Beyond the thirteenth-floor door lay a long white staircase.
The staircase was wide, with no railings along its edges and no bottom visible below. Snowlight shone from every direction, making each step look like thin ice. In the distance, the Divine Throne hung at the very top. A faceless shadow sat there, with neither sky nor wall behind it, only a blank expanse.
Shen Huaizhong lay beside the cracked Clock Core on the twelfth floor, his own name driven through his chest as his body crumbled inch by inch into tiny clock teeth. None of those teeth reached the ground. The White Bell Core absorbed them all. It hovered in the doorway, beating faster and faster.
Xu Zhihan stood before the door, supporting Lu Wenchuan.
Half of Lu Wenchuan's weight rested on his arm, and his wrist was still bleeding. When the Judgment Seal shattered earlier, he had already reached his limit. His face was terribly pale, but he still refused to concede.
"The last floor looks pretty empty."
Xu Zhihan gave him a cold look.
"You still have the energy to comment?"
"Just making conversation," Lu Wenchuan said quietly, "so you won't stare at my wound again."
Xu Zhihan's gaze fell to his wrist.
"Already staring."
Lu Wenchuan gave a low chuckle.
"Then go easy on it."
Xu Zhihan's fingertips tightened slightly around the arm he was supporting.
"Shut up."
The White Bell Core suddenly flew toward the Divine Throne.
Xu Zhihan looked up.
The Bell Core flew up along the staircase, lighting a clock pattern on every step it passed. Only Shen Huaizhong's upper body remained now. He raised his head and watched the Bell Core fly toward the Divine Throne, an almost fanatical light in his eyes.
"Only when the Tower Core returns to the throne will