Nexus Ascension: My Comprehension Defies the Heaven Chapter 690: The True Peak Of 13th Rank

The ship joined one of the routes leading toward Sunbringer City, passing beneath a vessel several times its size. Grey stood beside the deck railing as a thin sheet of light swept across the hull.

A blue symbol appeared above the controls, and the ship continued through without slowing.

"That was the entry check." Lily explained.

Grey looked toward the nearby vessels and noticed some being guided toward separate platforms. Their passengers waited beneath rows of floating lights while the ships underwent further checks.

The blue gear on Lily's ship had apparently saved them some trouble.

Beyond the outer wall, broad streets ran between buildings so tall that their upper floors disappeared into the clouds. Smaller vessels moved between them while larger ships followed routes farther overhead.

Grey watched a metal giant step out of a building and shrink until it stood little taller than the people beside it. Across the street, an evolver made of pale blue light entered a shop without bothering to form a face.

At least he would not stand out here just for being different.

"Did you already have somewhere to stay?" Lily asked.

"Not yet, I was planning to look after arriving."

"Then I'll arrange it."

The swordsman turned toward her with a disapproving gaze from the other side of the deck, but Lily had already opened a screen above her wrist. He looked at Grey instead and received a pleasant smile in return.

Grey had done nothing except stand there, yet that seemed enough to upset the fellow.

The ship turned between two towers and approached a wide platform attached to a white building. Golden letters above the entrance named it the Cloudspire Grand Hotel.

Grey looked up and found several floating gardens arranged around its upper floors. Water flowed between them through clear channels in the air before returning to a pool near the roof.

This was certainly better than sleeping in another cave.

A man in dark robes waited beside the landing platform and bowed as Lily stepped off the ship.

"Welcome back, Miss Sunbringer."

"Please arrange a suite for my friend for the next few days."

The man glanced at Grey and bowed again before leading them inside. Whatever he thought about Lily bringing an unfamiliar guest, he kept it to himself.

The lobby opened around a tall crystal tree whose branches lit the floors above. Guests sat beneath it on raised platforms while small metal attendants carried trays between them.

Grey followed Lily across the polished floor and into a lift with clear walls.

"You didn't have to choose somewhere this grand."

"You helped me, so a room was hardly too much."

One of the three men made a faint sound behind them.

Grey decided that pretending not to hear it was the kindest thing he had done all day.

The lift carried them high above the streets and opened into a private hall. Their guide touched a panel beside the last door, then handed Grey a slim crystal card.

"The suite has been registered under your name, Mr. Lockhart."

Grey accepted the card and stepped inside.

A wide lounge faced the city through a clear wall, with a bedroom on one side and a separate training room on the other. He could already sense the formations built into that room to contain energy and shield it from outside perception.

That feature interested him more than the view.

Lily walked over to a small panel near the entrance and showed him the service controls.

"The hotel can handle most things you need, and my contact details are here as well."

"Thanks, this helped a lot."

She smiled and stepped back toward the hall.

"Rest first, we can talk again after you've settled in."

Grey saw them to the door before returning to the lounge.

Outside, the swordsman waited until the door closed before moving closer to Lily.

"Princess, we need to report him to the Overseer immediately."

The shield bearer nodded as they headed toward the lift.

"At least let us explain what happened in the forest."

"You guys don't need to worry about that, I'll do it myself."

Grey caught Lily's reply before the lift doors closed, then watched the room's privacy formation settle into place.

So her father would hear about him soon.

That was hardly surprising after she had brought him into the city herself. Grey only hoped the report involved fewer imagined plots than the conversation in the forest.

He checked the room's formations before sitting beside the clear wall.

The hotel had provided a network connection through the service panel, which saved him the trouble of borrowing someone else's ship again. Golden circuits appeared within his eyes as he entered the Information Layer and followed that connection outward.

Maps and public records spread before him.

This time, he had enough peace to look through them properly.

Grey began with the city administration and followed its links to the major local powers. The Overseer's office handled the city defenses and enforced the rules that kept rival groups from fighting in the streets.

Beneath that office, several large powers managed much of the city's daily business.

He already knew about the Blue Gear Syndicate, but three other names appeared beside it.

The Astral Forge Union built ships and weapons, with workshops spread across several districts. Some of its contracts involved machines large enough to require their own floating construction grounds.

Grey opened the next entry.

The Boundless Exchange handled trade between islands and kept large storage sites near the city's ports. Its records included a connection that made him immediately raise an eyebrow.

The Myriad Realms Sect.

"Oh?"

He followed the link and found that the Boundless Exchange managed purchases and shipments for the sect. Some of its senior members had even been appointed through the sect's outer offices.

Grey immediately checked the fourth power.

The Dawnpath Hall arranged long-distance travel and recruited promising evolvers. It also worked for the Myriad Realms Sect, though its public office served plenty of other groups.

It was just a recruitment place for other powers.

Grey grinned as he looked between the two entries.

He had barely entered the city and already found two ways to reach Elder Tharos's sect.

Perhaps his luck had finally improved.

He opened the Dawnpath Hall's travel records and searched for a route to the sect itself. Several references appeared, but none gave him a clear location.

The listed address led to an office inside Sunbringer City.

Grey checked the Boundless Exchange next and found shipment records with their final routes hidden. Even the regional map showed no clear position for the sect's main grounds.

His grin faded into a frown.

"Of course they left out the useful part."

He followed a few older references, but they led to closed records or more local offices. The public network confirmed who worked for the sect without telling outsiders how to walk up to its gates.

Still, two offices were better than nothing.

Grey saved their locations and returned to the city's main records.

The page for the Overseer's office listed its current head as an evolver at the peak of the 13th Rank.

Grey stared at the line for a moment.

The peak of the 13th Rank?

He looked through the clear wall at the ships passing between the towers. Someone at that rank stood above all the powers operating in this city?

Then what about the worm he had left in the cave?