It was already dark when Wang Lan returned from the Star Martial Arts Collection Museum. This was even after he had quickened his pace while shopping later on.

In the end, Wang Lan only brought himself to return after spending all his points.

For the Water Attribute, he bought a Water Severing Knife. For the Wood Attribute, he purchased Sentient Beings. For the Earth Attribute, he acquired the S-Rank Light and Heavy Replacement Skill and the S-Rank Door to Hell. He already possessed Fire and Thunder Attribute Star Martial Skills, so he didn't buy any more of those. Finally, he bought an S-Rank Wind Attribute Star Martial Skill called Wind Capturing Net, which was also an area-of-effect cutting Star Martial Skill.

The four S-Rank Star Martial Skills cost him 1,600 points, and that was after receiving a discount for purchasing four S-Rank Star Martial Skills at once.

Back at the dormitory, He Jing and Ming Guodong were playing video games in the living room. "Wang Lan, you're back? I heard you signed up for the Nine-layer Pagoda?"

"Mhm! Are you guys going?"

"Go? Fat chance! We're not lucky enough to be escorted by Princess Yu Ruoyun. Freshmen like us, at the Star Cloud Stage, would just be cannon fodder even if we were stubborn enough to go. You be careful too. Even with Princess Yu Ruoyun looking out for you, senior students die in the Nine-layer Pagoda every year. On average, those seniors are at the Galaxy Stage of strength."

"He Jing, stop worrying about Wang Lan. Did you forget he has the Phoenix Form?"

"Oh, right! What was I worried about? With your Phoenix Form, you should be stronger than most senior students. But still, be careful. It's very dangerous in there."

"Understood. When I get back, I'll treat you guys to hot pot..."

Before he could finish, He Jing quickly clapped a hand over Wang Lan's mouth, even forgetting to push the tower in his game.

"Damn it, why are you jinxing yourself by setting up a flag like that?"

Wang Lan smiled, returned to his room, and closed the door. He put down his backpack and took out five metal boxes. Over the past two months, Wang Lan had accumulated 60,000 skill points by developing vaccines and had been reluctant to use them.

Five Star Martial Skills—just enough to learn the basics. As for mastering them, that would be impossible before entering the Nine-layer Pagoda.

「Three days passed in a flash.」

In the blink of an eye, it was time for the Nine-layer Pagoda to open. Outside the academy's rear mountain, the eight senior year classes lined up in neat formations and entered the Nine-layer Pagoda one by one.

Jiang Xinyu clung tightly to Wang Lan's hand, her face etched with worry. She had recently spent time browsing the campus forums, specifically looking up posts about the dangers of the Nine-layer Pagoda.

The senior students had ranked the university's various trials by difficulty. Normal difficulty involved closing suddenly appearing Different Dimensional Spaces. These were often caused by some idiots who used Space Stones to open Different Dimensional Spaces but then couldn't manage them, so academy students had to clean up their messes. Medium difficulty involved internships in Pioneer Spaces. Hard difficulty meant going abroad to support small nations ravaged by Different Dimensional Spaces. The Nine-layer Pagoda, however, was a trial ranked above hard difficulty but below hell difficulty.

Even those at the Galaxy Stage could die inside if they weren't careful.

"Xinyu, don't worry. Leave Wang Lan to me. In ten days, I'll return a whole Wang Lan to you," Yu Ruoyun said, patting Jiang Xinyu's shoulder reassuringly.

"Exactly! Junior Sister Jiang Xinyu, don't worry. Wang Lan will definitely be fine with us."

Jiang Xinyu looked at Yu Ruoyun and Yue Jifeng, a top expert among the seniors, and only then did she finally release Wang Lan's hand.

"I'll wait for you out here. In ten days, you absolutely must come out."

"Don't worry! Am I the kind of person who would act recklessly?"

As the contingent entered the Nine-layer Pagoda, it was just as the rumors described: each floor a different world, each new vista a vast ocean. After passing through a golden gateway, an endless expanse of mountains and rivers stretched before them.

In the distance, mountain ranges undulated endlessly. Some were bare rock, while others were covered in dense, green forests. As far as the eye could see, there was no end in sight.

"First, we'll follow the main force to sweep the stronger Exotic Beast groups on the first floor. Then, we'll proceed floor by floor up to the fourth."

The large contingent advanced, sweeping everything before them. Before reaching the fourth floor, all the students, guided by their teachers, split into four columns and advanced in four different directions to hunt. Wang Lan's group of four was in the fourth column, heading north.

"Bai Ji—"

"Understood!"

Wang Lan's group of four arrived outside a tribe of Exotic Beasts resembling wild dogs. Under Yu Ruoyun's command, the four of them executed their tactics with perfect coordination.

Star Power flickered around Bai Ji. RUMBLE—

The earth suddenly began to tremble violently. As it shook, the ground beneath their feet abruptly rose, and the Mane Hunting Dog tribe before them grew alert.

Following a series of barks and howls that rose one after another, countless Mane Hunting Dogs quickly gathered, warily observing their surroundings.

The ground beneath Wang Lan rapidly elevated. From his vantage point, a ring of earthen walls suddenly rose around the Mane Hunting Dogs. It was as if geological transformations that normally take eons were compressed into mere minutes. Several kilometers of terrain were altered, all by a Star Martial Skill deployed by a girl with a baby face.

"Meteor Fire Rain!"

Yu Ruoyun suddenly pointed to the heavens. Fiery red Star Power surged from her body, coalescing into a massive, crimson Array. She flung the Array high into the sky, where it blazed above the Mane Hunting Dogs' heads like an ornament embedded in the firmament.

Suddenly, hundreds of fiery red meteors erupted from the Array, crashing down with immense force onto the Mane Hunting Dogs' encampment.

BOOM! RUMBLE!

A barrage of deafening explosions erupted. Hundreds of Mane Hunting Dogs were crushed to death by the dense shower of meteors. Countless more were injured by the concussive shockwaves.

"AWOOOO—" A series of panicked howls erupted. The surviving hundreds of Mane Hunting Dogs quickly converged and charged toward an opening Bai Ji had intentionally left.

The gap was long and narrow, stretching for several hundred meters. At its choke point, Wang Lan and Yue Jifeng had already taken their positions.

Wang Lan crouched slightly, pressing his hands to the ground. "Earth Surge Fire Sea!"

WHOOSH! A sea of fire erupted before Wang Lan. It billowed and rolled like a tidal wave, surging towards the madly charging Mane Hunting Dogs. Even knowing it was a sea of fire ahead, the dogs, already in a full charge, couldn't stop and plunged headlong into the inferno.

Heat waves shimmered, and Wang Lan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Suddenly, several figures flickered within the blaze. Mane Hunting Dogs, wreathed in flames, burst through the wall of fire and charged at Wang Lan.

They had been peacefully lazing about in their encampment—even though there was no actual sun overhead, they had been relaxed. The sudden attack had already filled them with rage.

While fleeing, they were ambushed by Wang Lan's Earth Surge Fire Sea. Now, severely wounded, their fury blazed even hotter. Seeing the culprit before them, the Mane Hunting Dogs' eyes instantly turned bloodshot.

"We'll kill you—"

Mouths agape, they unleashed torrents of moon-white wind blades that swept toward Wang Lan and Yue Jifeng like a crazed pack of wolves.

"Gate of The Underworld—"

Suddenly, within the narrow passage, a bizarre gate materialized. It was constructed from massive stones and carved with eerie Ghost Face patterns.

Hailed as the strongest defense of the Earth Attribute, the Gate of The Underworld successfully acted as a valve, sealing the passage as if tightening the mouth of a sack.

Wind blades normally possessed strong corrosive power against Earth Attribute defenses, but they were useless against the Gate of The Underworld. The instant the wind blades were blocked, a series of violent impact sounds echoed.

The Mane Hunting Dogs, fearless of death, slammed into the Gate of The Underworld. They battered it until their skulls cracked and brains splattered, yet they couldn't budge the gate an inch. Their charge was forced to a halt, but Yue Jifeng's attack had already begun.

In an instant, Yue Jifeng's figure vanished, transforming into countless afterimages before Wang Lan's eyes. The afterimages appeared and then disappeared in a flash. By the time the last afterimage faded, Yue Jifeng had already passed through the pack of Mane Hunting Dogs and reappeared on the other side.

"Moon Falling Snow—" Yue Jifeng gently slid his blade back into its sheath, his voice soft, like a wisp of smoke.

SLICE—

All the Mane Hunting Dogs suddenly spurted green blood in unison. Almost instantly, their heads tumbled to the ground.

Witnessing this spectacle, Wang Lan couldn't help but draw in a sharp, cold breath. That was terrifying.

Yu Ruoyun's Meteor Fire Rain had been grand and imposing, but it hadn't sent a true chill down Wang Lan's spine. However, Yue Jifeng's single slash, which decapitated over a hundred Mane Hunting Dogs in less than a second... Now *that* was chilling.

He truly lives up to his name as the top speedster of the senior year, Wang Lan thought. That speed has completely redefined my understanding of the limits of velocity.

A tribe of nearly one thousand Mane Hunting Dogs was effortlessly decimated by Wang Lan's team of four. Such coordination, such combat prowess—even the teachers observing from a distance and providing support had to describe it as perfect.

The first floor seemed boundless, but in less than half a day, the four columns had swept through, and nearly all the powerful Exotic Beast tribes had been wiped clean.

Within the Nine-layer Pagoda, each floor had four entrances leading to the floor above. This was the reason for splitting into four columns. Wang Lan's fourth column, apparently the strongest, was the first to enter the second floor.

The Exotic Beasts on the second floor were clearly a tier stronger than those on the first. There was also a greater variety of species, and a higher proportion of powerful individuals. Moreover, they would occasionally encounter mutant Exotic Beasts that appeared harmless but possessed freakishly immense power.

But for a floor where the general threat level was mostly at the peak of the Star Shine Stage, with Galaxy Stage entities being very rare, these slightly stronger Exotic Beasts didn't feel *that* much more powerful.

After a brief rest, and once the other three columns had arrived, all four columns began to sweep northward again.

Star Martial Warriors with sensory abilities guided the main sweeping force, indicating the direction of attack. This was far more efficient than scouring the mountains and wilderness searching for Exotic Beast tribes.

As the pace of battle quickened, Wang Lan's four-person squad achieved an even greater level of coordination. If their earlier teamwork had required Yu Ruoyun's explicit commands, now they could execute perfectly with just a few short words or a single signal.

Besides supporting his own squad, Wang Lan also provided medical assistance to the allied forces they were sweeping alongside.

Having a medical Star Martial Warrior nearby was a boon those without one could scarcely imagine. Injuries? Danger? These became almost non-issues. This was especially true with Wang Lan's astonishingly potent healing abilities, which made the senior students fighting alongside him feel as if they had an invincibility buff.

The only catch was that Wang Lan's healing fees were a bit steep: at least two Soul Beads as a base price.

But in the Nine-layer Pagoda, teeming with Exotic Beasts, Soul Beads were practically pocket change.

「Two days passed unknowingly.」

Wang Lan and his companions successfully reached the third floor. Reviewing their spoils, Wang Lan still had the largest haul among the four in his squad.

In addition to the spoils obtained from their squad's kills, Wang Lan had also earned over a thousand Soul Beads through his healing services. This batch of Soul Beads was his to keep.

"I heard some guy from the third column found a Star Palace Artifact on the second floor?" Bai Ji remarked, a hint of envy in her tone, right after they had finished slaughtering an Exotic Beast tribe.

"Lucky? Well... he got severely injured by an Exotic Beast right after entering. After that, his bad luck continued; he was either ambushed by Exotic Beasts or grazed by stray attacks. But if you say he's *unlucky*, then how do you explain being blasted away by a Star Martial Skill, only to coincidentally fall into a weathered cave and find a treasure inside? His 'fortune' was bought with several near-death experiences. Most people couldn't envy that. If you had his kind of 'luck,' you might not be so fortunate as to escape danger every single time," Yue Jifeng said with a carefree laugh.

"But I'm still so envious! I really, really want a Star Palace Artifact..." Bai Ji sighed, gazing longingly at the sky.

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