The first Eternal Soul Tower was located on the nameless small plain between Shrek City and the Star Dou Great Forest. It was twenty meters high, and its internal structure was very simple. After all, the Soul Spirit System was still in its nascent stage, so it was normal for it to be starting from scratch.
Three months passed in a flash, and the Eternal Soul Tower's Soul Spirit contracting work finally got on track. The Soul Spirit System also completed its most basic framework construction. In the future, it only needed to develop within this framework, which meant that the Soul Spirit System took a crucial step from zero to one. How it would develop next was no longer a castle in the air based on pure imagination.
The organizational structure of the Eternal Soul Tower was very simple. As an organization jointly created by Shrek Academy and the Star Dou Great Forest, it had two Tower Masters, two Vice Tower Masters, and a number of Deacons.
The two Tower Masters served more of a symbolic role and did not manage affairs. They were Zhu Ziyang and Di Tian. Regarding the position of Tower Master, the Spirit Beast side was unlikely to change easily. On the Shrek Academy side, Zhu Ziyang had already left a decree at the Tian Yuan Pavilion meeting: from now on, the Pavilion Master of Shrek Academy's Tian Yuan Pavilion would concurrently serve as the Eternal Soul Tower Master.
The two Vice Tower Masters were the true managers of the Eternal Soul Tower. The Vice Tower Master from the Spirit Beast side was naturally Bi Ji, and her position was also unlikely to change easily. The first Vice Tower Master from the Shrek Academy side was naturally Elder Lin, the Heavenly River Douluo. Regarding the position of Vice Tower Master, the Tian Yuan Pavilion meeting also made relevant regulations: the Tian Yuan Pavilion would add a Vice Pavilion Master specifically responsible for the affairs of the Eternal Soul Tower.
There was no need to mention the various Deacons; they were all positions responsible for assisting the two Vice Tower Masters in managing the Eternal Soul Tower.
This two-main, two-vice structure was the initial power configuration of the Eternal Soul Tower, but it was by no means the final power configuration. The power structure during the organization's inception period was bound to have many loopholes, so it would definitely change in the future. As for the direction of change, Zhu Ziyang could not easily predict.
The establishment of the Eternal Soul Tower and the Soul Spirit System did not cause too much of a stir on the Continent. This was because, during this period, the major forces on the Continent were actively preparing for war. They had only a superficial understanding of the Soul Spirit System introduced by Shrek Academy. Even if they knew the potential of Soul Spirits, no one cared. Their only task at the moment was to ensure their victory in the upcoming war.
If they couldn't win, and their organizations were destroyed, what was the point of talking about the future of Soul Spirits? Based on this, the emergence of Soul Spirits failed to attract the attention of the Three Great Empires' royal families and major forces.
However, this was a good thing for Shrek Academy. At least no other human forces came to share the power of the Eternal Soul Tower with them. This was a good thing. As for the future, hehe, Shrek Academy did not believe that the Three Great Empires would be a match for the Sun Moon Empire.
During these three months, nearly a hundred people completed Soul Spirit contracts in the Eternal Soul Tower. These people were all disciples of Shrek Academy, mostly Outer Courtyard Disciples, with a few Inner Courtyard Disciples. They would be the most powerful evidence to promote the Soul Spirit System, and such evidence would only grow.
What surprised Zhu Ziyang was Di Tian's actions. The original Di Tian, though known as the Beast God, had influence and rule only within the Star Dou Great Forest. But now, perhaps to reduce internal dissent within the Star Dou Great Forest, he actually began to try and control Spirit Beasts in other Spirit Beast gathering places.
Through absolute power suppression, the Star Dou-aligned Spirit Beast group represented by Di Tian quickly controlled several small Spirit Beast gathering places closest to the Star Dou Great Forest, and were still continuously expanding outwards. Following this trend, Di Tian was very likely to truly unify all Spirit Beast forces on the entire Douluo Continent.
The most incredible thing was that ever since the Eternal Soul Tower began operating smoothly, this fellow actually dispatched about ten 100,000-Year Soul Beasts to block all entrances to the Star Dou Great Forest, causing all Spirit Masters who wanted to hunt spirit rings in the Star Dou Great Forest to return empty-handed. It was only because Di Tian knew his limits and instructed those 100,000-Year Soul Beasts not to harm human lives, otherwise, who knows what kind of tragic situation it would have been.
Due to Di Tian's actions, the Eternal Soul Tower's workload increased very quickly, and news of Soul Spirits also spread rapidly in the cities around the Star Dou Great Forest. Objectively, this could be considered Spirit Beasts promoting the development of Spirit Masters!
Shrek Academy, Tian Yuan Pavilion.
Zhu Ziyang finally had some free time. After resting for a few days, he called Huo Yuhao.
"Senior Brother, you called for me?" Huo Yuhao walked into the Tian Yuan Pavilion and asked respectfully.
"Congratulations, Yu Hao, you've made another breakthrough." Zhu Ziyang glanced at Huo Yuhao, sighing inwardly, 'As expected of the Child of Destiny. In just three months, he broke through again. No one can match this speed.'
Originally, after Huo Yuhao signed a Soul Spirit contract with the Three-Eyed Demonic Fox, his spirit power directly reached Rank 74. The reason for such rapid improvement, in addition to the quality of the Hundred-Thousand-Year spirit ring itself, was also due to a skull bone provided to him by the Three-Eyed Demonic Fox. And now, Huo Yuhao's spirit power had actually reached Rank 75. A one-rank increase in three months, and one of those months was used to consolidate his cultivation, so it was actually only about two months. Truly outrageous.
"Hehe, I just want to make myself stronger. After all, I'm going to fight a god in the future." Huo Yuhao chuckled. He could now calmly face this matter; it was a sign of growth.
"Very good, this is my Junior Brother, Zhu Ziyang!" Zhu Ziyang patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder with satisfaction and said, "Let's go to the Clear Sky Sect."
"Now? Okay, I'll lead the way!" Huo Yuhao's face immediately showed an excited expression upon hearing this, and his eyes held anticipation as he spoke.
In fact, Huo Yuhao was very clear that Xiao Xiao was in the hands of the Clear Sky Sect, but he was helpless because he lacked the strength. Even knowing it, he could do nothing. Thinking back to the last time they went to the Clear Sky Sect to demand her return, not only were they not welcomed, but Xuan Zi was also injured. Just thinking about it made him feel stifled.
Now, when he heard Zhu Ziyang wanted to go to the Clear Sky Sect, he couldn't be happier. Huo Yuhao wasn't sure how powerful Zhu Ziyang was, but he understood that the old guy from the Clear Sky Sect was definitely no match for his Senior Brother. Didn't the Continent's recognized strongest, Beast God Di Tian, treat his Senior Brother as an equal? What was that old thing from the Clear Sky Sect worth?
Huo Yuhao was already anticipating the scene where he would find Xiao Xiao in the Clear Sky Sect.
Soon, Zhu Ziyang brought Huo Yuhao to the mountain range where the Clear Sky Sect was located. Looking at the towering peaks, Zhu Ziyang and Huo Yuhao had different expressions. Zhu Ziyang's face was as usual, looking calm and unbothered, while Huo Yuhao's eyes were full of anticipation mixed with a hint of nervousness.
"Senior Brother, Clear Sky Fortress is on the peak of this mountain," Huo Yuhao said. "But there seems to be some kind of restriction on this mountain; outsiders cannot fly on it."
"It's fine." Zhu Ziyang smiled faintly and said. He saw the restriction Huo Yuhao mentioned clearly; it was nothing more than a gravity control enhanced by divine force. Such a small trick was completely insignificant to him. He grabbed Huo Yuhao's shoulder and said, "Let's go!"
Then, Zhu Ziyang leaped up, directly into the air, and then, under Huo Yuhao's astonished gaze, in just a few moves, he arrived in front of a black ancient fortress.
The people of the Clear Sky Sect had clearly noticed their arrival. The ancient fortress gate opened, and out walked a burly man and a vigorous elder. The burly man surprised Zhu Ziyang, yet it was also within his expectations. If there were no surprises, he was the Sea God's other younger brother-in-law, the Tai Tan Giant Ape. As for the other person, though called an elder, in reality, only his hair was white; his other features showed no signs of aging at all. Calling him a middle-aged man would not be out of place.
"It's you, Huo Yuhao!" The Tai Tan Giant Ape was first stunned when he saw Zhu Ziyang and Huo Yuhao, but he immediately recognized Huo Yuhao and said with a grim expression, "I remember warning you not to come to the Clear Sky Sect again. The Clear Sky Sect doesn't have anyone named Xiao Xiao!"
Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao wanted to step forward and argue, but Zhu Ziyang stopped him. Zhu Ziyang still had a smile on his face as he looked at the Tai Tan Giant Ape and the Clear Sky Sect elder, and said, "We are not here for Xiao Xiao, but for the matter of you injuring my Shrek Academy's Tian Yuan Pavilion Vice Pavilion Master."
"Who are you?" The Tai Tan Giant Ape and the Clear Sky Sect elder fixed their gaze on Zhu Ziyang, looking disdainful. They clearly did not take Zhu Ziyang seriously. And rightly so, they did not know Zhu Ziyang, so naturally, they did not know his identity.
"My name is Zhu Ziyang. I am the current Pavilion Master of Shrek Academy's Tian Yuan Pavilion, with the title Jing Tian. You two may address me as His Excellency Jing Tian." Zhu Ziyang said in a faint tone, but his words were not so friendly. 'His Excellency' is generally a respectful title used by the weak for the strong.
"Hmph! A mere youth, dares to call himself His Excellency?" The Clear Sky Sect elder's face darkened, and he snorted coldly, saying, "That old man was injured by me. What, are you here to stand up for him?"
"So, you admit that your Clear Sky Sect injured someone from my Shrek Academy?" Zhu Ziyang's smile faded, and he said expressionlessly.
"That's right, what are you going to do about it?" The Clear Sky Sect elder had an indifferent attitude, or rather, he was confident and fearless. The Tai Tan Giant Ape had already moved to stand behind the elder, clearly positioned a step back, which meant the elder's status was unusual.
"Haha!" Zhu Ziyang was amused by the elder's attitude. He said, "If I recall correctly, our Shrek Academy and your Clear Sky Sect are allies, aren't we? Injuring an ally, indeed, this is certainly something the Clear Sky Sect would do, haha!"
"Brat, you're courting death!" Zhu Ziyang's sarcastic remarks seemed to hit a sore spot for the Clear Sky Sect elder. He immediately became enraged, his eyes turning red. A black great hammer appeared in his hand, and he swung it at Zhu Ziyang without hesitation.
"Indeed, resorting to violence when out of arguments, truly the Clear Sky Sect style!" Zhu Ziyang continued his sarcasm. He showed no tolerance for the elder who was acting out of shame and anger. With a thought, he waved his hand, and an icy chill immediately enveloped the entire Clear Sky Sect area. Then, the elder was instantly frozen into an ice sculpture.
"Old man, acting superior because of your age, are you?" Zhu Ziyang waved his hand again. The ice on the elder's body instantly disappeared, and along with it, his Spirit. Then, an inexplicable suction force sent him into Zhu Ziyang's hand.
Zhu Ziyang grabbed the elder by his collar and kicked him, forcing the elder directly to his knees. The elder's eyes immediately filled with furious bloodshot veins, as if he wanted to devour Zhu Ziyang alive. However, Zhu Ziyang paid him no mind, delivering two swift slaps that not only stunned the elder but also left the Tai Tan Giant Ape, who was about to act, frozen in place.
"You actually…" The Tai Tan Giant Ape stared at Zhu Ziyang in a daze, saying in disbelief, he truly hadn't expected this young man to come with the intention of a fight to the death. Hmm, slapping Elder Tang was indeed asking for a fight to the death, wasn't it?