Chapter 61: Blazing and Dazzling

The testers all gasped in unison.

Prior to this, the highest recorded score for mental power was only 116, while the instrument's upper limit was close to 300.

Who could have imagined... that this machine had actually been pushed past its maximum tolerance and simply crashed like this?!

Inside the testing room, Nian Tu was deeply engrossed in her play when the screen suddenly went pitch black, feeling just like the time she was playing on a computer as a child and someone suddenly pulled the plug.

"!", startled, she almost tumbled off her chair.

Just as she removed the helmet, she heard loud, chaotic noises coming through the communication device from the staff, as if a crowd of people were running and shouting over there...

What was going on?

At the other end of the equipment, several staff members had broken into a fierce argument.

The majority of the staff insisted that there must be something wrong with the machine.

Although no malfunction had been detected just now, how could a female's mental power possibly be so formidable as to exceed the testing range??

"It's impossible for any female's mental power to be this strong. There must be a glitch somewhere!"

"The machine needs to be repaired!"

"I also think there's something wrong with the machine!"

"The data from just now must be wrong; it has to be voided."

"I said it before, how could there possibly be an S-tier female in this world..."

"Sigh..."

"Let's just retest."

Convinced that the machine had malfunctioned, everything that had just happened turned out to be a false alarm of joy.

Only the staff member responsible for Nian Tu's test persisted in arguing: "I don't think the data is wrong!"

But his single voice was too weak; he could not win the debate against so many colleagues.

The sound of the quarrel drew Feli, followed by the chief administrator of the testing center who was exchanging pleasantries with him.

"What is going on?", the administrator asked the staff members.

The staff members all wore flushed faces, speaking incoherently, looking as though they were in a state of agitation and had yet to regain their composure: "The machine, the machine has broken down..."

The machine broke down, so why were they this emotional?

Feli frowned and looked at the staff member in charge of Nian Tu's test. "What happened? You tell me."

Having the privilege of being personally questioned by the Marshal, that staff member eagerly began to recount what had just transpired—

From the rapid growth of Nian Tu's score, to her score breaking past 100, then 200, and finally causing the instrument to crash, he described everything in meticulous detail.

"I believe the data is correct and should not be voided!", he summoned his courage to insist.

Hearing that Nian Tu's mental power might have exceeded the instrument's tolerance limit, the administrator was utterly shocked inwardly.

Stunned for a full half-minute, he finally came to his senses and lowered his voice to consult with Feli.

Since the machine had broken down, retesting was inevitable; otherwise, the public would not be convinced.

However, if Nian Tu's mental power truly exceeded the machine's capacity, switching to another identical instrument would yield no results either.

Even if they were to retest, they had to change their method.

"Go and retrieve the Sacred Crystal", the administrator instructed his subordinates.

Sacred Crystal resonance was the empire's oldest method of testing mental power.

The so-called Sacred Crystal was a special crystal mined from sacred grounds. A female's mental power could resonate with the Sacred Crystal, causing the originally dim crystal to emit light; the brighter the light, the higher the female's mental power.

Before the empire's technology had advanced sufficiently, mental power testing relied on this kind of crystal. Its drawback was that it could not quantify a female's mental power with numbers, making the rating insufficiently precise, so it was gradually phased out after testing instruments appeared.

Today, the testing center had no choice but to bring out the long-sealed Sacred Crystal.

Nian Tu had felt a sense of foreboding the moment the machine went black, and sure enough, upon learning that a retest was required, she felt a wave of despair wash over her.

Did she really have to play that boring game all over again?

Feli coaxed and soothed her, "We will use the Sacred Crystal for the test this time. There certainly won't be any more problems."

What was a Sacred Crystal?

Before Nian Tu could even ask, she saw the Sacred Crystal and her jaw dropped in astonishment.

Such a huge crystal ball!

It was even taller than she was, with a smooth surface, crystal clear and translucent, seemingly without the slightest impurities or flaws.

Was this thing actually completely natural?

Seeing her stare unblinkingly, Feli guessed she liked it and said, "I also have a Sacred Crystal in my private vault. I'll dig it out and give it to you when we get back."

Hearing this, the gathered staff members dropped their jaws in shock, gazing at Feli with disbelief.

Is, is this Marshal Feli? Wasn't he impersonated by someone else?

Since when did Lord Marshal start resorting to such desperate measures to please a female?! He could casually give away priceless treasures like the Sacred Crystal without a second thought!

Nian Tu hurriedly shook her head to refuse.

Such a precious item should be kept safe in Feli's private vault!

"Can we start the test now?", she turned to the staff, changing the subject.

Recovering from their shock, the staff members nodded repeatedly.

With curiosity in her heart, Nian Tu walked toward the Sacred Crystal.

As she approached, even before she reached out to touch it, intense mental fluctuations had already begun to resonate with the crystal. The crystal lit up, resembling ripples stirring across a clear pool, as a hazy radiance gradually spread and bloomed outward from its very core...

The staff held their breath, quietly recording the scene, not daring to disturb her.

Most ordinary females could only cause a faint reaction in the Sacred Crystal, producing a dim glow like a firefly that quickly vanished.

Only S-tier females could truly make the Sacred Crystal light up over a large area.

The S-tier female with the strongest mental power in imperial history had managed to make the Sacred Crystal shine as bright as a lamp, shocking the entire empire at the time.

And now, under the gaze of many eyes and recorded by professional equipment... Nian Tu raised her hand and gently stroked the Sacred Crystal.

In an instant—

The entire room blazed with blinding light!!!

It was as if a sun had fallen to earth, and a searing, dazzling radiance erupted from within the Sacred Crystal!!

In every corner of the Central Star, countless people raised their heads, seeing an unknown, intense beam of light erupt from the Mental Power Testing Center, turning it into a towering beacon.

That light was brilliant and scorching, as though it could pierce through all haze and illuminate every patch of darkness.

Caught completely off guard, everyone shed involuntary tears, feeling dizzy and unable to look directly at the blinding light.

Yet Nian Tu, situated right at the center of the radiance, felt not the slightest discomfort, sensing only a bright and warm embrace all around her.

Her mental entity involuntarily emerged from her palm—only two pitifully small, tender leaves, yet they swayed back and forth with lively energy.

The light of the Sacred Crystal instantly grew a few shades more intense.

With a look of keen interest, Nian Tu manipulated her mental entity to twist left and right.

The glow of the Sacred Crystal flickered gently in rhythm with the tiny sapling's movements.

After playing for a while and still hearing no further prompts from the staff, Nian Tu finally couldn't help asking, "...Is the test over?"

Turning her head, she discovered that at some point, everyone behind her had fallen to their knees in unison.

Even Feli had failed to resist, dropping to one knee and lowering his noble head.

"!", Nian Tu stood there in stunned surprise.

On the Stellar Net, discussions were already buzzing wildly at this moment.

[Did you guys see that? Such a bright light...]

[Of course I saw it!]

[...Saw it.]

[Judging by the direction, it seems to be... the Mental Power Testing Center??]

[What on earth is the Mental Power Testing Center up to?]

After a long session of chattering and debating, someone suddenly began spamming the screen like a madman:

[Go look!!]

[Go look!!]

[The Mental Power Testing Center has just released an official statement!!!]

[Oh my god!! An SSS-tier female!!!]