[Rift No. 17: Crimson Abyss]

On the first day, Ye Xiao had been full of respect for Old Man Black.

On the second day, he cursed Old Man Black under his breath: You shameless old geezer!

But for the 1,000 Tiger Sun Pills Old Man Black had given him,

Ye Xiao chose to put up with it!

After that,

Old Man Black inserted the Gravity Training Card.

The display showed the remaining time:

92 hours.

Old Man Black asked, "Ye Xiao, are you really planning to use up all of Xiao Zhou's time?"

Ye Xiao knew that Xiao Zhou, as Old Man Black called him, was his homeroom teacher, Zhou Ming.

"Old Man Black, didn't you say you'd give me 100 hours of training time?"

"Once I've trained for 100 hours, I'll return the card to Teacher Zhou."

Old Man Black's face broke into a crafty smile.

The moment Ye Xiao saw that smile, his heart gave a lurch. He knew something was wrong!

Sure enough,

Old Man Black said, "Of course I can give you 100 hours in the Gravity Tower."

"But the problem is, do you have your own Gravity Training Card?"

Ye Xiao was instantly at a loss for words, a dark cloud settling over his face as he caught on.

"Old Man Black, you're pulling one over on me again, aren't you?"

Old Man Black looked utterly righteous.

"Young man, your grandpa here always does things fairly, impartially, and transparently!"

"Otherwise, how would I have stayed here all these years?"

"Why would the school leaders and students respect and admire me?"

"Isn't it because I always follow the proper procedures and rules?"

"Yesterday, I did tell you I'd give you 100 hours of Gravity Tower training time."

"But the problem is, you don't have a Gravity Training Card! You'll have to get your own card first."

Ye Xiao took a deep breath, nearly so furious that he passed out.

He shook his head, laughing in exasperation, and gave a sarcastic thumbs-up!

"Old Man Black! You really are something! You knew I was a freshman and couldn't get a Gravity Training Card of my own."

"I can't beat a crafty old fox like you. You're the best!"

Ye Xiao gave him another series of thumbs-up.

Old Man Black smiled smugly and rocked gently in his chair.

"Not bad, huh?"

But then,

he changed tack. "Still, you look so pitiful that I'll point you toward a way to get a Gravity Training Card early. How about it?"

After his previous run-ins with Old Man Black,

Ye Xiao had learned to be on his guard around him.

You couldn't trust the old man!

There were usually seven or eight tricks hidden behind every sentence he said!

He asked cautiously, "What way? Let me hear it first."

Seeing Ye Xiao's wary expression, Old Man Black looked displeased.

He mocked him without mercy. "Look at you, so spineless. I fooled you just once, and now you're seeing danger everywhere?"

"Better to get fooled by me here than to leave school someday and get tricked by the enemy on the battlefield."

"I can't stand men who can't take a joke."

On the surface, Old Man Black's words were nothing but mockery and scorn.

But behind those sharp, needling words lay his deepest concern for Ye Xiao.

At the time, Ye Xiao had no idea there was more to Old Man Black's words.

He just thought the old man was flaunting his seniority and status.

He was putting on airs in front of the younger generation, lecturing them to show off his position and assert his authority.

But only when Ye Xiao truly stepped onto the battlefield

did he look back on that bright, sunny morning and finally understand what Old Man Black had meant.

Ye Xiao was getting worked up.

First Old Man Black had called him spineless, then said he couldn't take a joke.

And finally, he'd said he had only fooled him once.

Old Man Black had acted completely justified, without the slightest awareness of his own fault.

Ye Xiao was getting angry.

Old Man Black saw the young man's temper.

He spoke calmly.

"Kill a Fourth Realm monster and bring it back to school. Then you can get a Gravity Training Card early!"

At that, the expression on Ye Xiao's face slowly turned serious and grave.

Old Man Black continued, "Don't try any tricks, like buying a monster's corpse or hiring someone to kill one for you."

"The school isn't stupid. It'll investigate where the monster came from. If you can, buy a Portable Recorder and film the entire hunt as proof."

Then Old Man Black changed tack and tried to provoke him.

"Of course, this would be difficult not only for you, but for all first- and second-year students."

"Hunting a Fourth Realm monster would mean fighting above your level."

"It's dangerous, and you could get hurt. In the worst case, you could even die."

"So you can do what the other students do and study in peace until your third year. The school will issue you a Gravity Training Card then."

"..."

Before Old Man Black could finish,

Ye Xiao asked firmly, without hesitation, "Old Man Black, where can I hunt a Fourth Realm monster?"

Old Man Black answered coldly.

"Go to a Rift."

According to the General History of Heaven and Earth,

a hundred thousand years ago, spiritual energy had revived, and the Human World and the monster world had originally shared the same source.

An ancient war cleaved the once-whole world in two.

From then on, the Human World and the monster world were separated, with only a "World Scar" between them.

Ninety-five thousand years ago, the thinnest part of the World Scar split open, forming the first spatial rift.

Monsters poured into the Human World for the first time.

Ninety thousand years ago, the monsters invaded, and humanity's defenses collapsed.

The Nameless Ancestor shattered the monsters filling the heavens with a single punch. He also shattered the World Scar, then sealed it with his Fist Intent.

The seal held for ninety thousand years.

Now, the seal was beginning to weaken.

There were eighty-eight weak points in the World Scar around the globe, corresponding to eighty-eight Rifts.

Jiang City was one of them, designated [Rift No. 17: Crimson Abyss], with a danger rating of Level 3!

It was currently sealed, and Transcendentalists from Jiang City were responsible for keeping it contained.

The closest place where Ye Xiao could hunt monsters was [Rift No. 17: Crimson Abyss], located in Jiang City.

As for that place,

the memories of Ye Xiao's predecessor told him

it was where the adoptive father who had rescued him from the monsters had ultimately been devoured and killed.

It was right there, at [Rift No. 17: Crimson Abyss]!

"I have to go there!" Ye Xiao swore silently to himself.

After finishing the General History of Heaven and Earth that Old Man Black had lent him,

Ye Xiao returned it to Old Man Black.

After that,

he cast aside every distracting thought

and focused all his attention on his punches!

He had only one goal.

To grow stronger!

As strong as he possibly could!

Once he believed he was strong enough,

he would enter the Red Abyss himself and uncover the secrets and truth behind his adoptive father's death!

After a full day of training the day before,

Ye Xiao had already reached the 1,000th level of the Mud Embryo Realm!

At the same time, his Extreme Martial Physique had evolved.

Now, on the first floor of the Gravity Training Tower,

even in the fivefold gravity zone,

Ye Xiao could clearly feel that his legs no longer trembled, his back no longer bent, and he no longer panted.

Faced with this,

Ye Xiao realized he was ready to go up to the next floor!

So,

after a simple warm-up in the fivefold gravity zone,

he stepped onto the second floor of the Gravity Training Tower.