Chapter 585: Purple Token & Collection
The phantom continued his explanation, giving Liora a deeper understanding of the concept of Eras, the continuous cycle of the universe, and the cultivation civilization as a whole.
Unfortunately, there was only so much he could reveal.
Every time he touched upon certain subjects, an unknown power would descend and censor his words.
Even if Liora attempted to resist it, she found herself pletely powerless.
“Don’t even try.”
“Even the mightiest experts were helpless before that power in the past. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t have gone through all this trouble in order to…”
The phantom was unable to finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear enough.
Liora did not press further, merely nodding in understanding.
Seeing this, the phantom visibly relaxed. Yet only a second later, his expression became tense again.
“About what we agreed before… You… you wouldn’t go back on your word, right?”, he asked, his gaze fixed warily on the prison surrounding him.
The two had never signed any contract or formed any binding oath.
It wasn’t because the phantom really trusted Liora, but because he had never had any other choice.
Now that he had revealed everything he could, it was Liora’s turn to uphold her side of the agreement.
And that depended entirely on her own decision.
Noticing the phantom’s worries, Liora’s eyes narrowed.
After several moments of thought, she casually waved her hand.
Under the opponent’s stunned gaze, the prison surrounding him suddenly thickened. It pletely sealed him inside.
Then, it descended into the Cosmic Sea, settling beside one of its strongest Laws, where it would remain firmly suppressed and unable to escape.
Between killing him and setting him free, Liora had chosen neither.
Instead, she decided to keep him imprisoned for the time being.
“It’s useful to keep an expert like him around. Whenever necessary, I can rely on him to answer questions about the ancient civilization and the universe itself.”
In truth, the simplest solution would have been to devour his soul and plunder his memories.
Unfortunately, both his earlier words and what Liora knew about cultivators made her reluctant to take that approach.
In her opinion, there was a high chance cultivators possessed methods to protect their souls against such means.
“It’s fine. If it really es down to that, I can always devour him later. For now, keeping him alive is the better choice.”, Liora whispered as she withdrew her gaze from the imprisoned phantom and looked around the thousands of chambers.
She now understood why they were empty.
According to the phantom, this floor had once been reserved for the Heavenly Armory Pavilion’s customers to practice in.
When the great chaos erupted, every cultivator here had disappeared.
Only his remnant soul had survived, partly because of his own strength and partly because of preparations he had made beforehand.
As for what these preparations were…
Liora shook her head.
The phantom had refused to explain.
Whether he was unwilling or simply unable remained a mystery.
“There is nothing else of value on this floor. As for the one above…”, Liora raised her head and looked toward the staircase leading upward.
“That’s where the pavilion’s central formation is located. Without the proper key, it’s impossible to enter.”
Previously, Liora had possessed no such key, and the azure token could not grant her any access.
Now, however, she had another option. She looked toward the golden skeleton.
With a wave of her hand, she controlled it to enter the Cosmic Sea, where it would be stored for future devouring.
On the other hand, the bronze ring that had fallen to the ground appeared in her palm.
Her consciousness immediately dove into it.
A small dark space immediately entered her sight.
Hundreds of treasures rested inside, each radiating a brilliance that reflected their extraordinary nature.
Perhaps because they had remained sealed inside this separate space, the items were maintained far better than those stored outside.
Whether it was the weapons or the talismans, they all appeared plete, with very little damage caused by the passage of time.
Liora, however, only briefly looked at them.
Soon, her eyes brightened as she retrieved something from inside.
A token materialized in her hand.
It bore the same emblem as the azure one she had obtained before, with the only difference being its color.
This one was purple. Information surfaced in her mind.
“According to the phantom, the city’s hierarchy is determined by these tokens.”
“The higher the token’s rank, the greater its owner’s status and authority.”
“An azure token outranks a white one, while a purple token stands even higher.”
Liora casually played with the token for several seconds.
Then, without any hesitation, she moved toward the staircase and climbed upwards—toward the pavilion’s final floor.
The instant she approached it, several formations awakened.
It wasn’t just one.
The moment she showed the intention to enter the final floor, the entire tower seemed to e alive.
A powerful force of rejection descended upon her, and several auras surged.
Just as Liora instinctively prepared to resist, the purple token suddenly emitted a glow.
Immediately, every formation quieted. The other phenomena soon followed them and disappeared.
Moments later, Liora’s figure vanished onto the pavilion’s highest floor.
—
Several minutes later, Liora descended the staircase once more, returning to the corridor lined with the thousands of cultivation chambers.
Although she had remained on the final floor for quite some time, there was almost no visible change about her.
Once she entered this room, she did not stop walking.
With a casual wave of her hand, every object inside the chambers flew into the Cosmic Sea, whether it was mon appliances or decorations.
Nothing was spared.
She went as far as to open the rooms with her recently obtained purple token, grabbing the items hidden inside.
Then, she descended onto the next levels.
The same sweep occurred in the library.
By the time Liora left, the entire floor had been emptied.
Let alone the jade slips, even the bookshelves themselves had been moved away.
Yet just as she prepared to do the same to the treasure floor below, her movements suddenly stopped.
Not because she had suddenly had a change of mind, but because someone was already standing there.
Elaouthr.
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