Over the past few days, Tom had subjected Lucas to daily lashings with a whip. But despite the constant abuse, Lucas's control over the energy of time was steadily improving. He could sense that he was on the cusp of being able to utilize the technique.
'I just need to hold out for a week or so.' Lucas thought to himself, tears streaming down his face.
As per usual, Tom entered the chamber, accompanied by two individuals who bore a resemblance to him. It was clear that these were Tom's sons, both of whom were cultivators at Rank 1 Stage 4, one stage higher than Lucas. Unfortunately, Lucas was unable to cultivate at all due to the restrictive chains that encased him, which emitted electric shocks whenever he tried to absorb traces.
"Dad, why do we have to come to this squalid place?" one of the sons, Daniel, complained. "We are mighty cultivators now!"
"I agree," added the other son, Richard. "I don't think you should waste our time like this!"
Tom glared at his two sons with frustration and anger. "You fools!" he yelled. "You may be cultivators, but you're at the very bottom of the ranks! You have to undergo tribulation to reach the next rank to have a fraction of the power of a mighty cultivator!"
Under his breath, Tom muttered, "How did I end up with such imbecilic sons?"
Turning to his sons, Tom explained the purpose of their visit. "I brought you two here to learn how to control your energy. The number of times you two have almost killed yourselves is astounding. I don't want you causing any damage outside of this dungeon, and you two shall not leave until you are able to use all the techniques you have memorized."
With that, Tom left the chamber, leaving his two sons alone with Lucas.
"Our father is definitely overreacting," Daniel said, rolling his eyes. "Our control is already refined, if I do say so myself."
"Who's this?" Richard asked, looking at Lucas with contempt. "I think that's the leech our father kept talking about. His mother apparently stole a large sum of money to force him into cultivation."
"So young?" Daniel asked, surprised. "The mind isn't supposed to be able to handle absorbing traces at that age."
The two sons continued to talk about Lucas right in front of him, and Lucas couldn't help but feel annoyed. He tried to hide it, though, as he watched them closely, curious about how they controlled their energy. As expected, both Daniel and Richard activated their traces and started shaping their energy in a clumsy and haphazard manner. Lucas couldn't help but cringe at their lack of control, wondering how long they had been cultivating for. He had always had a natural talent for this, but Daniel and Richard were like newborns trying to walk on two legs.
'Maybe the reason they aren't improving is because they're trying to use techniques for training their control.' Lucas thought to himself. 'After all, you get a backlash if you fail a technique, which means you'll have to rest before continuing.'
Regardless, Lucas continued to refine his own control, while Daniel and Richard remained oblivious, too engrossed in their own failures to notice anything.
As the days passed, Lucas continued to observe Daniel and Richard's struggles with control, feeling a mixture of curiosity and superiority towards them. Despite their higher cultivation rank, they seemed to have little understanding of how to shape their energy in a precise and controlled manner. Instead, they were creating chaotic knots of energy that seemed to resemble piles of spaghetti.
'What are they doing?' Lucas thought to himself, shaking his head in disbelief. 'How long have they been cultivating for? They can't even control their energy properly.'
Despite their lack of skill, Daniel and Richard seemed to be completely engrossed in their training, failing technique after technique and coughing up blood every ten minutes.
As the hours passed, Lucas noticed that Richard was becoming increasingly restless and agitated. He could tell that something was up.
Eventually, Lucas pieced together from Daniel's and Richard's conversations that Richard was planning to undergo tribulation in just one day. He couldn't believe it - Richard was probably not ready for that, and he would surely get Lucas and himself killed if he went through with it. But despite Daniel's efforts to communicate this to Richard, he was met with stubborn defiance and a refusal to listen.
Daniel seemed to be more cautious and decided to switch chambers so he wouldn't be damaged by Richard's tribulation.
As the night wore on, the guards fell asleep and Richard eventually dozed off as well. But Lucas couldn't sleep, his mind racing with thoughts of Richard's foolish decision and the constant abuse he had endured at the hands of Tom and his sons.
'I have to find a way out of here.' Lucas thought to himself. 'I can't stay here any longer. I need to escape soon, otherwise Richard's tribulation will most definitely kill me.'
At this thought, Lucas activated his traces. He shaped the energy into the same energy blade and created the circle with complicated patterns once again. The energy soon solidified and turned into something able to affect the material world. Lucas had succeeded with ease this time.
Lucas brought his arm down with full strength and cut the chains holding him in half with a clean cut.
'It's time!'