86: Chapter 86 Ji Ming's nonchalance, Lin Yuan climbs the tower again
"An hour, then I'll wait a bit. By the way, Senior Liu, do you know what challenges the Martial God Tower holds starting from the fifth floor and beyond?"
Lin Yuan felt there was still enough time. If he waited until tomorrow, today would be wasted, so he decided to wait a while.
He also took the opportunity to inquire about the challenges on the upper floors of the Martial God Tower, to avoid having to figure things out once he was up there.
"I heard that Junior Lin managed to reach the fourth floor right after entering the academy. I'm truly impressed. I missed seeing your heroic performance last time, so I'll have to witness it properly today.
As for the fifth floor, it's similar to the first and second floors, but the difficulty is significantly higher. The challenger must face the simultaneous assault of five peak third-tier phantoms. It's extremely difficult.
The sixth floor is even more challenging. Attacks materialize out of thin air in the space, targeting the challenger's weaknesses. One can only pass this test by achieving master-level proficiency in any one weapon. Therefore, this floor is also an excellent place to train weapon proficiency."
"The seventh floor isn't something ordinary people can pass. Junior Lin, have you heard of spiritual power? On this floor, the challenger must endure spiritual power impact for two hours. Most people experience splitting headaches or even faint almost immediately upon entering.
Precisely because the seventh floor's difficulty is so high, among Qing University's current students, only Senior Yan Hai has ever reached the eighth floor.
The eighth floor is similar to the fifth; the challenger faces the siege of five peak fourth-tier phantoms. As for the ninth floor, I don't know. Since the Martial God Tower was built, very few have ascended it, and geniuses of that caliber disdain revealing the details inside, so almost no information circulates—"
Listening to Liu Ningfei's detailed explanation, Lin Yuan nodded in acknowledgment. With her introduction, he gained a clear understanding of the tower's layout.
"Thank you, Senior Liu, for clearing that up," Lin Yuan said, clasping his hands in thanks.
"Junior Lin, you're too polite. It was just a small effort. I genuinely admire you from the bottom of my heart. Could we exchange contact information? When you have some free time in the future, perhaps you could give me some pointers on practical combat techniques—" Liu Ningfei looked at Lin Yuan expectantly.
Lin Yuan smiled slightly and, without further ado, took out his phone from his storage space and opened his QR code.
"Senior, you flatter me."
Happily, Liu Ningfei added Lin Yuan's contact. Her usually cold eyes now held a lively sparkle, and she stole several glances at him.
Now, looking closely, she suddenly realized that besides his formidable strength, Lin Yuan was quite handsome and had a good physique. Her cheeks involuntarily grew warm—
Lin Yuan looked up at the Martial God Tower above. Three green lights were stationary on the seventh floor, and another remained on the sixth.
A few minutes later, the last green light also lit up on the seventh floor.
"This last light, I estimate it's Senior Ji Ming. It's his first time reaching the seventh floor. Let's see how long he can hold out there," Liu Ningfei spoke again.
Hearing this, Lin Yuan smiled slightly. It seemed a spot would be available soon, allowing him to begin his ascent.
He estimated no one else would compete with him today. After all, with four geniuses having set the example ahead, what other student would have the courage to ascend after them, only to become a laughingstock?
Sure enough, over ten minutes later, one of the green lights went out. Someone was about to exit the tower.
Soon after, a carefree figure appeared at the Martial God Tower's exit. His emergence immediately drew cheers from the crowd.
"Senior Ji, congratulations! Breaking through to the seventh floor!"
"Senior Ji is mighty, truly a model for us to learn from!"
"Senior Ji reached the seventh floor for the first time and managed to last over ten minutes. Such talent is indeed worthy of being a top genius at Qing University!"
...
Hearing the crowd's flattery, Ji Ming grinned, then looked back at the seventh floor of the Martial God Tower.
Three green lights were still shining there.
His expression instantly changed, and he grumbled irritably:
"Shut the hell up, all of you dogs! Are you mocking me? I came in last among the four, and you still have the nerve to call me a top genius? Looking for a beating, are you?"
Although Ji Ming's words were harsh, his expression didn't show much real anger; it seemed more like feigned annoyance.
"Brother Ji, what are you saying? How could we mock you?"
"That's right, Brother Ji. Compared to us, you're amazing. We genuinely admire you."
"Get lost, all of you! I came in last, I'm pissed. Can you all stop with the damn compliments?"
Though he said this, a carefree expression appeared on Ji Ming's face. Clearly, he wasn't psychologically twisted by coming in last.
Lin Yuan felt some goodwill towards this person. He seemed good-natured and very popular.
In the world of martial artists, where competition is inevitable, few are so calm and free-spirited. Ji Ming stood out as particularly different.
"Junior Lin, are you going to start your ascent?" Liu Ningfei looked at Lin Yuan expectantly.
"Mm."
Lin Yuan gave her a slight nod and walked towards the entrance of the Martial God Tower.
"Huh? Someone's going to ascend!" Lin Yuan's movement immediately caught the attention of those nearby.
"Who's that? Ascending now—is it confidence or ignorance?"
"He looks quite young, probably a New Student. Doesn't know the might of the Martial God Tower."
"What the hell do you know? He is a New Student, but he easily reached the fourth floor on his first ascent. He's definitely stronger now," someone immediately retorted.
"Damn! A New Student that monstrous? Really?"
"Of course it's true. Many people saw it back then. You're just ignorant."
...
Hearing the discussions, Ji Ming looked at Lin Yuan with interest. "This junior, go for it! Best if you knock down all three up there, hahaha—"
Hearing this, Lin Yuan turned back to look at Ji Ming, smiled, nodded at him, and then strode decisively into the Martial God Tower.
"What's this junior's name? Seems interesting," Ji Ming asked the people around him.
"Senior Ji, his name is Lin Yuan. This year's national top scholar in the Martial Arts Examination," someone immediately replied.
"Oh? Haha—a fascinating fellow. When he comes down, I'll definitely have to have a drink with him—"
Ji Ming crossed his arms and looked up at the Martial God Tower with keen interest.
Although he had told Lin Yuan to knock down the three above, that was just an encouraging joke. For a New Student, reaching the fourth floor was already unbelievably monstrous.
If he could surpass those three, wouldn't that make their group of graduating seniors a bunch of trash, unable to even compare to a New Student who hasn't officially enrolled?
He just wanted to see how far this rising star of Qing University could go—
After Lin Yuan entered the Martial God Tower, under everyone's gaze, his green light visibly jumped consecutively to the fourth floor at a rapid pace and then stopped there.
The third floor of the Martial God Tower is the Heavenly Fire Training Room. If one has a record of enduring two hours there, they can choose to skip it directly.
The flame energy of the Heavenly Fire Training Room was no longer useful to Lin Yuan. He had reached the peak of the Blood Refining Realm. Even a heaven-and-earth rarity like the fire berry was useless to him now, let alone this Heavenly Fire diluted who knows how many times.
So, he directly chose to skip it and ascended straight to the fourth floor.
"This Junior Lin indeed has skill, reaching the fourth floor in one go. But the fourth floor isn't easy to pass. He should have strengthened his body in the Heavenly Fire Training Room before attempting the fourth floor. Still a bit too impatient—"
Ji Ming watched the green light on the fourth floor, smiling and shaking his head—
...