Chapter 167: Seeking the Way at the Spirit Tower

The provided information also offered a detailed description of the Inquiry Tower.

Depending on each individual's realm of cultivation, the paths leading into the Inquiry Tower varied. They were divided into the Spirit Path, the Heart Path, the Nascent Path, and so on.

In short, the path to the Inquiry Tower differed for every major cultivation realm. Because the paths varied, the floors accessible upon entering the tower also differed. The higher one reached within the Inquiry Tower, the greater the benefits bestowed upon their cultivation.

However, the Dragon Soaring Academy was by no means a greenhouse. Almost every expert who walked out from here was a towering figure who looked down upon the Dragon Soaring Continent with disdain, and thus, the academy had a particularly unique set of regulations.

Regarding cultivation within the Inquiry Tower, the Dragon Soaring Academy had introduced a rule that was simultaneously extremely humane and deeply ruthless. Why would such a contradictory statement be made?

This was because within every path, students were permitted to fight one another and plunder each other's academic credits. Since each path imposed restrictions on cultivation realms, situations where the strengths of opposing parties differed too drastically would never occur. In this way, the process of cultivation appeared a little less solitary.

The humane aspect of this rule lay in the fact that, first of all, the cultivation gap between individuals within the path was restricted from being too wide. Secondly, after leaving the academy in the future, every student might encounter such a grim situation at any given moment. Viewed from this perspective, the rule was exceptionally humane.

However, the inevitable consequence of such a development was that the strong grew stronger while the weak grew weaker. From this standpoint, it appeared rather ruthless.

Nevertheless, no matter what, taking someone's life during altercations within the Dragon Soaring Academy was strictly forbidden. Unless both parties harbored an irreconcilable blood feud, they could agree to step onto the Life-and-Death Stage.

The Life-and-Death Stage was the designated venue within the Dragon Soaring Academy for resolving personal grievances. After all, the students within the academy hailed from various factions across the Dragon Soaring Continent, and minor private grievances were inevitable. Once these issues spiraled beyond control, either party could issue a challenge to the Life-and-Death Stage, where life and death would be left to fate. Aside from the Life-and-Death Stage, if anyone dared to harm another student's life elsewhere, there was only a single outcome: their cultivation would be crippled, and they would be expelled from the academy.

Having gained a preliminary understanding of the academy's general situation, Lin Xiaobao inquired, "May I ask what kind of array the formation student passed through earlier?"

Knowing that Kuang Lizhen had taken a fancy to his innate talent in array formations, Lin Xiaobao seized the appropriate moment to display his studious spirit. Upon discovering the hidden array concealed within the bookcase, he had resolved to establish a good relationship with Kuang Lizhen. This would increase his opportunities to enter this room and figure out what was hidden behind that formation in advance.

Sure enough, seeing Lin Xiaobao so eager to learn, Kuang Lizhen was immensely satisfied. "That array is named the Enchaining Dragon Heavenly Dipper Formation, containing eighty-one variations within. What tested you just now was merely its weakest variation! To this day, aside from Chen Zhong back in the day, no student in the Dragon Soaring Academy has ever been able to breach this array relying purely on personal strength!"

Was Senior Brother Chen truly that formidable? According to Kuang Lizhen, what he had encountered earlier was only one percent of the array's full power, yet it was already so formidable. What kind of terrifying might would it unleash if activated completely? Furthermore, attempting to break the formation without even being able to use spiritual consciousness required how profound an attainment in array mastery?

Seeing Lin Xiaobao remain silent, Kuang Lizhen encouraged him, "Your talent in array formations is no less inferior to Chen Zhong's of the past. Perhaps you will become the second person to breach this array. Before that, however, you had better spend more time reading in the library and not rush into the Inquiry Tower. While the Inquiry Tower is immensely helpful for cultivation, the foundation of an array master is equally crucial!"

Lin Xiaobao deeply concurred with Kuang Lizhen's words. Under Old Wu's rigorous tutelage, his vision regarding array formations had long since broadened, but his foundations were indeed somewhat embarrassingly lacking. "This student thanks the Dean for his instruction!"

Acting with utmost politeness, Lin Xiaobao diligently maintained a stellar image in front of Kuang Lizhen.

Kuang Lizhen nodded. "You may withdraw for now. Should you have any questions regarding array formations, feel free to ask me at any time. Of course, if you come up with any new creative ideas, be sure to let me know as well."

"This student takes his leave!" Obtaining Kuang Lizhen's tacit permission, Lin Xiaobao felt quite satisfied. As long as he could increase his interactions with Kuang Lizhen, he would have more opportunities to enter this small building. As for questions, Lin Xiaobao trusted that under Old Wu's guidance, he could certainly pose problems that would give even Kuang Lizhen a headache. As for creative ideas, Lin Xiaobao was confident he would constantly astonish Kuang Lizhen. Only by doing so could he guarantee more opportunities to enter this place.

Departing from Kuang Lizhen's residence, Lin Xiaobao calculated the time. The testing for the other new students was still roughly a few days away, so he decided to head toward the Inquiry Tower. After all, whether judged from the introductions given by Gu Yixiang and Chen Zhong or from the academy's regulations, the fact that the Dragon Soaring Academy had stood tall on the Dragon Soaring Continent for thousands of years without collapsing was inextricably linked to the Inquiry Tower.

As for the tests of his companions, although Lin Xiaobao felt some concern, for him at the moment, it was nothing more than mild worry, because even if he wished to help, there was no way to intervene.

His jade token contained five hundred academic credits. According to the academy's regulations, entering the first floor via the Spirit Path allowed for ten days of cultivation within the Inquiry Tower. If one wished to enter and cultivate again in the future, only two paths remained available: either complete academy missions in exchange for credits, or plunder them directly from other students.

Since the jade token displayed a complete map of the entire academy, Lin Xiaobao quickly walked to the entrance of the Spirit Realm. According to the academy's regulations, different cultivation realms had different entrances. Of course, if someone felt confident enough to pass through a higher-level path, they could skip ranks and enter higher floors of the Inquiry Tower through alternative paths. Cultivating there would naturally yield twice the result with half the effort, though the required credits would correspondingly be much higher. More importantly, walking into a higher-level path drastically increased the probability of being waylaid and robbed by others.

It was worth mentioning here that while higher-level students were barred from taking lower-level paths, lower-level students were permitted to take higher-level paths. However, virtually no students made such a choice.

The Spirit Path was, in essence, a spatial gateway. Lin Xiaobao took a deep breath and plunged straight into it.

Amidst a momentary darkness followed by a flash of light, the scenery around Lin Xiaobao underwent a dramatic transformation. Before his eyes lay a vibrant expanse of emerald green, where a towering pagoda stood atop a majestic mountain peak. The tower radiated rich spiritual energy that nourished the entire realm, while flowers bloomed and grass flourished across the mountains and plains, exuding boundless vitality.

Simultaneously, Lin Xiaobao discovered that a veil had appeared over his head, leaving only his eyes exposed. Although he could not see his own reflection with his naked eyes, under the perception of his spiritual consciousness, his appearance remained clearly outlined in his mind. At this moment, his entire body was wrapped in the academy uniform, and his face was obscured by the veil. Even if one had cultivated conceptual mind waves, their spiritual consciousness still could not pierce through the defense of the veil to glimpse his true face.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Lin Xiaobao instantly understood. This was arranged to facilitate those entering this path in conducting daylight robberies without being recognized and resented by fellow students. It seemed the Dragon Soaring Academy handled the fine details exceptionally well.