If someone asked Varian if he was a good guy, he would answer without thinking.

No.

He was selfish.

Ultimately, everything he did was to pursue his goals.

And for this trial, his goal was to win.

Then what if him winning causes a lot of peak level 5 geniuses to lose their opportunity of gaining treasures?

Treasures that could perhaps save their lives in the future.

Treasure that could help them advance and make their lives better.

Was it not cruel?

Such a thought did pass through his mind, but strangely Varian didn't feel any sense of pity towards the messengers.

Forget pity, there was not a shred of guilt in his heart.

He wanted the enlightenment potion, grow stronger. He didn't know why, but from the moment Sia revealed she was a level 7, he had that urge to do whatever he could and grow stronger.

So, when the golden lion dashed into the Thunder Shrine and attacked the messengers, he watched it calmly.

'Am I so cold-blooded?'

"Roar!"

Zap!

Boom!

The peak level 5 messengers tried to fight back.

But the lightning spears of the golden lion all possessed the power of level 6. Something they couldn't contend.

The messengers were scattered across the field as they tried to dodge the lightning spears.

"Why did this happen?"

"Didn't Senior Ashtarh say they cleared all the nearby beasts?"

"Yes! They didn't neglect us, did they?"

Indeed, there were no level 6 beasts nearby. Varian had to lure this one from afar.

There were around twenty messengers.

But under a minute, half of them were hit with lightning spears and disappeared.

Looking at the silver light teleporting them away, Varian clicked his tongue. 'So that's why. These people don't have any danger of life.

Even though not getting this treasure might harm them in the future, it might also do them good.

Since I'm not harming their lives, I don't feel any guilt.'

It was a weird justification, but Varian found it fit him.

"S-Senior Tiama! There's a l-level 6 beast! I know you cleared but! Yes! It's attacking us! W-What?"!

Soon, one of the leading messengers contacted Tiama and informed the situation.

Her intention was obvious. Ask for help.

If Tiama did return, then Varian's plans would be spoiled. But he wasn't nervous at all.

"What happened?" The other messengers asked eagerly as they desperately dodged the lightning spears.

Boom!

Boom!

The Golden Lion was enjoying itself as it slowly hunted down the preys. To it, this place was something akin to a dream house.

With rich lightning mana, countless natural treasures and a mysterious shrine, this place was a perfect residence for it.

Since these bugs dared to desecrate its residence, then it'll torture them to death.

"Argh!" One more messenger was impaled by the lightning spear and flew into the air.

As the lightning mana threatened to break his heart, a silver light flashed and dispelled the lightning mana, and teleported him away.

"What happened? What did Senior Tiama say?" A messenger asked with a pale face.

He kept glancing at the golden lion and thought back to the genius that was eliminated just now.

There was only one hope. The Teams.

"He can't come."

The hope was crushed.

"Why?"

He turned to the girl who contacted him and growled.

Boom!

A lightning bolt struck him and he couldn't dodge in that moment of heat.

The familiar silver light covered him and he heard her words.

"Because they're already in Laden Burrows. They can't back off."

Those were the last words he heard before he disappeared.

An air of despair filled them and the messengers made the optimal choice.

They picked as many treasures as they could while dodging the lightning spears.

The golden lion soon understood this and went all out.

Zap!

Zap!

Zap!

All the remaining messengers were eliminated.

"Clap! Clap!" Varian applauded the golden lion as he stepped out of the shadows.

"Roar!" 'This is my territory.'

Varian 'felt' the meaning conveyed by its roar and was taken aback. 'Is this the effect of Morpher Path? Interesting.'

He wanted top lay with the creature a bit but time was running out.

So, he kicked the ground and appeared in front of the lion in an instant.

"Roar!"

Zap!

The Golden Lion was a level 6 beast after all. Its lightning sense followed his movements and right when he appeared in front of it, it prepared a lightning shield as well as a very concentrated lightning spear.

The power emanated by the lightning spear alarmed Varian's senses. He could take it, but with heavy injuries.

"Hmph!"

Zap!

The lightning spear shot at him with breakneck speed, heating up the air and cutting through the wind.

Varian's body disappeared and he teleported behind the lion.

As the lion was very confident in its prowess, and looked down on him, its lightning defense wall behind was very thin.

As a result, Varian's fist broke it easily and connected with the lion's back.

"Graggh!" With a tragic roar, the golden lion collapsed on the ground as its bones fell apart and flesh was torn into pieces.

Boo started to clean up the scene, removing traces of their battle while Varian reached the entrance of the shrine.

The intricate carvings on the door captivated him as he saw the scenes of humanoid creatures fighting and breaking a planet into pieces, the largest of which became Earth's moon.

"Even Sovereigns can't do it. Is this the power of Celestial Ranksis this the power of Abyss Emperor?" He muttered and pushed the door which opened with a creaking sound.

The platform in the middle was empty. Presumably, it held flag.

But Varian didn't come for the flag. He scanned the floor and his eyes lit up.

The sleek white floor had golden orbs placed all over.

Each orb had several line extending out of it and these lines intersected and entangled with the lines of other orbs, forming strange patterns.

He felt a strong threat from these orbs. They were enough to even harm mid level 6s.

Lightning Fury.

One of the strongest explosives of Theodra secret realm.

Taking a deep breath, Varian bent down and started channeling his lightning mana into an orb.

There was a special method to retrieve them.

But it needed some time. Fortunately, Varian had the time for two or three orbs of lightning fury.

However, he must be careful. If he slipped up, then he'd be eliminated.

He concentrated all his senses and started the retrieval.

A few minutes later

Core Area, Aether Gardens, Psychedelic Region:

"This finishes it." Varian looked at the countless strange patterns on the ground and sighed.

Illusion Formatons.

Fortunately, there weren't many messengers here. Apparently, the destruction done by Xavier team destroyed a lot of treasures.

So a significant part of messengers begrudgingly went to the Vine Forest.

Varian was grateful as he was able to easily sneak in.

Along the way, he also spied on a few messengers and knew the situation in Laden Burrows.

The teams all met up. He had to hurry.

"Three formations will be enough." He rubbed his forehead and said.

Retrieving them would take a toll on his mental power and mental sense.

But this was the last piece of puzzle.