Apotheosis

Compared to the rich and splendid civilizations of other universes, the Collapsing Mountain race's culture could be considered simple and primitive.

This reflected even in the way they tested out their members' strength.

The test required only one thing: a golden, square stone. This stone was placed in the middle of a square where warriors were then asked to push it using their full strength. The distance they managed to cover would determine their level.

The test for body refiners should be more complicated than that, and the standards to measure the body refiners' levels should not be only limited to pure strength.

Aside from pure strength, certain factors such as endurance, tenacity, flexibility, and other aspects of the physical body had to be put into consideration.

Such things did not matter to the Collapsing Mountain race. Their simple test was enough for them to gauge their warriors' strength. Of course, this type of test was quite biased and did not objectively represent the true, overall strength of a warrior.

It all came down to culture. The Collapsing Mountain race had always been proud of their brute strength and held it in the highest regard. It was understandable that it was the only thing they ever cared about.

According to the standard set by their test, the strength to be displayed could be divided into four levels.

Anyone who could push the golden stone two inches would be graded as an outstanding warrior.

Anyone who could push the stone for at least one foot would be graded as a mighty warrior.

Anyone who got to five feet would be graded as super powerful warriors.

And anyone who pushed it more than ten feet would be heralded as the wild king.

With their strength, the Collapsing Mountain warriors could most probably move tens of thousands of mountains in one push!

The golden square stone, however, was a different matter altogether.

The Collapsing Mountain race's younger generation saw it as a great honor to follow their elders out to hunt. This was because the requirement for joining the hunt was to push the stone at least two inches and receive the title of outstanding warrior.

Not everyone managed to pass the test which meant that the number of younger warriors that joined the hunt was less than a third of their total population.

The reason why this test was so difficult was that the gravitational force of the Collapsing Mountain race was extremely strong. The golden, square stone was equivalent to a hundred thousand mountains compressed together in weight. It would be extremely difficult to move it even a single inch, let alone to move it two inches.

It was because of the difficulty of the test that there were only four levels to appraise the warriors' strength.

Reaching the level of an outstanding warrior was already a great honor.

The atmosphere this year was slightly different.

Everyone, whether they were from the Collapsing Mountain race or from other races, carried themselves with an air of great confidence.

There was only a small number of warriors that felt dejected and they were the ones who failed to find any strength source during the trek inside the Sacred Spring Mountain. The others, on the other hand, eagerly rubbed their hands together in excitement

ive inches...

One foot…

Two feet...

Three feet …

Three and a half feet!

And then it stopped.

Two inches would grant him the title of outstanding warrior, one foot the mighty warrior, and five feet the super powerful warrior.

"Three and a half feet. Ha-ha! This Kieron is still amazing!"

"What a pity… Just two more feet he would've gotten the title of super powerful warrior."

"What a joke! By the time the stone glided for two feet, he was already out of power. Do you really think you can expect the stone to slip by itself as if it is oiled underneath?"

The results filled many warriors with regret.

The difference between a mighty warrior and a super powerful warrior was simply too great.

"Three and a half feet! You are a mighty warrior! You can join the hunt!" Chapman declared while someone recorded Kieron's result on the side.

The result could be considered stellar but Kieron had a look of bitterness on his face as he walked away. The titles of mighty warrior and super powerful warrior were only one level apart but the gap between was just too large. He still lacked the strength to obtain a higher level of glory.

Chapman turned and gently kicked the stone, returning it to its original position.

There was nothing in the air for him to gain momentum. He had to rely on his own movement to push the golden stone three and half feet back to its original place. Such a feat was truly amazing!

A few of the warriors from other races watching were awed but the Collapsing Mountain warriors simply shrugged it off. This kind of strength was already a given since he was their leader.

Chapman once again sat on the stone and shouted another name. "The third warrior, Saqib!"

This third warrior managed to push the stone for four inches and gained the title of outstanding warrior.

Back in the day, an outstanding warrior would warrant cheers and lots of merriment, however, the crowd was unusually quiet in the face of Saqib's accomplishment. They were all already aware that the results for this year would not be bad and those who received the title of outstanding warrior were not as exemplary as the ones who would come out on top.