SSS Ranked Awakening: All My Skills Are at Level 100

Chapter 435: First Floor of Ascension Tower—4

Leon had to honestly admit that calling it a mere "goblin" would be somewhat embarrassing compared to the previous pathetic creatures he’d seen. Its physique nearly rivaled that of a full-grown orc in terms of raw muscular development.

But the streamlined muscles visible beneath gaps in its armor told a different story—this creature wasn’t limited by bulk. It maintained perfect agility despite its size.

Using his spatial awareness range, Leon easily scanned everything in detail:

The hundred regular goblins were approximately as strong as those from the second round, but with the significant advantage of much higher quality weapons and proper armor that would let them survive longer.

And at the forefront, the advanced silver-armored goblin...

When Leon checked its status with his system, it showed the exact same basic information:

[Trial Goblin - Ascendant Rank]

Same classification. But obviously evolved somehow.

However, Leon could tell clearly from direct observation that the creature at the front was some distinctly evolved version of the goblin species, and its actual combat strength was solidly at the peak of Ascendant rank by normal standards.

Comparable to top-quality fighters among normal human awakeners. Still quite a notch below the Pyrrhan race that Ira belongs to in terms of pure physical capability.

This comparison made Leon understand even more clearly that the Pyrrhan race wasn’t some weak bloodline—they were genuinely a strong warrior race with impressive baseline potential and naturally superior physical prowess even among those without special markings like Ira possessed.

Even more so now that I’m directly comparing them to this advanced goblin in front of me. The gap is noticeable.

Suddenly—

ROAR!

The tall silver-armored goblin leader let out a deafening battle roar that echoed throughout the entire arena, then immediately charged directly toward Leon.

It wielded an enormous greatsword in both hands—the blade wreathed in fiery red energy that was unmistakably Level 3 Fire Aura, which Leon identified at first glance.

Level 3 Aura. That’s legitimate master-level weapon technique.

But that wasn’t all.

At the exact same time, above the hundred-strong goblin army who hadn’t made a single move yet with their leader’s charge—

GLOW! FORM!

A truly massive fire sword began forming in the air, constructed from condensed flames and supported by a circular blue magical array that appeared beneath all hundred goblins simultaneously.

A formation technique. They’re combining their mana.

The combined sword that steadily grew larger and more solid gave off pressure almost equivalent to a normal Sage rank expert’s full-power attack.

Along with the silver-armored leader who could genuinely contend against a normal Sage rank human expert for a considerable duration—not equally, since there was still a fundamental difference between Sage and Ascendant rank in terms of life level and energy quality, but the advanced goblin could definitely hold out for quite a while without dying—

And adding the overwhelming pressure of the combined formation sword created by the disciplined army of a hundred enhanced goblins...

A normal Sage rank fighter would almost certainly perish facing this coordinated assault.

Leon had to genuinely acknowledge that the difficulty scaling with each level went far above and beyond reasonable progression.

Exponential rather than linear increase.

He knew in his heart this was exactly the layer where Seraphine would be forced to give up. She was definitely considered talented and somewhat of a genius in normal human eyes within the world they originally lived in.

But she simply can’t possibly overcome this insurmountable gap of the third level. Not at her current stage of cultivation and development.

Not without significantly more training and growth.

But Leon was absolutely not a normal genius by any conceivable standard.

And now, without the prying eyes of that hostile overseer watching his every technique and capability, he had zero intention whatsoever of holding back or dealing with these enemies slowly and methodically.

In my eyes, these are just ants desperately trying to shake a thousand-year-old tree.

One moment, in the perception of these charging goblins, he appeared like a harmless, unusually good-looking human waiting passively to be butchered by their overwhelming numbers and superior tactics.

However, in the very next moment—

PRESSURE!

A terrifying, absolutely overwhelming pressure descended on them all simultaneously.

Even the sophisticated magical formation crumbled and shattered like glass just from the passive pressure alone. The enormous fiery sword that had been steadily forming vanished without leaving a single trace, as if it had never existed.

And even their fierce, confident leader—the silver-armored elite warrior—halted completely in its aggressive charge. Its eyes widened dramatically in pure, instinctive horror looking at the figure ahead.

What... what is this?!

Leon had merely activated his Mana Body Enhancement technique with Transcendent Rank mastery at full power without any restraint whatsoever.

This single action caused the entire dramatic scene.

Transcendent rank mastery in enhancement isn’t just for show.

Those without at least Grandmaster rank mastery in their own enhancement or defensive techniques wouldn’t even be able to properly withstand the natural suppression effect without any additional action taken—that was simply the reality of such a vast skill gap.

And with Leon’s absolutely outrageous total mana reserves magnifying the effect, the pressure blanketed the entire battlefield like an invisible crushing weight.

Normal people wouldn’t do this even with transcendent mastery. The mana expenditure isn’t worth the effort for weak foes.

But that consideration was absolutely not a problem for Leon’s seemingly bottomless reserves at all.

As for the silver-armored goblin at the forefront—it clearly possessed Grandmaster rank mastery in enhancement or some equivalent technique, which was the only reason it remained conscious and mobile.

However, it consciously chose not to take even a single step further forward.

Because every combat instinct it possessed screamed a simple message: If I move even an inch closer, I will die instantly.

And its feeling was absolutely not wrong.

But halting wasn’t any different from accepting death either. The creature simply couldn’t process that thought quickly enough.

Leon’s blade moved.

Epic Rank Frost Fang — executed with Transcendent rank mastery, seamlessly combined with his Level 4 Ice Aura fully manifested.

It was honestly a bit of overkill for opponents at this level, but Leon didn’t mind the excess at all.

SLASH!

The attack manifested in less than a millisecond.

A world-swallowing, terrifying chill encompassed the goblin leader along with the entire rest of the hundred soldiers, who could only tremble helplessly in their final moments of existence.

FREEZE!

All of them instantly turned to solid ice, their expressions locked in terror and shock.

Then—

CRUMBLE!

They shattered into impossibly fine snow particles with a distinct tinge of red mixed throughout, falling down beautifully like cherry blossoms in spring.

The once-heated battlefield transformed into a serene, almost ethereal atmosphere with Leon’s elegant figure standing calmly in the center, nodding slightly in satisfaction.

Perfect.

This particular visual effect wasn’t natural—Leon had deliberately put extra time and control into crafting his attack’s aesthetic presentation to appear more ethereal and artistic.

Normally they would have just turned into coarse ice dust. But this is much better.

He raised his head high, genuinely enjoying the scenery he’d created for a long moment. The red-tinged snow continued falling gently around him.

I didn’t get to do this in front of that overseer. Worth savoring.

Now, without any hesitation after properly enjoying the beautiful scenery, Leon chose to continue the trial without taking a break.

Expectation gleamed clearly in his eyes for the upcoming challenges ahead.

Let’s see what the fourth layer brings.