Chapter Fifteen: The White Tower's Nine Heavens

  The second day, the morning breeze is gentle and cool, the sky is clear and the wind is refreshing.

  Ling Wusong and the top ten geniuses who emerged from the selection, followed Mu Shiqing and others to the heart of the Holy Palace, where the White Tower was located.

  A white, nine-story pagoda, resembling the Dinghai Shenzhen needle, stands tall and majestic, emitting a sacred aura even in broad daylight. The surrounding area is heavily guarded by sentries holding black long guns, their faces expressionless, like iron stakes standing upright.

  "So many guardians, all of them are masters." Ling Wu's eyes scanned the surroundings, it seems that the White Tower is indeed very important to the Holy Temple.

  "That's for sure" Mu Shi Qing, who was standing next to Ling Wu Shuang, smiled complacently after hearing his words. "As long as there is no order from the Holy Master and permission from the commander, not even a fly can fly in, let alone a person."

  To put it another way, wanting to stir up trouble at the White Tower is absolutely impossible!

  Ling Wushuang stroked his chin and smiled slyly, nodding in agreement, "That's right"

  She hooked up a few almost imperceptible sinister arcs at the corner of her mouth, gave a low cough, shook her black robe sleeves, and walked past Mu Shi Qing with a big swing...

  "These are all personally selected guards by the leader himself." Mu Shi Qing looked around at the heavily guarded surroundings, without any difference inside and out, before proudly raising his head and walking forward with a broad stride.

  When Ling Wu arrived, the ten people who were qualified to enter the White Tower for cultivation had almost all arrived. The surroundings were divided into three layers inside and three layers outside, all of which were guarded by the Holy Temple's guardians, tightly wrapping the Nine-Storeyed White Tower in the very center. The importance that the Holy Temple attached to it could be seen from this.

  Xin Yun, who had already arrived, cast his gaze towards the black-robed youth walking slowly towards him with a hint of laziness in his demeanor. The youth's dense black eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and he lowered his head as if nothing was amiss. A fleeting glimmer of contemplation flashed across his amber-colored eyes.

  A white-robed holy maiden, Bai Qian, walked towards the crowd, her skirt fluttering in the morning light, with a gentle smile between her eyebrows that made people involuntarily drunk with admiration.

  "Today, the Holy Master has an important matter and specially ordered me to come here. I hope that each of you can enter the White Tower for cultivation and gain satisfactory results." The Saintess Bai Qian smiled gently and handed over a golden token in her hand to Mu Shi Qing, "Just follow the usual rules as before."

  Mu Shiqing happily accepted and ordered the opening of the large gate.

  The white jade gate burst open with a loud noise, and a refreshing breath of air rushed out, causing everyone to involuntarily lift their spirits.

  The ones leading the way were several white-bearded elderly men who looked like they should be senior figures in the Holy Temple.

  "Let's go." A few elderly men just glanced at Ling Wu Shuang and the group, then walked slowly in front of them, leading the way with steady and powerful steps.

  Ling Wushuang and Xin Yun exchanged a glance, their eyes meeting briefly before naturally looking away, each following closely behind.

  Among the crowd, some were curious, some were nervous, but most were excited. This was the Sacred White Tower after all! Even ordinary elder-level figures weren't allowed to enter without permission, and being able to cultivate here was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

  This is enough to see the importance that Sheng Tang attaches to cultivating young people.

  A spiral staircase, slowly ascending to the seventh floor, where a white-bearded elder blocked Feng Qi and Xin Yun, saying in a deep voice: "You two can only go this far. Go inside, the skills and weapons inside, as long as you have the ability, you can take one thing out at will."

  The rest of the people stayed on their respective floors, and when they reached the seventh floor, only Ling Wusuo, Xing Yun, and Feng Ji were left, and these two also had to stay behind.

  Xing Yun glanced at Ling Wu Shuang with a hint of curiosity, then nodded expressionlessly and followed the elder, walking towards a curved large gate.

  The remaining elder looked at the black-robed youth in front of him, "You are this year's first place, this year's seedlings are indeed not bad, barely passable." The old man nodded to himself, turned away from Ling Wu Shuang, and walked ahead, "Follow me."

  Ling Wusuo withdrew his gaze from Xun Yun and the others, following behind with a lazy stride, his demeanor resembling that of a cat who had just woken up.

  From the moment she entered, she had been paying attention to the surroundings, and as she walked here, the most obvious point was the change in the density of spiritual energy. As the number of tower floors increased, the surrounding spiritual energy became more refined and denser.

  By the ninth floor, the dense spiritual energy had almost formed a shallow mist!

  The old man with white whiskers had a gloomy gaze, pointing to the open inner gate not far away. On his face full of wrinkles, there was no extra expression. "It's just here, you go in yourself, what kind of fate you'll have depends on yourself."

  This young man has already reached the realm of a mid-tier saint at such a young age, no wonder the Holy Master values him so much. If given time, he will surely become another existence like the Old Ancestor!

  "Yes" Ling Wu Shuang replied lightly and walked towards the direction the old man pointed at a moderate pace.

  This white tower is indeed extraordinary.

  That white-bearded old man watched as Ling Wu Xiang walked into the inner tower shrouded in a thin mist, and with great satisfaction, stroked his beard and nodded before turning to leave.

  As soon as Ling Wushuang stepped inside, the surroundings underwent a drastic change. Before she could take a closer look, waves of spiritual energy came rushing towards her like a gentle breeze, making her feel so comfortable that she involuntarily shuddered slightly.

  "Such a rich spiritual energy!" Ling Wu Shuang couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

  That refreshing spirit, like a gentle mist, enters through every pore and reaches the four limbs and hundred bones, as if clear water, flushing and cleansing each meridian and skeleton.

  Ling Wushuang took a step forward, and behind her, a white light flashed, and the gate disappeared.

  She involuntarily took a deep breath, looked around, her mouth opened in surprise, and she hesitated for a moment, "This is..."

  A rich spiritual energy, within this space, formed a white mist that seemed to be wrapped in a thin gauze. In the midst of the dense fog, one could vaguely see the outline of greenish-gray rocks and the gentle swaying of emerald-green stone bamboo, emitting soft rustling sounds. Listening carefully, it seemed as if there was the sound of spring water flowing gently from afar. Suddenly, it felt as though I had entered a paradise.

  A bright light flashed through Ling Wu's mind, and he immediately understood, "The White Tower's nine-story heaven is actually a small-scale space!"

  And she was certain that this was a man-made space!

  The pinnacle of divine beings, mastering the most superficial spatial powers, but true spatial powers are not just superficial spatial seals, they are creating space with a wave of their hand! Such heaven-defying abilities can only be fully grasped by the strongest ruler.

  Of course, such a space can be large or small, depending on the creator's strength.

  "In the holy temple, could there be an existence of the strongest king?" Ling Wu Shuang stepped slowly into this space, a thought emerged in his mind, but was quickly negated, shaking his head thoughtfully, "Impossible, the interface suppression of the Starry Sky Continent is the pinnacle of divine humans, it's impossible for the strongest king to exist."

  But what's going on with this space? Is there some secret method to upgrade, or can it be suppressed by ignoring the interface? Ling Wusuo couldn't figure it out no matter how hard he thought.

  Ling Wusuo's mouth corners twitched slightly, but in his heart, he still had some doubts, "There shouldn't be such an old monster, right?"

  For a moment, I couldn't figure it out, so I didn't think about it anymore. Now that we're here, focusing on improving our strength is the most important thing.

  The surrounding misty fog, in the quiet space, can only occasionally hear the green bamboo leaves shaking with the clear wind, making a rustling sound.

  Ling Wusuo walked slowly towards a bamboo forest dense with mountain rocks, originally intending to find a place to start her cultivation. However, as she drew closer, she couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "They're all energy stones..."

  In this misty space, within a certain distance, there would be a small bamboo forest-like existence. However, the mountain rocks that grew with lush green vines were actually various types of energy stones, all in light colors such as cyan and white. Moreover, they were some of the top-grade energy stones that were only slightly inferior to the Sacred Energy Stones!

  "What a wonderful place!" Ling Wu Shuang exclaimed in surprise, his eyes quickly scanning the surroundings.

  As far as the eye can see, some resemble reclining cows, while others are like green shoots after a spring rain... densely packed, leaving one breathless.

  Ling Wushuang's clear eyes slightly sank, as if in thought, nodding slightly. He sat cross-legged on a pure white energy stone, surrounded by lush trees and dense bamboo shadows. His black figure appeared and disappeared among the mist-shrouded mountain rocks.

  Almost forming a milky white substantial spirit, in this quiet and peaceful space, it flows slowly in the air like a gentle stream of water.

  On this side, Yi Qian and Sheng Lin, including Gu Xi, important figures of the Holy Temple, were discussing matters in a grand hall.

  " Envoy, I wonder if this time's seedling is satisfactory?" The speaker was a man named Gu Xi, who wore a brown Taoist robe. From his cautious attitude towards Yi Qian, it could be seen that he was also quite apprehensive and did not dare to show the slightest disrespect.

  Even with Sheng Lin present, Yi Qian still sat high in the main seat.

  Yi Qian glanced at Gu Xi with a hint of disdain, and under his slightly nervous gaze, he nodded slowly, "This batch of seedlings is not much different from the previous ones, there are not many outstanding ones, but they can still pass."

  "That's good" Gu Xi seemed to let out a sigh of relief, his face respectful, but in his heart he was thinking, this group of people is finally leaving.

  Yi Qian's face sank, and he suddenly thought of something. He turned his head to look at Sheng Lin, whose face was warm and moist, and casually asked: "Where is that kid Jun Ling now?"

  Jun Ling is so far the one he is most satisfied with, and there can't be any difference.

  At the mention of two words, "Jun Ling", Gu Xi's face stiffened slightly as he stood on one side, his hand clenched into a fist in the sleeve of his long black robe, his teeth itching with hatred.

  It's all because of that stinky brat, who actually treated such a precious treasure as trash and threw it away. He ended up soaking in the Holy Lake for several days and nights, only to return empty-handed. Now he really suspects that the brat was playing him from start to finish!

  His eyebrows furrowed into a "川" shape, the more he thought about it, the more he felt that something was off, yet he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

  "What about Jun Ling?" Saint Lin heard Yi Qian's words, slightly stunned for a moment before smiling and responding: "Jun Ling and the other several candidates that the messenger lord has taken a liking to are now all locked up in the White Tower, completely secure. The lord can take them away at any time."

  "This is not urgent" Yi Qian waved his hand to stop Sheng Lin's words, and in his cold eyes, a dark light sank, "Prepare for now, you said that the four major families' Ling Wu Shuang, I want to see what makes her stand out."

  "In Sheng Lin's moist eyes, a thread of surprise and an almost imperceptible fierce light flashed by, 'Just a small Ling family, what four major families, for the adults, dealing with them is just a matter of moving their fingers'"

  Yi Qian was pleased with such flattering words, but he didn't let his guard down because of this. He turned his head to look at the person standing respectfully beside him and asked, "How's the matter I told you to investigate going?"

  That person stepped forward and respectfully replied: "Reporting to Your Majesty, behind the Ling family, there is indeed a peak god's existence, but which force it belongs to is still unknown."

  Upon hearing this, Yi Qian's face slightly darkened, and he stroked his eight-shaped beard, as if deep in thought.

  "Although his identity was not investigated, it can be confirmed that the peak god is no longer in the Ling family and has been away from the Ling family for some time."

  "Oh?" Yi Qian's expression immediately relaxed, "Not at the Ling residence?"

  "Yes"

  A faint hum of cold ridicule escaped from Yi Qian's mouth, "That's good"

  If he's not around, then this matter will be much easier to handle!

  If that peak god is a visitor from another major force, openly confronting each other in this place will have an impact on the transmission, which can be big or small. In any case, it's all troublesome, and they also have an agreement not to interfere with the changes in the forces of Xingchen Continent at will. If it weren't for this reason, Tianyin Valley wouldn't let Shengtang take the lead in these matters!

  If he was just a lucky breakthrough in this region, it would be even easier to deal with, and could be directly eliminated.

  Even if that peak god was from another force, as long as he didn't openly defy the upper echelons, it would be easy to talk things through. But now, since he's not in the Ling family, taking away a small Ling Wusuo wouldn't be any more difficult than waving his hand.

  Sheng Lin and others will have scruples and be intimidated, but Yi Qian won't!

  Observing the changing expression on Yiqian's face, Shenglin's eyes slightly sank, and he tentatively asked, "I wonder when Lord Yiqian plans to set off?"

  He slowly picked up the tea on the white jade stone table beside him, took a sip, and put it down with a clang. Only then did he speak in an unhurried tone: "Wait a bit longer, I'll take another look at these people who have arrived in the Holy City to see if there's anyone suitable."

  Sheng Lin smiled warmly and said, "Everything will be arranged by the adults."

  Sheng Lin said, with a warm and gentle gaze, but a fierce glint flashed across his eyes. His goal was not just to deal with Ling Wu Shuang, but the entire four major families!

  The rise of the four major families' power has completely exceeded his expectations. If this continues to develop, it will definitely become a major problem in the future. Now they even dare to challenge the Holy Temple, and if we wait for a few more years, won't they turn the world upside down?!

  He had previously taken into account the Tianye Cloud and the pinnacle god behind the Ling family, and did not dare to act rashly. But now that Yi Qian and others are here, it's completely different. Otherwise, he wouldn't have endured until the Holy City Conference.

  However, he also knew that although Yi Qian wanted to move Ling Wushuang because of his words, he would absolutely not openly take action to destroy the entire four major families.

  However, if he borrows Yi Qian's hands to eliminate those two people who make him worry, what about the four major families? Wouldn't they still be at his mercy? So, at this time, he only needs to follow behind Yi Qian and add fuel to the fire!

  Pure white nine-story pagoda, under the ink-black sky, shining with soft light, surrounded by wispy, thin mist-like spiritual energy.

  In the nine-layered heavens, a world of milky white mist floats, with dense mountains and rocks, bamboo forests swaying in the gusts of unknown wind, making rustling sounds.

  A black-robed youth with a clear and elegant appearance, his handsome face was expressionless, those cold eyes were also lightly closed, the long eyelashes had fine dew condensed into tiny beads of water vapor, entering a very subtle state.

  In the space around him, a very mysterious atmosphere was formed, and the speed of the flowing mist seemed to have slowed down a bit.

  After an unknown period of time, a pair of profound and transparent eyes suddenly opened!

  Ling Wu's eyebrows furrowed almost imperceptibly, "Something doesn't feel right, it seems like something is missing."

  It feels like I've already touched the edge of the divine realm, but somehow something has blocked me back without leaving any trace.

  "Whoosh——"

  Suddenly, a cluster of bright red flames burst out, and as the flames slowly subsided, a ball of bright red flesh wrapped in flames appeared, with a fluffy large tail that was longer than its body, wrapping around its entire body. With a swoosh, it unfolded and spread open, revealing its whole small body.

  "Xiao Jiu?" Ling Wu Shuang raised an eyebrow in surprise. She felt that this little thing's aura was strange all over its body.

  "Chirp, chirp", "Squeak, squeak"

  Little nine four short legs, among various energy stones, back and forth jumping, looks very excited, accompanied by excited squeaks, fox-like sharp mouth, constantly flowing out of crystal clear unknown objects.

  Ling Wushuang glanced at the surrounding boulder-sized energy stones, and a faint black line appeared on his forehead. This guy wouldn't be thinking...

  "Crack crack crack crack"

  The next second, Ling Wu's eyeballs were almost bulging out of their sockets. A fiery red shadow enveloped a nearly one-meter-thick energy stone, flashing rapidly several times, its speed so fast that only a few streaks of red light could be seen. The massive energy stone quickly shrunk down, getting smaller and smaller, until in less than a minute, nothing was left but sparkling empty air!

  "My goodness, this is also too much to eat!" Ling Wushuang's mouth twitched, such a big thing was solved in the blink of an eye.

  However, after solving one piece, the fiery shadow still showed no signs of stopping and immediately targeted another piece.

  Xiao Jiu's eyes, which were a bit dull and hungry, slowly turned around a few times, and then with a few swift movements, several hundred kilograms of energy stones disappeared into thin air amidst the fiery flames and crunching sounds.

  "Not really" Ling Wu Xuan swallowed his saliva and then his eyes narrowed slightly as he carefully examined everything before realizing that something was off.

  Xiao Jiu is indeed greedy, but the way it's eating now is somewhat different from its usual drooling self. It doesn't look like it's being greedy, but rather like it's urgently replenishing its energy. Could it be...