Daoyuan Ming burst into laughter. "Alright, you're my student after all. But I still have to remind you, the Sacred Dragon Tower trial isn't that simple. Even that girl Mu Qingqing will have a hard time helping you."
Xin Ci understood that obtaining the blood essence of Saint-tier demonic beasts wouldn't be easy.
However, besides himself, there were nine other people entering the Sacred Dragon Tower trial.
One of them was the Ming Emperor's eldest disciple, Nie Li.
The remaining eight were disciples of other Sacred Emperors from Mingguang City.
These individuals were all significantly older and at higher cultivation realms than Xin Ci.
As Xin Ci stood in the plaza with them, their gazes fell upon him.
Beside Xin Ci stood a tall, muscular man with a resolute face.
This was Shi Kai, a disciple of Stone Emperor, one of the ten Sacred Emperors of Mingguang City!
Shi Kai looked at the short figure beside him, who was only a two-star king, and found it strange.
After all, those who received a spot in the Sacred Dragon Tower trial were invariably disciples of the various Sacred Emperors, and all were at the peak king realm.
This young man, however, was unfamiliar, not appearing to be from Mingguang City.
Just as he was about to inquire about Xin Ci's origins, a sacred light streaked across the sky.
Following this, Emperor Ming Shenwei appeared in mid-air. The crowd immediately fell silent, their eyes turning towards him.
Shenwei's expression was stern as he announced with authority, "The Sacred Dragon Tower trial begins!"
As soon as his words fell, the assembled individuals erupted in excitement.
A swirling vortex tunnel appeared on the first level of the Sacred Dragon Tower.
"Junior Brother Xin, I shall go ahead!"
Nie Li, the eldest disciple of Emperor Ming, cupped his hands to Xin Ci and then transformed into a stream of light, flying into the vortex tunnel.
Nie Li had learned about Xin Ci's background from his master.
In his opinion, Senior Dao Huang's abilities were no less than his master's, and his student must also be quite capable. There was no need for him to pay excessive attention to Xin Ci.
After all, this was the Sacred Dragon Tower trial held once every three years, and once inside the tower, they would be competitors.
After Nie Li entered the Sacred Dragon Tower, Shi Kai and the others followed suit.
Xin Ci, naturally unwilling to be outdone, quickly followed.
For those outside, the Sacred Dragon Tower projected the scenes within onto the plaza.
This allowed Daoyuan Ming and the others to observe the situation inside the tower.
The Sacred Dragon Tower had a total of nine levels, with different rewards for passing each level.
As for the Saint-tier demonic beast blood essence, it was likely only obtainable by passing the ninth level.
Ku Huang, one of the ten Sacred Emperors of Mingguang City, was currently gazing at the scenes within the Sacred Dragon Tower with his arms crossed.
His rugged and wild face conveyed a sense of a beast's roar, making him appear like a human beast. Many around him instinctively kept their distance.
"Li Shan, rein in your ferocity. This isn't the time to fight Nether God Demonic Creatures!"
Qin Huang Ning Xinyue glanced indifferently at Ku Huang and reminded him.
This beautiful woman, though a rare female Sacred Emperor in Mingguang City, ranked just below Emperor Ming among the ten Sacred Emperors.
Her words carried considerable weight, and Ku Huang Li Shan immediately curbed his beastly aura.
Although his combat strength wasn't top-tier among the ten Sacred Emperors, his senses were arguably the sharpest.
He had suddenly sensed an unusual aura, which was very similar to that of Nether God Demonic Creatures, prompting Ku Huang to instinctively release his ferocity.
When he tried to search for this aura again, it had already vanished.
Its disappearance was so swift that he could find no trace.
Was it an illusion?
Ku Huang frowned.
...
The first level of the Sacred Dragon Tower.
After Xin Ci and the other ten entered, they were teleported to different spaces.
Before each of them appeared two Nether God Demonic Creatures, but unlike usual, these creatures were not emitting Nether Qi.
Instead, they were composed of True Essence, suggesting that Emperor Ming had simulated the appearance of Nether God Demonic Creatures using True Essence for them to battle.
Xin Ci also knew that only by defeating the two Nether God Demonic Creatures before him could he pass this level.
He faced two creatures that were entirely dark red, with spines on their backs and six pairs of scythe-like limbs supporting their movement.
They resembled two peculiar walking iron boxes.
Judging by their True Essence strength, each one possessed the power of a four-star king.
Those outside the Sacred Dragon Tower, witnessing this, couldn't help but question Xin Ci's strength.
After all, in their eyes, Xin Ci was merely a two-star king, making it almost impossible for him to deal with two Nether God Demonic Creatures comparable to four-star kings.
"Daoyuan Ming, is this the student you brought back? Why is he only a two-star king?" Ku Huang asked.
Stone Emperor also chimed in, teasing, "Daoyuan Ming, is this boy your illegitimate son?"
Seeing their gossipy demeanor, Daoyuan Ming waved his hand irritably. "Go cool off. Illegitimate son? Xin Ci is an excellent student that this Dean is proud of. Dealing with a mere two Nether God Demonic Creatures will be a piece of cake for him."
"Student? You mean this young man is from Dongzhou!"
Stone Emperor suddenly realized.
Like Emperor Ming, he was aware that Daoyuan Ming had founded an academy in Dongzhou.
However, Daoyuan Ming had barely managed this academy. It was unprecedented for him to bring a student this time.
This revelation caused an uproar among the surrounding crowd.
"No way, he's from that rundown place, Dongzhou."
"Yeah, I heard the spiritual energy there is extremely thin. Is Xin Ci really just a two-star king?"
"With such strength, how did he get into the Sacred Dragon Tower?"
...
For a time, many present expressed doubt towards Xin Ci.
Daoyuan Ming snorted, "What's wrong with being from Dongzhou? I'm from Dongzhou too. Besides, with my discerning eye, would I misjudge someone?"
"If your eye is so discerning, you wouldn't have lost so many spirit stones," Stone Emperor muttered under his breath, pouting.
He then turned his gaze back to the scenes within the Sacred Dragon Tower.
The two walking-box-like Nether God Demonic Creatures charged towards Xin Ci. Their scythe-like limbs sliced through the ground as easily as cutting through tofu, leaving deep gouges.
This time, although Mu Qingqing couldn't switch personalities, she could still provide reminders and assistance to her main personality.
"Xin Ci, the weakness of these two Nether God Demonic Creatures is their abdomen. The best time to strike is when they flip over!"
Upon receiving the information from Mu Qingqing, Xin Ci immediately formulated a plan.
He calmly waited on the spot for the two Nether God Demonic Creatures to approach.
As their scythe-like limbs were about to graze Xin Ci's face, Xin Ci decisively used his movement technique to leap into the air, appearing on their backs.
As the Nether God Demonic Creatures' scythe-like limbs plunged into the ground, Xin Ci's sixteen-star moon chains were instantly activated.
Twelve silver, brilliant chains tightly bound the scythe-like limbs of the Nether God Demonic Creatures.
Xin Ci pulled on the chains, bringing them to the ground and rapidly contracting them.
The two walking-box-like Nether God Demonic Creatures immediately tumbled to the ground, exposing their vulnerable abdomens.
Ten Directions Sky Style, Spearhead Form!
The sixteen chains instantly transformed into sixteen sharp lances, converging on two points and piercing directly into the abdomens of the two Nether God Demonic Creatures.