Chapter 1378: Clones Break Through Challenges

Immortal-Slaying Tower, thirty-fifth floor.

A gaunt, gray-robed old man looked grimly at the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple opposite him.

A burst of impassioned zither music filled the air, followed by a large volley of incredibly sharp blue water blades that shot towards him, reaching him in an instant.

The gray-robed old man remained calm, conjuring a palm-sized black banner that rotated erratically around him.

After a series of mournful wails, countless strands of black specter qi surged out, enveloping the gray-robed old man.

The dense blue water blades vanished into the black specter qi as if punching soft cotton, producing no sound whatsoever.

The void rippled, and a giant blue palm several yards wide suddenly appeared, swiftly striking towards the gray-robed old man's location.

A black ghostly claw, also several yards wide, suddenly flew out from the specter qi, striking at the blue giant palm.

Boom! The black ghostly claw shattered, and the blue giant palm struck into the black specter qi, causing it to instantly explode. The gray-robed old man vanished without a trace.

Dozens of yards away, a large expanse of black specter qi emerged. After a blur, it abruptly transformed into the gray-robed old man's figure.

As soon as the gray-robed old man reappeared, a blue sound wave swept towards him, reaching him in an instant.

He punched his right fist into the void, causing countless strands of specter qi to surge out and form a black giant fist several yards wide, meeting the attack.

With a loud crash, the blue sound wave was pulverized, unleashing a powerful wave of energy.

Failing to land a successful strike, the gray-robed old man quickly employed other divine abilities. For a time, explosions continuously resounded, and energy waves surged.

On the thirty-sixth floor, a deafening roar echoed, and a charred corpse plummeted from above, crashing onto the ground.

Gongsun Yang landed on the ground, his expression indifferent.

A golden light flashed, and the artifact spirit materialized.

"Another fool. Do they really think the Immortal-Slaying Tower is so easy to clear?" The artifact spirit sneered, then collected the corpse.

Outside the Immortal-Slaying Tower, seeing the spiritual light of the thirty-sixth floor dim, all the cultivators simultaneously showed expressions of disappointment.

So far, six challengers had passed the thirty-fifth floor, but three of them died on the thirty-sixth. Ye Haitang and Wang Qiuming had both cleared the thirty-fifth floor.

Ao Qing's gaze was grim. The demon race had dispatched many masters; besides his grandson, the Black Phoenix clan had also sent their experts.

Another Core Formation stage demon was currently attempting the challenge, and Ao Qing held great expectations for them.

He glanced at Li Tianyang and other Nascent Soul cultivators. Li Tianyang and the others' gazes were all focused on the Immortal-Slaying Tower's thirty-fifth floor.

"The difficulty of the Immortal-Slaying Tower this time is much greater than before. Only six challengers have passed the thirty-fifth floor, and three have died on the thirty-sixth," Huangfu Rui said with a frown, glancing at Wang Changsheng.

The Huangfu family had also sent experts this time, but no core disciples. The Huangfu family had previously sent core disciples, but most of them died in the Immortal-Slaying Tower, with only a few managing to leave alive.

Any core disciple of the Huangfu family was inherently proud and ambitious. They were overly confident and all wanted to clear the thirty-sixth floor. Throughout history, a large number of young talents had died on the thirty-sixth floor.

Huangfu Rui himself had once entered the Immortal-Slaying Tower and also wished to clear the thirty-sixth floor. However, he failed to successfully employ a certain secret technique that would temporarily grant him Nascent Soul stage power and was instead teleported out by the artifact spirit, gaining nothing.

This time, the best-performing Huangfu disciples who entered the Immortal-Slaying Tower cleared the thirty-fourth floor, but two died on the thirty-fifth.

The Azure Lotus Immortal Couple were the biggest obstacles for other challengers. Although the Huangfu family disciples attempting the Immortal-Slaying Tower were not core disciples, they were far from ordinary Core Formation cultivators, yet they were still no match for the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple.

So far, as many as fifteen challengers had died on the thirty-fifth floor, and the number was still increasing.

"One must have self-awareness. Confidence is good, but blind confidence is not. Thinking oneself superior to predecessors can lead to losing one's life with a single misstep, resulting in complete annihilation," Wang Changsheng said meaningfully. His words were a response to Huangfu Rui, and also meant for Wang Qiuming.

To clear the thirty-fifth floor, Wang Qiuming had gambled heavily. The price was severe injuries requiring over a decade of recuperation. His decision was extremely dangerous; a slight misstep could have led to his demise.

He was too eager to prove himself. Fortunately, he had multiple third-tier puppet beasts with him; otherwise, he would have already perished.

Wang Qiuming lowered his head in shame. In truth, recalling the challenge process filled him with lingering fear, but if given the chance to choose again, he would still attempt it.

He did not want to live his entire life in the shadow of his grandparents; he wanted to surpass them.

Li Tianyang nodded and said, "Indeed, one must have self-awareness. However, no matter how much we tell our juniors, once they enter the Immortal-Slaying Tower, they may not listen to us."

In fact, every faction had cautioned their juniors. Some heeded their elders' advice, while others cast it aside upon entering the Immortal-Slaying Tower. Most of the latter died there. Challengers who survived and left the Tower naturally became key cultivation targets for their respective factions, and forming a Nascent Soul would not be a significant issue for them.

Such is the nature of victors and vanquished.

"Look quickly, someone has reached the thirty-sixth floor! This is the seventh challenger to pass the thirty-fifth floor. Three have died on the thirty-sixth, so I wonder if this person will succeed."

"I think it's highly unlikely. In over ten thousand years, only Gongsun Yang has cleared the thirty-sixth floor."

"Exactly. Throughout history, countless young talents have died in the Immortal-Slaying Tower. This is just another arrogant fool."

The cultivators discussed amongst themselves, their gazes fixed on the thirty-sixth floor.

Wang Changsheng looked towards the thirty-sixth floor, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

For over ten thousand years, only Gongsun Yang had cleared the thirty-sixth floor, indicating that it was not an easy level to pass.

On the thirty-sixth floor, the gray-robed old man's face was pale, and his left arm was gone. A three-foot-long black scissor rotated erratically around him, emitting mournful wails.

The black scissor had a lifelike, hideous ghostly head on its surface, emanating astonishing specter qi fluctuations.

It was the Spiritual Treasure, Malevolent Ghost Shears, a protective treasure of a major demonic sect from the Great Qin Dynasty. Zhou Sihong had gone on a rampage in the Great Yan Dynasty, not only devouring the Nascent Souls of other cultivators to restore his cultivation but also primarily collecting various treasures for his future endeavors.

If the Immortal-Slaying Tower had not opened this time, Zhou Sihong would have already used these items to open a spatial rift.

It was precisely because he possessed the Spiritual Treasure that the gray-robed old man was able to defeat the Azure Lotus Immortal Couple. However, he had paid a heavy price, losing an arm and sustaining significant injuries.

The gray-robed old man formed a hand seal, and the black scissor immediately emitted mournful wails. Amidst a dazzling dark light, it transformed into a black ghostly face over a hundred yards wide. The face was covered with countless densely packed human faces, all contorted in agony and emitting various shrill screams.

"Wail!" The black ghostly face lunged at Gongsun Yang. Before it even got close, it spewed out a cloud of misty gray threads.

Gongsun Yang controlled his spirit beast to meet the attack. The red peacock flapped its wings, and amidst an ear-piercing whoosh, dense red quills shot out. After a blur, they transformed into hundreds of two-foot-long red flying swords, striking towards the black ghostly face.

Boom! A deafening roar erupted, flames shot skyward, and energy waves surged.