The Path of Ascension 4

Matt, Liz and the Arctic fox Aster come back to the Path of Ascension once the Empire's vassal war is over. They now have a manager, Luna, who expects their best effort every day. Falling short could get the team driven off the Path altogether.

The Tier-10 tournament is coming, and the three train harder than they ever have. Meanwhile a Tier-40 who has shaped several Ascenders before is making plans of their own, and those plans move around the team without their say.

This is the fourth of twelve volumes in a progression-fantasy series by C. Mantis, first serialized on Royal Road and published by Aethon Books. It picks up directly from the vassal-war arc.

Matt was orphaned in a rift-monster attack and carries a Talent rated detrimental. Liz is his partner and Aster is his Bond. Across the series they climb the Empire's Tiers through rift dives, tournaments and the Empire's politics.

The books use LitRPG trappings such as dungeons, skills and Tiers, set over a cultivation-style core. The advancement system stays consistent with its own rules, the fights are grounded, and Matt works through problems by thinking them out. In this volume the team's growing public profile raises the stakes.