Bell Tower Phantom

The hazy glow suddenly contracted. Martial Soul of Truth's Sky flickered several times, stopped sending invisible ripples outward, and transformed into a beam of light that shot into An Ping's forehead.

Within the Consciousness Space, An Ping had been quietly waiting for the Magic Light to contract and form the Source of Magic Power. When Sky of Truth suddenly appeared, he was startled. This was something An Ping had not anticipated.

As Sky of Truth suddenly appeared, the Consciousness Space shrouded in hazy light underwent a tremendous upheaval. The hazy glow abruptly contracted into a droplet of magic power, and An Ping could feel a qualitative change in his magic power.

Following the normal process, the next step would be to further communicate with the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth, stabilize the Source of Magic Power, and undergo a physical transformation.

Sky of Truth, floating above the Spiritual Power Model, suddenly emitted a soft white glow that enveloped the newly formed Source of Magic Power. As the Source of Magic Power was covered by the white light, its droplet-like form gradually changed into the shape of a book.

The process was incredibly fast, ending almost in the blink of an eye. The change in the Source of Magic Power's form did not make An Ping uncomfortable. Instead, he felt an indescribable sense of comfort, as though his soul had been purified. It was as if he had cast off every burden, leaving him with only peace and tranquility.

After examining himself carefully, An Ping was somewhat puzzled. Soul sublimation was supposed to accompany physical transformation, so why had it happened ahead of time?

Before An Ping could set aside his doubts, he felt a sense of hunger. It was not actual hunger, but the feeling of depleted magic power after its qualitative transformation into a Source of Magic Power.

An Ping hurriedly activated his Meditation Method. Perhaps because his soul had undergone its transformation early, the Spiritual Power Model's operating speed had made a qualitative leap. Vast amounts of the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth were drawn in, forming an invisible vortex.

As though it had completed its task, Sky of Truth left An Ping's Consciousness Space. When the Martial Soul reappeared outside his body, the patterns on its cover twisted, and the little white bird leaped out.

As his magic power gradually filled, the vortex formed by the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth did not disappear. Part of it continued to be absorbed by An Ping's body, while the other part was absorbed by the Spirit Soul.

As the little white bird absorbed the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth, its body gradually changed. Not only did it grow larger, but its feathers became increasingly full and its tail feathers kept lengthening, gradually taking on the form of a Phoenix.

Meanwhile, An Ping's body trembled slightly, as though he were enduring unbearable pain. That was indeed the case. He only felt as if his body were constantly being torn apart and rebuilt.

At the same time, Tang San's Divine Sense in Tang Wulin's mind also sensed the fluctuations of the Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth. He wanted to investigate, but he could not stop worrying about Tang Wulin, who was breaking through the seal.

The vortex of Primordial Energy of Heaven and Earth gradually dispersed, and An Ping's physical transformation and the Spirit Soul's evolution entered their final stage.

The evolved white Phoenix let out a resounding cry, circled An Ping several times, then suddenly plunged into Sky of Truth. As the Spirit Soul merged with it, the white patterns on the cover gradually spread, becoming ever more intricate and magnificent.

An Ping opened his eyes and silently felt the changes brought about by his advancement. He felt somewhat delighted. Though the process had been rather eventful, he had ultimately advanced successfully to become an Official Wizard.

What An Ping did not know was that the black clouds brought by the typhoon outside had sunk lower and lower, forming a vortex. If one looked carefully, one would find that the vortex resembled a gigantic eye, fixed firmly on Eastsea Academy.

While An Ping was feeling the changes brought by his advancement, he suddenly felt faint wisps of wind brush across his skin. He was somewhat puzzled. The doors and windows of the dormitory were clearly shut tight, so where had the wind come from?

A breeze inside a room with tightly shut doors and windows was already strange enough. Even stranger was that An Ping could clearly feel the atmosphere around him becoming inexplicably heavy.

He murmured softly, "Could this be a phenomenon caused by advancing? But I'm not particularly gifted."

Carefully sensing the wind brushing over his skin, An Ping understood. This was not wind at all, but a strange fluctuation.

This fluctuation was emanating from the black clouds in the sky. Strangely, it resonated with An Ping's soul. A wondrous sight appeared in his mind: a magnificent Bell Tower stood in the void, its second hand ticking across each mark on the dial.

What An Ping did not know was that as he resonated with this fluctuation, the sky outside also underwent an earth-shaking change. A Bell Tower Phantom slowly emerged at the center of the black-cloud vortex.

An Ping, at the center of the anomaly, felt nothing else and merely immersed himself in the resonance. Yet every other Soul Master within a hundred li felt an inexplicable oppression arise in their hearts, one they could not shake off no matter what they did. The higher a Soul Master's rank, the stronger the oppressive feeling became.

The one who felt this oppression most intensely was Tang San's Divine Sense remaining in Tang Wulin's mind. "What is this fluctuation? It resembles the Plane Will, yet it is not quite the same."

Tang Hao had become the Lord of the Plane through his planning, so he was extremely familiar with the Plane Will. Yet although this fluctuation clearly did not cover a large area, it gave him a vast and boundless feeling.

Time passed bit by bit. An Ping kept his eyes closed, quietly comprehending the images conveyed by the fluctuation. As he calmed himself and continued his insight, a Bell Tower pattern on the cover of Sky of Truth gradually changed from blurry to solid.

At the same time, a simple sketch-like pattern appeared on his right hand, like a strange tattoo. Looking closely, one would find that it was the shape of a Bell Tower, though it was highly abstract.

After an unknown amount of time, An Ping opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was a fair, pretty face—Gu Yuena. He was immediately startled. "Hey, why are you in my dormitory? No, this is the boys' dormitory."

Gu Yuena said somewhat angrily, "Why am I here? Do you know how long it's been?"

"How long? Don't tell me it's already been two or three days?" An Ping was also confused. He had clearly felt that not much time had passed.

At that moment, Xie Xie leaned over. "Two or three days? It's been seven days already. The typhoon is over, and classes started again today. You and Tang Wulin, both of you vanished without a trace. We really couldn't get in touch with Tang Wulin, so Teacher Wu sent us to see what was going on with you."

"It's been that long already? I thought it hadn't been long at all." An Ping shook his head.

Gu Yuena said, "All right, now that you're awake, do you want something to eat?"

As she spoke, she took out a bag of Steamed Buns from her Storage Soul Tool and handed it to An Ping. An Ping accepted the bag from Gu Yuena. He truly was starving. Although a Witch could draw energy from the air, he still needed nutrients. As he ate the Steamed Buns, he hurried with the two of them toward the Teaching Building.

This typhoon had arrived very suddenly, with no advance warning. Many defensive measures had not been deployed in time, and the typhoon had left quite a few traces across Eastsea Academy. Yet after the typhoon passed, the air seemed as though it had been cleansed, becoming exceptionally fresh.

The week-long typhoon had not only greatly affected Eastsea Academy, but the entire city. Shops could not operate, schools could not hold classes, and traffic had been paralyzed for a time. Every department of the Administrative Headquarters had been kept frantically busy.

Besides that, the typhoon also left behind the legend of the Bell Tower Phantom descending upon Eastsea City.