Regardless of whether the public admired the Alliance for their sacrifice, many ascenders found the situation unfair. Since the Alliance entered the floor of death, they didn’t let anyone else in. While many ascenders were displeased, the Alliance couldn’t afford any mistakes. If they let in a top-tier guild, only for them to provoke a demon general, the consequences would be too much to bear.
Alas, no matter how much guilds complained, they couldn’t hope to match the behemoth that was the Alliance. In the end, many ascenders left their guilds to join the Alliance. As such, over the past three weeks, the Alliance rapidly grew in strength and now had nearly 5,000 top-tier ascenders.
More members required more hunting spots, so the Alliance had no choice but to expand its influence. Since every member was a genius in their own right, the Alliance soon took complete control of the dread plains. Jason’s constant supply of essence and equipment was like strapping a rocket engine to a car. The Alliance quickly outgrew the dread plains.
In the past, after guilds entered a new floor, they’d take time to adjust by staying within the starter zone. After it could no longer sustain them, they’d head to a stronger area to satisfy their needs. However, even as everyone’s leveling and essence gains plummeted, Peter and Shenlong refused to let the Alliance expand past the dread plains.
The reason was simple.
According to Sam’s reconnaissance, the floor's difficulty grew the further north or east you went. Think of a pie with 12 equal slices. At the center was the abyss, while the bottom-left piece was the dread plains. If you went up or right, you’d enter the territory of another demon general.
Although Sethess wasn’t much weaker than them, they ruled their lands much more efficiently. Demon squads regularly patrolled the grinding zones, and if the Alliance wanted to expand, they’d clash with the patrols in no time. The demons would act swiftly if any patrols went missing. Due to this, Peter prevented any expansion.
If it were up to him, he’d wait at least a year before clashing with a demon general. Alas, every monster on this floor was a mutant. Even if the monsters slept day and night, they’d level up as time passed. According to his subordinate's calculations, they had at least two months. After that, Peter would have no choice but to expand.
Unfortunately, things didn’t always go as planned.
Far to the north-east, in Revenant's Grasp, sat a black spire. While clouds obscured its tip, it was a frail thing, barely wider than fifty feet. An accidental bump from Sethess would’ve knocked it over. Even so, the spire had watched over these lands for centuries. It was the home of the demon king’s strongest general, Ulmer.
While usually a forbidden land, numerous demon squads currently stood in military formation at the spire's base. Not daring to look up, they kept their gazes low to the ground.
At this time, another squad arrived, all of them minotaurs. Lavos took the lead, with the chieftain Dunk standing not far behind. Although their team was the smallest, none of the other squads despised them. It was old news that Lavos had killed Sethess and taken his place.
After gesturing to Dunk, Lavos took a deep breath before entering the spire’s entrance. When he entered, space shifted, and soon he found himself at the spire’s peak. In front of him were eleven demons, none weaker than he. The monsters gathered here were the rulers of this floor. To them, it was their entire world. They knew nothing else. To enter their circle was another test for Lavos.
“So you were the one who killed my brother?” Wekkin, a demonic crow, commented casually. The demon was slightly larger than a minotaur, though it was far slimmer. While its onyx-colored feathers were beautiful, they were as sharp as a divine-grade weapon.
“What of it?” Lavos lazily glanced at the bird.
After a moment of tense silence, Wekkin tilted its head. “Nothing. You’re qualified enough.”
“Does anyone else have a problem?” Lavos’s fighting intent flared.
Some of the generals responded in kind, while others appeared disinterested. Lavos was no stranger to the generals. The minotaur was a living fossil, after all. Many of the generals were younger than him.
“I can’t help but find it strange.” Vindred, a humanoid demon wearing a set of debilitated red armor, commented. “Sethess was no weaker than you. For years you two were equals, yet now he’s dead? And weren’t you cursed?”
“Hmph.” Lavos sneered fearlessly. “I don’t need to explain anything to you.”
It was true Lavos had help, yet the minotaur didn’t show any flaws for the generals to pick apart. Inwardly, however, his heart clenched.
Compared to Wekkin’s lackadaisical response, Vindred pulled out a rusted spear and pointed the tip at Lavos. “Are you sure about that?”
Before Lavos could respond, Ulmer, the spire’s ruler and a powerful warlock, commanded Vindred to stay his hand. “Enough! Solve your feud later. We have more pressing matters to address.”
Ulmer was a wraith, a type of ghost. He was both the oldest and strongest demon general. In other words, as long as the demon king remained in seclusion, he was the unofficial ruler of the floor. Hence, Vindred reluctantly twirled his spear and stored it away, but not before giving Lavos a fierce glare.
Ulmer stepped forward and glanced over his peers. “I presume many of you will not meet the demon king’s quota next month. You might have secretly stocked up enough essence to get through this month, but I doubt your reserves will last long.”
Everyone but Lavos winced, though thankfully, nobody seemed to notice. While others might have trouble paying the monthly tax, Lavos’s tribe was practically swimming in essence.
“I thought I was the only one.” Wekkin released a sigh of relief after seeing the other general’s expressions. If everyone was having problems, the punishment might be less severe.
After a moment, Ulmer continued calmly. “Someone has been wiping out our strongholds. According to my investigations, the killing method is instant and covers a large area. If anyone has any clues, please share.”
“Whoever it was, they wiped out my elite army.” Vindred scowled at his peers with an accusatory tone.
“You too?” Wekkin was delighted. The bird had been deeply anxious the past few weeks, such that it couldn’t sleep well. What great news it was to hear that everyone else was in deep shit.
Unlike Wekkin’s cheerful attitude, the demon generals all thought it was one of them. After all, the world was small. It wasn’t like some unknown factor would suddenly appear.
“Vindred, it was you, wasn’t it? You’ve always been ambitious.” Toka, a giant dragon-turtle covered in vines and plants, was the first to accuse someone.
“Me?” Vindred snarled as he pointed at Lavos. “Are you all fools? It’s clear Lavos is the one!”
While they were all subordinate to the demon king, it didn’t mean they were on good terms with each other. It was more accurate to call them rivals. Now that someone was plundering essence, all their frustrations with one another came to light. As Lavos watched this, he was both delighted and frustrated. Although he was shocked at the Alliance’s growth, Jason drew too much attention this time.
“ENOUGH!” Ulmer shouted as he slammed an onyx staff against the ground. Once he had everyone’s attention, he turned to Casil, a fallen angel with one wing. “If you have something to say, say it.”
“Fine.” Casil snickered as she gave everyone a mocking smile. “It wasn’t one of us. I happened to come across this interloper about a week ago. We fought evenly, but I couldn’t prevent him from fleeing. A shame. He was just my type.”
As Casil licked her lips, Ulmer questioned. “What did he look like? What skills did he use?”
“Mmm. A very handsome swordsman?” Casil answered unhelpfully. Only after she sensed everyone’s hostility did she cover her mouth with a laugh. “Fine, this is what he looked like.”
After speaking, she used her energy as a medium to form Jason’s body. To everyone’s disgust, the perfectly re
plicated Jason was staring at Casil with a charming smile. Worse, Casil looked at her feet and blushed.
Ulmer coughed into his fist. “Very good. Now that we know what he looks like, we can begin the search. To maintain peace, don’t go beyond your territories. We’ll reconvene in a week.”
“I’m gonna hunt this bastard down,” Vindred growled as he turned to leave. “If there’s nothing else, I’m going.”
Once Vindred left, the other generals had no reason to stay. As for Lavos, he left the spire and returned to the dread plains with his squad. Once the other demons were out of sight, he immediately broke into a cold sweat.
There was no turning back now.
Chapter 66
Ever since they had split into pairs, it was rare for Shenlong’s group to hang out. Either Jason was on an expedition, or someone hunted overnight. There was always something. Luckily, the day Jason returned from his last trip, it just so happened everyone was in the haven. Hence, under Roy and Jason’s encouragement, the group decided to head to the 30th floor to relax and catch up.
That night, they reserved the top floor of Four Clovers, a high-end restaurant. The establishment frequently served nobles, and usually, only Dukes and above were allowed to eat on the top floor. The Alliance had a close partnership with a few kingdoms, so they held a similar status.
When Jason’s group entered the restaurant, a middle-aged man dressed as a butler approached them. “Do you have a reservation, sir?”
“The Alliance.” Jason flashed a small ornament, his guild symbol.
“Ah, we’ve been expecting you.” The butler bowed, just enough to show respect but not enough to degrade himself. Gesturing with his hand, the butler said, “Please follow me.”
As the butler led Jason’s party up the stairs, he asked, “Have you been to the top floor before?”
“I have; they haven’t.” Jason pointed at Shenlong and the others. Inwardly, he groaned at what was about to happen.
The butler nodded and flashed Amara, Carly, and Olivia a gentlemanly smile. “The founder of Four Clovers was both a renowned magician and chef. Back then, the competition was fierce, and Four Clovers couldn’t attract enough customers to pay the bills. To resolve this, the founder used his skills to create a magical world.”
After a minute of listening to the restaurant's history, the group arrived on an empty floor. When the butler snapped his fingers, something miraculous occurred. The floor, ceiling, and walls disappeared, replaced by a vast starry expanse. Countless galaxies surrounded them, with comets shooting here and there.
“Wow.” Roy gasped as he took in his surroundings.
“How beautiful!” Carly’s eyes twinkled as they reflected a nearby spiral galaxy.
The butler led them to a small platform atop which sat a table. When they sat down, the butler inspected everyone’s expressions before muttering, “Very good; no one threw up today.”
With a clap of his hands, the butler summoned a handful of menus, which he passed around. “Four Clovers serves many things. Of our most renowned selections…”
It only took a few minutes for the food they ordered to arrive. As they ate, the butler frequently returned to take care of their needs, and soon, an hour had passed.
“Whew.” Roy collapsed into his chair and rubbed his belly. “Feels like I gained ten pounds.”
“You can still eat more if you haven’t gotten the bloated debuff.” Jason chuckled as he glanced at Dubaku and Tank, who fell asleep after drinking too much alcohol.
“Wait, that’s a thing?” Amara gave Jason a doubtful look as Roy immediately resumed eating to test it out.
“Yep.” Jason nodded. “It makes you throw up for an hour.”
“Uh.” Roy froze, then promptly spat out the food he was about to swallow. “I’ll take your word for it.”
Carly laughed at Roy’s antics before turning to Jason with a curious expression. “So what did you name your mount?”
“I haven’t.” Jason shook his head. “It’s like a robot, so I figured there was no need to name it.”
“Oh, Felix isn’t like that.” Carly’s eyes sparkled as she recalled her majestic unicorn.
Roy whispered to Olivia, “Have you noticed Felix is kinda egotistical?”
Carly gave Roy a nasty glare as Olivia answered truthfully. “Yeah, it’s like he knows he’s handsome and owns it.”
At that, everyone looked at Jason, who blinked his eyes innocently. As if he didn’t realize what everyone was talking about, Jason asked Shenlong, “So why’d you pick an eastern dragon over a western one? It looks weird.”
“What did you say?” Shenlong nearly stood up and pulled out his divine-grade spear then and there.
“A show of hands for the western dragon,” Roy announced and raised his hand, followed by everyone else. The color drained from Shenlong’s face as he collapsed into his chair, unwilling to accept this reality.
“Why did everyone create mounts based on mythical creatures?” Olivia clicked her tongue in annoyance. A few weeks ago, after Jason showed off his mount, everyone couldn’t help from doing the same. Unfortunately, the new trend revealed how lacking everyone’s creativity was. There were at least twenty dragons, thirty phoenixes, and fifteen unicorns.
Roy, who chose a dragon, quickly defended himself. “Because they’re freakin’ awesome, that’s why!”
“I didn’t know so many people would copy me.” Amara got angry just thinking about it. The day she saw Jason’s mount, she went out and farmed up enough essence to create an ice phoenix. To her disbelief, she saw at least two people with the same mount when she returned to the haven.
Jason suddenly remembered something and turned to Shenlong. “I heard from Peter you created a few skills?”
“Mm.” Shenlong sat up with pride. “Imagination and intent are needed, along with repetition.”
It took a lot longer to create a skill if you weren’t a god’s champion. Shenlong was the first to succeed, and after sharing some tips, it didn’t take long for the other m-serum users like Carly to follow in his footsteps.
Roy glanced at Shenlong with an envious gaze. “How many skills have you maxed out?”
“For Godslayer?” Shenlong caressed his beard as he glanced at his information. “Oh, it seems I’ve maxed all my spear-based skills. About twenty or so.”
“Twenty?!” Roy nearly jumped in fright. “Does that include your newly created skills?”
“Mhm.”
Everyone’s jaw dropped as Roy exclaimed. “Are you a monster?”
“You’re overthinking it.” Shenlong chuckled. “I’ve spent my entire life learning martial arts. All I did was convert the techniques I practiced into skills.”
Everyone fell silent. While the m-serum increased the rate skills leveled up, maxing out a skill in less than two weeks was absurd. Only a peerless genius could accomplish that. Since Godslayer reduced the cooldown of hero-grade skills by 70%, that meant Shenlong was the best person to use the weapon.
Jason coughed into his hand and changed the subject. “Have you guys formed an ultimate rune?”
“I have.” Amara puffed out her chest and raised her chin. “I can split into four clones, with each one possessing one of my elements.”
“You started training in wind, water, and earth?” Roy asked excitedly. “Can you fly?”
“Yep.” Amara grew haughty when she saw the envy in Roy’s eyes.
“I have an ultimate rune,” Carly spoke up. “I can connect everyone’s regeneration rates. Um, only up to ten people, though.”
“That’s great!” Jason was amazed. “The synergy between Unity Aura and your ultimate rune is off the charts.”
“That’s what I was thinking.” Carly smiled from ear to ear.
Roy, Olivia, Jason, and Shenlong shared their ultimate runes after Carly. Roy could buff his allies and reduce the energy cost of their skills. Olivia could leave a mark on a target, and anyone who attacked the mark would deal additional damage.
Lastly, Shenlong could create phantoms based on his attack speed. These phantoms would replicate his actions with a slight delay.
After sharing their new skills, the group recounted their experiences or interesting monsters they came across. Eventually, the butler returned and informed them the restaurant was closing. With the bill paid, the party returned to their homes and fell asleep.
Chapter 67
Ascenders lined the haven’s walls, engaged in small talk without concern for the countless monsters surrounding them. Tonight’s blood moon was several times more difficult compared to the first. Sadly for the demons, their frenzied assault was nothing but a joke in the eyes of the current Alliance.
The constant bombardment from the haven’s defensive structures created a no man’s land, and only a lucky fraction of the demon horde managed to survive and reach the haven’s walls. Unfortunately, as soon as they began to climb, an array of spears shot out from the wall, turning them into mincemeat.
Eventually, dawn came.
After the assault was over, some ascenders went to take a nap, others grabbed a bite to eat, while the rest went out to hunt. In no time at all, only non-combat ascenders remained in the haven. Everyone had long since grown comfortable with the floor of death and formed a daily routine.
Only a few knew that things could change at any moment—namely, Peter, his aides, and Jason’s group. Lavos had visited them with grim news a few days ago, and even after hours of brainstorming, the best plan they came up with was Lavos feigning ignorance. Only like this could they delay the inevitable.
A week had passed since the demon generals met. Once again, Lavos arrived at the spire. Before entering, he took a deep breath, steeled his resolve, and put on his usual expression. In the next moment, he appeared before the other generals, his heartbeat so loud he was afraid they’d hear it.
Towers of Heaven: A LitRPG Adventure (Book 3) Page 29