The man in silver armor spoke in a flat, cold tone. "Detain him."
"Yes!"
"Yes!"
Several soldiers quickly stepped forward and apprehended Liu Mancheng.
Song Xing quickly stood up. "Your Excellency Silver Dragon Heavenly Guard, this..."
The man in silver armor turned his head and said coldly, "What? Do you want to tell me what to do?"
Song Xing felt as if a fishbone was stuck in his throat, unable to utter a single word.
"Go back and tell Liu Keye to come pick up his own man. If he's missing limbs or extremities later, don't blame me."
Song Xing looked as if his parents had died, his expression more pained than if he had just eaten feces. He suspected his position as a retainer would end if he returned now.
"What, you don't understand my words?"
Song Xing snapped back to attention and bowed repeatedly. "Yes, yes, yes, my lord. I will report to the family head immediately."
The Liu family entourage left in disarray, leaving only Liu Mancheng to spew furious curses. However, he was soon met with a fist the size of a sandbag, and this genius of the Liu family promptly passed out.
The scene outside the Undead Tower could not be seen from within, nor could the scene within be seen from outside. However, with the ancient stone tablet present, everyone could see the number of people climbing each level of the Undead Tower.
Suddenly, the stone tablet lit up with a burst of light. It was at the eighth level!
"Someone else has reached the eighth level!" shouted an observant beast tamer.
Everyone looked over in unison. "It's true! Someone has indeed reached the eighth level!"
Looking at the scene, the man in silver armor remained expressionless. He had been waiting here for a long time for someone to reach the ninth level. Regrettably, no one had ever appeared. He then turned and left.
After the man in silver armor had gone far, the crowd began to chatter.
"Brother, who was that guy?"
"I don't recognize him either, but I think I vaguely heard that Liu family retainer call him 'Your Excellency Silver Dragon Heavenly Guard'?"
Someone asked curiously, "Silver Dragon Heavenly Guard? That title sounds impressive!"
"Of course! The status of a Silver Dragon Heavenly Guard is no less than that of a city councilor in a major city!"
Everyone's mouths widened in realization.
With the departure of the mysterious man in silver armor, the farce came to an end. However, a significant amount of time had been wasted, and the sun was starting to set. It was said that the Undead Tower's power was weakest at dawn, making it easiest to ascend then. However, the difficulty increased after sunset. Thus, everyone hastened their entry, aiming to emerge before dark and experience the grandeur of the Undead Tower. Most people today weren't aiming for the higher levels but were simply trying their luck on the lower floors, which led to an increase in climbers.
Undead Tower, First Level.
As Lu Fei and the others walked in, the large door behind them boomed shut. He looked around. The surroundings were pitch black, and he could only vaguely make out that they were in a vast plain. Some beast tamers in the group summoned their luminous contracted beasts, illuminating the path ahead, and the group proceeded.
A chilling wind blew across the plain, and a trembling aura suddenly emerged.
"It's so scary here," said Zhang Wan, hugging herself and cowering behind the others.
Several males in the group also looked into the distance. The surroundings were filled with rolling mist that stretched as far as the eye could see. Lu Fei remained calm and focused his gaze forward.
A light gradually emerged from the darkness. A ferocious dragon head, filled with immense pressure, slowly appeared before them. The dragon head was entirely a deep blue, as vast as a mountain range, and a pair of golden vertical pupils looked down indifferently at Lu Fei. Although this dragon head was merely a statue, it exuded a powerful pressure. This pressure felt like a tangible force, pressing down heavily on everyone, as immense as a giant mountain.
"It's more important to find the entrance to the second level!" Bai Qianqian said solemnly.
Everyone agreed, nodding. They advanced slowly, keeping no more than a meter apart. Suddenly, a low whimpering sound echoed in their ears, like weeping and lamenting.
"That sound..." Lu Fei took a deep breath, surprise flashing in his eyes. He glanced at Bai Qianqian, who also wore a solemn expression.
Liu Manman exclaimed, "Ghosts! It's the sound of ghosts!"
"This sound has been echoing in my ears all day yesterday!" Zhang Wan said, her expression terrified. Yesterday evening, she and Liu Manman had shared a room, and the two of them understood best how they had survived the night.
"This isn't ghosts; it should be some kind of dark-element contracted beast," said Zhou Tao, who was also frowning. Seemingly sensing everyone looking at him, Zhou Tao said with displeasure, "Don't look at me like that. I'm just guessing."
"I don't like this kind of contracted beast either. Although it's not a ghost, it's not much different from one."
As soon as he finished speaking, the whimpering nearby became violent, turning into a shrill wail. Figures began to emerge, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, lunging towards the group!
"Prepare to fight!" Bai Qianqian said with a solemn expression.
Everyone summoned their contracted beasts, and the first battle in the Undead Tower quietly began.
"These are [Black Mist Specters]."
"And [Mummy Beasts]."
The group was horrified. These were contracted beasts they had only seen in beast encyclopedias, and they never expected to see them in person. However, the appearance of these contracted beasts was truly unappealing, giving off a creepy and terrifying aura. Within the Undead Tower, this dark space was practically a paradise for dark-element contracted beasts, significantly boosting their combat power and mobility.
After a round of combat, none of the dark-element contracted beasts were killed, but they were effectively driven away. These dark-element contracted beasts were like slippery loaches, hiding in the darkness and rendering the group's attacks ineffective, easily dodged.
"Everyone be careful, this place is very strange."
The group nodded vigilantly. Knowing that the strange sound came from contracted beasts, Lu Fei's attention shifted to other matters. He vaguely felt a strange power fluctuating within this space. It was as if his spiritual energy was being mobilized the moment he entered the Dark Ranking. Could the pressure be a trial of the Undead Tower for beast tamers? Was it actually targeting the spiritual power of beast tamers?