85: Goodbye, Xuan Ye

After dealing with miscellaneous tasks, Lin Ye appeared in the Void God Realm and went straight to the Second Tier Spirit Refining Tower.

Unlike the bustling market-like scene at the base of the first-tier tower, the plaza here was sparsely populated.

Newcomers to the Void God Realm would generally visit the first-tier God Refining Tower, and those with strength would even test their skills. But here, no Newcomers would come; it was mostly the challengers themselves, or their friends and family who came to cheer them on.

Lin Ye skillfully paid the entrance fee at the glowing entrance screen, and his figure disappeared into the tower.

With the experience of his previous tower challenge, in the pure white space, Lin Ye casually retrieved a standard floating cannon from his Space Dock, leaving a trace of his consciousness here specifically to select the “enter next level” option after successfully completing each floor’s challenge.

Having done all this, he sat down cross-legged, completely immersing most of his consciousness within the Space Dock.

The moment his consciousness arrived in the Space Dock, he was slightly taken aback by the sight before him.

It had only been a short while since he last entered, and the Space Dock had transformed into something he couldn't comprehend.

The entire Space Dock had been divided by little machine into independent areas filled with a futuristic technological sense. And in the core area, it had remarkably become a super research institute!

At this moment, inside the massive central hall of the research institute, a unique “examination” was underway.

Hundreds of intelligent machines that had developed self-awareness and were eager to learn sat upright at their huge, exclusive experimental benches, nervously conducting research.

Some were rapidly writing complex code on holographic screens; others were carefully assembling a new type of energy core with precise robotic arms.

The entire hall was eerily quiet, with only the subtle sounds of machinery operating and energy flowing.

The atmosphere was exceptionally serious.

Lin Ye observed all of this with great interest, and soon, he discovered an amusing scene.

In one corner, a giant mechanical spider appeared to be diligently researching the topic before it. But one of its mechanical arms, as if having a mind of its own, stealthily extended sideways.

At the end of that mechanical arm was a high-precision Compound Eye, spinning wildly. Like a periscope, it peered over the tall partition, precisely aiming at the experimental bench of the student next to it, seemingly wanting to “borrow” some of their research findings.

Just then, a clear yet authoritative voice came from the main control panel at the far end of the hall.

"Hybert! Don't copy others! Do your own work!"

The spider-shaped machine’s body jolted, and the mechanical arm that was in the act of cheating retracted with a “whoosh” as if it had been electrocuted.

"Reporting, little machine teacher! I... I didn't copy!" The machine named Hybert stammered in a muffled voice, defending itself, "It... it's this tentacle, it ran off on its own, out of control!"

"..."

At the main control panel in the distance, there was a moment of silence.

Sensing Lin Ye's consciousness descending, little machine no longer paid attention to the student making a clumsy excuse. Its figure flickered, turning into a streak of light, and instantly flew before Lin Ye, its core light happily twinkling.

"Master, you're back!"

Lin Ye looked at the dramatic scene before him, pointed to the huge examination hall below, and asked, suppressing a smile, "What's going on here?"

"Oh, this," little machine said with a hint of pride, "they've been learning from me these past few days, haven't they? After learning for so long, they need to be tested. So, I gave them a topic and a random quiz."

"I see..." Lin Ye understood. His consciousness slowly floated above the research institute, surveying the entire examination hall.

Below, the intelligent machines, who had been diligently answering questions, instantly tensed their bodies and sat ramrod straight upon sensing the will of their creator descend!

They stopped all their minor movements, pushed their processing power to the extreme, and adopted a serious demeanor, as if dedicating themselves to science.

This creator, who had assigned them to little machine teacher, had essentially never communicated with them individually since then.

Within their hearts, there was a trace of fear towards this being who was both their father and their creator.

"Answer the questions properly!"

Lin Ye's voice simultaneously echoed in the consciousness core of every machine.

In an instant, all the intelligent machines straightened their backs even further! Even the tiniest parts on their bodies trembled slightly from excessive tension, not daring to breathe... Meanwhile, outside the Second Tier Spirit Refining Tower.

The previously sparse platform was now packed to the brim, a dense crowd of strong individuals from various races, all having rushed over after hearing the news. They had all been called by their friends from various corners of the Void God Realm.

"Quick, come to the Second Tier Spirit Refining Tower! Something big has happened! Someone... someone is actually going to clear the second-tier tower!"

At this moment, everyone's gaze was fixed on the huge tower-challenging screen.

"900 floors! It's already 900 floors! Who is so strong? Still climbing?!"

"I checked, none of the top ten monsters entered the second-tier tower today! Where did this immortal come from?"

"Speed... look at his clearing speed! That light dot hasn't stopped! Is... is this even reasonable?!"

...Inside the tower, 1000th floor.

In a dead silent, pure white space, Mysterious Night's familiar figure slowly materialized.

He stretched his body, a hint of expectant smile on his face, preparing to welcome another junior worthy of challenging him.

"Let me see, which little fellow has made it to..."

His words stopped halfway.

His gaze instantly froze.

He saw the familiar floating cannon quietly suspended in mid-air; he saw the figure sitting cross-legged beneath that floating cannon.

In an instant, the memory he wished never to recall resurfaced, a scene of nightmares he had lived through day and night.

Mysterious Night's confident smile instantly stiffened.

"You... it's you again!!!"

Then he saw the floating cannon above slowly gathering energy.

"Stop! Stop! Stop! Let's fight later!" He immediately spoke, afraid of dying inexplicably under this floating cannon again.

Hearing the commotion outside, Lin Ye slowly opened his eyes.

"I'm already on the 1000th floor, that fast?" Most of his consciousness had been in the Space Dock, and he hadn't expected to reach the top of the tower so quickly.

He waved his hand, and the energy gathered at the cannon's muzzle slowly dispersed. He looked at the former strongest individual before him.