Chapter 595: Chapter 377: Entering the Tower

"Let me see just how difficult this Tenth Layer really is." Huo Xiaochen took a large stride forward. With a flash of his silhouette, he disappeared into the Battle Tower’s entrance.

"What a poser!" Gu Qingfeng couldn’t help but sneer. While others challenged the tower in silence, Huo Xiaochen just had to put on a show and say something pretentious, as if terrified people wouldn’t notice him.

"No matter how much he poses, he’ll still be stopped at the Tenth Layer," Sun Tao said with a laugh.

"Huo Xiaochen has successfully cultivated the Azure Dragon Dominating Body and the Purple Extreme Heaven-Burning Technique. What makes you say he’ll stop at the Tenth Layer?" Du Ziming retorted. Since mastering the Azure Dragon Dominating Body, Huo Xiaochen had long earned the right to compete with the Spirit Bone Celestial Prides. How could he possibly fail to reach the Eleventh Layer?

"It’s just pure jealousy," Fang Xu added with a laugh.

"Senior Brother Sun, you’re underestimating Huo Xiaochen way too much," Lu Ren chimed in.

"Believe what you want." Sun Tao was too lazy to explain further. He hadn’t expected that simply agreeing with Gu Qingfeng would draw so much backlash from Huo Xiaochen’s lackeys.

"Do you even know what the Azure Dragon Dominating Body is? You’re just running your mouth," Du Ziming sneered.

"And you do?" Xu Yang’s calm voice suddenly rang out. "Huo Xiaochen has only been at the Entry Level of the Azure Dragon Dominating Body for a month. Has he cultivated Dragon Qi? Without manifesting Dragon Qi, can he even claim to have mastered it? It seems just about anyone wants to latch onto the coattails of a Spirit Bone Celestial Pride these days."

Hearing this, Du Ziming was instantly left speechless. He didn’t actually understand the Azure Dragon Dominating Body either, much less what Dragon Qi was.

"Xu Yang is right. Not just anyone should try to ride our coattails," laughed Zhang Bo, who ranked fourth on the Lingyun List. He had had enough of people trying to compete with them, the Spirit Bone Celestial Prides, over every little thing. Did they really think mastering one or two Cultivation Techniques was enough to stand on equal footing? If it were that simple, the title of Spirit Bone Celestial Pride would be meaningless.

Since Zhang Bo had spoken up, Du Ziming didn’t dare utter another word of protest.

Huo Xiaochen’s progress was incredibly fast—even faster than Lu Wei’s—and he quickly reached the Tenth Layer. However, barely fifteen minutes later, he reappeared at the Battle Tower’s entrance in a sorry state, just like the challengers before him. His robes were stained with blood, and his face was deathly pale. Clearly, even with his Azure Dragon Dominating Body, he hadn’t managed to clear the Tenth Layer to reach the Eleventh. His time lasting in the Tenth Layer was even shorter than Lu Wei’s.

"Well, Junior Brother Lu, was I underestimating him?" Sun Tao asked with a smile, looking at Lu Ren.

"How could this happen?" Lu Ren stared in disbelief.

On the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List, a faint light flickered, revealing Huo Xiaochen’s final ranking: seventy-second. While this placed him ahead of Gu Qingfeng, Wu Xiuyuan, and several others, he still trailed behind Lu Wei and Tu Gang.

"Are you upset that your master’s ranking is so low?" Xu Yang chuckled. Although Huo Xiaochen had trained in the Azure Dragon Dominating Body, he clearly hadn’t manifested Dragon Qi yet. Given a few more months, he might have been able to break into the Eleventh Layer, but right now, it was virtually impossible.

Du Ziming, Fang Xu, and the rest hurriedly rushed forward, pulling out Elixirs and feeding them to Huo Xiaochen before helping him to the side.

Sun Tao’s expression turned solemn as he took large strides, disappearing into the Battle Tower’s entrance.

"I wonder which layer Brother Sun will reach?" Gu Qingfeng muttered. Since Huo Xiaochen’s ranking was higher than his own, the gap in their abilities had already become apparent. Naturally, Gu Qingfeng hoped that Sun Tao would prove stronger.

"With Senior Brother Sun’s Cultivation, reaching the Ninth Layer shouldn’t be an issue. Whether he can break into the Tenth Layer will depend on luck," Xu Yang analyzed. Over the past six months since joining the Celestial Strategy Academy, Sun Tao should have compensated for most of his weaknesses. However, there still remained a gap between him and the likes of Li Yunfei and Gu Qingfeng.

Of course, Xu Yang wasn’t entirely certain. He didn’t know if Sun Tao had fully absorbed the bizarre Spirit Medicine he had consumed earlier.

The Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List distorted momentarily. In the brief time they spent talking, Sun Tao had already reached the Third Layer. The crowd fell silent, their eyes glued unblinkingly to the ranking list.

The Fourth Layer! The Fifth Layer! As time ticked by, Sun Tao advanced to the Eighth Layer, though he took a considerable amount of time for each stage.

"He’s in the Ninth Layer!"

Finally, Sun Tao broke into the Ninth Layer, causing the expressions of Du Ziming, Fang Xu, and their group to turn quite ugly. Merely reaching the Ninth Layer meant that, even if he failed the Tenth, Sun Tao would secure a stable position on the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List, thus guaranteeing him prioritized resources from the Celestial Strategy Academy.

Fifteen minutes later, the list rippled once more. Sun Tao had entered the Tenth Layer. But just a dozen breaths later, a faint light flashed at the Battle Tower’s entrance, and he tumbled out. Much like Huo Xiaochen, his face was pale, and he had sustained significant injuries.

Xu Yang quickly walked over and helped him up. "Senior Brother Sun, are you alright?"

Sun Tao struggled to stand. "I’m just a bit drained of energy. The Tenth Layer is too difficult. If you make it there, it’s best you forfeit immediately." He had only stepped into the Tenth Layer to gauge its difficulty, yet he hadn’t been able to withstand a single move before being forcefully blasted out.

"Impressive, Brother Sun! To think you reached the Tenth Layer as well." Gu Qingfeng strode over, and together with Xu Yang, helped Sun Tao sit down to the side to recover.

"Compared to you, Brother Gu, this is nothing," Sun Tao said with a bitter smile. While Gu Qingfeng had lasted a long time in the Eleventh Layer before being defeated, Sun Tao had nearly been killed in a single strike in the Tenth.

"Congratulations, Senior Brother Sun. You’re ranked eighty-third on the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List." Xu Yang glanced back and saw that Sun Tao’s final ranking had already been displayed.

"Eighty-third isn’t bad at all," Sun Tao replied with a smile.

"With your talent, Brother Sun, your rank will definitely climb higher once you’ve accumulated a bit more experience," Gu Qingfeng encouraged.

Meanwhile, the others continued their attempts to challenge the Battle Tower. However, Jin Yu now demanded that they enter in groups of three rather than individually. Clearly, Sun Tao had been the watershed mark.

Liu Gao, Fan Yi, and Wu You—ranked fifteenth, sixteenth, and seventeenth on the Lingyun List respectively—entered the Battle Tower one after the other. But true to expectations, there was a steep drop-off in performance after Sun Tao. Even Liu Gao, who was rumored to have mastered the Purple Extreme Heaven-Burning Technique, only made it to the Eighth Layer. Failing to reach the Ninth, his final ranking on the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List was ninety-first.

Fan Yi also reached the Eighth Layer but lasted only a very short time, finishing at ninety-fourth. Wu You failed to break into the Eighth Layer, stopping at the Seventh. After squeezing out the last person on the list, he secured the ninety-ninth spot.

Wan He, Qiu He, Du Ziming, and several others immediately grimaced. If someone like Wu You was only ranked ninety-ninth, it was highly likely that they wouldn’t even make it onto the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List this time around. Previously, reaching the Seventh Layer had been a guaranteed spot on the list, but with the influx of their current batch of students, that was no longer a certainty.

"Qiu He, Xu Yang, Wan He, enter the tower!" Jin Yu commanded.

Taking a deep breath, Qiu He was the first to march into the Battle Tower. No matter what, he had to fight for a spot on the list, as his future resources depended on it.

"Be careful, Brother Xu. Don’t push yourself too hard. This is just one attempt; you’ll have more opportunities in the future," Gu Qingfeng warned. Suffering an injury would outweigh any potential gains, as it would cost precious time to heal. In his eyes, with Xu Yang’s talent, breaking into the list wouldn’t be an issue after another year or half a year of bitter cultivation. But right now? It seemed highly improbable.

Sun Tao remained silent. He knew Xu Yang had hidden trump cards, and whether to reveal them was entirely up to Xu Yang himself.

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Gu." Xu Yang took a deep breath, gazing up at the towering, majestic structure.

"You only beat me by a stroke of luck last time. This time, let’s see who lasts longer." Wan He stepped into the tower as he spoke. He clearly hadn’t swallowed his previous loss to Xu Yang. After two months of intensive training, his Cultivation had grown much more profound, and he intended to use the Battle Tower to reclaim his lost face.

Watching Wan He’s back fade from sight, Xu Yang quickly stepped forward, his figure also vanishing before the crowd.

"Which layer can Xu Yang reach?" Lu Ren muttered. He and Xu Yang had both risen through the Huang Family’s selection trials. Yet now, Xu Yang was already at the Celestial Essence Second Layer, while he was stuck at the Celestial Essence First Layer, completely unqualified to even challenge the Battle Tower. If it weren’t for his excellent Weapon Forging Talent, which prompted the Celestial Strategy Academy to reward him with a Celestial Spirit Pill, he probably wouldn’t have even broken into the Celestial Essence Realm yet.

"With his Combat Power, he should be able to reach the Sixth Layer," Du Ziming said with a smile, confident that he himself could reach the same level.

"At the very least, the Seventh Layer," Jiang Fan remarked mildly. He was one of the few who knew Xu Yang’s true capabilities. Which layer he reached entirely depended on how much he chose to reveal. Given Xu Yang’s personality, he wouldn’t show off excessively, but he would definitely secure a spot on the Celestial Strategy Wind and Cloud List to reap its benefits.

"How could he possibly reach the Seventh Layer!" Lu Ren shook his head. Wu You, who ranked seventeenth on the Lingyun List, had only barely made it into the Seventh Layer before being swiftly booted out.

The scenery before Xu Yang shifted abruptly, and he found himself standing in a relatively spacious room. The color and material of the walls were identical to the exterior of the Battle Tower, with every surface—top, bottom, and all four sides—covered in intricate runes.

In the center of the room stood a dazzling figure, wreathed in the surging Power of Heaven and Earth. The aura it emitted wasn’t that of an ordinary Celestial Essence Second Layer, but rather the Celestial Essence Second Layer Perfection, with the aura of its Realm permeating its entire body. This was neither a living person nor a puppet; it was a Gatekeeper composed entirely of energy.

Before Xu Yang could even stabilize his footing, the Gatekeeper charged forward, throwing a punch that unleashed multiple fist afterimages. Xu Yang’s bones and muscles crackled in unison. A tyrannical aura erupted from him like a volcanic explosion as he casually returned a punch of his own.

A domineering fist pressure surged, instantly shattering all the fist afterimages the Gatekeeper had produced and exposing the true fist beneath.

BANG! The two fists collided with a thunderous boom. The Gatekeeper’s body flickered with light as it was forced several large steps backward.

"Too weak!" After this preliminary exchange, Xu Yang found that the Gatekeeper’s strength was roughly on par with Yang Zheng, whom he had previously killed. He had managed to suppress the Gatekeeper without even utilizing a Martial Technique or his Secret Technique designed to boost Combat Power—the Eight Ferocious Hidden Dragon Strength.

Of course, compared to when he killed Yang Zheng, his own strength had soared immensely. After manifesting Dragon Qi, his physical body had grown stronger by the day, improving at an astonishing rate. His Cultivation was also incomparable to what it had been back then. Even without activating the Azure Dragon Dominating Body or the Bright King Unmoving Body, a casual punch from him wasn’t something an ordinary Celestial Essence Second Layer cultivator could withstand. Moreover, that punch had contained the power of the Dragon Symbols Heart Scripture.

BOOM! With the simple probe concluded, Xu Yang shattered the air before him as he charged forward, aiming a Palm strike straight at the Gatekeeper’s chest.

Although it wasn’t a living human, its reactions were incredibly fast. Even while stumbling backward, the Gatekeeper crossed its arms over its chest to block, the light radiating from its body intensifying drastically.

BANG! CRACK! The massive hand slammed down with the force of a collapsing mountain. The Gatekeeper’s energy-constructed arms instantly shattered, and the glow emanating from its body noticeably dimmed.

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