Endless Evolution: Last Star

Chapter 140: Test of Strength

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Adam's prison bracelet vibrated, glowing green. Oddly enough, it was Silvana, who finally got a chance to contact him.

'Adam!' Silvana exclaimed. They had not communicated in over a day, and she had received no information in that time.

"Hey. It's been a while since we've been in touch, right?" Adam smiled, following Lola's lead.

'Louis and I are trying to get a face-to-face meeting with you and somehow get your sentence reduced. However... so far, we're not having any luck. Azure Lotus and Proud Wing are doing everything they can to stop us, and they have enough evidence to keep your sentence as it is...' Silvana muttered frustratedly.

She was an Operator, and her main job was to help her Phantom, not just in Dead Lands, but in any situation or aspect of life. That she had been powerless when Adam was in this situation was worse than any curse on her. It seemed that she had failed her mission as an Operator, something she had been preparing for her whole life.

"Agh, about that..." Adam uttered protractedly, "Don't sweat it."

'What?!' Silvana was shocked, 'If I don't do anything you'll lose six months of your life! Five at best! That's still too much!'

Adam shook his head, casting a glance at the exit gate.

"I'll be out of here soon, though I don't know the details yet, but I definitely won't be here for five months. I can feel it."

'Are you sure...?' Silvana was confused. She didn't know what was going on at Fall Hill Prison and didn't understand how Adam was going to get out of there early.

Adam nodded with a bitter smile.

"Do something useful instead. Find me an Essence Monster with a lightning attribute or one that will fit my artifact, figure that out too. I'm sure Essence Monster is already waiting for me, but there are always some delays." Adam smiled bitterly before stepping forward.

'Fine. I hope you know what you're doing. However, I'll call you every day, and hopefully soon you'll tell me what's going on.' Silvana said seriously. It had never happened before that she knew less than Adam.

Adam shrugged nonchalantly.

"Sure. I'm certain you'll be surprised. I'll see you later." Adam said, ending the call.

"What are you waiting for?" Adam raised an eyebrow, looking at Lola. She was standing at the door leading to the stairs to the first floor.

"Go ahead. Open it. Only someone with enough points can do that." Lola pointed to a slot in the door where a card had to be attached.

Crackle.

The door opened as Adam and Lola went downstairs.

In the middle of the first floor was a massive stone slab with a white crystal in the center. With this object, the Phantom's striking power could be measured depending on the final color of the crystal.

"What's that?" Adam pointed at the slab.

"Part of one Purple Threat Level monster - the Rainbow Armadillo. It doesn't have any dangerous attacking abilities, but its defense is above reproach. Rainbow Armadillo is probably the most well-defended monster in the Purple Threat Rating. Azure Lotus must have worked hard to bring it here." Lola explained.

Then, she pointed at the crystal and continued:

"If there are only four colors - white, green, blue, and purple. Those who can hit hard enough for purple get 999 points and a chance to fight the Guardian."

Adam pointed to his card about to say something.

Bur, Lola beat him to it.

"Sure, you already have 999 points, but aren't you curious what your score will be?"

Adam smiled, heading towards the stove.

"Fine, let's give it a try, right after this, I'm outta here." Adam waved his hand.

"Hey! Good luck, handsome." A woman with curly scarlet hair said, biting the tip of her pinky finger with a predatory smile.

Adam turned around.

"Do I know you?" Adam tilted his head.

"Nah, but if you want you can get to know each other better. I can even come to your cell at night if you let me in, of course."

Adam frowned.

"You think I'm going to stay here? All I need to do is defeat the Guardian. I'll do it today."

The woman shrugged with an innocent smile.

"That's what everyone thinks. However, everyone on the second floor has already tried and lost. You're sure you can handle it, but it's obvious to everyone that you're going to be one of us."

Adam snorted, approaching the stove.

He stared at the white crystal for a while before clenching his fist tightly. He took a step forward and attacked, but... at the last moment, he stopped.

The prisoners looked at each other puzzled, they didn't understand why Adam didn't finish his blow which seemed quite powerful because of the wind currents that appeared.

'No... That's not it at all. I can hit much harder, I just need to feel like I'm in a fight... Like in Dead Lands!' Adam inwardly muttered before taking a step back and closing his eyes.

He took a deep breath, remembering all of his fights. Strangely enough, but among all those he had fought: Prime Stone Goliath, Brass Puppet, Mirna, Prime Azure Wolves, and North Keeper, it was the Steel Knight that stood out the most in his mind.

Perhaps it was because the Steel Knight gene was in Adam's Evolution Tree, or maybe it was because that was his most iconic fight.

'Right... Defeating you gave me not only experience but real strength.' Adam muttered, glancing at his Power Gene.

Then, he opened his eyes and stepped back a few meters before properly sprinting up.

Before he struck, Adam jumped high up, bringing his fist down on the white crystal from top to bottom. For a moment, his Power Gene flashed, and the veins on his fist swelled.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

At the same moment, Adam's punch reached the crystal, causing the slab and the ground to shake.

Energy waves began to emanate from the crystal, spreading across the dark slab - white at first, then the crystal turned green and after a second reached blue.

The prisoners' eyes went wide, for the crystal's color was changing too fast!

After another second, the crystal turned purple, but... it seemed that this was not the end.

Even Prago and Raina didn't know about Adam's accomplishments in Dead Lands, they had to use outside sources to get that information, and that would take time, if they could learn anything about Adam at all.

Thus, the prisoners knew nothing about Adam, his powers, or that he had fought against North Keeper - Top-4 of the Purple Threat Level during Eclipse.

Sure, he was paired with Alexia, but they were both exhausted.

Compared to North Keeper... Well, Rainbow Armadillo didn't seem like such an invincible opponent when it came to comparing it to a Top-5 monster.

Bam.

The slab shattered into small pieces under Adam's onslaught. Only a few bleeding scratches remained on his fist, but very soon there would be no trace of it.

Adam clenched his fist tightly, smiled, and turned to Lola under the shocked looks of the prisoners.

"Hey, how do I challenge the Guardian to a duel?"

"Your... your card... Put it on your bracelet and pick a command..." Lola muttered in a disbelief.

Adam nodded, doing as she said.

His card glowed, and in a minute, the entrance gate opened - revealing a new silhouette with a powerful aura.