Just as the old patriarch forced me to my death, I achieved the unity of Dao and fruition.

Inside the pure white tower, there were no mental traps or trial guardians.

There is only one white staircase, which extends upwards along the tower wall.

Gu Changjin walked at the front, followed by Zhou Jingming, Su Xingmian, and Chen Mo.

There were no windows inside the tower, and no runes or decorations could be seen anywhere.

Everywhere you look, there is pure white that is almost blinding.

They had been walking for a long time, but looking back, they could still see the entrance.

The entrance appears to be just a few dozen steps below.

Looking up, the stairs only extend to a few dozen steps.

It was as if the tower wasn't very tall at all, but the problem was that they had been climbing it for at least several hours.

Something's not right here.

Chen Mo pushed up his glasses, and the miniature mechanical city behind him slowly emerged, with dozens of metal gears flying out and hovering on different steps.

The group continued walking uphill for a while.

Chen Mo turned around to look.

Those gears were still parked not far behind.

But the connection between him and the gears had become extremely weak.

"Not space."

A layer of silvery-white light appeared in Su Xingmian's eyes.

She tried to reflect her surroundings with fear, but the fear was silently swallowed up by the pure white tower walls as soon as it began to unfold.

"What's being affected here is our perception."

"We thought we had only gone through a few dozen levels, but the actual distance may have been much farther."

Zhou Jingming looked up at the staircase that seemed to stretch endlessly yet was also right in front of him, and sighed.

"I only care about one thing right now."

Su Xingmian looked at him.

"What?"

"You've had so much exercise today."

Zhou Jingming said very seriously, "When I get back tonight, I'll have to eat at least ten bowls of fried rice."

Su Xingmian couldn't help but chuckle, and Chen Mo pushed up his glasses with a hint of helplessness.

The previously somewhat oppressive atmosphere eased considerably.

Gu Changjin walked ahead, a slight smile playing on his lips.

Jingming's personality this week is quite interesting.

Even knowing that it is dangerous here, they can still adjust their emotions in the shortest amount of time.

Sincere, optimistic, and almost instinctively trusting those around them.

Such people, if they do not have a sufficiently strong destiny, usually die the fastest.

But if he truly has divine protection, people willing to risk their lives for him will constantly gather around him.

The amusing interlude passed quickly, and the group continued their journey toward the top of the tower.

I don't know how much time passed.

thump.

A muffled sound suddenly came from above the tower.

The group stopped in their tracks at the same time.

thump.

The sound rang out again.

Slow and deep, each time it appeared, the entire pure white tower seemed to tremble slightly.

Zhou Jingming raised his head.

What was that sound?

Su Xingmian closed her eyes and carefully sensed it for a moment.

"It's like... a heartbeat."

Boom!

The third sound faded.

This time it's much clearer.

It was as if some enormous creature was sleeping somewhere above them.

As the heartbeat sounded, the Dao Fruit within Gu Changjin's body also trembled slightly.

It was even more obvious than when we saw the twisted entity in the underground cavern.

A fiery glint flashed deep in Gu Changjin's eyes.

This is extraordinary, truly extraordinary. This time, the harvest is likely... even greater than he anticipated.

Gu Changjin suppressed his joy and remained calm on the surface.

"continue."

The heartbeat grew stronger.

The pure white staircase seemed to have finally changed.

The end, which was once so close yet forever out of reach, began to draw closer to them little by little.

A cloud of mist hangs down from above.

The group stepped over the last step.

Suddenly, everything became clear.

They finally reached the top of the tower.

This is not a closed room.

There are no walls on all sides.

There is only one huge circular platform suspended above the sea of ​​clouds.

Looking down, the grassland was no longer visible.

As far as the eye can see, there are only rolling white clouds and the occasional glimpse of azure sky peeking through the clouds.

At the very center of the platform stood a transparent crystal, ten feet tall. Inside the crystal, milky white mist filled the air, and countless golden patterns, like blood vessels, entwined the surface of the crystal.

thump.

The heartbeat sounded again.

This time, everyone could see it clearly.

The mist inside the crystal contracted slightly with each heartbeat.

There was definitely something sealed inside.

It was simply obscured by the thick fog, making it impossible to see its complete form.

Zhou Jingming strode forward.

"Is this the treasure marked on the map?"

He circled the crystal once.

"It doesn't look like any kind of spiritual artifact."

"On the contrary, it resembles some kind of living creature?"

Chen Mo frowned and reminded him, "Don't touch it."

"I just touched it, it's no big deal, let me tell you..."

Zhou Jingming shook his head indifferently, and as he spoke, he reached out, just about to touch the surface of the crystal.

A furious shout suddenly came from behind.

"How dare you! Where did this little thief come from!"

"How dare you trespass into the ancestral temple of my nine Taoist lineages!"

Zhou Jingming's hand froze in mid-air.

Several people turned their heads at the same time.

At the entrance to the top of the tower, six figures emerged one after another.

The elderly Taoist priest at the head of the group wore a lotus crown and a black Taoist robe.

Although his face looked somewhat haggard, he was surrounded by thousands of faint, illusory images of his heart.

It was none other than the abbot of Xuanzhen Temple, Daoist Xuanming.

Behind him were five other experts at the Thousand Phases Realm from the Nine Lineages of the Daoist Sect.

The six Thousand-Images appeared simultaneously, and as soon as their immense power of mental images spread, the entire sea of ​​clouds began to churn violently.

Zhou Jingming and his group immediately became alert.

Xuanming Daoist's gaze first fell on Zhou Jingming.

He frowned slightly after just one glance.

"This aura..."

The "Tai Xu Zhao Xin Jing" that Zhou Jingming cultivates originated from the previous generation's inheritance of Xuanzhen Temple.

Although it was modified by his maternal grandfather, its foundation still belongs to the lineage of Cunsi.

Xuanming felt a sense of familiarity, and he seemed to have seen the boy somewhere before.

However, Xuanzhen Temple had just been destroyed, and he was so shocked that he couldn't remember anything for a moment.

Xuanming then looked at Chen Mo.

The Heart of the Mechanical City, a descendant of the ancient artifact lineage?

Let's look at Su Xingmian again.

Fear reflects reality; this is no simple inheritance, but rather something of considerable importance.

But when his gaze finally landed on Gu Changjin's face.

He froze instantly.

Gu Changjin was also looking at him.

Their eyes met.

Xuanming Daoist's eyes gradually turned red.

That face!! That face he would never forget, even if he turned to ashes!

What so-called General of the Federal Army, the newly appointed Speaker of the Federal Parliament, Gu Changjin?!

The person who personally led his men to raze Xuanzhen Temple to the ground, killed the two elders who remained behind, and destroyed Xuanzhen Temple's foundation built over thousands of years.

"It's you!"

Xuanming Daoist's voice was trembling, not from fear, but from extreme excitement.

"Great! Hahahaha!!"

"Excellent! Excellent!! God bless my Xuanzhen!!"

"You choose the path to heaven but refuse to take it, while barging into the gates of hell when there are none!"

He was initially worried that since Gu Changjin controlled the entire Federal Military, he would surely have a large number of Blood Refining Army soldiers protecting him.

Seeking revenge is as difficult as ascending to heaven.

But now, this is the ancestral home of Taoism, completely isolated from the outside world.

There were only three young people around Gu Changjin.

On their side, there were a full six Thousand Phases!

Behind Xuanming Daoist, the other five Thousand Phase Realm cultivators also recognized Gu Changjin.

One terrifying vision after another manifested.

A gigantic blood-red eye floats in the clouds, while a headless Taoist priest holds up a black mountain peak.

A centipede made of countless corpses stitched together hovered in mid-air.

The entire top of the tower was instantly enveloped by the Thousand Forms Domain.

"Federal Parliament Speaker Gu Changjin."

"I never expected you to dare enter the ancestral temple alone."

"Today, I will use your life to atone for the deaths of my Xuanzhen Temple disciples!"

The killing intent of the six cultivators at the Thousand Aspects Realm was locked on simultaneously.

The sight caused Zhou Jingming and the others to turn pale at the same time. Zhou Jingming suddenly realized what was happening and turned his head sharply to look at Gu Changjin beside him.

"The Speaker of the Federal Parliament? Brother Gu, haven't they mistaken you for someone else too?"

Gu Changjin did not answer, but slowly took a step forward.

Looking at the old Taoist priest opposite him, whose face was full of resentment, he suddenly laughed.

"The Abbot of Xuanzhen Temple? What a coincidence."