The Rise of the Black Plain

When the lights on that floor of the tower came on, Minos and everyone else shielded their eyes, given how strong it was. But after the True Celestial left, they gradually got used to the place and spotted what was in the area.

They were in the center of what looked like a colossal building, about 300 meters away from many rooms separated from each other by the same distance, following the shape of a circle, with the cultivators practically in the center of the area.

Apart from the side rooms, which had opaque glass walls and transparent doors, there didn't seem to be any exit to this floor, either out of the building or to the upper level.

Minos narrowed his eyes, but reflexively had a feeling about where his future lay and looked towards the ceiling, where a closed golden structure stood, with a clock counting down the time to the opening of the second floor.

Realizing that this was where the passage to the next level of the tower would open, Minos turned his attention back to his surroundings, looking in particular at the rooms in the area.

There was a number on each of the doors and small plaques with special characters seemed to carry what one would need to know before entering one of them. Apparently, the owner of this dimension had left further instructions for the competitors of his inheritance.

Minos didn't move immediately, however. After the departure of the True Celestial and the initial observation of the area, the 93 competitors found themselves in a peculiar situation. They were all there, with nothing stopping them from going to their opponents.

Obviously, they didn't doubt the rules of the True Celestial and wouldn't engage in battle now. But they all looked at each other curiously, wondering about the loopholes in the rules of this place.

'The big guy said nothing about killing opponents and stealing their insignia,' thought one individual there, a smile shaping his big green lips. 'This will be a test of talent, but he himself recognizes that those with talent must have the ability to maintain their rights.'

Not just one competitor thought this, but almost everyone there noticed this loophole. It would give those who failed to get their tokens the right way the opportunity to get them in alternative forms.

'This will be a problem that will lead to confrontations after the 10th floor. From the 11th floor to the 20th floor, we'll only have 90 rooms, so a maximum of 90 will get their badges, 3 short of the current number of competitors...

Actually, it's deeper than that. I'm assuming that everyone will take advantage of their opportunities. But from True Celestial's words, some will eventually fail to obtain insignia with their own talents. This will probably only happen later on in the challenge, but it's possible that there will be failures between the 1st and 10th floors. In that case, we'd have competitors fighting even before the 11th floor.

One way or another, sooner or later, we'll have to fight to keep our tokens.' Minos concluded, as no one moved.

'In any case, it's unlikely that battles will develop on the first levels. Everyone should be curious to find out how the current challenge will develop. As there are more rooms than competitors, we can simply move on and learn more about the limitations and possibilities of this inheritance phase.

If this tower is anything like The Red Expanse, there will certainly be opportunities to refine our powers and come out stronger at the end of this part of the selection...' He remembered the many opportunities he'd had around that red dimension and in his last decades inside the pyramid.

'These insignia probably have a greater meaning than just giving us access to the rooms on subsequent floors.'

With this in mind, Minos was the first to walk into room number 1, surprising no one there, since he had gone the furthest in the previous test.

Almost instantly, upon seeing Minos move, Soli approached him, smiling as she remembered their last time together, when she had kept her end of the bargain with him and lent him her cultivation to get him further up the pyramid.

"I sincerely hoped you would die, Minos. Unfortunately, you've come this far... Maybe this will be my death." She joked with a bitter smile.

Part of her was joking, but she couldn't help ignoring this competitor's potential. In the previous test, he had beaten everyone by a large margin. Even if she wasn't sure how formidable he would be, under the rules of this current challenge, she didn't underestimate him and had him as her major competitor, not only for the current challenge but also for the inheritance final.

"Soli, you seem to have well used the opportunity I gave you back then." He smiled at her as Forfex approached them both, walking towards the same room. "Your Physique has reached the Celestial grade, right?"

"It seems I can't hide from you. Unfortunately, you seem to have achieved the same feat before me. I only reached my current grade after my promotion to the 12th stage."

"I haven't improved much since then. The difference between us isn't that great," he said, but she couldn't agree with such a comment.

Forfex was finally at their side and quickly greeted them both before saying in a solemn tone. "Boss, I have a tip to give you. However, it won't be free. The same goes for you, woman."

Soli looked strangely at Forfex, while Minos was interested. "What do you want?"

"I want the same thing we had in The Red Expanse. Alliance. Let's work together and protect each other along the tower."

"Alliance? In this inheritance phase?" The woman narrowed her eyes, curious. "Do you know we're competitors? Sooner or later, we'll be each other's mortal enemies and our deaths may come at each other's hands."

Forfex laughed, but he couldn't deny the truth. 'That's why I'm going to find a way of not reaching the end of this damned inheritance. I almost made it before my advance to the 12th stage, but I lost control of my cultivation just before I reached my decisive experiment...'

Forfex explained, "We'll certainly die if not at each other's hands, then like the 7 who aren't here. However, there are 10 vacancies for the next phase of the inheritance, enough for the three of us. Also, I'm not demanding an alliance where everyone has to sacrifice everything for each other. Let's act together, and if one of us can't meet the challenge on our own, we won't be forced to harm ourselves for it."

"What do you get in return?" Soli wondered. At this early stage of the challenge in the tower, it would make sense to have allies to strategize and ward off those who would fight for the insignia on the second floors.

"I have information on two of our competitors. Sensitive information that could save your lives or give you something to hunt and become stronger."

The two nodded in agreement, showing their acceptance of his proposal. Cleverly, Soli preferred Minos on her side rather than as an enemy.

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