Tower of Heaven

A woman cursed, her language far too unslightly for her pristine appearance.

However, it wasn't as if she had no reason.

"I've been searching for three days already! Why haven't I seen anything?!"

Artemia was currently in a long white corridor similar to the one Atlas walked through to reach the inheritance site, however, she wasn't as lucky as him.

For the past three days, she'd done nothing but walk.

Because the third stage of the inheritance test only rewarded a single person, the rest would be left aimlessly wandering until the chosen genius finished accepting the inheritance.

Usually, these kinds of ancient tombs had a plethora of treasures distributed between several areas so anyone could make gains even if they didn't become the main inheritor, but the Behemoth Emperor's Tomb was different.

Kallos created this site for the sole purpose of passing his legacy to Atlas so his reincarnation could grow faster, so naturally, the treasures he possessed were contained in a single area.

As for the rest, they could only suppress their rage and go home with nothing.

As the Behemoth Emperor, Kallos was a man of much more wealth than what he kept in the inheritance site.

In fact, until the day of his death, the empire he built remained strong.

With such a power under him, it would be strange if his coffers weren't filled to the brim.

No, it was definitely strange how little the amount of treasure Atlas got was in comparison.

However, there were two reasons for this.

The first was that Kallos wasn't a greedy man. When he sensed his lifespan nearing its end, he passed most of his inheritances and legacies to those who followed him loyally for countless centuries.

And the second…

Well, Kallos' most important treasures, the Formation Spark and Spirit-Severing Art, were passed to Atlas, so the rest was merely mosquito meat in comparison.

Regardless of the reason, Artemia and the rest were not made aware of this mechanism, and instead of giving up, they spent an entire three days wandering through their individual corridors for nothing.

Perhaps others couldn't sense it, but Artemia could.

When the tomb tremored earlier, she assumed it was the beginning of another trial or some kind of indicator, but without any other movements after the fact, she was forced to ignore it.

Now that some time had passed, she finally understood that her actions were meaningless.

That tremor was a signal of somebody else reaching the inheritance site.

"Aaargh! Whoever gets this treasure must land in my hands. I have to get my share, at least!"

If she knew Atlas was the inheritor, how would she feel?

Her expression would surely be a sight to see.

Nevertheless, Artemia sat down on the ground with a sigh of acceptance.

'Fine. The Spiritual Energy here is much purer than the 11th floor, so I'll just take this opportunity to train a little.'

It was a solid idea. Since she couldn't gain anything material, she could at least use this space to her advantage and make improvements to her cultivation.

But…

Were the heavens toying with her?

RUMBLE!

At that moment, the entirety of the Behemoth Emperor's Tomb quaked for a second time.

However, this time, it had no plans of stopping.

"What's happening?!" Artemia exclaimed in confusion as she rapidly stood up and looked around.

Cracks were spreading across the pristine white walls, and the glowing aura that emanated from the entire corridor faded significantly in a single second.

"This…!"

Her frown deepened into a scowl.

"The tomb is collapsing!"

As expected, somebody was already crowned the final winner!

"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!"

She didn't have to worry about the collapse, since there was already a mysterious power surrounding her body and dragging her out of the tomb, but…she was angry!

"Aaaah, fuck! Whoever you are, you damn inheritor, don't let me find you!"

It didn't matter which society backed them. As long as they were within her reach, their treasures would become hers!

With that final thought, Artemia found herself outside the tomb, in the same entrance area they started in.

The forces of the 5 Great Societies were still present, and the guards were still making sure no unwanted presences entered.

Aside from her, several people appeared in the square one by one, including Lin Yan, Mephis Graveheart, and the geniuses of the other Great Societies.

The only one missing was…

"...Atlas?"

Artemis's eyes widened.

"No way…"

The final winner who came out on top of the best geniuses in this generation of Ascenders…

…was actually the kid she randomly met when she went out for training?

It was utterly inconceivable!

But she couldn't ignore the current situation and doubt the outcome.

It was undeniable.

'Oh no, this is bad. Atlas doesn't have backing.'

She silently panned her gaze around the square.

The other geniuses were already reporting to their superiors, and they would certainly make sure they knew who Atlas was.

'If it goes on like this…'

She gritted her teeth.

She also wanted the treasure, but she was a woman of character.

Since her friend was the inheritor, she wouldn't betray him and try to steal it!

But she couldn't say the same for the rest.

'Within the next hour, a floor-wide manhunt will begin.'

If Atlas couldn't escape to the 12th floor in time…

"Senior Sister!"

Artemia rushed over to the beautiful red-haired woman who represented Divine Sanctuary.

"Ari? Come, quickly report to your aunt. Something strange has happened, right?"

Artemia nodded hesitantly.

"See, the thing is…"

As she continued to explain, the woman she called sister's expression went through a myriad of changes.

By the end…

"I understand. Since our little Ari has finally made a friend, how could we treat him cruelly? I promise you our Divine Sanctuary will not participate in the coming hunt."

"That's it…?"

"What else do you want?"

The red-haired woman looked Artemia in her eyes.

"Ari, you understand more than anyone. The Tower is not a place for the weak. If your friend is truly worthy of holding that title…"

She looked into the distance with a mysterious smile.

"...then he will escape this predicament on his own."

Artemia nodded slowly.

'I'm sorry, Atlas. This is all I can do.'

She didn't know where he was or what he was doing, but strangely enough, she didn't feel like he would lose here.

She clenched her fist tightly.

'Because we are weak…'

If she was stronger, she wouldn't have lost the inheritance in the first place, and if she was stronger, she would be able to protect her people from danger in a situation like this one.

'I trust we will meet again.' She thought, her eyes hardening.

'But next time, I won't lose so easily.'

OOOOOOOOOOM!

At that moment, a blaring horn attracted the attention of everyone in the vicinity.

The Earth Sages of Heaven's Gate stood next to the man who blew it with stern expressions on their faces.

"From now on, we will be hunting the Ascender called Atlas Vaun! Anyone who can provide accurate information on his whereabouts will be rewarded 500 gold, and anyone who can turn him in alive will be rewarded 5000 gold!"

"However, if any greedy individual provides false information or kills him before we arrive…"

BOOM!

A massive golden aura radiated from the elder's body.

"...I do not need to explain the consequences."