Infinite Potential System

William didn't want to reveal his other Magic Affinities at all, but with most of his Talents disabled by the Dimension and an enemy Cultivator with impressive battle experience for his age, William had no choice but to work a little bit harder.

Not only that, but a System notification prevented William from forfeiting from the get-go.

-If you lose this fight, I'm taking away five hundred million Potential Points.

That's unfair! Why would you do that to me? William cursed in his mind as he raised two Earth Walls to protect himself: one from a Lightning Bolt in front, and another overhead to stop a second. The formation of the Earth Walls was so fast that even Juno was surprised.

-Because I would have to expend my own energy to restore your body. The Dimension can't replicate most of your Talents.

So, if I die here, I'll basically be a normal person? William asked.

Your next read awaits at empire

-Not quite, but you'd be left with a fraction of your Talents. The rest of the disabled ones would be lost. Just don't die and you'll be fine.

Juno cast a wide-area Lightning Storm over William, destroying the Earth Walls and scattering chunks of rock across the battle area. Amidst the wreckage, William saw Juno drop to all fours and rush at him like a mad beast, using the airborne rocks as cover.

If I'm going to stay in this school, I should at least get a Quest or something. William retreated to the back edge of the area and channeled Earth Mana into the ground to grind the floor in front of him into a fine sand.

If Juno tried to cross the sandy area, not only would his movement speed be slowed, but William could finely detect every individual movement that Juno made.

-I suppose I could issue a Quest.

———

System Quest: Survive the entry exams and rank within the top ten new students without attracting the attention of the Heavens.

Difficulty: Medium

Rewards: 5 Ascended Points

Penalties: -500,000,000 PP

Time Limit: None

———

William was suddenly more motivated to defeat Juno now. He continued to spread sand across the arena, using Earth Walls to canalize his movement while simultaneously circling the edge. Every time Juno burst through a wall, William had already retreated to the opposite side.

"Argh! Just fight me already you stupid Mortal!" Juno yelled out angrily as he broke apart an Earth Wall only to find another one directly behind it. William had teleported away with the Space Element just moments before.

Even though Juno had methods to detect William's movement, he had to admit that his opponent had identified a critical flaw in his strength.

Juno was both a Body Cultivator and had high Cultivation, but his Lightning Magic wasn't nearly as strong in comparison. Every Spell was cast with great precision and skill, but Juno couldn't consecutively break William's defenses.

On the other side, William was impressed with Juno. This was the first time that William fought on almost even terms with someone in the same Realm as him.

Granted, the majority of William's Talents had been disabled and he was trying to expose as few Elements as possible, but it was still impressive.

When they saw Juno stand up first so confidently and with such an overbearing aura, the other students were initially afraid. No one wanted to battle Juno first.

But when William dealt with Juno's attacks so effortlessly, the students wondered if Juno's aura was just a facade. In fact, they wondered if they too could compete with an Upper Stage Ascension Realm Cultivator.

The exam proctor had pulled out a clipboard at some point and started scribbling notes on the pages, probably grading both Juno and William. He peeked up from time to time, but his expression never changed from start to end.

Even when William opened a portal and raised a massive Earth Wall that divided the area into two perfect halves at almost the same time, no eyebrows were raised except for the students'. The exam proctor had clearly seen many impressive students in his lifetime, and William's performance didn't even rank in the top one hundred.

That said, they still weren't bad. Juno slowly lost the upper hand over time as his Mana Reserves were exhausted, which William noticed and immediately capitalized on it by concealing Earth Spikes underground.

Juno didn't have any methods to scan the terrain, so as long as William concealed them behind Earth Walls, Juno had no way of knowing. The moment that Juno entered the range of William's trap, three Spikes popped up from behind and skewered him in the back, while two more appeared on each side and finished him off.

As if he was a creature from a video game, Juno groaned before his body disappeared into a shower of Mana Particles. Moments later, Juno reformed outside the battle area, his expression a mix of pain and anger as he realized William had played him like a fiddle from beginning to end.

"Well done, both of you." the exam proctor marked down the scores of William and Juno, then scanned across the room for other volunteers. He didn't announce either party's specific performance, nor did he say whether they passed.

Contrary to before, a vast majority of students raised their hands or stood up, their blood boiling from watching an intense battle filled with tricks and deception. Compared to the written test just minutes before, this was much more interesting.

Even those who came from dozens of generations of Excellent Families couldn't avoid showing their age at this moment, each wanting to prove themselves. They quickly formed a long queue of students, so the exam proctor separated the area into eight identical battle zones while three additional proctors came in and positioned themselves so they could watch two battles simultaneously.

Each individual only needed to battle once, most of whom opting to showcase their skills with minor tactics before committing to an all-out fight. No one wanted to be knocked out in the first few seconds, especially when they were being graded on performance.

Despite the fact that almost half of the students were in the Ascension Realm, the second exam only lasted for two hours, each battle being cut short if they lasted more than ten minutes. All scores were recorded, and the other three exam proctors left after handing their clipboards to the proctor who had yet to introduce himself.

"I'm sure most of you are aware of the current situation between the two major powers of our Plane, but just in case you don't, I will inform you." the proctor set down the clipboards, then seated himself atop his desk while speaking.

He continued, "The Slightwing and Riverveil Factions have been at odds for many years, obviously. Recently, though, Riverveil has been interfering with the Slightveil Cultivator's Induction Competition, sending their own people into our side of the Plane and assassinating the most talented ones."

"Assassination?" the students exchanged glances with one another while murmurs spread around the room.

"I heard that a ten-generation Excellent Family in Treymon lost their most talented genius this year, but I thought that it was an accident. The scariest thing was that this genius was in the Upper Bracket and placed in the top ten. Can someone like that really have been assassinated?"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"I heard that too... the Riverveil Faction is truly unforgivable!"

"Where did you hear that from? I don't remember that happening and a branch of my Family lives there."

"Uhh, I think it was my second brother's uncle's mother's sister..."

"Couldn't you just say your great aunt's sister? Why say it in such a roundabout way?"

"Who are you to tell me what to say? You lost to me in the last exam!"

"..."

The exam proctor created a stone mallet and slammed it on the desk, shattering it into fragments of wood and producing a deafening noise. "QUIET!"

The students closed their mouths in unison and pursed their lips, not daring to let loose even a sneeze.

"Bbbrpt." a noxious gas spread around the room, leading a dozen girls to evacuate the area near the culprit, an embarrassed young man with orange-grey hair.

"Sorry, I got nervous..." the young man scratched his head.

The exam proctor ignored the kid in the back and continued, "Regardless of rumors or truth, the facts are that the Riverveil Family intends to do everything in their power to secure the advantage in the Competitions, and we need to be wary of them at all times.

That being said, we're changing the contents of the third and final exam. Instead of testing your Mind and Soul, we will be verifying your loyalty to the Slightwing Faction."

"Verify our loyalty? How?" one of the students asked. It was obvious that they were all loyal members of the Slightwing Faction. Why would there be a need to test their loyalty when their own Families could vouch for them?

"It's a minor thing. We'll be scanning your memories, and if you're not a Riverveil spy, you'll pass the third exam." the proctor explained as if it were a simple matter.