Spirit Pagoda

Although Yun Mu had no plans to enter the Spirit Ascension Platform, he still went to the Spirit Pagoda with Wu Changkong and the others.

For one thing, he wanted to see how Tang Wulin and the others performed. For another, he was simply accompanying them on the trip.

Eastsea City's Spirit Pagoda was indeed impressive. It was much taller than the one in Aolai City, its entire body gleaming with a metallic luster. From far away, one could see the three gilded characters: "Spirit Pagoda."

But Yun Mu knew perfectly well that compared to the one beside Shrek Academy, this was still more than a level below.

The moment they entered the first floor of the Spirit Pagoda, everyone was dazzled by the decorations inside—massive crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, the walls were covered in gold-foil-like material, and even the railings were made from gleaming alloy. It looked exactly like the lair of some newly rich tycoon.

Yun Mu could not help comparing it to the Tang Sect's style. Whether at its headquarters or branches, the Tang Sect exuded a restrained sense of technology. Its instruments and facilities were all focused on practicality, never on such gaudy extravagance.

But the Spirit Pagoda was different. It had to open itself to the public, sell spirit souls, and sell Spirit Ascension Platform slots. Naturally, it needed to put on a grand display. The more prosperous and prestigious it appeared, the more soul masters it could attract to spend money.

He glanced up at the murals on the walls. They depicted landscapes and people, linked together as though telling a complete story.

There was no need to inspect them closely to know they portrayed the deeds of Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong. After all, the Spirit Pagoda had been founded by Huo Yuhao himself. Engraving the founder's story on the walls could also be considered a form of inheritance.

Yun Mu silently thought, If the Douluo God Realm still existed, I might have to call Tang Wutong "big sister" when I met her.

After all, the Goddess of Life and the God of Destruction had always cherished Tang Wutong as their own daughter. As someone who had inherited the Power of Destruction, that really was what he should call her by seniority.

What a pity...

"Wow! This is Dragon Butterfly Douluo Tang Wutong!" Xie Xie suddenly pointed at the mural beside them in excitement, his eyes sparkling. "She's Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao's wife! I heard she was incredible back then and fought many powerful enemies alongside Huo Yuhao!"

Gu Yue followed Xie Xie's finger with her gaze, but then suddenly turned to Tang Wulin. Deliberately drawing out her words, she said, "Tang Wutong... Tang Wulin. Your names differ by only one character. And haven't you noticed? Tang Wulin's eyes and brows look a little like Tang Wutong's in the mural."

As soon as she said that, everyone instinctively looked at Tang Wulin, then compared him with Tang Wutong in the mural. They really did seem somewhat alike.

Hearing Gu Yue's words, Yun Mu turned and smiled at her, helping Tang Wulin out. "So many years have passed. Maybe they really are related by blood. After all, they both have the Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul. Their connection must run deep."

Tang Wulin had not reacted at first when Gu Yue said it, his mind still muddled. Only when Yun Mu spoke did he suddenly come to his senses and quickly followed up, "Right! We're both named Tang, and we both have the Clear Sky Hammer. Maybe we're both descendants of the Clear Sky Sect and relatives! Isn't it perfectly normal for relatives to look alike?"

Yet he secretly pondered, Tang Wutong is the God King's daughter, so why does the mural only mention her as "Spirit Ice Douluo's wife"? Is my dad's bloodline really that unimpressive? Doesn't he even have any glorious achievements worth mentioning on their own?

The moment that thought surfaced, he hurriedly shook his head and threw away the jumble of thoughts. Why think about that now? Getting stronger is what matters.

"Alright, stop crowding around the mural. Follow me," Long Hengxu said.

He stood some distance away, holding several passes in his hand. Only then did the five students snap out of their discussion of the mural and quickly follow him.

Yun Mu did not go with them. Instead, he lazily leaned against a nearby pillar and watched.

Pinned to his chest was a silver badge Zhen Hua had specially given him. A small hammer was engraved on it—the symbol of a Divine Craftsman's apprentice.

He was not wearing the thing to show off. He was giving the Spirit Pagoda a reminder: I'm Zhen Hua's apprentice. You'd better not get any ideas about me.

He knew perfectly well that his master Zhen Hua's actual strength was only that of an ordinary Title Douluo. Even wearing Four-word Battle Armor and fighting at full strength, he could at most draw with a Limit Douluo.

But for Zhen Hua, strength did not mean much. What truly made him formidable was his Heavenly Forging skill.

Across the entire continent, there was only one Divine Craftsman capable of forging the core components of Four-word Battle Armor. No one wanted to offend him lightly. After all, the mildest consequence of offending a Divine Craftsman was that an entire organization would never again be able to obtain custom-made Four-word Battle Armor.

If they offended him badly enough, he might even put out a bounty paid in a full set of Four-word Battle Armor. At that point, even Limit Douluos would scramble to take revenge for him.

The Spirit Pagoda might call itself the continent's number one organization, with both wealth and power, but it had no reason to make an enemy of a Divine Craftsman over a genius who had yet to fully mature.

In truth, Yun Mu's refusal to enter the Spirit Ascension Platform had nothing to do with being afraid of exposing his strength. The main reason was that the Spirit Ascension Platform was utterly useless to him.

Back when he obtained his third Soul Ring, Master Yun Ming had taken him to the Spirit Pagoda once in hopes of helping his spirit soul ascend.

Yet the instant the energy within the Spirit Ascension Platform touched his body, it was repelled by an invisible force. Forget increasing the age of his Soul Ring—he had not absorbed even the slightest trace of it.

Later, he discovered that it was not only the Spirit Ascension Platform's energy. Even the energy within Soul Bones was the same. His body rejected it all, making it impossible for him to use any of it.

Watching Tang Wulin and the others follow Long Hengxu into the passage, Yun Mu wandered around the area. Then his gaze suddenly landed on the Spirit Pagoda's cashier counter. The device's interface was unusual, seeming to be controlled directly through one's thoughts. It was somewhat like the "virtual realm" concept proposed by scientists in his previous life.

Virtuality and reality intertwined, connected directly through brainwaves.

Unfortunately, that technology had never truly been realized before he died in his previous life. He had not expected to encounter something similar here on the Douluo Continent.

After watching for a while, he lost interest. He found an empty corner, sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began cultivating.

They would still need quite a while before emerging from the Spirit Ascension Platform, so he might as well use the time to consolidate his Soul Power.

After an unknown amount of time, Yun Mu suddenly heard a burst of commotion. He opened his eyes and saw Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and the others climbing out of the pods. Every one of them looked uncomfortable, yet they were still chattering away about the battle they had just fought in the Spirit Ascension Platform.

He rose to his feet, walked over, patted Tang Wulin on the shoulder, and said with a smile, "Looks like you coordinated pretty well in there."

"Of course!" Xie Xie immediately came over, proudly lifting his chin. "Inside the Spirit Ascension Platform, Wulin and I worked together and took down several hundred-year soul beasts!"

Yun Mu looked at his smug expression and deliberately teased him. "Don't be so modest, Xie Xie. If you keep being this humble, then when I forge a One-word Battle Armor model in the future, you can be humble about that too and not ask for one, alright?"