Karun originally thought that he would become the target.

He was already prepared. Once someone rushed towards him, he would put down Richard and engage in a real fight!

Therefore, when the others around him shifted their attention back, Karun was slightly surprised.

But soon, he felt relieved. Richard, this "burden," had become a symbol of his strength in this special environment.

The man who directly knocked Leon out of the test may not know Leon or his identity, or he may know but not care. However, the reason he chose Leon as his target was because Leon was already at the final node, barely holding on. He understood that all he needed to do was give Leon a push, and he would be pushed out of the competition.

However, he didn't dare to attack Karun because he didn't think the others around would join forces with him to attack Karun. The final quota was for five, not one. Whoever decided to make a move would inevitably face a counterattack from Karun.

No one would naively think that Karun, in this situation, would continue to hold onto Richard like a burden. The normal choice for anyone would be to let go of the burden and deal with the person who wanted to harm them!

Under the premise of mutual competition, no one would choose to attack the strongest one. The rational optimal solution often does not hold emotionally.

The man lay on the ground, as if catching his breath.

Karun pulled Richard and continued forward, stepping past the man without him moving.

The others also moved forward, but they subconsciously distanced themselves from each other.

This was the most opportune moment for cooperation, and now that opportunity was lost, it was almost impossible to unite and deal with anyone.

Karun surpassed everyone and walked in the front row, continuing to move forward firmly.

Karun looked down and saw Richard. Richard's skin was already 80% frozen, and now he looked more like an ice lump, but he was still conscious, still gritting his teeth.

In fact, at this height, even if he hadn't climbed up himself, this kind of tenacity was already quite good...

Richard's talent was actually very high, but this guy had a careless personality, which was a bit of a waste of his talent.

But it was also normal. His family background here gave him a high starting point but also deprived him of the determination to climb up from the bottom.

The height increased again, and the degree of soul freezing reached a new level.

At this point, Richard's consciousness finally showed signs of dispersing. This meant that if he continued to go up, he might be directly "eliminated" from the test.

Karun simply stopped, turned around, faced the mountain below, and sat down.

Richard leaned on Karun's arm and made a weak and intermittent voice:

"Ka...run... I'm really... really... useless..."

"Yeah, you are."

"You... you helped me... but I... I still can't... go up..."

"Alright, stop with the obvious nonsense."

"I'm... hurt... being brought up like this by you... I'm... suffering..."

"You're being melodramatic."

"Be... friends... be... brothers... I... don't want... to be... a burden..."

"Shut up, and hold on as long as you can."

At this moment, a figure appeared below. He came up, it was the knight.

Then, he stopped.

He looked at Karun sitting on top and Richard leaning against him.

He understood the reason why Karun stopped was that his companion beside him couldn't continue to move up.

But when Karun sat there like this, he didn't dare to go up either.

Because according to the rules, in order to ensure being in the top five, not only do you have to be in the top five while you are still in the test, but you also have to ensure that the people who continue the test after you leave will not surpass the height you left behind.

He witnessed Karun forcibly pulling that person up here, it must be to ensure that he can enter the top five. And there were not many competitors left on the field, the best way to ensure was to eliminate a few competitors here.

The most embarrassing thing was that the higher they went, the narrower the path became. It was almost impossible to safely bypass Karun and go up from this position. Moreover, every step would consume the little strength he had left, and he didn't want to waste it on lateral movement.

Looking at the person in front of him who stopped and didn't move.

Karun smiled. He didn't know if his face could accurately convey the smile, but he raised his right arm and waved behind him, indicating that the person could go up.

Find the original at "pawread dot com".

The young man hesitated for a moment because no one could guarantee that Karun wouldn't choose to attack.

But looking at the back and then at Karun, and then at the snow-capped mountain behind Karun, he finally chose to take a step forward.

When he reached Karun's side, the young man stopped and said:

"I... I'm called... called Bart... Bart Kusens... Third... Knight Order... reserve... Eagle... Knight..."

He used this proactive way to introduce himself and show respect to Karun.

"Karun Silva, an extra member of the Order of the Whip of Order, Nio Squad."

"This..."

Bart was shocked, not because Karun was just an extra member of the Order of the Whip, his parents were high-ranking officers in the Knight Order, but now he was also a reserve knight, belonging to the reserve reserve, similar to Karun. The more accumulated families and the more profound family backgrounds, the more they value the development of their family members at the grassroots level. Only those nouveau riche would think about climbing up as much as possible in a limited time.

He was shocked that Karun could still speak so fluently!

What did this mean?

It meant that the other party still had energy, and a lot of it.

"Ka...run... I want... to invite you... to drink... alcohol..."

"I don't drink alcohol, how about tea? Drinking alcohol is not good for your health."

"Okay... let's... drink tea..."

Karun turned his head to look at Bart and said, "You go up, talk less."

"Thank... thank you..."Bart continued to take steps, slowly and difficultly climbing up. He would keep walking until he couldn't move anymore, until his consciousness scattered and he automatically exited the test formation.

On one hand, this was the rule of the game, and on the other hand, he knew in his heart that although he was currently ranked first, he was actually second. He believed that Karun would come up.

After Bart went up, another figure quickly appeared, the boy who played with stones.

The state of his soul now was half ice and half stone, making him look like a stone man.

However, Karun understood that the stones on the boy were not ordinary stones, but rather a crystal that looked like stones. This state had also infiltrated his soul.

The boy stopped, obviously encountering the same situation as Bart.

He knew that Bart was in front of him, but he didn't know if Bart continued to go up or if he was "taken care of" by Karun.

"I'm curious, have you been contaminated?" Karun asked.

"Yes... contaminated..."

"Not easy."

This boy had indeed been contaminated. He was a follower of order, but at the same time, he could be considered a demon.

And his contamination had already infiltrated his soul, making him similar to Doradolin. He had endured even greater pain than Doradolin, but he still gritted his teeth and walked the path of faith.

"Then... can I... go up?" the boy asked Karun.

"Go ahead, it's fine. I won't attack you."

"Oh... okay..."

The boy took a step and continued to climb up. When he reached Karun's side, he said:

"I... am... Wen... Wen Tula... your... your... soul... is very powerful..."

The boy didn't have a surname, which likely meant one thing: he didn't have a family. This didn't mean he was an orphan, but rather that even if he had a surname, no one would know it, so he didn't bother.

This reminded Karun that he was used to making up surnames when introducing himself to others, but it wasn't necessary.

"I'm Karun."

Wen Tula lifted his leg, which was half ice and half stone, and continued to climb up.

After a while, the man who had forced Leon to exit the test appeared here. He also stopped, but instead of asking, he chose to do the same as Karun and turned around, facing downhill, and sat down.

Not long after, Eslie walked up. She saw the man sitting there and also saw Karun and the others sitting above him.

She stared at the man, continuing to climb up.

When she reached the man's side, the man suddenly jumped up and pounced on her.

Eslie was prepared and the two of them wrestled together.

Because both of their souls were on the verge of exhaustion, the scene of their struggle was not accompanied by any magic or dazzling lights. In short, it wasn't so beautiful.

It was more like two dying stray dogs, engaged in their final fight.

Karun, sitting above, calmly watched this scene. The man didn't ask if he could go up like Bart and Wen Tula did, because he assumed that Karun was guarding the passage.

So he stopped below Karun, guarding his own passage.

Obviously, the man's soul strength was slightly higher than Eslie's, and this slight advantage was enough to become a real advantage at this critical point.

Eslie was pressed down to the ground, her soul dissipating, but she didn't give up. It was as if she was making her final struggle, although her struggle was becoming weaker and weaker.

However, at this moment, a red color suddenly appeared in Eslie's soul. A fully red bird flew out of Eslie's body and directly collided with the man, instantly igniting his soul.

In disbelief, his figure disappeared and he exited the test.

Previously, a candidate had his turtle phantom triggered during the security check and was directly disqualified for "cheating".

But Eslie also had it, except she was from that department, so her relationship with the monsters was closer and her hidden means were more abundant.

As stated in the exam notice, if it's discovered, it's cheating; if it's not discovered, it's your ability.

Eslie struggled to climb up from the snow, looking at Karun.

Because she had few facial features, Karun could only guess that she was smiling.

"This... is my... last... resort..."

Karun had no words.

Eslie looked at the position where the man had been sitting earlier, then looked at Karun behind her.

In the end, she decided to continue climbing up because in her opinion, staying here or being pushed out of the test by Karun would result in the same height. It was better to end it sooner.

However, it wasn't until she struggled past Karun and reached above him that she turned her head in astonishment to look at Karun's back.

"Do... you... like... me...?"

"Heh... heh... cough..." Richard, who was breathing out more than breathing in, burst into laughter.

He laughed like a decaying skeleton on the verge of extinction.

"Don't worry, don't think too much. I don't like you."

"Why...?"

"Because you're not pretty enough."

"I... hate... you..."

Eslie continued to climb up.

Alright, three people have gone up, which means that including Karun and Richard, the quota for five people has been filled.

But the selection is not over yet, there are still people climbing up from below.

Finally, another figure appeared. She lay on her back on the ground, using her hands and feet to paddle her body like a boat in the snow. It was the sleepy girl.

The girl's body was basically frozen, and at this height, she had reached her limit.

She stopped,

She sighed,

She placed her hands on both sides of her body.

After a while,

She seemed to have gathered a little strength and began to climb up again.Karun slowly stood up.

He could continue to climb up, but Richard couldn't anymore. So, in order to secure Richard's spot, he had to become the guardian.

The girl paddled up to Karun and opened her eyes, looking at him. She said, "The dream... is over..."

As soon as she finished speaking, the ice on the girl's body began to dissipate, and her soul returned to its original form when she first entered the examination room!

The girl stood up, raised her finger, and pointed at Karun. She asked, "Are you going to stop me?"

Karun stood in front of her, showing his determination through his actions.

She might be the last competitor, but she was also the most powerful and mysterious one. It couldn't be ruled out that she, like him, had used special means to avoid the true pressure of this test.

For example, Karun had experienced it himself, while she chose to sleep and create another self through "sleepwalking," allowing that self to bear all the exhaustion from the foot of the mountain to here.

Therefore, fundamentally, the girl's methods were similar to the captain's sick friend who played rock-paper-scissors with himself.

But the captain's sick friend had obviously gone too far. He couldn't be seen anymore, and it was probably because of the unequal division of labor that he had a falling out with himself at the mountain waist position.

"Ka...run..." Richard's weak voice came, "As long as... there are... five... people... in front of me... I won't... be considered... cheating..."

"Are you still worried about that now?"

"Being... brought up... and seeing... the scenery... I'm... satisfied..."

Richard closed his eyes and disappeared.

He chose to voluntarily withdraw from the selection.

Perhaps, if it were another selection method, he could stand by Karun's side, face whatever together, and resist whatever together, bringing help to Karun, even if it was just a little bit. Then he would feel much more at ease.

But unfortunately, under the background of this selection method, he had become a burden to Karun, being brought up all the way by Karun.

It was a bit boring.

Although as long as he passed the security check, any means on the examination room wouldn't be considered cheating, including Karun's forceful methods, he would still ultimately obtain a spot. But Richard felt burdened by obtaining the spot in this way.

During this process, Richard also saw the gap between himself and those truly outstanding people.

Most importantly, he didn't want Karun to fight with this drowsy girl for his sake.

After Richard disappeared, Bishop Burn's voice sounded, "The selection is over."

"Roar!"

A low roar came from the mythical beast, Kompasini, and Karun opened his eyes.

At this moment, there were only two people left in the examination room. They were the ones who were still in the illusion when the selection ended. The others, including Bart and his group, couldn't withstand it and withdrew from the selection after climbing a certain distance. Then a beam of light would teleport them out of the examination room.

Karun looked at the drowsy girl, and she was also looking at him. There seemed to be a kind of regret in her eyes, regret that she didn't have a real conflict with Karun.

Bishop Burn was announcing the rankings.

First place was Bart, second place was Ventura, third place was Aisley, fourth place was Karun, fifth place... Philomina.

The rankings were not accurate because two people were still in the illusion until the end of the illusion. In theory, they could continue to climb up. But for Bishop Burn, he only needed to select five spots, and ranking these five spots didn't have much meaning.

"Karun, see you in the next selection."

Philomina smiled at Karun and took out an eye mask from her pocket, putting it on her face. She leaned forward again, as if she had fallen asleep again, and then left here somewhat clumsily.

"Karun, let's go back, hehe." Richard walked over.

"Okay."

As Karun and Richard walked out, they saw Bart waiting for them.

"Hey, let's have tea!"

Bart approached and lightly tapped Karun's chest.

"Alright."

"Um, I want to join too." Ventura's voice came, and the boy who played with stones seemed a bit shy.

"Don't leave me behind. We still have to participate in the next round together." Aisley also walked over.

Bart and Aisley had a group of people waiting behind them. Seeing this, Bart said, "Then let's not bring friends."

Aisley nodded, "I have no objections."

The group entered the teleportation array, and with a white light covering them, everyone returned to the underground floor of the Academic Affairs Building.

When they walked out, there were many friends and parents waiting outside.

One person's figure also appeared there, Mr. Memphis.

Upon seeing this, Richard immediately said, "I will report the situation to the captain with Mr. Memphis. Karun, let's go for a meal."

Richard remembered that Bart had passed by earlier, but this time he didn't bring any friends.

He knew that Karun would definitely bring him along, but he didn't want to.

Karun originally wanted to call Richard, but when he saw Mr. Memphis standing there, he didn't say anything.

Richard walked up to Mr. Memphis, who said, "The captain has already gone back. I'm here waiting for your news."

"Then I'll tell you some good news. Karun got selected, haha!"

Mr. Memphis nodded. He wasn't surprised by this result because he and his father predicted that Richard could only rely on luck to make it onto that list.

Of course, they didn't know what really happened in the illusion. Only a few people knew, including Bishop Burn, who presided over the illusion, and the few final selected ones.

Richard said, "I realized that there is a huge gap between me and them. Although we are about the same age, sigh, I really wasted a lot of time before. I lived too comfortably. From now on, I can't be like this anymore.""Each selection test is just a small part of life's experiences. Its purpose is to clarify the direction of progress. Although you didn't rank, you have already gained something, and that's worth celebrating."

"Yes, you're absolutely right, Memphis. It's hard on you, such an introvert, to be comforting me." Richard opened his arms and hugged Memphis, "Alright, but I doubt my dad will comfort me like this. I guess when I get home, I'll get another beating from him, sigh."

"That won't happen."

"It definitely will."

"A father can find any excuse to beat his son at any time, but he won't choose to do so when his son is down."

"Sigh, you don't understand, my dad has issues."

Memphis: "......"

"Aren't you going to talk to Karun?"

"He doesn't lack congratulations right now, but you need company."

"Right." Richard nodded, put his arm around Memphis's shoulder, "Memphis, you're a real friend. Come on, I'm treating you to some snacks today!"

"You should go home first."

"I won't go home yet, I've been suffocated these days, I need to relax."

"I have something to do, I can't go today, it's very important."

"Is that so, that's a pity, then I'll go by myself first."

"Alright......"

"Here's the deal, after you finish your business, you can go to Red Leaf Street, where there's a whole street of snack shops. Just pick one that you like and go in. After you're done, just mention my name, you can sign the bill, they all call me young master, hehe."

"Alright......"

"Remember, I'm not called Richard on that street, you know, when playing there, how could I possibly use my real name? Using a real name is always inconvenient."

"So, what should I call you?"

"Young Master Aisen."