"I need to find time to renew the guard captain's fee," Orson muttered as he appeared at the Mage Guild's entrance. He quickly donned the Imperial Mage Robes, which were about to expire in less than twelve hours, and transformed back into Boss Bai.
It had to be said, having a big red name tag was incredibly useful when disguised as Boss Bai. The patrolling soldiers greeted him warmly, unaware that this was a mage lord NPC, renowned among their ranks.
"Listen up, the one-minute test is about to begin. All test participants, prepare yourselves."
Inside the Mage Training Grounds, players were lining up for their profession awakening tests. With the guild wars about to begin, many major guilds had poured into the training grounds, creating a crowded scene of over a thousand mages.
The goal was to smash the training grounds' magic crystals, then have them graded by an NPC magic instructor. D-class was the lowest grade, and A-class was the highest.
Typically, achieving an A-class profession required multiple retests, with final ratings given by the three Grand Mages of Pondenorlin. These were the elites, with profound understanding of the mage profession.
For fairness across different mage specialties, it wasn't just about raw output; the test also evaluated skills such as precision, delicacy, and mana control.
"I'm speechless. We only have a 20-meter range, but the red crystal is over 50 meters away, and the target is so small. How in the world are we supposed to hit that?" one player complained.
"Maybe we can try to break the blue crystal, but that's not easy either. It'll probably take at least ten hits to the head to break it."
"This is too difficult... I should've played a knight class. I heard their tests involve charging on horseback and hitting a target to unlock a B-class profession."
Dozens of players lined up on the training grounds, voicing their frustrations. The first round of the test was simple—smash the green, blue, yellow, and red crystals in one minute using basic attacks (Plain A).
- Green crystals were the largest and easiest to hit.
- Blue crystals were embedded in a mannequin's head and required high precision.
- Yellow crystals came in pairs, scattered on mannequins, and needed to be hit in sequence.
- Red crystals, placed 50 meters away in a stone hand sculpture, were the hardest to hit, with many mages lacking the range to even try.
The majority of players lined up in front of the blue and yellow crystals. Anyone who broke the yellow crystal would advance to the next round and have a chance to unlock a B-class profession. B-class professions were not only powerful but also had the potential to make players top-tier elites in Infinite Dimensions.
Orson, standing among the crowd, surveyed the situation. The red crystal had the highest difficulty, yet over ten players were attempting it. He guessed that these players either had rare weapons that extended their range or, like him, were boosted by special Soul Seals. Otherwise, ordinary players wouldn't even be able to reach it.
The test began, and players started unleashing their skills. Soon, a few players smashed the first two crystals, while others struggled to hit the red crystal, even with a suitable range.
"How is this possible? Getting ten consecutive hits on the red crystal, is that even humanly possible?" one player asked, clearly frustrated. He quit the test with a defeated expression.
Orson wasn't surprised. The mage profession was notoriously hard to master—it was a major gold sink, and its operation was far more difficult than the archer or priest professions. Without weeks of practice, it was nearly impossible to pass the test.
After a few rounds, only two players succeeded in breaking the red crystal. However, that was just the first round, and the following tests would be even harder.
"What the hell? How did an NPC get in here? I didn't hear anything about NPC mages needing to take the test!" one player exclaimed.
"Wait, it really is an NPC," another added, surprised.
Boss Bai entered the training grounds, his test number in hand. He walked straight to the center of the arena and took his place.
"Well, well, someone finally noticed?" an old man in a tattered gray robe on the spectator stands murmured, his dull eyes gleaming with sharp intelligence as he quickly saw through Boss Bai's poor disguise.
"Old Terry, I want him," the old man said, showing a crooked smile that revealed a mouthful of yellowed teeth.
"Heretic, who do you think you're talking to?" a cold-eyed mage sharply retorted.
"Heh, heretic or not, we're all on the same side," the old man shrugged, then turned his gaze to a robed elder wearing a starry cloak.
Flamebound, the elder, remained unmoved, saying calmly, "Even if he discovers the secret behind the test, I doubt he'll follow you. No one will accept your methods."
The old man's smile faltered. "…Magic has no limits. There will always be those like me who strive for perfection."
"Does anyone have anything to say about this? Is the game system malfunctioning? Someone get this NPC out of here!" a player shouted in confusion.
"Exactly. Saint Slayer Syndicate was hit by magic meteors and got wiped, giving Godslayer the perfect opportunity to strike!" another player added.
The players surrounding Orson stepped back, thinking this was some kind of trap. They didn't want to risk their equipment getting destroyed.
Orson took advantage of the situation, switching to Plain A Mode. He raised his hand, launching a Wind Blade at the largest green crystal, which lost one bar of health.
"What's he doing? Only breaking two crystals?" one player asked.
"Wait, that's strange. When I tried, there were no patterns or markings appearing."
Orson continued without hesitation. He switched to Stone Spire Mode, shooting two quick Stone Spikes at the yellow crystals, each hitting one precisely.
Ding…
The magic runes on the crystals began to glow brighter.
And that was just the beginning. Orson remained calm as he tossed a Fireball at the hardest red crystal, 50 meters away. The ball hit its mark with remarkable precision.
"Whoa… that's the power of an Imperial Mage! 50 meters, and still this fast!" one player gasped.
The red crystal shattered, and the whole statue seemed to tremble.
Amid the shock, Orson repeated his actions with unwavering precision, triggering a magical roar that resonated across the training grounds.
"What the hell… this is the difference between players and NPCs!" one player exclaimed.
"Hah, whatever. I could hit targets from a thousand meters if I had Al class abilities," another player scoffed.
Every shot Orson took was on the mark, and the magic runes on the crystals gradually grew clearer, displaying four faint, shadowy figures that seemed to project from the crystals themselves.
"How… how is he doing this?" the NPC mage beside the old man muttered in disbelief.
According to the S-Class Mage test rules, once an adventurer figured out that each crystal corresponded to four different elemental magic types, they would be able to hit them in sequence to trigger the test's requirements, provided their accuracy was at 70% or higher.
But the man in front of them was hitting each target without missing, and it didn't even seem like he was trying his hardest!
Whispers ran through the crowd. The training grounds fell into complete silence except for the continuing explosions of magic.
Orson smiled knowingly. In his past life, a player had uncovered this test's secret, and the reward wasn't just a S-class hidden profession clue—it was two!
The first was the Mage Guild's S-class profession clue: Dual Elemental Mastery/Single Element Perfection, the Elementalist.
The second was from the Chaos Sect's S-class profession clue: Four Element Mastery, the Chaos Mage.
"Go tell them, the Mage Guild needs someone like him!" the NPC mage ordered his subordinates.
The old man jumped to his feet, his eyes flashing with a dangerous light. "This one's mine! Anyone who dares compete with me will see Pondenorlin City run red with blood!"
With a sneer, the old man's Six-Pointed Star magic circle appeared, radiating a strange dark-red hue. In the center of the circle, a Chaos deity could be faintly seen.
"Old fool, what do you think you're doing?" another mage demanded, as a gray mist covered the heads of all nearby mages.
Everyone immediately took out their wands, ready to defend themselves.
"Flame Fosset, you're leading him down the wrong path. You'll only ruin him," Flamebound warned, calmly waving his hand. The holy light that followed instantly neutralized the chaos aura.
A system notification appeared:
You have unlocked a hidden profession clue.
Option 1: Enter the Mage Guild's council hall for a profession retest.
Option 2: Leave the Mage Guild.
Orson pondered for a
moment and chose the second option, rejecting the invitation for the next round of testing.
"You talk too much, old man. I know what I'm doing!" Flame Fosset sneered, turning to leave the arena, under the hostile gazes of the other mages.
Orson looked back at the stands, then calmly walked out of the training grounds, sitting by the entrance to wait.