The Entrance to the True Heaven-Piercing Tower!
The remaining bloodlust in Xiao Han's eyes was pierced by a wisp of clarity that had struggled to emerge. This was the first time he had actively touched and controlled this newborn body called [Star-Magic Battle Body] (Pseudo-Incomplete), and the strange and violent power contained within it!
A suppressed roar rolled from his throat, and the star and demonic patterns on his body, which were barely visible, suddenly blazed brightly, bursting out with a heart-stopping radiance. The brilliance of the stars and the darkness of the demons, two completely different forces, collided and intertwined fiercely on his right fist, finally coalescing in a precarious balance!
A punch was thrown! There was no skill whatsoever, only an overwhelming and ruthless force unleashed! Wherever the fist passed, the air was torn apart, and starlight and shadows intertwined to form a strange vortex.
Boom! A muffled thunderous explosion resounded. The seemingly solid, dim starlight spear, upon touching Xiao Han's fist, was as fragile as thin ice, shattering inch by inch and exploding into countless stardust fragments!
The force of the recoil caused the guard captain's body to tremble violently, starlight peeling away from his body and dissipating into specks of fluorescent light. In the final instant before his form was completely Obliteration, a scorched and broken will pierced Xiao Han's sea of consciousness like a sharp cone:
"The Tower... the Anomaly... the Void Whisperers... have infiltrated... stop... them..."
The warning abruptly ceased, the last starlight dissipated, and the guard captain vanished completely. Xiao Han's chest heaved violently, his heavy breathing tearing at his throat. The hideous demonic patterns and mysterious star markings on his body receded like a tide, and the terrifying bloodlust in his eyes slowly settled, eventually returning to those familiar, deep black pupils. He had held on, on the verge of completely succumbing to becoming a killing puppet, he had regained his shaky control.
At the end of the ancient road, the void rippled like water, and a gate of light silently opened. It seemed to have existed there since time immemorial, radiating a vastness and antiquity that could crush the soul. Within the gate, light and shadow distorted, and starlight flowed. In its depths, it seemed to connect to another vast universe—the entrance to the Heaven-Piercing Tower was thus revealed before our eyes.
Xiao Han's gaze turned serious, and he was about to take a step when a voice suddenly rang in his mind:
[Ding! God-Level Choice System activated!]
[You are now faced with a choice. Please make your decision.]
[Option 1: [Brave the Heavenly Gate]. Time waits for no one. Enter the Heaven-Piercing Tower now, seize any potential opportunities, and face unknown challenges and chances. Reward: 1 random opportunity chest on the first floor of the Heaven-Piercing Tower (random quality, minimum Gold, maximum Legendary).]
[Option Two: [Ready to Strike]. The Heaven-Piercing Tower is fraught with danger, and there's even the secret of the "Void Whisperers '" infiltration. The host's current state is not optimal. It is recommended to temporarily refrain from entering the Heaven-Piercing Tower, instead sign in here (estimated time: six hours), attempt to analyze information related to the "Void Whisperers," and initially stabilize the [Star-Magic Battle Body] (pseudo-incomplete), repair injuries, and enhance combat power. Rewards: [Healing Elixir - Star Marrow Jade Liquid] ×1 bottle (can quickly restore injuries and slightly temper the Star-Magic Battle Body), [Star Demon Battle Body Tempering Insights) ] ×1, [Illusion-Breaking Talisman (one-time use, can see through illusions or disguises below the Martial Emperor level for a short time)] ×1.]
The portal, like the gaping maw of a colossal cosmic beast ready to devour its prey, exuded a deadly allure and unfathomable mystery. Xiao Han's gaze lingered briefly on the dazzling "Legendary" reward of [Brave the Heavenly Gate], his heart skipping a beat. But soon, the warning from the dying guard captain, the "Void Whisperers," was like a bucket of ice water poured over him, sending a chill down his spine. The Heaven-Piercing Tower was no place to be trifled with.
"Fortune favors the bold," he thought to himself, "But to throw one's life away is utterly unwise."
Ultimately, his focus shifted to [Ready to Strike].
[Selection complete, reward distributed!]
[Obtained: 1 bottle of Healing Elixir - Star Marrow Jade Liquid, 1 Star Demon Battle Body Tempering Insights, 1 One-Time Use Illusion- Illusion-Breaking Talisman.]
My palm felt a slight weight, and three items appeared out of thin air.
One item was a cool jade bottle, its surface clear and sparkling with stardust-like particles, which swayed slightly inside. Another was an animal hide scroll, its texture aged and carrying the dry smell of time. Finally, there was a talisman, its surface faintly glowing with silver light.
Xiao Han's fingertips touched the jade bottle first. He weighed it in his hand, and without hesitation, he pulled out the stopper. A rich, exotic fragrance rushed into his nostrils, and he tilted his head back and drank the jade marrow liquid down his throat.
The liquid slid down my throat, initially cool and refreshing, but in an instant it became a scalding torrent that burst from my throat and surged to every corner of my body.
The fierce battle and the lingering pain from forcibly controlling this body left countless tiny cracks all over his body. As the Jade Marrow Liquid slid into his abdomen, a warm current exploded from his core, initially gentle, then transforming into a surging river that rushed to his limbs and bones. The excruciating pain that had passed through this warm current vanished as quickly as a thin frost under the warm spring sun.
A tingling sensation ran deep within his bones, followed by a series of fine, teeth-grinding crackling sounds, as if an invisible hand was re-forging his muscles and bones. The star and demonic patterns on his body, which had been flickering wildly, gradually settled down, revealing a solidified quality after suppression. New life surged within him, and his injuries healed at an incredible speed.
Before he could even savor the change, his attention had already turned to the roll of animal hide.
It felt cool to the touch, with a strange suppleness unlike ordinary leather. Unrolling the animal hide scroll, ancient and twisted characters were engraved upon it. At first glance, they seemed chaotic, but upon closer inspection, one could perceive that each stroke contained an indescribable rhythm. Faintly, it seemed as if a low whisper was expounding the ancient secrets of the entanglement between stars and demonic energy. This fragment contained not only methods for harmonizing the two extremely opposing forces within the body, but also key techniques for converting stellar power and demonic energy, as well as the rudiments of several combat techniques based on these.
This is truly a timely help. Previously, his use of this battle body was almost like a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse, relying entirely on instinct, and was ridiculously crude.
[Check-in has begun and is expected to take six hours.]
The system's voice rang in his mind.
Xiao Han found a relatively flat rock a few feet away from the portal and sat down cross-legged. The portal behind him, leading to the unknown, was still shrouded in a hazy, ever-changing light and shadow, silently exuding a profound and unsettling aura.
He steadied himself and, following the obscure incantation on the animal skin scroll, began to attempt to activate the [Star-Magic Battle Body]. The star and demon patterns on his body surface reappeared. This time, they were no longer in a tense standoff as before, but flowed independently under a strange rhythm, faintly showing a tendency to attract and respond to each other.
The profound mysteries on the animal skin scroll flowed slowly through his mind. He carefully drew a wisp of starlight power from his dantian. Guided by him, this wisp of power traveled through his meridians along a completely new path he had never tried before. Wherever the starlight passed, the originally clear power gradually became tinged with a dark and deep hue. When this wisp of power completed its cycle along the mysterious trajectory and returned to his dantian, it had transformed into a wisp of demonic energy that, though weak, was extremely pure, carrying a cold and domineering aura.
It's done!