Famine 157: Abyssal Mage Tower

Sizhiyan stared at that line of text for a very long time.

He had a premonition that beneath this so-called “Roots” lay the farm’s deepest secrets, never before revealed. Bian Xu’s situation, the inner workings of the farm—perhaps all of it was tied to this. If he could just touch it, every doubt might be resolved, and he could… draw a little closer to Bian Xu.

But… “be prepared”…

Was he truly prepared?

Sizhiyan let out a long sigh.

The answer, clearly, was no.

This was a time of crisis. The Gem Domain mine had only just begun development; countless issues awaited his attention. The farm’s population had grown by a large margin and every aspect needed to be adjusted. There was less than a month left before the world would shift, the Eye still hung threatening above, and he had little time left to prepare.

He bore the weight of hundreds of hectares, six terrains, two hundred thousand players—all on his shoulders. On top of that were Kazuko, the samurai remnants, bloodkin, and the newborn mine hounds… Everyone had rallied around him out of trust; this was a team he himself had built, and he had to be responsible for all of them.

No matter how much Sizhiyan worried about Bian Xu or how tangled and chaotic his heart became as he stared into the abyss, unmoving for a long while… he could not, for the personal reason of “I’m worried about him,” or “I want to see him,” introduce new variables into his plans.

Everyone else could venture into the abyss; he alone could not.

With trembling fingers, Sizhiyan gently stroked the vine. “I’m sorry,” he said.

The vine seemed completely unable to understand why he was apologizing. It wound lovingly around Sizhiyan’s neck, just as fervently affectionate as ever, tender tip brushing against his cheek.

“When I’ve finished what I need to do, I’ll come find you.”
“You can wait for me… right?”

The vine tightened, ever so slightly. Sizhiyan’s gaze softened, his shoulders shook with a faint tremor. He closed his eyes, tilting his head back in practiced fashion, exposing a skinny, fragile throat.

By now, Sizhiyan was well accustomed to that faint sense of suffocation. The vine wound beneath his clothes, encircling pale, slender legs, coiling trembling around his waist, looped over the gently rising and falling chest, and at his throat cinched just enough for the tip to prod at his bobbing Adam’s apple, burrowing into the thin, pallid skin.

There was a faint sense of restraint, even an inexplicable illusion of profound intimacy.

This was proof that they existed together as one.

Sizhiyan worked to maintain deep breaths, lashes trembling tightly shut, the corners of his mouth lifting into a gentle, helpless smile.

…

[Current Farm Integrity: 71%]
[Core is Digesting…]

Now, each time he opened the quest interface, the system would pop up with this line.

The [Ashen Bloom—Abyss] had already been fed to the farm. By rights, once digestion finished, the farm’s integrity should hit 81%, resulting in a qualitative change.

Perhaps because this evolution indeed signified something different, or maybe due to the influence of the abyssal vision, this time the digestion process was exceedingly slow.

The last time it had taken so long, the farm had evolved from a small yard with a pond to a tens-of-hectares large operation, expanding further with every addition of people and new terrains, and had now grown into a vast settlement of several hundred hectares.
What would the farm become after completing this round of digestion?

Sizhiyan was full of anticipation.

But after several days, there was still no sign of completion.

It either needed much more time, or perhaps lacked some crucial, necessary element.

In any case, this evolution would likely have to wait until after the war to bring down the Eye.

…

After his initial shock, Sizhiyan soon regained his composure. Since this was Bian Xu’s will, he would never let the abyss go idle.

He himself could not enter, but Nidhogg and Shi He could.
After several trial runs, Zhong Yanqing submitted to Sizhiyan a comprehensive [Abyss ██ Combat Intensity Report].

Based on this report, Sizhiyan established the [Abyssal Mage Tower], using the surface layer of the abyss as the entrance.

The [Abyssal Mage Tower] had one hundred floors, the structure laid with lave-fire stone throughout. Even players unable to fly could freely explore and battle within. He first constructed it outside with the Dream Sketch Pen, then moved the finished structure in one piece into the abyss.

Sizhiyan took special care with the appearance of the lava-fire stone, ensuring the [Abyssal Mage Tower] looked like a charred, jagged fortress, red lava flowing through cracks in the black rock—straight out of a demon king’s domain.

The first floor was the [Tower Entrance]. Built five meters beneath the abyssal cliff, it was a broad platform with no roof, just a floor of lava-fire stone and rows of charred stone columns.

At this depth, two or three fixed, basic ██ would spawn—things like rotten flesh, massive lips and tongues. Their attacks were simple, not especially dangerous, and the combat intensity was low. The only notable feature was the extreme thickness of their health bars, making them hard to kill—a perfect proving ground for weapons.

Craftsmen like Wu Jing and others could follow teams down here, testing weapon and gear effectiveness.

A staircase descended from the [Tower Entrance] deeper into the abyss.

The first through fifteenth floors housed ██ of rough equivalence in strength. Any robust player group—even general laborers, if in good health and trained by Lin Qiushui—could fight their way through.

From the sixteenth to the fiftieth floors, things changed. At this depth, mere laborers were at extreme risk; only those able to complete divine-level quests, proceeding with great caution in teams, could generally cope with the danger.

Almost every combat team used these levels for drills and coordination.

There was no need to fear for their lives, nor to worry that some unpredictable anomaly would suddenly appear and enrage inexplicably.

As long as one progressed gradually according to their capabilities, it was always possible to find the right level matching their strength, with a margin for safety.

Each floor had a brightly lit, lava-fire stone safe room at the northern wall. The tower’s layout was simple and open; if faced with trouble, just dash north at full speed.

At the same time, each floor was staffed with lifeguards and sentries, all more than capable of handling that floor’s dangers and keeping risk to a minimum.

Beginning with the fiftieth floor, the [Abyssal Mage Tower] became a true danger zone.

On this floor, Sizhiyan established an important checkpoint. In addition to the usual staff, exalted “Chosen” from the Xu Bei team stood guard—three at a time, rotating shifts just inside the entrance.

Only by besting the trio of Chosen in combat could a player team earn the right to proceed past Floor 50 for further training.

Each team entering beyond the fiftieth floor must pay 1,000 points and equip each member with a tracking alarm and a piece of Anderson’s special [Emergency Bubble Gum], to be kept in the mouth.
In case of crisis, biting down on the gum would quickly blow a bubble at their lips, blocking ██ attacks for half a minute.

At the same moment, Anderson’s gate key would activate, instantly teleporting the bubble-biter back to the tower entrance.

Even if the [Emergency Bubble Gum] failed, Sizhiyan had prepared multiple fast routes of evacuation within the Mage Tower.

By any means—press the tracker, send a distress signal, and the on-duty Chosen would arrive on the scene within half a minute.

The difficulty was always ramped up gradually, with no sudden, lethal hazards. Teams reaching this level were confident and powerful; with the help of three Chosen, a safe and orderly evacuation was more than manageable.

It was in moments like these that the benefits of Sizhiyan’s investment in the Xu Bei team became clearest.

Nowhere else in the world was there a settlement that could boast such an assembly of obedient, elite Chosen.

These Chosen were as strong as they were difficult to command. Their relations with settlement leaders were more like that of traveling knights and their hosts in the Warring States era.

Retaining them required not just pay, but also respect and opportunity.

To pay the Chosen their wages each year, Sizhiyan had dipped deep into his savings, never once missing a payment even in the hardest times.

Now that the farm was thriving, tens of thousands of points meant little to Sizhiyan. Yet the years of well-paid support and rescue in times of crisis meant that these Chosen were grateful. Even for such comparatively dull work, none ever complained; all assured him they could be relied on.

Reclining in his chair, Sizhiyan sipped his tea after issuing the orders.

That’s how a boss ought to be: generous with rewards in peacetime, and when the time came to ask for help, not a single hand would be lacking.

Workers are not fools; in this world, rare indeed is the man who will pledge their life for a bit of favor alone.
Whether these are ties of gratitude or simply fairness toward subordinates, every word counts.

Bian Xu asked that none of them die in the abyss, or by his hand.
Sizhiyan would not let such a thing happen.

Floors fifty-one to seventy held all kinds of B to S rank ██. Only teams with superb combat power and top-tier gear could risk moving forward here.
Any unit making it this far was a famous name.

As for the deeper zones, Seventy to One Hundred…
These floors belonged solely to the domain of the “top-tier Chosen.”

At such depths, even the weakest ██ were S-rank in power, overwhelmingly dangerous and ferociously aggressive.

Even Nidhogg, at his deepest run, had only made it as far as Floor Ninety-Eight.

When Nidhogg returned from the abyss, Sizhiyan had asked him, “What’s at the very bottom of the Mage Tower?”

At the time, Nidhogg was covered in blood, his dragon wings tattered and torn. Shi He had dropped out at Floor Ninety-Three, now silently administering medicine with pursed lips. Nidhogg opened his slitted, bloodied eyes, and with a voice full of the copper tang of blood, replied, “I don’t know.”

“If I went all out, I’d say I’m fifty percent likely to reach the bottom. It might take dozens of deaths and revivals, and even then I can’t promise I’d get myself back from the floor.”

He stretched, patted the head of Shi He as he bandaged his wounds, and grinned.

“Let’s keep that little gamble for another time, boss. Not worth risking my life just for a challenge.”

As he spoke, Nidhogg frowned.

“That reminds me… just what are the monsters down there?”
“They aren’t ‘weird’ types. Nor do they seem to be natives of that samurai-cursed world. I have no proof, but they feel… familiar to me…”

Nidhogg raised his head, bloodied eyes narrowing in a half-smile:

“…They feel like Bian Xu.”

…

You could always count on a dragon’s instincts.

Shi He was startled too, looking up.

“Bian—” He straightened, meaning to ask a flood of questions—Is Bian Xu still alive? What is his condition? Why does he seem tied to all of this…
But seeing Sizhiyan and Nidhogg’s expressions, he fell silent and sat back down.

Sizhiyan neither confirmed nor denied it, merely sighed and said, “I have a handle on things, so let it go.”

“The Mage Tower opens tomorrow, so let’s keep quiet and not stir up trouble.”

“……”

The brothers exchanged glances, then turned in unison to look at Sizhiyan—their bewildered, astonished faces bright with sudden realization, all but writing out:

You’re playing for high stakes, boss.