"How did you find me?" Gu You asked.
"By sensing the surrounding elements," Gu Yue replied calmly.
Gu You raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? You're telling me that just by sensing elemental fluctuations, you can pinpoint my location? If that's the case, doesn't that mean you could locate me anywhere in the world with absolute precision using elemental perception?"
He didn't believe it. Even if she was the Silver Dragon King, controlling and sensing the elemental energies of the entire continent was simply impossible—especially considering she wasn't at her full strength or in her complete form.
"…Fine. I smelled the medicinal aroma," Gu Yue lowered her head slightly. "I caught the scent and guessed it was you."
"See? Isn't it better to just tell the truth?" Gu You smiled. "I've never had ill intent toward you."
"So, what did you come to me for?" he asked.
"I'd been asking around. The teachers said you were on leave. I originally wanted to challenge the tower, but thought we'd need one more person—you. So I waited. Didn't expect I'd be waiting for half a month," Gu Yue said.
"Challenge the tower?" Gu You showed a hint of interest.
"Yes," Gu Yue nodded. "It's a good opportunity to obtain a spirit soul. The academy has a partnership with the Spirit Pagoda. Shrek students don't have to rely solely on purchasing spirit souls. There are special opportunities to obtain higher-quality ones. Buying directly is expensive and often random—high-quality spirit souls are hard to supply and frequently involve luck or raffles. It's difficult to get what you want."
"But there's another way offered by the Spirit Pagoda—it's just more troublesome."
"So this tower challenge you mentioned is the alternative method?" Gu You asked with a flat tone.
Gu Yue nodded. "The Spirit Pagoda has a rule: to obtain a spirit soul of a thousand years or higher, one can attempt the Tower Challenge. At Spirit Pagoda Headquarters, there's a tower with 108 floors. Each floor is guarded by different arrays. If you pass the challenge of a floor, you can choose a spirit soul from that level."
"At that point, you can either absorb it or move on. If you move on, you can't go back to pick from the previous floor. If you fail the next floor, then the reward is forfeited—but you do get a 50% discount on the current level's spirit soul if you lost there."
"There are two types of people allowed to challenge the tower. One is Spirit Pagoda's own members. The other is talented individuals with special gifts. That's where Shrek Academy came in. After negotiations, our students can receive identity approval to challenge the tower."
"Because martial souls vary widely, and not everyone is a combat-type, the challenge is conducted in teams. Maximum team size is seven. The difficulty is also scaled for seven. The first eighteen floors are for thousand-year spirit souls. From the nineteenth to thirty-sixth floor, it's ten-thousand-year spirit souls. These are spirit beasts collected by Spirit Pagoda over the years."
"Above the thirty-sixth floor are spirit beasts with over ten-thousand-year cultivation. It's said that the top nine floors house hundred-thousand-year fierce beasts—collected over millennia. Each one is a rare existence."
Gu You originally had no interest in going—until he heard about the fierce beasts on the top nine floors. His eyes lit up.
"When are we going?" he asked, suddenly animated.
"Tomorrow morning. I was just about to notify Spirit Pagoda," Gu Yue answered, puzzled by his sudden excitement.
She couldn't see through him.
"You're not actually planning to reach the top nine floors, are you?" Gu Yue's pupils widened. Given Gu You's current cultivation, he couldn't even absorb a spirit ring—what would be the point? Unless… he was after the hundred-thousand-year spirit beasts.
"You're not dumb after all," Gu You smiled. "Ordinary spirit beasts are useless to me. But those hundred-thousand-year ones? Those I'm interested in."
Nine hundred-thousand-year spirit beasts—just the thought of it made his blood stir.
"I heard Shrek Academy has some powerful spirit soul legacies as well," Gu Yue added. "But they're only open to inner court students. I suspect they might be more up your alley."
Gu You nodded. He'd drain every resource out of the academy once he returned.
"But even if you can defeat them and claim their spirit soul forms," Gu Yue frowned, "your cultivation still isn't enough to absorb them. What's the point?"
Gu You simply gave her a mysterious look. "If I say it'll work, then it will."
That night, back at the working student dormitory, Gu You spent time catching up with Xie Xie and the others.
As usual, Xie Xie's mouth wouldn't stop. Gu You patiently answered all his questions—not just for Xie Xie's sake, but for the whole group.
"For you." Gu You handed Yuanen a pair of gauntlets. Her gaze softened slightly.
"Thanks..."
The next morning.
The weather was gloomy, the sky clouded over, and dawn came later than usual. But the dorms were already bustling.
Everyone had eaten breakfast and gathered, ready to depart.
Everyone—except for Tang Wulin.
As Gu You scanned the group, another familiar figure caught his eye.
"Xu Lizhi!" he exclaimed.
"Big bro, didn't expect to see you here!" Xu Lizhi grinned. His chubby frame made him stand out like a beacon—nearly twice the size of anyone else present.
Yuanen stood apart from the rest of the group, especially away from Yue Zhengyu.
Zhengyu didn't approach either, keeping a cold expression.
Xu Xiaoyan's expression was somewhat awkward. Gu Yue, as always, remained calm.
Xie Xie lingered on the side, occasionally sneaking glances at Yuanen, but didn't dare go near.
Clap, clap.
Gu You clapped his hands. "Since everyone's here, let's skip the chatter. Let's go!"
With that, the group set out from Shrek Academy in high spirits.
At the academy gate, Gu You was about to call for a car when a luxurious van rolled up outside.
The door opened, and Yue Zhengyu's butler stepped down to open the doors for them.
Xie Xie gave Zhengyu a thumbs-up. "Finally acting like a normal human being for once."
Zhengyu sat in the front passenger seat, the butler driving. The van had six seats in the back—enough for six people comfortably, if not for Xu Lizhi. The big guy alone took up one and a half seats.
Still, they all managed to squeeze in.
Xie Xie sat on the far left, right next to Yuanen.
It was his first time sitting so close to her—especially in such a cramped space. His heart was pounding, and memories of that one unforgettable moment flashed through his mind again.
"If you dare think anything inappropriate… I'll kill you."
(End of Chapter)
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Huge Shoutout to Nick for Joining our Family and Becoming a Member of Diamond.
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