Chapter 34: Test
Quickly going through the moves on the tablet to get a feel for the ax, I noticed the thundering sound of footsteps rapidly approaching. Looking up in the direction the sound was coming from, all I could see was a giant cloud of dust.
"Come on, don't these tests start with one beast and then double each time? Why are all of them coming at once?" I said a little flabbergasted at the sight of so many beasts coming my way.
"If you wish to be worthy of wielding me, you must be ready to plunge yourself into a sea of enemies and slaughter them all." said the wolf whose voice came from the sky.
"Ugh, this is making me remember why I stopped reading Chinese novels. Let me see if I can use my other abilities, don't want to try to use them in the middle of the fighting and not be able to use them." I said before attempting to use both my tk and nanites which didn't work.
"Well, no surprise there. These things always want you to only use your body." I said before putting all of my focus on the upcoming battle. After about a minute of waiting, I was finally able to see what was making the big dust cloud.
Lions as big as two humans with fur as white as snow and blue glowing eyes. The lions gave off a regal feeling as if I was in the presence of another God-King.
"So I'm fighting Garen's Lion spirit huh?" I said remembering where I've seen the lion before.
As the lions were about to reach my position, I thought about how I wanted the fight to progress so I began to make a plan.
ROAR
Looking at the first lion jumping at me, I decided to start the plan with the simplest motion you can do with a battle ax, chop. Chopping at the lion, I saw my ax split its head cleanly in two as if I was chopping at the air. The cut was so clean no blood remained on the ax head.
"Oh yeah. This is going to be fun." I said not noticing the smile that graced my lips as I began to slaughter the lions that came my way.
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HUFF HUFF HUFF
Hack, chop, swing, spin, slash, hack, chop, swing, spin, slash. Those were the only things going through my mind as I caught my breath for a brief moment before the fighting started again.
'How long has it been? I can't even tell anymore if it's been 10 minutes or 1 month.' I thought to myself while still killing the lions. If someone were to take a look around the once green field, they wouldn't believe it used to be a pretty sight.
Mountains of corpses everywhere dotted the new landscape. Rivers of blood so potent it would probably stain the ground for years to come. And in the middle of it all, still swinging a giant ax was me.
'I don't know how much longer I can last. It seems like my nanites are still functioning inside my body, I just can't use them to make machines. So physically I'm tired but I can still go on. Mentally, however, I'm starting to crack. A person can only swing an ax and kill lions for so long before their mind begins to waver.'
Unable to be lost in my thoughts for long, I continued what I had been doing nonstop. As it turns out, using martial arts in combat really does make you learn it faster. After using it nonstop for so long, it feels like second nature when I use it. I think if I hadn't learned it before the lions came, I would have had a much harder time.
Continuing to swing my ax, I didn't even notice when they all disappeared along with the corpses I left behind.
"You have done well to persevere for so long. When you enter the battlefield, you have to have the fortitude to never stop swinging your ax until you either die or everything is dead." said the wolf who appeared behind me.
"Ugh, thank god that's over with." I said plopping down on the ground to rest for longer than a few seconds. "So, is that it? Or is there more to the test? And how long have I been fighting for anyways?"
"I didn't expect you to learn the martial art on the stone tablet so quickly nor last so long. You have been swinging your ax for a year."
"A year?! How?! It felt like a long time but it definitely didn't feel like a year." I said sitting up to stare at the wolf spirit with disbelief.
"Indeed, it's been a year. Time flows differently here. In the outside world, not a single second has passed but here a year has passed. When you were fighting, you didn't notice it but you would get stuck in a trance whilst killing the lions. The only times you felt time passing was when you stopped to think. That is why you could not tell how much time has passed." explained the wolf spirit.
"I see. So I guess this means I'm more of a battle maniac than I initially thought." I said while rubbing my chin in contemplation.
"Yes, you are worthy to wield me. Only the greatest warriors have the chance of wielding me, and even they fail in the face of endless slaughter. It is a great burden on the mind to know that you will only do one singular thing for an indefinite amount of time. Even those great warriors fail before my tests. However, there is one final test before you are truly worthy of wielding me." said the wolf spirit before it jumped at me and entered my body.
"What the hell?! What are you doing?" I said confused at what the next test was.
"Those who wield me will slowly be corrupted by the aura of slaughter that both I as a spirit and as the ax exude. If you cannot withstand this next test, you will be consumed by bloodthirst and will transform into someone who thinks only of slaughter. You will stop at nothing to bring about the end of peace and will drive the world to war. Even by passing this test, you will constantly be tested as long as you wield me." said the wolf spirit before I felt my mind go blank.
Rage like never before began to consume my mind. I felt the urge to destroy everything around me start to creep into my mind. Tendrils of negative energy wanting to pierce my mind and corrupt me, turn me into a puppet of carnage.
Knowing I had things I still wanted to do with my life, and people I wanted to protect, I fought back. I fortified my mind with thoughts of my family and friends. The memories I made with them growing up. The memories of the recent mission I made with the other members. The limitless future I had in front of me. And it worked.
The tendrils weren't able to move forward anymore, so I began to imagine my positive thoughts as tendrils to battle the ones creeping into my mind. A back and forth ensued where I would gain some ground before losing some. Until finally, the tendrils weakened for a moment which was enough for me to drive them out.
HUFF HUFF HUFF
"Was that it? Did I pass the test?" I asked the spirit while steadying my breath.
"Congratulations. No one before you has passed the final test. They have all been corrupted. You are now worthy of wielding me. I look forward to our future battles." said the wolf spirit before I passed out.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
RubberPeen
RubberPeen Thirty-fourth chapter done and as always let me know what you think.
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