“The true Wizard Tower?”
“Hehehe, that thing on the War Fortress doesn't count as a Wizard Tower,” the Energy-Eating Insect said, flying up from his head. “That was just a temporary resting place for Master. This one in the Jade Shadow Forest Academy is what Master spent three thousand years building piece by piece.”
It flew forward, its voice drifting back.
“Keep up, don't dawdle.”
Ethan stepped forward to follow.
The stone path beneath his feet changed from grayish-white to deep teal. The trees on both sides of the path grew taller and taller, their trunks so thick it would take more than a dozen people to hug them.
The tree canopy spread out in layers high above, blocking out most of the sunlight. A few beams of light filtered down through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled spots on the ground.
After walking for about two and a half hours, the trees ahead suddenly thinned out.
Ethan stopped.
At the end of his line of sight, a tall tower stood in the center of the forest.
The tower's structure did not start from the ground.
The entire tower levitated about ten meters above an emerald-green lake.
The tower base was an inverted cone woven from countless thick tree roots. These roots rose out of the lake water, wrapping, intertwining, and spiraling to form a massive root platform beneath the base.
Emerald runes flowed across the surface of the roots, and every pulse of light sent ripples spreading across the lake.
The tower body was constructed from a deep teal wood. It looked similar to the material of the Wizard Tower on the War Fortress, but the details were entirely different.
There were no runes on the surface of the tower. Instead, it was covered in countless fine vines.
These vines climbed all the way from the base to the spire. Each was as thick as a thumb and covered in emerald-green leaves the size of fingernails.
The leaves rustled softly in the gentle breeze.
The tower spiraled upward, with a circular platform extending outward at regular intervals.
The platforms were filled with various plants. Some bore fist-sized flowers, others hung heavy with fruit, and some draped long vines that dipped their ends into the lake.
The spire soared into the clouds, and a fist-sized emerald light orb hovered at the very top.
The light orb rotated slowly, casting a faint halo outward with each rotation.
As the halo swept across the lake, the water rippled gently.
Patches of glowing mushrooms grew along the lakeshore, each the size of a washbasin.
The mushroom caps were a translucent pale teal, with tiny points of light swirling inside.
The points of light drifted out from the caps, rising slowly through the air to merge into the light orb at the spire.
Several small bridges woven from vines stretched from the shore to the base of the tower. The bridge decks were paved with dark teal wooden planks, and glowing vines wrapped around the railings.
The lake was crystal clear, revealing a bed covered in fist-sized emerald crystals. The light swirling within the crystals dyed the entire lake a brilliant shade of green.
A few translucent, jellyfish-like creatures swam slowly in the water.
Their bodies were a pale teal, with countless slender tentacles hanging from the edges of their caps, the tips glowing with a faint golden light.
They swam around the tower base, their tentacles tracing trails of light in the water.
Ethan stood on the shore, looking up at the tower.
The Wizard Tower on the War Fortress was shocking enough, but compared to the one before him, it was probably only fit to be a gatehouse.
The Energy-Eating Insect poked half its body out from his head. “Hehehe, stunned, aren't you? Master's Wizard Tower is one of the best among all the Four-Ring Academies in the Wizard World. Just the Energy-Gathering Lake beneath the tower base produces enough magic crystals every year to buy three hundred Two-Ring Academies. See those crystals at the bottom of the lake? Master grew all of them using origin power. Scoop one up at random, and it's worth dozens of magic crystals.”
It flew up from his head, hovering in midair and paddling its six legs.
“And those vines on the tower body are called Biluo Vines. Every single vine has its own consciousness and can automatically distinguish friend from foe. Last time, some blind Second-Tier Wizard tried to sneak in, and the vines bound him up like a mummy, hanging him outside to dry for three days and three nights.”
Ethan withdrew his gaze.
“Impressive indeed.”
“Pfft, you think this is impressive?” The Energy-Eating Insect landed back on his head, its six legs finding a comfortable spot to nestle in his hair. “Just wait until you go inside to see what real power is. Let's go.”
It pointed one of its forelegs forward.
Ethan stepped onto the vine bridge.
The wooden planks beneath his feet swayed slightly, and the glowing vines on the railings lit up simultaneously as he passed.
The jellyfish-like creatures in the lake gathered near the bridge, their tentacles waving gently in the water as if sizing up this unfamiliar guest.
Walking beneath the tower base, Ethan truly felt the sheer scale of the structure.
Just the bottom ring of the root platform was larger than any building he had ever seen.
Up close, the runic patterns flowing across the roots appeared even more complex. Each line was composed of dozens of layers of fine runes, nested within one another in an endless loop.
Directly beneath the tower base was a double wooden door.
The door panels were made from a single solid piece of deep teal wood. There were no runic patterns on the surface, only the carving of a lush, leafy tree in the dead center.
The Energy-Eating Insect flew down from his head and landed on the door.
It raised a foreleg and tapped gently on the tree trunk carving.
The tree carving on the door lit up.
An emerald light spread upward from the roots, climbing along the trunk and branches before finally gathering at the top of the canopy.
With a flash of light, the door slid open silently.
Behind the door was a wide corridor.
The walls on both sides of the corridor were covered in glowing vines, the pale green light illuminating the entire hallway as if it were submerged underwater.
At the end of the corridor was a spiral staircase. The handrail was woven from a single, continuous tree vine, which still sprouted fresh green leaves.
“Come on in,” the Energy-Eating Insect called, already flying down the corridor, the buzz of its six wings echoing off the walls. “Don't worry, the Tower Spirit isn't here right now. She won't throw you out.”
“...Won't throw me out? Heh, more like she won't throw you out.”
After muttering a complaint to himself, Ethan stepped over the threshold.
The wooden door slid shut silently behind him.
The Energy-Eating Insect led him through the corridor and onto the spiral staircase. The stairs vibrated slightly beneath his feet, like the pulse of a living creature.
With every step, the leaves on the handrail vines trembled slightly, rustling softly.
They climbed the stairs for about fifteen minutes before the Energy-Eating Insect stopped in front of a double wooden door.
“This is the guest room.” It pushed open the door with a foreleg. “You stay here first. Once the day comes, I'll take you to find that old geezer Three-Heads.”
Behind the door was a spacious room.
The room was circular, measuring over twenty meters in diameter.
The high-vaulted ceiling was made of translucent, pale teal crystals.
Right in the center stood a broad wooden desk, with several unrolled parchment scrolls and a quill resting on a pen stand.
Behind the desk was a French window, offering a view of the lake outside and the forest in the distance.
In the corner of the room was a wooden bed made up with deep green bedding. Next to the bed stood a floor lamp with a shade made from some kind of translucent leaf, illuminated from within by a glowing crystal that made the entire leaf shine brightly.
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