"I'll have to excuse myself, where can I meet my sect members?" I asked.
"They'll be waiting at the top of the Black Tower, I already prepared a shuttle to send them off, please go up and have a few words with them before you leave, I'll have to prepare some things before the shuttle starts moving." Feng Han said.
I nodded to him and walked out of the room where I was met with a couple of guards standing and waiting.
"Take Shen Bao to the top floor, his sect members should be waiting for him."
"As you command!" one of the guards said and nodded for me to follow him.
And so I did and arrived at the doorway of yet another elevator.
The three of us were inside the elevator as it closed its door and rose up, it seemed to be functioning on some gravitational law which was neat because it was very simple.
While I was feigning interest in the design of the elevator, my mind was already racing thinking about the conversation and interaction that just happened a while ago.
Seems like this guy, Feng Han is not only no good, he is in cahoots with the Fire King, and they wanted to send me up, then have someone to intercept the shuttle and I'll be in the fire King's grasp afterward.
The elevator doors opened up into a wide room that had a single flight of stairs that led up to a doorway.
Once the guards walked up and opened the door, I was able to see the shuttle that Feng Han spoke about.
It was a massive obsidian tower-like structure. It looked like the pizza tower that could host a few thousand people inside it.
"How many of these does the Black Tower have?" I asked.
"Oh, one per every black tower," the guard said.
"oh really, and this can be used to travel around the planet?" I asked.
"What do you mean? This thing is only able to travel through space, using it as transportation means is a huge waste…" the guard said to me like I was a peasant that didn't understand basic things.
And just to make sure, I used my divine sense on the massive shuttle and realized that it was actually true, this thing had a powerful propelling inscription, but it would show its maximum potential in an area with very little air friction and gravitational pull.
Now, this makes things quite confusing, because the first time I was asked to go and meet with elder Yue, I was asked to take a shuttle that will use a week to get there.
Perhaps I lucked out in saying I will go there myself. Because if I were to use this shuttle, now I understand that he was already planning to send me up from the first time we met.
Damn.
"How many of these will be sent out?" I asked.
"In a situation like this one, only this one, because you used your token, otherwise the towers will wait until the planet is completely defeated before they take off carrying with them the Black Tower staff and members, and then leaving the rest of the planet for the fire king. Since the Fire king rarely ever leaves a planet intact after he invades." The guard said.
"huh, you seem knowledgeable, anyway, thank you," I spoke.
Now that I could understand what's going on, the tower being sent out this early is somewhat of an irregularity.
"My sect members are inside the shuttle, right?" I asked.
"Yes," the guard said.
"Right then, I'll have to go and meet with them," I said.
Once I was next to the shuttle gate, it opened up revealing a small spiraling assortment of rooms.
"Sect Master, Shen Bao came to visit!" a kid wearing the Purple Cloud Sect Robes said.
Immediately the sect master came out and sent me a divine sense message.
"You're already back?" she asked.
"Of course, why? Want me to go away?" I said teasing.
My words fell on deaf ears and I could probably feel the cringe in her expressions.
"Anyway, I came to wish you all a good trip. And hope to see you later on when all of this is over." I said.
The sect master sighed and said "Hopefully, good luck in the upcoming battle." she said.
"Thanks."
I'm actually having some really bad premonitions about this whole deal. But this is the black tower, I doubt that anything bad will happen. And if I were to bring up the suspiciousness without evidence I'll probably only make the sect master worry.
They'll be fine.
"Shen Bao, the shuttle will be moving soon, please step away." One of the guards said.
"Right then everyone, have a safe trip, I'll see you all later," I said.
The sect master looked at me in the eyes, smiled, and said, "Till next time, Shen Bao."
I walked out of the shuttle range and back into the door.
"We should get down, the heat will burn us to a crisp if we stay here." The guard said.
"Right, let's go," he said and opened the door leading down.
Just as we got down and the door closed, the shuttle shot forward and flew up.
"Can I ask you guys something," I said.
"Yes," the guard said.
"I didn't notice any other members of the Black Tower in the shuttle, shouldn't they be there to take my sect members to safety?" I asked.
The two guards looked at each other and said, "We're sure that there are members of the Black Tower in the shuttle, it won't guide itself, also, the black tower's reputation is too grand for anyone to try anything on the shuttle."
"Oh, that's comforting to hear," I replied.
Just as I finished speaking, the mother of all explosions echoed above us, and immediately my back went cold.
The guards were the first to react and went upstairs, then opened the door to reveal a massive explosion in progress in the high skies.
Flames and fire burst and blasted all over as I come to the grave realization that the shuttle where all the purple sect members were on blew up to pieces.
***
A few moments earlier, in the outers peace region above the planet Si Xue, several cultivators were waiting with pots in hands that had an incense stick lit and burning.
Behind them were many, many other members who belonged to the Fire King's army and were waiting for the time period needed to end before they invade.
Suddenly, a flying object came up from within the stratosphere of the planet.
"What is that?" asked one of the cultivators holding the incense.
"It's a Black Tower's shuttle…strange, these shouldn't be leaving this early…" one of them replied.
Almost immediately, a divine message arrived at the ears of the cultivators around the planet.
"This is a stolen Shuttle! A few cultivators had stolen it and are using it as means to escape! The Black Tower is willing to offer great rewards to whoever stops or destroys it!" spoke the divine message.
Without thinking, without even waiting for a moment to even consider the authenticity of this rumor, several cultivators, powerful ones immediately went forward and used their strongest spells.
And the result was an explosion so wide and huge aftermath of troubles that were going to be a huge pain to explain.