Teleportation

The fifth floor... The sixth floor... Carrying an unstoppable momentum, they ascended all the way to the sixth floor in one breath. Stepping out from the teleportation formation, everyone's expressions turned exceedingly solemn. If Heaven Tower was a trial ground, this floor was prepared for late Core Formation cultivators. Although they didn't have to face a siege of puppets inside a Teleportation Hall, they could be ambushed by puppets at any moment while searching for the teleportation formation. Having coordinated through the previous floors, they had developed great tacit teamwork. The ancient halls grew larger with every floor. While fighting off puppets, they searched aimlessly through the darkness. "Watch out below!" The female cultivator surnamed Yin noticed something and shouted a sudden warning. The others reacted swiftly. The elderly woman brought her hands together. Her bronze mirror gave off a resonant hum and flashed with yellow light, projecting a massive phantom that enveloped everyone in a yellow protective barrier. At the same time, the small shield circling around them split into five. Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh... The small shields shot beneath them, each positioning itself to protect one person. A double defense was completed in an instant. Qin Sang watched the movements of the two magic treasures and only withdrew his gaze after confirming there were no gaps. He would never place his life entirely in someone else's hands; if an accident occurred, he could summon the two-headed hou at a moment's notice to aid him. Meanwhile, the man surnamed Di swept his sleeve with force, sending a bolt of crimson haze flying from his cuff straight toward the space beneath them with lightning speed. Boom! A series of muffled thuds echoed as several phantoms emerged simultaneously from the darkness. These puppets looked identical, resembling leopards with slender builds that were visibly agile to the extreme. From their limbs to the crown of their heads, they were covered in black scales forming tight, dense armor. Even their eyes were shielded—so long as their lids were shut, they revealed no flaw or opening. Qin Sang had seen similar scales on the puppets of the fifth floor and knew they were exceptionally hard, but the scale armor on these leopard puppets was noticeably thicker and far more defensive. Razor-sharp, knife-like claws were embedded in the leopard puppets' paws. Strangest of all was the single horn atop each head, crafted from some kind of black crystal, extraordinarily sharp and piercing. Entirely pitch-black, these puppets could easily conceal themselves in the dark. Moreover, they moved without a sound. Had the female cultivator surnamed Yin not detected them in time, they likely would not have noticed until the leopard puppets had closed the distance. The crimson haze had flushed the leopard puppets from hiding, but it had only briefly blunted their momentum. Knowing no pain, the puppets thrust their heads forward in unison to shatter the crimson haze, then pounced toward the group without making a sound. There were six puppets in total. The bronze mirror swayed, shooting out a beam of yellow light that sent one flying back. The cultivator surnamed Wu maneuvered a shield to intercept and entangle another. The man surnamed Di and Qin Sang each took on two. For a moment, treasure light blazed in all directions as streaks of true essence flew across the space. The female cultivator surnamed Yin fixed her gaze on the puppets, a strange radiance gleaming from her eyes as she channeled her secret technique to search for their weaknesses. "Something's wrong!" The man surnamed Di seemed to notice something, his expression stiffening slightly. Right at that moment, the leopard puppets broke off their assault and actively retreated. Having never encountered such behavior before, the cultivators were bewildered. But even as their confusion mounted, they saw the leopard puppets regroup together. Their dark, soulless eyes stared at the group without the slightest ripple of emotion—an eerie sight. Then, in unison, they aimed their horns at the group. Crackle... The tips of the horns suddenly flared brightly as surging lightning coalesced into globes of thunder. Even more alarming, the six thunder orbs showed signs of fusing together. Even while held back, the thunder orbs exuded a perilous aura that made everyone shudder; taking a direct hit from that would definitely not be pleasant. "We can't let those thunder orbs fuse!" Qin Sang's expression shifted slightly as he shouted an urgent warning. Without hesitation, he unleashed his ebony sword, executing Sword Qi Thunderclap to slash toward one of the leopard puppets. Realizing the urgency, the others spurred their magic treasures into action as well. Just then, the female cultivator surnamed Yin's eyes lit up, having finally spotted something. She called out repeatedly, "The eyes are their weakness! And both eyes must be struck simultaneously!" *No wonder striking one eye did nothing earlier. So that's how it is...* Qin Sang's mind stirred at her words, and he shifted his target at the crucial moment. Like a streak of lightning, the sword light bent mid-air, hurtling toward the leopard puppet's head before flickering and splitting in two, darting straight for both eyes. With the astonishing speed of Sword Qi Thunderclap, the leopard puppet had no time to shut its scaled lids. The ebony sword effortlessly pierced through both eyes at once. In the next instant, the leopard puppet froze stiff. The thunder orb atop its horn dissipated without a sound, and its body weathered away as if eroded by time, dissolving into green sand with a simple stir of the ebony sword. Having finally discovered the weakness, everyone's spirits rose, and they coordinated to create openings for Qin Sang. Before long, all six leopard puppets had fallen beneath Qin Sang's blade. The elderly woman sighed. "Every puppet on this sixth floor possesses bizarre abilities, with weaknesses far more concealed and lethality far exceeding the lower floors. If the Teleportation Hall and corridors hadn't been destroyed, then with our strength, even joined together, it would probably be very difficult to fight our way inside to find the teleportation formation." The man surnamed Di said with an easy smile, "It's all thanks to Fellow Daoist Yin's mastery of puppet arts and Fellow Daoist Qin's formidable swordsmanship, which is perfectly suited for handling puppets. Joining forces with the two of you was truly the right choice. Those who entered before us likely can't match our pace, so at this rate, we should be among the first to arrive." "Fellow Daoist Di, don't forget the Nascent Soul Patriarchs! And the seniors of your Witch Clan who charged in en masse—they have probably turned Heaven Tower upside down by now. This old woman only hopes they haven't taken a fancy to the treasure I'm looking for." The elderly woman poured cold water on his optimism, looking grim. The others wiped the smiles from their faces, helpless to disagree. Only Qin Sang remained relaxed. He wasn't coveting treasures; the more things those Nascent Soul cultivators unearthed, the better it was for him, as he could follow the clues to find what he actually sought. The thought of the Nascent Soul Patriarchs hung over their minds like dark clouds. The group pressed on in silence. Though they suffered ambush after ambush by puppets, they managed to neutralize every threat. After scouring a vast swath of the sixth floor, they finally found the teleportation formation! In an empty, barren expanse, a three-tiered platform drifted gently in mid-air, completely inconspicuous. The entire grand hall had shattered into dust and vanished, but fortunately, the teleportation formation atop the platform remained fully intact. "We finally found it!" Letting out long sighs of relief, they gazed at the teleportation formation in delight and flew toward it without hesitation. "Once we reach the upper floors, does anyone wish to continue traveling together?" the female cultivator surnamed Yin suddenly asked. To her disappointment, the elderly woman shook her head. "This old woman would gladly welcome help, but unfortunately, the place I am heading to is peculiar. It requires a specific token to enter, and I possess only one. I'm afraid we cannot continue our partnership. Let us part ways here; perhaps we will have another opportunity to collaborate in the future." Qin Sang and the others voiced their agreement. Whoosh, whoosh... Together, they glided toward the stone platform. Unexpectedly, just as they reached the edge of the stone platform, the teleportation formation lit up without warning, and a figure slowly coalesced atop the platform.