Chapter 225: A Dangerous Choice
Chapter 225: A Dangerous Choice
None of the High Preceptors looked surprised by the offer.
After what he had displayed today, it was the least they could do to bind such a monstrous talent to their institution.
Rhain remained silent for a moment.
In truth, he had little need for conventional resources.
His System’s daily Sign-In rewards, combined with the Celestial Elixir Pavilion’s virtually unlimited wealth, provided him with more cultivation materials than the entire Academy could offer.
But there were two things the Academy possessed that his wealth could not simply buy.
"I have two requests," Rhain said, lifting his gaze to meet Carmilla’s.
"First, I want unrestricted access to the fifth floor of the Grand Library."
Fifth floor, the forbidden zone containing the Academy’s most closely guarded Mystic-Grade techniques and foundational treasures, restricted to Core Palace disciples and Preceptors.
Carmilla nodded immediately. "Granted. As a Core Palace disciple, you are fully entitled to access the fifth floor. You may browse it at your leisure starting tomorrow."
That was the second Location Sign-In node he hadn’t been able to reach.
The fifth floor of the Grand Library.
With tomorrow’s visit, he would claim whatever treasure the System had stored there.
"And your second request?" Carmilla asked.
Rhain’s dark grey eyes sharpened.
"I want to climb the Heavenly Ascendent Tower."
The moment the words left his mouth, the relaxed smiles on the faces of the High Preceptors and Preceptos vanished instantly.
They exchanged grim, troubled glances.
Myrielle was the first to speak, leaning forward with visible concern.
"Rhain," Myrielle said carefully, her sapphire eyes filled with worry, "you do not need to climb the Heavenly Ascendent Tower anymore. You are already a Core Palace disciple. The tower was originally the only path available to you because we could not grant you the Core Palace position directly. But that obstacle no longer exists."
Vice Dean is correct," Aldren spoke with a deeply grave voice. "Heavenly Ascendent Tower is not a mere test of combat strength! It was designed by the founder to test the limits of a cultivator’s mind, soul, and willpower!"
His face darkened.
"Over the past thousand years, many brilliant disciples have entered that tower. Most simply failed and emerged humbled. But a few... a few of them were not so fortunate."
Octavius looked at Rhain with a similar solemn expression, "Three disciples in the last century alone entered the tower and emerged with irreversible damage to their spiritual sea. Their cultivation was permanently crippled. One disciple, a Core Palace genius who was considered the strongest of his generation, entered the tower six hundred years ago, he tried to push himself too far into the upper floors...his consciousness was destroyed. He had gone completely mad."
"Rhain, you have a limitless future ahead of you," Fabian urged. "Do not throw it away on a thousand-year-old death trap!"
They were genuinely terrified of losing the greatest genius the Academy had ever produced to an unconquerable ruin.
Seris also looked at Rhain, her pale purple eyes filled with a flicker of worry. She trusted him implicitly, but hearing Domain Masters speak of irreversible brain damage was frightening.
She tugged gently at his sleeve,"Husband... if it is that dangerous..."
Rhain patted Seris’s hand comfortingly, but his expression remained resolute.
Heavenly Ascendent Tower was the third and final Location Sign-In node marked on his System’s map.
After obtaining a Mystic-Grade item from the Alchemy Division and an Emperor-Grade artifact from this very pavilion, he knew with certainty that whatever the System was hiding inside that millennium-old tower would be something extremely powerful.
He absolutely could not miss it.
Rhain looked directly at Myrielle, and then at the concerned High Preceptors.
"I appreciate your warnings," Rhain stated with an unshakable conviction. "But I am not like those other disciples who failed."
Hearing Rhain’s declaration, Aldren’s face wrapped into displeasure.
"Rhain..." Aldren’s eyebrows tightened, "This is not a matter of mere confidence!"
But before Aldren could continue his reprimand, Carmilla slowly raised her hand, instantly silencing the room.
She looked at Rhain with profound, piercing gaze that seemed to stare openly into the depths of Rhain’s soul.
"You truly wish to enter?" Carmilla asked seriously.
"Yes," Rhain replied without a second of hesitation, "If a cultivator halts his footsteps in the face of a mere trial left behind by a predecessor, how can he ever expect to surpass them?"
Carmilla stilled for a long time, looking at Rhain silently.
Then her gaze turned to look at the worried Preceptors.
"A dragon cannot be chained to the shallows simply because the deep waters are dangerous," Carmilla spoke with the authority of a supreme Domain Master. "If he believes he can conquer the tower, then we will not stand in his way. Stormveil Academy was built to forge warriors, not to coddle them."
Her gaze returned to Rhain, a smile playing on her lips.
"Heavenly Ascendent Tower is open to you, Rhain. When do you wish to enter?"
Rhain thought for a moment before replying, "In three days."
While he possessed full confidence in his Abyssal Sovereign Physique and his Soul Power, he was not a fool.
When multiple Domain Master Realm experts warned him that a millennium-old tower was a legitimate death trap, he would not treat it as a casual stroll.
He needed time to make the necessary preparations.
He would visit the fifth floor of the Grand Library tomorrow, claim the Location Sign-In reward, and fully digest whatever reward he would obtain.
He also needed to synthesize the combat experiences from his battles with Lyra to ensure his foundation was at its peak before facing an unknown mental assault.
Furthermore...
Rhain turned his head slightly, his dark grey eyes softening as they landed on Seris.
He had no intention of throwing himself into a potentially grueling trial without spending some proper time with his wife first.
Carmilla noticed the subtle softening of his gaze and let out a teasing giggle.
"Ah, I see," Carmilla smirked playfully, "It’s three days then."
Rhain remained entirely unbothered by the teasing.
"If there is nothing else, Dean, we will take our leave," Rhain said, offering a polite bow.
"Go on, go on," Carmilla waved them off with a warm smile. "Rest well. You have certainly earned it today."
Rhain took Seris’s delicate hand in his own, her fingers naturally intertwining with his, and together, they stepped out of the lavish central chamber.
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Outside the secluded pavilion, the night sky over Stormveil City was clear, illuminated by the brilliant, silver moon.
"Husband," Seris murmured softly, the cold night wind whipping her magnificent silver-blue hair around them.
Rhain looked at her. "Yes?"
Seris bit her pink lip, her pale purple eyes looking up at him with lingering worry.
"You heard what the High Preceptors said about the Heavenly Ascendent Tower," Seris whispered. "If it really attacks the mind and soul... will you truly be alright? What if... what if you forget who you are? What if you forget me?"
Rhain smiled faintly.
He didn’t brush off her concern.
Instead, he took a half-step forward, wrapping his arm securely around her slender waist, pulling her against his chest.
"Forget you?" Rhain murmured in an affectionate tone.
He looked straight into her trembling eyes.
"Even if that ancient tower possessed the power of a true god," Rhain declared, "It cannot not erase a single memory of you from my mind."
Hearing Rhain’s words, Seris’s heart began to beat wildly in her chest.
A rosy blush rapidly spread across her cheeks, painting her fair skin the color of a blooming sunset.
"I..." Seris stammered, entirely unable to maintain her worried facade in the face of such overwhelming love and affection. "I am serious."
"I am also serious," Rhain smiled, his thumb gently caressing her flushed cheek. "I promised you that I would never leave you behind. Do you truly think I would willingly walk into a death trap if I wasn’t certain that I could conquer it?"
"And besides," Rhain chuckled, trying to ease the tension in her mind, "I have such a beautiful wife waiting for me at home. How could I possibly let myself go mad in some old tower?"
Hearing his words, the last remnants of anxiety in Seris’s heart completely melted away.
The rosy blush on her face deepened as she nodded and murmured softly, "I believe in you."