Vault key - Return

Brimstone was currently sitting in his own room while having a conversation with Taylon over a cup of tea.

Serena was training diligently with her sword in the courtyard, beads of sweat sticking closely to her robe although she showed no signs of stopping despite the fatigue she was experiencing.

She had always thought that she was a genius who had been through more training than others, but when she met her brothers for the first time in years, she realised that she had overestimated herself.

Her brothers had been through living hell in the past few years, spending almost the entire time of their three years cultivating. With both their talent and determination, her brothers had already stepped into the fourth domain, in five more years time, her brothers would definitely attain Saint while she would still be struggling in the Four Domains realm.

Especially Ace, even though she had never seen him training out in the open, she understood that the pain and sweat he has shedded until now would be enough to drown her in shame.

Whenever everyone has closed the lights in their room to rest, the lights in Ace's room would always be on. He didn't have to explain himself, it was evident to everyone that he wasn't cutting himself any slack. All he knew was to cultivate.

But despite being someone who devotes most of his time to cultivation, both his maturity in handling matters and communication skills are on another level compared to others of the younger generation.

The next time I meet him, I'll let him know that he isn't the only one who is constantly striving to improve. Serena thought to herself as she ended her current training session for the day with another graceful yet swift uppercut of her fan.

"You have made quite some improvement since the last time we met." Ace commended from the rooftop of one of the rooms as Serena stared at him in shock.

"What are you doing here? Have you been eliminated from the Sword Tower this quickly?" Serena asked in shock as she dropped her fan onto the ground.

"Serena, just because you're tired doesn't mean that you should drop your weapon on the ground." Brimstone walked out from his room, only for his eyes to open wide in surprise when he saw Ace as his cup of tea almost dropped onto the ground.

"Father, you shouldn't drop the cup of tea in case mother gets angry again." Serena said towards her father who had just berated her in front of the idol she looks up to.

"Ahem, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the Sword Tower right now?" Brimstone coughed awkwardly before turning towards Ace who was standing there casually, probably prepared to watch him and his daughter bickering over this small matter.

"I reached the top before everyone else and managed to leave the Sword Tower unnoticed in case I garner unwanted attention. Also, I lost to the sword guardian and all I can say was that she was a total disappointment, even the guardians of the Sword Tower itself had more courage and passion for the sword." Ace sighed at the thought of that final battle again.

"Young boy, the next time we meet, hopefully you're able to at least see through my movements." The voice of the female guardian played in Ace's mind with a message.

Brimstone and Serena both froze on the spot, the cup of tea slipping from Brimstone's hand as his body quivered in a mix of emotions.

Reacting quickly, Ace caught the cup of tea without spilling any of its contents before passing it back to Brimstone.

"Senior Brimstone, be careful with your cup of tea." Ace reminded out of goodwill, but to Brimstone who was still unable to calm his emotions down, this reminder was more of a lethal sword that was gonna empty his vault.

"Fine! Take this token and go to the vault and take whatever you want from there!" Brimstone threw a token towards Ace before stomping off, leaving Ace confused as to what just happened.

"Ace, sorry about my father's behaviour." Serena apologised in her father's stead when she saw the token which Ace was holding in his hand.

That was the token which allowed one to take up to fifty percent of the treasures within the vault and since the first generation of the Lim family, it was the first time that this token was passed to an outsider just for a commission reward.

But Serena understood her father's intentions for doing so. He saw the potential in Ace and wanted to rope him in while protecting Serena from him.

He wasn't a father trying to prevent his daughter from seeking true love, but because he understood that there was no chance Ace would develop feelings for his daughter.

"I understand, please inform your father that I would only take those things which would be of great use to me." Ace said towards Charlotte before scratching the back of his head. He realised that he had no idea where the vault of the Lim family was.

"No problems with that, do you need me to guide you to the vault?" Serena asked after agreeing to Ace's minor request upon realising the awkward situation.

In the meantime, the Sword Scholar had only just defeated the ninth guardian in a battle after much effort. But unlike his usual battles where he ends up victorious unscatched, his robes were in tatters this time, dyed red by fresh blood.

"As expected of the Sword Scholar, you managed to defeat me even though it was only by a single move. In thirty years time, no, maybe even twenty five years, you would be able to defeat me even when I'm releasing my cultivation to the limit." The guardian congratulated before leading Arden towards the entrance to the peak of the Sword Tower.

In the meantime, the war in the fragmented cultivation world had finally calmed down. Everything was going well with one thing which made everyone curious about, where was the Great General Lucias who was supposed to be the leading figure of this war?

When people asked the king initially, he would brush them off while explaining that Lucias was probably plotting something to cause immense damage to the demon beasts.

But the problem is that in this entire month, not one soldier or cultivator has seen Lucias, even his closest aides reported that they had lost all contact with Lucias since one month ago.

Due to this reason, the war had extended up until now with the demon beasts being on the advantage constantly due to the lack of cultivators that could deal with the demon beast in the Four Domains realm.

It might only be in the first of the four domains, but its strength was still stronger than the king himself who was only the weakest existence in the four domains.

As for the Nirvana Sect, Cidd and the other elders had already made arrangements for the entire sect to make their return now that the war was in a stalemate.

Their presence meant nothing much here and even though the king wouldn't reward them for their contributions until the war is over, the combat experience that the sect members have gained until now was worth the time.

Most of the disciples have stepped into the late stage Martial Masters realm while some of them stepped into the peak stage Martial Master realm. As for Cidd himself, he might already be able to step into the peak Great Martial Master realm by the time he returns to the sect.

Most of the disciples have also awakened the second stage or even third stage of their respective intents as well.

Lancelot and Ray were the ones who made the biggest improvement in this entire one month with both of them stepping into the peak stage Martial Master realm while awakening the fourth stage of their respective intents. Coupled with their combat sense and quick reflexes, it would only be a matter of time before they make another breakthrough while maintaining a stable foundation.

Garen on the other hand decided to remain here to assist his kingdom in this war. It wasn;t just his duty as a prince to protect his country unlike those brothers of his that were cowering in fear and hiding for their lives while enjoying themselves. It was also for himself to take over his father's position in the future. Of course, it was his duty as a son as well to help his father in times of need.

Still, his intention to take over his father's position would be short-lived once he sees the peak which he truly wants to stand on.

With the harvests they reaped after an entire month of effort, all of the sect members returned to the sect to settle down. Awaiting the gift from their sect master while making preparations to bring in new sect disciples.