C7 Instant Kill

The Skysplit Tower operated every two hours, accommodating up to a hundred participants for each trial. After two hours, all challengers within the Skysplit Tower were simultaneously teleported out.

Upon his return to Xiaoqing Peak, Chu Yun crafted a clever disguise for himself, affixing a beard to his face and donning a new outfit. His physique and features were so altered that he became virtually unrecognizable to others.

At that moment, he stepped into the Skysplit Tower alongside numerous other disciples. Once the trial commenced, each participant was allocated to an individual spatial area.

A resonant hum filled the air as Chu Yun entered a sphere of light.

The next instant, he found himself in an enclosed space with a three-hundred-meter radius, completely barren.

Before Chu Yun, a dark silhouette stood.

Its realm matched Chu Yun's, both at the Third Grade of the Critical Stage, yet its Martial Spirit was of a much lower caliber, merely First Grade.

As Chu Yun's eyes snapped open, the black apparition lunged at him, launching an assault.

Chu Yun responded with a swift Gravel Palm.

The shadow's chest caved under his palm, disintegrating into a sphere of light.

Chu Yun stepped through the light and ascended to the second level of the Skysplit Tower.

Another shadow awaited him there, its Martial Spirit still at the lowest grade, but its realm was one grade superior to Chu Yun's, at the Fourth Grade of the Critical Stage.

However, this disparity was insignificant to Chu Yun.

He dispatched the shadow in an instant.

He continued through the third, fourth, and fifth levels of the Skysplit Tower. Each successive phantom was a grade higher than the last, yet none proved a match for Chu Yun.

Their Martial Spirits' low grade was their downfall. These were not flesh and blood adversaries but mere phantoms generated by the Skysplit Tower. Their combat responses, sometimes too rigid and predictable, paled in comparison to human martial artists of equivalent realms.

Chu Yun breezed through the first six levels with minimal effort. To him, this was to be expected. However, outside the Skysplit Tower, his progress stirred quite a commotion.

Many onlookers watched as points of light flickered across the tower's facade.

Each pinpoint of light represented a challenger undergoing trials. Close to seventy or eighty were scattered across the display, with the majority halted at the first three levels. Very few had managed to ascend to the fourth floor.

On the fifth level, there were only two lights. One had ceased to flicker, signaling the challenger's defeat. Soon, they would be transported out. Yet, the other light, representing Chu Yun, continued to pulse. It vanished from the fifth floor, leaping to the sixth level of the Skysplit Tower.

"Someone has conquered the fifth floor and ascended to the sixth! Who is this individual? From which peak did this newly discovered talent emerge?" An astonished voice echoed, capturing the attention of many.

Within the Elemental River Sect, most disciples could only reach the fourth level of the Skysplit Tower. Those few who broke through to the fifth and advanced to the sixth were rare, each deemed a genius worthy of notice.

"It's merely the fifth level," Lee Yuanfeng scoffed, shaking his head dismissively, clearly unimpressed by the feat.

To him, the fifth level was once an unfathomable challenge, but now he had surpassed even the seventh. Such matters no longer concerned him.

His thoughts were instead on Zhao Lingling, who stood not far off. When would his proud and stubborn junior sister finally relent and yield to him?

"Junior Sister Lingling," Lee Yuanfeng called out, offering a slight smile. He was about to speak when he caught the look of astonishment in Zhao Lingling's expressive eyes.

Then, a chorus of shock rippled through the crowd.

"That person has now breached the sixth level and reached the seventh!"

"That's impossible!"

Lee Yuanfeng's brow furrowed as he swiftly turned to gaze upon the Skysplit Tower.

Indeed, the light that once marked the sixth floor had now reached the seventh. This time, Lee Yuanfeng's earlier scorn was nowhere to be seen.

To break through the sixth level and ascend to the seventh was a feat achieved by only three in the history of the Elemental River Sect: Chu Yun, Zhao Lingling, and now Lee Yuanfeng himself.

And suddenly, there was a fourth.

Moreover...

The speed at which this person is breaking through the levels is astonishingly fast!

Lee Yuanfeng had barely turned around and uttered a few words when that individual had already conquered the sixth level. His speed was truly remarkable!

"Damn it, did he just instantly annihilate the sixth-floor phantom? That phantom was an adversary six grades higher than him. How could he possibly defeat it so swiftly?"

Lee Yuanfeng's brow was deeply furrowed as he felt an unexplained surge of pressure. Although he had breezed through the sixth floor, his pace paled in comparison to this.

Beside him, Zhao Lingling was equally astounded. She ceased her meditative breathing and fixed her gaze unblinkingly on the seventh level of the Skysplit Tower. She watched the flickering light, wondering if this person could pull off another miracle and breach the seventh level, emulating Lee Yuanfeng's impressive achievement.

At that moment, inside the Skysplit Tower.

Chu Yun had overcome all obstacles and reached the seventh level.

The phantom here was at the ninth grade of the Critical Stage, which was also the limit for Chu Yun, who had once wielded the Earthly Demon Ape.

Yet, against the Chu Yun of today, the ninth-grade Critical Stage black phantom appeared exceedingly frail.

Chu Yun closed in, deftly navigating with several Great Perfection Stage Mortal Rank martial skills. As soon as an opportunity presented itself, he decisively employed the Spiritual Level Great Perfection martial skill—Thousand Mountain Eight Forces.

With a single blow, the phantom disintegrated into a sphere of light.

Chu Yun's attack, amplified by eight layers of force, was overwhelmingly powerful, and even the Critical Stage ninth-grade phantom couldn't withstand it.

Chu Yun exhaled with satisfaction, then stepped forward into the sphere of light, ascending to the eighth level of the Skysplit Tower.

A wave of astonishment swept through the crowd outside the Skysplit Tower, sparking a fiery debate.

"The eighth floor! He's actually made it through the seventh level and reached the eighth floor of the Skysplit Tower! And his speed in clearing the levels is incredibly fast!"

"What has happened to this world? For decades, no one has managed to clear the seventh level of the Skysplit Tower. It was one thing for Lee Yuanfeng, with his twin Martial Spirit, to arrive today, but now another formidable individual has appeared? And it looks like this person might be even more formidable than Lee Yuanfeng!"

Lee Yuanfeng's breathing grew heavier as he listened to the murmurs around him, his fists clenched tightly in frustration. The smug look that had once graced his face was gone, replaced by a visage twisted with ferocious anger.

"Why should I!? On what grounds!?

Who is this person, and how did he manage to clear the seventh level?

I possess twin Martial Spirits; I am the true genius. Such glory should be mine alone. How dare you try to steal my glory?!"

His eyes blazed with fury, a palpable aura of malice emanating from him as he glared at the flickering light on the eighth floor of the Skysplit Tower, wishing he could tear the person behind it to shreds.

Known for his pettiness, Lee Yuanfeng had swaggered around with his ill-gotten Martial Spirit. Now, he was being overshadowed by some unknown upstart, which was an unbearable blow to his pride.

That man had not only conquered the seventh level of the Skysplit Tower but had done so at a pace that far outstripped his own. It was clear to all that he was outmatched.

Suddenly, a wave of astonished gasps swept through the crowd.

Lee Yuanfeng's heart skipped a beat, and he watched in disbelief as the light vanished from the eighth level, only to reappear moments later on the ninth.

The ninth floor!

Incredibly, that person had breached the eighth level and ascended to the ninth!

The crowd erupted into fervent debate. Lee Yuanfeng, despite his impressive feat of reaching the seventh level, was no longer the center of attention. In the annals of the Elemental River Sect, others had achieved this milestone, but none had ever pierced the veil of the eighth level.

Now, all eyes were riveted on the ninth floor's pulsating light, the spectators electrified by the sense that they were witnessing a miracle unfold.