Above Heaven Dou City, nine dragon silhouettes emerged from deep within the clouds.
They dragged a pitch-black Mysterious Tower behind them, plummeting rapidly.
Many people looked up, only to see a pillar of fire hurtling toward them.
"What is that?!" someone cried out, pointing at the sky.
Just then, several figures appeared above Heaven Dou City's square.
At their head was Xue Ye, with the eldest prince, Xue Qinghe, beside him.
There were also Ning Fengzhi, Chen Xin, and Gu Rong, who had been discussing matters with him.
"What scoundrel dares launch a sneak attack on my Heaven Dou City?!"
Xue Ye roared in fury, raising a hand and releasing a surge of Soul Power.
He attempted to stop the Mysterious Tower's descent.
But like a divine weapon descending from the heavens, the Mysterious Tower tore straight through his Soul Power blockade.
Chen Xin and Gu Rong exchanged a glance and acted simultaneously to block it.
Two powerful surges of Soul Power formed a vast net, catching the Mysterious Tower.
However, the Mysterious Tower stopped for only a second before plunging down even faster.
Ning Fengzhi's pupils contracted, and he immediately shouted.
"This is bad! Retreat!"
The figures vanished from the square in an instant.
The nine dragon silhouettes swept over the city walls, dragging the Mysterious Tower straight down into the central square.
With a thunderous crash, a shock wave swept outward, carrying smoke and dust.
Once the dust settled, the figures flew back, studying the Mysterious Tower before them curiously.
"What on earth is this thing?" Qian Renxue, disguised as Xue Qinghe, exclaimed in surprise.
Around the central square, crowds surged toward it as though drawn by a magnet.
The nine dragon silhouettes circled the tower once at varying heights.
Then they turned into nine statues affixed to the Mysterious Tower.
Inside the tower.
Shen Yan jolted awake as though a basin of cold water had been poured over his head.
He abruptly sat up and looked around.
He discovered that everything around him was pitch-black, and the floor beneath him was icy cold.
Just then.
A pale white orb of light appeared overhead, illuminating an area exactly three zhang in radius.
Shen Yan raised a hand to shield his eyes and squinted around.
"Holy shit, where have I ended up? Am I still on Blue Star?"
He rubbed his temples.
His last memory was of working overtime to revise a proposal the night before, then falling asleep at his desk.
When he opened his eyes again, he was in a place like this.
Suddenly, the air before him rippled.
A translucent screen materialized out of thin air.
[Tower Master's vital consciousness confirmed stable. Officially activating the Nine Dragon Tower.] [Current plane: Douluo Continent.] [Current location: Nine Dragon Tower · Top-floor main chamber.] [Host identity: Shen Yan, sole master of the Nine Dragon Tower.]
Shen Yan stared at the screen for three seconds.
"Douluo Continent?"
He repeated it under his breath. "Don't tell me it's that Douluo Continent?"
The screen did not answer his question; more text continued appearing.
[Host mission: Use the Nine Dragon Tower to increase your strength and create a Divine Realm.] [Time limit: None!] [Failure penalty: Turn into Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo!] [Mission reward: Become a god!] [Accept?]
Shen Yan came to his senses and hurriedly waved his hands.
"Hold on, hold on!"
"I only just fucking got here! I haven't even awakened my Martial Soul, and you already want me to create a Divine Realm?"
"Isn't that ridiculous?"
He still did not know what era this was. Had Tang San and the others already become gods and left?
If he had no strength, he could only go suck up to Tang San, that child of destiny.
"Tell me, where are we in the timeline?"
[Douluo Calendar year 2644, on the eve of the Soul Master Elite Tournament preliminaries.]
Hearing this, Shen Yan paused briefly, then abruptly realized something.
"At this point, has that brat Tang San already entered the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well?"
That was the number-one must-eat destination in Douluo!
If he missed out, wouldn't he have transmigrated for nothing?
[Not yet.]
At that, Shen Yan breathed a sigh of relief and patted his chest.
"Good, good. As long as he hasn't gone in."
"I remember Tang San was forced into the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well by Dugu Bo."
"As long as I lure Dugu Bo back to Heaven Dou City, he probably won't go in, right?"
At that thought, Shen Yan immediately sprang up from the floor.
"Whatever the case, I'll awaken my Martial Soul first!"
"Nine Dragon Tower, right? How do I awaken my Martial Soul?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a blue crystal ball rose out of the floor in front of him.
Seeing this, Shen Yan placed his hand directly on it.
The next instant, the crystal ball blazed with light.
At the same time, a Martial Soul appeared behind him: a square box colored black and white.
At the center of the box was a pink swirling pattern.
Shen Yan's eyes widened slightly at the sight.
"This is... the Equivalent Exchange Conversion Table!"
But it was not over yet. His right hand gradually began glowing gold.
Shen Yan raised his right hand and exclaimed in surprise.
"A right-hand Body Martial Soul!"
"I've got Twin Martial Souls too! Hahaha!"
Just as Shen Yan threw back his head and laughed, a white Soul Ring actually rose beneath his feet.
After bobbing up and down for a moment, the Soul Ring merged into Shen Yan's body.
Shen Yan stopped laughing, choked on air, and began coughing loudly.
"A Soul... cough, cough, cough... Soul Ring!"
"When did I absorb a Soul Ring?"
Shen Yan summoned the Conversion Table Martial Soul into his hand, and a white Soul Ring appeared.
Information about his first Soul Skill appeared in Shen Yan's mind.
After reading it, he stared somewhat blankly at the Conversion Table in his hand and muttered to himself.
"What do you mean, it only has one self-generated Soul Ring and can't have any Soul Rings added?"
"Aren't you fucking screwing me over?!"
His first Soul Skill was called Equivalent Exchange.
It allowed him to sell any item into the Conversion Table to obtain EMC Value, then spend the same amount of EMC Value to buy it back out.
As long as he sold an item into it once, he could buy unlimited copies.
At that moment, text appeared on the screen again.
[Accept the mission?]
Shen Yan hesitated. Although he had Twin Martial Souls.
As things stood, he certainly could not keep Tang San, that child of destiny, down.
Unless this Nine Dragon Tower could offer him more help.
He rubbed his chin and asked softly.
"What happens if I don't accept?"
[You will still turn into Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo.]
Shen Yan's eyes widened.
"Motherfucker, why even ask, then? I accept."
A ray of light appeared and entered Shen Yan's forehead, making him turn somewhat illusory.
Only after a little while did he return to normal.
Text appeared before him again.
[The host's Second Martial Soul, the right-hand Body Martial Soul, can undergo a Second Awakening. Awakened form: Steve's Hand.]
Shen Yan's eyes lit up at the sight.
"Holy shit, I'm invincible!"
[Nine Dragon Tower functions:] [1. The tower's interior is an Absolute Domain. Any living being entering the tower will have its strength completely sealed, reducing it to the level of an ordinary mortal.] [2. The Tower Master (host) is exempt from this rule.] [3. The Nine Dragon Tower refreshes one item every month for the Tower Master's use (this month's item has already refreshed; please inspect it yourself).]
Shen Yan looked at an item icon on the screen.
It was a metal sphere bearing crimson markings.
[God-bestowed Soul Ring] [Description: No attribute. Adapts to the absorber. Its age equals the limit the absorber can withstand.]
Shen Yan's pupils contracted slightly.
A God-bestowed Soul Ring!
Even as a mere Cloud Douluo, he knew what those words meant.
"You're starting off with something this big? Do you want me dead?!"
He could guarantee that if he took this thing out to sell, people across the entire continent would fight like mad to buy it.
Shen Yan's eyes shifted, and he summoned the Conversion Table again.
"First Soul Skill, Equivalent Exchange!"
The God-bestowed Soul Ring sphere turned into a streak of light and shot into the Conversion Table in his palm.
He checked the Conversion Table's information.
[God-bestowed Soul Ring recorded] [Purchasable item: God-bestowed Soul Ring (price: 100,000 EMC)]
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