Dimensional Keeper: All My Skills Are at Level 100 Chapter 1422 Trial of Mind Begins!

Grand Elder Waller positioned himself in front of the enormous skull, his elderly gaze mirroring the ghostly shine from the dragon bone while his words rang out distinctly across the dome.

"This represents the remnants of a Black Dragon, an authentic dragon," he declared deliberately, letting the statement settle into the shocked quiet. "According to legend, a massive conflict cleansed the whole Divine Realm one hundred thousand years in the past. Innumerable lives perished during that disaster. Vast star domains got obliterated. Primeval species that dominated existence disappeared in a flash. Back then, genuine dragons roamed the skies. They weren't just like our bloodline carriers. They formed the source. They acted as supreme entities whose mere exhalation could topple peaks and whose bellows could rip open the emptiness."

His eyes rose to the vast hollows of the skull's sockets.

"This genuine dragon joined that conflict. It battled on the front lines against foes so formidable that their identities remain unknown even today. But even a genuine dragon, one we worship as godly, didn't escape fate. It perished alongside myriad others. When the fighting ceased, just this head endured."

A soft exhale slipped from his mouth.

"In time, our forebears uncovered these bones. They understood its significance. Beyond mere might, it embodied inheritance. They brought it to this place and enclosed it inside this chamber. From that point, it has functioned as a challenge ground for our followers. What formerly flew through the clouds now challenges the new generation. That's the harshness of eras. Even the strongest entities ultimately become artifacts."

The followers absorbed his words in awestruck quiet, their pulses racing.

For them, dragons held holy status. Even thinned dragon lineages brought honor in the Black Dragon Clan. Authentic dragons counted as almost godly figures, beyond reach and everlasting. Grasping that one had died proved hard to swallow. Learning it succumbed in battle rattled them deeply.

One follower murmured roughly, "A conflict capable of slaying a genuine dragon… what sort of adversaries did they confront?"

Another gulped deeply. "With genuine dragons present then yet still defeated, the Divine Realm surely was an entirely altered place."

"I can't even picture a warzone where such creatures clashed," another whispered. "How might anything endure that devastation?"

The mood thickened with reverence and discomfort.

For the followers bearing dragon lineages in their blood, the disclosure hit harder. They'd long assumed their lineage's height came from unbeatable forebears. Discovering those forebears once got killed rendered the Divine Realm far riskier than they'd pictured.

Grand Elder Waller let their whispers linger briefly before lifting his hand to quiet them.

"Despair shouldn't grip you," he stated resolutely. "Pride should fill you instead. This skull doesn't signify frailty. It marks perseverance. Even in death, its spirit still overpowers you. Its presence still demands awe. That's the inheritance of a genuine dragon. It shows that power etches a trace time can't wipe away."

His tone grew firmer a bit.

"Today, you'll face the leftover essence of such a creature. If a dead body's force overwhelms you, how can you aspire to thrive in the Divine Realm amid real threats? The Trial of Heart commences here. Withstand this dragon's spirit's oppression. Face your terror. Face your boundaries. Only hearts unyielding under its presence qualify to advance."

The followers sensed their breathing turn labored again as they gazed at the massive skull.

What was once a glorious dragon commanding the skies now towered as a relentless arbiter.

And comprehension dawned on them.

This went beyond a mere strength check.

It gauged if their spirits deserved bearing dragon blood in a world where even genuine dragons had tumbled.

Grand Elder Waller went on. "You'll get ten minutes. When I launch the trial, everyone receives ten minutes. Anyone toppled or passed out gets removed from the trial."

Having spoken, Grand Elder Waller glanced at the elder overseeing the trial area.

"Your trial begins now!" Grand Elder Waller proclaimed.

Grand Elder's words had scarcely echoed away when the nearby elder triggered the array.

The very next moment, the essence surging from the black dragon's skull burst forth explosively.

It didn't build slowly. It erupted fiercely.

The force intensified a hundredfold.

The dome's atmosphere appeared to harden. It resembled an unseen peak crashing down from above, pressing straight onto each disciple there. The dim crimson light in the empty sockets of the dragon skull pulsed threateningly, and the crushing intent locked in those old bones stirred like a roused sleeping monster.

Numerous disciples lacked time to respond.

A few of the frailer ones yelled as their legs gave way under them. Their forms shook wildly, blood vessels swelling on their brows while they struggled to channel their power against it. The dragon's intent weighed not just on their frames but their thoughts, like an age-old stare assessing their value.

One disciple uttered a strangled wheeze before toppling forward onto the floor.

Another reeled back with bulging, frightened eyes. "I… I can't breathe!"

His sight dimmed. The burden squeezing him seemed boundless. Within his thoughts, a gigantic dragon appeared gliding across a sky drenched in blood, its cry shattering the realm. His resolve wavered before that envisioned cry.

He blacked out.

Gradually, certain faint-hearted disciples folded to the earth without enduring more than a handful of breaths. Their awareness got snuffed by the dominant intent in the dragon's bones. For them, the challenge concluded instantly the full force hit.

Those still upright fared little better.

Moans resounded across the dome. Numerous disciples sank to a single knee, hands braced on the floor to avoid full collapse. Perspiration streamed down their visages as they clenched their jaws. Their skeletons groaned under the vast pull fused with draconic power.