79: Chapter 79 White Night

The military airship lifted off from Cangyin City and turned southeast, flying toward Golden Tower City, where Shenyu University was located.

Jin Lin sat beside Shen Ye, the small dragon on his shoulder curled up in the hollow of his neck, sleeping soundly, its dragon whiskers rising and falling gently with its breathing.

Just now in the sealed area, he had used Twilight Sword Qi to awaken that sword embryo fragment that had been sleeping for countless years—the hammer marks on the fragment were homologous to the sword intent felt when tempering Twilight Sword Qi in front of the sword stele; they were not similar, but left by the same person.

"That was a sword cultivator from the Twilight Civilization."

Jin Lin closed his eyes, his voice transmitted into Shen Ye's sea of consciousness through their mental link, "He sealed a strand of sword intent in the sword embryo, left for whoever could awaken it later."

"He waited for you."

Shen Ye responded with his thoughts.

Jin Lin did not speak.

The small dragon on his shoulder opened one eye, the pupils still holding the residual light of twilight intertwined with silver-white, then closed it again.

The airship continued south.

Golden Tower City was the oldest of the four university cities.

The golden giant tower of Shenyu University stood in the center of the city, its spire submerged in the clouds, its body engraved with the achievement inscriptions of successive God Kings.

When the airship landed at the military port on the outskirts of the city, a young man wearing the deep gold uniform of Shenyu University was already waiting by the gangway.

His posture was very relaxed, hands in his pockets, his expression so calm it didn't look like he was waiting for someone.

Shen Ye walked down the gangway and nodded at him.

Bai Ye.

The SSS-level talent user who had voluntarily retracted his Time Stop domain during the National Competition quarterfinals, heir to the Bai family, a founding family of Shenyu University.

"File BD-103 is in the Golden Tower Ancient Artifact Repository."

Bai Ye didn't exchange pleasantries, turning to lead Shen Ye through the military port. His pace wasn't fast, but it was steady, "The approval process is complete. My father heard you wanted to activate the twilight crystal and signed it himself."

He paused, "He said the Bai family ancestor was the head of the four allied families of the Twilight Civilization, keeping the core token of the shelter. Since you can make the crystals of the other three towers light up, the Bai family's token should also return to its rightful place."

Shen Ye followed him.

"You took the initiative to help me apply for permission, not just because your father signed it."

Bai Ye was silent for a moment.

"On the day of the quarterfinals, I used Time Stop to lock your kin. Yan Shan was still throwing punches inside the Time Stop. Later, when you fought Chi Yan, you revealed that twilight longsword, and I realized you hadn't been forced to use your full strength at all during the quarterfinals."

He said as he walked, "I want to know, if you release all restrictions, just how strong your twilight longsword can be."

"You can try it yourself."

Bai Ye stopped in his tracks.

"I will. But not today."

He started walking again, "Get the crystal today first. As for the Bai family's token, I will hand it to you myself after you reach the Sea of Thousand Realms Mist—before that, let me see how you use this sword to deal with the Void Race."

The Shenyu University Golden Tower Ancient Artifact Repository was at the top of the tower.

Bai Ye verified his iris, divine sense fluctuations, and law frequency through a triple identification, and the heavy golden vault door slid open slowly.

The dome at the top of the tower was extremely high, and on several circular display stands were displayed ancient artifacts passed down through the generations of Shenyu University.

On an independent sealed display stand in the very center, a twilight crystal, homologous and identical in shape to the one at Wanxiang University, was suspended within a transparent crystal cover reinforced by laws.

A faint dark golden halo circulated on the surface of the crystal, as if responding to the call of the four tower light beams.

The explanatory plaque next to the display stand was clearly marked—it belonged to the founding ancestor of the Bai family, and as a core legacy entrusted to the Bai family by the Twilight Civilization, it had been stored on the top floor of the Golden Tower, waiting for the person in the prophecy who could activate the four keys to come and take it.

Bai Ye stood by the display stand, hands in his pockets.

"My dad said, when the Bai family ancestor handed this token to Shenyu University for safekeeping, he left a message: 'When the twilight reappears, the holder of the twilight longsword will activate the four keys, and at that time, the Bai family's token shall return to its place.' Your sword is the sword in that message."

Shen Ye summoned the twilight longsword.

The twilight light circulating on the sword body resonated with the law patterns inside the crystal cover. The crystal cover automatically dissipated, and that crystal, which had been silent for countless years, fell gently into Shen Ye's palm.

He didn't activate it immediately, but turned and placed the crystal on the edge of the display stand, looking at Bai Ye.

"Why are you entering the ruins?"

"The Bai family has held the entry authority to the shelter for generations. I want to see the twilight flames of that year with my own eyes."

Bai Ye pulled his hands out of his pockets, his fingertips slightly curled—that was a unique sequela of maintaining law output under Time Stop, "This is also my father's instruction."

Shen Ye activated the third twilight crystal.

A pillar of twilight light shot into the sky, intertwining with the two already-lit twilight light beams to form a denser network, enveloping the entire Golden Tower City in a flowing twilight halo.

Three of the four tower light beams were now lit, leaving only the last crystal fragment—the one on the dark green tower top of Eternal University.

After coming down from the tower top, Shen Ye received a message from Teacher Cang Yue by the airship gangway.

The activation of file AD-007 had been synchronized, and the twilight light beam of Eternal University had automatically lit up—she had been helping them catch up on progress with sand table deductions in the rear; she hadn't followed them, but had made the last beam of the four towers rise earlier than expected.

Shen Ye forwarded the message to Bai Ye. Bai Ye looked down at his communicator, then looked up at the newly risen light beam on the horizon.

The four tower light beams all converged, and the Twilight Light Network descended from the sky, shrouding the entire horizon in dark golden twilight.

"The four keys are gathered."

Bai Ye said.

He turned to Shen Ye and untied a token from his waist.

The token was dark gold, the very token forged when the Bai family ancestor concluded the alliance with the Twilight Civilization back then. The body of the token was engraved with dense twilight script, "This is the Bai family's token. From today on, the Bai family is no longer the keeper—the token is handed to the person who can activate it."

Shen Ye took the token.

Bai Ye withdrew his hand and put it back into his pocket.

"When are you setting off for the Sea of Thousand Realms Mist?"

"I'll head back to Wanxiang University for a few days of rest before leaving. My kin need to recover, and the flight charts need to be updated."

"Tell me before you leave. I have Time Stop; perhaps I can use the Time Law to help you stabilize the law turbulence at the shelter entrance."

Shen Ye thought of Yan Shan's right arm that had been repeatedly crushed and regenerated.

The Time Stop law had left extremely subtle tempering traces during the quarterfinals—neither injury nor healing, just infinitely prolonging the process of tempering the rock, allowing every Rock Pattern to withstand deeper trauma.

"Let Yan Shan experience your Time Stop again when the time comes. The Rock Pattern on his right arm needs deeper tempering."

Bai Ye nodded and turned to leave.

Shen Ye boarded the airship along the gangway.

Qin Shu was studying the flight chart just updated by Gu Qinghan in the cockpit. Yan Shan had already woken up and was adjusting the recovery rhythm of his right arm's Rock Pattern in the depths of the Body Refining Cave using the vibration frequency transmitted by Hou Tu.

Tie Chui was performing the seventh tempering of the Heart of Twilight flame in the alchemy room, the furnace fire never going out day or night.

Shen Ye leaned against the porthole, tucking Bai Ye's token into the interlayer of his backpack, placing it side by side with Gu Yan's broken sword and Liu Yang's amulet.

The four tower light beams were all lit. The Heart of Twilight flame burned quietly in the depths of the Land of Gods and Demons. Chen and Ye stood side by side on either side of the Twilight Spirit Spring, with the newly born Twilight Apostles arrayed behind them.

The Sea of Thousand Realms Mist. He was about to return once more.

This time, it wouldn't just be scouting the path.