Liam knew something was going on off-stage but he did not care. All his focus at the moment was on the golem in front of him. Clearly, this fight was not going to be just about stats. Like its name suggested, it was a trial of Dao and it looked like the golem had enough stats to implement it. Liam's advantage in terms of stats was definitely not going to help him here.
With every second, the golem's movements intensified, its attacks becoming faster and more ferocious, obviously empowered by the runes that glowed ominously on its forehead. It was not at its limit yet.
However, Liam was not worried. If this was a trial of Dao then he was confident in winning it one way or the other. He might not have officially stepped into the Transcendent rank yet but he was pretty sure he had at least pushed his Dao seed of Nether to its limit in the Awakened stage.
Also, in these few exchanges of blows another thing became obviously clear. The stage had one more special function. It was going to give him whatever he needed. This meant that if he chose nether as his Dao seed that he wanted to demonstrate then it was going to help him keep his nether reserves replenished. Liam could already feel the slowly increasing concentration of nether on the stage. As soon as he activates his actual Dao seed in an attack, this energy would be locked in and he would have to test with this.
Perhaps after a fight was over, be it success or failure, he might be able to change his testing Dao seed again. It would have been better if someone had actually explained the rules of the trial to him. But this was fine too. He did not mind figuring out things on the go.
Liam continued to engage the golem and in the next couple of seconds, two more runes lit up making the thing explosively more powerful. However, Liam did not get into the trench pit just yet and crank the fight to max level because he was currently deciding on something else.
Liam couldn't help but think of the words of that person. He had told him that to truly advance he needed to take all of his dao seeds forward. This line with what the elven ancestor had warned him about back when he was taking the inheritance test. Condensing more dao seeds was dangerous. It made sense because to take a step forward he had to make progress in every one of the dao seeds.
This information sounded fundamental and unfortunately, Liam still lacked many fundamental instructions that were not clearly specified in the basic manuals and information packets sold in the system shop. This was the problem with having no backing. That's why he couldn't let this opportunity in front of him slip by. This Spire was his chance at grabbing a foothold in the myriad realms.
Blocking the attack of the golem once more, Liam made a decision. He was going to use this golem and try to push his Dao seed of mana manipulation forward.
Activating his Dao seed of mana manipulation, Liam felt the stage respond to his choice. The ambient mana concentration around him began to increase, feeding into his reserves and enhancing his ability to control and manipulate the energy. This immediate response from the stage confirmed his theory about its function and further fueled his determination.
With a newfound focus, Liam began to weave intricate patterns of mana, directing them with precise control against the golem. This was not brute force but a sophisticated application of his understanding of mana, turning the energy around him into a weapon more effective than any physical blade could be.
The golem, for its part, adapted to this new challenge. No further runes appeared on its head but the runes on its forehead glowed brighter, and it began to counter Liam's mana attacks with its own, creating a dazzling display of magical power and counterpower. The battle between them was no longer just physical but had all of a sudden moved into the realm of pure magical manipulation.
Liam's training and experience in mana manipulation came to the forefront. Each movement, each spell cast, was a testament to his deep understanding and innovative application of mana. He began to push the golem, testing its limits and his own, exploring the boundaries of what was possible when one truly mastered their Dao.
All sorts of attacks flew at the big thing. Every single attack he sent forth was one of pure mana charged explosively. While mana that was aligned with an affinity tended to have a stronger effect, pure mana was lethal in its own right.
After the initial warm-up, Liam started the main course with a mana bolt, a fundamental attack where one condenses mana into a projectile of pure energy. However, unlike a fundamental attack, his mana bolt was condensed to a frightening degree that the attack made the golem light up another rune.
The golem blocked the attack but Liam did not stop with that. After the jam-packed mana bolt, he sent out a mana wave, by releasing a surge of pure mana at the huge stone golem. The golem was completely unprepared for the speed and intensity of the mana wave and the different chunks of the golem started to vibrate ominously. Once again it was forced to use another rune.
Liam grinned. He was feeling good with his mana manipulation today and this fight was just beginning. After the mana bolt and the mana wave, he next sent out mana burst, mana surge, and mana storm.
He kept sending one attack after another with speed and precision, not giving the golem a single breath of respite. The thing did not even have a chance to launch its own attacks as it was constantly forced to defend itself.
The fight continued in this same manner until suddenly the golem let out a deafening noise. The next second, Liam's eyes widened in shock. The golem lit up like a god-damn Christmas tree!