The cold system voice rang out across the arena after the first-floor Berserker Skeleton had completely turned to ash.

[First-floor guardian defeated.]

[Completion time: 3.2 seconds.]

[Rating: Perfect.]

Vanessa Crowe leaned forward slightly, her pale violet eyes resting on the tall figure of the Crimson Dragon. "A single small fireball incinerated a Black Iron tier 5 Berserker Skeleton. Not only does she have overwhelming power, but her control over energy is also extremely precise."

Rowan kept his cold expression. He pressed his metal staff against the floor and said hoarsely: "It’s only the first floor. Don’t forget she’s still under a seal. If her displayed power drops during a prolonged battle, Ethan won’t be able to keep relying on her forever."

Ryan heard this, and his expression immediately eased a little. He tried to keep his cold smile, but the hand resting on the edge of his seat was still clenched tight. "That’s right. It was just a Black Iron tier 5 Skeleton. Nothing worth being amazed about."

A few students sitting nearby unconsciously looked over at Ryan.

No one spoke up to refute him.

But their gazes had turned strange.

A Black Iron tier 5 Berserker Skeleton was capable of crushing most newly awakened students in a matter of seconds. Yet Laira had only needed to casually create a small fireball the size of a fist to incinerate it. If that still wasn’t amazing, then they really didn’t know what counted as amazing.

Inside the arena, the ground began to tremble.

Dark red veins appeared on the old gray slabs, quickly interweaving into a complex design. At the center of the arena, a large door of black stone slowly rose up out of the ground.

Boom!

Dust spread out.

Above the door appeared a red number.

[2.]

[Entrance to the second floor opened.]

Laira looked at the black stone door for a few seconds, then turned to Ethan. The coldness she’d had when facing the monsters had completely vanished. Her amber-red eyes curved up slightly, carrying a free and natural feeling.

"Going on?"

Ethan didn’t hesitate. "Going on."

Laira smiled. "Alright."

The two of them slowly walked toward the door.

In the main hall, hundreds of gazes were still fixed on the central screen. The small image panels of the other students were still displayed on both sides, but almost no one was paying attention anymore. Someone was fighting gray wolves. Someone had just found an old sword in an abandoned room. Someone had activated the retreat seal because of an injury.

Compared to Ethan’s trial, all of it had faded into the background.

The black stone door slowly opened.

A current of cold air immediately poured out.

Behind it wasn’t a corridor but another arena. The layout was almost identical to the first floor, but the space was larger, darker, and carried a more pronounced sense of pressure. The black stone pillars around all four sides were so tall they nearly sank into the darkness. On the empty stands, a few faint black shadows occasionally moved, like countless creatures of unclear shape silently observing from afar.

Ethan and Laira stepped inside.

The door behind them slowly closed.

Boom!

The system voice rang out.

[Second floor entered.]

[Summoning guardians.]

The ground trembled.

Not just one spot.

But ten different spots.

Crack!

Crack!

Crack!

Ten dry, skeletal arms broke through the ground all at once. Then, tall skeletons slowly crawled up one by one. Unlike the first-floor Berserker Skeleton, these Skeletons carried various kinds of weapons. A few held longswords and steel shields. Two standing in the rear held bone bows. Another gripped a spear. At the farthest position, two Skeletons wearing tattered cloaks raised rotted wooden staves, blue flame burning in their eye sockets.

Information kept appearing on the screen.

[Skeleton Warrior.]

[Level: Black Iron tier 6.]

[Skeleton Shieldbearer.]

[Level: Black Iron tier 7.]

[Skeleton Archer.]

[Level: Black Iron tier 6.]

[Skeleton Mage.]

[Level: Black Iron tier 8.]

[Total number of guardians: 10.]

In the main hall, murmurs immediately rang out.

"Ten of them?"

"The levels are even higher than the first floor."

"It’s not just warriors. There are archers and mages too."

"This is a complete formation."

"Laira can’t just casually toss out a fireball like before anymore."

Ryan looked at the screen, and the cold smile finally returned to his face. "The first floor was just luck. A lone monster can’t make use of a numbers advantage. This time I want to see how she protects Ethan."

Lionel also slowly said: "If all she has is burst power, she’ll soon reveal her limits."

Vanessa Crowe didn’t speak up.

Her gaze was still focused on Laira.

Compared to the other two, Vanessa was clearly more cautious. She had witnessed firsthand the Crimson Dragon’s nearly perfect control over flame. A formation of Black Iron tier Skeletons could drive an ordinary student to despair, but it might not be qualified to make Laira take it seriously.

Inside the arena, the Skeletons all locked onto their target at once.

The Skeleton Shieldbearer stepped forward, raising a steel shield nearly as large as its body. The two Skeleton Warriors split to either side. The Skeleton Spearman lowered its center of gravity, the tip of its spear aimed straight at Ethan. In the rear rank, the two Skeleton Archers drew their bowstrings taut. Arrows wrapped in blue energy immediately appeared. The two Skeleton Mages also raised their staves, making will-o’-the-wisp fireballs begin to converge in the air.

Ethan calmly observed.

Laira looked at the formation before her, then let out a soft sigh.

"Trash!"

She raised one hand.

This time, it wasn’t just an ember that appeared.

A dark red magic circle slowly formed behind her back. The ancient patterns rotated in multiple layers, like a small sun gradually awakening. The black chains around her wrists trembled, giving off a cold sound of clashing metal.

Clang.

Clang.

The red flame began to rotate.

The entire arena immediately heated up.

The Skeleton Mages were the first to react. The two staves came down at once. The blue fireballs tore through the air, charging straight at Laira. At the same time, the Skeleton Archers released their bowstrings. The energy arrows flew out, locking off her dodging angles.

The Skeleton Shieldbearer let out a hoarse sound, then charged straight forward.

The Undead formation immediately went into motion.

Fast.

Precise.

Without any obvious gaps.

In the main hall, a few students unconsciously sat up straight.

"It’s begun."

"This time she can’t just use one little fireball."

"The archers and mages have attacked."

"And both flanks are closing in."

"She has to protect Ethan too."

But Laira didn’t look at the incoming attacks at all.

She only tilted her head slightly and looked at Ethan.

"Step back a little."

Ethan looked at the ring of fire forming behind her, then calmly retreated a few steps.

Laira reached her hand forward.

Her long red hair stirred in the sea of fire.

Her amber-red eyes blazed bright.

The instant the arrows and blue fireballs were less than three meters from her body, the magic circle behind Laira’s back suddenly blazed bright.

Boom!

A colossal ring of fire centered on Laira immediately swept across the entire arena like a tide.

The blue arrows dissolved first.

Then the will-o’-the-wisp fireballs.

There was no violent collision.

No struggle.

The blue energy was instantly swallowed the moment it touched Laira’s flame, like a few drops of water falling into a sea of lava.

The Skeleton Shieldbearer still charged forward. The colossal steel shield was covered in a dense layer of energy. But when the red ring of fire swept past, the entire layer of defense immediately dissolved.

Then the metal.

Then the bone.

Crack!

Ten skeletons stopped all at once.

In a very brief moment, the red flame clung to each body, seeped into every gap in the bone, enveloped every kind of weapon.

Laira lightly closed her hand.

Boom!

The flames all exploded at once.

The air trembled.

The ten skeletons turned into small pillars of fire.

Then, their entire bodies shattered into ash.

Not one managed to reach Ethan.

Not one was able to launch a second attack.

Not one survived more than five seconds after the magic circle appeared.

A current of hot wind blew across the arena.

The ash rose up.

Then dissolved.

Laira lowered her hand.

The magic circle behind her back also slowly vanished.

She turned to Ethan, her expression completely natural. "It’s done."

In the main hall of Aurora Academy, there were no more murmurs.

Everyone was silent.

This time, no one even knew what to say.

The first floor had only one Berserker Skeleton.

The second floor had a complete Undead formation.

But the result didn’t change.

The battle time wasn’t even much longer.

Ryan looked at the screen, his face slightly pale.

Lionel no longer had his arms folded across his chest.

Vanessa narrowed her eyes, her gaze growing deeper.

Rowan gripped his metal staff tightly but said nothing.

On the top floor, the man in the military uniform looked at the data displayed before him, silent for a long while before speaking up: "This still isn’t her full power."

The gray-haired woman nodded faintly. "No. Maybe it isn’t even a significant fraction of it."

Headmaster Cole looked at the central screen.

His gaze rested on the black chains around Laira’s wrists.

No one knew just how deeply that Crimson Dragon was sealed.

Even less did anyone know how strong she would be if the seal were completely lifted.

The cold system voice rang out again.

[All second-floor guardians defeated.]

[Completion time: 5.8 seconds.]

[Rating: Perfect.]

Right after, the ground trembled again.

A new black stone door slowly rose up.

Above the door appeared a red number.

[3.]

[Entrance to the third floor opened.]

Laira looked at the door, then turned to Ethan. "Continue?"

Ethan nodded. "Continue."

The two of them stepped inside.

The space behind the door was no longer like the previous two floors.

This was still an arena.

But its area was smaller.

Quieter.

There were no cracks on the ground.

No traces of battle.

Not a single skeleton crawling up from the earth.

At the center of the arena there was only a throne of black stone.

On the throne sat a skeleton wearing a long silver-gray robe. It sat in silence, both hands resting on a staff of white bone. Set atop the staff was a purple stone giving off a cold light.

The two empty eye sockets slowly lit up.

A purple soul flame burned inside.

The skeleton stood up.

No wasted movements.

No roar.

But the instant the staff touched the ground, the entire arena immediately turned cold.

Clack!

A purplish-black magic circle slowly spread out beneath its feet.

Information appeared on the screen.

[Sage Skeleton.]

[Race: Undead.]

[Level: Silver tier 10.]

[Trait: Dark Magic.]

[Trait: Summon Undead.]

[Trait: Soul Curse.]

[Trait: High-level Fire Resistance.]

The entire main hall of Aurora Academy immediately fell quiet.

A student unconsciously blurted out: "Silver tier 10?"

The one beside him had a deathly pale face. "The second floor was only Black Iron. Why did the third floor jump straight to Silver tier 10?"

Ryan looked at the screen, the corner of his mouth slowly curling up.

This time, his smile was much more confident.

"High-level Fire Resistance."

He muttered.

"Finally, something that counters the Crimson Dragon."

Lionel also leaned forward slightly. His contempt had diminished a great deal, but a hint of cold anticipation appeared in his eyes. "Silver tier 10. Knows how to summon Undead. It also has the ability to curse souls and high-level fire resistance. This time she can’t rely on brute strength alone."

Vanessa didn’t answer.

She looked at the Sage Skeleton.

Then looked at Laira.

Her gaze turned even more serious.

In the arena, the Sage Skeleton slowly raised its staff.

The purple stone atop the staff blazed bright.

Dark magic circles appeared on the ground one after another.

Not one.

But dozens.

The air turned cold.

Dry scratching sounds began to ring out from beneath the layer of stone.

Crack.

Crack.

Crack.

White skeletal hands slowly broke through the ground one after another.

Laira stood before Ethan.

Her long red hair stirred in the current of cold air.

Her amber-red eyes looked at the Sage Skeleton.

Then, she narrowed them slightly.

For the first time since entering the Abyss Tower, a hint of interest appeared on her face.

"Oh?"

The corner of Laira’s mouth curled up slightly.

"Finally, something that isn’t too weak."