Chapter 145: Outside the Tower

She shook her head hard, an expression of disbelief; obviously Lu Fan's words left her unable to comprehend.

"Dragon Tower summons? It seems each tester entering this secret realm, carrying a strand of Dragon Origin Purple Qi, has this function!"

Lu Fan nodded, looking enlightened, but still had a question: "I was with other testers before; they also carried Dragon Origin Purple Qi, why didn't they sense the Dragon Tower summons you mentioned?"

Nalan Qiusha looked at Lu Fan strangely, with a look of looking at an idiot, and said: "Dragon Origin Purple Qi can indeed be used to sense the Dragon Tower summons, but initially there is no response. Only after killing enough magic beasts, when the Dragon Origin Purple Qi grows to a certain extent, can it possibly be guided by the Dragon Tower summons."

"You can actively refine Dragon Origin Purple Qi; surely you are unique among those who have entered this secret realm before. There's no reason you still can't sense the Dragon Tower's direction now?"

She said this, even finding it hard to believe herself, feeling that this analysis exceeded her own understanding.

"Never mind all that; the Dragon Tower must have already summoned you from afar! Take me there!"

……

In the endless primordial forest, at an unknown location, there suddenly appeared a ring-shaped hill. It was no higher than about a hundred zhang, its influence spanning roughly a hundred li. From dozens of li away, it looked just like a sea of trees, with no abnormality detectable.

Yet in such a place, beast roars would occasionally come—low and suppressed, as if wary. But they were filled with a savage, brutal aura, powerful magic beasts not to be taken lightly.

"Crack!"

A thick log snapped in response, and immediately a three-zhang-tall giant ape burst out, its body solid as rock, muscles bulging and round, like a polished sculpture.

Even more shocking, the giant ape had four lantern-sized eyes, all emitting a purple light, deep and mysterious; a single glance made one involuntarily sink into them.

"Boom boom!" The giant ape climbed the hill, its pair of millstone-sized hands slamming its chest, then raised its head to a long howl: "Howl——"

At that sound, the faint beast roars around suddenly stopped; only the four-eyed giant ape's roar remained, shaking a hundred li.

The giant ape seemed especially pleased with its own roar, letting out a couple of "hehe" laughs, then waved its huge hand, snapping the surrounding towering trees which fell sideways. It lunged forward, charging into the inner side of the ring-shaped mountain range.

"This beast, after not seeing it for a few days, has become so formidable that its aura has reached the level of a Kaiyuan Realm Beast King!"

Behind a boulder, two figures flashed out—one male, one female—namely Lu Fan and Nalan Qiusha.

"I heard the recent beast tide was stirred up by you; could it be that you encountered this four-eyed giant ape before?"

Nalan Qiusha gazed apprehensively at the fallen, scattered giant trees before her; regardless of other things, this mighty force alone was not to be underestimated.

"Four-eyed giant ape? You've got it wrong; this creature has undergone a mutation, its ancient bloodline likely awakened—calling it a Dragon Ape would be more fitting!"

Lu Fan nodded, his gaze slightly distant. He hadn't expected that after a few days apart, this four-eyed giant ape would undergo such a huge mutation. Though it still seemed at the fourth stage, its true strength was even more terrifying than that of an advancing Beast King.

"Dragon Ape!" Nalan Qiusha uttered in disbelief, then exclaimed in shock: "In previous secret realm openings, there have been similar powerful magic beasts that slaughtered and devoured countless magic beasts, even human cultivators. By the time they reached the Dragon Tower, they became strong contenders for the Dragon Tower's true treasure."

"Oh? If you say so, I think this time will be somewhat interesting. Magic beasts that have undergone the Dragon's Power transformation certainly aren't just this one!"

Among the beast tide, the fiercest was that Kun Python. Lu Fan even relied on it to directly control the beast tide. Given the Dragon Ape's astonishing transformation, this Kun Python will surely be even more formidable.

Both had their own thoughts, said no more, and followed the Dragon Ape's mountain-opening footprints, slowly entering the ring-shaped mountain range.

Inside the Dragon Tower secret realm, heavenly and earthly qi was extremely abundant, even quite uniform. Except for some special formations concealing treasure spots, the qi concentration differed little. But upon entering this mountain range, the overall qi concentration underwent an astonishing change.

The further one went in, the thicker the qi became; after just a thousand zhang, it had already doubled.

Before them, misty shadows were hazy, the towering trees gone, yet various spiritual flowers and strange herbs could be seen everywhere.

"This Dragon Tower is hidden deep enough; if you hadn't brought me here, unless one happened to pass by this road, no one would imagine that such a marvelous treasure valley lay hidden here!"

Lu Fan wore a look of surprise, his mental power spreading out, but what disappointed him was that the thick mist here naturally weakened mental power; he could only cover about twenty to thirty zhang, and beyond that it became quite strenuous.

"Aside from you, this freak, anyone who gets nearby will sense the Dragon Tower summons even if they haven't killed enough magic beasts; they needn't think, they just come straight over!"

Nalan Qiusha snorted coldly, obviously still holding some resentment inside.

"Hahaha, it's all because of my extraordinary talent; there's nothing to be done about it!"

Lu Fan laughed wildly, about to make a few more teasing remarks, when his expression suddenly changed. A sword qi shot forth; the surrounding qi mist churned endlessly for no reason, all converging on this sword qi, and in the blink of an eye formed a light-shadow great sword about a zhang long, which came slashing down.

He didn't say a word, flicked his sleeve, and the Yin Sha Ming Hammer appeared; he gripped it tightly and blasted it out.

"Boom—" a huge roar split the void; the Yin Sha Ming Hammer directly smashed into the light-shadow great sword, thunderous gangsha poured out, instantly forming a lightning net that enveloped the shattered light-shadow sword. Though sword qi surged in all directions, it could not escape the net's range, and in an instant turned to dust.

"Pa-pa!"

A round of applause sounded, light and shadow shifted, and four figures appeared—namely Wang Yicai and his three companions.

"How long has this profound treasure been in your hands, and you can already unleash such power? Truly worthy of Lu Fan!"

Wang Yicai raised one hand, slowly sheathing his long sword. He appeared relaxed, yet his expression was solemn.

Lu Fan glanced lightly at the opponent, then swept his gaze over the remaining three, gave a light chuckle, didn't look again, turned his head to Nalan Qiusha, glanced at her, and said lightly: "Let's go!"

His steps were leisurely, his demeanor relaxed. The opponent's covert sneak attack seemed to him of no concern. If others behaved this way, they'd likely be seen as cowardly and pretentious, but on him it came across as contempt, even disregard.

Wang Yicai's four, even if one looked across the entire Dragon Elephant Dynasty, could be counted among outstanding youths. Joined forces, even against senior experts they might not dare claim an easy victory. But before Lu Fan, they were like four jumping clowns, of no consequence.

"Damn it!"

Liu Yicai let out a low shout, his eyes filled with thick hatred, unhidden.

As for Li Qingshan and Nie Xing, their faces were even darker. Compared to Wang Yicai, their hatred for Lu Fan was who knows how many times stronger; even death by a thousand cuts could not dispel the hatred in their hearts.

"Brother Cai, don't rush. That Lu-surnamed kid amounts to nothing; before the Dragon Tower, he was everyone's target. At the crucial moment, we'll strike together—he won't stir up much of a wave, and then you can deal with him as you wish!"

Wang Ruolan, however, gave a hehe laugh; she had no grudge against Lu Fan. But the other party's relationship with Wang Wu was not shallow; if they could injure Lu Fan, they could strike at Wang Wu, which was what she truly cared about.

Wang Yicai's three came to their senses, each glanced at the others, their intentions clear, and in unison shouted: "Go! Follow him, I want to see just how this brat dies today!"

"Pa-pa"

A clear footstep sounded; Lu Fan and Nalan Qiusha led, Wang Yicai's four followed. Apart from Lu Fan, the others moved by riding qi, at most stirring the mist without making a sound.

But Lu Fan was like a brutish savage, with no restraint whatsoever, as if afraid others wouldn't notice, his steps unusually heavy.

Faintly, a tower-shaped illusory figure appeared before their eyes. Vague and indistinct, yet its aura was unmistakable, giving a sense of solemnity that made hearts race involuntarily—Lu Fan included.

"Is this the Dragon Tower? It looks somewhat mysterious!"

Upon seeing the tower's shadow, Lu Fan paid no heed to anything else and strode forward. No one knew what he was thinking; his feet went "thud thud thud thud," like a heaven‑supporting strongman bearing huge mountains and rivers, as he thundered past.

Nalan Qiusha and the others all changed expression, instinctively sensing something amiss, though they couldn't grasp what, and they likewise leapt forward.

A hundred zhang away, an ancient‑looking nine‑story pagoda appeared before Lu Fan's eyes. The drifting qi mist in the valley swirled around the pagoda uncertainly, yet from a distance, separated by the pagoda, it seemed impossible to approach.

Outside the pagoda by several hundred zhang was empty void; beyond that lay the qi mist, as if an invisible barrier lay between them.

Lu Fan narrowed his eyes, scanned around the pagoda, and finally focused his gaze between the third and fourth levels, where a faint crack appeared. The fissure was exceptionally smooth, as if sliced by a supreme sword, encircling the tower's body.

Strands of barely perceptible purple mist were inhaling and exhaling in the crack; isn't that just the dragon-origin purple qi?

"The power of a true dragon—could it be that this tower is suppressing the dragon seed's lineage?"

His expression slightly froze, and his gaze grew somewhat deep.

If it truly is as he thought, then this dragon tower cannot be taken lightly. The primeval dragon lineage—he is currently unable to cope with it. Even if all the high-level martial artists of the Bright Moon Empire were gathered together, they might not have much chance of winning.

Nalan Qiu Sha and the five others only just arrived then; they had just stopped their steps, hadn't yet had time to carefully examine the treasure tower before them, when their expressions changed and they all scattered.