High-Martial World: System Arrives 30 Years Late-Chapter 84: Tower of Power, the Fifth Phantom

Chapter 84: Chapter 84: Tower of Power, the Fifth Phantom
Three Ruined Towers!
Resources only a Grandmaster is qualified to use!
Shi Hao’s few words instantly stirred everyone’s emotions.
"Each tower can accommodate twenty people at a time. Once inside, you will naturally understand the use of the Ancient Tower. Those who wake up should leave on their own, and the next in line will take their place. Do you all understand?"
"Understood!"
"Those who passed the assessment yesterday can enter first. Now, you five make your choice."
As these words fell, everyone’s gaze fell on the five, Tantai Yan, Su Mu, and others.
Tantai Yan had come to the training camp for the Ruined Towers in front of her, more precisely, the Tower of Spirit at the center. At this moment, she felt as if this tower was calling to her.
She walked toward the Tower of Spirit.
Su Mu also didn’t hesitate and went straight toward the Tower of Power.
Following the two, Cui Jian and You Ming, both possessing Speed Talent, naturally chose the Tower of Speed.
Xing Fang, like Su Mu, chose the Tower of Power.
The Ancient Towers were heavy and grand. Before entering, Su Mu felt his insignificance. He was slightly startled and wondered who had built these ancient structures.
Upon entering, Su Mu was surprised, feeling as if he had passed through a portal in the Alien Race Battlefield’s space.
Indeed, it was just that.
His vision cleared suddenly, realizing the Ancient Tower had hidden mysteries, containing a small space.
Inside the Ancient Tower, there were complex, mysterious Ancient Inscriptions circulating, with twenty half-meter high stone pillars on the ground. A voice guided him to step onto one of the pillars as he entered.
"The pillar at the very center should have the best effect."
Su Mu, without reservation, occupied the most central stone pillar in the Ancient Tower. Sitting cross-legged, the mystical Ancient Inscriptions on the pillar slowly started to circulate, and soon a light blue beam enveloped Su Mu.
Buzz!
As his ears buzzed, Su Mu’s consciousness blurred, his soul seemed to be drawn away. When he regained clarity,
he found himself in a semi-transparent spirit form, in a vast void with resplendent footing like a galaxy.
A few breaths later, a light emerged from the galaxy below his feet. The light transformed into a shadow, startling Su Mu as he realized this figure looked exactly like him, even holding the silhouette of a Red Sun Saber.
"Challenge myself?"
Su Mu immediately made a judgment, and sure enough, the next second, the shadow launched an attack.
A saber strike came down.
"Just in time!"
Since it was a challenge against himself, Su Mu didn’t retreat, nor did he dare to be careless, instantly enveloping himself in Sword Momentum, infusing his Qi and Blood fully into the Red Sun Saber in his hand.
He immediately launched a full-force strike.
The Surging Waves Saber Technique First Form: Riding the Wind!
Slice.
The shadow was shattered with one slash, its form wavering before beginning to dissipate. Su Mu was momentarily stunned. Was it really that easy?
The next second, the shadow turned into a bit of fluorescence, shooting straight toward Su Mu. The sudden change caught Su Mu off guard, as the fluorescence merged directly into his brow.
But soon, Su Mu’s furrowed brow relaxed. He beamed with joy, immediately sitting down to close his eyes and began comprehending and digesting.
Upon acquiring the fluorescence from slaying the shadow, insights into strength flowed into Su Mu’s mind like a dowse of wisdom.
A moment later, Su Mu finished digesting. His understanding of strength deepened a bit. Thinking back, he realized the shadow hadn’t used Sword Momentum, and the slash wasn’t a Surging Waves Saber Technique.
"I get it. Slaying shadows grants insights into aspects of strength."
"The shadows here don’t employ Sword Momentum or Saber Techniques, they only use pure strength; Captain Shi Hao’s mention of invaluable benefits and opportunities must be referring to strength insights!"
"I can wholly leverage Sword Momentum to slay more shadows and gain as many insights as possible."
Su Mu’s eyes shone. He might not excel in other aspects, but in bursts of power, he excelled.
Sighing softly,
he moved forward, quickly triggering the second shadow.
Slice.
The Red Sun Saber in the shadow’s hand cleaved through the air, bringing a rush of wind—not Blade Qi, nor Sword Momentum, but the most primitive, pure strength, deeply powerful.
"Just as I thought!"
Facing the strike was Sword Momentum.
A flash of sharpness flickered and vanished. The second shadow shattered, and Su Mu swiftly acquired a second point of fluorescence.
...
"Huangfu Xue, at which shadow did you initially fall?"
"The third one."
At this, both Xu Zhi and Shi Hao looked puzzled, their expressions incredulous.
"Hmph, you weren’t in the Tower of Spiritual Power, you couldn’t comprehend how terrifying those shadows’ Spiritual Power were. You both could maneuver with Body Technique Martial Arts, but those are useless in the Tower of Spiritual Power."
"Battles of Spiritual Power are especially perilous. Victory or defeat lies in a single thought."
Hearing this, Xu Zhi and Shi Hao were silent. They couldn’t refute Huangfu Xue’s words, realizing this hadn’t occurred to them.
"I was stopped at the fourth. That fellow’s speed was just too fast. Even at my best with Body Technique, I could only last three to five seconds. Simply impossible," Xu Zhi sighed.
"Haha, in this regard, I ventured further. I was stopped at the fifth, though I was instantaneously defeated by it."
Shi Hao’s Power Talent was the weakest among the three, but when crushed in Spiritual Power and Speed, he had no choice, although he could still leverage Body Technique, Martial Arts, and other methods for maneuvering in strength.
"This time, I have hope for Su Mu. This kid, not to mention anything else, has astonishing destructive power. The Sword Momentum he masters can annihilate three Secret Iron Puppets, which is not a small advantage in this aspect," Shi Hao analyzed a bit, and Xu Zhi and Huangfu Xue could vaguely sense a hint of bitterness in his words.
"Sword Momentum may not be an absolute advantage in the tower. It’s said that Martial Momentum increases the difficulty of shadows in the Tower World."
"There’s such a limitation?"
"Mm."
It was the first time Shi Hao and Xu Zhi had heard such a saying. During their prior participation in the training camp, neither had managed to comprehend Martial Momentum; even now, among the three of them, only Shi Hao had grasped it.
As they spoke, Huangfu Xue’s gaze fell on the Tower of Spiritual Power in the center. She held expectations for Tantai Yan in her heart.
This was someone capable of triggering the Martial Saint’s Will. Could they break through the third virtual shadow this time?
"Among those who chose the Tower of Speed, apart from Cui Jian and You Ming, the others are in for a rough time," Xu Zhi chuckled, somewhat schadenfreudely.
As expected, soon someone walked out of the Tower of Speed with a dejected look, filled with regret.
"I guess apart from Cui Jian and You Ming, not many can pass the second stage?"
"The speed of the second virtual shadow was just too fast, wasn’t it almost doubled?"
"Sigh, had I known, I would have chosen the Tower of Power. I might have passed one more stage."
After this person, more and more left the Tower of Speed in silence. Only then did they understand Shi Hao’s earlier warning, but it was too late.
Opportunities missed never return.
Seeing those who came out, many approached to inquire about the situation, and they all opened up bitterly, "Sigh, unless you’re very confident in your body technique, choose the Tower of Power."
Some took heed, while others didn’t.
Hong Yi, like Su Mu, chose the Tower of Power, ultimately falling at the third virtual shadow.
"Captain Shi Hao was right; this was an opportunity. The two shadows benefited me greatly. My understanding of power usage became more refined, estimating a one to two percent increase in strength."
"But that’s my limit... I wonder how far Su Mu can go!"
...
"It’s You Ming, You Ming has come out!"
You Ming emerged from the Tower of Speed, face pale and dissatisfied. He had been careless, just barely missing the third virtual shadow.
Shortly after, Cui Jian appeared, his expression also somewhat unsightly. He had fallen at the hands of the fourth virtual shadow, with little chance to resist.
Seeing Cui Jian, You Ming felt a slight joy, realizing that Cui Jian had, at most, passed the third virtual shadow. He still had a chance to outdo him for the second seat.
As for Tantai Yan, that monster was a decided certainty for this year’s top spot.
Regarding Su Mu, You Ming remained somewhat confident in defeating him. After all, with his speed talent, even if the opponent could destroy the puppet, he could rely on speed to maneuver!
After them, Tantai Yan staggered out, face pale. Huangfu Xue immediately went forward to inquire.
"How many virtual shadows did you encounter?"
"The fourth one, that mental power was terrifying."
With that, Tantai Yan let out a muffled groan and fainted. Huangfu Xue was shocked. Indeed, anyone capable of triggering the Martial Saint’s Will was outstanding; though the third and fourth virtual shadows seemed not far apart,
the gap was enormous.
This person’s spiritual talent was indeed above her own.
"I’ll take care of her; leave the rest to you," Huangfu Xue quickly took Tantai Yan away.
Time passed, and soon all the other talented individuals, aside from Su Mu, and Xing Fang were out of the game.
Xing Fang, fourth virtual image of power.
Ming Jie, fourth virtual image of power.
Zuo Hao, fourth virtual image of power.
Lu Qing, third virtual image of speed.
Fu Ying, third virtual image of speed.
...
Tower World.
A figure condensed into view, raising the blade in his hand. With every movement, he radiated terrifying power, and the air in front of him instantly froze due to the power of his blade.
Even from over a dozen meters away, Su Mu could feel his movements slowing. He immediately activated the Extreme Shadow Body Technique, taking the initiative, and with a slash that spewed blade light, he shattered the fifth shadow.
"What a terrifying slash!"
Breathing heavily, Su Mu saw a light, shinier than before, drift toward him, like an epiphany.
Boom!
The fifth shadow was incredibly formidable, but the rewards for defeating it were equally massive.
This time, aside from insights into power usage, there was something more.
As Su Mu absorbed the insights, he opened his eyes moments later, filled with ecstatic delight.
"This time there’s an additional secret technique... no, this secret technique isn’t complete, only one-third of the fifth shadow’s secret technique."
The insights and secret techniques gained from slaying shadows in the Tower World didn’t require much time to comprehend, as Su Mu mastered them as soon as he acquired them.
"Let me try this one-third secret technique first."
Su Mu circulated his qi and blood in an unprecedented, extremely peculiar method, gathering it upon his arms. At that moment, he felt a surging power.
The next second.
His fist cut through the air, freezing the very air in front of it momentarily. This raw power granted Su Mu immense satisfaction at this moment.
"This momentary power burst exceeds the Condensed Blood, increasing by at least fifty percent!"
Su Mu looked down at his fist, his eyes shining brightly, as if a door to a new world was calling him.
"The fifth shadow is a turning point. Defeating subsequent shadows might allow parts of secret techniques to be obtained."
"If even a third of a secret technique possesses such power, how powerful would the complete secret technique be? Double the strength, or even several times more?"
"I can’t miss this opportunity... even if I have to expend all my Future Sight uses, it would still be worth it."
Taking a deep breath, Su Mu activated his third Future Sight.
(Two more updates today!)
(PS: This is an edited version post-release and does not count towards paid word count)