Chapter 32 – Dao Treasure: Tower of Illusory Heavens

Regarding the Hundred Arts of Cultivation, Zong Xiu held no expectations, yet he still felt a sense of envy.

As for Mu Lin, he also harbored thoughts of learning Talismans and Arrays.

Firstly, Arrays and Talismans could enhance the power of his Paper Figure Technique, and secondly… they could earn money.

Wealth, companions, methods, and land—the more he cultivated, the more Mu Lin felt these four were indispensable, and in this world, wealth was the most important.

Only with sufficient Spirit Stones could he purchase spiritual materials and delicacies, cultivation resources, and precious items.

However, obtaining Spirit Stones was not easy. Although he possessed excellent skills in Painting and Calligraphy, such Artworks could not be sold in large quantities.

Scarcity determines value; even the finest Artwork becomes worthless once it becomes abundant.

This was also why, in his previous life, most painters only became famous after death.

…

While Mu Lin pondered how to make money, Zong Xiu, after sighing, brought up the final and most important matter of the Formal Class—forming a team.

“Team?”

These words left Mu Lin stunned.

Everything Zong Xiu had mentioned earlier, Mu Lin could understand, but the last point about a team was something he couldn’t comprehend.

“Does the Dao Palace require us to form teams?”

“Not exactly, but one’s energy is ultimately limited. Therefore, the Dao Palace supports teamwork among us…”

Through Zong Xiu’s explanation, Mu Lin learned that the need to form teams was related to Anomaly Evil.

During the long years of warfare, some wise individuals of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty had discovered that Evil Spirits possessed peculiar abilities and were extremely difficult to kill. Most individuals were no match for Anomalies of the same rank.

Fortunately, humans possessed wisdom and knew how to unite.

When facing Evil Aberrations, humans were indeed at a disadvantage in one-on-one combat. However, if three or five people gathered to deliver righteous beatdowns, everything changed.

However, hastily formed teams from outside often suffered from lack of unity and fear of betrayal, making few feel secure. As a result, they couldn’t exert their full strength and might even end up with 1+1+1<1.

In contrast, the Disciples of the Dao Palace, having spent three years together, knew each other inside out. Therefore, the Dao Palace strongly encouraged Mu Lin and the others to form small teams of three to five people to face crises together.

—The reason for supporting only three to five-person teams was the shortage of Qi Refiners in major cities. Forming teams of eight or ten would make it impossible to protect the entire territory of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty.

Because teamwork was encouraged, the Dao Palace’s assessments could all be conducted in teams.

Speaking of assessments, Zong Xiu’s expression once again turned mysterious.

“Brother Mu, guess how the Dao Palace conducts its assessments?”

“Assessments? Arena matches?”

“No.”

“Team battles?”

“Haha, not that either.”

Without letting Mu Lin guess further, Zong Xiu said with a mix of awe and longing:

“Brother Mu, your thinking is too conventional. When the Dao Palace was established, several Celestial Masters and even legendary Dao Lords were involved.”

“Arenas and team battles—these are ordinary assessment methods. What we undergo is live combat drills!”

“?!”

The words “live combat” startled Mu Lin greatly.

He couldn’t understand why the Dao Palace would do something so irrational.

Admittedly, live combat was the best way to accumulate combat experience and screen for talent.

However, the current Mu Lin and his companions were still very weak, no match for the Anomaly Evil at all. Going to the battlefield at this time would be nothing but a death sentence.

But soon, he realized something.

“Practical training is followed by drills… Could it be that the Celestial Masters have captured Evil Spirits and bound them within the Dao Palace for us to deal with?”

Mu Lin’s speculation made Zong Xiu’s smile widen even further.

“Indeed, there are Evil Spirits bound within the Dao Palace. However, Brother Mu, you still underestimate the methods of the Celestial Masters and Dao Lords. They are far stronger than you or I imagine.”

At this point, Zong Xiu spoke with a look of longing:

“According to the Dao Palace instructors, when the Dao Palace was established, the Celestial Masters and Dao Lords worked together to forge a trial Dao Treasure—the Tower of Illusory Heavens.”

“This trial tower stands thirty-three stories high, binding countless Evil Aberrations, Demons and Monsters within. It also possesses the abilities of division, Illusion Art, and Divine Soul projection.”

“With this Dao Treasure, we can project our Divine Souls into the tower, undergoing trials within the Tower of Illusory Heavens in the form of illusions. I have tried it once…”

As Zong Xiu recounted with awe, Mu Lin gradually understood the assessment methods of the Dao Palace’s Formal Class and the power of the Tower of Illusory Heavens.

As a Dao Treasure forged with the full might of the Great Spirit Imperial Dynasty, the Tower of Illusory Heavens possessed extraordinary capabilities.

First was suppression and restraint. The Tower of Illusory Heavens had even subdued several calamity-level aberrations and Evil Spirits.

Second was division. Although the Main Body of the Tower of Illusory Heavens resided in the Imperial City, through its division ability, each of the thirty-three Dao Palaces housed a Clone of the tower. Disciples like Mu Lin could use these sub-towers for training.

Finally was illusion. Upon entering the tower, Mu Lin and the others would not simply face Evil Aberrations, Demons and Monsters in one-on-one duels on a single platform.

With its powerful Illusion Art capabilities and the constructions of Earth Masters and Celestial Masters, the Tower of Illusory Heavens could directly recreate disaster-stricken areas and even the people within them.

This near-realistic illusion made Mu Lin and the others’ training almost indistinguishable from actual combat, which was why Zong Xiu referred to the Dao Palace’s assessment as practical drills.

“It is said that the scenarios within the Tower of Illusory Heavens are countless, and to this day, no one has experienced a repeated assessment. Therefore, once inside, we have no templates to follow—everything must rely on improvisation.”

“The Tower of Illusory Heavens also supports team entry, as long as the team does not exceed five members. Through teamwork, Yan Yunyu’s progress has caught up to Ji Xue, and both are currently on the third floor…”

From Zong Xiu’s account, Mu Lin also learned that the Tower of Illusory Heavens could be entered on ordinary days. However, because entering consumed energy, Mu Lin and the others only had one free entry opportunity every ten days.

To enter a second time, one would need to spend Spirit Stones.

Additionally, climbing the tower came with rewards. At the end of each month, the five teams with the highest number of floors climbed would receive rewards.

Due to resource considerations, most people would climb the tower with all their might.

However, Mu Lin was not prepared to go for now.

He had no extra Spirit Stones to purchase entry tickets, so he only had one chance to climb the tower every ten days.

For this reason, Mu Lin planned to schedule his tower climb for the last day.

After exchanging a few more words, Zong Xiu left. Before departing, he mentioned that he would discuss with his teammates and team leader to see if he could bring Mu Lin into the team, but Mu Lin declined this offer.

While he was conversing with Zong Xiu, several people frowned and frequently glanced in their direction.

Clearly, they were Zong Xiu’s teammates, and from their expressions, Mu Lin could tell they were not welcoming toward him.

Since others did not welcome him, Mu Lin naturally had no intention of forcing his way in.

As expected, things unfolded just as he had anticipated.

After Zong Xiu returned to his team, before he could even say anything, a young man fiddling with a small knife spoke to him with a displeased expression.

“Zong Xiu, we won’t say anything about you befriending that waste… befriending that person, but don’t bring him into our team. We don’t welcome trash here.”

Evidently, even after Teacher Dongfang Ya’s explanation, the group still did not approve of Mu Lin with his Third-Class Spirit Root.

After the young man with the knife spoke, although the others remained silent, their expressions made it clear they were not welcoming toward Mu Lin either.

Their team leader, a girl who appeared exceptionally sturdy, did not speak harshly about Mu Lin but explicitly stated that if Mu Lin wanted to join their team, he would need to undergo an assessment.

Only if he satisfied them would they allow him to join the team.

Hearing this, Zong Xiu shook his head and said, “No need for an assessment. Brother Mu has already declined.”

This statement left the others momentarily stunned, while the young man with the knife sneered, “Hah, at least he knows his place.”

…

Mu Lin was unaware of the dispute within Zong Xiu’s team. With no one disturbing him, he immediately found a spot and began practicing the Blackwater Profound Serpent Mortal Shedding Art.

“Hum…”

As Spiritual Energy surged in, Mu Lin’s Black Mist Magical Power continued to accumulate.

If he continued cultivating like this, the day when he would temper his body to the point of Spirit Awakening was not far off.

However, there was something that left him both amused and exasperated.

His Third-Class Spirit Root meant his speed of refining and merging Mana was not particularly fast. In contrast, his Cultivation Method proficiency, thanks to the Proficiency Panel, was advancing rapidly.

By now, Mu Lin’s Black Mist Magical Power had not yet accumulated to the Spirit Awakening Realm, but his progress in the Blackwater Profound Serpent Mortal Shedding Art had already reached the 2nd Realm, Proficient (480/900).

This led him to the frustrating realization that he might very well reach the 3rd Realm of his Cultivation Method—the Gushing Spring and Spirit Pool stage—while his Mana Cultivation remained stuck at Qi Drawing.

“That probably won’t happen… right?”

(End of Chapter)