Light Atop the Tower

Braving the wind and sand, he ran for several miles before the tower half-buried among the dunes finally appeared before Xia Fan.

Only from up close did he realize that it was by no means small. Its outline resembled a four-sided pyramid; aside from lacking a pointed peak, it looked like a peculiar pyramid. A long staircase ran up each of its sloping faces, leading directly to the platform at the top, where the silver glow was now clearly visible.

By then, the sandstorm had grown too fierce to ignore. He had to cover his mouth whenever he spoke, or his mouth would be filled with sand.

"We... are at the top of the tower now?" Taxisis asked softly.

"Most likely." Xia Fan looked up at the sky—after several earth-shaking roars, the cracks in the night sky had widened further. Through those fissures, he saw a scorched land ablaze, as well as the Dragon Saliva River in the distance, reflecting a crimson glow. Such a magnificent sight could never be seen from the surface. Judging by the height of their vantage point, it roughly matched that of the ancient leaning stone tower.

"So the Dragon-Climbing Road didn't require climbing upward the whole way. Walking straight ahead could also... cough, cough... could also reach the top of the tower." The girl's eyes were full of wonder.

"So you really did complete the Dragon-Climbing trial." Xia Fan spoke to her whenever he could as he climbed the stairs against the increasingly violent wind.

He noticed that Taxisis's voice was growing weaker and weaker. Given her temperament, she was absolutely not the sort to give up easily, so mere encouragement no longer meant much. He could only keep talking to hold her attention, lest she fall completely into shock at a time like