Virtual Battle Tower

Hong Chen gestured to the others, then led Ye Cang to a room deep inside the hall.

Beep!

He swiped his identity card, and the door opened automatically.

The room was filled with a futuristic atmosphere. A sofa for resting sat along one side.

On the other side stood a massive iron door, sealed behind sturdy alloy.

A man lay sprawled on the sofa. He looked fairly young, somewhere in his thirties.

Seeing Ye Cang and Hong Chen arrive, he straightened up slightly.

"Fan Yongfeng!"

Hong Chen's brow furrowed when he saw the man, and a trace of displeasure flashed across his face.

"Oh? It's you, Hong Chen!"

The man glanced at Hong Chen, a strange smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

"What are you doing here?"

Hong Chen asked gruffly.

"And what about you?"

Fan Yongfeng shot back.

Then he looked at Ye Cang behind Hong Chen.

"Is this the newcomer you brought back? Reaching High-level General in a small city is no simple feat!"

"What's it to you?"

Hong Chen replied, sounding displeased.

"Heh, what a coincidence. I brought someone back from a small city too—a junior of my Fan family. He's testing inside right now."

As he spoke, Fan Yongfeng pointed at the massive iron door beside them.

He sized up Ye Cang. A few moments later, he spoke again:

"How about a wager? They're both newcomers at High-level General, and this is their first time trying the Virtual Battle Tower. Let's bet on which floor they can clear."

"If you win, I'll return every last Earth Vein Flame Stone I took from you last time. If you lose, just give me a million contribution points."

"Do you dare?"

Fan Yongfeng looked at Hong Chen provocatively.

Hearing that, Ye Cang sensed a hint of friction between the two.

Fan Yongfeng wore a mocking expression. Hong Chen's face darkened, and he looked at Ye Cang.

"Venerable Hong, I..."

Ye Cang started to speak, but Hong Chen cut him off.

"Fine! I'll take the bet!"

He believed in Ye Cang's strength. To kill a War Venerable at General rank—even if it was the weakest—meant his combat strength was no small matter.

If he could get back the Earth Vein Flame Stone he'd lost last time, his cultivation might advance another minor stage.

Besides, Ye Cang was a genius of his caliber. Hong Chen couldn't believe the Fan family could have nurtured someone like him in a small city.

"Good! It's a deal!"

When Hong Chen agreed, a trace of amusement flashed across Fan Yongfeng's face.

His eyes brimmed with confidence.

A few minutes later.

A low rumble sounded, and the massive iron door before them slowly swung open.

"Fan Zhuoqun, Virtual Battle Tower, floor 11.2!"

A cold electronic voice rang through the room.

Hong Chen's expression changed at once. He could hardly believe what he'd heard.

He looked at Fan Yongfeng, whose mocking expression was now unmistakable.

Meeting Hong Chen's gaze, Fan Yongfeng said with a grin,

"A million contribution points isn't much. When will you transfer them, Venerable Hong?"

Hong Chen's face darkened instantly.

He knew exactly what reaching floor 11.2 meant. That level of combat strength was already comparable to Ye Cang fighting at full power—at least, based on what he'd seen.

Footsteps echoed...

A young man in his twenties emerged from behind the iron door. He carried himself with confidence and would have stood out in any crowd. He certainly lived up to his name.

"Uncle, I'm sorry to disappoint you. I couldn't clear the twelfth floor."

He spoke modestly.

Fan Yongfeng beamed at the young man before him.

"Ha ha! No matter. This is more than enough. To reach this level at the peak of General is an incredible feat. Among all the Generals in the martial arts academy, your combat strength ranks among the top thirty."

"Once you're back, the academy's reward resources will surely help you advance further. And your uncle also got you a little gift from Venerable Hong here. Don't be shy about accepting it later."

After speaking, he looked at Hong Chen, then gave Ye Cang a glance.

"Go ahead! I want to see you lose so thoroughly there'll be no doubt about it!"

He wanted to see just how capable Ye Cang was, the newcomer Hong Chen had brought back—and why Hong Chen dared to bet a million contribution points on him.

Seeing Fan Yongfeng's arrogant expression, Hong Chen turned to Ye Cang and forced a smile.

"Don't worry. Just do your best!"

He patted Ye Cang on the shoulder, then pointed beyond the iron door.

Under the lights stood something like a futuristic hibernation pod.

"Use the identity card you just received to open the Virtual Battle Pod, then lie down inside. You'll be guided through everything else."

"All right. Please wait a moment, Venerable Hong. I'll do my best!"

A million contribution points were equivalent to a billion Huaxia Coins.

In reality, however, contribution points were worth far more than Huaxia Coins.

After all, they could only be earned by hunting fierce beasts.

So far, he'd earned just over 110,000 contribution points. He owed that much to his telekinetic power, which let him slaughter fierce beasts quickly from a distance.

Warriors, on the other hand, could only fight in close quarters.

And fierce beasts traveled in packs. Once you were caught in the middle of one, life and death could be decided in an instant.

The difficulty of earning a million contribution points was obvious.

As he thought, Ye Cang glanced at the system panel.

[Life Energy: 260]

This was the Life Energy he'd gained after killing Xue Long. He hadn't used it yet.

Since he was going all out, there was no reason to hold back now.

With a thought, his Life Energy decreased, and his 'Body' attribute began to rise.

After allocating the points, Ye Cang walked toward the room ahead.

As soon as he entered, the iron door slowly closed behind him.

When he reached the Virtual Battle Pod, he spotted a card reader and swiped his identity card.

Hiss...

With a burst of steam, the Virtual Battle Pod's lid opened.

After a quick look, Ye Cang lay down inside.

A few seconds later, the lid slowly closed.

At the same time, he felt dozens of soft tubes connect to different parts of his body from all directions inside the pod.

There were even more around his head—sixteen in all.

The next instant, his consciousness grew hazy. When he came to, he found himself in a strange space.

He looked around and saw that he was standing on an arena, a hundred meters across. Its silver-white floor looked incredibly hard.

He raised his eyes to the sky. It was a vast expanse of white.

"So this is... the Virtual Battle Tower?"

Ye Cang asked, puzzled.

He walked a few steps and felt nothing particularly unusual.

After adjusting to his strength, he found that none of his abilities had changed.

Clang!

Ye Cang stomped hard on the ground. It rang like metal, yet showed no sign of damage.

A flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

Even his ordinary strength now measured dozens of tons, yet he couldn't do the slightest damage to this place.

He was about to unleash his full strength and test how hard the ground was when a cold prompt suddenly rang out from above.

"Information scan complete!"

"Modeling complete!"

"Ye Cang!"

"Physical strength: early-stage High-level General!"

"Telekinetic strength: early-stage Mid-level General!"

"Intent has been synchronized!"

Hearing the prompt, Ye Cang's expression shifted, and he activated his 'Aurora Sword Intent.'

In the next instant, a pair of wings formed from illusory long swords appeared behind him. They were a brilliant red and white, shimmering with red-and-white light.

"So this is ancient civilization's virtual technology? It can simulate things so perfectly—even something as ethereal as intent can be reproduced so realistically."

Feeling the various powers in his body, almost indistinguishable from those in the outside world, Ye Cang was too stunned for words.

"Transmitting basic Virtual Battle Tower information..."