Tower of Heaven

"Before you say anything else, I need an explanation."

It was enough of a jaw-dropping sentence that Aeon almost felt the need to leave the battlefield and finish this conversation before returning.

If she were anyone else, doing so would have been difficult. She was surrounded on all sides by thousands and thousands of cultivators.

All of them were Immortals, albeit much weaker than her. Still, they had the firepower to turn an entire world into a heap of dust in a second if the Tower wasn’t restricting them.

Escaping their encirclement wasn’t very possible unless one could completely shatter their defense lines.

Aeon knew that even with her combat strength, she couldn’t kill thousands of Immortals with a single definitive strike.

Well, not in a place like this.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Atlas’ words were drowned out by the sounds of clashing swords and qi, but Aeon still heard them clearly. The same explanation that Scarlet Fox received was given to her as well.

As she isolated herself in space and made herself intangible, she thought about his words.

She was extremely confused at first. For Atlas to even know the name of Svartal was strange. A mortal being wasn’t meant to have knowledge of the upper floors.

However, when he explained how he came to know of Svartal and what his purpose was, it started to make more sense.

’His steps are being influenced by the Gods. I knew they had an interest in him, but have they already started interfering in his Legend?’

It wasn’t an entirely unique circumstance, but it was still rare.

The question was: to what extent did the Gods value the current Atlas?

It was a question in her mind that she felt no need to voice.

"I understand why you contacted me."

Removing the barrier around her and entering the battle once more, she continued the conversation.

"You believe that my proficiency in the Dao of Space is your key to entering Svartal."

In a forest on Minora, Atlas nodded.

"That is correct. I can’t think of any other way."

"You are determined to go?"

"I am. Even if you decline me now, I will find another way."

Aeon almost wanted to laugh. To say he would find another way, did he mean he wanted to break the Tower’s mechanics?

It was a little funny to see his wild ambitions grow, but she didn’t feel the need to correct or humble him.

Theoretically, she did have the ability to connect the space between the 30th Floor Neutral Zone and the 70th Floor Neutral Zone, but that was only in theory.

"Before you consider anything else, how can I place a portal there if I cannot enter the lower floors?"

Atlas failed to consider the problem because he met her on the lower floors. Back then, she could only be there because her cultivation and Legend were sealed. She essentially had a body like a mortal, so the realm couldn’t tell the difference.

The current Aeon could not and would not seal her cultivation. If she did so even for a moment, she was practically asking her enemies to smite her.

"It isn’t that I am unwilling to help you. It is that I don’t want to see you die, and I don’t want to contribute to needless self-sacrifice."

BOOOOOOOOOM!

Once again, she displayed her power. It was hard to describe how the world warped to her every touch. The enemies who were extremely powerful on their own were unable to even reach her through the confused and hostile space.

"However, that doesn’t mean I won’t help."

Atlas’ ears perked up on the other side.

"You’ll help?"

"Not so fast. I said it is possible for you to receive my aid, but I won’t give it out so easily. If you want to take the easy path to Svartal, then you must prove to me that you are properly prepared to make the journey."

"How can I prove that?"

"Isn’t it simple? Tell me your plan. It doesn’t have to be detailed if it isn’t detailed. Just tell me what you plan to do and I will make my decision based on your words."

Atlas furrowed his brows.

It sounded rational and easy, but it wasn’t anything like that. He couldn’t lie to her and expect her to believe that he was anything he wasn’t.

She knew who he was. Even during their short interaction, she was able to see some of the things he hid in his heart.

If he spoke a word of fabrication, she would sense it immediately. That was the kind of perception she’d developed.

Knowing she wouldn’t be able to hear him if he didn’t let the sound transmit, Atlas sighed.

What was he supposed to do? Was he meant to tell her some long and drawn-out story about how exactly he planned to take each step of the journey?

In the first place, there was barely any information about the Cyclopes. On top of that, people from higher floors couldn’t give information to the people below them about the Tower itself.

Information guilds could take advantage of loopholes to sell information to lower beings at an extremely boosted price.

Atlas wasn’t an information agency, and the one he was associated with was still in the process of growing.

In truth, this entire journey was a blind one. From the moment he decided to save his comrades, he had been moving without knowing what would happen next.

He assured himself at every turn that if he continued to do everything as planned, everything would go according to plan.

However, that mindset wasn’t going to convince anyone else.

He couldn’t tell Aeon that he knew what he was going to do, but he also couldn’t tell her he didn’t.

"Haa…"

Once again, he sighed.

Closing his eyes, he calmed his thoughts and organized them.

’The truth

No, rather than something like that, it was better to just speak and allow his mouth to say the words his brain couldn’t think.

That was how he finally answered her.

"If you want a short answer, then I can’t guarantee anything. There are too many unknowns to confidently say that I can predict what will happen."

His eyes sharpened though she couldn’t see them.

"Nevertheless, I am not going in entirely blind."

"..."

Aeon said nothing, as if urging him to continue. He couldn’t say such a thing and then refuse to show evidence.

"Firstly, the Cyclopes."

They were an unknown race, but one of the things confirmed by previous contact was their low intelligence.

"I am a being much smaller than them. If I am careful in concealing myself, I believe I can fool them. Even if that is overconfidence, it doesn’t matter. In the first place, I never planned to use violence."

"They will use violence."

Aeon interrupted, but Atlas was ready for it.

"They can use violence if they find me, but there are plenty of ways for me to hide from the senses of even an Immortal, right?"

Aeon hesitated to say yes or no, but if the topic was only in relation to the race of Cyclopes…

"Perhaps it may be possible in this case."

A positive response.

He hadn’t said much yet, but that was a positive response if he had anything to say about it.

He had to keep riding that momentum if he wanted to turn Aeon into a supporter.

Atlas had two main reasons that gave him relative confidence.

The first was already said. If the Cyclopes were at the lowest level of sentience, then he was sure he didn’t have to worry about their strength if he was careful enough. Fooling them was risky, but evading them –hypothetically– was much safer.

The island that they lived on, the Isle of Siczelle, was large in size, so much so that the cultivator who gathered the records, Odysseus, described it as a land that could barely be traversed on foot.

The numbers of the Cyclops Race were low as well. It made sense, as they thinned their already limited population through their cannibalistic nature.

"I will have more space away from them than I have space that I’m forced to share. Those Cyclopes were never my goal. They’re just a means to an end. In a sense, there isn’t a reason for me to make contact."

He was trying to find three specific brothers. The only trait they shared with the Cyclops race was their appearance. Even if the Cyclopes had talent in forging, they could never reach the level of those absolute masters.

They were different from ordinary Cyclopes. If they were present, Atlas was confident he could spot them. Hades told him their physical appearances, after all.

"And, if they are not present, I can leave."

Staying longer was unnecessary.

There was nothing impressive about his thoughts. Essentially, he told Aeon that he wanted to run in, check if his targets were present, and leave if they weren’t.

"If they are…?" Aeon pressed.

"In that case…"

This was where it got complicated. If the clue was useless, everything would be safe and peaceful.

If it turned out that the three Cyclopes brothers were truly on the Isle of Siczelle…

Atlas really couldn’t say what would come next.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!