Against Heaven's Will

The entrance to the Dragon Tower was right beneath the tip of the sculpture's tail. It was so detailed, it looked as if the Dragon was alive. Walking underneath it, Xuefeng felt invisible pressure surrounding him from all sides, but it was so insignificant that he almost ignored it. 

"I wonder if it's a sculpture or an actual Dragon," Yiren wondered as she grazed her fingers on the golden surface. "I can feel the essence of a Dragon inside of it."

"That's what everyone says too but in our history, there was no Dragon of this size and power," Drakos replied as he trailed behind them. "Its skin is rock solid, not like any members of the Dragon Race."

"It is believed that once you reach the top floor, the Dragon will turn alive and acknowledge you as his master," Katherine added as she gave Yiren a pat. "Naturally, it's easier said than done."

"So many people in here," Xuefeng suddenly pointed out, seeing a massive crowd inside the base floor. 

"The Dragon Tower is massive in size. Since the base floor doesn't have any Spirit Artefacts, it consists of shops and stalls selling goods from the upper floors. That's the only floor where the market is allowed," Xinyu explained. "If you want to sell something once we are done, you can get the best price here. The Sect will buy back the Artefacts you don't need." 

"Hmm? Can't we just take the goods we need?" Wuying asked confused. 

"It will be better if I explain it once we enter the first floor," Xinyu replied as she led them to the stairs. Each step they took increased the pressure applied onto their bodies but Xuefeng still barely felt anything. 

"As you can see, each floor contains tens of Artefacts or Arts located in separate rooms. We managed to label most Treasures on the lower floors but once you reach higher, most rooms are unknown. You won't know what Artefact you will get unless you break the room's barrier," Xinyu introduced. 

The First Floor had literally no one inside with a wide corridor and another set of stairs at the other end. 

"So it's like a lottery," Xuefeng muttered, walking up to the first rooms which consisted of nicely crafted weapons. 

[Black Steel Sword - God Stage] 

He only read one nameplate to lose interest.

"I expected something better," Nuwa commented what everyone thought. 

"The Artefacts here are weak and mostly picked by the weakest members so we shouldn't pay attention to them. Just because we can easily enter the Dragon Tower, doesn't mean others can too," Xinyu replied with a shrug. "Some Cultivators can't even step into the first floor." 

"I see. Is everyone feeling alright?" 

Xuefeng checked just to be sure and everyone nodded, giving him some peace of mind. 

"If anyone struggles to move further, report it," Xuefeng ordered cautiously. "Tianshi, connect everyone so we can stay in contact." 

With just a single tap on their shoulders, the whole group could hear their own thoughts. 

'This is perfect. If you guys have any questions during your climb, don't be shy and ask,' Xinyu announced through their connection. 'If you feel like you can't handle any more pressure, don't push too hard. It's best to sit down and start tempering your body with it. Since Dragon Tower entry is limited, we should make the best use of it.'

'The Elders mentioned some rules?' Xuefeng reminded as they all set off to the second set of stairs. 

'There are only three rules in the Dragon Tower. You can only break into one room every ten floors, you can't help anyone and you can't use external Artefacts to block the tower's pressure. You have to use your own body else you would be ejected from the Tower,' Xinyu replied while glancing at his Elemental Bracelet. 'If you use it, I'm sure the tower's Spirit won't be happy.' 

'What about my own Qi?' Tianshi asked curiously. 'Can I use my ability to my advantage?'

'It is the same. You can use Qi to strengthen your body from the inside but if you create a barrier, you will be kicked out. Even if you help others, you will be the one punished,' Xinyu explained patiently. 'Many tried to cheat the Dragon Tower Spirit but they only failed.'

The rules weren't hard to understand but Xuefeng couldn't help but worry. If even Xinyu who was in the Celestial Stage couldn't reach higher than sixty-ninth floor, how could they? They were still far from the Immortal Stage. 

Xuefeng couldn't be more wrong. 

When they reached the ninth floor, his wives were not even sweating, gracefully following him while looking left and right as if they were on a sightseeing tour. 

'It's because of my Regeneration Ability. Their bodies have been tempered by you for years. They will naturally be stronger than average cultivators,' Ling informed. 'Not sure how much though so we will have to wait and see.'

"I want this," Yiren suddenly called out, gathering everyone's attention. 

[Enchanted Beast Token]

"Oh, good pick. Besides the ability to store your beasts, this token will also feed them as well and has a much bigger capacity," Xinyu described. "Just break the barrier and take it." 

"Mhmm, go and get it for me," Yiren ordered and a Bat flew out of her hand. It enlarged into the size of the room and smashed into the barrier, breaking it into pieces. 

"Wai—" Xinyu was about to stop her when she paused, watching as the giant bat grabs the token from the platform and returns back to Yiren. 

"Good boy," Yiren praised before commanding, "Now take everyone and move to your new home. I will call you when I need you again." 

Swoosh!

Hundreds of bats spawned before vanishing into the new Beast Token. Xuefeng didn't even know Yiren had so many beasts under her lead. 

'I thought you would be kicked out for using your Tamed Beast but I guess the Dragon Tower Spirit doesn't mind it,' Xinyu commented before suggesting to everyone, 'You should get a free Artefact as well. Maybe you will find something you want on the Tenth Floor. Once you take one though, you will never be allowed to enter another room in the first Section.'

'So it's permanent?' Xuefeng asked in surprise. 

'If it wasn't, the Dragon Tower would run out of Artefacts at some point. Once you reach the higher floors, you will see empty rooms everywhere but above one hundred there will be many to choose from,' Xinyu replied. "For now, you can pick anything aside from the Cursed Fragments and later sell it for Elemental Fragments on the Base Floor." 

"Cursed Fragments?"