Tower of Heaven

[Trial of Battle complete. Transporting Ascender to the 10th trial.]

Surprisingly enough, when Atlas opened his eyes, he found himself in an entirely white room similar to the one he was in at the very beginning of the trial.

But something was different this time. He felt like he was floating in an endless void. There was no concept of space or time around him.

Every second felt like an eternity yet still passed in the blink of an eye. Every movement felt like it took him hundreds of meters forward but he stayed rooted in the same spot.

It was disorienting and nauseating, almost forcing him to vomit, but he kept it in. Instead, he diverted his attention to the status panel in front of him. When looking at it, he could at least feel a semblance of stability.

He knew exactly what he wanted to do at this moment. He knew that the rewards this time would be delicious, especially with him gaining the highest contribution.

[Reward Shop]

Although the previous weapon and armor categories were still present, they weren't the only ones. Three new categories were unlocked for him to choose from.

[Pills]

[Materials]

[Skills]

Looking through them, he was a bit conflicted as to what he wanted. The skills category had some truly exciting things in it. Offensive skills that would improve his prowess, other supportive skills like his regeneration, and even some defensive ones as well.

As for the materials section, it was filled with beast parts and metals that might be beneficial for him in the future. After all, he couldn't continue using a Mortal Grade weapon forever.

But what really drew his attention was the pills category.

[Minor Enlightenment Pill]

[Bone Strengthening Pill]

[Qi Gathering Pill]

[All-purpose Healing Pill]

Every single one of the pills could benefit his cultivation or temper his body, some even giving unique effects that he didn't even know were possible through pills.

Still, he didn't want any of them. He didn't hesitate to choose his reward.

[You have chosen [Tier 3 All-purpose Healing Pill] as your reward.]

It was exactly what he needed and would provide the most benefits in the long run. His ribcage had almost been crushed by a single weak beast earlier, and it was specifically because of how bad his internal body was at the moment.

If there was anything he desperately needed, it was a pill to heal him back to peak condition. With this, he would be able to move much more unhindered than he could until now.

The small circular pill materialized in the air in front of him before he grabbed it. Its size was no more than a marble while its color was a glossy white, indicating its purity.

A Tier 3 pill could heal even a Core Formation Realm expert back to peak condition, and with wounds like Atlas's, something like this was necessary.

After admiring the pill for a bit, Atlas threw it directly into his mouth, letting it melt on his tongue.

Waves of medicinal essence burst forth from the pill once it melted, traveling down his throat and coating his internal body.

The essence was incredibly gentle, flowing through his body with ease. It ran through his meridians unobstructed as it continued its spread.

His organs, his bones, his muscles, they were all coated in the light green essence that escaped from the pill. And slowly, it started doing its work.

His rib cage, which had looked more like a mangled mess of bones that barely protected his heart and lungs, meshed together and then separated.

The bones that had fused incorrectly due to years of neglect and improper healing came apart before returning to their original positions.

Even his heart and lungs were slightly repositioned, being out of place due to the awkwardness of the bones surrounding them.

His other bones also restructured themselves in the proper order. Especially his arms and legs, which were filled with hairline cracks that could have shattered completely at any time.

Atlas felt incredibly rejuvenated like he had just taken a bath in the spring of life. His body felt relaxed in a way it had never felt before.

He felt…complete.

The process continued for roughly half an hour before the light green medicinal essence finally ran dry.

And floating in the middle of the boundless void was an entirely new Atlas. His pale skin glowed like a newborn baby, the forming abs on his front being much more pronounced.

Flaky dark powder floated around him along with another black gunk, but it was all quickly burned away by him. That was the residual bone left after his bone structure was reverted to normal, as well as the impurities that had been piling up in his body due to its unnatural form.

Atlas stretched lightly with his arms above his head, not even minding the nauseating feeling of the atmosphere anymore. He simply felt too clean to care.

But he knew there were things he had to do. With everything else out of the way, he finally looked at the text prompt indicating the next trial.

[Beginning the trial of Floor 10: Trial of Self]

[Description: An Ascender may possess many qualities, but knowledge of oneself is the best to have. Knowledge of one's strengths and weaknesses, and of one's ambitions in life. The past trials have shown you the qualities you possess, now affirm your ideologies before truly entering the Tower of Heaven.]

Qualifications: First-Time Entry

Time Limit: 1 Week

Conditions for success:

Break through the Void Space using any means necessary

[Rewards: Trait Bestowal, Entry into the Tower]

The rewards this time were much more interesting than any of the previous trials. Atlas already had a trait, his Eyes of One, and even its first effect was extraordinary.

He couldn't help but anticipate what would come next.

As for the trial itself? Of course it was easy. Atlas knew exactly who he was and what he wanted to do.

He was Atlas Vaun. Son of Daniel and Melody Vaun, perhaps the reincarnation of the Heavenly Emperor. He was a child who had experienced both walks of life.

He knew what it was like to be at the bottom. To be one of those forgotten when a cultivator continued their journey. He knew the feeling of being unwanted and discarded to the dredges of society.

But he also knew happiness. He understood the joys of family and he understood the joys of adventure. He was well aware of how lucky some people could be in their lives.

That was who he was. Someone who craved adventure and craved power, as well as someone who could understand what it was like without it.

As for his ambitions, did he truly have any? He simply entered the tower due to his lifelong dream to do such. He didn't have any grand ambition he would spend his entire life trying to achieve.

That was him, right? At least, that was what he knew about himself.

But if that was truly him, and he was the same as he saw himself, then why was he still stuck in this Void Space?

He expected the trial to end long ago, but instead, it continued without end.

And from there, it was the start of an eternity that would last but a single second for Atlas.

A time when he would have to truly figure out who he was