Chapter 2694: Seeking Help

A moment later, Su Yun's expression turned extremely serious. Lu Ye was truly in big trouble this time. The Insect and Blood races had actually dispatched powerhouses of the Universe-level City Lord rank to target him! Although he wasn't particularly fond of Lu Ye, since Lu Ye was an Outsider Emissary of the Phoenix Race, they were considered family. How could he sit idly by after hearing such news? He immediately sent out a message.

A moment later, Su Yan and Zhu Yin, who had been cultivating elsewhere, rushed over. After Su Yun informed them of the news he had received, both women were filled with indignation. Zhu Yin gritted her teeth and exclaimed, "The Insect and Blood races are utterly audacious!" This was the Dragon Race's Tower of Time. Due to an ancestral decree, the Tower of Time was open to cultivators from the entire Inner Realm every time it was activated. The Insect and Blood races were no exception; anyone capable could earn the right to enter the tower. The Dragon Race had never interfered much, allowing them to enjoy the blessings left by their ancestors. Yet now, they were actually targeting Lu Ye! Not to mention the Dragon and Phoenix races being one family, Lu Ye, as an Outsider Emissary of the Phoenix Race, already had a close relationship with the Dragon Race. Furthermore, after the previous incident involving the Ancestral Abyss restriction, Zhu Yin knew how highly the Dragon Venerable regarded Lu Ye. If Lu Ye were to suffer any misfortune within the Tower of Time, the Dragon Venerable would surely be enraged.

"Is the news reliable?" Su Yan asked the elder.

The elder replied, "Naturally, it is. Below the ninety-ninth level, many cultivators close to the Insect and Blood races have received summons from Qing Tang and Xue Ni. They offered extremely generous conditions solely to capture Lu Ye, the Human Race cultivator. The reason they kept the news confined below the ninety-ninth level is likely out of concern for you all." The only pure-blooded members from the Dragon and Phoenix races who entered this time were these three. It wasn't that other clan members didn't need cultivation or advancement; rather, since both the Dragon Venerable and Phoenix Master had previously entered the tower, those clan members needed to remain outside to oversee things. These three were from the younger generation, having only recently advanced to the Dao Integration realm. It was a time when they needed to accumulate experience, and entering the Tower of Time offered many benefits.

"How dare they!" Su Yun exclaimed in a rage. "I'll go find Lu Ye right now. I'd like to see who dares to touch him with my Phoenix Race's protection!" As he spoke, he prepared to head down.

"Wait!" Su Yan raised a hand and stopped him.

"What are we waiting for?" Su Yun said anxiously. "If we wait any longer, Lu Ye might be dead. We won't even get a chance to collect his body." From the elder's description, he understood how dire Lu Ye's situation was. At such a time, the sooner they provided support, the better.

Su Yan shook her head, forcing herself to calm down. "The Insect and Blood races are making such a grand move this time; it must be orchestrated by Xue Jiu. If that's the case, even if they're wary of us, they won't abandon their plan if it's just the three of us going there. We've only recently advanced to the Dao Integration realm; how could we be their match?"

Su Yun blinked. "They would dare to fight us? Here?"

Zhu Yin said thoughtfully, "In the past, they might not have dared, but if it's Xue Jiu's command, even if they're afraid, they won't retreat."

"What do we do then...?" Su Yun was dumbfounded. Within the Tower of Time, the Dragon and Phoenix races had privileges. Otherwise, he wouldn't have dared to challenge the powerhouse on that white jade platform before. That person's strength could easily crush him.

"Lu Ye won't be in danger for now," Su Yan said, forcing herself to calm down. "Xue Jiu wants to capture him alive, not kill him, so there's no need to worry too much before the Tower of Time closes. Furthermore, their plan this time must be to accomplish this quietly, to have a chance to take Lu Ye away when the time comes." After the Tower of Time closes, all cultivators will return to their original entry point, which is Dragon City. Therefore, even if Lu Ye were truly captured, given that they now knew about it, Qing Tang and Xue Ni wouldn't be able to take Lu Ye out of Dragon City. It could be said that as soon as they learned of this, the Insect and Blood races' plot had already failed. However, they couldn't just let it be. It was hard to guarantee no accidents would occur in the process, and if Lu Ye's life were endangered, that would be bad.

Su Yan looked at the elder. "May I ask your name, elder?"

Although the elder's strength was far greater than the three young Dragons and Phoenixes present, he politely bowed. "This old man's name is Luan Li."

"Daoist Luan Li," Su Yan returned the bow. "We are deeply grateful that you specifically came here to inform us of this matter. May we ask if you would accompany us? We are in great need of assistance right now."

Luan Li smiled. "Since I came here, I already had that intention. Although my Dragon bloodline is shallow, as a Dragon descendant, I naturally consider Dragon City my primary allegiance."

Su Yan nodded. "Thank you, Daoist."

Luan Li said, "However, the Insect and Blood races have mobilized many people this time, as the stakes they offered are very high. So, you few, you still need to gather more help, preferably strong cultivators who can directly contend with Universe-level City Lords like Qing Tang and Xue Ni."

Su Yan said, "I understand. I'll find people to help right away." With her Phoenix Race identity, plus Zhu Yin, finding help wasn't actually difficult. This was the Tower of Time; who wouldn't want to gain favor with the Dragon and Phoenix races? The difficulty lay in finding powerhouses capable of contending with Qing Tang and Xue Ni. Such powerhouses would have already reached the limits of their own accumulation and generally wouldn't participate in the Tower of Time.

"I do have a candidate who might be qualified!" Su Yun's eyes lit up.

Luan Li immediately knew who he was thinking of, and smiled slightly, "Daoist Xuan Wuji, though not a Universe-level City Lord, indeed has a very solid foundation. If he weren't here to comprehend a profound secret art, which takes a long time, he likely wouldn't have entered the Tower of Time to cultivate. If Daoist Su Yun can persuade him, then success is within reach!" Elder Luan Li was clearly well-informed and knew the powerhouse who had previously occupied the white jade platform.

Su Yun smiled proudly. "Wait for my good news. I guarantee I can get him to come help!" Sometimes, asking for help doesn't necessarily require polite invitation. With that, he flashed away.

Su Yan watched his retreating figure thoughtfully, pondered for a moment, then turned to Elder Luan Li. "Daoist, I need to trouble you with something."

"Please tell me, Daoist," Luan Li replied.

"Go down and spread the news that Lu Ye is my Phoenix Race's Outsider Emissary."

Luan Li nodded slightly. "I understand. I'll depart now." Why did Qing Tang and Xue Ni confine the news below the ninety-ninth level? Wasn't it precisely because they feared Lu Ye's identity as a Phoenix Race Outsider Emissary would be revealed? Don't look at how lively they've made the situation now, gathering so many people. But once this news spreads, it's hard to say how many Dao Integration cultivators will still be willing to go along with them. No one would want to target a Phoenix Race Outsider Emissary in a place like this. The conditions offered by Qing Tang and Xue Ni were indeed very tempting, but one also had to be alive to claim them.

At this moment, on the white jade platform, Xuan Wuji, who had been sitting in meditation with his eyes closed, comprehending the intricacies of a secret art, suddenly opened his eyes. In his vision, a streak of crimson flashed close, revealing a figure. Xuan Wuji's expression was grim as he growled, "Do you truly believe that just because you're of the Phoenix Race, I wouldn't dare harm you?" Killing the opponent was absolutely impossible, but severely wounding them was feasible, as the Phoenix Race had strong regenerative abilities anyway. This young Phoenix previously knew when to advance and when to retreat. Each time he was driven away, he would reappear after a period, repeating the cycle. Thus, he hadn't been disturbed too severely. But this time was a bit too much. He had just been driven away, yet he returned so quickly, which couldn't help but ignite Xuan Wuji's true anger. After all, no one wants to be constantly pestered like this.

"Su Yun of the Phoenix Race greets Daoist Xuan Wuji!" To Xuan Wuji's surprise, this time Su Yun showed no intention of fighting him. Instead, he was remarkably polite.

Xuan Wuji immediately became wary. "What do you want?"

Su Yun grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth. "I'd like to ask for your help, Daoist!"

"No!" Xuan Wuji frowned. He had entered the Tower of Time solely to comprehend his secret art. Being constantly disturbed before was already annoying, but now this Phoenix Race member actually wanted his help? Did he really think he had a good temper? If it had been a cultivator from another race harassing him like this, he would have already gone on a rampage.

Su Yun, however, was unfazed and continued to smile at him. "Daoist, you don't want to be disturbed like this indefinitely, do you?"

Xuan Wuji's expression grew colder. "What are you trying to say?"

Su Yun said seriously, "As long as you help me this once, Daoist, I guarantee I won't disturb you again before the Tower of Time closes!"

Xuan Wuji's eyebrows raised upon hearing this. "What do you want me to do?"

Su Yun's expression also became solemn as he slowly explained.

***

Tower of Time, tenth level.

Lu Ye and Ba Wei moved swiftly, and wherever they passed, numerous Dao Melting cultivators hastily retreated. From the forty-seventh level downwards, the two had not encountered any Dao Integration cultivators. The lower they went, the weaker the Dao Melting cultivators became. Here, almost all active cultivators were only at the second or third layers of the Dao Melting realm. Yet, the conflicts here were even more intense and frequent than on the levels where Dao Integration cultivators resided.

"What exactly are you trying to do?" Ba Wei was utterly perplexed. For these past days, she had followed Lu Ye all the way down without stopping until they reached this point. She even began to suspect if Lu Ye intended to go to the very bottom level of the Tower of Time, but what would be the point of that? If they truly reached the lowest level, there would be no escape. She had repeatedly wanted to part ways with Lu Ye to avoid further entanglement, but she could never bring herself to do it. When they killed that Solar Race Dao Integration cultivator earlier, two other Dao Integration cultivators survived. The Insect and Blood races must have already known that she and Lu Ye were allied. Even if she separated from Lu Ye, it wouldn't make much sense. On the contrary, sticking together allowed them to help each other.

Lu Ye suddenly stopped and looked to the side. There were traces of a formation array here, indicating that a cultivator was practicing inside. Lu Ye unleashed a single slash, and the formation array shattered with a boom.

"Who's there!" From within the pit, a cultivator burst out in a rage, but instantly froze. A dark long blade was suddenly pressed against his throat, its sharp aura stiffening his entire body.

"Get lost!" Lu Ye withdrew his blade without even glancing at him. The cultivator, having briefly hovered at the gates of hell, had his clothes drenched in sweat. Without the slightest hesitation, he flashed away and vanished in the blink of an eye.