Chapter 3 - Opening the Door for the Tower of Wishes

The sky was blue and clear with no sign of clouds. The sun was shining in the high sky, pouring its rays onto the trees, and passing between the leaves before reaching the ground.

Standing on a lawn surrounded by trees was a silhouette of a young man looking toward the sun. He had black hair, not too long, not too short, skin as white as milk, and cold, deep black eyes. A calm and impassive atmosphere surrounded him and his hands were behind his back.

Hiss...

The wind blew, stirring some of his clothes. And over his impassive and calm face, a small smile appeared.

"That's a good day..."

However, his smile soon disappeared and an emotionless expression reflected on his face.

Seeing this blue sky and beautiful sun, a memory of a certain place came to his mind. A desolate place full of death on all sides, with only a bright blood moon above a dark sky without a single star shining. A place where any carelessness could cause death. A place where he experienced several of his friends dying by enemies, or... by his hands... Or, his friends betraying him, and being betrayed... by him.

A smile appeared again on his face and his eyes sparkled with nostalgia.

'Despite all I've been through there, the Abyss really was a very fun place.'

If he were asked whether he preferred the Abyss or the Earth, he would not hesitate to answer the Abyss. If there was one thing he didn't like about the Abyss, it was that black sky and that blood moon. In the Abyss there was no distinction between day and night, and he was already sick of seeing that same scene for 10 years.

Test that it was only his soul that was thrown into the Abyss, and after 10 years he was suddenly returned to earth. He longed to go back there.

'Heaven... If I become a being of a level equivalent to Heaven...'

His mind traveled as he remembered if something a certain old drunkard had told him.

His gaze locked on the azure sky and he squinted his eyes. His gaze seemed able to see beyond that blue surface. A moment later, only a disappointing sigh came out of his mouth and he shook his head.

"It will still take three years, and even when that happens, it is estimated that the energy will be very faint and weak."

Suddenly, just as he was feeling disappointed, he remembered something. A small frown appeared on his face as he pondered a certain possibility.

'Should I go there? Not a bad idea, though... What if I'm wrong?'

He put his hand on his chin and pondered that seriously. "3 years of waiting, or, taking a risk..."

'Heh...' Before he finished pondering, a self-mocking smile naturally appeared on his face.

'Since when am I afraid to take a risk? Besides, wasn't it me who was so eager to go to that place? A place where there are several amazing monsters and magical abilities!'

A light shone in his eyes and, smiling slightly, he looked up at the blue sky and announced, "Then it is decided, I will go to that 'Tower of Wishes'!"

'But before that...'

Soon, his mind turned to a certain place in his body.

"I need to fix this Spiritual Energy in my body."

He didn't know what it would cause to enter a universe with a different kind of energy, what if it caused a rejection? He wasn't afraid to risk it, but there was no reason to risk his life for a reason like that.

Placing one hand on his stomach, he felt a large amount of Spiritual Energy in his body. He rested his chin on one hand and began to ponder.

'What should I spend this Spiritual Energy on? It would be a waste to simply empty it into nature... Ah!'

His eyes sparkled and an idea appeared in his mind.

"I don't think it's a bad idea." He smiled and made up his mind. He sat down in lotus form on the grass and slowly closed his eyes. His consciousness traveled throughout his body and began to focus on something that did not physically exist - his soul!

***

A large sea, endless to the naked eye, formed by pink-green water appeared in front of Uriel.

Uriel looked different. His hair, once black and somewhat long, was now it was a dark purple color and fell to his knees. And the calm and impassive atmosphere that once surrounded him, changed into a cold and confident atmosphere.

His golden eyes moved and he looked at something that was floating above the sea.

A strange and chaotic little transparent ball. A surprising scene was taking place inside that small ball. A strong flame was shining, when suddenly a strong cold air engulfed the fire and turned the inside of the ball into ice, and soon after, a purple lightning flash shone and completely destroyed the ice. This scene was repeated several times, and each time a different element appeared - darkness, light, fire, water, ice, lightning, wind...

Uriel's eyes flashed, and in an instant, he appeared in front of the small ball.

"A fragment of Elemental Chaos..." He whispered looking at the small ball. His gaze swept over the ball completely, and he couldn't help but frown a little.

'The master said that it would take me at least several thousand years before I could absorb this completely, and at least tens of thousands of years before I could use the true essence of the elements of this fragment.'

However...

"I don't want to wait that long... So my only alternative currently is..."

He turned around and looked at the most magnificent and powerful thing in his Spiritual Sea.

In the direction of his gaze, a majestic and beautiful lotus flower shone brightly.

However, there was something else about this lotus, if you looked closer you could see that each petal of the lotus was made of flames. And the flames were not simple, they were flames capable of burning space itself.

"The Flame Lotus."

Uriel showed a look full of appreciation looking at the lotus flower. This lotus had accompanied him since the beginning of his journey in cultivation - for almost his entire 10 years in the Abyss, it was definitely his most precious treasure!

The history of the Flame Lotus dates back to the Chaos Age.

In the Chaos Age, from the death of the Primordial Fire God, a flame capable of burning time and space itself appeared, even the many rules and laws of the universe were flimsy against it. Many wanted to acquire the power of this flame, but none succeeded. And slowly, as time passed, the flame began to take the form of a lotus flower nicknamed the Flame Lotus.

Uriel's master once told him that its value is no less than the fragment of Elemental Chaos in his possession. Uriel did not deny it. It is currently his main source of attack, and although it cannot bring its full power to bear, Uriel can easily beat people with a higher level of cultivation than him with its.

'If I can get it to devour the Elemental Chaos fragment, it will probably undergo a mutation and will acquire the characteristics of Elemental Chaos. The elements will be mixed with the Flame Lotus and it will become a whole new type of Lotus. Thus, I will have control over the elements imprinted on that fragment of Elemental Chaos.'

'And in time, I will probably slowly be able to use the true essence of the elements. And to be able to make the Flame Lotus devour the Elemental Chaos, I will need to spend every range of Spiritual Energy in my body, exactly my goal.'

A smile appeared on Uriel's face. With his calculations, he has a sixty percent chance of getting it right.

The reason he can't absorb the Elemental Chaos completely is, because of the protective ball that prevents the Elemental Chaos from dispersing into Nature. Uriel can't break it with his current strength and using the help of the Flame Lotus, he plans to devour the Elemental Chaos and overpower it over time.

"Then let us begin."

Uriel waved his hand.

Then—

Crackle! Crackle!

A violent, unbridled flame arose from the Flame Lotus and began to engulf the entire Spiritual Sea.

The scarlet-red flame burned and devoured everything in its path, bringing with it an extremely high temperature. In just an instant, the beautiful Spiritual Sea transformed into a terrible and beautiful sea of flames.

The protective ball of Elemental Chaos was not spared and was completely burned and destroyed. As a result, the Flame Lotus slowly devoured the Elemental Chaos.

Uriel watched from above, with his hands behind his back, the flames burning and devouring everything. Even he, his master, could feel a terrible heat coming from the Flame Lotus.

'If I were not his master...' As soon as that thought came up, he frowned. He felt that he would turn to dust before he even got close to the Flame Lotus.

Soon, the flames that were burning wildly began to fade. Uriel was able to get a full view of his Spiritual Sea again. A frown formed on his face. There was still a small amount of Spiritual Energy left. He didn't expect that it wouldn't be completely consumed.

'That was a bit unexpected.'

Ignoring that for the moment, he turned his gaze to where the Flame Lotus should be.

"A beautiful lotus indeed..." He took a deep breath of admiration.

The Flame Lotus that was already incredibly beautiful had changed. Its scarlet-red petals had changed, now each petal shone with a different color that alternated over time. Each petal had its own peculiarity. One of them was with a purple color and was covered with lightning dancing around it; another one with a blue color radiated a strong icy cold air.

'Now that it is no longer entirely made of flames, I should change its name. Hm, ah! I know!'

His eyes sparkled and looking at the lotus flower he spoke with a big smile, "From today, its name will be Heavenly Lotus."

After naming the new lotus, Uriel looked at the remaining Spiritual Energy in his Spiritual Sea and pondered internally.

'There is a small amount left. However, I don't know what reaction there would be from completely foreign energy coming into contact with another type of energy or substance.'

Suddenly a thought came to his mind. His consciousness soon returned to his physical body.

His gaze turned toward the sky, to see the sky colored in a rosy red color.

The sun was setting.

He looked deeply into the sky and raised a finger toward the sky. Spiritual Energy coursed through his body and focused on his finger. A small glowing purple petal formed on the tip of his finger.

Bzzt!!!

Small electric sparks danced around the petal.

"Heavenly Lotus Spiritual Art - Purple Lightning Petal."

The purple petal on his finger shot towards the sky leaving a small electric path where it passed.

Kaboom!

The deafening noise of thunder resounded. The sky glowed purple and, lightning descended like a purple snake towards the ground.

Boom!

The purple-colored lightning struck down causing a huge explosion and burning several trees in the surroundings. A satisfied look appeared on Uriel's face. Even if it wasn't very strong, it was still acceptable for the amount of Spiritual Energy he used.

He stood up and looked up into the dark sky. His gaze narrowed on the moon and the stars and he took a deep breath. He had just completely drained his Spiritual Energy, and in up to 3 years, he had no method of getting it back. It would be a great risk if the possibility he will think of earlier is wrong.

'Besides, the talent of this body... It's very mediocre.'

This was something he realized since he returned from the Abyss. His soul had absurd talent, yet his physical body... it wasn't even worth commenting on. But he didn't feel that it was his talent that was inferior, rather than something that was sealing off his talent and potential. And this thought was not unfounded, he remembered the day he met his master.

He had been in the Abyss for a few months, his clothes were completely torn and he was sitting down on a chair in a bar in some human kingdom.

Then suddenly an old man came through the door of the bar. An absurd smell of wine emanated from the old man's body; he looked like any old man. However, the moment this old man walked through the bar door, all the people in the bar began to tremble and knelt down with great fear in their eyes.

- Oh, great Old Sword Devil, what do you want?

The clerk knelt down until he hit his party on the floor, not daring to look at the old man's face.

The old man looked at the attendant and took a drink of wine in his hand.

- Hic, I want your best wine again. Bring it quickly because I'm in a hurry, hic.

- Sure, in a moment, sir.

The attendant ran quickly to get the wine. Meanwhile, the old man noticed something that surprised him. Although everyone was kneeling, there was still one person sitting calmly on a chair at the bar.

- Hey, child, why aren't you kneeling down for me? Aren't you afraid of death?

Despite his threatening words, his tone contained only curiosity.

The child, Uriel, turned to him with a sarcastic look. His eyes looked like a deep, emotionless abyss.

- Death? Hehe, to be honest, I don't even know how I'm still alive after being in this place for three whole months. For three whole months, I have walked side by side with death, why should I fear it?

The old man blinked in surprise. It was not unusual to see children with his mentality in this place, however... There was something else, most people with his mentality would have given up on life by now. However, this boy, the same feeling he felt from someone who had given up on life, he did not feel from this child.

Besides, 3 months, that means he is not a native of the Abyss. The old man smiled a little and looked full of interest at the boy, when...

- Oh? Which power did you piss off, boy?

- ...?? What do you mean? Since I've been here, I've always remained passive and haven't dared to provoke others carelessly.

- Really?

The old man scratched his beard and a curious expression appeared on his face. For some reason, he found this child quite similar to him when he began his journey in cultivation.

- Sir, here is your wine.

At that moment, the bar attendant came over with a wine in his hand and knelt on the floor.

- Very good.

The old man casually took the wine from his hand, and turned to Uriel, and asked him a question that would forever change his life in the Abyss.

- Hey, child, how would you like to have me as your master?

- !!!

Everyone who heard this in the bar couldn't help but let their surprise escape their faces. They knew who this old man was, and he was certainly not someone who picked a disciple casually.

Uriel also showed a surprised expression. He didn't even have time to ponder before words came unconsciously out of his mouth.

- Yes.

Uriel himself didn't know why he answered that. He just felt, his instincts told him, that he should accept.

The old man showed a satisfied expression and waved his hand.

- Why aren't you bowing to your master yet?

Uriel blinked with a bit of surprise and quickly knelt down and slapped his forehead on the ground a total of three times.

Tuk!

Tuk!

Tuk!

- Uriel greets his master.

He stood up and cupped his hands to the old man. The old man put a big smile on his face and, reaching forward with his hand, touched his head.

- Consider this a gift for having accepted me as your master.

At that moment a strong light shone from his hand and covered Uriel's body.

After the light ceased, Uriel felt as if several chains covering his body had been removed. He had never felt so free before. It was an incredible feeling!

- Follow me, child.

The old man turned his back on him and walked away, taking the wine in his hand. Uriel followed him, not knowing that this event would change his entire life.

"Master..."

Uriel's gaze shone with nostalgia looking up at the night sky. Even if that old man was a bit unpleasant at times, he was undoubtedly one of the most important people to Uriel.

But he soon turned his attention away from this subject.

'That's not important for the time being.' He turned again and stared straight ahead.

'If I am right, my father must have made arrangements so that only when I have some desire of mine reach an absurd level will the tower door open for me. In the stories he told me, he said that only by wishing for something desperately level, will the tower open to someone.'

He took a deep breath, and his mind began to wander. What did he want most? What did he wish for? What was his main goal? Several scenes flashed through his mind, of his father abandoning him, of the vision of his friends betraying him in the Abyss, of the several people who died at his hands.

He had several wishes, several regrets, several goals. However, for all of this, there was only one solution.

'Strength...' He was weak. Those who rule the world, and those who make the rules, are the strong ones! Without strength, he could do nothing. And, without a doubt, the thing he wanted most at this moment was strength!

He began to walk forward with conviction.

Flash!

A great light suddenly shone in front of Uriel and a white door began to appear.

'What I need and desire is strength... I desire to walk the path of strength. It doesn't matter if I will fall in the middle of the way. No matter what means I will use it to advance along this path. It doesn't matter what sacrifices I will have to make. The important thing is that this is what I desire and I will do my best to accomplish it!'

Uriel just continued with a big smile straight ahead as his thoughts wandered. At that instant, his foot reached the inside of the door and a blinding light appeared in his vision, causing him to close his eyes unconsciously.