Chapter 0: Disappointment (Bonus Chapter)
After her excitement, the Tower Spirit, a little wench, quickly sprang from Qin Gou’s embrace. She placed her hands behind her back, lowered her small head, and spoke timidly, as if she were a child who had made a mistake. “It was the Tower Spirit’s rudeness. I didn’t expect to see Ancestor again, so I got a little too excited and lost my manners in front of Ancestor without thinking.”
Qin Gou stared at the Tower Spirit before him with a strange expression, utterly bewildered. He asked, “Why on earth are you calling me Ancestor? We don’t seem to have met before, do we?”
The Tower Spirit scratched her head and smiled sweetly, “Ancestor truly doesn’t remember. It’s understandable. Back then, I had only just gained spiritual intelligence and hadn’t even formed this body, so I naturally wouldn’t have caught Ancestor’s eye. However, Ancestor himself lit the spark of my spiritual intelligence. Ancestor is practically my birth father.”
“Ah?” Qin Gou was even more confused. When on earth had this ancient, trivial matter occurred?
The Tower Spirit explained earnestly, “To this day, I still remember the very first words Ancestor spoke to me, and I dare not forget them: ‘There are still quite a few remnants in this Spirit Opening Stone; it would be a waste to throw it away as garbage. Well, I’ll bestow it upon you, useless little fellow!’ After officially activating my spiritual intelligence, you gifted me to Ye Qishuang.”
The Tower Spirit’s words were like a key unlocking a distant memory in Qin Gou’s mind. His eyes suddenly lit up, and he exclaimed in surprise, “Are you that little tiny ‘Zhixuan Tower’? I remember now; you were only this big back then. I gave you to Qishuang Wench as a small piece of jewelry.” As he spoke, Qin Gou gestured with his thumb.
A hint of shyness gleamed in the Tower Spirit’s eyes. She nodded and said, “Yes, but by constantly staying by Ye Qishuang’s side, I’ve continuously advanced and acquired a new name, ‘Rebirth Tower.’ Furthermore, since I am a being personally enlightened by Ancestor, I naturally couldn’t be subservient. Later, I used self-destruction as a threat and signed an equal contract with Ye Qishuang, rather than being a magic artifact that she could summon and dismiss at will. Ancestor, I haven’t disgraced you, have I?”
“No, absolutely not.” Qin Gou was stunned. This little Tower Spirit wench was truly extraordinary. From the tiny Zhixuan Tower back then, she had advanced to become the behemoth she was now, possessing the terrifying ability to improve others’ talents. Without even thinking, he knew how many terrifying resources and unimaginable coincidences Ye Qishuang must have spent to help her advance to this stage. Yet, as soon as this little wench matured, she immediately struck Ye Qishuang with a blow.
Although her initial intention was because she felt she was a being personally enlightened by the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, thus naturally superior to other magic artifacts, if Qin Gou had encountered such a situation himself, he probably would have vomited blood on the spot. It was common knowledge that magic artifacts wouldn’t gain spiritual intelligence until they reached the peak level. Before that, the owner would try every means to prevent the artifact from rebelling, but this little wench had her spiritual intelligence ignited by Qin Gou from the very beginning, which led to this embarrassing situation.
“Um… Ancestor, from now on, may I follow you?” the little Tower Spirit wench asked awkwardly, floating in mid-air.
Qin Gou felt quite ashamed. “For now, you should still stay with Qishuang Wench.” His current strength was low, and if such a supremely cunning girl followed him, his good luck might come to an end.
“Oh…” The Tower Spirit’s gaze dimmed, filled with a sense of lonely resentment.
Qin Gou cleared his throat twice. “In that case, has this Seat passed the final trial? Immediately open the passage to the top of the tower and let me leave.”
“Yes. Ancestor.” The Tower Spirit nodded humbly. With a wave of her hand, Qin Gou appeared at the summit of the Rebirth Tower, where he could easily gaze at the sea of clouds and look down upon the crowd below like an ant colony.
“System, what is my current aptitude?” Qin Gou asked in his mind.
“Ding. Host’s current aptitude is ‘Mid-Strange Orchid’.”
“Good!” Qin Gou’s eyes burst with brilliance. “As expected of the Rebirth Tower. First, it leaped from the lowest-tier Four Elements to the Plum, Orchid, Bamboo, Ink Bamboo tier. Now it has allowed me to achieve the aptitude of a half-step Heavenly Pride in the Orchid tier. It’s a pity it only has this one effect.”
“Ancestor, allow me to see you out of the tower. Please promise me you’ll visit often,” the Tower Spirit appeared behind Qin Gou, rubbing her small hands timidly.
Qin Gou smiled knowingly. “I promise you.”
Surrounded by pure white radiance, Qin Gou, who had regained his appearance as Qin Yue, emerged from the exit of the Rebirth Tower. A deafening roar of cheers immediately erupted from the surroundings.
“Qin Yue!”
“You actually reached the top of the tower!”
“This guy is simply a peerless heavenly talent, no, a freak, a reincarnated demon.”
“His aptitude must have grown to an incredibly terrifying level.”
Qin Gou felt quite embarrassed and could only offer a kind smile to them. After all, the peerless prodigy they spoke of now only had Mid-Strange Orchid aptitude, which was likely only slightly stronger than those around him. Of course, compared to his previous Mid-tier Four Elements aptitude, this was a world of difference.
“It’s this person.”
Just then, Ye Qishuang, outwardly calm with a charming smile on her lips, secretly transmitted to Ling Cuiyan beside her, “Use your ‘Night Owl Eyes’ and see clearly for this Palace whether he’s disguised or not.”
Ling Cuiyan nodded subtly. The pupils in her eyes rapidly expanded, almost completely swallowing the whites and turning pitch black, reflecting Qin Gou’s figure.
In an instant, Ling Cuiyan’s eyes returned to normal. She transmitted in a secret voice to Ye Qishuang, “Palace Lord, this person is not disguised at all. This is his true appearance.”
“What?” A flicker of surprise crossed Ye Qishuang’s eyes. She said sternly, “Look again, look carefully for this Palace!”
Ling Cuiyan helplessly activated her Natal Spirit Tool again. After a moment, she repeated, “Palace Lord, Little Hammer guarantees with her life that this is Qin Yue’s original appearance. Even the most profound disguise technique cannot escape Little Hammer’s eyes, but Little Hammer cannot detect even the slightest trace of disguise on this person.”
“Is that so.” Ye Qishuang’s lips curved into a bitter smile. Her cold, moon-like eyes were filled with intense disappointment. “This Palace is a bit tired. I’ll take my leave first.”
As she spoke, Ye Qishuang suddenly stumbled, her body tilting precariously to the side. Ling Cuiyan gasped in shock and immediately supported her.
“Palace Lord!”
For a moment, all eyes shifted away from Qin Gou, and everyone watched in disbelief as Palace Lord Ye Qishuang almost fell. How could this be possible?
