From the fake emperor to the concubine

The silver ape nodded.

“No rush,” Zheng Yi said. “Now that we’ve already partnered, we need to plan carefully. First, how much Time Dew do we have? Is it enough for the three of us?”

The silver ape thought for a moment, then stretched out three claws and pointed to the top of the tower.

"Three drops?" Zheng Yi asked.

The silver ape nodded.

Zheng Yi and Bai Ling'er exchanged a glance and both breathed a sigh of relief. Three drops of Time Dew, one drop each, was perfectly fair.

“That makes things easier,” Zheng Yi said. “We’ll go get the Time Dew now. But is there any danger at the top of the tower?”

The silver ape shook its head, then made a gesture to follow it.

It turned and walked towards the Tower of Time, with Zheng Yi and Bai Ling'er following closely behind.

Upon closer inspection of the Tower of Time, Zheng Yi discovered its exquisite nature. The entire tower seemed to be forged from a special material, which emitted faint fluctuations of time energy. The runes on the tower flickered incessantly, rhythmically absorbing the surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth, as if breathing.

The silver ape walked to the tower gate, raised its left paw, and pressed it a few times. The runes immediately lit up, and the tower gate slowly opened, revealing the stairs inside.

"I see," Zheng Yi said, suddenly understanding. "Only you know how to open the tower gate, so even if we defeat you, no one else can get in."

The silver ape proudly raised its head.

The three people and one beast entered the Tower of Time. The space inside was much larger than it appeared from the outside, clearly due to the use of spatial arrays. The stairs spiraled upwards, and the walls were inlaid with glowing crystals, illuminating the entire tower.

The most amazing thing is that the flow of time inside the tower is completely different from that outside. With each floor you go up, the flow of time changes. In some places, time moves extremely fast, while in others it almost stops.

"No wonder it's called the Tower of Time," Bai Ling'er exclaimed. "Cultivating here will definitely be twice as effective."

Upon hearing this, the silver ape nodded with some pride. Having guarded this tower for so many years, it knew every corner of it like the back of its hand.

The group walked upwards for about fifteen minutes and finally reached the top of the tower.

At the top of the tower was a circular hall with a crystal-like pool in the center. The pool was empty except for three drops of crystal-clear liquid clinging to its wall.

The three drops of liquid shimmered with iridescent colors, radiating a rich power of time and the essence of heaven and earth. Just by getting close, Zheng Yi felt his understanding of the Great Dao become clearer.

"Time Dew!" Bai Ling'er exclaimed excitedly.

Zheng Yi was also filled with excitement. He had been in the Time Realm for so long, enduring many hardships, and had finally seen this legendary treasure.

The silver ape walked to the edge of the pool and carefully took a drop of Time Dew. It turned and handed it to Zheng Yi, gesturing for them to take one as well.

Zheng Yi didn't stand on ceremony and took a drop. Bai Ling'er also took a drop. The last drop was kept by the silver ape himself.

"Now, we're true allies," Zheng Yi said with a smile. "Next, we'll wait for the Blood Fiend Alliance to come again, and then we'll join forces to give them a surprise."

Silver Ape gave a smile-like expression, his eyes sparkling with anticipation.

Zheng Yi sat cross-legged in a secret chamber of the Tower of Time, holding a drop of seven-colored Time Dew in his hand. The secret chamber was a cultivation place specially opened for them by the Silver Ape. The flow of time here was ten times that of the outside world, and the spiritual energy was so dense that it was almost tangible.

Bai Ling'er and the Silver Ape were each in a separate secret room, preparing to consume their own drop of Time Dew.

Zheng Yi took a deep breath and carefully examined the spiritual dew in his hand. This tiny drop of liquid contained unimaginable energy. He could sense that the spiritual dew not only contained concentrated time power, but also something even more mysterious, as if it contained the ultimate truth of the universe.

"Success or failure hinges on this," Zheng Yi muttered to himself, then without further hesitation, he opened his mouth and swallowed the Time Dew.

The moment the spiritual dew entered his mouth, Zheng Yi froze completely.

It wasn't pain, nor comfort, but an indescribable feeling. It was as if millions of years were flowing through my body, or as if I were in the beginning of the universe, witnessing the birth of heaven and earth.

boom--

A terrifying energy erupted within Zheng Yi's body. His dantian erupted like a volcano, with spiritual power surging wildly. His meridians were stretched to the point of bursting, and his internal organs trembled under the impact of this energy.

But that's not the scariest thing.

At the same time as the energy erupted, a massive amount of information suddenly flooded into Zheng Yi's mind. The information surged in like a torrent, almost overwhelming his soul.

"This is..." Zheng Yi endured the excruciating pain, trying to understand the information.

Gradually, the chaotic information began to become clear. Zheng Yi "saw" an ancient scene.

It was a glorious era, with the spiritual energy between heaven and earth so abundant as to be unbelievable. A powerful race ruled over this land, possessing the secrets of time and space, and able to traverse freely through the river of time and space.

This race calls itself the "Time-Space Race," and is one of the most powerful races in ancient times. Their cultivation system is completely different from the current cultivation world; they follow the path of the laws of time and space.

Zheng Yi observed that the powerful members of the Time-Space Clan could reverse or accelerate time with a single thought; they could tear through space and traverse thousands of miles with a mere wave of their hand. They had constructed countless Time-Space Secret Realms, including this very one.

However, even such a powerful race could not escape the fate of extinction.

Zheng Yi witnessed an earth-shattering battle. Countless races united to besiege the Time-Space Clan. That battle caused the heavens and earth to tremble and the sun and moon to lose their light. In the end, the Time-Space Clan was almost wiped out, with only a few members carrying their inheritance, hiding in various secret realms.

The Tower of Time is one of the relics left behind by the Time-Space Clan. Those three drops of Time Dew are a legacy left by the Time-Space Clan for future generations. Any cultivator fortunate enough to obtain the Time Dew has the opportunity to acquire a portion of the Time-Space Clan's legacy.

"I see." Zheng Yi suddenly realized. No wonder the Time Dew was so precious; it was not only a treasure for improving cultivation, but also a carrier of inheritance.

Information continued to flood his mind. Zheng Yi "saw" the cultivation techniques, supernatural abilities, array formations, and restrictions of the Time-Space Clan, as well as their understanding of the laws of time and space. This knowledge was vast and boundless, and even a Nascent Soul cultivator would find it extremely difficult to absorb. After an unknown amount of time, the torrent of information finally stopped. Zheng Yi's soul was utterly exhausted, but his eyes gleamed with excitement.

He obtained a core cultivation technique of the Time-Space Clan—the "Time-Space True Scripture".

The quality of this cultivation technique far exceeded Zheng Yi's expectations. If the cultivation technique he had practiced before was of the upper-grade Earth rank, then the "Time and Space True Scripture" was at least of the middle-grade Heaven rank, or even higher.

More importantly, the "Scripture of Time and Space" does not conflict with his original wood-attribute cultivation method. On the contrary, this method can integrate with his original cultivation, transforming wood-attribute spiritual power into more profound time-space spiritual power.

Besides the cultivation techniques, Zheng Yi also acquired several powerful supernatural abilities. The strongest of these was called "Time-Space Imprisonment," which could distort spacetime within a certain range, severely slowing down enemies while allowing himself to move normally. If used properly, this supernatural ability was practically unbeatable in battle.

Another supernatural power is called "Spatial Teleportation," which allows for instantaneous movement within a thousand-mile range, even more powerful than the Ten-Thousand-Mile Swiftness Talisman. There are also many other supernatural powers such as "Time Reversal" and "Void Slash," each possessing astonishing power.

In addition, Zheng Yi also gained a profound understanding of the Fusion Realm.

The difference between the Nascent Soul Realm and the Body Integration Realm is not merely the increase in spiritual power, but more importantly, the comprehension of the Great Dao. The Nascent Soul Realm is the perfect fusion of the primordial spirit and physical body, controlling the spiritual energy of heaven and earth; while the Body Integration Realm is the process of resonating with the Great Dao of heaven and earth, and making initial contact with the power of the laws.

With the inheritance of the Time-Space Clan, Zheng Yi's understanding of the laws of heaven and earth has been elevated countless levels. The previously unattainable Integration Realm is now right before his eyes.

He took a deep breath and began to circulate his spiritual power according to the mental techniques of the "True Scripture of Time and Space".

At first, Zheng Yi's circulation of spiritual energy was still quite clumsy. But as time went on, he became more and more proficient. The wood-attribute spiritual energy within his body began to undergo a qualitative change, gradually merging with the power of time and space.

The originally bluish-green spiritual energy began to turn transparent, with faint silver light flowing within it. This was a manifestation of the power of spacetime.

At the same time, Zheng Yi's cultivation level was also increasing rapidly. Mid-stage Nascent Soul, late-stage Nascent Soul, peak Nascent Soul—each breakthrough was natural and seamless, without any bottlenecks.

This is the magic of the Time Dew. It not only inherits the cultivation technique, but also provides the energy needed for cultivation.

Unbeknownst to him, Zheng Yi had already been cultivating in the secret chamber for three months. Of course, this was the time spent inside the chamber. In the outside world, less than ten days had passed.

On this day, Zheng Yi was breaking through the bottleneck of the Integration Realm.

In his dantian, spiritual energy had condensed to its limit, as if it might explode at any moment. His divine soul shone brightly in his sea of ​​consciousness, resonating with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth.

Just one last step and we'll break through!

Zheng Yi held his breath, immersing himself entirely in communicating with the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth. He "saw" the invisible web of laws governing the world, the foundation upon which it was built. He attempted to touch that web of laws, merging a portion of his consciousness into it.

Time passed by minute by minute.

Suddenly, Zheng Yi sensed something. His consciousness had successfully touched the net of laws! In that instant, countless insights flooded his mind.

He "saw" the flow of time, the composition of space, the growth of all things, and the operation of the Great Dao. Everything in the world became incredibly clear.

Rumbling--

Within Zheng Yi's dantian, an invisible barrier shattered with a deafening roar. That was the insurmountable chasm between the Nascent Soul Realm and the Body Integration Realm, a gap that countless cultivators could not cross in their entire lives, yet he broke through it with ease.

A massive amount of spiritual energy from heaven and earth surged in from all directions, frantically pouring into Zheng Yi's body. His cultivation level soared at that moment, leaping from the peak of the Nascent Soul stage to the Integration stage in the blink of an eye!

At the same time, strange phenomena appeared in the heavens and earth.

Above the Time Realm, the once tranquil purple sky suddenly became overcast with dark clouds. Streaks of silver lightning streaked through the clouds, producing deafening roars.

This is a heavenly trial sent down by Heaven and Earth because they sensed that someone had broken through to a higher realm—a heavenly tribulation!
The Tower of Time began to tremble violently, and all the runes on its surface lit up, emitting a blinding light. The entire spacetime of the secret realm became disordered; in some places, time accelerated, and in others, time reversed.

Bai Ling'er, who was cultivating in another secret room, suddenly opened her eyes: "Someone has broken through to the Integration Realm?" Her face showed shock. In this era, cultivators at the Integration Realm were already top-tier experts, each one a powerful figure who could command the wind and rain.

The silver ape was also startled. It looked up at the sky, a complex expression in its eyes. It had guarded the Tower of Time for so many years and had seen many cultivators consume the Dew of Time, but this was the first time it had seen one directly break through to the Integration Realm.

Inside the secret chamber, Zheng Yi slowly opened his eyes. His eyes gleamed with a silver light, a manifestation of the power of spacetime. He could clearly feel that his strength had undergone a tremendous transformation.

The Fusion Realm has finally been reached!
Moreover, having inherited the legacy of the Time-Space Clan, his combat power far surpasses that of ordinary early-stage Fusion Realm cultivators, and he can even fight against mid-stage Fusion Realm cultivators.

Zheng Yi stood up, feeling the surging power within his body. With a casual wave of his hand, a tiny spatial rift appeared in the air. This level of spatial manipulation was something even a Nascent Soul cultivator couldn't achieve.

“It’s time to go out,” Zheng Yi murmured. He could sense that the Heavenly Tribulation was about to descend. Although he could avoid the Heavenly Tribulation inside the Tower of Time, he didn’t want to do so. Although the Heavenly Tribulation was dangerous, surviving it would make a cultivator’s foundation more solid.

He pushed open the door to the secret room and went out. Bai Ling'er and the silver ape were already waiting outside.

"Senior Zheng, you've broken through?" Bai Ling'er looked at Zheng Yi in disbelief. Although only ten days had passed, Zheng Yi's aura was completely different. It was a kind of superior pressure that made even a Nascent Soul cultivator like her feel apprehensive.

Zheng Yi nodded: "I was fortunate enough to break through to the Integration Realm. What about you? How have you fared?"

Bai Ling'er exclaimed excitedly, "I've broken through to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm! And I've gained an ice-attribute divine ability, greatly increasing my strength!"

The silver ape roared excitedly a few times. Its injuries had fully healed, and its cultivation had improved considerably. Although it hadn't yet broken through to the Integration Realm, it had reached the half-step Integration Realm, making it much stronger than before.

“Very good.” Zheng Yi nodded in satisfaction. “It seems the Time Dew has been of great help to you all. Now, I’m going out to undergo my tribulation. You all wait in the tower and don’t come out.”

He looked up at the sky; the dark clouds were hanging low, and the silver lightning was growing denser. A heavenly tribulation could descend at any moment.

Zheng Yi stepped out of the Tower of Time and onto the open ground outside. He looked up at the sky, his eyes filled not with fear, but with anticipation and fighting spirit.

"Come on!" he roared, unleashing a powerful aura. The pressure of a Nascent Soul Realm expert swept across the surrounding area, causing the surrounding rocks to tremble. (End of Chapter)