Chapter 362 - 198: Gathering of Geniuses, Monster’s Nest

Chapter 362: Chapter 198: Gathering of Geniuses, Monster’s Nest

"Let it officially begin."

The face-like cloud cluster spoke again. As soon as the words left its mouth, it twisted its features into a fierce scowl, glaring down at a point in the distance.

In an instant, a blinding stream of crimson-white plasma erupted from the cloud-face’s mouth. It tore through the air and struck the empty space several thousand meters away.

The ferociously powerful lightning instantly ripped open the void, creating a massive fissure a thousand meters long and over a hundred meters wide. Within it, a majestic tower of bone loomed, barely visible.

At first glance, the massive tower resembled a great dragon coiled upon the ground, its flesh and skin long gone, leaving only a skeleton behind. It stood just over a thousand meters tall, its majestic form exuding an air of desolation.

Pale dragon bones twisted and coiled upward, culminating in an enormous dragon skull with menacing horns at its peak. It looked ancient and powerful, radiating an inexpressible, magnificent aura.

Its hollow eye sockets gazed downward, yet they seemed to hold a profound spirit, as if watching the crowd from across the gulf of time and space.

This breathtaking scene left the many young Wizards stunned where they stood, too dazed to speak.

It wasn’t until the thunderous voice boomed in their ears again that they were jolted back to their senses.

"Go in, all of you."

The moment the voice faded, Pei Ze’s vision abruptly went black. A tide of darkness submerged his consciousness, and he plunged into chaos.

After an unknown amount of time, he jolted awake. Glancing around, he found himself in a forest.

As far as he could see, dense, towering trees stood in every direction.

A soft layer of fallen leaves cushioned his feet.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the canopy, dappling the ground with patches of light.

The air was filled with the distinct, fresh scent of vegetation.

Pei Ze looked up. Through the gaps in the canopy, he could clearly see a bright, azure sky.

’So this is the inside of the Tower of the Holy Ring?’

Pei Ze was a little surprised. The scene before him was different from what he had imagined; it was hard to believe one could see a sky and a forest inside a tower of bone.

But then, the thought of the immense power of Rule Wizards put him at ease.

Rule Wizards could create entire demi-planes; creating a Dimension Space inside a Wizard Tower was nothing in comparison.

Snapping back to reality, Pei Ze suddenly noticed something on the back of his hand. He looked down and saw a silver rune.

A flicker of confusion crossed his eyes. He gently touched the silver rune, and the instant he made contact, a stream of information flooded his mind.

’So that’s what this is. A life-saving tool.’

Pei Ze understood. The silver rune on the back of his hand was a "talisman" from the alliance, given to all participants. Upon activation, it would instantly grant the user a layer of protection and teleport them out of the Tower of the Holy Ring.

In other words, it was a lifeline for participants who encountered mortal danger.

Using it, however, meant elimination.

’No wonder they said there was no risk of death in the Battle of the Holy Ring.’

Pei Ze looked away, cast a Flying Skill on himself, and flew into the air.

After rising above the dense canopy, he surveyed his surroundings. The lush forest stretched for dozens of kilometers in every direction before abruptly giving way to a vast expanse of azure, ending in the beautiful vista of the horizon where sea met sky.

’An island.’

Pei Ze’s eyes glinted. It seemed the first level of the Tower of the Holy Ring was a forest-covered island.

Judging by the scene before him, the first level was undoubtedly vast, though he couldn’t tell its exact size.

Pei Ze was curious whether the distant ocean was real or just some kind of Illusion Technique.

But this wasn’t the time to worry about that. He turned and saw a pillar of light soaring into the sky in the distance. It stood straight as a spear in the center of the forest, piercing the heavens.

Even from so far away, Pei Ze could feel the spatial fluctuations emanating from the pillar of light.

’Barring any surprises, that pillar of light must be the passage to the second level.’

What confused Pei Ze, however, was how calm and peaceful the island was. There was no sign of the supposed trial.

’Where exactly is this level’s trial? And what form will it take?’

As Pei Ze was lost in thought, several dark figures streaked past in the distance. They were other Wizards participating in the Battle of the Holy Ring, already rushing impatiently toward the passage to the second level.

Seeing this, Pei Ze had no choice but to temporarily set aside his doubts. Wasting no more time, he also flew toward the pillar of light.

Just in case, however, he cast over a hundred layers of Mage Armor on himself.

But he had only flown a few hundred meters when he suddenly heard a whistling sound. An incredibly thick root shot out from below, lashing at him like a whip.

Pei Ze’s reaction was lightning-fast. With a single thought, his Silver Star shot from his hand. It separated in mid-air, forming hundreds of metal spikes that met the root, shredding it into a shower of debris like a high-speed turbine.

CRACKLE!

A continuous, overlapping sound of rustling branches rose up!

In that instant, with Pei Ze as the epicenter, every tree within a four-to-five-hundred-meter radius began to shake violently. Countless roots erupted from the ground, surging toward him as densely as a raging tempest!

As Pei Ze controlled his Silver Star to fend off the attacking roots, he glanced into the distance.

Sure enough, the other Wizards were also caught in the siege of roots, frantically defending against the overwhelming assault.

Farther in the distance, he could also see countless thick, long roots bursting from the forest, slithering through the air like massive pythons.

This was only the beginning. As time went on, the entire forest began to awaken like a slumbering behemoth. The trembling of the trees spread outward in all directions like a tidal wave.