Facing the tower, the two fell into silence. It felt like there was something else on the other side of this that weighed quite heavily, something that they couldn't take lightly. But at the same time, the fact that they had gotten here first wasn't a small advantage either.
There would always be small variations in the third phase. But this was too far different from what they were used to. This tower wasn't in any of the historical recounting, it felt like it came out of nowhere.
Mae sighed slightly as she looked toward Ryu. Given his current state, asking him to face another challenge of this caliber right now was far too much. He was almost being punished for performing too well in the previous phases. In fact, she felt bad for getting here on what was basically a free ride. If it wasn't for Ryu, she would have been stuck climbing those chains below like everyone else. Being here now and not having earned it left a somewhat bitter taste in her mouth.
What made her feel worse was the fact that Ryu didn't even get the Dao Lord's Inheritance in return. At least if he had gotten it, he could still come out as the biggest winner. But he had essentially fought that battle for nothing.
"Did you... really reject the inheritance?"
Mae leaned toward believing Ryu's words, but that was only because given their relationship, she owed him at least that small amount of respect. However, somewhere deep inside, she hoped that he had tricked everyone and really had claimed the inheritance.
"I have no need for it," Ryu replied simply.
Mae opened her mouth to reply, but she didn't even know what to say to that.
The weight of a Dao Lord wasn't small. They represented the very pinnacle of the True Martial World, they were existences who could change the world with their will alone and rewrite the very laws of the world.
One had to understand that an inheritance wasn't like stumbling into the techniques a Sky God once used. No, it was like all of the teachings of a Sky God being infused directly into your mind. It was on an entirely different level.
It took a significant sacrifice for a Sky God to leave behind an inheritance to begin with. If the Chaotic Space Dao Sovereign had still been a Dao Lord and was relying on his inheritance and its karma for a chance to extend his life, Ryu's actions would have driven him mad to the point of ignoring all forms of decorum to make Ryu pay.
This was why if Ryu presented any sort of threat, the Dao Sovereign would have taken action. After all, he couldn't allow Ryu to do the same thing to the inheritance he had left behind in the Complete Heavenly Path.
All of this was to say that the inheritance of a Sky God was almost like gaining all of their most valuable cultivation related memories. Every infused inheritance was like a breath of experience that wouldn't hinder your path forward, but only embellish and improve it.
Even a genius of the Ninth Heaven would fight over such an inheritance, let alone one of the Fifth Heaven like Mae, or one who wasn't even from the True Martial World like Ryu.
To give up the inheritance of not only a Dao Lord, but a Dao Lord who had succeeded in breaking into the Dao Sovereign Realms, wasn't a small sacrifice. Although Ryu's Dao Heart had improved and he even managed to have his Dao surpass his cultivation Realm by two stages, most would say it wasn't worth it.
Even so, regardless of the circumstances, Ryu would have never accepted that inheritance. He wouldn't allow anyone to disrespect him, even if it was a Dao Sovereign.
That said, if others thought that this was the sole reason Ryu had been so decisive in rejecting the inheritance, they would be sorely mistaken. There was another reason Ryu had rejected it, although it wasn't the deciding factor, it was just a small tidbit that affirmed his decision.
When the Chaotic Space Sky God had mentioned rewards for claiming his full inheritance on the Complete Heavenly Path, he had mentioned giving them a set of Chaotic Silk Meridians as a reward.
This was an exceptionally tempting reward, and it was maybe the reason Starlight had pressed so hard for it, and ironically also the reason he was willing to give up in the end. After all, to Starlight, there was still one more chance waiting for him, a chance that would give him a shot at the real reward.
However, the temptation of the reward shrouded a very important question.
Where would the Chaotic Space Sky God be getting such a set of meridians from? It couldn't come from himself because he still had aspirations of becoming a Dao God, that was why he left his inheritance behind to begin with, how could he kill himself to hand his own over?
There was potentially the chance that his Clan's Bloodline made it more likely for these Meridians to be born, but in that case wouldn't it be coming from his own clansman? Why would he give such a thing to an outsider?
All of these questions seemed to lead to one answer.
The Chaotic Space Sky God had a method of procuring and hoarding Chaotic Silk Meridians. In fact, there was a chance that the Chaotic Space Sky God hadn't even been born with his own originally, it wasn't outside of the realm of possibility that much like he offered to give them a set, he too had been gifted his own.
It was easy enough to sense a person's Spiritual Foundation as a Sky God. However, because Ryu had always been cautious with his Chaotic Silk Meridians, he had constantly maintained a shroud of Void Spiritual Sense over them. While this shroud might be easy for a Dao Sovereign to see through if they were to see him in person, a mere incarnation had no ability to do so.
To make a long story short... How could Ryu know how the Dao Sovereign and his Clan would react to learning that he had been born with the Chaotic Silk Meridians? In fact, for all he knew, the method of training Chaotic Silk Meridians you were born with versus one that was transplanted was completely different.
In that case, why lament choosing his Dao Heart over a mere Inheritance?
He, Ryu Tatsuya, could forge his own path forward.
Ryu's gaze flashed with determination, and he took a strong Step forward, gripping his great sword staff in a hand and entering the tower.
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