"Uncle Su, I already talked with Zhenxing. He said that as long as the fly dares step into the third floor, the three of them will have tons of tricks up their sleeves to deal with him," Yuwen Kaitai said.
"Tricks? What a bunch of kids.... They'll never come close to how we were like back in our day," Su Yunchi's son, Su Jiudao, said. He was Su Wuyou and Su Yiran's father and belonged to the same generation as Yuwen Taiji.
Thinking back to their youth made them chuckle and relax. It seemed that they were in for a good show tonight, in which the treasures of the sect would be given to the disciples in their own faction. It wasn't the first time they had done something like that.
All of a sudden, the quiet Yuwen Taiji looked around and asked, "Where's Shengcheng?" The youths in the hall were Yuwen Shendu, Su Wuyou, and Su Yiran. "Did you all see him?"
The sisters nervously looked each other in the eye. Just as they were about to make something up, Yuwen Taiji glared at them. "Don't lie and tell me the truth."
"Quick! Out with it!" Su Jiudao hurriedly said.
The seniors could well see that the two girls were rather nervous. Eventually, Su Yiran told them the matter involving Guo Xiaofu, Li Xuanchen, and Li Qingyu.
"Why in the world are you two messing around like that? What if Shengcheng encounters trouble?" Su Jiudao scolded.
"Jiudao, it's fine. It's no big deal. Young people are always more reckless and can't deal with humiliation well. It's good that he gets to vent," Yuwen Fengtian said to defuse the situation. In fact, he was the one who spoiled Yuwen Shengcheng the most.
"That's right. The two of them should be fine against Qingyu alone. They'll be back after they have their fun," Yuwen Kaitai said.
They didn't appear to be worried about Yuwen Shengcheng's safety. Not to mention, what he was up to was a little sinister and unfit for a child of his age. Yet, they hadn’t expected Yuwen Taiji to crush the handle of his chair.
"Kaitai, send someone out to drag him back. Ground him for three years and don't let him out no matter what!"
Yuwen Kaitai's smile instantly vanished. "Big Brother, Shengcheng's only out to mess around. There's no need to—"
Before he finished, Yuwen Taiji shot him a glare with his heterochromatic eyes.
"Alright, I'll send someone to get him," the huge man said and immediately stood up. The atmosphere was rather tense.
"Actually, I can understand Taiji. He has high hopes for Shengcheng and wants him to focus his efforts on cultivation so that he can defeat his foes with his own power, instead of getting revenge using underhanded tactics like this," Second Elder Su Yunchi said.
The rest didn't add anything to the conversation. There was nothing good that would come from discussing this. Either way, Yuwen Shengcheng would be a prisoner for the next three years.
In the corner, Yuwen Shendu stared at Su Wuyou.
"Shendu, don't look at me like that. Shengcheng's been too frustrated lately. I'm just trying to help him vent," she said with her head lowered.
"So you resorted to something so vile?" Yuwen Shendu hissed.
"Don't you want him to vent so he can calm down and cultivate?"
"Wuyou, don't try to be smart with me. It’ll only serve to push us apart." He closed his eyes and stopped looking at her.
"Alright, I understand." She bit her lip, tears flowing uncontrollably as a hint of hate festered.
"After seeing this fight, I’ll be joining the Realm Wars. My survival is not guaranteed. If I die, I will scatter like the clouds. If I survive, I’ll rise much farther than before. If I manage to achieve that and you still want to stay with me, don't do things that make me look down on you."
"Okay!" Her head hung even lower than before.
......
Soon, the sun rose even higher in the skies. A creaking sound echoed out as the main entrance of the tower opened. The audience fell silent as they turned toward the tower situated above First Grand-Orient Battlefield itself, high above the projection of the tower's first two floors.
The tall white tower was marked by its age, radiating an ancient sensation. The moment the entrance opened, Tianming felt as if a doorway to a new world had opened before him.
"Rumor says that the Prime Tower was made by a god. It's not a mere tower, but a divine artifact."
"Only the founding ancestor of the Li Saint Clan could control something like this."
This was the greatest treasure of the sect, and all disciples would protect it with their lives. Tianming squinted and felt the sensation coming from the tower.
"The aura is too weak. Perhaps we'll only find out on the third floor."
He wasn’t the only one to be challenging the tower for the first time; it was the same for all of them.
"Big Brother, are you confident in becoming a prime disciple?" Feiling asked.
"Well, it'll depend on how well you do," Tianming said.
"I still have one sealed ability, but I feel like it's about to come free soon."
"Really?" Tianming couldn't wait for the day he could use it.
Elder Su Zhen turned and said, "The Prime Tower has been activated. All seventeen of you, follow me inside!"
The Prime Struggle was finally starting. The audience loudly cheered at the announcement. In a world where geniuses were cherished and treasured, those who could become prime disciples would be afforded endless admiration and respect.
"Note that once you enter the tower, you'll be allowed to release your lifebound beasts."
In the next moment, Tianming was standing before the tower. There were seventeen white doors, one for each challenger. The structure towered above all of them like a titan looking down on mere ants.
After Tianming and the rest entered, the audience turned their eyes to the projection in the arena. While the projection was still empty, they knew it was going to start soon. The seventeen participants would charge through the tower with their lifebound beasts and be visible through the projection. It was as if time had stopped as the disciples eagerly awaited Su Zhen's announcement.
"Li Tianming," Yuwen Zhenxing said, making a cutthroat gesture. Right at that moment, Su Zhen announced the start of the struggle.
Yuwen Zhenxing was the first to burst into the tower. The door immediately closed behind him. One after another, the rest chose a door and charged in as well. They had to be quick and decisive, for if two of them entered the same door, there was bound to be conflict.
"The internal layout has been set by the seniors. The door Yuwen Zhenxing picked is definitely much easier!"
It was a shame Yuwen Zhenxing had immediately picked that door. Tianming couldn't chase him through it, but he had his gaze on Gongsun Chi, the closest one to him. He had a feeling that the choosing of a door was really important. Yuwen Zhenxing, Gongsun Chi, and Chen Xiaoji were definitely told which doors were the best picks.
"Ling'er!" he called out without hesitation, speeding himself up with the Celestial Wings and slowing his foes down with Temporal Field. His relative velocity skyrocketed at that instant.
Gongsun Chi charged toward the eighth door like a beam of fire, but Tianming cut in front of him right before he got in. He didn't even bump into Gongsun Chi, having overtaken him with sheer speed alone. The latter was just a moment shy of entering the door before it shut in his face, almost smashing it in.
"Li Tianming!" he roared as he turned to the next door with an expression of fury. He didn't think that before he managed to toy with Tianming, he would have his advantage taken away from him.
"How dare he... I'll make sure he suffers later!" The three of them had already promised Su Wuyou and Su Yiran that much. "As long as we get our hands on the treasures first, Tianming will be ours to mess with as we please!"
Little did he know that that would be only the start of Tianming's antics.