102: Chapter 12 The Terrifying Gatekeeper!!

Qin Yan paid no heed to the surrounding chatter.

He took several deep breaths, suppressing the turbulent qi and blood within him and the sore numbness in his arms.

He silently walked over to pick up his long spear.

Then he walked to a relatively quiet corner nearby.

Placing the long spear beside him, he sat cross-legged, recovering his severely depleted spirit.

Soon after, flashes of white light appeared continuously, and figures were teleported out from within the tower one after another.

Most appeared weary and somewhat disheveled.

After a while, another flash of white light, and Lu Youyou's figure emerged.

Her delicate little face was etched with frustration and unwillingness, her small mouth pouting.

Her gaze swept the surroundings, and upon seeing Qin Yan meditating in the corner, she walked over.

Without caring whether the ground was clean or not, she plopped down beside Qin Yan and also began to close her eyes to recover.

Less than a few seconds after Lu Youyou emerged.

Another flash of white light, and Lu Qingfeng's figure also appeared.

He seemed to be in slightly better condition than Lu Youyou, but his face was also somewhat pale.

His gaze swept over, seeing Lu Youyou already sitting there.

A flicker of relief, barely perceptible, passed through his eyes, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly in a faint smile.

'She came out before me!' This discovery inexplicably lifted Lu Qingfeng's mood a little.

He also found a spot to sit and rest, recovering quietly.

"This Secret Realm Tower is too insane! The puppets inside are all acting like they've gone crazy!"

Having recovered some of her spirit, Lu Youyou couldn't help complaining to Qin Yan, who had just finished his meditation, her little face puffed up with anger.

"Junior Brother, which floor did you reach?"

She asked curiously.

"I was defeated on the eighth floor," Qin Yan answered truthfully. "And you, Junior Sister?"

"I was defeated on the ninth floor!"

Hearing this, Lu Youyou instantly became even more indignant, waving her small fists.

As if the White Figure that defeated her was right before her eyes, "Junior Brother, you have no idea how insane that thing on the ninth floor is!

It's not only at the Silver Skin Realm! But its Martial Arts Skill has reached the high level of the Third Stage!

I swung my giant hammer until it was practically smoking, but I was still completely suppressed by it!

And it just threw out a couple of cool punches and knocked me right out! So infuriating!"

Watching her gnashing her teeth, Qin Yan was inwardly shocked.

He truly hadn't expected the difficulty of the ninth floor to jump so drastically!

Silver Skin Realm plus high-level Third Stage skill—among First Grade Martial Artists, that's practically an unstoppable existence.

And above the ninth floor, there was the even more mysterious tenth floor, specifically mentioned by Mentor Jiang Mo!

How powerful must that be?

Not long after, another flash of white light, and Xiao Wangshu's figure appeared outside the tower.

Compared to the others, her condition was clearly worse, her face pale as paper, her delicate frame swaying slightly.

As if she might collapse at any moment, a weariness difficult to conceal lingered between her cool, elegant brows.

Seeing this, Lu Youyou immediately jumped up from the ground, rushed over quickly, and supported her.

Carefully helping her sit down nearby.

Once seated, Xiao Wangshu directly took out a second-grade qi and blood pill and placed it in her mouth.

The pill melted upon entry, its refined medicinal potency rapidly circulating throughout her body.

Her pale complexion visibly regained its rosy hue.

Her slightly rapid breathing soon steadied as well, her condition mostly recovered.

Watching from the side, Qin Yan couldn't help but click his tongue inwardly.

It was clearly just a matter of excessive spirit depletion, something rest could recover.

Yet she directly consumed a precious second-grade qi and blood pill...

This scale of action could only mean that he, Qin Yan, was still "not rich enough."

He couldn't comprehend this "shamelessly extravagant" method of recovery.

"Wangshu, how are you? Are you okay?" Lu Youyou asked with concern.

"I'm fine now, Youyou. Don't worry," Xiao Wangshu gently shook her head, her voice regaining its usual cool composure.

Once the three had rested sufficiently, they stood up together and headed towards the cafeteria outside this special area.

Having undergone the high-intensity tower challenge, everyone's spirit and stamina had suffered considerable depletion.

There was an urgent need to replenish energy through food and comfort their weary bodies and minds.

On the way, under Lu Youyou's persistent pestering and wheedling,

Xiao Wangshu finally briefly mentioned her experience challenging the tower.

Qin Yan listened quietly beside them, but waves were churning in his heart.

He finally understood why Xiao Wangshu's condition upon exiting had been so poor—she had actually fought her way all to the thirteenth floor!

Although she was ultimately defeated on the thirteenth floor, this achievement was already terrifying!

Based on Qin Yan's own tower-challenging experience, the White Figure on each floor

was equivalent to an elite among martial artists of the same realm, definitely no pushover.

That Xiao Wangshu could pass the twelfth floor meant her strength, even among the group of second-grade early-stage martial artists, absolutely placed her among the strong!

And how long had it been since she stepped into the second-grade realm?

At most, only about a month!

In one month's time, how many bones had the other party tempered?

Her rate of progress was truly and bewilderingly fast!

"Wangshu, quickly tell us, how strong was the energy puppet on the tenth floor? Was it especially insane?"

Lu Youyou, holding onto Xiao Wangshu's arm, eagerly pressed for details.

She was full of curiosity about the floor above the one that had stopped her at the ninth.

Xiao Wangshu pondered slightly, as if recalling the details of the tenth floor gatekeeper.

Then she spoke coolly, "Very strong. Its foundational qi and blood, like the ninth floor's, was 20 ka, placing it at the peak among First Grade Martial Artists."

"However, its Martial Arts Skill had reached the peak level of the Third Stage!"

She paused, then added, "With such a configuration of strength, within the scope of First Grade Martial Artists, it can almost be said to be an invincible existence."

Even she, looking back, felt that if she had been at the first grade realm, defeating this tenth floor gatekeeper

would likely have required considerable effort and been no easy task.

"Peak Third Stage skill?!

Heavens, this tenth floor gatekeeper is simply inhuman!"

Hearing Xiao Wangshu's description, Lu Youyou couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath of cold air.

Clicking her tongue, she said, "Foundational qi and blood of 20 ka, plus the terrifying explosive power of peak Third Stage skill—

That strength is indeed invincible within the first grade realm!"

She sighed dejectedly, "It seems this tenth floor is fundamentally impossible to pass without a second-grade foundation of strength."

"I'm really curious about what the 'little reward' Mentor Jiang Mo mentioned for passing the tenth floor at the first grade realm actually is...

Too bad, no chance to find out now."

It was unclear whether it was because Xiao Wangshu had already advanced to second grade at the time, not meeting the "first grade realm" prerequisite,

or for some other reason.

Although she successfully passed the tenth floor, she did not trigger any special reward Jiang Mo had mentioned.

This also left her feeling somewhat regretful.

Qin Yan listened quietly on the side. He too truly hadn't expected the difficulty of the tenth floor to skyrocket to such an absurd degree.