Mu Chen recovered his state and began to challenge the eleventh floor. He thought two puppets at the Initial Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm would appear this time, but he didn't expect the rules to be different from the previous floors; there was still only one enemy, but it had reached the Middle Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm.
The difficulty had suddenly increased so much. However, for me, it seems to make no difference… Mu Chen activated his Spiritual Energy.
The circular ring, formed by two Worms of Spirit connected head to tail, reappeared. An indescribable torrent of time, in the form of pure light, surged towards the puppet.
In just an instant, Mu Chen's Spiritual Energy was drained, but the opponent, like the previous puppet, was paralyzed.
"Eleventh floor, passed. Do you wish to continue?"
Mu Chen's ranking on the God Soul List became third.
Such a situation naturally caused a heated discussion among the students.
"This Mu Chen guy is quite capable, isn't he? The eleventh floor of the Trial Tower, I remember it already requires the strength of a Middle Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm, right?"
"He seems to have a lot of momentum. I just don't know if he can continue to push higher."
"He probably can't. The puppet on the twelfth floor has the strength of a Late Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm."
"Throughout the years, only a few of the famous figures on the God Soul List have been able to pass the twelfth floor."
"To defeat an opponent across a major realm, even those geniuses can't do it, right?"
Yang Hong looked at the Spirit Value token in his hand, his expression gloomy… Mu Chen shouldn't have lost a baptism and fallen behind us, so how did he catch up?
He felt the pressure once again.
In the desert, after Mu Chen had rested, he began to challenge the twelfth floor.
As expected, under his cheating-like move, he passed instantly again.
"Twelfth floor, passed. Do you wish to continue?"
The outside world was in an uproar. To defeat an opponent at the Late Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm with the strength of the Divine Soul Realm, this could undoubtedly only be done by the most talented individuals. If they didn't fall, they would surely secure a place in the Great Thousand World in the future.
"He passed, he passed, he really passed!"
"His strength is already stronger than many senior students, right?"
"I really don't know how he did it."
The idle senior students discussed heatedly.
Yang Hong's face turned ashen, and the shadow named Mu Chen once again loomed over him.
Luo Li exited the Trial Tower and stood in front of the tower, gazing at the massive stone monument in the distance.
Even from a great distance, she could clearly see the golden, shimmering characters on the stone monument.
Looking at the two characters at the top, above her own name, she showed a joyful expression, even happier than when she herself had taken first place on the God Soul List.
However, soon, an even greater commotion was stirred up, reaching the ears of every student in the Northern Heavens Spiritual Academy.
The thirteenth floor of the Trial Tower had been passed.
The puppet on the thirteenth floor already possessed the strength of an Initial Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm, which would rank high even among the senior students.
"How is this possible?"
"Late Stage of the Divine Soul Realm defeating Initial Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm? Are you sure there's no mistake?"
"Even those two on the Heavenly Rank couldn't reach this level in the Divine Soul Realm, could they?"
If passing the twelfth floor caused astonishment, passing the thirteenth floor added a lot of doubt to that astonishment.
"No, is that Mu Chen guy really that powerful?" Hun Hunsheng's eyes widened.
"Didn't you say he had a move that even you felt threatened by? Then defeating a puppet at the Initial Stage of the Heaven Merging Realm isn't impossible, is it?" Hun Yufeng said with a slight smile.
However, when he looked at Mu Chen's name on the God Soul List, a hint of seriousness also appeared on his face.
Mu Chen had no time to concern himself with the changes happening in the outside world. When he passed the thirteenth floor, he arrived in a special space.
He stood on a circular platform, with a vast sea of clouds in the distance. The clouds rolled, and massive Spiritual Energy tides surged.
Around the platform, magnificent giant pillars connected heaven and earth. Black chains were Binding around these pillars, and tiny light clusters constantly moved along the chains.
These light clusters followed the chains to the center of the platform, converging into a larger ball of light.
Looking at this ball of light, Mu Chen felt a craving rise from the depths of his soul.
Beneath the ball of light stood a young man in white robes. The young man was tall and slender, with a handsome face and exceptionally bright eyes.
Mu Chen could not sense his aura at all, as if he didn't exist there, but was merely an illusion.
"Someone's here?"
The scholar-like young man turned around and looked at Mu Chen. As their bright eyes met, Mu Chen seemed to see a brilliant cosmos.
"Junior Mu Chen greets senior?" Mu Chen quickly bowed.
"Interesting, to be able to pass the trial and come before me… Which Trial Tower did you come from?" the white-robed young man asked.
"Which Trial Tower?" Mu Chen was slightly puzzled, then replied, "Junior is a student of the Northern Heavens Spiritual Academy. After passing the thirteenth floor of the Trial Tower, I suddenly arrived here."
"Northern Heavens Spiritual Academy?" The white-robed young man's face held a smile that made one feel as if bathed in a spring breeze. "Not bad. Since you've come, it's fate. I'll give you a small gift."
The white-robed young man extended his right hand and pointed forward. Mu Chen immediately felt his head swell, and then a look of joy appeared on his face.
A Divine-grade high-level Spiritual Art called "Soul Suppressing Seal" had appeared in his mind.
"Thank you, senior." Mu Chen cupped his hands in gratitude.
However, there was no one in front of him. At some unknown point, he had returned to the wilderness within the Trial Tower.
The vast sea of clouds, the towering giant pillars, and the white-robed young man seemed like mere illusions. If not for the Divine Art still clear in his mind, he would have thought he was dreaming.
Mu Chen had browsed the prices of items in the Spiritual Value Hall through his Spirit Value token. A scroll of low-grade Divine Art generally ranged from 2 million to 4 million Spirit Value, a middle-grade Divine Art from 4 million to 6 million Spirit Value, and a high-grade Divine Art, the most expensive, could even sell for 10 million Spirit Value!
This "Soul Suppressing Seal" was a rare soul-attacking Spiritual Art, and it was among the most top-tier types, definitely comparable to the most expensive Divine Arts in the Spiritual Value Hall!
If it weren't for the fact that this Divine Art was given by that senior, and it wouldn't be good to exchange it without the other party's consent, he would have wanted to sell it for Spirit Value after learning it.
Mu Chen walked out of the Trial Tower, his gaze sweeping the entrance. He saw the black-dressed girl sitting on the steps not far away, gazing at the distant stone monument, and a smile appeared on his face.
"Luo Li, sorry to keep you waiting," he walked forward and said softly.
Luo Li stood up and said with a smile, "Well done."
Mu Chen looked at the massive mountain shaped like an eagle spreading its wings, and then at the God Soul List.
First place, Mu Chen.
Second place, Luo Li.
Third place, Yang Hong.
...
His gaze lingered on the top three for a moment, and a smile appeared on his face.
Shifting his gaze to the Heavenly Rank on the other side of the eagle, his eyes showed a look of longing; that was his next goal.
When he saw the tenth place on the Heavenly Rank, his gaze suddenly froze.
Tenth place on the Heavenly Rank was no longer He Yao, whom he had seen on the day of his enrollment, but a familiar name… Hun Hunsheng.
"Her progress is too fast, isn't it? She's already on the Heavenly Rank," Mu Chen exclaimed.
Luo Li nodded, "She rushed onto the Heavenly Rank not long after you passed the twelfth floor… You don't need to compare yourself to these descendants from powerful families.
"You, who have come this far through your own efforts, are no worse than anyone. I believe that given time, you will surely surpass them."
Mu Chen put his arm around Luo Li, "Your trust is the best motivation for me… I will constantly surpass myself until I am worthy to face any difficulty with you."
Luo Li shyly broke free from Mu Chen's embrace, "So many people are watching… Let's go to the Spiritual Value Hall to exchange for Divine Soul Pills."
"Mm."
The two went through the teleportation gate and arrived at the Spiritual Value Hall.
A few senior students loitering outside the Spiritual Value Hall, seeing that neither Mu Chen nor Luo Li wore guild badges, showed malicious smiles on their faces.
One of the senior students among them looked at Luo Li, his expression changed, and he quickly pulled his companions away.
"Don't go, these two are not to be trifled with."
Senior students bullying new students also needed to gather information. They would avoid those tough new students to prevent trouble.
The three who had previously provoked Hun Hunsheng were simply not well-informed.
"Did you see that girl? Silver hair, blue eyes. This should be Luo Li, ranked second on the God Soul List."
Second on the God Soul List? The senior student who was pulled away changed his expression, a look of relief appearing on his face.
Fortunately, he was stopped, otherwise, they would have definitely gotten into trouble.
"It's said her lover is Mu Chen."
"That Mu Chen, the first on the God Soul List?"
They hurried away, moving some distance off.
The Spiritual Value Hall was a magnificent palace as grand as a mountain, surrounded by swirling clouds, looking like a fairyland.
Standing in front of the Spiritual Value Hall, one felt almost as tiny as an ant. The three large characters on the plaque were hundreds of feet tall, shimmering with golden light in mid-air.
Outside the Spiritual Value Hall, people flowed in and out almost every second.
Mu Chen and Luo Li stood there for a moment, observing, then flew in together.
As they flew through the main entrance, they could feel an invisible force sweeping over them.
Upon entering the main hall, Mu Chen felt as if he had arrived in a cosmos. Countless glistening crystals floated in mid-air, and he could vaguely see scrolls, Spiritual Artifacts, and rare treasures within them…
He suddenly felt a stir in his heart, seeing a crystal ball dozens of feet large, containing a deep red mass of blood, with wisps of black flames rising from it.
Above the crystal ball, several golden characters shimmered, reading "Nine Netherworld Sparrow Essence Blood."
"This, this is it, I want it!" Nine Nether was uncontrollably excited.
Mu Chen rolled his eyes, "Calm down. I can't afford this now, and don't even think of any crooked ideas, otherwise, there might be another Nine Nether Bird essence in one of these crystal balls."
Nine Nether knew he was speaking the truth and could only reluctantly restrain herself. Her gaze passed through his Qi Sea, lingering on that crystal ball, full of reluctance.
Mu Chen flew directly towards a platform in mid-air. On the platform, a white-haired old man was sprawled over a counter, looking sleepy.
"Elder, I would like to purchase a Divine Soul Pill."
The old man raised his head and glanced at him, "New student? Don't come to me for items priced under a million. Do you see those crystal pillars? Go operate it yourself."
The old man pointed to the crystal pillars on the platform, which reached chest height, and said impatiently, "
The operation method is similar to the Spirit Value token. After selection, the corresponding Spirit Value will be automatically deducted from your Spirit Value token."
The old man's gaze inadvertently fell upon Luo Li, with a hint of surprise in his eyes, "Someone from the Luoshen Clan?"
Luo Li remained silent and did not answer, pulling Mu Chen towards the crystal pillars.
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