The entry to the trial exuded a vibe distinct from that of a dream chamber. Inside a virtual dreamscape, one is somewhat aware of being in a different space, isolated from reality, where only one's mind performs tasks. However, the space he found himself in did not differentiate between illusion and reality.
It was different, yet just another reality where all his faculties needed to be utilised to progress further.
[Welcome to Elysian.]
[Your trial is to climb the mountain path ahead of you to reach the peak. If you succeed, the immortal residing there will grant you a wish.]
[You can surrender in your quest. Surrendering will eject you out of Elysian, but falling here may have dire consequences worse than death.]
"Well, that didn't sound ominous at all," he muttered, inspecting his surroundings. Verdant greenery was everywhere, surrounding the mountain slope that stretched away. Countless mountain peaks extended as far as his eyes could see. The tallest of them all stood before him, its white cliffs full of ice and snow.
However, the chilly wind or ice sensation did not reach him at the foot of the mountain. It was a warm and serene environment here, with the ambient energy and essence in perfect balance. Warden simply wanted to lie down to rest for a while.
The trial hadn't mentioned any time limit, and though he did have to return, the time dilation should ensure that only a little time had progressed outside the trial zone.
He looked around, searching for a place to take shelter, but when he finally took his first step, he realised it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows in this trial.
Half of his essence was suppressed the moment he took that step. Warden frowned and took another step. Thankfully, the suppression was limited to half of his essence. For now.
Warden managed to avoid falling on his backside, instead flipping over and landing on his feet. He touched the spot where the blade of wind had crashed into him; blood bubbled up from the wound. It had pierced his defences to create the fleshly wounds.
Although it would take no more than a minute to heal completely, Warden felt a headache burgeoning. His cloak and light armour appeared unchanged, but none of their functions worked. It was likely he was wearing them merely for decoration. Honestly, very few attacks could penetrate their defence as long as he had the energy to channel. Perhaps that's why the trial disabled them.
The impact hadn't been any softer, either. As far as he was concerned, only the likes of Captain Agnes had a chance of avoiding a blow like that, and that too by using Wings of Darkness.
Well, if his cloak and light armour were functional, he could have avoided that using [Void Shroud]. But with his energy suppressed by half, he wondered how long he could last on the path. The mountain path seemed to stretch over fifty miles.
Warden set off again, this time fully in battle mode. He prepared an Anti-gravity script as he bolted across the slope. The attacks didn't come in the same pattern as before, but they did come sooner rather than later.
Warden dodged the first one by flipping over it. For the next, he restricted its advance with the anti-gravity script. It managed to slow the blade of wind just enough for him to duck.
More attacks came, some even managing to find purchase in his body, but he advanced without regard for the fleshly wounds he was sustaining.
He had barely covered about a kilometre, and more than a dozen of those blades had struck him. They were just too swift and followed no discernible pattern for him to anticipate them. Hell, he couldn't even detect most of them until they were on course to crash into him. Moreover, the faster he moved, the more intent he put into his body, the stronger they became.
This only proved he was approaching the trial with the wrong mindset.
"Well, apparently, if I'm to get one of my wishes fulfilled, it couldn't be easy," he mumbled. With his energy completely spent, Warden decided to rest on the path. The attacks didn't come if he remained motionless, as far as he could tell. So, he could meditate without too much concern.