East Sea Spirit Tower.
From almost anywhere in East Sea City—even in its more remote corners—the Spirit Pagoda could be clearly seen. It rose hundreds of meters high, with over a hundred floors. Even among the skyscrapers of East Sea City, it was a landmark building.
The base of the Spirit Pagoda was octagonal and covered a wide area. Every ten floors upward, the tower gradually narrowed until it tapered to a sharp spire.
Even from the outside, one could feel its immense, awe-inspiring presence.
After all, East Sea Spirit Pagoda was one of the eighteen major branch towers of the Spirit Pagoda organization. These eighteen towers were grandly called the "Eighteen Heavenly Pillars."
The organization had existed for over ten thousand years. Its significance to soul masters, combined with its epoch-making development of artificial spirit souls, had elevated its status. It spread across the three continents, becoming one of the most powerful forces in existence.
This was not Lin Xiuran's first time here, but arriving still made him marvel at the tower's grandeur.
Even the first floor, where visitors were received, was decorated in gold and brilliance. The floor was laid with dark golden stone, patterned with dazzling natural textures. Massive stone pillars supported a dome dozens of meters high, and the pillars and dome were adorned with gorgeous, colorful murals.
The murals shone with gold and colors, depicting landscapes and people, seemingly recording stories.
Lin Xiuran knew exactly what story was being toldvit was the story of Huo Yuhao. Yet he found it odd that he saw no trace of Tang Wutong, the pink-and-blue-haired woman who should have been beside Huo Yuhao.
After all, such a large organization wouldn't make such a mistake but Lin Xiuran didn't dwell on it. What happened thousands of years ago had nothing to do with him; his goal here was the spirit soul.
Although Lin Xiuran had bought a spirit soul here once before, it had been several years. To avoid mistakes like going to the wrong floor and unnecessary trouble, he asked for directions.
It was easy Spirit Pagodas were similar to hospitals. At the front was a counter, behind which sat a attendant in a gray robe, responsible for answering questions. After all, the tower was huge; without guidance, one could easily get lost.
After confirming the correct floor, Lin Xiuran entered the soul-powered lift. Climbing to the fifty-first floor on foot would have been exhausting.
East Sea City was a large city with many soul masters, so the Spirit Tower attracted many visitors. After waiting a short while, he finally got on the lift.
When the lift reached halfway—around the twenty-fifth floor—it stopped. Naturally, someone was entering. Lin Xiuran didn't think this unusual; the lift flow of the tower meant people frequently got on at different floors.
But when he saw who had stepped in, his eyes froze for a moment.
A girl entered. Not extraordinarily beautiful, but delicate and refined. She had long black hair, black eyes, and a medium-to-tall build for her age—proportional and athletic. Her large eyes were sharp and spirited. She wore simple black casual clothing but radiated a distinct aura.
This was not what shocked Lin Xiuran. The reason was her face. Although he wasn't very familiar with it, he had seen it before—and knew everything about her.
This was Gu Yue of the Zero Class. He had seen her at the Riot-Period Spirit Ascension Platform, the one who had eliminated Xu Xiaoyu—but only he knew her true identity: the Silver Dragon King!
As Gu Yue pressed her floor button, the lift ascended again.
Spirit Pagoda lifts were the highest-spec on the market: fast and stable. Yet Lin Xiuran felt time crawl.
He didn't know why, but when he saw her, his heart suddenly raced. It was a panicked, slightly painful pounding that made his breathing unstable.
Perhaps it was because of her identity; after all, Gu Yue, the Silver Dragon King, was a supreme existence. Lin Xiuran's current strength was negligible in comparison.
His unstable aura must have caught Gu Yue's attention, for she suddenly glanced at him.
At the same moment, Lin Xiuran inadvertently looked at her, and their eyes met.
"Hmmph!"
Almost simultaneously, both of them instinctively raised a hand to their heads and stepped back. For an instant, Lin Xiuran's eyes were filled with a purple light.
It came and went quickly. The next moment, his vision cleared, though his head felt heavy—a strange, indescribable feeling.
Gu Yue's eyes showed a trace of confusion. She glanced at Lin Xiuran, composed herself, and noticing the open stairwell door, stepped out first.
Lin Xiuran, left in the lift, regained his thoughts. The previous moment had been sudden; he hadn't fully processed it.
Was it a deliberate test by Gu Yue?
Clearly not—he had seen that she had been affected as well. But now, except for that brief purple light, nothing else had occurred.
Without time to overthink, he soon arrived at the fifty-first floor. Seeing that all was well, he walked in.
This floor was dedicated to selecting spirit souls. Modern and high-tech, it was filled with advanced instruments.
The first step in choosing a spirit soul was to test mental power. The strength of one's mind determined what level of spirit souls could be fused.
After paying for the mental power test, Lin Xiuran sat in a chair. A staff member placed a metal helmet-like device on his head.
The test was fast, and soon the results came out:
"One hundred fifty-five!"
The attendant gasped. For a child around ten years old, this number was terrifying.
Not just in East Sea City—on the entire continent, there were few soul masters of this age with such mental power.
The attendant had not cared much about Lin Xiuran's thin and worn clothes before, but now, he truly paid attention.
At mid-stage Spirit Core level, he could fuse a century-old yellow spirit soul with no problem. With Lin Xiuran's mental power, any century-old spirit soul could be fused easily.
The attendant quickly displayed all the spirit souls available in East Sea City on the large screen. East Sea Spirit Pagoda was a major institution, so there were no defective products, nor could one extract spirit souls like Tang Wulin. Everything had to be chosen and purchased by Lin Xiuran himself.
(End of Chapter)