While Ye Lin entered the Immortal King's Tower to begin his trial, someone back in the Tianyuan Dynasty was going absolutely mad thinking about him.
This person was none other than the Commander of the Imperial Guard, Xiao Yun.
Originally, after being severely scolded by the Second Prince, he had made two preparations.
The first was to send a trusted elder he had planted in the academy to fabricate a crime for Ye Lin, directly and legitimately putting him to death.
The second was to personally take action in secret; he refused to believe Ye Lin could survive that.
But to the dumbfounded astonishment of Xiao Yun and his trusted aides, no matter who they sent to search the entire temporary dormitory area for new disciples in the Outer Academy, they simply could not find any trace of Ye Lin.
“Has this damned brat vanished into thin air?” Xiao Yun was on the verge of tears from anxiety.
The Second Prince had only given him one day. If the time limit expired and he still had not dealt with Ye Lin, his entire family would be handed over to Venerable Tianku as blood food.
Now, the sun was setting, filling the sky with crimson clouds. His remaining time was about to run out.
“No, I went through so much to crawl out of the mud at the bottom. I haven't enjoyed enough wealth and glory yet. I absolutely cannot die.”
Seeing that the task was impossible to complete, Xiao Yun gnashed his teeth, turned around, and bolted out of Tianqi City without looking back.
As for his family—he could barely save his own skin right now, so how could he care about them?
Meanwhile, within the Cultivation Academy, after a series of investigations, Vice Principal Gu Qingsong and the other higher-ups had uncovered the truth behind the large-scale slaughter of the new disciples.
“Everyone, the ultimate mastermind behind this matter has been confirmed to be the Second Prince, Nangong Yun. However, his imperial mother, Ji Yu, is the second young mistress of the Ji family lineage from the Mysterious-grade Cultivation Academy.”
“If we move against him, Ji Yu will likely not let us off. What should we do about this?” Gu Qingsong tapped on the table, looking at the other higher-ups with a conflicted expression.
“What is there to fear? No matter how powerful Ji Yu is, can she be more terrifying than that living ancestor who starts killing at the slightest disagreement? Let's just arrest Nangong Yun and hand him over. Neither Ji Yu nor the imperial family would dare say anything on the surface.”
“Absolutely not. Ji Yu and the imperial family wouldn't dare do anything to that living ancestor, but if they want to deal with us, they have plenty of ways. I believe we should first report this matter to that living ancestor, and at the same time, report it to the higher-level Cultivation Academy.”
“This way, whether Nangong Yun is executed or spared will be up to that living ancestor to decide. Our action will be seen as giving an explanation to the world for the sake of the Cultivation Academy's justice. Even if Ji Yu and the imperial family are displeased with our reporting afterwards, their hostility won't be as severe.”
“This plan is feasible. Let's do that!”
Once the higher-ups reached a consensus, they immediately sent a voice transmission to Qi Changqing's older sister, Qi Feiyan.
On the other side, within the trial space of the Immortal King's Tower, Ye Lin was clearing the phantom projections with a single sword strike each, having already charged straight to the ninetieth floor.
The phantom projections in this tower were displayed based on the challenger's natural talent and combat power.
Since Ye Lin possessed seven Spiritual Roots, the phantom projection he faced on the first floor possessed seven times the combat power of an ordinary cultivator.
For every two floors he cleared, the phantom's combat power would increase by an amount equal to that of one ordinary cultivator.
Therefore, on the ninetieth floor, the phantom projection he faced possessed fifty-two times the combat power of an ordinary cultivator.
But it was utterly useless. Even without using any spells, his own base combat power was three hundred and seven times that of an ordinary cultivator.
Thus, a mere phantom with fifty-two times the combat power of the Qi Condensation Stage was still nothing but a small fry to him, and was instantly killed with a single sword strike.
“Enter the next floor, or select an Immortal-grade reward to settle and exit.”
The moment he instantly killed the phantom projection, the mysterious voice rang in his ears once more.
“There is no need to remind me to settle before I break through the hundredth floor.”
Replying in a flat tone, he entered the ninety-first floor.
Strictly speaking, the phantom projections inside this Immortal King's Tower were actually extremely formidable.
Not only was their combat power immense, but they also possessed seasoned combat experience, and most ridiculously, they were not above playing dirty.
Along the way, Ye Lin had encountered phantoms that used poison, hidden weapons, played dead, deployed formations, cast illusions, and launched sneak attacks using soul methods.
They employed every underhanded trick in the book. Even though Ye Lin always delivered a finishing blow and was exceptionally cautious, he had almost been caught off guard several times.
But in the end, his own strength was simply too overwhelming.
Even without using the Eternal Stellar Plate to break formations, he still walked the path holding the Sword of Original Sin, casually executing Nine Shadows Ultimate Slay. The moment a phantom showed its face, it was instantly killed. Even when encountering underhanded tactics, he could swiftly counterattack and secure an instant kill.
As for those who tried to bewilder him with illusions to disrupt his Dao Heart, they were utterly countered by his 【Dao Heart of the True Self】, leaving the phantoms unable to gain the slightest advantage.
Bang!
Accompanied by a booming sound, Ye Lin easily cleared the ninety-first floor, followed by the ninety-second, ninety-third...
There was still absolutely no suspense. The phantoms were instantly killed the moment they appeared, all the way until he reached the hundredth floor.
Here, there were no more insidious and cunning phantoms. Instead, there was only a white-haired, hunched old man quietly observing him.
“Greetings, Senior,” Ye Lin said politely, bowing with his hands clasped, neither overbearing nor servile.
“Very good, young man. Congratulations on obtaining the qualification to select the heritage of a handyman disciple of our Creation Dao Palace. Come with me.”
Seeing Ye Lin's modesty and politeness, the hunched old man nodded amiably and began to lead the way, leaning on his cane.
Hearing the amiable old man's words, Ye Lin was somewhat astonished.
This was truly mind-blowing. A reward above the Immortal-grade, which all geniuses scrambled for but could never obtain, was actually something that only a mere handyman disciple could get here?
It was hard to imagine what kind of colossal, multi-realm powerhouse this Creation Dao Palace must be to possess such an incredible foundation.
Before long, the hunched old man brought Ye Lin to a very simple stone chamber.
Inside the stone chamber, there were three circular stone platforms in total. One of them was already empty, while the other two held two ancient-looking purple storage rings.
“There were originally three heritages here: the body cultivation heritage, the soul cultivation heritage, and the spiritual cultivation heritage.”
“However, several thousand years ago, the spiritual cultivation heritage was taken away. You may choose one of the remaining two for yourself.”
The moment they entered the stone chamber, the hunched old man immediately introduced them to Ye Lin.
Hearing this, Ye Lin immediately began to ponder. Since he currently possessed the 《Origin Unity Art》, he was practically unmatched on the path of spiritual cultivation.
As for his soul, he had the 《Soaring Fairy Visualization Chart》, which allowed his soul power to grow at an extremely rapid pace.
Only in terms of his physical body, although he had the feedback of blood and vital energy, his defensive and recovery capabilities were simply incomparable to those geniuses who possessed special physiques or talents.
Therefore, to make up for this shortcoming, he did not hesitate for even a moment and decisively chose the body cultivation heritage.
“Since you have selected your heritage, from this day forth, you are a handyman disciple of our Creation Dao Palace.”
“But remember, this status is only temporary. Every year, the Dao Palace conducts an assessment for its handyman disciples. If you pass, you will be promoted to an outer disciple, and both your heritage and resources will be significantly upgraded.”
“If you fail the assessment, you will be reduced to a Dao slave, turned into a puppet to be driven by others for all eternity.”
“I wish you the best of luck, young man. Remember, you must never reveal the secrets of the Dao Palace to others, or you will perish instantly and your Dao will be destroyed.”
Seeing that Ye Lin had selected his heritage, the hunched old man gave a few serious explanations before waving his hand, teleporting him away.
Not long after Ye Lin was teleported away, a dark-skinned youth also arrived on the hundredth floor.
“After waiting here bitterly for hundreds of thousands of years, my mission is finally about to be completed! I can finally leave this godforsaken, garbage plane! Hahahaha!”
Sensing another genius entering the hundredth floor, the hunched old man was instantly overwhelmed with excitement.
An influential figure from the Dao Palace had placed him in this realm a hundred thousand years ago, claiming that an eternal genius would appear here. God only knew how he had survived all these years just for this sect mission.
But everything was fine now; he would soon complete his mission and return to the Dao Palace.
At this thought, he straightened his mouth, which had twisted from smiling so hard, and walked out of the stone chamber with an amiable expression.
“Congratulations, young man...”
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