Cult of the Sacred Runes

Chapter 100 – Karma Tower

“Boom!”

The moment the halos appeared, Ye Wei’s robe fluttered and a heart-stopping energy wave burst forth from of his body.

Impacted by his energy the air around Ye Wei rippled. Green and blue rings of pressure waves appeared and expanded outwards. He calmly stood at the center, seeming unfazed by the changes. From a distance Ye Wei looked like a godly figure; he looked as if there was no one in the world who could stop him.

The temple was suddenly filled with a soulshaking sense of terror. The aggressive Qi was not directed to anyone specific, but still all the cultivators, including Jin Yan who was a peak level ten-star Warrior, began to shiver as their faces turned as pale as the moon.

“How can this kid be so powerful...” Jin Yan mumbled as he looked at Ye Wei with fear. The last time he had felt this kind of power was when his grandfather got mad and killed a group of thieves who tried to empty their family vault in the dark of the night.

Jin Yan’s grandfather was one of the three elders of the Jin family, a six-star condensed prime Warrior!

“I think I understand...” Lin Zi Yan mumbled while looking at the halos on Ye Wei’s head. She could sense the Qi flow inside Ye Wei, which caused her to raise her head and look at Pu Yuan who was shrouded in a pillar of light.

‘Pu Yuan knew little Wei had refined the Supernova stance so he gave him the power of a Warrior! With such amplification effect it was not really a surprise that little Wei was able to fight against Mo Ya.’

Lin Zi Yan then thought about how Ye Wei selflessly jumped in front of her and the words he said still lingered in her heart.

“No, this is not possible!” Mo Ya never imagined that the power of a six-star condensed prime Warrior would come out of a Student’s body. He panicked and quickly sketched the rune sequence in the air of his best stance hoping to finish off Ye Wei once and for all.

Ye Wei moved, and before Mo Ya could react, his fists already landed. With the force of the stars and suns Ye Wei’s punches rained down on Mo Ya.

“Crack! Crack!”

A blood-chilling noise of shattering echoed in the temple. In mere seconds over three hundred punches broke every bone in Mo Ya’s body and tore through his organs.

Ye Wei delivered another strike, and this time his punch landed on Mo Ya’s dantian shattering it.

Mo Ya’s body was shot out and heavily smacked against the jade disc. Silence descended on the hall when Ye Wei pulled back his fist which pinned Mo Ya against the disc, and his body slid down slowly leaving a long trail of blood on the artifact’s surface.

Everyone in the hall was staring at Mo Ya who was laying on the floor like a dead dog, and they all held their breath. None of them could believe just how strong Ye Wei had become all of a sudden!

‘What did he use now?!’

Mo Ya was in need of immediate medical attention without which he would surely die, but nobody in the temple sympathized with him. After all if it wasn’t for Ye Wei, Mo Ya would have killed them all. Having been hit by attacks like that, Mo Ya cultivation was completely destroyed, and there was little chance that he could rebuild the strength of his body even if he did survive.

“You can let him die, but not in here. This is a sacred place, and there has already been enough bloodshed.” Pu Yuan started ordering the cultivators to move Mo Ya’s body out of the temple. He then turned to look at Ye Wei. ‘That was a close one; it was disrespectful to master that this boy with the sword tried to kill others in here. Can we call it karma that he fell to master’s stance? Haha...’

Moments after the fight, Pu Yuan retrieved the illuminating figure from Ye Wei, and the Supernova stance’s effect fell off while the cultivators were cleaning up the temple.

After experiencing the amplifying effects, Ye Wei gained a great understanding of the Supernova stance, and he couldn’t wait to train again. ‘Once I become a Warrior I will be as strong as cousin Zhong when I use this stance!’

“As I stated earlier, you three have deciphered eighty-one runes or more, I will decide who is going to inherit master’s legacy after you’ve taken the second test!” Pu Yuan pointed at Ye Wei, Lin Zi Yan, and Jin Yan.

Lin Zi Yan glanced at Ye Wei. She was not really concerned with whether or not she would pass the test. Once she reached the condensed prime Warrior level her family had many formulas and stances ready for her. Although they might not be as powerful as what the emperor left behind she would be able to choose a cultivating path that suited her the best with consultation from the elders of her family. On the other hand, Ye Wei didn’t have access to powerful cultivating paths so this was a very good opportunity.

The main reason Lin Zi Yan wanted to continue with the test was to help Ye Wei overcome the challenges and at the least be there to support him mentally.

“I’ll see you on the other side!” Pu Yuan waved his arm causing all three participants of the second test to disappeared from the temple hall.

“As for you lot,” He spoke while looking at Hong Xun, Xue Yao, and the other Warriors. “I wish you the best of luck with the seven disciples’ legacy. Sadly, I can not do much more at this point.”

Pu Yuan’s voice echoed throughout the hall. He then glared at the amulets before his figure faded.

“What is this place?”

Ye Wei, Lin Zi Yan, and Jin Yan reappeared in a formless empty realm. They were surrounded by darkness and none of them could see a thing.

“Soul Prison!” Pu Yuan answered as his figure appeared in the darkness and slowly walked towards the trio. The green and blue hue around him brightened the realm and starlight burst forth under his feet with every step he took.

By the time Pu Yuan reached them the dark realm was already lit by starlight. All three of them felt like they were floating in a miniature star system.

‘Soul Prison?’ Ye Wei, Lin Zi Yan, and Jin Yan all frowned staring at Pu Yuan, visibly confused.

“And there is where the next test will be held!”

Pu Yuan pointed at one of the bright stars far away. The twinkling stars in the void suddenly brightened up and there was an invisible force pulling them close to each other. The conglomerations merged together and formed an ancient tower right before the confused trio’s eyes.

The tower was three stories tall. It’s facade was covered with glittering stars that were held together by billions of flowing runes.

‘This is the Karma Tower,’ Pu Yuan gazed upon the starry tower from a distance as his voice sounded in the trio’s heads.

“There are inner demons locked in this tower. There are three stories in total. Master sealed demons in each story whose power increases each time you advance higher and higher. Their levels are respectively low-level, mid-level, and high-level demons.”

“How does one trap inner demons?” Ye Wei, Lin Zi Yan, and Jin Yan were shocked to hear Pu Yuan’s introduction, and they all stared at the tower with awe.

It’s was a known fact that the minds of cultivators would be invaded by inner demons. More precisely, low-level inner demons when Students breakthrough to become Warriors; mid-level inner demons when Warriors breakthrough to become condensed prime Warriors, and lastly high-level inner demons when condensed prime Warriors breakthrough to become returned-prime Warriors.

If a cultivator can’t deal with their inner demons, they will never successfully overcome a major breakthrough.

Inner demons are something one cannot touch or see. None of the three knew these illusive demons could be captured.

“In this world, nothing is impossible. If one is strong enough, one can achieve anything. Although master did not exactly seal them there with his strength, but...”

“Building this tower was not without its cost. Master had to sacrifice something he held dear, but I guess he thought the possibility to nurture the younger generation meant more to him.” Pu Yuan said while gazing sadly past the trio seemingly looking into the past.

After a moment, he regained his senses and said, “You all know that if one falls to their inner demons during a major breakthrough, it will take more than two years for their bodies to recover?” Pu Yuan continued. “But if you’re in the Karma tower, the runic array will teleport you out if it can sense that your meridians are under extreme stress.”

“Wha...”

Jin Yan gasped as Pu Yuan’s words made him realize the value of this tower; his eyes burned intensely as he stared at it. He had been a peak ten-star Warrior for more than six months now and his body was ready to breakthrough but his mind wasn’t. He was afraid that he would be crushed by his inner demons.

If that happened, Jin Yan wouldn’t be a condensed prime Warrior for at least two years.

But inside this tower he could fight his demons without any fear of hurting his cultivation base if he failed. With this experience, It would make the actual breakthrough much easier.

“You two. Since you are both Warriors and you have fought low-level inner demons in the past, you will be placed in the second story!”

“All I can tell you is that, the longer you last in the tower, the more likely I will pick you to be the successor. There is no downside to this, and this experience you gain will make your next major breakthrough easier!” Pu Yuan looked the two Warriors in the eye and said sincerely.

“As for him. he is just a Student. His test will take place on the first story.” Pu Yuan said while looking at Ye Wei.

“So that’s it! Do your best! Ah, and good luck!” Pu Yuan smiled at all three of them and his eyes stopped on Ye Wei’s tiny body, ‘He only used three days to evolve the Supernova stance. I certainly hope his mind is as strong as it is smart.’

‘This boy might even be stronger than master when he learns master’s secrets.’ Although Pu Yuan had high hopes for Ye Wei and actually wanted him to be Glacial Emperor’s successor, he would still follow the rules and let the test’s result decide the inheritor.

‘Little Wei, this will be a rough ride, but it will all be fine if you don’t lose yourself.’ Lin Zi Yan used the voice transmission technique to advise Ye Wei.

‘Yeah!’ Ye Wei nodded and looked up, time froze as their sights crossed

“I hope you are ready!” Pu Yuan smiled to the trio and waved his arm. Three pillars of light covered them and they simultaneously teleported into the tower.

Ye Wei appeared on the first story of the tower as countless runes in the chamber came alive and flowed around him.