Joyce managed to fulfill her task. With her Will-Aura, she would have won against the puppet either way, but Gravis' requirements had made it way harder for her. The first attack had nearly killed her, but the ones after that had become easier to avoid.
In total, Joyce had taken three stabs and two slashes to her torso, which nearly bisected her. Luckily, by barely moving her body around, she managed to not get bisected. After the fifth injury, she had managed to kill the enemy.
"Immediately send another one, no pause," Gravis shouted, shocking Joyce and the group. Wasn't this a little too brutal? At least give her some time to breathe!
Another enemy appeared immediately.
"Joyce!" Gravis shouted. "Kill this enemy without taking more than one injury. Prove to us that you can take advantage of your Life Lightning!"
Joyce was a bit panicked, but her mood quickly recovered.
"Remember, initiative is everything! Don't let your enemy take advantage of their strengths!" Gravis shouted.
The enemy quickly shot forward. Joyce gritted her teeth and also charged forward. The enemy used an overhead slash to kill her, but with an iron will, Joyce managed to move her body slightly to the side. The left third of her body was cut off, but her long and thin sword managed to penetrate the enemy's dantian.
All its Energy left the puppet, and with another hit, Joyce ended it. Joyce was no longer using her Will-Aura constantly but kept it hidden until the enemy attacked. The short stun that the Will-Aura created would allow her to evade. Of course, a tactic like this only worked once per enemy. After that, the enemy would be prepared for that.
Joyce healed herself for the sixth time.
"Another one!" Gravis shouted, eliciting worried glances from the group. "Joyce, this time, you are not allowed to unleash your Will-Aura. Look at this as a test for someone two Stages above you. In such a fight, your enemy won't be slowed."
Joyce felt some stress, but her mind was burning. The nonstop battles roused her battle instincts. She was no longer thinking about herself but only about how to end her enemy.
She killed the next enemy in a similar way. The evasion of the attack had become harder, but she still managed it.
"Another one! Same restrictions as before, but you need to evade the first attack fully! Only when the enemy uses their second attack are you allowed to strike them!" Gravis shouted.
Another enemy appeared, and Joyce did as instructed. Yet, the slash of the enemy was swift and powerful. Seeing that she couldn't evade that slash, she blocked it with her sword. The slash threw her across the arena, but she was mostly uninjured.
The enemy saw its chance and immediately charged forward. The enemy's attack was pretty reckless since it thought that its enemy wouldn't be able to recover that quickly. Joyce took the slash and finished the enemy.
"Good! Taking the initiative is important, but if someone gets too eager, they will attack recklessly. Evading this attack should have been easier for you than the attack from the earlier opponent," Gravis said.
"Heaven! Send two of these enemies!" Gravis shouted.
The group took a deep breath. Wasn't this going too far? Yet, instead of growing afraid, Joyce only gritted her teeth with burning eyes.
"Survive! No restrictions!" Gravis shouted.
Two enemies appeared, and Joyce immediately charged at one of them. The second one spawned a couple of hundred meters away, so it still needed to come closer. The spear of the first enemy penetrated her chest, but Joyce didn't even seem to notice. Her sword completely decapitated the enemy.
Before the second enemy even arrived, Joyce already charged at him. "The second enemy knows about your strengths now, so it will take you more seriously! Your most powerful weapon is unveiled, so act accordingly!" Gravis transmitted to her.
Sure enough, instead of using a simple slash, the enemy unloaded its weapon in an arc. Remembering what Gravis told her, Joyce jumped to the side so that her body was also horizontal. The slash destroyed nearly half of her body, but her dantian and mind were safe.
Joyce immediately healed again and charged forward. The most potent weapon of the opponent had been used up, so it had to improvise. It started running away and sent multiple wind blades at her. Joyce always barely evaded these strikes, and in a couple of minutes, the enemy was out of Energy.
With one more trade, Joyce managed to win.
"Heaven, spawn one more enemy, but make it have Energy at the Sapling Stage!" Gravis shouted, and another enemy appeared.
"Hey!" Claude shouted aggressively. "Do you want to kill her? Don't you see how exhausted she is? Give her a break!"
Gravis looked coldly at him. "Just watch," he transmitted to him so that Joyce couldn't hear him.
The enemy spawned and charged at her. The enemy used a slash, and Joyce once more traded an injury for its death.
When Claude saw that, he took a deep breath. Joyce had killed such a powerful enemy that easily?
Gravis only smirked. "Good job, Joyce. You're done. Come out," Gravis said.
"I can continue!" Joyce shouted.
"Calm down, Joyce," Gravis said. "You are in a battle state, and that is good, but if you lose yourself in that state, it will transform into recklessness and maybe also rage. Your state has become progressively more aggressive, and your current state is perfect for battle. Don't become too lost in it."
Joyce wanted to continue, but her trust in Gravis stopped her. Even though she wanted to continue fighting, she suppressed that feeling and left the arena.
The group looked at her with shock. She had just managed to kill an enemy that had Energy two Stages higher than herself, something that was even incredibly hard for Manuel. In one series of battles, Joyce went from being the weakest to being one of the strongest.
Gravis smirked. "You have just killed an incredibly powerful enemy. How does it feel?" he asked.
Joyce took some deep breaths and then calmed down. After that, she furrowed her brows. "He didn't feel that powerful. In actuality, he felt just as powerful as the previous enemies."
Gravis laughed. "Because the enemy didn't have the chance to use its superior Energy. If they can't use their strongest weapon, it's the same as not having that weapon at all. This is the importance of killing your enemy as quickly as possible. If you hadn't managed to kill it in one strike, you would have entered an incredibly bitter and prolonged fight."
Joyce closed her eyes and reviewed her battles. She had killed multiple enemies that would have been challenging fights before this trial. She had also killed an enemy that knew her fighting style and strengths, and the last enemy was the most powerful one she had ever killed.
"Do you feel it?" Gravis asked. "Your Will-Aura has increased, but only by a minuscule amount. This means that the fights haven't even been really that dangerous."
Joyce felt it and furrowed her brows. "So, tempering my Will-Aura has become harder since my Battle-Strength has increased," she said.
Gravis laughed a bit. "Yes. The good comes with the bad. Now you know how I feel. I need to constantly search for tempering because if I progress to a higher Stage, I won't have any opponents left. But with this newfound Battle-Strength, there are way fewer enemies in this world that can kill you. You are less restrained, and you can earn more money more easily."
Joyce took in all of Gravis' words and drew a deep breath. After that, her eyes opened, and she looked at Gravis with excitement. "I did it, Gravis! Are you proud of me?" she shouted while shaking his arm.
And like that, Joyce was back to her usual, cheery self. Gravis laughed a bit. "Yes, I'm proud of you," he said.
Joyce clasped her cheeks in happiness. "Thank you so much!" she said.
Gravis thought she meant his training. "No problem."
Then, Gravis turned to Claude. "How powerful are you?" he asked.
Claude felt nervous when he saw Gravis looking at him. Was it his turn now? "I can fight two enemies at the Seed Stage," he said.
Gravis nodded and gestured for him to enter the arena. Claude sighed and complied.
"Heaven! Send him a copy of the priest I fought in the first trial, but adjust his strength so that everything about him is in the initial Stage, except for his body. Don't give him the Jade Tokens, though," Gravis shouted.
Everyone furrowed their brows in confusion. Claude just said that he could take two Seed Stage cultivators, but Gravis only sent him one, and that opponent was even only in the initial Stage? Wasn't this a little too easy?
A two-meter-tall puppet with a gigantic shield appeared. "Earth element?" Claude asked with interest.
Yes, the earth element was the best counter for the lightning element, but Claude could work around that. This fight shouldn't be an issue for him. With his speed, he would surely be able to take the puppet by surprise.
Meanwhile, the puppet looked at Claude like he was its most powerful, mortal enemy. No sign of hesitation or ridicule appeared in its eyes.
Manuel saw those eyes, and he stopped looking with confusion at the puppet. He had fought many powerful people, and he was incredible in judging a person's personality.
"This fight will be difficult," he whispered.
The group looked at him in surprise.
"Are you sure?" the darkness disciple asked.
Manuel only nodded. "Yes."