Tower of Heaven

[Team A has secured the opposing crystal. Trial of Synergy has been completed.]

[Ascender [Atlas Vaun] has met the required conditions for success.]

[Transporting [Team A] to the 8th trial.]

It all happened immediately. The second Leon placed the crystal on the altar next to their own, the system notifications came in droves and the feeling of transportation enveloped them all.

Atlas could barely make out the defeated and furious expression on the blue-haired man's face before his vision went black.

Still, this made him smile a bit. He had been able to use his chain weapons effectively for the first time, even if it was too basic of an application to be an achievement.

When Atlas opened his eyes once more, he found it hard to keep them that way. Bringing his arm up to his face, he blocked what seemed to be intense sunlight while his vision adjusted.

Finally feeling adapted, he opened his eyes to see another new environment around him.

In front of him, there was an expansive ocean. Its water wasn't murky, but its dark blue color clearly indicated its depth. The waves of the ocean ebbed and flowed off the shore he was currently seated on.

His feet and a portion of his body were slightly sunken within the hot and smooth sand on this beach, and when he stood up, he was forced to pat himself down to remove the uncomfortable feeling that enveloped his body.

Looking around, Atlas noticed the beach and ocean spanned as far as his eyes could see, and behind him, there was a large jungle that took up the entire area that wasn't covered in sand.

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It was relatively obvious he was on an island. Yet to someone like Atlas, this kind of environment was an immense culture shock.

He wasn't surprised by forests or deserts, as he had heard about them before and even read about them in books. Even if he hadn't, he had seen plenty in his past life.

However, such an expansive body of water wasn't something he had ever come in contact with.

He saw the sun on the horizon, but even it seemed like it would set into the sea. He saw no other land besides the island he was currently on, let alone any life in the vicinity,

It was such a wild experience for him that he disregarded the many system notifications that were hovering around him.

Atlas spent the next hour simply walking around the beach curiously, dipping his hand into the ocean and even momentarily playing in the sand.

And from that dip, he learned that there was no receding shoreline to this ocean. The depth even at the closest proximity to the island was unnatural.

After his fit of admiration passed, Atlas finally took the time to look at the floating screens that kept bothering him.

[Reward Granted. Reward Shop entry has been permitted.]

[Beginning the trial of Floor 8: Trial of Ingenuity]

[Description: For cultivators, the need for hygiene slowly diminishes with the climbing of realms. Spiritual energy keeps their bodies pristine. However, there will still be situations where they are forced into dire straits. A cultivator must possess the necessary skills to survive when they have nothing left.]

Time Limit: 2 Weeks

Conditions for success:

Stay alive until the end of the trial Visit at least 2 different islands Healthy and nourished by the end of the trial

[Rewards: 6 months food supply, access to Inventory]

Atlas slightly smiled seeing the contents of the trial. For him, this would most likely be the easiest trial of the ten that made up the tutorial.

Surviving off of scraps was probably what he had become conditioned to after 7 years of doing it. Not to mention, he could now see and had the capability to acquire his own sustenance.

The only thing he was worried about was finding another island or two, since even with his heightened senses, he couldn't spot any other land.

He'd have to build some sort of flotation device to travel the seas in search of another island. Yet, he didn't know how to do that nor did he know the dangers that inhabited the vast body of water.

Still, he had his priorities straight. Opening his status panel, he went straight to the reward shop to choose an armor.

Although there were a plethora of choices for him to browse through, he knew what type of armor he wanted. Something that could protect his chest was the only thing he needed.

Perhaps his other bones also sustained some damage and slight atrophy, but they were nowhere near as mangled as his ribs. This was where he needed the most protection.

Searching through the different chestplates, the only thing he really needed to focus on was design. They were all Mortal grade armors anyway, and they didn't have special abilities like weapons did.

And soon, his eyes landed on an entirely black chestplate with gold lines descending in inverted V-shaped patterns. Without hesitation, he chose it.

And unlike his previous experience, there was no glaring intuition or sense that he was making the wrong decision.

When the chestplate materialized in front of him, he didn't waste any time putting it on. And once he did, an unfounded sense of security enveloped his body.

He felt like he could withstand anything, even if his logical thought process pointed out how idiotic his thinking was.

But he didn't linger on the topic long. Now that he had claimed his reward, it was time to start hunting.

Not to mention, he had a minimal amount of time to make some sort of productive device to help him travel from island to island.

Because he wasn't feeling any hunger yet, he chose to prioritize this task.

His first move was to cut down the trees at the edge of the jungle since it was the best material he currently had available.

And it wasn't too difficult. He had his flames, and once he shaped them into a blade and concentrated the heat, the trees were cut through like butter.

But now that he had them, he didn't know what to do with them.

Realizing he wouldn't need such a large platform, he began cutting the trunks in half, forming smaller logs. Next, he threw one of the logs into the ocean to see what would happen.

And to his delight, it floated while only being slightly submerged in the water.

Knowing that his method was successful, he cut the rest of the trunks into the same shape. Now all he needed to do was find something to hold them together.

Entering the jungle, he began his search for material. At first, he thought the various vines that swung from tree to tree would work, but he found that they weren't nearly sturdy enough.

And so, he continued his search until the sun began to set. He looked from left to right, trying not to leave even a single inch untouched. But while he was distracted, his foot got caught on something and he ended up tripping.

Looking down, he found a plant with extra thick roots, almost similar to tree roots. Yet the difference was in flexibility. It wasn't so hard that he simply hit his foot and stumbled, it actually continued moving with his foot in a way that didn't allow him to regain balance.

He was a bit embarrassed about how he found the roots, he felt that they'd work perfectly for his current task.

Collecting as many as he could, he returned to the beach to finish his construction.