Tower of Heaven

The Neurics started to change once more.

For the next ten years, Uk and Ye were given the full authority to do as they pleased to form an army. Of the 500 Neurics in the tribe, only around 100 were able-bodied with the potential to fight. All of them were drawn away from their original jobs in order to become soldiers.

They were trained in ways that were being invented on the spot. For the most part, they were based on the training methods Rok had used to gain strength thus far.

Neurics had bodies without much potential. This was something that would never change, and becoming strong was not their answer to this problem. Their training only made them as able as they could possibly become, and most importantly, it gave them a modicum of battle sense.

Through the training and spars, they learned how to wield weapons and unlocked a new vein of knowledge. They once again developed, and on the 60th year of their newly developed calendar, they started their siege.

The continent that the trial took place on was not one Atlas recognized, but it had the same qi as the Mortal Realm he remembered. The surface was mostly populated by humans and beast races, but the subterranean world was quite diverse.

Especially in the area where the Neurics lived, the surrounding areas were all filled with equally small clans, all content in their own space and not fighting for more.

This atmosphere was ruined by the advent of the Neurics. Those beast races that were forced to remain peaceful because of their weakness were forced to learn how to fight and awaken the instincts hidden in their bloodlines.

The first to face their might was the Gorean Snake Clan.

They had the lower bodies of snakes and the upper bodies of humans like some other snake species, however, they were unique in that they did not have any particular advantages.

In the darkness, they had a perceptive ability that surpassed other races, but it was only really useful for fleeing and hiding.

Just like the Neurics, they did not know who their neighbors were. When the Neurics broke through the wall that separated their territories, they immediately panicked.

Their entire clan was roughly the same size as the Neuric attack force, and, unlike their enemies, they did not know anything about battle.

"Charge! Kill anyone who resists, and capture the rest!"

Rok, who was in charge of the frontlines, did not want needless violence. The doctrine he practiced, the Shinnim's Will, was a benevolent teaching. It told that all those who did not resist were to be captured instead of killed.

They were innocents who fell to the conquering urges of others. Sacrificing them was the work of an evil people, and that was not what the Neurics wanted to become.

The Gorean Snakes did not present them with a great challenge. It was an easy victory, as the moment the snakes saw the shining blades of the Neurics, they put their heads down and surrendered.

After all, they were in a cavern with no exits. Their natural instinct to run could not be entertained.

Swiftly, they were all placed in threaded ropes made from stray materials and hair and taken into the Neurics' cavern.

Over the next several years, they would be integrated into society and accepted as long as they could properly work.

This was a policy that would define the Neurics for a very long time. In the future, they would be known as a people who properly valued all useful people. Regardless of one's race or power level, as long as one could find a way to be useful, one could live happily under their reign.

Because the Gorean Snakes were a submissive species, they did not fight against any part of the process, giving the Neurics a perfect victory.

However, if they wanted to truly become conquerors, they were bound to face some losses as well.

Their second raid was not nearly as successful. To their west was the Yasuan Mole Clan. They had similar stature to the Neurics, but their special trait was their defensive skill. The stone and iron weapons of the Neurics could not dent their defenses, and they were left susceptible to the other side's attacks.

If it weren't for Rok's enhanced strength, they would have completely lost the battle. The moles fought back so fiercely that not a single one could be kept alive. The only thing the Neurics gained in return for their efforts was slightly more space.

However, in the process, they lost fifty warriors, effectively halving their army.

It was good for them to know when to advance and retreat. After this loss, they did not enter battle again for another ten years, being content with the space they had.

They trained more, and in order to make up for their losses, they took defeat as a lesson.

When their army's numbers were replenished once more, they were a completely different army. Their siege on the surrounding tribes began once more. Victories and losses mixed together, giving them a reputation as amateur warmongers.

They needed to continue to improve.

The forges were forced to advance to provide stronger weapons, and when even that stopped working, they had to find different ways to improve.

Through war, they discovered the key that would lead them to new heights.

Fire.

Fire always played a pivotal role in their success. It gave them the weapons they used, the tools they used, and the food they ate. They always had respect for fire and viewed it as one of the mediums through which they could contact the Shinnim, as it was the first symbol he ever showed them.

But, with war, fire took center stage. It left the forges and found its way into different aspects of life. It became so close to the heart of the Neurics that newborns were baptized in soft flames.

Surprisingly, the fire did not hurt their bodies. Instead, it blessed them and provided them with strength.

'It will take some time.'

Atlas knew that this was only the very first change. Now that they knew how close they were to fire, they would have to spend several hundred years at the very least to become comfortable enough with it to start their evolution. Discover hidden content at empire

'Nevertheless, they reached this point in less than a century. That is incredibly impressive.'

He had to take a moment to wonder how the others in this trial were doing.

'There has to be quite a number of them. According to the trial description, I will be facing a group of Ascenders in the coming war, which means that I will also be part of a group.'

In his trial, one hundred years had passed, but he didn't know how long it had been for the rest. They were all spending their time differently in order to do the best for their individual races.

Even if one finished ten thousand years in an instant, one would still arrive at the scene of war at the same time as the rest of the Ascenders in the trial. Such was the beauty of simulated time.

'Though it doesn't seem like much has happened for my little Neurics, that is not the case.'

When he found them, they could not even speak properly. Their greatest joy in life was to mine rock and create small toys.

They had not quite developed into a species that could create great artifacts yet, but their military experience wasn't the only thing that improved in this century.

If the conversation was about the Neurics, then the forges could not be left out.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

It was easy to dumb down their achievements to merely what their weapons achieved in battle, however…

What they were truly doing was so, so much more.