Chapter 34: We need to get past the Tower of Babel.

Meanwhile,

In the Boundary Sea,

Chaos churned.

A golden figure sped through the void.

With every step the figure took, it crossed endless Star Domains.

Suddenly.

He stopped.

The golden figure looked up.

His gaze shot toward a remote domain in the Lower Realm.

He frowned, a hint of confusion surfacing.

“Divine Light of Induction?”

He muttered to himself.

He suddenly remembered something.

Before his departure, Her Majesty the Empress had sent a divine general to inform him of the relevant matters for this journey.

In that remote domain, there were clearly still seventeen days before the next ascender would trigger the Divine Light of Induction.

Seventeen days.

To the Upper Realm, it was but the blink of an eye.

Calculating the time, it was definitely too early.

The operations of the Heavenly Dao were always precise to the last detail.

How could it be early?

But the aura he felt was so strong, so pure.

It was undoubtedly the Divine Light of Induction.

“Just what happened?”

The Divine Envoy's frown deepened.

The Laws of the Lower Realm were fragmented; it should be impossible for anyone to subvert the heavenly secrets.

Unless...

His pupils suddenly constricted.

Could it be Her Majesty the Empress's divine artifact!?

That supreme treasure lost in the Lower Realm possessed the great power to obscure heavenly secrets and overturn Laws.

If Her Majesty's perception was correct, that divine artifact must be in that domain!

Thinking of this, the Divine Envoy's heartbeat quickened slightly.

The appearance of a divine artifact would surely attract greed from all sides.

Even in this Lower Realm, he could not afford to be careless.

At his current speed, it would take another day to descend to that domain.

“It seems I must speed up.”

A flash of determination crossed the Divine Envoy's eyes.

Amidst his contemplation.

The Divine Power within him erupted.

The golden light on the Divine Envoy's body grew increasingly dazzling.

Like a brilliant supernova, it instantly tore through the endless darkness of the Boundary Sea.

...

Meanwhile.

In the Eastern Province, at the Peak of Qingyun.

The entire field was dead silent.

Hundreds of thousands of Cultivators held their breath.

On the high platform.

At this moment, Old Ancestor Qingxuan still had his eyes closed.

He slightly tilted his head up.

His arms were spread wide, embracing the sky.

A clear breeze brushed past.

His Daoist robes swayed gently.

He looked like an immortal, profound and unfathomable.

“That... Old Ancestor...”

Ye Wentian swallowed hard.

“The golden light... seems to be fading...”

Old Ancestor Qingxuan's brow suddenly furrowed.

A hint of displeasure flashed in his heart.

Fading?

What a joke!

My Ascension Ceremony has only just begun!

The Old Ancestor opened his eyes again and followed Ye Wentian's gaze, turning his head to look.

The next moment.

The expression on his face completely froze.

In the VIP seats not far away.

The Divine Light of Induction had turned into a massive pillar of golden light, enveloping Gu Heng entirely.

Gu Heng was bathed in the divine light, but there wasn't a trace of ecstasy on his face.

On the contrary.

He slightly frowned.

He seemed to find this sudden intense light a bit glaring.

Gu Heng was seen shaking his head slightly.

He took a bite of a wild fruit and muttered a dissatisfied sentence.

“I refuse to ascend.”

Buzz—

As his voice fell.

The Divine Light of Induction that pierced heaven and earth seemed to understand his command.

The light suddenly stalled.

Then.

It receded as quickly as a tide.

In the blink of an eye, it vanished without a trace.

The sky returned to its former calm.

“Pfft...”

This time, Old Ancestor Qingxuan completely lost his composure.

He almost spat out a mouthful of blood. Then his eyes widened, his eyeballs nearly falling to the ground.

What the hell is going on!?

You can refuse Ascension!?

That was the Divine Light of Induction!

The Divine Light of Induction that countless Cultivators beg for, risk their lives for, and dream of even just touching!

With one word of refusal from you, it really just vanished!?

Is the Heavenly Dao run by your family!?

Old Ancestor Qingxuan felt as if his entire worldview was being ruthlessly ground into the dirt at this moment.

At this time.

The crowd also began to react.

“What happened?!”

“Where's the divine light? Why is the divine light gone?!”

“Wait! Just now, the Divine Light of Induction... why did it fall on a servant!?”

Incredible cries of surprise erupted from the crowd.

Everyone's gaze focused simultaneously on Gu Heng.

A young man wearing the servant attire of the Qingyun Sect.

He had actually triggered the Divine Light of Induction!

The first to react were the Five Saints of Zhongzhou sitting next to Gu Heng.

Saint Lord Leihuo suddenly stood up.

He stared fixedly at Gu Heng, a flash of horror in his eyes.

“No wonder!”

Saint Lord Leihuo sucked in a breath of cold air. “No wonder my Divine Sense couldn't probe his depths!”

The Wuji Sword Saint also tightened his grip on his sword hilt, his palms covered in cold sweat.

“His aura is strange, returning to simplicity.”

“To even be able to trigger the Divine Light of Induction...”

The Five Saints of Zhongzhou exchanged looks.

They suddenly realized!

“So that's how it is!”

“He's not some servant at all!”

“He is a fellow daoist at the Peak of Tribulation Transcendence!”

As soon as these words were spoken.

The various powerhouses in the VIP seats all sucked in cold breaths.

Peak of Tribulation Transcendence!

These four words were like a mountain pressing down on everyone's hearts.

In the Five Great Provinces, Cultivators in the Tribulation Transcendence Stage could be counted on one hand.

Each one was a supreme titan who suppressed an era.

And this young man who looked barely in his early twenties was actually a Quasi-True Immortal standing at the very top of the cultivation world!

At this moment, the Ancestor of the Wang Family almost wanted to find a hole to crawl into. Recalling how just now, he had wanted to mock him.

He had even wanted to use his pressure to intimidate the other party.

He now felt a chill down his back, cold sweat soaking his Daoist robes.

To think he had wanted to put on the airs of a Saint in front of him just now.

Yet in the next second, that person was about to ascend!

If he had really made a move just now...

The Ancestor of the Wang Family shuddered.

The Wang family would probably be preparing for a funeral feast right now.

“Wait!”

A terrifying thought suddenly flashed through the mind of the Ancestor of the Wang Family.

Speaking of Ascension...

That's not right!

He suddenly looked up, staring at Gu Heng like he was looking at a monster.

“He refused the Divine Light of Induction?!”

The Ancestor of the Wang Family couldn't help but cry out in shock!

This cry instantly jolted everyone present awake.

Now.

Everyone in the field finally reacted.

Hundreds of thousands of Cultivators looked at each other, finding it all utterly inconceivable.

A Peak Tribulation Transcendence about to ascend.

Meaning a Quasi-True Immortal with half a foot in the Immortal Realm.

Actually refused the Divine Light of Induction?!

Isn't the goal of cultivation to ascend?!

After enduring a thousand tribulations and ten thousand dangers, and finally managing to attract the divine light, you just say you refuse it?!

“How... how could this be?”

Wang Aotian stood dazed in the corner.

The talent and Dao Heart he was so proud of were shattered into pieces at this moment.

He had always viewed Ascension as his lifelong pursuit.

But the person before him treated Ascension like trash, throwing it away at will.

Lin Qingyue looked at the white-robed youth leisurely eating wild fruit, her heart churning with stormy waves.

Just what kind of person was he?

To be able to ignore even the temptation of the Immortal Realm?

After the brief shock.

The crowd's reason gradually returned.

Wait.

Isn't today Old Ancestor Qingxuan's Ascension Ceremony?

If the Divine Light of Induction belonged to that mysterious youth.

Then... what about the Old Ancestor?

Hundreds of thousands of pairs of eyes looked confusedly at Old Ancestor Qingxuan on the high platform.

Their eyes were filled with massive confusion.

The meaning was obvious.

They were asking: where is your Divine Light of Induction?

Didn't you say you were going to ascend?

Didn't you invite fellow daoists from all over the world to watch?

You just stood there with your arms open and eyes closed for so long, only to wait for nothing?!

The atmosphere instantly became incredibly awkward.

The air seemed to have frozen.

On the high platform.

Old Ancestor Qingxuan maintained his posture with his arms slightly spread.

His old face flushed bright red.

He could clearly feel the hundreds of thousands of questioning gazes from below.

This was simply a public execution!

Old Ancestor Qingxuan gave a dry cough.

He awkwardly rubbed his nose.

He slowly lowered his arms.

He looked at the golden light in the sky that was growing dimmer and eventually disappeared completely.

He was also dumbfounded.

That's right!

Where was his Divine Light of Induction?!

He had clearly felt a pull from the unseen aura.

He had clearly felt that he was only a hair's breadth away from Ascension.

Could it be... that his feeling was really wrong?!

“That...”

Ye Wentian spoke up cautiously, “Old Ancestor, do you want to try a different pose? Maybe the angle was wrong just now...”

Old Ancestor Qingxuan glared at him.

Pose my ass!

I've been posing for half a tea's time!

Just as the entire field was in a daze.

A sudden change occurred!

Rumble—!

From above the Nine Heavens came a dull roll of thunder.

Somewhere in the sky, the Void Realm twisted violently.

A golden light became increasingly dazzling.

As if tearing through the void from somewhere, carrying an unparalleled and vast pressure.

It crashed down!

The Cultivators in the field were once again awed by this pressure and looked up at the sky.

Old Ancestor Qingxuan's whole body shook, and then he suddenly looked up.

He no longer cared about looking like an immortal or a high-level expert; he directly threw his head back and laughed wildly.

“Hahaha!”

“I knew it!”

“I knew it!”

He pointed at the sky, his voice vibrating with excitement.

“The Divine Light of Induction that belongs to me has finally come!”

He had regained his face.

He looked down at the hundreds of thousands of Cultivators below.

His eyes were full of pride.

Did you see that?

I can also trigger the Divine Light of Induction!

Looking at Old Ancestor Qingxuan who had regained the divine light, everyone also breathed a sigh of relief.

Good, good.

The Old Ancestor was still the Old Ancestor.

The ceremony was not in vain.

The leaders of the major powers immediately put on respectful expressions again, preparing to continue observing this once-in-ten-thousand-years Ascension spectacle.

And in the VIP seats.

Gu Heng had no interest in anything happening on the high platform.

The System interface appeared before his eyes.

He glanced at the data on the panel.

[Current Passing Distance: 7680 meters]

Gu Heng shook his head slightly.

“7680 meters...”

He calculated in his mind.

This distance was neither long nor short.

It was more than enough to 'pass by' some ordinary Secret Realms or treasuries.

But his current goal was not those small-time things.

He lifted his eyelids, his gaze seeming to penetrate through layers of space, looking toward the center of the Qingyun Sect.

There.

Stood a tower.

Tomorrow would be the day the heaven-reaching tower opened.

“heaven-reaching tower...”

A playful arc curved at the corner of Gu Heng's mouth.

Since it was opening tomorrow.

How could he miss such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity?

“It seems I'll have to hurry and pass by the heaven-reaching tower tomorrow.”

Gu Heng made a silent decision in his heart.

A passing distance of 7680 meters.

As long as he operated it correctly, he could definitely 'pass by' and refine the heaven-reaching tower.

Thinking of this.

Gu Heng was in a great mood.

He leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, and then looked at that flickering golden light, falling into thought.

“Cough, hey, old man, I think you can take a break.”

Before his voice had even faded,

The sky returned to its former calm.

Although the golden light in the sky was still there, it also gradually began to grow dim.

Gu Heng clapped his hands, turned to look at Old Ancestor Qingxuan, and said casually,

“The time hasn't come yet, what's the rush.”

Old Ancestor Qingxuan was also looking at him.

The expression on his old face was too complex for words.

Shock.

Bewilderment.

Confusion.

And a little... grievance?

Gu Heng thought for a moment and spoke to comfort him:

“Old Ancestor, don't worry.”

“Yours should be coming soon.”

Old Ancestor Qingxuan's mouth twitched.

He now seriously suspected that he had somehow offended the Heavenly Dao.

“Right.”

Gu Heng suddenly remembered something and confirmed again, “The heaven-reaching tower opens tomorrow, right?”

Ye Wentian nodded subconsciously, “Yes... it's tomorrow at the Hour of the Dragon.”

Gu Heng nodded and turned to walk down the mountain.

His white robes fluttered in the twilight as he walked further and further away.

His voice drifted back from afar:

“It's getting late, I'll go back and pack up first.”

“I'll... come again tomorrow.”

As his voice fell, he had already disappeared at the end of the mountain path.

Leaving behind a mountain full of Cultivators looking at each other.

It was a long time.

A long time later.

Before the Ancestor of the Wang Family spoke with difficulty:

“Did he just... say he was going to the heaven-reaching tower?”