After Howard climbed more than 600 steps in one go, he finally felt exhausted, his legs went weak, and he slumped down on the stone steps.
There were misty clouds and mist all around, and the scenery was picturesque, but he had no intention of admiring it.
He closed his eyes and tried to regain his strength and energy as quickly as possible.
When Howard climbed the first step, he felt a strong pressure coming towards him, acting directly on his spirit, as if repelling him and urging him to give up.
The further up you go, the stronger this pressure becomes.
So Howard knew that this should be the legendary mental strength test. If the mental strength does not meet the requirements to become a magician, he will stop on the steps and will eventually be eliminated.
"I will not give up," he reminded himself repeatedly in his mind, "I am now a magic apprentice. Compared with other competitors, I have a great advantage."
Three minutes later, his mental state had basically returned to what it was before.
So, he stood up again and continued to move forward.
The pressure on the stairs is getting stronger and stronger.
But Howard's eyes became more and more determined.
…………
But not everyone has Howard's mental potential.
Twenty minutes after the assessment started, someone finally couldn't bear the pressure and chose to quit the assessment midway.
"Bang!"
On the light screen, I saw a figure who could no longer stand firm on the steps. He staggered and fell to the ground and rolled down several steps before stopping.
Seeing his miserable appearance, the students watching felt distressed.
After the man finally sat down on the steps, he looked at the clouds and mist around him and suddenly cried "Wow".
"... I'm sorry, Mom, I'm sorry, Lisa... I really tried my best, but I really can't get up..." He said in a crying voice.
His crying undoubtedly affected the atmosphere around him.
The students who were watching also stopped their joking smiles and became serious.
At this moment, Lesroth's voice sounded in the white cloud: "Are you sure you want to give up? If you make such a decision, you will lose the qualification to enter the Mage Tower."
The man stood up slowly, looked at the stairs extending into the distance again, frowned, and hesitated for a moment. But in the end, he gritted his teeth and said resolutely: "I'm sure."
As soon as he finished speaking, the man disappeared into the demiplane of Merlins and returned to the outside world.
A piece of the light curtain suspended in mid-air also disappeared forever.
…………
"Boom!"
In the demiplane of Merlins, a bell rang leisurely, announcing to everyone that someone had withdrawn from the assessment.
Everyone who heard the bell was nervous and invariably quickened their pace under the strong pressure.
However, this bell is only the first time, but it is by no means the last.
A few minutes later, it kept ringing again and again.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
…………
Selena Solomon walked at the front of the line.
The continuous ringing of bells did not have any impact on her mentality.
With her "excellent" level of magic talent, this "road to death" is not too difficult for her and is within the range she can bear.
After resting about two or three times, she finally successfully climbed the thousandth step before everyone else.
However, just as she was about to continue walking forward, she suddenly found that she couldn't move. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move any further.
"What on earth is going on?"
Just when she was confused, a thin piece of paper fell from the sky and landed steadily in her hand.
Selina caught the paper, unfolded it, and read it carefully.
Then she took a breath of cold air, the expression on her face was uncertain, and her lips almost lost their color.
Unconsciously, she staggered back a few steps, already losing the elegance and calmness that a noble lady should have.
This is the first time she has truly lost her composure since participating in this assessment.
A cold voice sounded in her mind.
"Only by overcoming fear can we move forward." the voice said.
There is no doubt that this thin piece of paper is what Selina fears most.
It was a marriage contract with two names written on it.
One is her.
One is Marquis Scott, who is twenty-five years older than her.
…………
However, what happened to Selena did not cause much disturbance among onlookers.
Because the audience's attention has already been attracted by another thing.
"Oh my god, why is he walking in the opposite direction?"
"Who are you talking about?"
"Who else could it be? Of course it would be Alan York!"
"I'm afraid he's crazy!"
"Did he see that others were too far ahead and felt that he had no hope, so he made such a crazy decision?"
"Maybe... No, wait, no! There's something wrong with this step!"
"What's the problem?"
"Oh my God, my old man! This is incredible! There are steps in the opposite direction! Lord Merlins's demiplane is truly magical!"
"Looking at Allen walking so easily, there shouldn't be any resistance to the stairs in the opposite direction, right?"
"More than relaxing? It's simply laid-back! If others are here for testing, then Alan York is here for a vacation."
"I really don't know how he found out about this problem."
"I have long said that Allen is very extraordinary," at this time, Jeffrey once again said in a showy tone, "that his paper can be valued by the Mage Tower proves that he must be extraordinary."
Judging from his bragging tone, it was as if the person on the light screen was not Allen, but himself.
…………
"When you get an exam question, you need to first know what the examiner is thinking and what he wants to test you for."
Allen has long been familiar with this sentence.
After all, in his previous life, from elementary school to university, teachers of all subjects kept saying this sentence, which had already formed a conditioned reflex for Allen.
Therefore, when he came to the demiplane of Merlins, he was not in a hurry to set off.
He felt that he needed to look at the overall situation first and find a way to understand the mind of the person who asked the question.
So, he kept standing where he was, relying on his strong mental power to try to see clearly the truth of the entire plane.
Then he discovered that Merlins had actually built a Penrose ladder in his own plane!
The Penrose Ladder is a famous mathematical paradox in previous generations. It refers to a ladder that always goes up or always down. The highest or lowest point cannot be found on this ladder. If you climb up along it, it will loop endlessly and come back again and again.
to the original location.
Logically speaking, the Penrose ladder cannot exist in normal three-dimensional space.
But this is the demiplane of Merlins after all. All rules can be made by Merlins at will.
In this case, whether you are climbing up or walking down, you can reach the final destination.
In this way, while others were swimming upstream, Allen was swimming downstream.
The resistance that others encountered became a boost to him.
He walks like flying and is very fast.
In the blink of an eye, he was approaching his thousandth step.