Chapter 178: Golden Crystal Lion
The 24-floor Demon Subduing Tower stood tall like a huge monument that was rooted deep in the abyss.
Despite being hung on the corners of the roof, the bells remained still and silent.
The sight of the entrance was like a monster with its mouth open wide, and everyone was reluctant to enter.
“Pussies!” Little Jupiter Zhang Ye mocked, breaking the silence.
He was the first to fly into the tower.
Nothing had changed in the tower, and no one followed him.
It was as if something was off with the tower.
“What an idiot!” Lu Chang’an scoffed.
No one changed their expressions, but all of them were eager to see what would happen after Zhang Ye had entered.
They didn’t mind that Little Jupiter was the first to enter.
Instead, they were glad that there was someone who was stupid enough to head in and learn of the situation first.
No one was surprised at Lu Chang’an’s remark either, as they had already learned of how Zhang Ye took the Grade 4 elixirs away right under his eyes.
It didn’t take long for the first floor of the tower to light up.
“He has already learned the first floor. Are you guys still going to wait?” The sound of the shadow echoed from the tower. “He’s already in the lead. Even if any of you reached the final floor at the same time, only the person who gets to the tablet first would get the residence and the tower.”
As soon as the shadow said that, a few people immediately charged into the tower.
The first group that entered consisted of Little Item Alchemist Zhang Jiao, the cultivators from the kingdom, and Wu Qi from the Mystic Evil Clan.
A few seconds later, the others chased after them.
Hua Anxiang turned to look at Chen Jingzhai and smiled before following suit.
“Master-Uncle, let’s go!” Chu Jingsong exclaimed excitedly.
“Hold up.” Chen Jingzhai took a few spiritual items out. “The higher we go, the more difficult the tests will be. So let’s process these items first and remember to bring any elixirs that can recover our spiritual power.”
“But…”
“This is not the time to act rashly. This is a treasure that even Nascent Plane cultivators would want,” Chen Jingzhai said. “Even if we can’t get our hands on the tower, we’ll at least have to get the item alchemy inheritance.”
Since they had no information on the tower, entering without any preparation would be a bad idea. Also, those items weren’t actually what Chen Jingzhai needed.
“Alright!”
Jiang Lin and Chu Jingsong immediately took the spiritual items and elixirs from Chen Jingzhai.
They didn’t randomly choose from the pile but carefully selected two spiritual items instead.
Jiang Lin already had the 18 Flying Swords Formation. However, he needed something to defend himself with, so he had chosen to take the fish scale shield.
He also picked a wooden arrow as a one-time attack-type spiritual item.
On the other hand, Chu Jingsong had chosen two different attack-type spiritual items.
To him, his own sturdy body was his best defense, and he also had enough defensive spiritual items to protect himself.
Instead, he needed something to give him a boost in his attack.
Most of the elixirs that Chen Jingzhai had given were for recovery.
There were also some poison pills, and he had to explain how to use them.
After they were fully prepared, they entered the tower together.
The moment they stepped into it, Chen Jingzhai felt as if his world was spinning once again. It was the same sensation that he had felt when he entered the plaza. However, he got used to it quickly, and his divine mind locked on the targets instantly.
They were Grade 2 demonic beasts, the Green-Scaled Wolves.
The wolves were three times larger than normal wolves and were covered in green scales, even between their eyes.
Their fangs were extremely sharp.
There were three of them, and they got into a formation before leaping toward Chen Jingzhai.
Chu Jingsong and Jiang Lin weren’t with him, and he guessed that it was a solo test.
Three rays of golden light appeared in Chen Jingzhai’s hand and were shot at the middle of the wolves’ foreheads. The scary-looking wolves burst into dust immediately, and the room was soon filled with the stench of blood.
“These are actually real.” Chen Jingzhai frowned.
It was evidence that another space existed inside the tower.
There was a high chance that demonic beasts were being raised in it, but one thing that Chen Jingzhai was sure of was that it was much more complicated than he had thought.
The moment the wolves were slain, a Restriction shone brightly inside the room.
Chen Jingzhai approached the Restriction, and two items suddenly appeared.
One was a Grade 2 Blood Refinement Elixir, and the other was a sword made out of the remains of the Green-Scaled Wolf.
“Please pick one of the two before heading to the second floor. If you wish to forfeit, please return to the wall after selecting your reward.”
Chen Jingzhai did not even hesitate and picked up the sword before heading into the teleportation restriction.
The second floor was visibly larger than the first, and there were more beasts.
Instead of Green-Scaled Wolves, there were five Flame Leopards.
The instant Chen Jingzhai appeared, the five Grade 2 leopards charged at him.
It was as if they were hungry or bored.
Chen Jingzhai immediately deployed a water shield, and with a single kick, he launched himself into the air.
The Flame Leopards opened their mouths and shot fireballs toward the human. The water shield separated and formed into water balls to meet the fireballs.
When the two different element attacks collided, a water explosion was caused, and the air was filled with fog.
Chen Jingzhai dived down and flew past the five leopards.
When he turned back around, the leopards’ heads had been cleanly separated from their bodies.
“This feels like I’m playing a game with different levels. I wonder where the item alchemy inheritance is. I don’t suppose it will appear on this floor, right?”
Chen Jingzhai turned to look at the Restriction that was shining and approached it.
Similar to the previous floor, the two rewards were both made with the remains of the Flame Leopards.
One was a Grade 2 Flame Spear, and the other was a Grade 2 Explosive Elixir.
The Flame Spear had a good design. The hilt had a leopard’s head on top with the blade coming out of the opened mouth. It was a high-quality item among spiritual items.
However, Chen Jingzhai chose the Explosive Elixir instead, as he didn’t have one.
Once consumed, he would be able to detonate the spiritual power inside of him.
It was something that one would normally use as a last resort. However, there was no fault in him choosing that, as anything could’ve happened in the future. The elixir might come in handy.
After taking his reward, he headed to the third floor without pause.
The number of monsters increased once again. This time, he had to face nine Golden Crystal Lions.
Each was taller than a human, and their auras were enough to pressure a person.
Their manes were gold in color, and their bodies would turn gold as well when they were ready to battle.
However, their eyes were crystal clear.
The nine lions did not charge at Chen Jingzhai at once. Instead, they spread out and formed a curved formation.
All 18 crystal eyes were focused on the lone human.
Despite being Grade 2 demonic beasts, Chen Jingzhai felt the pressure of Grade 3 beasts from them.
With a loud roar, the lion on the farthest left charged toward Chen Jingzhai and arrived in front of him almost instantly.
Chen Jingzhai was utterly shocked as the speed was already at the peak of Grade 2.
He was thrown back from the tackle, but the moment he landed on the ground, he turned into a puddle of water.
It was the Water Illusion Shadow.
The water moved to the right, and Chen Jingzhai emerged from it. It was then that the lion on the farthest right launched its attack.
It was the same speed, but this time, it attacked with its claw.
Chen Jingzhai met the attack with his punch, which shattered the lion’s paw.
With his body fully replaced with celestial bones and all of his acupoints spiritualized, his body had already far surpassed a spiritual item.
He even only used less than a third of his full power.
With a single grip, he crushed the lion’s head before moving on to other targets.
It only took two breaths for him to slaughter all nine lions.
“Can I keep the remains?” he suddenly arrogantly asked.
“That will be not possible,” the spirit of the tower replied. “The remains belong to the Demon Subduing Tower.”
“I see.” Chen Jingzhai sighed and shook his head.
The Green-Scaled Wolves and Flame Leopards could be commonly found, but the Golden Crystal Lions were so rare that Chen Jingzhai had yet to see one. Even if Luo Sheng Swords School had a few, it would take a long wait for him to get his hands on one.
With signs of disappointment, he approached the shinning Restriction.
The rewards were a Grade 2 Golden Crystal Bow with nine Lion’s Head Arrows and a Golden Jade Strengthening Elixir, considered a high-grade item among Grade 2 elixirs.
The elixir could enhance one’s body, but neither Chen Jingzhai nor a Golden Core Sage could benefit from it.
He chose the bow and arrows, which were relatively rare since they were spiritual items.