Chapter 121: Soul Refining Tower?

The following day, the entire ancient city became exceptionally bustling as countless people streamed into the city. Today was the day the Gu family's Soul Refining Pagoda was scheduled to open.

In this region, everyone was aware of the miraculous effects of the Gu family's Soul Refining Pagoda. It was precisely due to the pagoda's existence that the Gu family had become a prestigious family of Source Mark Masters, with every clan member possessing impressive soul attainments.

Consequently, each year when the Gu family opened the Soul Refining Pagoda to outsiders, it attracted many individuals who clearly hoped to utilize its wondrous effects to elevate their own souls.

Within the city, the vast manor also opened its gates, welcoming guests from all directions.

Zhou Yuan, Yaoyao, and the green-haired girl named Luluo arrived together.

The three followed the crowd, eventually gathering in the center of the manor. In the spacious clearing, a colossal black stone pagoda stood tall. Its surface was engraved with countless ancient patterns, flickering with light.

"Is that the Soul Refining Pagoda?" Luluo asked, filled with curiosity.

Zhou Yuan gazed at the black stone pagoda, his brows slightly furrowed. For some reason, he vaguely felt that something was amiss.

As Zhou Yuan harbored this unease, a white-robed figure appeared before the black pagoda. It was Gu Ling, whom they had met yesterday.

Gu Ling also spotted Zhou Yuan and Yaoyao, though more accurately, his gaze lingered on Yaoyao. He merely glanced past Zhou Yuan, clearly not giving him any thought.

Gu Ling offered Yaoyao a gentle smile, then turned to the assembled crowd and announced loudly, "As you all know, today is the day my Gu family opens the Soul Refining Pagoda. This pagoda has the effect of tempering souls, a fact I'm sure you are all aware of."

Everyone gazed at the Soul Refining Pagoda with fervent eyes.

Seeing this, Gu Ling smiled again and said, "However, I must state upfront that there are risks involved in entering the Soul Refining Pagoda, so I urge everyone to proceed with caution."

But at that moment, everyone's eyes were fixed solely on the Soul Refining Pagoda, and they paid no heed to Gu Ling's words.

Gu Ling maintained his smile, but a strange glint flickered in his eyes.

"Open the pagoda gates!" Gu Ling shouted loudly, and the gates of the Soul Refining Pagoda slowly rumbled open.

As the gates opened, a wailing sound seemed to emanate from within the Soul Refining Pagoda, sending shivers down one's spine.

However, those holding entry slots did not hesitate for a moment. As soon as the gates opened, they surged forward, rushing into the Soul Refining Pagoda.

Zhou Yuan remained still for a moment, looking at Yaoyao and asking in a low voice, "What do you think?"

Yaoyao's gaze had been fixed on the ancient patterns on the pagoda's surface since they arrived. Hearing Zhou Yuan's voice, her eyes moved slightly as she said, "I have a lead..."

She said with interest, "Let's go inside and see. I hope I haven't guessed wrong."

Seeing her say this, Zhou Yuan naturally had no objection. He smiled at Luluo and said, "We'll go in and try it out. You can decide what you want to do."

With that, he said no more. He and Yaoyao shot forward simultaneously, rushing into the Soul Refining Pagoda.

Luluo watched their figures, pouting slightly. She declared, "I'm not scared!"

With that, she followed without hesitation.

Inside the pagoda, the view was vast, as if it contained its own hidden space.

The three of them walked inside the pagoda. On this desert-like ground, they occasionally saw figures of others who had entered the Soul Refining Pagoda.

"I don't see anything that can temper souls," Luluo asked, her wide eyes constantly scanning around in confusion.

"Let's wait," Yaoyao said, gently stroking Tun Tun in her arms.

Not long after Yaoyao's voice faded, a faint, light black mist suddenly began to spread within the pagoda, from which a subtle wailing sound seemed to emanate.

Zhou Yuan's brows suddenly furrowed as he watched the light black mist. He felt his soul, located in his glabella, vibrating intensely, as if strongly agitated by something.

The feeling was akin to a thirsty person seeing a stream before them, wanting nothing more than to plunge into it.

"This is Soul Refining Mist! Absorbing it can temper the soul!" many exultant voices rang out from a distance. Those individuals immediately sat down, circulated their souls, and continuously absorbed the dark mist.

"Soul Refining Mist?" Zhou Yuan was slightly surprised. He had heard of such a substance, but it was extremely difficult and costly to produce. Could the Gu family truly be willing to use it for outsiders at such a low price?

"This is good stuff," Luluo also said in surprise.

"Don't inhale it," Yaoyao suddenly interjected.

Zhou Yuan's heart tensed. Without hesitation, he activated his Genesis Qi, enveloping his body to completely block out the dark mist.

The ice-blue bird perched on Luluo's shoulder also spouted a burst of cold air, enveloping Luluo.

Yaoyao raised her delicate hand, summoning a wisp of dark mist. She observed it intently for a moment, then slowly said, "What a sinister method."

"What's going on?" Zhou Yuan quickly asked.

Yaoyao flicked her finger, dispersing the dark mist. She said, "This mist is indeed a type of 'Soul Refining Mist,' but something has been added to it..."

"If absorbed, one's soul will gradually become intoxicated and unable to extricate itself."

"Let's go further in."

Yaoyao strode forward. Wherever she passed, figures sat cross-legged on the ground. Their eyes were closed, and their faces displayed expressions of ecstasy.

Faint black energy coiled around their glabellas.

Zhou Yuan's footsteps suddenly halted. He stared in shock at a figure ahead; the person's face was vacant, and a bloody hole had appeared in their glabella.

"His soul is gone," Zhou Yuan said in a low voice.

"What a strange Soul Refining Pagoda," Luluo's small face also changed slightly. This Soul Refining Pagoda seemed very wrong.

Yaoyao's pretty face, however, remained calm. She looked at the black mist and said, "It seems my conjecture was correct."

"What do you mean?" Zhou Yuan and Luluo both looked at her.

Yaoyao smiled faintly and said, "When I first looked at the patterns on the pagoda's surface, I knew something was definitely off. Now that we've come inside, it's even clearer..."

"This pagoda, I'm afraid, isn't called the Soul Refining Pagoda."

"It should be called... the Soul Devouring Pagoda."

"No wonder the Gu family members' souls are not weak, yet they appear somewhat unstable and not properly condensed... It turns out these individuals have been cultivating by relying on this Soul Devouring Pagoda."

Deep within the black pagoda.

Before a luminous mirror, Gu Ling, dressed in white, stared at its surface, which displayed the scenes within the pagoda.

In front of the mirror was a black crystal ball connected to the ground, with black energy swirling within it. Faintly, it seemed as if soul power was continuously pouring into it from all directions.

Behind Gu Ling, three figures sat cross-legged on three stone platforms, powerful soul fluctuations emanating from their glabellas.

Gu Ling watched the mirror with a smile. Suddenly remembering the beauty, he immediately tapped the mirror with his finger. Light appeared on its surface, and a new scene emerged.

But when the scene appeared, the smile on Gu Ling's face abruptly froze.

He saw that in the mirror, Zhou Yuan and the other two were walking casually, having not absorbed the pervasive "Soul Refining Mist"!

Yaoyao, among them, had actually detected a certain scrutiny. She suddenly looked up, and a soul vibration emanated from her glabella, directly shattering the image on the mirror.

"What's going on?!" Behind Gu Ling, the Gu family's patriarch and two elders also noticed this scene. They immediately rose, their faces frigid.

One elder said in a deep voice, "That girl's soul cultivation earlier wasn't weaker than ours. How did she get in?!"

Gu Ling's expression was grim. He had never imagined that what was supposed to be merely inviting a delicate and tender beauty had suddenly turned into bringing a ferocious tiger-wolf into the room.

"What do we do? They've discovered the secret of the Soul Devouring Pagoda!" another elder exclaimed.

The Gu family's patriarch, with a gloomy look in his eyes and a flicker of killing intent, then calmed down and said, "Since that's the case... let them die here."