CHAPTER 137: CHAPTER 5: TRIAL TOWER

The woman in the pink dress never expected Gu Qingqing to be so formidable. Feeling the heat emanating from behind her, she dared not move an inch.

The others were also stunned by this scene and stood frozen, fearing Gu Qingqing might harm the woman in the pink dress.

"Don’t move, or I can’t guarantee what I’ll do to your lovely face," Gu Qingqing said, extending her hand to lightly touch the woman’s face.

The woman’s body went rigid, and she could only nod slightly to show she understood.

Over on Yun Ran and Zhou Ting’s side, they were still engaged in battle. Zhou Ting was surprised when she saw Gu Qingqing seize the woman in pink, allowing Yun Ran to catch her off guard and wrap her whip around Zhou Ting’s neck.

"Zhou Ting, do you have anything else to say?" Yun Ran asked Zhou Ting coldly.

"Don’t be too pleased. Once the tournament starts in a couple of days, I’ll show you who’s really the best," Zhou Ting said confidently, glancing at the whip on her neck and then at Yun Ran.

"Heh, let’s see who’s truly superior then. You can take your people and leave." Yun Ran retracted her whip, giving the woman in pink and the others a dismissive glance.

Gu Qingqing released the woman in pink just in time, her figure flashing to Yun Ran’s side.

"Let’s go!" Zhou Ting, her expression sour, turned and left immediately.

The woman in pink followed behind her, glancing back once before leaving as well.

"Let’s go, Geng Geng, don’t let unrelated people spoil our mood." With Zhou Ting gone, a smile instantly appeared on Yun Ran’s face as she turned to Gu Qingqing.

Gu Qingqing naturally didn’t take these matters to heart and entered Star-picking Tower with Yun Ran.

"Sister Yun, what did she mean by the tournament just now?" Gu Qingqing asked with interest.

"The tournament is a major event in Huazhou City, held every three years to select the most outstanding young talents, with generous rewards," Yun Ran explained everything about the tournament without holding back.

"Sounds quite interesting." Gu Qingqing seemed intrigued, "When does the tournament begin? Can anyone participate?"

"The tournament is held on the first day of next month, which is ten days away. As long as someone has the ambition, they can sign up to participate. However, the winners are usually from the three major families of Huazhou City," Yun Ran explained carefully. "Do you want to join, Geng Geng?"

"I’m a bit interested," Gu Qingqing nodded thoughtfully, "I’ve never taken part in such events before."

During her time on the Xuantian Continent, Gu Qingqing was well protected by her senior brothers, and had no chance to participate in events like the tournament.

Now that her senior brothers hadn’t come looking for her yet, she felt eager.

"If you want to participate, we can sign up after we finish eating," Yun Ran said, a bit excited herself about Gu Qingqing joining the tournament. "This year’s participants are in for a tough time, though; they might have to kiss first place goodbye."

Yun Ran knew how formidable Gu Qingqing was. Even without using Word Spirit power, she could easily dominate.

"Low profile, low profile. My cultivation isn’t as high as yours yet." Gu Qingqing laughed.

Yun Ran’s cultivation had already surpassed the eighth tier, while Gu Qingqing was still at the seventh tier, indeed slightly lower than Yun Ran.

"As if the realm difference really matters to you." Yun Ran rolled her eyes discontentedly, "You don’t have to be humble with me. I know you well enough."

"Alright!" Gu Qingqing shrugged and stopped discussing it further.

After finishing their meal, they went to the City Lord Mansion together to register, and afterward, returned to the Yun Family together.

As they approached Yun Ran’s courtyard, they ran into Yun Yan.

"Yun Ran, I heard you ran into Zhou Ting today?" Yun Yan asked, pretending to be casual.

"Yeah, why?" Yun Ran glanced at Yun Yan and answered nonchalantly.

"Did she give you trouble again?" Yun Yan looked at Yun Ran and quickly averted her gaze when Yun Ran looked her way. "I’m telling you, when you go out, you represent the face of the Yun Family. If Zhou Ting bullies you again, don’t hesitate to hit back hard."

Even though Yun Yan’s words were caring, she never even looked at Yun Ran, as if she was doing it all for the family’s reputation.

A hint of amusement flashed in Yun Ran’s eyes. This was one reason she always ignored Yun Yan’s provocations.

Gu Qingqing was also a bit taken aback by Yun Yan, not expecting her to be of such a character, finding it somewhat endearing inexplicably.

"I understand. I won’t bring disgrace to the Yun Family." Yun Ran looked at Yun Yan and said solemnly.

"That’s... that’s for the best. You’d better remember what you said. If you embarrass our family, I won’t let you off." After saying this, she didn’t give Yun Ran a chance to respond, turning to leave.

Watching her hurriedly retreating figure, Yun Ran and Gu Qingqing both smiled.

Once back in their rooms, they began their respective cultivation, and the courtyard fell silent.

...

Thousands of miles away in Chang’an Prefecture from the Yangzhou Prefecture, Yue Zhao and the others had gathered after returning to the Sub-immortal Realm, waiting for news from Gu Qingqing.

At intervals, Rong Ye would activate a talisman to sense Gu Qingqing’s location.

The others stood by anxiously.

When the talisman glowed brightly, those nearby immediately gathered excitedly around.

"How is it? Where’s Geng Geng?" Mu Chen leaned close to the talisman, staring intently.

Rong Ye didn’t speak, but carefully sensed.

"Found her, she’s in the eastern Yangzhou Prefecture!" Rong Ye’s expression changed, and he said excitedly.

"Why so far?" Si Lin frowned, somewhat dissatisfied with the location where Gu Qingqing ascended.

"Then let’s set off to find Geng Geng now!" Nan Hua cared little for the distance; once they knew Gu Qingqing’s location, they’d go no matter how far.

"Yes, let’s depart now and reach Geng Geng as quickly as possible," Yue Zhao said seriously, looking at the others.

The others naturally had no objections and quickly set off.

...

On the fifth day of her arrival in Huazhou City, Gu Qingqing successfully advanced to the eighth tier.

Five years ago, she had already advanced to the seventh tier, and had it not been for absorbing the power of the Heavenly Dao, she would have reached the eighth tier long ago.

Therefore, she appeared very calm about advancing to the eighth tier. In contrast, Yun Ran once again felt that Gu Qingqing was the daughter of the Heavenly Dao.

Since her cultivation had advanced, Gu Qingqing decided not to stay indoors and cultivate anymore but planned to go out, move around, and adapt to her new level of power.

"We can go challenge the Trial Tower," Yun Ran suggested.

"What is the Trial Tower?" Gu Qingqing, having never heard of it, couldn’t help but ask.

"The Trial Tower, also known as the Heaven-Reaching Tower, has an avatar in each state capital of the Sub-immortal Realm. It contains resources useful for cultivation and can also hone your combat abilities. Moreover, each time you conquer a layer, it records your score and displays it on all the Trial Towers. Currently, among the younger generation, the one who has progressed the most is Senior Brother Si!" Mentioning this, Yun Ran seemed a bit proud.

When she was on the Xuantian Continent, she only knew that Gu Qingqing’s few senior brothers were particularly formidable, but she had no concept of how formidable. It was only after coming to the Sub-immortal Realm that she realized how astounding Gu Qingqing’s five senior brothers were.

She had also challenged the Trial Tower before. With her current cultivation, she could only reach the one hundred and fiftieth floor and no higher, but it was said that Si Lin had reached the two hundredth floor at the eighth tier!

"Really, is the eldest senior brother that amazing?" Gu Qingqing was rather surprised, as it was the first time she learned about Si Lin’s image from someone else’s perspective, even though she had always known her five senior brothers were exceptionally skilled.

At the mention of this, Yun Ran instantly turned into a fangirl.

"I think you have a big misunderstanding about your senior brothers. You don’t know how many people in the Sub-immortal Realm want to become your sister-in-law." Yun Ran appeared extremely excited. "Not to mention their background and cultivation level; just their looks alone would make many want to rush towards them."

Gu Qingqing rarely saw Yun Ran this excited, indicating her senior brothers indeed held a high place in Yun Nan’s heart.

"If those who have designs on your senior brothers knew of your existence, they’d probably envy you to death." Yun Ran glanced at Gu Qingqing and said, not without a hint of jealousy.

"Well, as you said, I’m the Heavenly Dao’s favored daughter, naturally different from ordinary people," Gu Qingqing said with a smug expression on her face.

Yun Ran: "..." Although what you say is somewhat true.

"Alright, let’s go check out the Trial Tower. I’m also curious to see how enigmatic it truly is." Hearing Yun Ran’s introduction, Gu Qingqing was extremely curious about the Trial Tower.

The Trial Tower was located outside the north gate of Huazhou City, a towering structure filled with an air of antiquity and mystery.

When Gu Qingqing and the others arrived, there were already many people queued up waiting to enter the tower.

Yun Ran pulled Gu Qingqing to line up at the back of the line, ignoring the inquisitive gazes around them.

Yun Ran was quite well-known in Huazhou City. After all, she ascended from the Lower Realm and managed to surpass other family descendants within just a few years, becoming the most outstanding young individual of the Yun Family’s generation.

People like Zhou Ting, who disliked her, also exist, but many people wanted to befriend Yun Ran. Unfortunately, she had always been focused on cultivation and paid little attention to the outside world’s ups and downs.

"Once we enter, we’ll have to separate as the Trial Tower is challenged individually. Though there are team challenges, it requires five or more people. Be careful," Yun Ran advised Gu Qingqing as they neared the front of the line.

Gu Qingqing nodded. "I understand. I’ll be careful. You be careful too."

Soon enough, it was their turn. After paying the entrance fee, they stepped into the Trial Tower one after another.

Gu Qingqing felt something sweep over her, and as she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a completely different place.

In front of her appeared a place resembling a coliseum. She stood still, cautiously observing her surroundings.

Ahead of her was a circular beast fighting pool, with spectator seats on both sides. From her position, she couldn’t see whether there were spectators, but she could hear the sound of cheering around.

She was about to examine her surroundings more carefully when she felt a cold wind from behind. Instinctively, she rolled forward into the beast fighting pool area.

Once she steadied herself, she noticed an iron cage appeared opposite her, containing a demon beast.

The beast looked as if it had been starved for several days, its eyes full of greed as it gazed at her.

She placed her hand on her waist and drew her Mixed Immortal Silk, warily eyeing the iron cage in front of her.

"Dong!"

With the sound of a bell, the iron cage suddenly opened, and the demon beast charged out.

It was a fifth-tier Iron-backed Rhinoceros, primarily using its horn for attacks.

Its eyes glowed green as it panted heavily, leaping straight at Gu Qingqing.

To Gu Qingqing, a fifth-tier demon beast posed no threat. She neither dodged nor avoided as she confronted the Iron-backed Rhinoceros horn directly.

One hand grabbed the rhino horn while the other swung the Mixed Immortal Silk, binding the Iron-backed Rhinoceros tightly. A palm strike landed on the rhinoceros’s brain, and its eyes rolled back, losing its breath instantly.

She retrieved her Mixed Immortal Silk, allowing the Iron-backed Rhinoceros’s corpse to fall to the ground.

In an instant, the cheering and shouting disappeared, and she was transported to another place.

This time, she found herself in a dense forest, surrounded by a pack of fifth-tier Fire Wolves.

The Fire Wolves eyed her menacingly, as if ready to tear her apart.

Not one to delay, Gu Qingqing acted immediately. Her silhouette flickered like a phantom through the pack of wolves, leaving wolf corpses scattered on the ground in no time.

Once again, the scene before her changed, and she found herself above a lake, with a group of crocodiles eyeing her from below.

Cracking a grin, Gu Qingqing thought the Trial Tower was truly intriguing, as its relentless pace left people no time to catch their breath.

No wonder Yun Ran had said the Trial Tower was tough to conquer.

Fortunately, her reflexes were sharp, allowing her to progress smoothly to the fiftieth floor, acquiring many useful items before sitting for a brief rest.

Half an hour later, she stood up and continued her journey through the Trial Tower.

At this time, outside the Trial Tower, a crowd had already gathered.

Every day in Huazhou City’s Trial Tower, people attempted the challenge, and everyone was familiar with their performances. When an unfamiliar name suddenly appeared, climbing the tower with such speed, it naturally drew attention.

"This person’s called Gu Qingqing? I’ve never heard of her before. Is she really that formidable?"

"Perhaps she’s a disciple from a major sect out for a trial?"

"But the Trial Tower rankings are shared across the entire continent, so even a major sect disciple should have appeared before."

"Look quickly, her ranking has changed again!"

The discussions ceased as everyone rushed to view the rankings on the Trial Tower.

Currently, Gu Qingqing’s rank had already surpassed most people, gradually reaching the pinnacle levels of Huazhou City.

"Look, she’s reached the one hundred and seventy-ninth floor and is about to hit the one hundred and eightieth!"

Exclamations kept coming from the crowd, which grew in number as many who came out of the Trial Tower joined them.