233: God Burial Tower

The God Burying Tower soared into the clouds, its peak invisible.

The surface of the tower was covered in yellow talismans, eerie and bizarre.

Observing it up close, it resembled a coiled Dragon winding straight upwards, a massive shock to the soul.

Shen Lian stood at the entrance of the tower, lightly waving his Folding Fan.

Within his activated Great Dao Heavenly Pupil, the miserable images of countless living beings struggling in twisted agony before death were revealed.

"Roar——"

Suddenly, a roar erupted like a Dragon's cry amidst thunder, the resulting shockwaves causing the talismans covering the tower to fall off one by one.

"Since the great war of the Primordial Era, no one has been able to pass through the Twisted Forest to see the true face of the God Burying Tower. You are the first."

Shen Lian replied coldly, "Then should I act flattered and gladly accept the praise of a piece of trash like you?"

"Truly arrogant. Unfortunately, even if you managed to luck your way through the Twisted Forest, once here, your life is no longer in your own hands."

Shen Lian: "How could Shen Lian's life be threatened by a specter formed from losers? Put away your meaningless threats. You are not qualified to kill me."

"Hehehe, hahahaha."

Unexpectedly, bursts of strange laughter echoed from within the God Burying Tower, causing fluctuations in the spiritual energy inside and outside the tower, triggering chains of explosions.

"Then let me see if your arrogance is proportional to your strength."

Shen Lian closed his Folding Fan, "Appear. I can let your soul depart quickly."

As soon as the words fell, the tightly closed tower door slowly opened.

Immediately, the shrill cries of wandering ghosts from within the tower filled the air.

At the same time, a sea of blood surged into the sky, giving one the painful, twisted sensation of being in a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

"Since you are so confident in your strength, then come in. I am waiting for your arrival at the top of the tower."

However, Shen Lian did not move. He stood before the tower door with his hands behind his back, his eyes slightly closed, fully displaying his extraordinary bearing.

"Why don't you move? Is it because you dare not, or are you afraid?"

Shen Lian opened his cold eyes, "Afraid? What a joke. In the life of Shen Lian, I have never known what fear is."

"Then why do you not dare to step forward?"

"Because I am not as stupid as a piece of trash like you thinks."

"Hmm?"

A sound of questioning came from within the tower.

Only hearing Shen Lian, with eyes closed, say coldly, "Just now you said that I am the first person to walk before you since the God Burying Tower appeared. Then I want to ask, what about the wronged souls and the surging sea of blood inside the tower? Are you trying to explain that this is actually a play you, a piece of trash, put on to test me?"

There was no response from within the tower, as if it had been silenced by Shen Lian's words.

"Also, this tower soars into the clouds, yet with my vision, I cannot see the top. This is simply illogical. Even divine palaces and celestial abodes have an end. The only explanation for why I cannot see the end is that this tower is not at all what the naked eye sees. At best, it is a deceptive array formation formed by Karmic Obstruction, nothing more."

"Hahaha, you are indeed clever. Unfortunately, if you do not enter the tower, you cannot find me, Asura, and you cannot kill me."

"Hmm?"

Shen Lian heard this, instantly thought of something, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

"A clumsy deception. Before the Dharma Eye of Shen Lian, there is nowhere to hide. If I haven't guessed wrong, the current me is already standing at the top of the tower, and the God Burying Tower before me is merely a deceptive technique you cast. The purpose is to make countless mindless Cultivators fall into it and become your nourishment, is that right?"

Boom——

A muffled thunderclap sounded in the sky.

The next moment, Shen Lian felt the ground beneath his feet rapidly rising, or perhaps the God Burying Tower before him was rapidly sinking.

After a moment, the God Burying Tower had dissipated into dust.

Standing before Shen Lian was a wronged soul draped in a blood-colored wind robe, with a head of messy hair.

"Finally seen you, Asura."

Asura shouted deeply, "I really didn't expect that I, this honored one, spent so much effort planning, only to be easily seen through by you. It is truly something to lament."

Shen Lian turned his back, "Now, will you commit suicide, or do you want me to send you on your way? Choose one yourself."

Asura: "Don't be in a hurry. This honored one cannot remember how long it has been since I encountered an opponent like you. Why not play with me properly?"

"Oh, and how do you want to play?"

"This honored one will suppress my cultivation to the same Realm as yours. As long as you can take one move from me, then you can take this life of mine to report back to that funeral-faced person."

"Hahahahaha."

Shen Lian heard this and laughed wildly, as if he had heard a huge joke.

"Suppressing your own cultivation, abandoning your absolute advantage—are you looking down on Shen Lian, or do you have sufficient confidence in your own strength?"

Asura: "With your current cultivation at the eighth level of the Immortal Realm, I could kill you as easily as flipping my palm. I give you a chance for a fair fight because I found a trace of familiar Qi on you."

Shen Lian turned back, "I'm afraid this is a price you cannot afford!"

As soon as the words fell, the Yin and Yang Qi around Shen Lian were already activated, and the Primordial True Force surged into his body like a mountain-toppling, sea-draining force.

"Since you are so confident, then Shen Lian will give you one chance. Use all your strength, and then perish in bitter regret!"

Asura stopped speaking and directly spread his withered yellow arms.

In an instant, a burst of extremely Yin Death Qi gathered around Asura's entire body.

In just two breaths, a hundred-foot-tall demonic manifestation appeared behind him.

"I wonder if you can take this move of mine, Heavenly Burial!"

Asura leaped into the clouds, and the demonic manifestation behind him rose and leaped at the same time.

In the blink of an eye, the Death Qi formed a majestic Saber Qi in the Void Realm, grasped in the hands of the demonic manifestation, and with endless wailing, it slowly slashed down towards the top of Shen Lian's head.

Where the saber momentum passed, the air twisted, and time and space were frozen.

Shen Lian raised his eyes to gaze at the slowly descending saber energy. Although his face remained calm and indifferent, the heaven and earth root within his body, in Fusion with his Indestructible Dao Body, began to operate crazily.

"Heavenly Burial One Saber Slash!"

"Proof of the Heavenly Sword!"

Suddenly, a flash of extreme light appeared on the flat ground, dispersing the oppressive gloom and transforming into a hundred-foot-long sharp sword that rose into the sky.

Boom——

The moment the Sword Light collided with the Death Qi-filled saber energy, the heavens and earth roared, and all things were destroyed.

Ultimate darkness in Fusion with ultimate daylight formed a polarized extreme in this Realm Boundary.

The moment he regained his senses, Shen Lian suddenly opened his eyes.

At this moment, he was still standing before the God Burying Tower; everything that had just happened seemed to be nothing but an illusion.

"Can you afford the price of deceiving Shen Lian?"

Leaving behind this sentence, Shen Lian turned around abruptly and stepped forward along the path he had come.

Just as he stepped back into the Twisted Forest, the God Burying Tower behind him suddenly turned into specks of dust, disappearing into this world in the blink of an eye.

...

Inside the Initial Cultivation Platform, the black-robed figure stood at the entrance of the Twisted Forest, quietly waiting for Shen Lian's return.

Suddenly, a wave of coldness swept through.

Bone-chilling killing intent had already appeared behind him.

"I said, the price of using Shen Lian is something you cannot afford. Now, it is time for you to fulfill your karmic retribution."