53: Chapter 53 Before the Tower Top

Chen Mo stayed on the rest floor for six hours.

Although called a rest floor, it was actually a place in the Trial Tower specifically for challengers to recover.

It was a small room with a bed, food, water, and even a simple bathroom.

A display screen hung on the wall, showing the current time and a countdown for the opening of the next floor's entrance.

Chen Mo took a shower, ate some food, and lay down on the bed.

But he couldn't sleep.

Faces of "himself" were still surfacing in his mind.

The past him.

The present him.

The future him.

Every single one of them was asking him the same question—

Who exactly are you?

Chen Mo closed his eyes.

Who was he?

An abandoned baby from the Orphanage, a survivor of the Ghost Realm, the owner of the Pupil of the Sequence, a C-Rank Ghost Hunter.

These labels were all correct.

But they were also all wrong.

He opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling.

Forget it.

Thinking about this was useless.

Staying alive was what mattered most.

Six hours passed quickly.

The countdown on the display screen hit zero.

One of the room's walls opened automatically, revealing a staircase leading downward.

Chen Mo stood up and walked toward the stairs.

The staircase was long; it took about five minutes to reach the bottom.

At the bottom was a door.

The moment he pushed the door open, Chen Mo was stunned.

Behind the door was a massive space.

It was at least the size of two football fields.

The space was filled with all sorts of things—shelves, boxes, instruments, and countless pieces of equipment Chen Mo couldn't name.

In the center of the space sat a person.

An old man.

He wore a filthy white lab coat, his hair was as messy as a bird's nest, and his face was covered in stains. He had his head down, tinkering with something while muttering to himself.

Apothecary.

The old man from the summit.

Chen Mo hadn't expected to meet him here.

He walked over.

The sound of footsteps startled the old man.

He looked up and saw Chen Mo.

His eyes were bloodshot and his pupils unfocused, as if he hadn't slept in a long time.

But when he clearly saw Chen Mo's face, his eyes suddenly lit up.

“You... you're that... Chen Mo?”

Chen Mo nodded.

The old man grinned.

The smile was eerie, like that of a madman.

“Good, good, good.” He said "good" three times. “The person I've been waiting for has finally arrived.”

He stood up and staggered toward Chen Mo.

“Do you know where this is?”

Chen Mo shook his head.

“This is Before the Top of the Tower,” the old man said. “Below the ninth floor of the Trial Tower and above the eighth. It's a... transit station specifically prepared for challengers.”

He pointed at the things around them.

“All of these are things I've collected over the years.”

Chen Mo glanced around.

The shelves were filled with various Materials—Ghost Shadow blood, fragments, cores, and countless jars and bottles he didn't recognize.

The instruments were all for concocting potions, more complex than any set he had ever seen.

“You've been living here all this time?”

“Yes,” the old man said. “For three years.”

Three years.

Chen Mo's heart sank slightly.

Staying in the tower alone for three years.

No wonder he was mad.

“What were you waiting for me for?”

The old man smiled.

“To help me complete something.”

He pulled something out of his pocket.

It was a syringe containing a pale gold liquid.

[Item: perfect sequence potion (Incomplete)]

[Effect: Can increase Sequence Rank without side effects]

[Current Status: Lacks S-Rank Wraith blood as a catalyst]

[Refiner: Apothecary]

Chen Mo stared at the syringe.

Increasing Sequence Rank without side effects.

What did this mean?

It meant that going from C-Rank to B-Rank, B-Rank to A-Rank, and even A-Rank to S-Rank could be done without a price.

“The S-Rank Wraith blood you need...” Chen Mo looked at the old man.

“Yes,” the old man said. “I've researched for three years, and this is all that's missing.”

He paused.

“You can help me find it.”

Chen Mo looked at him.

“Why me?”

“Because you have the Pupil of the Sequence,” the old man said. “Only you can see the weaknesses of an S-Rank Wraith.”

He took a step forward.

“Help me find the blood, and I'll give you this potion.”

Chen Mo was silent for a few seconds.

S-Rank Wraith.

He was only C-Rank right now.

What was the difference between going after an S-Rank and seeking death?

But he looked at the syringe and the pale gold liquid flowing inside.

Promotion without side effects.

It was worth the risk.

“I promise you,” he said.

The old man smiled.

The smile was complex—seeming like relief, yet also like a sense of release.

“Good, good.”

He turned around, took a notebook from a shelf, and handed it to Chen Mo.

“This is a distribution map of S-Rank Wraiths. I've collected it over the years.”

Chen Mo took the notebook and opened it.

It was packed with all sorts of information—

Locations, abilities, weaknesses, and patterns of activity.

“The one most likely to be found is this one.” The old man pointed to one of the pages.

[Void Walker]

[Location: Deepest part of the Reversal Tunnel]

[Ability: Spatial Shifting]

[Weakness: 0.5-second lag after shifting]

[Suggestion: Enter as a team, prepare spatial anchoring items]

Chen Mo looked at those lines of text.

Reversal Tunnel.

He had just come from there.

Void Walker.

He hadn't encountered it.

“Why choose this one?”

“Because it's the weakest,” the old man said. “The weakest among the S-Ranks, but still an S-Rank.”

Chen Mo nodded.

He put the notebook away.

“Once I find it, how do I contact you?”

“No need to contact me,” the old man said. “Just come back. I'll always be here.”

He turned around, walked back to that corner, and continued tinkering with his things.

Chen Mo looked at his back.

That hunched, lonely back.

Three years.

One person.

Would he also end up like this?

Chen Mo didn't know.

He only knew that he still had things to do.

He turned and walked toward the door.

Behind him, the old man's voice followed:

“Be careful.”

“There's something waiting for you in that tunnel.”

Chen Mo didn't look back.

He pushed open the door and walked out.

Behind the door was the entrance to the fourth floor.

But he didn't enter.

He turned around and headed back the way he came.

Prepare first.

Then enter the tunnel.