841 Hidden Mechanisms

Trying her best to copy the movements of the shadowy warrior while moving around the platform, while just barely holding on to the massive greatsword almost twice her size, Mui's movements slowly started to grow more fluid and precise with the passing of time. Soon enough, the clumsy movements from when she had first started trying to swing the wooden greatsword, had completely disappeared.

"Hah... I should... Hah... Take a break..." Coming to a stop, Mui collapsed on the ground with an exhausted expression on her face. The act of swinging around such a large great sword was an extremely exhausting thing for her. Especially considering that it was even difficult for her to lift the greatsword itself, much less move it in the same way that the shadowy warrior had done...

At the very least, her efforts had paid off and she had managed to comprehend a part of the greatsword technique that the shadowy warrior had demonstrated. Although she was still far away from reaching the level of the shadowy warrior, she could still be considered to have gained an initial understanding of the greatsword technique.

"Am I just supposed to continue trying to lean the greatsword technique...? Will the final trial only be finished after I manage to reach the same level as the shadowy warrior?" Having enjoyed a few delicious fruits that, she could now consume endlessly once again, Mui could not help wondering out loud if the goal of the final trial only was for her to comprehend the greatsword technique shown by the shadowy warrior and learn it herself.

Maybe the true goal of the final trial is something completely different and the shadowy warrior demonstrating the powerful and profound greatsword technique is only a distraction...

Sitting on the ground as she thought about this, Mui could not help starting to look around the room once again. However, this time around, she decided to look more closely at the different weapons along the walls and the other objects placed around the room. Searching for anything that seemed out of place.

As she carefully looked through the room once again, she noticed that one of the weapons hanging on the wall looked slightly askew. Looking out of place when compared to the rest of the weapons that were all lined up perfectly along the walls.

"Hm... Suspicious~!" Narrowing both her eyes upon seeing this, Mui got up from the ground before making her way over to inspect the weapon in question. Upon getting closer, she noticed that a small lever was hiding behind the weapon. Cleverly disguised to blend in with the weapon itself.

"Aha! I knew something wasn't right!" Smiling proudly after seeing this, Mui did not wait a second before pulling down on the lever-

Creak~

The moment the lever was pulled down, a panel in the wall just next to her, slid open. Revealing a dark, narrow path leading downward. The only light present being a small torch hanging at the entrance to the narrow path.

This should be the place where the real final trial is located...

Feeling a sense of anticipation as she looked down the dark path, Mui did not hesitate for more than a few seconds before grabbing the torch and making her way down the narrow path leading towards what she believed to be the final trial.

The walls rough and unpolished, while the air was cool and damp. The only source of light coming from the small torch, Mui was not bothered by her surrounding, as she continued walking along the dark and narrow path.

"This...? Nothing!?" Walking along the path for what felt like close to half an hour, Mui could not help exclaiming loudly to herself upon discovering that the path had suddenly come to an end. Nothing other than stone present around her.

Maybe there is some sort of hidden mechanism like last time...

As this thought appeared in her head, Mui quickly began looking around the narrow tunnel. Soon noticing that the faint outline of a door, almost invisible against the stone wall. Trying to push it open, Mui was left defeated after realizing that the door didn't budge even after she put all her strength into trying to push it open.

Now she was left with trying to figure out how she was going to open the hidden door and continue. Luckily for Mui, it did not take long before she found a small niche in the stone wall next to the door, just big enough for her hand to enter.

On a hunch, Mui did not hesitate to reach into the niche and feel around before finding a small button-

Click!

Pressing the button, the wall behind her slid away in a similar fashion as the wall that had revealed the dark and narrow passage, she now found herself inside of. The only difference this time around being that instead of revealing a path, it revealed a hidden mechanism that unlocked the door in front of her.

Creak~

Pushing open the stone door that had now been unlocked, Mui prepared herself to face another empty room with some kind of hidden mechanism she had to figure out as she entered the room on the other side.

"Huh!? This is-"

Passing through the stone door into the room on the other side, Mui could not help feeling surprised after noticing that the room on the other side was the same as the room with the shadowy warrior. Even the slightly askew weapon hanging on the wall with the lever behind it was the exact same. The only difference being that there was no lever hidden behind it this time around.

Bang!

Hearing the stone door behind her closing, Mui had a weird feeling that she had already experienced this once when she had first entered the room with the shadowy warrior inside of it...

Whoosh~!

Just as she was wondering if she was going to have to find another hidden mechanism again, the shadowy warrior from earlier suddenly formed on top of the raised platform in the middle of the room. However, this time around, he did not start demonstrating his greatsword technique. Instead, he remained silent on top of the raised platform without moving a single muscle. Almost looking like he had been frozen in time after appearing.

[Congratulations, participant Mui, you have successfully passed the first part of the final trial, finding the final trial. The last part of the final trial will require you to defeat the warrior on top of the platform. After this, the trials will be considered to have concluded and you will be given a final score. The time left for the final trial is one hour.]

"Ah!? Defeat the warrior on top of the platform... One hour left... I have to fight the shadowy warrior!?" Jumping back in surprise from the sudden appearance of the box of words, Mui could not help showing a shocked expression on her face after realizing that she had to fight the shadowy warrior standing on top of the platform in front of her.

Even if she had only witnessed the shadowy warrior showing off his greatsword technique for a short moment, she very well understood just how powerful the shadowy warrior was compared to her. Not to mention the fact that she could not even properly wield the greatsword that was required for the only combat technique she had learnt so far!

[Participant Mui, the cultivation realm of the shadowy warrior has been reduced to the same level as you.]

Almost like it had been reading her mind, a new sentence appeared on the box of words. However, this did not help make Mui any less uncomfortable at the prospect of having to fight the shadowy warrior. After all, this was going to be her first fight. Not counting the small skirmishes, she had participated in when defending her things from the other orphans when things were bad, and food was hard to come by.

Thinking about it, those fights had mostly been her trying to push the other kids away before escaping until things calmed down again.

"..."

Looking up at the shadowy warrior standing menacingly in the middle of the platform waiting for her to come over and challenge it, Mui had a feeling that the pushing tactic she had used back then would not work against the shadowy warrior. At most, it was going to get her beaten up faster...

"Looks like I will have to fight it with the greatsword technique if I want to have a chance at all..." Muttering this to herself as a helpless expression made its way on to her face, Mui did not feel the slightest bit confident when it came to fighting the shadowy warrior. In the end, she slowly made her way towards the wooden greatsword that had been placed along the wall in a similar fashion as the wooden greatsword she had used to practice with earlier-

Bang!

Even the weight of the greatsword was the same...