Reincarnated With A Glitched System: Why Is My MP Not Running Out?

Chapter 1835: The First Challenge: The Trial Of Endurance

—–

Aquarina and her friends entered the Inheritance Trial. The first trial they faced lay before them, marked by several statues of strong, muscular warriors, both male and female. These statues likely represented ancient warriors or perhaps the many children of the original Hero of Stone.

According to the legends they had heard, the Stone Hero had over a hundred children with the same woman. Aquarina couldn’t help but think that his wife must have been an incredibly hardy Desert Elf to give birth to an entire clan still living in the place they originally settled.

Deciding not to overthink, Aquarina shook her head and focused on the temple’s center. A giant statue with muscular arms stood there, holding a massive golden-brown crystal that glowed faintly and radiated a mysterious aura.

Aquarina quickly counted roughly twelve statues, including the central giant one. However, she had no idea of their exact purpose or why they were here, but they were definitely part of the trial.

“The hell is this place?” Justicio asked, looking around. “There’s statues everywhere, is this part of the trial or something?”

“Weird…” Silvia said, her cheerful attitude fading. “Hmmm…”

Aquarina remained silent, scanning the area and trying to figure out what to do, until a voice echoed, its immense presence and authority shaking the temple.

“I WELCOME YOU TO THE INHERITANCE TRIAL, YOUNG WARRIORS.”

“YOU MUST PASS THREE TRIALS TO REACH THE END, WHERE YOU WILL FACE A FINAL CHALLENGE.”

“YOUR FIRST TRIAL IS CALLED: THE TRIAL OF ENDURANCE.”

“EACH STATUE IN THIS ROOM BEARS A WEIGHT. THIS WEIGHT WILL TRANSFER TO YOUR BODY WHEN YOU DESTROY THEM. TO PASS THE TRIAL, YOU MUST DESTROY EVERY STATUE AND THEN REACH THE EXIT.”

The voice faded, leaving the trio speechless as they took in the scene, wondering what this trial entailed…

“So we have to destroy the statues and carry their weight? Sounds easy…” Justicio said. “Or is it?”

“Depends how heavy they are…” Aquarina said. “If they’re too heavy, we could die crushed.”

“E-Eh? Then how do we even complete the trial?” Silvia asked.

“Hmm…” As Aquarina pondered, Pyuku and her Familiars surveyed the area. Khepri and Goldie also appeared, observing their surroundings.

The statues were immobile, not golems or anything similar, and the trial involved no combat.

“Where’s the exit at?” Justicio asked.

“Over there,” Aquarina pointed to a large, closed gate in the distance.

“I see, so we have to reach it while bearing the weight, enduring it…” Justicio nodded. “Hey, how about we walk to the exit, blast all the statues, and jump?”

“I don’t think that’ll work. The sheer weight might crush us before we can jump,” Aquarina said. “I considered it, but it’s too risky. We don’t know how heavy they are…”

“Huh…” Silvia looked around. “Um, I think we got this trial because we’re a group! Maybe our Ancestor wants us to share the weight, so no one bears it all alone, as that would kill them.”

“Wait, huh…” Justicio fell silent. “You’re not wrong, Silvia… Is this the lesson here? That bearing everything alone is wrong, and we must share the burden?”

“Perhaps, but it’s a literal way to teach it,” Aquarina smiled. “First, let’s walk to the exit. We can snipe the statues from there.”

The group moved to the gate and began planning.

“I’ll go first. I’m the strongest,” Aquarina said. “I’ll gauge how heavy the weight is.”

“Okay!” Silvia nodded.

Aquarina conjured a black icicle from her hand and shot it at the farthest statue.

BOOOM!

The statue shattered, and a strange gray energy surged from it, rushing toward Aquarina.

The energy hit her with immense force. She tried to dodge, but it was impossible.

TRUUUM!

“Ugh?!”

Aquarina barely stayed upright. The weight was immense, not a ton as she expected, but roughly thirty tons.

“Haaa… That’s a tough one, oof,” she muttered, moving slowly. “I can still move fine, but the weight is intense. It’s not like carrying something with your arms.”

“What do you mean?” Silvia asked.

“It’s as if every inch of your body carries the weight…” Aquarina’s eyes widened. “Bones, skin, muscles, organs, eyes, ears, even your hair… all of it feels this immense weight…”

“Aquarina…” Justicio muttered. “I suppose we have to distribute this evenly then…”

“Yeah!” Silvia nodded. “You said you can handle another? If we do the same, that’s six gone, but the other six…”

“If I transform…” Aquarina said. “I might handle four.”

“A-Are you sure?!” Silvia asked.

“Yeah, if you two go all out, maybe three each,” Aquarina said. “But that leaves two…”

“I can carry one. My body is liquid, so I might explode… but I’ll be fine and regenerate,” Pyuku said. “More than that, though… I don’t know.”

“Let’s start,” Aquarina said. “We won’t know until we try.”

The trio nodded, transforming instantly and unleashing their Auras at full power to boost their strength.

Silvia donned Khepri’s mechanical armor, Justicio activated his fusion armor, and Aquarina used her [Abyssal Adamantine Dragon Transformation] Skill for her strongest form.

They also had their spirits cast strength and endurance buffs to prepare.

Aquarina proceeded, destroying another statue. Another thirty tons crushed her body, but she resisted, though she nearly fell.

Silvia and Justicio followed, each destroying one statue with long-range weapon attacks. They felt the immense weight and grew dizzy but stayed standing…

“Oof, okay… let’s keep going, guys! Don’t falter… we can do this.”

Aquarina gasped for air, sweating as her friends groaned. She destroyed a third statue.

And…

TRUUUM!

“Uaagh!”

Aquarina screamed in pain, falling headfirst to the ground.

CRASH!

“Aquarina?!”

“A-Are you alright?”

As her friends approached, Aquarina’s eyes widened.

“It’s… heavier than the rest…!”

The truth emerged. While the first two statues felt similar, the third statue Aquarina destroyed was much heavier.

How heavy?

“The first two were about thirty tons… this one is… at least seventy.”

“What?!”

“H-How are we even…?!”

Justicio and Silvia began to panic. This trial demanded endurance and perseverance, but it was becoming overwhelming.

—–