The inside of the office is much simpler than I expected. The only furniture is a wooden desk and three chairs. The elf woman sits in one of the chairs behind the desk, while the other two are in front. The rest of the room is open space, and the man sits in the very center of it, deep in meditation.
My eyes linger on him for a second or two. The rate at which he is absorbing ki is impressive, especially for someone who only just found out about its existence today. He’s definitely a top level talent, probably on the same level as Jacob, if not a half step higher.
I step inside the room and walk past him toward the elf, taking time to examine her. Aside from her ears, she looks fairly normal with dirty blonde hair and dark blue eyes. Her robes are different from the ones we were provided with, but they are not any more extravagant.
While I approach, she scans me up and down before settling her eyes on the cat in my arms. A second later, I feel a ripple in the ki, and I flinch as another creature appears. It looks like a monkey, but like Trinity, it is pitch black with a third eye in its forehead and three tails. It locks eyes with Trinity, and the cat squirms out of my arms, leaping onto the desk as well where it sits down, staring at the monkey.
“This is Benny,” says Nadia. “He’s my newest void beast, and the only one I’m allowed to let out on this Floor. Isn’t he adorable?”
She ruffles the monkey’s fur as it stares back at Trinity.
“Also, the man on the floor is Yuri,” Nadia adds. “Don’t mind him. He asked for some guidance and achieved some kind of enlightenment. He can’t hear us right now, and he’ll leave as soon as he regains consciousness.”
“I see,” I say, glancing back at the man. “And you said that Benny was your newest void beast? How many more do you have?”
“Three so far,” she says, stroking the monkey’s head. “I am a beast tamer, and void beasts are one of the hardest to find, let alone tame. It looks like you had quite the lucky encounter in the labyrinth to find one that’s already broken in. The hardest part is already done.”
“I guess so,” I say. “What exactly is a void beast?”
“You haven’t learned much about the Central Void yet, right?” she asks.
“Ganyu- My instructor only briefly mentioned it.”
“Right. Well, it’s hard to explain without going into detail on concepts above your understanding, but the Central Void is an incredibly dangerous place. Reality itself is torn apart, and in most cases, no one below 5 star can survive more than a few seconds within it. And even if you can handle the atmosphere trying to rend you to pieces, it’s inhabited by powerful, dangerous beings that are threats even to 9 star cultivators.”
I glance at Trinity and Benny, who both seem locked in place, not even blinking as they stare at each other.
“Oh, don’t worry,” says Nadia, catching the concern on my face. “Void beasts are not the same as the beings of the void, though they are related. The beings of the void are dangerous, but they cannot enter our realm. Not normally, at least. They are fundamentally incompatible with reality, and will be destroyed within minutes of leaving the void. You won’t have to worry about them until you get strong enough to actually brave the Central Void itself.
“Now, while the Central Void itself is utterly inhospitable, there are very rare cases where sections of it can become stable, allowing even ordinary animals to survive within it. These sections are not permanent, but some last long enough that they can form full biomes. It is in these biomes that void beasts are born.”
“So the cat is just a normal cat that was born in the Central Void?”
“Well, it’s not normal, but it’s closer to that than to being a denizen of the void,” she explains. “By the way, does she have a name? Names are an important first step to training.”
“Her name is Trinity.”
“Nice to meet you, Trinity,” says Nadia, switching from petting the monkey to petting the cat. Trinity doesn’t react, still stuck in her staring competition with the monkey. “Ah, by the way, no need to worry about this interaction. It’s normal for first meetings between void beasts. They’ll get used to each other in a few minutes and return to acting normally.
“Anyway, void beasts are incredibly useful,” she continues. “While they aren’t true denizens of the void, they have a strong connection to it. Have you noticed Trinity occasionally disappearing, or perhaps items going missing near her?”
“Yes,” I say. “She has a corpse. She keeps taking it out in my living room.”
“Ha!” says Nadia, letting out a bark of laughter. “That’s hilarious. Well, the way she does that is through her connection to the Central Void. That extra eye on her head is like a portal connecting her to it, and through it, she has her own personal domain where the void is stable and she can hide out or store things. As they grow stronger, they can also start using other void-related abilities to attack and defend and things like that, but you won’t have to worry about that for a little while. The earliest that Trinity will be able to do anything like that is late 2 star.
“That aside though, the void connection is what makes void beasts so valuable. If you have one tamed, you should be able to access their stable void region yourself. This is where the training comes in though. You have already bonded with Trinity, but you’ll need to strengthen that bond to actually be able to utilize it.”
“And how do I do that?”
“Cultivate with her!” says Nadia, looking excited.
“What do you mean?”The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“It’s as simple as that. Next time you sit down to cultivate, grab her and have her sit on your lap while you do it. That’s all there is to it at first. Once you can sense your bond with her properly, then you can move on to actually utilizing it. I’ll be able to give you more guidance once you reach that stage, but for now, that’s really all I can really teach you.”
“How long will it take for me to sense the bond?”
“I’m not sure,” says Nadia. “It depends on the void beast. Benny here took me almost a full year to sense, but Carla, my second beast, only took a few days. The longest I’ve ever heard it taking is three years, which means that no matter what, if you stick around on the Floor, I’ll be around to help. I’m still contracted here for another thirty years, so I won’t be going anywhere.”
I frown at that information. My original plan was to leave as soon as possible. I’ll see how viable the Tournament is, and if I decide it’s not worth it, I’ll just take the first Ascension Test. However, if I’m still not able to properly work with Trinity by then, I might have to delay that. I’ll need to learn more about what’s on the higher Floors, but I doubt I’ll have access to someone like Nadia to teach me after I leave this place.
“Don’t worry about wasting time,” says Nadia, sensing my uncertainty. “A few years is nothing. Even an early 3 star cultivator can live for over 500 years. Once you reach 8 star, millennia feel the same that decades did as a 1 star. The Climb is not a sprint, but a marathon.”
My frown deepens, but I realize that she’s right. I’m being impatient. I of all people really shouldn’t be feeling this way. I think that the sliver of hope I’ve finally received after all these years has turned into desperation.
Now that I think about it, I’ve been overly reckless the whole time I’ve been here. It turned out alright in the end, but I’ve nearly died twice now, first to Jinlan when I underestimated his desperation, and second to my own foolishness, thinking I could handle the ki of someone whose level is beyond my comprehension. There was no need for me to take such great risks. I’ve spent so long not caring about my own survival that I’ve gotten used to it, and it’s interfering with my ability to think rationally.
Sure, I can just try the Tower again after I’ve been reborn, but when will that be? Ganyu explained that getting chosen for the Tower was rare, and based on what I’ve seen, that’s true. There are hundreds of worlds making up the Outer Tower, yet the first Floor only has 10 million people in it. What if I don’t get chosen in my next life? What if I have to wait another thousand years? What if I die and wake up to find that the Tower is gone? No, I need to rein in my recklessness.
That’s not to say that I definitely won’t ascend at the first opportunity, but I’ll need to think more deeply about it. If I think it’s truly the best option, I’ll do it. Otherwise, there’s no rush. I may be experienced, but I’ll be entering uncharted territory within a few years. I have many advantages due to vast experience, but the further I climb, the less meaningful those advantages become.
In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the Administrators on this Floor have lived longer than me. I got annoyed at Organa for calling me a child earlier this morning, but for all I know, she might actually be older than me. She’s certainly spent more time cultivating than I have.
I glance at Nadia for a moment, then close my eyes to meditate. I don’t absorb any ki, but instead retreat deep into my own mind to evaluate myself. I’ve definitely been reckless and arrogant, and that needs to end before it ends me. I finally have an opportunity to be rid of my curse, and I’m not going to throw it away so easily.
My immediate plans don’t need to change. Regardless of what I decide is best in the long term, I still need to condense my core, and I still need to learn more about the Tower. That means I need to make the most of Ganyu, who has already shown himself to be willing to personally help, and I should also make the most of the Lessons offered here. So in addition to the Hall of Records and Quest Hall, I should probably also stop by the Hall of Learning while I’m out.
I’ll also need to think more about my long term plans, starting with sponsorship. It would fast-track my way into the upper Floors, and completely eliminate most of the work I’d need to do. However, a paved road can also be a poison. If I was on Earth, I would take it, but here, where there are cultivators who can erase my existence with a thought, a shaky foundation could make for extreme trouble further down the line. I’ll need to consider very carefully once I have more information, and until then, I’ll try to lay low.
As for Trinity, I actually feel much better about what to do with her now. I’ve never had a life where I went all in on becoming a beast tamer, but I have dabbled, and I’ve spent a lot of time around animals over the years. Knowing that she’s basically just a normal cat is helpful. I can handle a normal cat, even if she has a bit of an unsettling aura. Especially now that I know she won’t be able to use any crazy void attacks for a while.
I’ll still take advantage of having such a powerful beast tamer at my disposal and learn what I can about how to utilize a void beast properly, but it’s much less worrying than it was before. Taking care of a pet will be annoying, but from Nadia’s words, it’s clear that they are very valuable. I can handle a bit of annoyance if it comes with benefits.
It also leaves my path for the next two weeks much more clear. After I visit the Hall of Records and the Quest Hall, I’ll head over to the Hall of Learning to get an idea of what kind of Lessons are available. I’ll probably wait to choose any until after Ganyu has taught me about affinities, but I can at least get a good handle on my options. That will help me determine my schedule while I’m on this Floor.
Satisfied, I open my eyes to find that the cat and monkey have finished their staring contest, and that both are now sitting on the elf’s lap as she pets them. The elf woman is looking downward at them, giving me an excellent view of exactly how long her ears are, and I can’t help but stare. They look pretty funny from this angle, extending a full six inches beyond the back of her head.
A moment later, she looks back up at me, smiling. Trinity climbs out of her lap and leaps back into mine, purring happily.
“You look calmer,” Nadia remarks.
“I am,” I agree, bowing my head and clasping my hands together. “Thank you for your words. I needed to hear them.”
“I’m surprised you managed to integrate them so well. It’s often difficult for new Climbers to truly understand the scale of their undertaking. Many of them are in a rush to return home, which is understandable, since taking their time could mean that their loved ones will be dead by the time they return, but it is also foolish. Not only is it dangerous to push forward recklessly, but they already knew what they were getting into when they accepted the Tower’s call. If they loved their home so much, they shouldn’t have left it.
“It’s a bit different for your world, and in some ways quite unfortunate, since your planet got integrated so high up, but even so, there’s no use worrying about it. Entering the Tower is not a decision you can take back, even if it was a decision made in ignorance. You must simply accept that you will never be able to return to what was before. What’s gone is gone, and all you can do is move on.”
Her words make me think back to the dream I had last night. For a moment, I see my own face again, smiling and full of joy. Then, it fades away, and I’m left with a deep feeling of loss.
What’s gone is gone.
“I understand,” I say.
“Excellent!” says Nadia. “Now, while you're here, would you like to hear more about void beasts? I can’t give you much help on using them at the moment, but I can at least give you more insight into what you and Trinity will be able to do in the future.”
“Sure,” I reply.