Appearing once again on the platform, this time all eyes were fixed on Lennox. The atmosphere was charged with shock and bewilderment. Since the first batch of participants had ventured through the portals, no one had returned yet, and now Lennox stood on the brink of entering the final portal.
"Lennox is first again."
"How is he doing that?"
"Is there something wrong with the test?"
"Everyone, don't worry, there's nothing wrong with the trial," Nexarch Valarian announced. 'There is seriously nothing wrong with the test; it's just that he's somehow managing to finish it before everyone.' he thought.
As Lennox stepped towards the last portal, a shimmering gateway materialized on the final stone. As he emerged on the other side, he found himself in a vast and dynamic battleground where elemental forces clashed. Roaring flames, crashing waves, earthen tremors, and swirling gusts of wind overwhelmed his senses. He instantly knew that his true test was about to begin.
"An arena," Lennox remarked. "This is where the true test begins."
Surveying the arena, he noticed a platform in the air with an unknown metallic object spinning and shining. 'What's that item there? It looks like some sort of tech, but based on the old materials used before tech, it's mostly an artifact,' he thought.
Suddenly, a loud chain rustling sound echoed through the arena. Lennox's eyes darted around, searching for the source. As the gates raised higher, waves of intense heat emanated from them, reminiscent of the elemental forge.
"My first opponent's element is fire. Might be easy, maybe not," Lennox pondered.
He stood at the ready as the moment arrived. The fire guardian emerged to attack. After a tense few seconds, the guardian exited the gate, revealing itself. Clad in armor crafted from enchanted flame-resistant materials, the sleek and modern design featured intricate patterns resembling flames etched onto its surface. Fire cascaded like flowing hair, and fiery eyes burned bright. The metallic clang of the guardian's armor and the crackling roar of flames filled the arena.
As the guardian emerged from the gate, her eyes locked onto Lennox with an intensity that sent shivers down his spine. A scorching heat accompanied her gaze, and in her hands, she wielded a double-edged fiery sword, its blade crafted from solidified flames. Lennox barely had time to react as she effortlessly swung the weapon, sending it hurtling towards him at an incredible speed. He dodged with a swift sidestep, feeling the searing wind of the blade as it whizzed past.
'What kind of speed is that?' Lennox pondered, glancing back at the sword now embedded in the ground.
Refocusing on his on the guardian, Lennox witnessed a breathtaking transformation. Translucent wings, reminiscent of a phoenix's, materialized from her back, composed of fire. The guardian soared towards him with breathtaking speed. Lennox, regaining his composure, hurled a fireball in her direction. Before he could blink, she skillfully dodged the attack, closing the distance between them in an instant.
Reverting to a defensive stance, Lennox conjured a fiery shield just in time for her to deliver a bone-crushing punch, shattering his defense effortlessly. Lennox was sent reeling, but quickly recovered, realizing he needed to find an opening to turn the tide.
"Speed and strength. I need to find an opening to finish this," Lennox mused, his eyes fixed on the relentless guardian.
The guardian, undeterred, now at her sword plunged her sword into the ground, its blade heating up with intense flames. Lennox seized the opportunity, deciding to strike while she seemed momentarily immobilized.
"What is she doing? No point in finding out. This is the perfect time to attack," Lennox thought.
As the guardian pushed her palms towards her sword, multiple spheres of fire materialized in the air, hurtling towards Lennox one by one. Taking advantage of her limited mobility, Lennox dashed towards her, sending a barrage of fireballs towards her while barely dodging her retaliatory strikes.
"Augh!"
"Augh!"
The guardian winced in pain as Lennox's relentless assault took its toll. Forced to release her attack, she swiftly recovered, reclaiming her sword as it pulse with fire. Slashing it through the ground, a colossal wave of flames surged towards Lennox. Unable to evade in time, he conjured a desperate fire shield, bracing against the onslaught. The flames pushed him back, but gritting his teeth, Lennox anchored himself, halting the fiery slash as it dispersed into wisps, dropping down on one knee he felt his inside where damage that he spat of blood.
With him standing back up the fire gurdian was already close up to him that she swung her sword at him as he was in range having no quick way to block her sword as his sheild will take a couple second to conjure he used his Aetherbane gloves to block her sword out the way but as the sword Hit against his glove it stopped for a couple second as he was in shock that her sword swas stopped but suddenly her sword pulsed and he felt like he was hit by a truck getting knocked away a couple feet back.
Landing on his back that when Lennox suddenly heard the metallic sound again, reminiscent of when the fire guardian emerged. Looking towards the source of the sound, water began to slowly flow out, and he instantly knew.
"Why is the water guardian coming out already?" he questioned aloud. "Is there a timer on how long it takes to defeat a guardian?" he wondered.
As the water guardian exited, a figure appeared, adorned in a flowing and iridescent gown made of enchanted water. Her hair cascaded down her back in gentle waves, and her eyes held a deep, mesmerizing shade of blue.
The water guardian's body trembled with water as she utilized the water around her to form wing made of water on her back swiftly flying toward lennox with her trident aim right at him, Lennox's barely had time to move from her attack as he tracked her movements with a focused gaze, anticipating the next move. Suddenly, a splash of water from below propelled upward into a pillar as it sent him up mid-air, and Lennox found himself in a mid-air showdown.
"This is a whole different game. No solid ground to anchor myself," Lennox noted, adjusting his stance for the aerial confrontation.
Inside the water guardian she conjured a serpentine made of pure water, resembling a flowing stream that hovers menacingly in the air, with a surge of water, Serpent propelled towards Lennox, moving with incredible speed sending at fireball at the water serpant the firest one didnt destroy it as its body was stronger than he antispiated so he quickly sent mutiple more before it was completly destroyed but the water gurdain already conjured more water serpant that where already coming at him.
"Adapt or be overwhelmed," he muttered, channeling his elemental energy to form a protective barrier of swirling flames around him as th serpant slamed agaiasnt it.
Lennox, catching his breath, surveyed the scene. The air shimmered with water droplets, and the ground beneath him still radiated an intense warmth. He knew the guardian wouldn't be so easily defeated. As if on cue, she summoned the phoenix wings once again, soaring into the air with a graceful yet lethal beauty.
The fiery sword, now wreathed in even more intense flames, Lennox clenched his fists, preparing for the next onslaught. The guardian descended with incredible speed, unleashing a barrage of fiery slashes that seemed to dance in the air. Lennox jumped down off the water pillar as landing back onto the ground as countered with a flurry of precise maneuvers.
Lennox leaped and somersaulted, avoiding the fiery lashes with breathtaking acrobatics. Sensing an opportunity, he channeled his strength into a concentrated fireball, hurling it towards the guardian. She deftly deflected the projectile with her sword, but the distraction allowed Lennox to close the gap.
As he neared, Lennox unleashed a barrage of rapid-fire punches, each strike enhanced with the explosive force of his fire. The guardian, caught off guard, staggered backward, the flames of her sword flickering for a moment. Seizing the advantage, Lennox unleashed a torrent of searing flames, enveloping the guardian in a blazing inferno.
The guardian, surrounded by fire on all sides, struggled against the onslaught. Yet, in a burst of phoenix-like resilience, she emerged from the flames, her wings blazing even brighter. Lennox, amazed by her tenacity, prepared for the final exchange.
Backing away Lennox during his fight with the fire and water guardian he observed the characteristics of each guardian closely. The fire guardian, while powerful and agile, was vulnerable during the moments she executed her more potent attacks. The water guardian, on the other hand, relied heavily on fluid movements and aerial attacks, making her less effective in close-quarters combat.
So with a new plan he ran right in between the fire and water guradian as they both looked at him they both flew at him with increddible speed untile the very last second lennox doged out the ausing both the water guradan and fire gurdian to stab each other.