What May referred to as talent was simply the body’s innate sensitivity towards spiritual energy. With a core cultivation method like the Ancestral Body Technique, Nolan’s constitution was slowly changing into an ancestral body, which he suspected was an altogether different thing than the typical human biology on Nia and Venara. Even if this subtle transformation was at a relatively slow pace, he was much more sensitive to spiritual energy than anybody that he’d met since his arrival on Venara, with the exception of Nyla.

  “Trust me, we’ll be fine.”

  The pressure on the staircase was immense. Nolan didn’t even make it to the halfway point before he was forced to use the arrayment that Uncle Grey had taught him in preparation for this final endeavour within the tower.

  “Oh, man,” he panted, wiping at his sweaty brow. “These wards work pretty well, huh?”

  Nyla waved him up, having already climbed up fifty steps.

  Was the difference between their spiritual senses really so large? Nolan wondered this as he followed after her with a few quick strides, completely unaffected by the heavy aura that had been suffocating him just moments before. The particular sort of barrier that they had used was one that neutralized spiritual pressures within a limited sphere of influence, about a metre’s diameter for Nolan and three times that for Nyla.

  Nolan was a step behind her as they arrived at the top level of the tower, a classroom-sized area that was made from a different material than the floors beneath. The walls, ceiling and floors were all made from the same slightly crystallized blue stone, all of which were polished to a shine. Hundreds of pale blue stones were embedded on every surface within the room, all of them giving off a bright blue light and a heavy pressure of energy.

  “Those…you think those are spirit stones?”

  He shrugged. “Must be something like that.”

  As much as Nolan wanted to study the stones around him, he was too fixated on the huge ornate chest that sat along the far wall that opposed the staircase. It took up about a fifth of the space within the room, about two metres tall and four wide. Made of some dark purple wood, much of its sleek surface was covered in strips of gold, all of which were inlaid with priceless gems.

  Uncle Grey. What is that?

  When no response came, he cursed within his mind. Where the hell was their teacher at such a crucial time? He knew that they had planned to immediately head to the eighth floor—no, he had specifically told them to go there. Nolan couldn’t afford to take in any more energy lest he trigger a possible tribulation, so there was no point to this endeavour if their teacher wasn’t going to check the chest for traps.

  “Nyla, do you sense anything off about that chest?”

  She shook her head. “What about you?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Ask Uncle Grey about it, then. If there’s any danger here then he’ll be the one to see it.”

  “He’s not responding to me, the damn ghost.”

  It was odd that his teacher wasn’t making contact at such a crucial juncture. Was he too distracted from having Jun around?

  “He said whatever was up here would be a great benefit to us, but I don’t think we should risk it.” Nyla looked a bit let down, but quickly discarded her disappointment and knelt down to examine the nearest glowing stone. “We should still be able to take these, though.”

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  D—dear disciple, I see that you’ve made it to the top of the tower without any problems.

  Nolan signalled at Nyla to stop pulling at the stone at her feet, which she was considering with an experimental gaze.

  Did something happen on your end, or what? Where were you just now?

  I was having an interesting conversation with Jun and seem to have lost track of time. You know how quickly a few hours can turn into a few weeks.

  No, I don’t actually. Nolan sighed and then walked over to the chest, casting a discreet glance at Nyla. Nothing will happen to me if I open this, right? The last thing he needed was for his balls to get blown off right when he’d finally found a girl that was interested in him.

  Uncle Grey spoke up after a moment’s pause. No. As a matter of fact it appears that the person who left this chest behind did so with the intention of making it easy to open.

  Am I good to open it then?

  If you want to relive your first meeting with Jun, then by all means.

  Was he implying that there was another remnant spirit lying dormant within the huge chest? If that was true, then the corpse of whoever it was that built this place likely resided within the chest, which must have been the place of their death.

  You literally just said that nothing would happen to me.

  Ahem, and nothing will so long as I take action.

  “Wait, so this isn’t a treasure chest, but a coffin?” Speaking aloud so as to keep Nyla up to speed, Nolan couldn’t hide his displeasure. “I thought we’d find some crazy weapon or technique. Now you’ve got me robbing graves?”

  This is far better than some measly weapon. Taking on a wizened tone, Nolan could practically see the old spirit’s serious expression. You might not be able to tell, but most of the energy within the tower is being gathered in this room, where it’s slowly seeping into that chest.

  “So this is all for you then…”

  Dear disciple, what sort of master would I be if I didn’t share the spoils with my pupils?

  “No, I don’t mind. If you’re stronger then it’s good for us. I just wish you’d be more honest about it, instead of acting all sneaky and manipulative.”

  Nyla pinched her tear ducts, slightly embarrassed at the revelation.

  I’ve done nothing of the sort! There was genuine displeasure in Uncle Grey’s tone. Enough of this. Look ahead of you, Nolan. What you see here is the last-ditch attempt of some old master at preserving his life. He was probably planning on saving up enough energy to construct a physical body, but unfortunately for him all of his hard work will benefit me—ah, us instead.

  Although Nolan was frustrated with his teacher, he wasn’t particularly mad. Uncle Grey might have been a scatterbrained, loopy old nut, but he had saved Nolan many times, and had long since proved his sincerity.

  “Are you going to have to control my body for this?” After his most recent experience with being subjected to bodily possession, Nolan wasn’t in any hurry to hand over his physical autonomy.

  Yes, but I want to keep my energy expenditure to a minimum so it’ll only be for a handful of moments.

  “What do I need to do?”

  Listen carefully.

  Since Uncle Grey only planned to step in at the most crucial moment, the heavy lifting was up to Nolan and Nyla. Through Nolan, their teacher instructed them to create a very complicated arrayment diagram that took over an hour to complete despite the fact that they were able to work on different areas at the same time. Nyla worked by following a charcoal-to-paper sketch that Nolan had quickly jotted down, and before long it was time for Uncle Grey to step in.

  Now, are you ready to hand over the reins?

  Nolan frowned, and answered by projecting his consciousness into his spiritual space. He almost immediately lost control of his body, and found that while he was stuck within this mysterious little realm he could still see out of his eyes—along Uncle Grey’s line of sight—if he focused.

  “Hahaha,” came Nolan’s voice. “I can already tell that this is going to be a great harvest.”

  “Master?”

  “Yes, Nyla, it is I. Now, off down the stairs with you. I’ll have Nolan call you up when we’ve finished our business here.”

  Looking a little displeased, Nyla gave a light nod. “Okay.” She turned to leave, but sent her teacher a look of warning just before she began her descent. “You be mindful of Nolan’s body, now. I don’t want him getting hurt because of your negligence.”

  Uncle Grey looked as if he were about to cry, as Nolan felt the slight sting that her words caused due to his body responding to the emotions of the mind that controlled it.

  She’s right, though. We’re doing all this for you, aren’t we?

  Wh—I told you when you first set foot in this tower that whatever was up here would be beneficial for you and your friends.

  I don’t know, man. I’m still a bit shook about what happened with Jun so just be careful with my body, okay?

  Unbelievable…