novelraw Chapter 182-2: Challenge the Starvault Tower, Memories of the Starry Sky (2)
Chapter 182-2: Challenge the Starvault Tower, Memories of the Starry Sky (2)
[You opened the alluring cover of the illusion book, its pages blank within.]
[A tremendous suction emanated from it. The phantom illusion before you began to distort. The sky-piercing Starvault Tower transformed into flowing multicolored light and was drawn into the book…]
[Your view darkened as you were expelled from this world, removed from the Residual Illusion of Knowledge…]
[When you regained your senses, your feet were once more on the cracked, brick-strewn ruin floor…]
[Your item Book Containing Illusion – Grand Scholar Rona’s Bathing Recording (Item) has changed.]
[You obtained Book Containing Illusion – The Starvault Tower Ascent (Item).]
[The book’s cover no longer showed the hazy image of a bathing beauty but now depicted a sky-piercing tower beneath the stars.]
“Perfect, now I can challenge the Starvault Tower as many times as I want!”
Lin Xun impatiently used the illusion book.
The illusion of the towering spire reappeared before him.Just as he was about to enter, the same dejected Grand Scholar emerged again.
With no choice, he had to go through the identical dialogue sequence once more.
[You pushed open the massive doors and stepped inside the tower.]
[Your vision flickered, and then endless void filled your sight. But this void was not dark and empty: countless brilliant stars flowed overhead in a vast river of starlight.]
[As you gazed at the rainbow-like colors of the stars, you were utterly entranced, forgetting where you were.]
[After a long moment, you came back to yourself and noticed you were standing atop a dark green star sigil array, separating you from the void below.]
[You were not alone, ahead stood a silent scholar whose face was hidden beneath a broad hat brim.]
[You understood: only by defeating this silent scholar could you ascend to the next floor.]
[Do you wish to challenge the First-Floor Guardian of the Starvault Tower?]
Lin Xun smiled faintly and unhesitatingly clicked ‘Yes.’
[You abruptly opened a dense array of compound eyes. Countless symbols appeared out of thin air and surged toward the silent scholar…]
[Its head exploded with a thunderous detonation!]
[You defeated the First-Floor Guardian of the Starvault Tower. You did not gain any experience.]
“Tch, that was too easy. No thrill to the challenge at all.”
Even as he spoke dismissively, Lin Xun knew very well, if it was as the Grand Scholar had said, with each floor harder than the last, by the time he reached the upper levels, the strength of the guardians would become unimaginably terrifying.
[The star sigil array beneath your feet slowly rose, carrying you higher.]
[The brilliant star river overhead drew nearer still.]
[Ahead, another silent scholar appeared…]
[Do you wish to challenge the Second-Floor Guardian of the Starvault Tower?]
“All right, let’s do this! Direct Vision President, show me how far you can go!”
Lin Xun pressed forward without pause, defeating guardian after guardian. Every time he succeeded, the star sigil array lifted him higher, bringing him closer to the river of stars overhead.
[You defeated the Tenth-Floor Guardian of the Starvault Tower. You did not gain any experience.]
[The star sigil array beneath your feet slowly rose, carrying you higher.]
[The brilliant river of stars above was now even nearer. You gazed up at the countless stars and felt a faint insight.]
[You obtained Memory of the Starry Sky (Item).]
“Huh? A drop already?”
Lin Xun had thought he’d have to clear all ninety-nine floors to get any reward. He hadn’t expected that simply reaching the tenth floor would already yield an item.
[Memory of the Starry Sky: A swirling, misty radiance in which occasional flickering fragments of memory can be seen. The images appear to depict countless stars in a distant galaxy.]
[Using this item will increase your Knowledge cap by 1,000 points.]
“Damn, I see now why all these Grand Scholars and Presidents are obsessed with climbing the tower. The prestige and bragging rights are secondary, raising your Knowledge cap is the real prize.”
Lin Xun had always had to miserably pore over books, documents, and monsters to gain Knowledge.
Only when his Knowledge reached a critical point could he trigger overload and increase his cap.
Yet here, simply clearing tower challenges directly raised the cap.
It was as if a warrior who’d always had to hold the mouse in one hand while fast-forwarding, and clean his spear with the other, suddenly discovered VR equipment that let him experience everything first-hand in full immersion.
In an instant, both hands were freed, and he could only surrender, foaming at the mouth.
“Thinking about it this way…it’s not so hard to understand why some believers defected to the radiant stars. I mean, once you have a little electric scooter, who needs a bicycle?”
Lin Xun suddenly felt that Omniscient True Knowledge was a bit unworthy of its name.
Without hesitation, he clicked to use the item.
Most of his knowledge-type skills were tied to Knowledge cap. Increasing the cap was effectively boosting skill power, a big help for climbing the tower.
[You used Memory of the Starry Sky (Item).]
[Your Knowledge cap has increased by 1,000 points!]
[Your current Knowledge increased from 600/5200 to 600/6200!]
[You have grown stronger!]
[Perhaps it was only your imagination, but you suddenly felt the star river above your head shining more brilliantly than ever, so captivating that you almost felt an irresistible urge to throw yourself into it.]
Lin Xun’s heart tightened.
Sure enough, so easily raising the Knowledge cap came with side effects!
After using Memory of the Starry Sky, he felt an unconscious sense of affinity with the stars.
Perhaps some scholars had once been steadfast in their faith, but driven by their thirst for knowledge, they kept climbing the tower.
Even as they vaguely sensed the stars growing ever more alluring, they could only sink deeper and deeper.
“The radiant stars are truly cunning, exploiting the followers of Omniscient True Knowledge and their hunger for knowledge to convert them into their own believers.”
Fortunately, the Starvault Tower had been destroyed and toppled, or large numbers of Omniscient True Knowledge’s followers would surely have defected.
Lin Xun found himself recalling many clues he’d once ignored.
The Servant of Knowledge had made him draw loot boxes in the Divine Book of Favor, and he’d pulled the Starlight Cross Sword, a weapon belonging to some starborn riffraff.
Yet in the Dark Dragon Knight’s memories of prehistoric war, all the enemies were starborn creatures.
The Starlight Cross Sword didn’t look like something meant for the starborn themselves, it was probably crafted for the many humans who had defected to the stars.
“The wars between the gods run too deep. I’d better not dwell on it. Strengthening myself is the real priority.”
Lin Xun thought for a moment and decided to return to the Multivision Association before continuing his climb.
According to earlier records, this ruin of the Starvault Tower still contained lingering power of the radiant stars.
It was enough to make Omniscient True Knowledge’s gaze overlook this place.
But once he left, Omniscient True Knowledge would resume watching him. If he were ever truly swayed by the stars, Omniscient True Knowledge would at least dispatch watchdogs to protect him.
“Killing the Beast of Disordered Knowledge also grants buffs that increase Knowledge cap. It’s killing two birds with one stone.”
He exited the illusion, boarded the Refined Copper carriage, and swiftly returned to the Multivision Association.
Soon enough, he arrived at his destination.
Eagerly, he opened the illusion book again…