Survival in the Ruins: I Can Make Everything Evolve Infinitely-Chapter 16 - Third Test × Path of Decision

Chapter 16: Third Test × Path of Decision

Lorraine lay sprawled on the floor for half an hour before finally regaining enough strength to stand. He made his way toward the exit.

“Hey, kid, you’re quitting?” Netero casually dodged Gon’s attack and glanced over at Lorraine.

Without turning back, Lorraine waved a hand dismissively. “I’m done. I surrender.”

His entire body ached terribly, but more importantly, he remembered his original plan.

He had intended to spend the whole night playing Netero’s game to rack up experience points. Yet, despite mastering a powerful ultra-high-speed state, he’d suffered a significant loss in experience gain.

Having already taken one loss tonight, he wasn’t about to risk another.

If he continued playing, that old man would undoubtedly push him into that state again.

After entering it twice—especially sustaining it for over ten seconds the second time—Lorraine had figured out how to trigger it. He didn’t need a sparring partner anymore.

Watching Lorraine’s retreating figure, Netero didn’t seem bothered. His keen eyes could easily discern Lorraine’s current physical state.

Besides...

With a swift sidestep; Netero avoided another of Gon’s lunges.

He wasn’t worried about being bored tonight!

In the airship’s dining hall, despite it being the early hours of the morning, this private Hunter Association airship kept its kitchen open 24/7.

After a hearty meal, Lorraine felt a bit more energized. However, his body still ached. After a brief hesitation, he abandoned the idea of further training tonight.

While eager to level up quickly, accumulating a thousand experience points would take time, and training wasn’t something to be rushed.

Judging by how the ultra-high-speed state pushed his body to its limits for just six experience points, his system clearly didn’t reward relentless physical exhaustion with maximum experience.

Besides, a lot had happened today.

A sudden isekai, the system activation, the Hunter Exam... He might’ve appeared calm, but these events had mentally strained him.

“Maybe I really should get a good night’s sleep.”

Walking along the corridor outside the airship, Lorraine glanced at the full moon above and sighed. He headed toward the rest area.

“Tonight, I’ll just rest.”

The next morning.

Lorraine awoke feeling refreshed, without any trace of last night’s fatigue or soreness.

“Sleeping really was a good idea!” he stretched, appreciating his fully recovered strength.

They didn’t have to wait long. Right after breakfast, the Hunter Association’s airship arrived at their destination.

A towering, cylindrical structure loomed before them. The airship landing on its top made it appear minuscule in comparison.

“Candidates, this is the top of what we call the Trap Tower, the starting point of the third test,” the Hunter Association’s chief secretary, Beans, announced to the group.

“The examiner has instructed me to inform you: your task is to reach the ground alive within seventy-two hours.”

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

As the airship departed, the forty remaining candidates tensed.

The task: survive and reach the ground.

This indicated that the test would be extremely perilous.

Unconsciously, the candidates dispersed to search for clues.

Most approached the tower’s edge to peer down, noting the seamless tower walls without a single window.

Clearly, this wasn’t the path the examiners had prepared.

Thus, there must be a hidden mechanism granting entry.

Most candidates realized this and began searching for triggers.

However...

Some refused to believe it.

One candidate, claiming to be a rock-climbing expert, smirked smugly. He did have reason to boast. Despite the tower’s seamless exterior—its gaps too narrow for a blade—he managed to descend, covering 20 to 30 meters in just five or six minutes.

“Ha! I’ll wait for you down here!” he laughed triumphantly.

At that moment, several dark specks rapidly grew closer.

A flock of monstrous birds—clearly hostile.

Minutes later, amidst horrifying screams, the boastful candidate was torn apart.

Witnessing this from above, Lorraine silently dismissed the idea of climbing down.

Yes, Lorraine had considered scaling the wall. It seemed much faster than navigating the tower’s interior.

Though inexperienced in climbing, his sheer strength could let him grip the stone, carving a path down.

But those monstrous birds from the story...

The sight of them made him abandon the thought.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight them—unlike that guy, Lorraine could hold onto the wall and fend them off.

But...

They were utterly revolting.

He had never seen such grotesque creatures: oversized heads resembling imps, human-like limbs protruding awkwardly, and beneath their sparse feathers, wrinkled, blemished skin.

No way was Lorraine going near them.

Disgusted.jpg

He also decided against following the main group.

Although he considered using the hours they’d spend detained as training time, he ultimately dismissed the idea. The confinement room was too cramped—better to reach the bottom early and train in the forest.

Wandering atop the Trap Tower, Lorraine soon noticed a loose stone slab beneath his foot.

“Found it!”

Without hesitation, he activated the mechanism, dropping into the tower.

He landed smoothly.

The room resembled the one Gon and his group fell into in the story, with three doors and a sign on the wall detailing the rules.

“Path of Decision—”

“From here, three candidates must each choose a door for them to open. The doors are labeled Easy, Normal, and Hard, indicating the difficulty of the challenge beyond.

Only one person per path, and after each floor, you must regroup to select the next difficulty level.”