Chapter Ninety: The Interrogation

The moment Ke Bei and the others stepped out of the Tower of Ascension, four elders seated at its four corners opened their eyes at once. Their long white beards and hair stirred in the wind as they rose soundlessly into the air, treading the void and speeding toward the tower’s entrance.

Meanwhile, the king-rank demon beast that had been drowsily sprawled atop the tower—the violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger—suddenly stirred its massive body. It slowly lifted its ferocious head, and two deep violet glimmers flashed through its enormous tiger eyes. With a light stamp of its four hooves upon empty air, it too came toward the main entrance of the tower.

Just as he had stepped beyond the tower gate, Ke Bei, whose arm was intimately linked by Luo Ling, suddenly stopped short. His expression remained unchanged, but his eyes narrowed slightly. Raising his head, he looked toward the four figures descending through the air, and then toward the huge demon beast. His fist tightened a little, and his heart grew secretly vigilant.

The fact that the Tower of Ascension had already acknowledged its master absolutely could not be exposed. Otherwise, there would be terrible trouble.

“What is it?” Luo Ling sensed the sudden tremor in the muscles of Ke Bei’s arm. She lifted her little face, her bright eyes full of concern, and asked him softly.

“Nothing.”

Ke Bei lowered his head and looked at Luo Ling, whose eyes were filled with worry. He smiled faintly and slowly shook his head.

Boom.

Five terrifying pressures spread through the air. The people who had just emerged from the Tower of Ascension immediately felt as though a mountain of ten thousand jin had been pressing upon their hearts. All of them could not help but slowly raise their heads, their faces full of astonishment as they looked toward the sky.

“Who ascended to the third level?”

An ancient-looking elder with snow-white hair and beard swept his gaze over the people from the Azure Dragon ranking of the Nine Rivers Base’s genius training camp. His inwardly restrained spiritual radiance flickered in his eyes, and his aged voice carried an undercurrent of uncontrollable excitement and anticipation as he slowly asked the question.

The old, resonant voice entered Ke Bei’s ears, and his heart suddenly tightened. A faint premonition of danger rose within him. Had they discovered that the Tower of Ascension had already recognized a master?

The members of the Nine Rivers Base’s Azure Dragon ranking were all stunned, apart from the five who had reached the second level. Among their group, someone had actually stepped onto the third level.

These people were all elites of the Nine Rivers genius training camp, and they knew more or less about the first batch of people who had entered the Tower of Ascension. As far as they knew, among the first group, not even the most top-tier geniuses of the younger generation from the three great bases had managed to reach the third level. Yet from the elder’s tone, someone in their own group had actually done it. Thinking of what Bai Yong had just said about a miracle, all their eyes immediately turned in unison toward Ke Bei.

“I entered the third level.”

Under the sharp gaze of everyone, Ke Bei knew there was no avoiding it. He slowly withdrew his arm from Luo Ling’s embrace, then suddenly stepped forward and slightly raised his head to look at the elder standing in midair.

Ke Bei had already made up his mind. If they discovered that the Tower of Ascension had recognized a master, then he would turn around and rush back into it. He was now the tower’s owner. Although he could not yet bring out the full power of this top-tier divine artifact, he could certainly shut the tower doors so that no one could enter.

As long as he hid inside the Tower of Ascension, Ke Bei had absolute confidence that without his permission, even the strongest human in the world would be unable to force their way in.

He slowly suppressed the thought in his heart. The fist he had clenched loosened slightly, and on his face he deliberately revealed a somewhat proud, somewhat excited expression, as though merely reaching the third level of the Tower of Ascension had made him immensely honored.

“Little fellow, come over here with this old man for a moment.”

The white-haired elder looked at Ke Bei and gave a faint smile. His gaunt hand waved lightly, and instantly Ke Bei’s body seemed to be supported by an invisible great hand, lifting him into the air. He followed behind the elder, flying toward the tower’s peak, which pierced the clouds.

Seeing the elder take Ke Bei away, the remaining three elders, as well as the king-rank demon beast, the violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger, also rose into the air and quietly hovered dozens of meters from the top of the tower.

Among the three elders, one had purple pupils and appeared no different from a human. He was a divine king of the God Clan. At this moment, his eyes, bright as purple crystals, shimmered with a strange light.

“Purple Tiger, what do you think? Could it be him?”

The elder’s violet eyes flickered, and with a blank expression he stared at the tower’s summit. His deep voice directly entered the mind of the violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger.

“It’s still impossible to be certain, but the tower’s disturbance should have something to do with him.”

“Better to kill ten thousand by mistake than let even one slip away. Otherwise, once humanity obtains a second divine artifact, both of our races will be in for hard times.”

The violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger lazily stretched out a paw. Deep within its massive blood-red tiger eyes, a thread of savage killing intent flashed and vanished. Its clear voice rang in the divine elder’s mind.

“Mm.”

The divine elder’s expression did not change. He gave a subtle nod and shifted his attention to Ke Bei on the tower’s summit.

“Nine Swords, keep your eye on the violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger. Leave the divine clan’s beasts to me. If they dare make any move... kill them.”

One of the human elders, his loose silver robe fluttering in the wind, quietly sent a message to the elder beside him, who stood with proud bearing and carried an ancient sword on his back.

“Relax.”

The old man with the ancient sword on his back wore a frosty expression. His voice, as cold as winter, slowly echoed in the mind of the silver-robed elder.

The two exchanged a glance, then turned their attention to Ke Bei atop the tower, while secretly remaining wary of the divine elder and the violet-furred Howling Moon Tiger across from them.

“Little fellow, don’t be nervous. Tell this old man, what did you see on the third level?”

The white-haired elder’s aged face wore a gentle smile, and his keen eyes held a trace of anticipation as he slowly asked.

“The third level was no different from the second, except that the black stone pillars became only one.”

Ke Bei frowned in thought for a moment, then looked at the elder and answered slowly.

“Mm. Then did you ascend to the fourth level?” The elder’s tone grew somewhat urgent as he looked at Ke Bei, who was faintly furrowing his brows.

“No.”

Ke Bei shook his head, and a look of regret appeared on his face.

“I originally wanted to go up and take a look, but the moment I stepped onto the first golden stair, my head suddenly split with pain, and I fell straight back down.”

Ke Bei’s expression was crestfallen, and his words carried a strong note of disappointment.

At Ke Bei’s answer, the elder’s brows knit together. His long white eyebrows moved in the wind. After a brief silence, he asked again.

“Did you obtain anything? Martial arts, or a treasure?”

Hearing the elder ask again, Ke Bei secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed they did not know that he had already made the Tower of Ascension recognize him as its master. But when the tower acknowledged him earlier, something unusual must certainly have occurred, though he himself did not know what it was. It looked as though he would have to produce something to get through this, or else the elder would surely become suspicious.

Thanks to Zhe Yu, Star Fan 1, Novel Citizen, Jin Sheng Su Bing, Young Master Xiao Lei, and the one who wielded a knife to stab for the tips. Heh, I wrote early today, and the brothers in the group kept urging me, so I posted ahead of time. Also, to the brothers who voted for more updates: Bookboy begs you not to vote yet. Bookboy really does not have the capacity to take it all in right now. If you want, wait until the first day it goes on sale, and then smash it hard. I can swallow even twelve thousand!