Wild Goose Pagoda

The next day.

[A Large Wave of Undead Club]

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "!!!"

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "∑(っ°Д°;)っ!∑(O_O;)"

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "(╯‵□′)╯︵┴─┴"

[A Big Red Flower on the Head]: "Holy crap! I just logged into the forum and found you spamming it. Cucumber, have you lost your mind?"

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "Bingo, you guessed it. I really have lost my mind—and not just a little."

[Expert of Picking Feet]: "Hit a snag with your cultivation? Tell your big brother about it. You can lean on my Intermediate Level 3 shoulder."

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "Heh. Intermediate Level 3? Nothing special."

[Expert of Picking Feet]: "??? Cucumber, do you want to hear yourself? If I remember right, you're only Basic Level One, aren't you?"

[Giant Mountain Super Power Tyrant]: "What happened, exactly?"

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "Little Giant Mountain! Listen, there's a transfer student at our training camp. He's the same age as us, but last night he actually... Isn't that ridiculous!?"

Cucumber Big Girl painted a vivid picture of a young powerhouse who had swept through the undead and crushed all opposition among his peers.

As Xu Fang scrolled on his phone, the story sounded more and more familiar. Setting aside the exaggerations in her long post, wasn't she basically talking about him?

[Desperate Duck Neck]: "So you're saying a student soldier your age climbed to the top of the undead rankings in a single night, and even broke through the Yin Soldiers' mental illusion by sheer force of will?"

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "ヾ(≧O≦)〃Awooo~"

[Desperate Duck Neck]: "I don't believe it."

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "ヽ(｀⌒メ)ノI'm not telling you! Little Giant Mountain, do you believe me?"

[Giant Mountain Super Power Tyrant]: "No."

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "Aaaah, how could you?"

Hardly anyone on the forum believed her. The story was just too outrageous.

Reaching the top of the undead rankings was one thing, but breaking through a mental illusion was another matter entirely.

The people here were either university students or Hunter Mages, all of them experienced. Even an ordinary Mind Element Mage could disrupt their star tracks, let alone launch a proper attack through an illusion.

If Cucumber Girl was telling the truth and a student could really pull that off, they'd do a five-speed fan dance on the spot!

[Cucumber Big Girl]: "@A Pot of Old Wine, Brother Wine, you'll believe me, right?"

Unfortunately, even after a long while, the reliable Brother Wine didn't reply. With him silent, the forum conversation was painfully uninteresting, consisting of everyone teasing Cucumber Girl as she went into a frenzy.

Xu Fang simply put his phone away and closed his eyes to rest.

He was on a military vehicle headed for the Ancient Capital district, on his way to cultivate at the Wild Goose Pagoda.

The Wild Goose Pagoda stood at the center of Gudu Academy. More accurately, Gudu Academy had been built around the pagoda.

Historical records said that Master Xuanzang, a Buddhist sage of the Tang dynasty, had overseen its construction. The entire structure was made from the finest Magic Stones, which gathered the elements of heaven and earth. The energy stored within could nurture more outstanding mages.

Elements were everywhere. Spirit Seeds came into being when places with especially dense elements and magical energy were tempered by time and gradually evolved.

The Wild Goose Pagoda's location and design allowed it to gather energy from thousands of kilometers around.

It was like an enormous root system spreading beneath the earth for thousands of kilometers. Even if the land seemed utterly barren, drawing together energy across such a vast area still provided the trunk with a constant supply of power to grow.

Across the dynasties, countless eminent monks had attained enlightenment here and passed away here. Their relics became pure energy and merged into the pagoda.

Cultivating here could yield twice the results for half the effort.

Ordinary students rarely got the chance to enter the pagoda and cultivate. Even when they did, they usually saved the opportunity for a breakthrough to Intermediate Level 3 or even the Advanced level.

Using it for a breakthrough from the Elementary level to the Intermediate level, like Xu Fang was doing, went beyond using a butcher's knife to kill a chicken. It was more like firing an anti-aircraft gun at a mosquito.

From a distance, Xu Fang could already see the Wild Goose Pagoda.

From the outside, it looked shabby. Its walls were mottled and worn, nothing like a holy site for cultivation.

"You have three days to cultivate in the pagoda. We'll come back for you after that," said the driver who had brought Xu Fang there, his eyes full of envy.

The Wild Goose Pagoda...

If he'd had the chance to enter it when he was young, he might have been qualified to drive for an even more important leader by now.

Xu Fang hurried toward the pagoda, registering three times along the way.

The main reason was that Xu Fang was so young. He hadn't even reached adulthood, yet he'd been granted such an opportunity. How were the sophomore and junior students guarding the entrance supposed to feel?

"Everyone's here, so let's go," one of the senior students said, leading the group inside.

There were three people in this batch, including Xu Fang. The other two seemed to be a couple.

The girl was pretty, with a bright smile. When she met Xu Fang's gaze, she waved. "Hey there, kid. Are you a freshman or in the gifted program?"

"I'm in high school," Xu Fang replied.

The girl covered her little mouth in surprise. "You got the chance to cultivate in the Wild Goose Pagoda while still in high school... Mind if I ask what Element you have, what level you are, and what you've done?"

"Ranran!"

The young man's expression turned serious. "Don't ask questions that might put him on the spot."

"Okay, okay, I get it~" The girl put a finger to her lips and mimed zipping them shut.

The young man turned to Xu Fang. "I'm Zheng Jiu, a sophomore at Gudu Academy. This is Qian Ranran. Once we're inside the pagoda, you can ask me if there's anything you don't understand."

"And me! Ask me too!" Qian Ranran hurriedly raised her hand.

Zheng Jiu gave off a dependable air. Qian Ranran, on the other hand, was much more carefree.

Xu Fang followed the two along an ancient path into the pagoda. After walking for an unknown number of minutes, he couldn't help stopping.

It was so long...

"Hard to believe, isn't it?"

Zheng Jiu said, "You probably haven't studied Space Element theory in high school. There's a concept in spatial magic: one step spans a thousand zhang, two steps a thousand miles, three steps without end! That's why the Wild Goose Pagoda doesn't look particularly imposing from the outside, but its interior is nearly impossible to reach the end of."

"Impressive," Xu Fang praised.

"Master Xuanzang, who oversaw the construction of this pagoda, specialized in the Fire Element and studied the Space Element as a secondary discipline. He gathered countless Earth Element Mages to help. The Space Arrays engraved inside are all royal secrets, and even now, no one has managed to decipher them all."

At this, Zheng Jiu couldn't help sighing. "The wisdom and creativity of our predecessors really put us descendants to shame."

"Don't worry!"

Qian Ranran clapped him on the shoulder and said in a self-important tone, "Our ancestors played with arrays, and so do I! Once I've figured out the Wild Goose Pagoda, you won't need to worship our ancestors anymore. When it's just the two of us at home, you can worship me instead."

Zheng Jiu's ears reddened. "Don't say that. Someone else might hear..."

"Hehe~ Are you embarrassed?"

Xu Fang, standing off to the side: "???"

What the hell? What just happened? And what's with that sudden bashful look!?

After composing himself, Zheng Jiu continued:

"Since we can't decipher it, we can only use the pagoda according to the instructions left by our predecessors. The Wild Goose Pagoda has many layers of space, and each layer gathers a different amount of energy.

"You're an Elementary Mage, so you can only cultivate on the first floor at most. If you go higher, the energy might pour into you and make you explode. You'll find out for yourself."

Thanks to [One Leaf, Nine Thousand] for the tip~