As late summer arrived in the imperial capital, Su Cheng received a highly elegant and ornate invitation, bearing the Silver Moon crest of the Empire's royal family.
It was signed by the Emperor himself.
This was not a personal letter from the Emperor; rather, every participant in the Divine Grace Trial received such a letter, nominally from His Majesty.
Other than Professor Li and Rowan, Su Cheng hadn't told anyone else. After all, time within the trial flowed differently than in reality.
To outsiders, she would only be away from school for two or three days, as if she had just gone on a short trip to the imperial capital.
"...After all, we also need to stagger the time with the Dragon Knight Trial."
The mage who came to guide her said this as she boarded the carriage heading to the royal palace.
The mage introduced herself, "I am Beatrice, a member of the Royal Mage Corps and an assistant to His Majesty the Emperor—"
This obviously referred to the field of magical research.
Su Cheng nodded to her, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Countess."
Beatrice smiled, "Seeing is believing, Your Excellency. Your abundant magic and combat aura make it hard for me to believe that you are not even nineteen years old."
She sighed softly, "If any of my disappointing children or grandchildren had even half your ability, I would probably wake up laughing from my dreams."
Her tone was gentle, and her attitude was not at all arrogant.
But as they walked through the palace gardens and crossed the magnificent corridors hung with portraits of heroes, this grand magus looked straight ahead, completely ignoring the salutes of the guards.
She treated them entirely like air.
Occasionally, a noble would approach to greet her, but she hardly gave any response.
Su Cheng understood that the Emperor sending her to receive her was likely a way to show how much he valued her.
Along the way, she also encountered other participants.
Judging by their attire, these people all seemed to be either rich or noble, but their speech and posture varied. Some were clearly steeped in long-term etiquette training, while others appeared awkward.
Thinking about it carefully, even those of ordinary birth might have been selected by a prince to join their faction for certain reasons.
In any case, giving them a set of luxurious clothes was not difficult.
Compared to everyone's imposing manner of not wanting to be outdone in appearances, she ended up being the most casually dressed.
However, when some people sized her up, they quickly revealed expressions of apprehension, their eyes filled only with awe and vigilance.
There were also those less well-informed who cast her scrutinizing glances tinged with disdain.
But upon clearly seeing the mage beside her, their expressions also changed slightly.
These participants were all led into the palace by members of the Royal Mage Corps. There were fewer than twenty of them in total, and there was no designated gathering place.
Most just brushed past each other, exchanging a quick greeting before continuing on their own paths.
The two of them stopped in front of an archway carved from moonstone. Beatrice whispered a spell, and constellation-like silver dots of light flickered on the door.
Then the archway slowly opened, revealing an independent hall with a thick velvet carpet. The walls were inlaid with translucent white crystals, and a fresh, calming incense floated in the air.
The floor in the exact center of the hall dipped slightly, laid out with a circular magic array two meters in diameter, its edges packed with dense runes.
Su Cheng had recently crammed some knowledge and could understand a small part of their meaning.
—This magic array was a type of auxiliary array. Through the runes, it could bridge distances and connect with a primary magic array within a certain range.
There was more than one such auxiliary array.
Each participant had their own exclusive room and magic array, ensuring they would not interfere with or affect one another.
There were also several mages in the room, adjusting and testing the magic array, while another person continuously recorded on a scroll. Everyone looked very serious.
These people successively bowed to Beatrice.
The latter nodded, then looked at Su Cheng and said softly, "Before the ceremony officially begins, there are a few matters I need to inform you about. First, the Divine Grace Trial is a test of will and temperament, absolutely not a simple contest of strength. After you enter the Echo Plane, the trials you face will all be illusions, but your perception will be altered. You will believe it to be reality. Of course, all of this will be corrected once it ends..."
Su Cheng already knew this, but she still listened attentively.
Suddenly, the entire hall jolted violently without warning!
The crystal chandelier on the ceiling swayed fiercely, emitting sharp clinking sounds, and fine dust even rustled down from cracks in the walls.
The vibration seemed to come from mid-air, spreading from far to near until it reached them.
"What's going on?!"
A young mage even raised his staff.
Beatrice frowned slightly and instantly released her spiritual power. "Stay calm! This is the core of the royal palace—"
Su Cheng felt that spiritual power sweep out at top speed, racing toward the source of the vibration.
She subconsciously wanted to do the same.
Faced with an unknown threat, any capable mage would instinctively want to release their spiritual power to investigate and observe the situation beyond their line of sight.
But—
If one encountered an enemy stronger than oneself, rashly releasing spiritual power made it very easy to get injured. A light injury meant headaches and dizziness, while a severe one could directly damage the soul.
Even sudden death on the spot was possible.
It would be one thing if they were outside, but this was the royal palace of the Silver Moon Empire, arguably the safest place outside the Church's temples, with countless experts hidden in every corner.
Who could launch an attack here?
If such a person really existed, their strength would definitely be far superior to hers.
Su Cheng decided to observe the situation a bit longer, while simultaneously plotting an escape route in her head.
"No—"
Beatrice cried out in alarm, then stumbled backward repeatedly. She was caught by two other mages, blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and then she closed her eyes and fainted.
The others were scared out of their wits.
Their strength was inferior to hers; seeing this, they hurriedly suppressed their own spiritual power and scrambled to pull out scrolls to heal her.
Su Cheng turned to head out the door; at least it was open outside, and she might be able to see what was happening.
The next second, the magic array in the center of the room suddenly burst with light. A pillar of silver-white light shot into the sky, and all the flickering runes were filled with a dazzling silver radiance.
A furious and unstable energy began to gather in the air.
Within the silver-white orb of light at the center of the array, a wisp of black mist suddenly spread. The mist was like a drop of ink falling into water, quickly corrupting the entire energy-supplying crystal core.
Su Cheng had already reached the door, but she was forcefully pinned down by that energy.
Fine black scales even surfaced on her hands and feet, her teeth uncontrollably sharpened, and her claws dug deeply into the steps before the door.
A terrifying gravitational pull came from behind, dragging her entire body backward, as if it wasn't a magic array but a swirling tornado vortex.
The jade floor tiles shattered beneath her claws.
She couldn't hold her body back; swept up by that inexplicable force, she tumbled backward into a curtain of light that surged like an ocean tide.
The surrounding scenery seemed to twist and tear apart, and the terrified faces of the mages were also shattering.
That was the last image Su Cheng saw.
The light swallowed everything.
The hall returned to its former tranquility. The energy tide had receded, leaving only the distant aftershocks that still struck the dome and walls, emitting a chilling tremor.
The magic circle on the ground was dim and devoid of light.
Three mages looked at each other, their faces full of shock and fear.
"It's not time yet, is it? Why did it activate?"
"This isn't a fucking issue of time, is it? The crystal core just turned black! Is her teleportation going to be okay?"
"Her Excellency Beatrice hasn't woken up yet—"
One of the mages threw away the used scroll in his hand. "Good heavens, nothing good ever comes from starting this damn ritual..."
His colleague shot him a warning glare. "Silence! Is it your place to say such things!"
Before he finished speaking, the doors to the hall were smashed open. A herald practically stumbled and rolled his way inside, his panicked face smeared with a bit of soot.
"Her Excellency Beatrice—"
The herald immediately caught sight of the unconscious grand magus, instantly revealing a look of a headache, and quickly turned his gaze to the other members of the Royal Mage Order.
"Your Excellencies, the royal palace has been attacked, and the Source of Memories Core Magic Array has been damaged—"
The three turned pale with shock, and one of them stood up. "To what extent?"
The herald was sweating profusely. "The beacon pedestals are in chaos, the resonance crystals have overloaded. The spatial coordinates of all teleportation magic arrays connected to the matrix have shifted, and they've started operating ahead of schedule..."
"Good heavens," the mage massaged his forehead. "This is a complete mess. Who are the attackers?"
...
At the bottom of the magic tower in the center of the royal palace, the massive Source of Memories Core Magic Array hovered in midair, surrounded by barriers and conduits constructed of crystal.
The mages stopped what they were doing and looked up into the air in shock.
First, they smelled the scent.
The sweet fragrance was faint at first, like ripe peaches in an orchard, carried into their noses by a warm breeze from a distance.
But it quickly became rich and viscous, exuding a dizzying, decadent aroma.
The air twisted.
Everything before their eyes was tainted with a feverish, ambiguous crimson.
"Careful—"
The head of the Royal Mage Order tried to speak but could barely make a sound, ultimately managing only a weak gasp.
The reactions of the others were even more unbearable.
Right in front of the magic array, space churned like boiling water, and a slender, graceful figure slowly emerged.
The person's pitch-black curly hair hung down, and the deep red robes on his body were half-open, exposing a lean chest and abdomen, while his snow-white, bare legs dangled in the air.
With his appearance, the scene in the entire hall began to mutate.
Writhing red vines grew on the crystal conduits, rapidly bearing plump fruits on the stems, a vibrant, dripping pomegranate red stained with morning dew.
The fragrance was intensely sweet and cloying, soul-stealing; just a single breath made one's eyes lose focus and breathing turn heavy.
None of these high-ranking mages could remain conscious; almost all of them fell into varying degrees of bewilderment.
Some saw departed lovers opening their arms, some saw the top courtesans of the guild waving by the window, and others saw deformed, bizarre, yet irresistibly tempting bodies.
The deity surveyed the mortals captivated by lust, a pleased yet mocking smile appearing on his face, though the amusement never reached his eyes.
Immediately after, a crisp cry that seemed to come from beyond the heavens suddenly echoed throughout the entire space.
"Oh my," the black-haired deity tilted his head. "Which stupid donkey is making a racket now?"
He said this, but in reality, he dodged very quickly, disappearing instantly from his spot.
At almost the exact same time, a brilliant golden radiance devoid of impurities descended from the sky, completely piercing through the entire hall.
The crimson mist was burned away to nothingness, all illusions shattered like a broken mirror, and the writhing vines turned to ash.
The mages immersed in their hallucinations woke up one after another.
It was like being splashed with cold water.
But what followed was not relief, but rather an even more intense agony—
Under the illumination of that dazzling, pure golden radiance, all the negative emotions in their hearts, all the filthy desires, greed, jealousy, and lust, were at this moment like being pierced by red-hot steel needles, left with nowhere to hide.
Every additional unspeakable evil thought doubled and deepened their pain.
They let out agonizing screams, and some even frantically scratched at their chests and necks, seemingly trying to pull out the needles piercing their bodies.
Within the blooming golden radiance, a silvery-white figure slowly descended, hair like condensed frost fluttering behind his waist.
"Luxara—"
He spoke in a cold and disgusted tone, as if even saying that name made him sick. "You are truly beyond saving."
A sneer sounded in the air. "...A thousand years later, and you can still spout such foolish words."
The silver-haired youth was not enraged, nor did he intend to say more. Golden light suddenly gathered on the blade of the sword in his hand.
The power of light instantly tore apart the entire space, erasing and purifying everything it touched.
The powers of divine authority collided in the air.
Entirely different domains of rules were devouring each other. Distorted ripples bloomed in all directions, and the runes in the magic array were bombarded into chaotic inversion.
This clash lasted only a brief few seconds.
During this time, mages continuously spat blood and fainted.
The God of Lust and Filth was forced to manifest.
That beautiful human body began to be torn apart by majestic power, skin like snow crumbling inch by inch, and bones emitting the crisp sounds of being crushed.
The God of Purity watched him indifferently, swinging his next sword strike. "You will be—"
The words suddenly stopped.
An indescribable, almost tangible terrifying pressure descended.
It was an intense presence that made it hard to breathe.
The mages couldn't help but look at the figure in midair.
Then they covered their eyes.
A needle-like sharp pain came from their eyes, the agony piercing their skulls and going straight into their souls, as if punishing their insolence.
That heavy power pressed down on the backs of their necks and shoulders.
Everyone irresistibly bent their legs until they fell to their knees, burying their heads deeply.
"You are an embarrassing piece of trash."
The newcomer lifted a gunblade, catching the attack of the God of Purity.
His hair was also silvery-white, but it appeared even colder, like the chill light of stars on a winter night.
This person wore a magnificent half-armored battle robe. Those deep, piercing eyes were neither blue nor green, resembling glowing turquoise in a frozen lake.
"...Luxara."
The silver-haired man deflected the God of Purity's offensive, then cast a contemptuous glance at his colleague.
"I hope you have finished what you were supposed to do."
"Of course."
The God of Lust and Filth calmly faced his colleague's questioning. "Our memories have all been thrown in. Let's look forward to what wonderful adventures your good student will have."
