Fate Shift - Chapter 16: Second Trial: Divine Sense Tribulation!
Gazeen entered the second trial prepared to be attacked at any moment. Thankfully there wasn’t an ambush waiting for him on the other side of the light barrier. The sand wraith found himself standing on what appeared to be a small, sandy island. A faintly green ocean surrounded the small island; Gazeen suspected it represented this trial’s boundary. In the center of the island a square stone column rose out of the sand.
The disembodied voice from before spoke once again “I’ve lived for countless years and in my time devoted myself to the research of Qi Cultivation. I’ve studied countless aspects of Qi Cultivation, created Cultivation Realms, designed spells, explored Soul Realms, fought in wars, and created many demons. Over time I began to narrow my focus in order to create my own style of Qi Cultivation. Sadly, even as I became increasingly enthralled by my ideas I realized I couldn’t put them into practice with giving up my current cultivation. I’m unwilling to start over and cultivate to Immortality a second time; it’d be far too risky. I don’t want my self-created style of cultivation to simply be lost to obscurity either though. Thus I’ve created this Soul Realm, my Sword Hall.
By surviving the first trial I can be sure that you aren’t too weak for a novice, so I believe you may have what it takes to inherit the result of my centuries of hard work. Still, strength is just one of the qualities I’m looking for. In the case of this trial what I’m interested in is your willpower and ambition. To pass this trial, all one need do is examine the stone at the island’s center with divine sense. In other words, if you don’t have divine sense you’ll need to survive the Divine Sense Tribulation. Oh and don’t forget, all my trials have time limits!”
Gazeen shuddered in fear as he listened to the voice. Ever since a Fate Shift from over a thousand years ago, divine sense, once a mainstay in Qi Cultivation, had become rare. In order to unlock divine sense in modern times one would have to live through the enigmatic Divine Sense Tribulation.
The Divine Sense Fate Shift as it was known had both positive and negative effects. For one thing, anyone, regardless of their cultivation, could undertake the tribulation at any time by simply consciously wishing to attempt it. Those who survived would also gain a more powerful and complete divine sense in comparison to the divine sense that had once been available to all cultivators. On the other hand, each individual’s Divine Sense Tribulation was unique and could have any form. Even Immortals had died to the random challenges posed by their Divine Sense Tribulations. Considering very few people who attempted the Divine Sense Tribulation survived, it seemed too risky a proposition for most people who valued their life.
Throughout the Sword Hall, people who’d entered the second trial began considering what course of action to take. Many began sweating as they worried not just about the choice they’d make but also about how quickly they needed to choose. If they waited too long and the time limit ended, their hesitation would cost them their life!
Of course, for a few this second trial was a joke. After all, if one already had divine sense all they had to do was inject a bit of it into the stone column and move on. Dregg, Radsidan, and Xumnuh were the only three with divine sense amongst those in the second trial; everyone else had to face the trial seriously.
Gazeen spent several minutes weighing his options before eventually deciding to attempt the Divine Sense Tribulation. Ultimately he just couldn’t imagine Fate would choose him as one of the Fate’s Own if he was incapable of even overcoming this level of difficulty. Thus, the sand wraith resolved himself and willed the Divine Sense Tribulation to begin.
Individuals like Gazeen represented a minority of the people in the second trial. Almost everyone chose to simply leave the Sword Hall; to most, attempting the Divine Sense Tribulation was tantamount to suicide. All of the remaining Dark Earth demons save one gave up. Of the Sand Wraith Tribe a measly three demons were brave enough to continue, including Gazeen. Even Kahkahkin chose to surrender his opportunity to progress further. In his calculation this was a gamble he’d rather never take.
Gazeen’s Divine Sense Tribulation came in a flash of brilliant, multi-colored light. A moment later hundreds of spears similar in design to the orange one he’d picked up here in the Sword Hall appeared. Some of the spears were obviously a little different, some seemed totally identical, and some appeared to have undergone radical changes in appearance.
A line of text similar to the text from the System of Fate formed in Gazeen’s vision.
[A single spear represents your opportunity to gain divine sense. Grasping any other spear will result in death. Ask yourself what power is and let your heart’s answer guide you.]
Gazeen frowned. What did power mean to him? The sand wraith sat cross-legged and began pondering the question.
Meanwhile, others had also begun their tribulations. Obbun found himself in a resplendent Sky Palace filled with beautiful women, heaps of gold scattered like trash, servants who’d obeyed his every command, and visitors willing to suffer any shame just for a glance at his mighty figure. The angel found himself deeply drawn into the illusionary world. What he would give to live like this!
Gauffrir’s tribulation was rather different. The demon found his many limbs chained, rendering him utterly immobile. A gargantuan figure continually poked him with a bamboo stick and no matter how he struggled the demon couldn’t escape his predicament.
As time passed, things grew increasingly dire in each of the tribulations. In Gazeen’s tribulation more and more spears began appearing. The bamboo-wielding figure switched from poking to hitting in Gauffrir’s tribulation. As for Obbun, his life in the illusory world grew increasingly debauched.
The last Dark Earth demon was the first to finish his tribulation. The whole process took him only a few minutes at most.
Twelve minutes later, one of the sand wraiths dropped dead.
Gazeen considered what power meant to him several times from various angles. What his mind kept coming back to was a single word: mediocrity. To lack power but desire it was the story of his life so far. Without power he wouldn’t be the weakest of the weak but he’d also never be strong. Becoming one of the Fate’s Own represented a real chance at gaining power to Gazeen, a chance to make his dreams of what his life could be reality.
The third member of the Fate’s Own applied that reasoning and considered what symbolized power to him more than anything. The answer came to him with surprising clarity from his current perspective. Fate was what represented power. This thought caused all the spears to vanish, all but the original one he’d picked up in the armory. The sand wraith picked that orange spear up with a confidence he rarely possessed.
The world around Gazeen seemed to shrink as his awareness rapidly expanded. Before long the entire island was within the scope of Gazeen’s divine sense. Of course he didn’t get to observe the island in much detail as he was almost immediately teleported away after his divine sense came in contact with the stone in the island’s center.
Excluding the three who already had divine sense, Gazeen was the second person to pass the second trial. Obbun, who’d seemed hopelessly mired in his tribulation’s dreamworld, followed in short order. The others started dying off one by one. The last sand wraith still in the trial died first, followed by the last two angels. Soon only Gauffrir remained.
In Gauffrir’s world he’d been beaten near to death. In his tribulation his normal regeneration didn’t take effect; even a single additional blow would most likely finish the demon off. Gauffrir had already stopped struggling and felt his consciousness fading. His last thought wasn’t an image or sentence; just a sense of hatred. Then his tribulation ended. The unconscious demon was the last to complete the second trial.
