Chapter 11: The Tower Spirit: Qing Ming!
"Creak—"
A wooden door was slowly pushed open. A ray of sunlight crept in along the widening crack, eventually forming a slender beam of light upon the floor.
As the wooden door swung fully open, the light rapidly expanded, and two figures walked inside.
The newcomers were none other than Jiang Yun and Zi Yan. After completing their enrollment procedures with Hu Gan, First Elder Su Qian had returned to the Inner Academy. Under Zi Yan's forceful insistence, Jiang Yun had chosen to share a small loft with her.
In Zi Yan's words: living together makes it easier for me to protect you!
"Hmph— I was just worried that you'd get bullied, Little Yunzi, you ungrateful brat!" Zi Yan puffed out her cheeks, looking just like a little steamed bun, and glared at Jiang Yun in a huff.
"Alright, alright, I spoke out of turn. From now on, I'll be counting on Zi Yan to protect me well!" Although he was the younger one by age—whether counting his past life or this one, strictly speaking, Jiang Yun's age didn't even amount to a fraction of Zi Yan's—
Jiang Yun still behaved more like an older brother!
He raised his short little hand, realized he couldn't reach the top of Zi Yan's head, and cleverly changed course, patting her on the shoulder instead.
"You know what's good for you!"
Watching Jiang Yun 'admit his mistake,' Zi Yan flicked her ponytail and strode triumphantly into the room.
The small loft, which looked modest from the outside, had two floors and appeared exceptionally neat and tidy. After glancing around briefly, Zi Yan nodded with satisfaction. She turned back to Jiang Yun and declared,
"From now on, I'll live upstairs, and you'll live downstairs!"
With the rooms assigned, the two each retreated to their own quarters. After everything he'd been through that day, Jiang Yun was utterly exhausted.
Lying on the soft bed, Jiang Yun exhaled deeply. A swirl of indescribable emotions stirred in his heart. From this moment on, he had officially established a foothold on the Dou Qi Continent.
He would spend the next several years here training.
At this point, he began sorting through the information he knew. Zi Yan had just been brought back to the academy by Su Qian. He wasn't sure whether this timeline had shifted earlier or if it was precisely at this moment in the original course of events.
But one thing was certain: Xiao Yan, the child of destiny in this world, was roughly the same age as himself at this time. This gave him a generous window of time to develop.
Xiao Yan had cultivated on the Dou Qi Continent for roughly seventy to eighty years, then spent another hundred years training in the Great Thousand World. At present, there were still close to two hundred years before the final activation of the Great Thousand Transformation Demon Array.
That was enough time for him to grow!
Next, he needed to plan carefully, using his pre-existing advantages to grow rapidly on the Dou Qi Continent.
Thinking and thinking, Jiang Yun slowly closed his heavy eyelids.
Night descended, shrouding the land. Cool moonlight cascaded down, washing away the residual heat left in the earth.
Within the room, Jiang Yun lay in deep slumber. Strands of moonlight spilled through the window and shone upon his body. A wondrous scene then unfolded, as the cool moonlight seemed to ripple like waves of water.
A sliver of the tower tip, exposed at Jiang Yun's chest, was now emitting a faint light.
In the next moment, Jiang Yun, who had been deep asleep, felt the world spin around him. When he hazily opened his eyes, he found himself in a pitch-black space.
There was no light here at all. It was silent, and bone-chillingly cold.
"Child, you've come."
Before Jiang Yun could even react, an illusory figure slowly appeared.
Looking at the figure, a sharp ripple of emotion flashed through Jiang Yun's eyes. However, he quickly collected himself and said respectfully, "You must be the senior tower spirit! Thank you, senior, for saving my life!"
"My name is the Qing Ming Tower."
"Senior Qing Ming." Although the Qing Ming Tower was a weapon forged by Jiang Hong and could be considered an extension of his life, Jiang Yun would never have another grandfather. In his heart, Jiang Hong was his true grandfather.
"Child, what kind of person do you want to become in the future?" Qing Ming did not mind Jiang Yun's attitude. He simply gazed at Jiang Yun quietly, those deep, profound eyes as if able to pierce straight into the human heart.
"I want to fulfill my grandfather's dream. The Xie Ling Clan is not expendable cannon fodder!" Jiang Yun's expression was resolute, his eyes burning brightly as he spoke.
A strange glint flickered in Qing Ming's eyes. He said gently, "That will be a path fraught with danger and hardship."
"I am not afraid!" Jiang Yun looked calmly at Qing Ming. On his immature face was an unshakable determination.
"Good! Very good! It was not in vain that I brought you to this special continent." Qing Ming beamed with joy and laughed heartily.
He did not fear a child unwilling to train; what he feared was a child without ambition!
In Qing Ming's view, Jiang Yun had already initially possessed the qualification to stand at the summit of the Great Thousand World.
"What's so special about this continent?"
Jiang Yun was not exhilarated by Qing Ming's praise. Rather, it was the other's mention of the Dou Qi Continent's special features that piqued his interest. If one had to name the most memorable thing about the Dou Qi Continent, it would be the various Heavenly Flames. Could this continent hold some secrets still unknown to him?
"This continent is anything but simple!" Qing Ming gazed into the distance with profound eyes, as if able to see through the tower to some unknown location.
Jiang Yun remained silent, quietly watching Qing Ming, waiting for his answer. It seemed his understanding based on memory was not the entirety of the Dou Qi Continent after all!
"The fire-attributed energy of this continent is somewhat unique, giving birth to many bizarre flames. Guess why that is?" At this, Qing Ming looked at Jiang Yun with keen interest.
Jiang Yun was momentarily speechless. In that instant, he truly loathed riddlers.
Having teased Jiang Yun a bit, Qing Ming's mood seemed to improve considerably. He chuckled and said, "Actually, I don't know either!"
"..." Jiang Yun stared at Qing Ming in utter bafflement. So you've just been stringing me along this whole time?
"Don't look at me like that. When all is said and done, I am merely a weapon, and right now, even my own body is in a half-asleep, half-awake state. I simply followed my instincts and brought you to land at the place with the most extraordinary aura." Qing Ming spread his hands and pointed at his own somewhat illusory form as he spoke slowly.
"How could this happen? Was it the price of protecting me on the journey to the Dou Qi Continent?" Jiang Yun now felt a twinge of self-reproach.
"Heh, don't worry, it's not because of you. Do you still remember that wisp of Saint Demon Flame?" Qing Ming spoke up, soothing Jiang Yun's dejected mood.
"Could it be..."
"Exactly. It is suppressed right here within my tower. Once you break through to Dou Zhe, you can come here and absorb it step by step. It is the nourishment for your growth."
Qing Ming's words made Jiang Yun's breathing quicken somewhat. This was the Saint Demon Flame, the flame of the Saint Demon Emperor. Before Xiao Yan grew to his peak, this was the number one flame in the Great Thousand World.
Even though it was just a single sub-flame, it was still a flame comparable to the Purifying Demon Lotus Flame and the Nihility Devouring Flame.
Perhaps even stronger!
"Whew—"
Forcefully suppressing the joy in his heart, Jiang Yun regained his calm. He looked at Qing Ming seriously and asked, "Senior, please tell me about the special features of the Dou Qi Continent."
(End of Chapter)