Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!

"Amazing! You passed the test, kid." Suddenly the eel stopped in its tracks as a clapping sound and the voice of the guardian were heard.

Liu Guanyi saw Headon casually walking over, passing the still eel in the process.

'Finally… I almost hit my limit.'

He thought as he was about to sigh in relief when suddenly he grasped his left chest and spat out a mouthful of blood!

'Sigh… my current self is too weak… if it was in my prime, I could use these martial techniques without any backlashes and easily kill this giant eel."

"Are you alright kid?" Headon asked with a grin.

"Yes… I am alright. Thank you for your consideration, o great guardian!"

He spoke respectfully, not wanting to offend someone with authority and power that could magically stop such a monstrous eel in its place even to its eye movements with ease.

"Hahaha, no need to be so formal to me. Congratulations, kid! You are eligible to go to the next floor." Headon spoke casually.

"Ahh, I almost forgot this…" Headon clicked his thumb and middle finger and popped out a black ball out of nothing.

"This is a "Pocket" it is a very important device for anyone who climbs the tower. Now, just touch it with your hands." Headon offered the black ball reassuringly.

Liu Guanyi did as he said and reached out to it. When his hand touched the black ball, it suddenly disappeared without any traces.

"This?!" He exclaimed.

"It is okay kid, it's just one of its functions. Just say "Visible Mode" to make it appear"

"Alright, visible mode!" The moment the command was heard, suddenly, the black ball emerged out of the blue. It was now hovering by his side, seeing this, he stared in amazement.

"With the pocket, you can understand various languages that people in the tower use, don't lose it, kid. Now, let me send you to the next floor."

Headon explained and was about to wave his staff when-

"Wait! Could you explain more about the tower and the power that you used to stop the giant eel, o mighty guardian?" Liu Guanyi interjected.

Headon rubbed his snout. "Hmmm… I can only say that everything is on the top… however, since you are a polite child, I'll give you some advice."

"Always keep your awareness child and don't tell people of your origin. I welcome you to the tower child!" The guardian grinned and waved his staff covering him in darkness as his vision immediately turned dark and he lost his consciousness.

"What an amazing kid! Even though he is not strong compared to them, yet… he has something far greater than them. Maybe the tower will experience a great change soon."

"And maybe, your plan will not work out as easily anymore…" Headon grinned widely, displaying his sharp and terrifying teeth.

. . . . . .

In an open vast plain covered with tall brown grasses, a handsome young man in black and tight martial clothes was lying on the ground. He had long black hair that fell freely to his back. If he stood up, he would be around 1.7 meters.

When the plains' wind blew his face, suddenly he opened his eyelids showing a pair of black eyes as he saw the beautiful sky. He witnessed something odd… the sky was bright, however there was no sun in the sky.

'Damn! Why I am always lying on the ground every time they move me away? Is this the tower's style?' Liu Guanyi cursed in his heart as he got up from the dirty ground and started to observe his surroundings when suddenly-

"Ehmm-ehmm… Mic test! Mic teeeest! Ah… hello everyone! Chosen regulars who have entered the tower! This is the second floor, and I sincerely welcome you to… the floor of tests!!" A loud voice reverberated in the air.

"Hmm?" Liu Guanyi's ears perked up as he listened attentively.

"The second floor is also called the "Floor of tests" for a reason. Because this floor is where you are deemed worthy or not to climb the tower!"

"Now, minor details aside, let's start this event with a simple warm-up test, shall we? The first test is very simple! I will begin announcing the rules so please listen carefully!" The voice continued talking.

"The following rules are for the first test! There are more than four hundred regulars on this floor and all you have to do is to make it go down to one hundred! You can use whatever means necessary to do it!"

"When the number of regulars falls down to one hundred, the test will be ended automatically! So everyone, do your best to survive!" The voice ended its speech with a cheerful tone contrasting to the content of its speech.

'So a ruthless elimination method, huh? Indeed a fitting price for climbing the tower, if what that guardian said was true.' Liu Guanyi thoughtfully pondered.

'To fight and kill in the scenario is pointless to me, especially with my current condition. So, let's just find a hiding spot.' Liu Guanyi assessed the situation, turned the pocket invisible, and made a quick decision.

He laid on the ground as he crawled into the brown tall grasses, the easiest hiding spot he found that gave a good cover since the grasses area was very wide. He moved at a slow and careful pace without making any noise as he perked up his ears to hear any sound and to be able to react at a moment's notice.

After crouching through the sea of grasses for a while, he heard a sound he was very familiar with… the cries of metal and steels clashing with one another, a melee battle he presumed.

Soon, he saw a human with a sword having a standoff with some big green-skinned bipedal creature wielding a spear.

The standoff stopped as the green humanoid stepped forward and stabbed with his spear. The human managed to dodge it, however, as soon as he did, another attack was already heading for him again.

The human, not too shabby himself, parried with his sword and tried to close the distance. Yet, the spearman simply stepped to the side and whipped his spear, grazing the human's leg.

'He is done for, the spearman outclassed him in every manner especially his reach and spearmanship. So this is the level of regulars, huh?' Liu Guanyi wondered.

True to his observation, soon, the spearman overwhelmed the human with a barrage of quick and sharp stabs and finally managed to impale him in the heart, then he cleaned his spear on the dead human's clothes and left.

Not wanting to stay unarmed in this dangerous place, Liu Guanyi took the sword from the corpse after the situation was safe and examined it.

Looking still in a good condition, he picked it up and tied it to his waist. He continued lying still on the ground to avoid other regulars.

A long time passed as he could smell it from the wind, the stench of foul blood and carnage and….

Click!

"Congratulations to all regulars who passed, now I will move you to the resting place" The voice came out once again as he felt weightless and disappeared from the spot.

. . . . .

What did Headon see in Liu Guanyi and what did he mean by your plan? 🤔