Chapter Fifty-Eight: The Infinite Glass Tower

Despite the three of them carefully searching the surroundings for a long time, they still found no clues. Their impatience grew; how could they expect to find any hints when their direction was already wrong? It was absurd to hope for clues under these circumstances.

Unable to discover anything after such an extended search, anxiety gnawed at their hearts—a blend of greed and fear, restless as a kitten scratching within.

"Enough, I can't take it anymore!" The veiled maiden was the first to lose patience. Being the youngest, her cultivation was not deep, and after failing to find any leads, her greed overwhelmed her. She made the first move.

Her figure vanished in an instant, a streak of azure light flickering across the air.

Zhou Yi had been watching the three, his gaze growing puzzled, unable to discern their intentions. But as soon as the veiled maiden disappeared, he immediately noticed her action. The confusion in his eyes sharpened, and he circulated his inner force. As the azure light flashed, his body became suffused with energy; around him, the intent of the blade surged like a mountain, enveloping him.

Bang!

The veiled maiden appeared before Zhou Yi, holding an azure ribbon. One end was gripped in her soft, jade-like hand, the other fell towards Zhou Yi, blocked by the aura of his blade.

Unsurprised that her ribbon was halted, she flicked her wrist to withdraw it and launch another attack—but suddenly, Zhou Yi's figure vanished before her eyes.

Having repelled the maiden’s first assault, Zhou Yi wasted no time. He channeled his energy to his feet, tapped the ground, and vanished. His hand followed the azure ribbon forward; midway, his figure reappeared, grasping the ribbon firmly and pulling, dragging the veiled maiden’s body along. Then, a flash of cold light glinted in his palm.

A tearing sound echoed— the ribbon split like paper under force. The veiled maiden’s body was pulled forward, but as she steadied herself with her energy, she hadn’t anticipated the backlash. As the ribbon tore, the force reversed, sending her reeling backward.

Boom!

Unperturbed, Zhou Yi pressed his toes to the ground and vanished again, reappearing behind the maiden in an instant.

With practiced motion, Zhou Yi drew his Tiger Head Blade, its cold gleam barely visible, held horizontally in his hand. The blade was aimed at the maiden’s waist, his eyes calm and indifferent, devoid of sympathy. Without hesitation, he swung the blade down at her.

The veiled maiden was about to be cleaved in two, her beauty extinguished in a heartbeat. At that critical moment, the man in purple reacted first. His palm extended, and from its center emerged a three-tiered treasure tower with a glazed hue. His eyelid twitched, and with his free hand, he slapped the tower.

Boom!

Whizzing sounds erupted— countless sparks shot out from the treasure tower, appearing and vanishing in an instant, then materializing behind Zhou Yi.

A series of thunderous booms followed; the sparks moved so fast their sound trailed behind their appearance, clearly surpassing the speed of sound.

“Hm?” As the sparks appeared, Zhou Yi sensed imminent danger, his peripheral vision catching the treasure tower in Purple Robe’s hand before the sparks vanished. A chill swept across his back—he understood immediately.

He glanced at the blade in his hand, his inner force surging, and looked at the maiden, now completely exposed. He was confident that this strike would end her, eliminating a formidable enemy.

Moreover, he was certain that even if all those disappearing sparks struck him, they wouldn’t kill him—at worst, he would be gravely injured.

With that thought, Zhou Yi decided: retreat.

Whoosh!

With a swift move, his form flickered like a butterfly among flowers, leaving several afterimages. He withdrew his blade, hugged it to his chest, and vanished from his spot.

After Zhou Yi disappeared, the sparks headed straight for the veiled maiden. In her current state, whether from Zhou Yi’s blade or these sparks, either was enough to end her life.

“Disperse!” Facing the peril, Purple Robe remained composed. He slapped the treasure tower and spoke softly.

Boom!

The moment he spoke, the dense sparks instantly became transparent and vanished, leaving only the lingering thunder to prove their existence.

“Whew!” Having skirted death, the veiled maiden was shaken. As fresh energy surged within her, she channeled it, tapping the ground and regaining control. Her figure disappeared, reappearing before Purple Robe, gasping for breath.

He wasn’t alone; even Purple Robe himself felt a lingering fear. They had underestimated Zhou Yi’s strength—clearly, Zhou Yi was much stronger than they had anticipated!

If Purple Robe hadn’t summoned the Endless Glazed Tower at the critical moment, the maiden would have perished.

From this, it was obvious that Zhou Yi’s strength was not merely on par with theirs, but significantly superior. In Purple Robe’s estimation, if he didn’t possess the Endless Glazed Tower, he would have fled by now.

“What an anomaly! So young, yet so powerful—how could he have trained to this level?” Purple Robe looked at Zhou Yi as if he had seen a ghost, his eyes filled with disbelief. Even more astonishing was that Zhou Yi’s current strength far surpassed his own, yet his cultivation was only at the Innate stage!

He could even discern many unique signs of the Innate realm on Zhou Yi—traits usually found only in novices.

This meant that although Zhou Yi already possessed power beyond the peak of the Mortal realm, his actual cultivation was only at the threshold of Innate.

“Could it be?” Considering Zhou Yi’s abilities, Purple Robe suddenly thought of a possibility. His heart skipped a beat, and he stared at Zhou Yi, probing, “What grade is your Innate True Intent?”

“Innate True Intent? Grade?” Zhou Yi was puzzled. Seeing the three staring at him, apparently with no desire to continue fighting, he abandoned thoughts of further attack and asked quietly.

“You don’t know?” Purple Robe’s eyes, already wide, grew even larger in shock as he looked at Zhou Yi. “You don’t know the grade of your Innate True Intent?”

How could that be? Even without a prestigious background, he should at least know about the grades of Innate True Intent.

Even if he didn’t know about the supreme grades, he should at least be aware of the upper, middle, and lower grades.

How could he not know?

Could he be playing games with them?