level nonetheless. Hide here until you become strong enough to approach the ninth rank."

"That sounds like a bother," Wilfred snorted. "Clear the damned test, and don't make me wait."

"Anyone wants to make bets on Alexander's performance?" Divine Demon shouted.

Most of the army ignored Divine Demon, but some of the experts in Pearl and Luke's team slowly approached him while handing of space-rings that contained their bets. Almost all of them believed that Alexander would complete the trials in less than two months.

Noah and Alexander ignored the commotion around them and began to focus on the procedure. Noah's mental waves seeped inside Alexander's mind and devoured every ethereal figure in sight.

His ability had improved after the continuous use back in the Outer Lands. Noah felt more confident during the process, and his experience in mental battles allowed him to devise new approaches.

Noah preferred to devour the ethereal figures inside Alexander's mind since he wouldn't be in danger there, but the situation didn't allow him to play it safe. He could suffer annoying mental injuries, while Alexander had to be at his peak.

The training sessions took a long time. Noah had already devoured all the weak magical beasts, so he had to deal with the strong ones now.

Fighting those ghosts inside Alexander's head was complex due to his limited amount of mental energy. Those mental battles also lasted longer since the ethereal magical beasts had power in the eighth rank.

Noah had to build a mental bridge between their minds and let part of the ethereal figures flow inside his sea of consciousness before starting his mental battles. His head ended up screaming in pain due to that sudden pressure, but Noah endured that feeling and slowly destroyed those ghosts.

Alexander slowly regained some calm. He even grew stronger after Noah took care of most of the lower tier creatures.

Noah didn't stop there. He soon began to approach middle tier magical beasts, even if he didn't dare to fight them among their army. He had to rely on his entire experience in mental battles to handle that mess.

Powerful creatures entered Noah's mind while the dark matter assaulted them and suppressed their power. Noah's sea of consciousness became a battlefield that featured only one enemy at the time, but his mind still trembled non-stop whenever an exchange happened.

His mental walls had thinned after his recent abuse of the devouring properties of his mental waves, but the dark matter took care of reinforcing them. Noah could go all-out inside his mind without worrying about hurting himself. Only the sudden outburst of the middle tier creatures could threaten to injure him.

Still, Noah remained extremely careful, even if the mental battles were his realm. He managed to win those fights, and Alexander soon gained a level of clarity that he didn't experience in millennia.

"I wish you could have been here during my past outburst," Alexander exclaimed after Noah broke the mental connection. "I didn't know you could be so efficient."

"I must go overboard from time to time," Noah sighed. "A safe approach can't always work."

"Will you be fine?" Alexander asked in a worried tone.

"Some tempering under the white sky will solve my issue," Noah revealed. "You should focus on the trial for now. Go and enjoy being the cool leader. You won't have that privilege once I surpass you."