Tower Defense: Public Enemy

Chapter 569 The Floating Pagoda

Snow fell, ice formed, and the world turned a ghastly white!

This is the northern part of Tianji Star, a place called the "Forbidden Ice Plains".

In stark contrast to the ever-spring-like climate of Tianji Star, the forbidden ice plains are perpetually below minus two hundred degrees Celsius. The vast expanse of land is devoid of birds and beasts, with snow-capped mountains standing tall and devoid of any vegetation.

This is a forbidden land for mortals, where snow of the six phases of ice falls and the wind of bitter cold sweeps through the air. Snow mountains often erupt, spewing out extremely cold icy mist, and thunder often breaks through the sky, the thunder being solidified, crystalline ice cones.

At this very moment, in the middle of this forbidden ice plain, [Imagine] stretched the chains around her body taut, but the God-Locking Coffin, which was attached to the other end of the chains, was frozen firmly to the ground.

[Heavenly Wrath], whose body was entangled in spacetime rifts, was currently frozen inside a huge hexagonal block of ice. The ice block was constantly breaking and repairing itself. [Heavenly Wrath] clearly wanted to struggle free, but this was not an easy task.

Through the swirling snow, a massive palace could be faintly seen in front of these two divine beings.

The palace seemed to be carved from crystal, untouched by wind and snow, and upon it was a phoenix made of ice and snow.

The ice phoenix was enormous, over ten thousand meters long, with its wings spread wide. It hovered in mid-air, as if protecting a crystal palace. Given its size, if it were to land, it would probably be as large as a mountain.

Above his head sat a woman in a white robe.

The woman had long silver hair, which stretched out behind her and was probably several meters long. She covered her face with a white veil, made a lotus mudra with her hands, and held a jade ruyi scepter across her knees. She sat there quietly, as if she had been there for countless years.

Suddenly, the woman raised an eyebrow, slowly opened her eyes, and looked at a void in front of her.

As if in response to her, the space there suddenly distorted, and a cold wind blew by, as if blowing away a wisp of mist, and a figure suddenly appeared.

Behind that figure was a slowly rotating cosmic ring; it was Lei Chi who had arrived.

Lei Chi glanced at the enormous crystal palace below, then bowed to the silver-haired woman atop the ice phoenix.

He knew that this was the Ascended Supreme Being!

Its strength is undeniable; even the advanced quantum computer cannot detect its combat power.

After a moment's consideration, Lei Chi said, "May I ask the Great Venerable Ascended Heaven, would you allow us to proceed?"

The woman's eyes flashed coldly; she wasn't surprised that Lei Chi had exposed her identity. She calmly asked, "Who are you?"

"I will unify the world!"

"Unification!" The woman narrowed her eyes slightly. "Your path is mysterious! I will not be your enemy. Even if you wish to travel thousands of miles away and shatter the four poles of the heavens, I will not stop you. But you must not take those two fantastical beasts with you!"

"Oh? Why?"

Lei Chi knew that the "beast of imagination" she mentioned was [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath]. He felt a strong curiosity about this Ascended Venerable, but he didn't know why she would leave behind [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath].

"Because they do not belong to this world, they should return to their original place."

"Returning to their original place?" Lei Chi's heart skipped a beat. "Does the Great Venerable recognize them? Does he know where they came from?"

The Ascended Grand Venerable scrutinized Lei Chi, remaining silent for a long while before saying, "You seem to have gained the allegiance of the two beasts. You must have met Sheng Tian or Sonic, right? Yet you still don't know their origins?"

Lei Chi cupped his hands again, intuitively sensing that the Ascended Venerable before him was an extraordinary person and wished to learn from him. So he said, "I subdued these two beasts by chance. Although I have met the Victorious King, he has fallen into a deep sleep. As for the origin of these two beasts, I do not know."

"Is that so?" The Ascending Grand Venerable showed no emotional fluctuation, slowly saying, "About 500,000 years ago, the Four Extremes of Heaven were broken open by external forces, revealing the Heavenly Mystery Tomb. A powerful figure broke into the tomb, and Sheng Tian and Sonic also entered by chance. Ten years later, that powerful figure left, and the Four Extremes of Heaven began to slowly recover. Just as the Four Extremes of Heaven were fully repaired and about to seal the Heavenly Mystery Tomb, Sheng Tian and Sonic flew out from within, bringing with them many strange creatures. These two Imaginary Beasts were two of them!"

"Um?"

Five hundred thousand years ago?

The four poles of heaven? Could they be four spacetime anchor points?

The Heavenly Mystery Tomb? Is it a proper tomb?

Countless associations immediately formed in Lei Chi's mind, and the AI ​​also started working quickly to help Lei Chi organize the information and make inferences.

The Ascended Grand Venerable continued, "Therefore, the Sky Beasts of the past two days originally came from the Heavenly Mystery Tomb. They shouldn't have been born; they were brought out by Sheng Tian and Sonic. So they should be released back to ensure the stable operation of the Heavenly Mystery Tomb..."

"Could the Heavenly Mystery Array mentioned by the Ascended Heavenly Venerable be the center of the starry universe? Why is it called the Heavenly Mystery Tomb? Could it be the tomb of some being? Did Imagination and Heavenly Wrath originate from that tomb? Did Victorious King and Sonic obtain opportunities in that tomb, which led to their rapid advancement in strength? Also, 500,000 years ago, this time point is somewhat close to the beginning of the God Realm Era. Could it be that the emergence of the God Realm is also related to the events of 500,000 years ago?"

Lei Chi pondered quickly, vaguely feeling as if he had found a thread that could connect all the secrets.

The Ascending Venerable then said, "If I'm not mistaken, you also intend to break through the Four Extremes of Heaven and then enter the Heavenly Mystery Tomb, right? I can go with you. You can leave these two Imaginary Beasts to me, and I will personally send them back."

Lei Chi did not respond directly, but instead asked, "May I ask, what is the Heavenly Secrets Tomb?"

The Ascending Great Venerable said, "Tianji Star is a graveyard, where a 'Heaven' is buried. Our clan comes from beyond the heavens, carrying this 100,000-mile-long ice plain and the Crystal Palace. Our mission is to deliver that Heaven, dissolve all its malevolent energy, and allow it to be reborn!"

Lei Chi was startled and asked, "You want to perform a ritual to liberate one celestial being? And send another celestial being to be reborn?"

The Ascending Supreme Being nodded and said, "Indeed, this is our mission to ascend to heaven! Throughout the infinite universe, many of our people are undertaking this task!"

"So, you ascending to heaven is quite a vast, trans-universe force," Lei Chi pondered for a moment, then said, "Imagination and Heavenly Wrath cannot be entrusted to you! My current mission is merely to observe the Heart of the Universe. Perhaps the Heavenly Tomb of Secrets happens to be located at the Heart of the Universe, but I have little interest in it. After observing the Heart of the Universe, I will likely leave and go elsewhere!"

"Observing the heart of the universe?"

The Ascended Great Venerable narrowed his eyes slightly, then suddenly asked, "Were the golden hoops on the heads of those two imaginary beasts your doing?"

Lei Chi nodded: "Not bad!"

"Who taught you?" The Ascended Great Venerable slowly stood up, holding a jade scepter, her gaze growing even colder. "Tell me, where did you meet my disciple! Why did he teach you the art of faith?"

"Your disciple?" Lei Chi suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "You are that senior's master?"

After speaking, Lei Chi pointed his finger, and a picture was projected in front of him. The picture showed the old man who had passed on the [Duration Nerve] to him.

"Your disciple is him!"

Lei Chi asked, but he already knew the answer at that moment.

Judging from the way the Ascended Great Venerable looked at the old man, it's likely that she really did have a relationship with him.

"Has he already fallen?"

The voice of the Ascended Supreme Being trembled slightly.

Lei Chi nodded and said, "He died from exhaustion, as if he had guarded the passage to the Divine Realm for forty thousand years with his own body! I have buried him in the Divine Realm. Before his demise, he passed on to me a copy of the Scripture of Transcendence!"

"Truly his style! So be it, let him pass away peacefully. We often have this fate as we ascend to heaven! You have already received his legacy..."

The Ascending Venerable examined the Thunder Pool once more, and said in a deep voice, "Are you willing to join my sect and become a member of the Ascending Heaven?"

Lei Chi said, "Of course I am unwilling! However, if the Great Venerable wishes to return to his original state, and if you can prove your relationship with him, I can give it to him."

The Ascending Venerable shook his head and said, "Since he has already passed on the Du Shen Jing to you and has not yet ascended to the heavens, there is no need for you to pass it on. You can keep it! Also, my disciple has a name; his name is Zuo Tangyu."

"I understand!" Lei Chi cupped his hands again. "May I ask, Your Excellency, may we proceed?"

The Ascending Grand Venerable hesitated for a moment, then said, "Very well, the starry universe may be subject to change. I entrust those two imaginary beasts to you. If the four poles of heaven are destroyed, we will meet again in the Heavenly Mystery Tomb!"

After speaking, the Ascending Heavenly Venerable waved his hand, indicating that Thunder Pool could leave.

Lei Chi returned the greeting with a cupped hand, took a step forward, and was immediately standing before [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath].

Click, click...

The sound of chains clanging rang out.

The God-Locking Coffin, which had been frozen solid on the ground, broke through the ice and was finally pulled out by [Imagination].

With a loud bang, the ice block that had frozen [Heaven's Wrath] shattered.

"Let's keep going!"

Lei Chi said this and then strode forward. He had decided to go and see the fourth spacetime anchor point himself.

Without the obstruction of the Ascended Great Venerable, Lei Chi, along with [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath], moved at an extremely fast speed, arriving at the coordinates of the fourth spacetime anchor point in less than an hour.

This place is outside the forbidden ice plains, on a desolate grassland.

However, a large number of fighter jets, artillery vehicles, and combat mechs had already been waiting here for a long time.

"It seems someone on Tianji Star is deliberately keeping an eye on me! A fight is inevitable."

Lei Chi smiled. Although the other side had a large and powerful force, he was not afraid at all.

The quantum computer had already automatically started its detection. Although the opposing side seemed to have a large number of people, there were not many with high combat power. [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath] could easily deal with them.

At this moment, the other three spacetime anchor points have been erased by the Spirit of the Universe, and the one in front of us is the last one. Once it is erased, we can directly observe the Heart of the Universe.

Lei Chi had no intention of delaying any longer and said softly, "Try to minimize the killing!"

Upon hearing this, [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath] charged toward the defensive line set up by the Supreme Council like wild horses.

Rumble rumble rumble...

Combat power erupted immediately, and various explosions rang out, but the battle scene was one-sided from the very beginning.

Conventional technological weapons are simply not enough to pose a threat to [Imagination] and [Heaven's Wrath]. Even if a World Lord-level powerhouse came, he would be nothing but a weakling in front of [Imagination] and [Heaven's Wrath].

Moments later, the opposing defense was completely torn apart, and a semi-transparent, non-physical pyramid appeared, which was the fourth spacetime anchor point.

At that moment, Lei Chi sensed something and turned to look at the void.

The advanced quantum computer promptly issued a notification: "Ding, thirteen energy entities have been detected approaching and are expected to arrive in three minutes. Based on their energy levels, the strongest of the thirteen energy entities has a combat power index of 106 billion, and the average combat power index is 1.36 million!"

"Ding, integrating data and analyzing: Under the order of the Grand Speaker of the Supreme Council, thirteen powerful Realm Lords are on their way to provide support. Among them, the strongest is the Realm Lord of the Great Bear Star Realm, Futu Zhongsheng! We are currently gathering information on this person... Futu Zhongsheng, Realm Lord of the Great Bear Star Realm, known as the Void Sword God..."

"Lord of the Great Ursa Major Realm, the Floating Pagoda of All Living Beings?"

Lei Chi's heart stirred. He had heard of this name before. Treasure hunter Holke called him the strongest realm master. Now it seemed that with his combat power of 106 billion, he was indeed outstanding and could rival the likes of Sheng Tianwang and Tian Nu.

"This 'Floating Being' is most likely a cowardly senior brother from a cowardly sect, actually leaving the Divine Realm to become a realm lord here..."

A sense of curiosity arose in Lei Chi's heart. He left [Imagination] and [Heavenly Wrath] here to remove the fourth spacetime anchor point, but he himself stepped into the void and took the initiative to meet the support team of the World Lord.

In the blink of an eye, Lei Chi appeared before the Realm Lord-level powerhouses who had come to provide support.

"Who is it?"

"It's him, the mysterious visitor from Lighthouse Hill!"

"He actually came to greet us!"

"Could this person have come specifically to intercept us?"

"We haven't even looked for him, but he's come looking for us!"

"Everyone, prepare for battle. This person is not easy to deal with. I have already sent a message to the Grand Speaker requesting more support..."

"Let's all attack together! I refuse to believe he's that strong!"

The group of Realm Lord-level powerhouses reacted differently to the sudden appearance of the Thunder Pool; some were panicked, while others were excited, and they immediately began to discuss among themselves.

Lei Chi's gaze immediately fell upon an old man with a single horn on his forehead and pointed ears.

Upon closer inspection, Lei Chi became even more certain that this person was a disciple of the Cowardly Sect, as he was even carrying a Qiankun Universe Blade on his back.

"You coward, you're a living hell!" Lei Chi laughed. "I wonder if you're a true disciple or a disciple from a secret realm?"

The expression on the face of the Buddha among the crowd darkened. He stepped forward and said, "You're also a disciple of the Cowardly Sect?"

Lei Chi nodded: "I spent some time at the Holy Temple!"

"Now I understand what you're trying to do! Alright, I'll help you!"

Suddenly, the beings of the Floating Pagoda drew their long swords from their backs, but turned to face the other realm lords who had come with them.

"Huh?" Lei Chi was also somewhat surprised and asked, "You understand what I'm going to do?"

"The coward's corpse is in the Heavenly Mystery Tomb. You want to take it out, don't you!" said the Buddha. "Go ahead and do it. I'll protect you. Unless the eternal Sonic awakens, no one can disturb you."

(End of this chapter)