Xue Wei was aware that his biggest trump card was his identity as a Sovereign Beast. His bloodline of the Azure Dragon was able to create miracles.
In his mind palace was the golden dragon, and within his dantian was the azure dragon spirit. These dragon spirits were exclusive to the Azure Dragon race, and they made his cultivation speed in their respective fields much swifter than normal experts, eclipsing even a proud son of the heavens.
Sovereign Beasts had not gotten their reputation because of their mild tempers but because of their overwhelming strength and natural talent.
They truly had something that other races did not have. They had been the true overlords of the entire world many years in the past.
The Azure Dragon blood that flowed in his veins made him quite different from experts of other races. He had two spirits within his body: one within his mind and one within his dantian, both assisting him in his breakthroughs.
These dragons were exclusive to the Azure Dragon race, and their power was in no way inferior to any of the other sovereign beasts’ spirits.
Although Xue Wei was originally only half an Azure Dragon, Lan providing him the essence blood back then had fully awakened his bloodline, and thus he now had as pure a bloodline as those who were full-blooded Azure Dragons.
Xue Wei could not help but feel that it was necessary to take a risk. Although he did not know exactly what the dragon spirits within him were capable of, he knew that their capacity to absorb energy was enormous.
If he relied on the spirit’s endurance, would he not be able to step up to a higher level in the soul tower under its protection?
Seeing that Xue Wei was pondering something, no one interrupted him and all of them just sat quietly in their positions and looked at him as he frowned.
It was not before Xue Wei stopped frowning and looked at them again that Bai Tianyi quietly said, “Don’t rush too much. You managed to get to the fifth floor in one day. We have two years. It’s impossible for you to not reach the ninth floor before that.”
“I know,” Xue Wei answered and released a sigh, “but that does not change the fact that I would like to solve the issues sooner rather than later. Not to mention that we have other things to do in these two years so I cannot stay at the Soul Tower for all the time.”
“Do you have any plans?” Hei Gou asked tentatively. It was not like Xue Wei to be rushed like this, but the time limit truly made them feel helpless.
Although two years sounded like a lot of time, the opposite was true. To cultivators a single blink could mean the passage of two years if the moons aligned correctly, not to mention that they had to solve an issue that not even the citizens of this continent had been capable of solving for over a century if not more.
There was a sense of urgency in the hearts of Xue Wei and the others. They absolutely had to travel with the next delegation to the Demon Phoenix Continent. They could not wait for the delegation that came later, because they would simply be wasting far too much time like that.
Xue Wei sighed and shook his head. “I have a theory that might make it possible for me to enter the upper floors, but it involves me revealing my golden dragon spirit. I think that if I let it materialize out of my body, it will be like Bai Tianyi, just absorbing the soul power much like air.”
“Then, under the cover of the spirit dragon, I would enter the ninth floor. However, the tower is filled with people every day. If I really did this, then they would all see the dragon spirit from my mind palace. I do not think this is a great idea.”
“Although it is an inherited thing, there are no Sovereign Beasts on this continent, and they are likely to believe it is some kind of treasure, making me the target for everyone’s greed.”
“That’s not an option we should use right now,” Bai Tianyi agreed, thinking it far too risky. “Although we only have two years, I assume that you will be able to reach the sixth floor within a week; a month later you should reach the seventh floor and after half a year you should be capable of reaching the eighth floor.”
“When you make it to the eighth floor, you will be fine. As soon as you can get onto the floor, you will be okay. The pressure does not increase at all from the first step towards the stairs leading to the ninth floor in the same way as it does on the other floors, instead it is steady all over until you reach the stairs where it will slowly diminish.”
Xue Wei contemplated. Although he was not willing to spend two years to get to the ninth floor, half a year did not seem to be too much of a loss and, currently, the Soul Tower was their best lead towards the mystery they were expected to solve.
Hearing the words from Bai Tianyi and his estimated times for when he could reach the ninth floor, Xue Wei once more sank into deep thoughts. It was very risky for him to let the golden dragon spirit exit his mind palace and protect him as he climbed the tower, so if there was even the slightest possibility of getting to the ninth floor without relying on it, that would naturally be the best.
However, was he really willing to wait half a year? Half a year was not long, but relative to their current time schedule, it was not a short amount of time either.
“You know, it does not mean that it will absolutely take half a year,” Bai Tianyi could see the unwillingness in Xue Wei’s eyes, and he continued, “The seventh floor only had three experts last time I was there. They cannot be there all the time. As soon as we are the only ones on the floor, you can summon your spirit and then head straight up to the eighth floor.
Xue Wei’s eyes suddenly lit up and he seemed to understand that although it might not be easy to get to the ninth level, the half year estimate was the most conservative number. It was possible to get there even faster.
“Let us do it like that then,” Xue Wei said and nodded his head. “Bai Tianyi and I will focus on the Soul Tower and the clues that might have been left within while Lin Xiao and Hei Gou will focus on gathering information from the rest of the students.”
“Remember, mainly focus on massacres, or people vanishing, either amongst the common folk or here in the academy itself.”
Lin Xiao and Hei Gou nodded their heads. They were not sure if they could get the results they needed, but they would without a doubt do their very best.
“Well, we will start tomorrow.” Xue Wei stretched lazily. “For today, let us find some place to eat.”
Although they no longer needed to eat food to sustain their bodies, they still enjoyed a meal from time to time, and it had been eons since they had had their last meal.
The academy had a restaurant that specializes in spiritual food. The price for the food was calculated with merit points and a meal could easily cost a hundred merit points per person. Fortunately, Xue Wei and the others each had a bit more than ten thousand merit points from their hunts of the bandits. They stepped inside the restaurant after finding it.
“Would you like a table or a room?” The waiter that was standing at the door saw the appearance of four experts with only two eyes and surprise flashed in his eyes. There was a trace of disdain as well, but he quickly hid it, and he was able to act respectfully even though he looked down upon them.
“What do you guys prefer?” Xue Wei asked the others, and they just shrugged their shoulders. Looking back at the servant, Xue Wei smiled apologetically and made the decision himself. “We will want a room then.”
Although there had not been anyone hating on them because of their two eyes, many sent them strange glances and they were often treated as monkeys in a zoo, like a show that others watched with excitement and curiosity.
“I have to tell you that a room costs seventy-five merit points to rent,” the servant said as he looked at Xue Wei as if he was a beggar, “The meals in the rooms are also much more delicious and so their price is higher. You will need to pay at least a thousand merit points each to be in the room.”
Although this was a somewhat incorrect statement, it was not far off from the truth. Most people that rent a room end up spending around five hundred merit points on average, and merit points were difficult to gather, especially for someone with only two eyes. What were they even capable of doing?
Xue Wei understood what the waiter meant. The man clearly implied they did not have the points to dine in a room, and in fact, he doubted whether or not they even had the points to dine on the ground floor of the restaurant.
Xue Wei’s face turned ugly. He had been polite to everyone since arriving at the academy and he had not been treated unfairly in return, but he was not the type to take it lying down when someone slighted him.
“Are you questioning whether or not I have enough merit points?” Xue Wei’s voice erupted coldly. The waiter had not expected Xue Wei to speak like this, and his eyes turned slightly haughty.
“I am glad that you understand what I am trying to say. Now scram!” The waiter had not wanted to display his disdain towards Xue Wei and the others, but being called out like this made him go on the offensive, and his voice was raised causing many of the experts within the restaurant to look towards the entrance and the five people who seemed to be making a commotion.
“You do not know how many merit points we have. How can you say that we do not have enough?” Xue Wei did not back down and retorted with a voice filled with ridicule.
“You are obviously at the bottom of the academy! How can you possibly have enough merit points to eat in an establishment such as this restaurant?” The waiter did not back down and instead responded with an insult.
“Bottom of the academy?” Xue Wei sneered before he flashed his core student identity medal. “You think that I am useless?”
When Xue Wei flashed his core student identity medal, the other three behind him also took out their own medals of equal stature, and they looked at the waiter as if they had seen an idiot.
“Core... core student?” the waiter was rather shocked when he saw these medals. His face, which had been extremely haughty, suddenly paled and his eyes widened like two bronze bells.
“All four of you are core students?” The waiter did not believe it. “Impossible! How can you have core student medals? All of you are obviously waste experts! None of you have more than two eyes!”
“So what?” Xue Wei asked arrogantly, and his words caused everyone present to be shocked. Indeed, so what? Although they only had two eyes, most of the experts with keen senses could feel a bit of a threat and danger from these four people in front of them; only people who were as clueless as the waiter assumed that they were wastes.
“So what? Well, are you all primordial beasts?” The waiter could not accept what was happening in front of him and the only reason he could find to explain why these four were core students was that they were all primordial beasts with exceptional talent.
“No,” Xue Wei replied and shook his head, and then a chilled glint flashed in his eyes, “but what we are, what does it have to do with you?”
“Take a look at our merit points, and lead us to a room!”