Bennett Beast Warrior are far more powerful than ordinary warriors, but the selection process is also much more complicated and extremely demanding. Every year, hundreds or even thousands of people apply to become Bennett Beast Warrior, but only one in ten thousand is truly qualified—sometimes not even one in ten thousand. Bishop Brooks wishes to expand his own force of Bennett Beast Warrior, but there simply aren’t any suitable candidates.

With Henry Bennett’s talent, passing the test should be no problem at all. It’s even very likely that he will become a level-two Bennett Beast Warrior in the future, which would be a tremendous help for him to take charge of the main temple.

Chapter 010 Bennett Beast Keeper

The highest rank for Bennett Beast Warrior is level five, but only the top-tier divine temples have Bennett Beast Warrior at level five. In mid-tier temples, the highest rank is level three, and in lower-tier temples, the highest is level two.

The ranking of a divine temple is determined by the number of its followers. The number of believers is directly reflected in the brilliance of the Stone of Faith atop the main temple. The brighter the light, the more followers there are, and the higher the temple’s rank; conversely, the dimmer the light, the lower the rank.

The Stone of Faith of the Heluo Divine Temple shines over a radius of thirty li—thirty to one hundred and twenty li is considered a lower-tier temple. One hundred and twenty to one thousand two hundred li is mid-tier, and anything above one thousand two hundred li is top-tier.

The five great temples on the continent—Eastern Divine Temple, Dragon Divine Temple, Star Divine Temple, Sun and Moon Divine Temple, and All-Mountains Divine Temple—are all top-tier, with their Stones of Faith illuminating a radius of thirty thousand li!

On the arm of a Bennett Beast Warrior, there is usually a splendid metal bracer. The highest level they have achieved is shown by the number of diamond-shaped slots. When their strength meets the requirements for a certain level, they can begin the upgrade process with the help of a Bennett Beast Keeper. If the upgrade is successful, a power crystal will appear in the slot. The number of power crystals indicates the level of the Bennett Beast Warrior.

Henry Bennett followed Bishop Brooks to the rear hall, which, unlike the grand and magnificent front hall, mainly serves as the living quarters for the temple’s clergy.

Passing through a series of archways taller than a person, with corridors on both sides painted with murals of the goddess Luo’s miracles, they arrived at a spacious room.

The room was very simply furnished. Bishop Brooks turned around and solemnly said to Henry Bennett, “Child, Bennett Beast Warrior are the guardians of the gods. Integrity and virtue come first, and life must not be extravagant. Can you uphold this?” Henry Bennett smiled inwardly but replied, “I can!” Brooks nodded and led them through a small door to the side.

Behind the small door was a windowless room with only a solitary stone table. On the white marble table, there were two stone sculptures, each about the height of an arm, one on the left and one on the right. The sculptures depicted a mantis wielding two blades!

“What is this…” Henry Bennett was puzzled. Brooks respectfully explained, “This is the Bladeback Mantis, the guardian beast of our Heluo Divine Temple!” All the temples on the continent have only a single type of Bennett Beast, meaning that all Bennett Beast Warrior in the same temple use the same kind of Bennett Beast. So far, no temple has developed a second type of Bennett Beast.

Because Bennett Beast are the pets of the gods, discovering even one kind is already extremely difficult; to find two is nearly impossible. Ordinary magical beasts are definitely not Bennett Beast, which makes the work of the Bennett Beast Keeper especially important. As Bennett Beast Warrior are constantly lost and new ones are born, new Bennett Beast are needed. However, Bennett Beast have very weak survival abilities on their own; if left to fend for themselves, they would likely go extinct.

“Place your hands on the sculptures,” Brooks said to Henry Bennett. Henry Bennett did as instructed. “Focus your mind and use your strength!” Brooks said. The two stone sculptures under Henry Bennett’s hands slowly began to emit light!

“Hmm, not bad. You’ve passed both the magic and martial skill potential tests. Next, as long as you pass the affinity test with the Bennett Beast, you can become a Bennett Beast Warrior!” Brooks patted Henry Bennett on the shoulder encouragingly.

They passed through a low door into a narrow room at the back. The room was empty, with nothing inside. Brooks bent down and knocked on a small hatch: “Old Grant, come out and test this young man’s Bennett Beast affinity.”

With a clatter, the hatch opened, and a face like dried tree bark appeared in the opening. “Another one?” Brooks said, “This one is special, I assure you.” Grant snorted and slammed the hatch shut. After a while, a half-human-high door beside the hatch opened, and a dwarf walked out.

Dwarves are only half the height of humans. Grant looked at Henry Bennett, “Is it him?” Brooks nodded. Grant pulled out a staff-like object from behind him and said, “Kid, grab the other end.” Henry Bennett took hold of the other end of the staff. “Alright, now focus on the animal you like best,” Grant said. What animal did Henry Bennett like best? He racked his brain: puppy? kitten? bunny… none of them. After thinking and thinking, a massive figure appeared in his mind—it was a trunked rhinoceros!