NOVPUB"Stop, this is forbidden land. Do you have the headmaster’s decree?"
One of the men in black robes addressed Xu Zimei.
"No, because we are here to force our way through," replied Xu Zimei with a faint smile.
Before the two men in black robes could react, they saw Xu Zimei wave his right hand.
Spiritual energy surged, and the two men were sent flying backwards.
Xu Zimei kicked open the gate with great force, for the gate was suppressed by a formation.
With the gate opened, the light inside was very dim.
Xu Zimei, along with Yue Qingli, both entered the high tower.
The tower had a hundred floors, and the surrounding walls of the first layer were embedded with Luminous Pearls.
The space inside was vast, albeit with only a few shelves.
On these shelves rested some Spiritual Artifacts, which seemed to be of low tier.
As Xu Zimei and Yue Qingli entered, they saw the entire first-floor space ripple with waves.
Spiritual energy flowed, and a figure in a long red robe emerged from the space.
The wide red robe enshrouded the entire body of the person within.
Yue Qingli’s gaze was shocked when he realized that the being in front of him was not human, but merely a puppet made of iron and wood in the shape of a human.
"Defeat me, and you may take the weapons on the shelf and enter the next level," the iron puppet said calmly.
"This is asking us to pass through a series of challenges," Yue Qingli turned to Xu Zimei and remarked.
"Troublesome," Xu Zimei huffed.
With a wave of his right hand, a pair of hands formed from spiritual energy descended from the sky and directly crushed the iron puppet into pieces.
Xu Zimei grabbed Yue Qingli by the collar and started to ascend.
Although there were barriers between each level of the iron tower, Xu Zimei easily bypassed them.
He breached the barriers one after another with Yue Qingli in tow. The higher they went in the Black Tower, the stronger the guardians they encountered.
And the items placed there became rarer and more valuable.
By the time Xu Zimei reached the hundredth layer, he had already seen many precious items along the way.
There was the Vermilion Bird’s legacy, the Southern Li Fire.
There were various Universe Tier Mysterious Medicines and Vein Skills as well.
...
None of this series of items could halt Xu Zimei’s progress. When he arrived at the hundredth layer,
he saw that the space above was even more spacious.
In the center of this level, there was a platform.
Atop the platform was a fiery red spherical bead.
And on the ground surrounding the platform, below was a sea of fire.
Within this sea of fire, sharp cries of a bird echoed faintly as if something was being nurtured within.
Xu Zimei squinted his eyes and instructed Yue Qingli to stay where he was.
He then stepped into the air toward the platform, aiming to obtain the Battle Body Bead of the Vermilion Bird’s battle body.
However, the moment he took flight, the space next to him rippled, and a black-robed old man stepped out from it.
"Who dares to seize the Battle Body Bead," the elder bellowed, fixing Xu Zimei with a piercing gaze.
He asked, "Who are you?"
The elder’s aura was domineering, and the might of the Saint Vein Realm pervaded and surged around him.
Dressed in a black robe, with a bald head, he had a ruddy complexion, especially under the reflection of the Blazing Flame.
Xu Zimei did not respond but let out a light shout.
He swung his large hand, aiming a suppressive strike at the elder.
The elder’s face changed slightly as his True Fate swiftly manifested behind him.
It was a flame, using the Vermilion Bird’s Southern Li Fire as his True Fate.
At the moment the flame ignited, the surrounding rampant fire also became more volatile.
Within this crimson flame, there was a faint hint of light blue.
It was this touch of light blue that was so intensely hot that it startled the onlookers.
The elder waved both hands, and the sky full of sea of fire soared up, enveloping the entire space within it.
The sea of fire rolled and roared.
All of it converged into a huge fireball, hurtling straight towards Xu Zimei.
Xu Zimei’s expression remained calm as a large hand formed of spiritual energy slowly rose in the air, eventually sweeping towards the fireball with supreme authority.
With a "boom," the fireball was completely annihilated by the large hand.
The sky full of sea of fire also dissipated completely.
As the sea of fire vanished, the temperature around plummeted rapidly.
The spiritual energy hand that had annihilated the fireball continued its relentless path towards the elder.
The elder wanted to hide, but the space of a hundred layers was only so large.
The spiritual energy hand almost covered the entire layer of space.
"Enough," just then, a light reprimand was heard.
A streak of polar light shot from outside the Black Tower, directly dispersing Xu Zimei’s spiritual energy hand.
Xu Zimei turned his head to look, only to see a white-robed elder flying in from the outside world, accompanied by Zhao Changfeng.
This elder carried a hint of extraordinary temperament that made him seem out of this world.
His eyebrows, long beard, and hair were all completely silver with age.
His beard was long, lending him an air of extraordinary temperament.
Several patterns of Vermilion Birds were embroidered on his white robe, all stitched in red.
When this elder arrived, the entire space seemed to quiet down.
A vast yet subtle immortal might radiated from him.
Although it was an unintentional release, it still suppressed the entire space.
...
Seeing the appearance of the white-robed elder, the black-robed elder hastily greeted him with respect.
"Greetings to Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master!"
"Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master?" Hearing the other’s words, Xu Zimei gave the elder in front of him a serious look.
The founder of Vermilion Academy is also hailed as one of the most mysterious ancestors since the academy’s establishment.
Xu Zimei did know some stories about Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master.
In those days, Heavenly Dao Academy spread teachings across the entire Yuan Central Continent, but since the five continents are separated by the Endless Heaven Sea and are extremely far apart.
Many students could not travel directly to the Heavenly Dao Academy located in the Central Continent.
Later, the dean at the time of Heavenly Dao Academy called on his four disciples.
He sent each of them to establish branches in the East, West, South, and North Continents respectively, to fulfill the grand vision of spreading teachings across the entire Yuan Central.
And the Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master was one of those four disciples back then.
Looking at the white-haired elder before him, Xu Zimei knew that countless talented disciples, countless legendary figures, had all been taught by him.
Although Vermilion Academy could not compare to Heavenly Dao Academy, for many people in the Northern Continent, it still holds the place of a Holy Institute in their hearts.
There isn’t any academy that could match it.
"Young man, moderate yourself," Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master said to Xu Zimei, his tone mild.
"Telling me to moderate myself, you’d need the strength to back that up," Xu Zimei replied indifferently.
Vermilion Bird Ancestral Master wasn’t angered but merely looked at Xu Zimei indifferently.
Then, with a downward wave of his hand, vast immortal might permeated from all around him.
The might of the Immortal Extreme made the entire firmament rumble and thunder.
His white beard and hair fluttered without any wind, his eyes twinkling with a glint of sharpness.
Every move he made contained the ultimate principles of heaven and earth.
With a casual wave, it seemed as though half the firmament was collapsing.
