Chapter 558: Gold Level Fishman Youngster!
One day ago, in the divine domain of Tranquil Hill.
Most of the duelists had already departed.
“Sister Mei Lin, you sought me out?” Xue Tuan Zi approached Mei Lin.
Mei Lin handed her the material: “I heard you've been aggressively acquiring this type of material lately?”
Xue Tuan Zi took it and saw it was a shell from the Tide-Sound Conch. Each shell was a gold level material!
A flash of delight crossed Xue Tuan Zi's face, but it quickly faded into a troubled frown.
She looked at Mei Lin: “Sister Mei Lin, I'm sorry, but I don't have much time to stay here. I need to give my all for this Warm Snow Cup!”
Mei Lin nodded with a smile. “I understand. Your grandfather has high expectations for you.”
“Don't worry, I'm not assigning you to guard the Honey Snow Tower. I have another matter to ask of you.”
“Oh?” Xue Tuan Zi's eyes sparkled with curiosity. “Sister Mei Lin, tell me about it.”
Mei Lin said, “I wish to pay a personal visit to your grandfather.”
Xue Tuan Zi's grandfather was no ordinary transcendent. He was a Gold level alchemist who presided over the Snow Cake Tower and served as a powerful elder within the Alchemy Guild.
More crucially, relations between the Snow Cake Tower Master and the Honey Snow Tower Master, Shuang Lian, were strained.
Xue Tuan Zi paused slightly before grasping Mei Lin's intent.
They had lured the Honey Snow Tower into the divine domain of Tranquil Hill. As a pivotal figure in the Alchemy Guild, Shuang Lian's disappearance would inevitably trigger far-reaching repercussions.
The Alchemy Guild would undoubtedly come searching for her.
If this battle concluded decisively, Shuang Lian's death in combat might be acceptable. But the reality was that both sides were locked in a stalemate.
Without a definitive outcome, Mei Lin could consider the subsequent repercussions.
Thinking this through, Xue Tuan Zi nodded. "That's exactly right. Grandfather and Magician Shuang Lian have deep-seated conflicts. The rivalry between the two mage towers is significant, their relationship is quite hostile, to say the least."
“I can introduce you.”
“That shouldn't be a problem.”
Xue Tuan Zi welcomed the prospect of Shuang Lian being dealt with more effectively.
After all, she had become involved in this conflict herself.
In truth, it was precisely the animosity between the two towers that had motivated Xue Tuan Zi to contribute her strength to this battle.
“That's wonderful,” Mei Lin smiled.
She felt confident she could count on Xue Tuan Zi's continued support.
Mei Lin had made considerable efforts to expand her faction's influence within the divine domain of Tranquil Hill. Growing close to Xue Tuan Zi and becoming her friend was one such achievement.
After arranging the rotation of gold level duelists, Mei Lin departed the divine domain of Tranquil Hill alongside Xue Tuan Zi.
Half a day later, they arrived at the Ice Sculpture Capital via a teleportation formation.
The headquarters of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom's Alchemy Guild resided within the capital.
The third position in the Honey Snow Tower remained vacant.
When Mei Lin arrived, the Alchemy Guild had yet to formally confirm Shuang Lian's disappearance.
She entered the Snow Cake Tower and was received by its master.
“Try some, Rear Admiral Mei Lin. This is a snow cake I made myself,” Xue Tuan Zi's grandfather warmly offered Mei Lin.
Though they had never formally interacted before, both had heard of each other.
Gold level individuals were neither numerous nor scarce.
As the master of a mage tower, Xue Tuan Zi's grandfather undoubtedly ranked among the elite of gold level magicians. Mei Lin, needless to say, was a beauty of the navy—a star among the gold level individuals.
Mei Lin knew the Snow Cake Tower Master was not only an alchemist but also moonlighted as a magic chef.
His greatest passion lay in crafting transcendent cuisine. His handmade snow cakes enjoyed a modest reputation throughout the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom.
Having come with a request, Mei Lin naturally wouldn't refuse such kindness.
She extended her slender fingers, pinched up a snow cake, and examined it closely.
The snow cake wasn't thin; it was round, plump, and adorable. Frost flowers adorned both sides, releasing a sweet, fragrant aroma.
Mei Lin placed the snow cake in her mouth and took a gentle bite.
Its texture was delightfully crisp, no effort was needed to crunch it effortlessly.
As she chewed, the cake dissolved on her tongue, releasing an intoxicating cheese flavor. Following the rich cheese came an icy chill that made Mei Lin's mouth water.
The peak of that icy sensation sent a shiver through her very soul.
Mei Lin, with her high status and influence, had tasted countless delicacies. To be fair, while the snow cake was tasty, it wasn't exceptionally delicious. Among the delicacies she had tasted, it wouldn't even rank in the top fifty.
At best, it was a tasty dessert.
Yet after finishing one piece, Mei Lin's expression subtly shifted.
She consumed a second, then a third.
The Snow Cake Tower Master chuckled heartily.
After eating five pieces, Mei Lin thanked the tower master: “Your culinary skills are truly remarkable, tower master. I am deeply impressed.”
“I never imagined there could be snow cakes in this world that directly raise one's spirit power limit after eating them!”
The Snow Cake Tower Master smiled: "Rear Admiral Mei Lin, you are a dear friend of my granddaughter. Of course I must serve you my finest creations. I heard from Xue Tuan Zi that you also disapprove of Shuang Lian?"
Xue Tuan Zi had participated in the introduction, naturally informing her grandfather of certain matters beforehand.
The Snow Cake Tower Master had long been at a disadvantage in his rivalry with Shuang Lian.
Mei Lin was undoubtedly a powerful external ally, which was why he spared no expense, specially crafting the snow cakes at short notice to entertain her.
She said, "Tower Master, you might not know this yet. Shuang Lian has gone missing, and the Honey Snow Tower has vanished without a trace."
"Oh?!" The Snow Cake Tower Master's expression shifted slightly, his eyes flashing with sharpness. “Are you certain this is true?”
“Within half a day, the guild will receive the news as well.” Mei Lin continued, ”I don't care about the reason for her disappearance. What I want is for the Alchemy Guild to temporarily suspend the search and rescue efforts."
The Snow Cake Tower Master gave Mei Lin a deep look: “That's not so easy to arrange.”
“Shuang Lian's status is no ordinary matter. She's a powerful elder. Haven't you seen that even though the Snowflake Tower is gone, Pit No.3 has always been reserved for her?”
"You must understand, the lower the pit number, the greater the energy supply it provides to the mage tower. In a way, it represents the Tower Master's standing within the guild!"
“When such a heavyweight goes missing, the guild will go mad searching for her."
Mei Lin smiled: “After Pit No.3, Pit No.4 belongs to Snow Cake Tower, doesn't it?”
“Others might be helpless, but I believe in your influence, Tower Master.”
With that, Mei Lin handed the Snow Cake Tower Master a list. The list contained only a few items, but each was substantial enough to make the Snow Cake Tower Master's expression shift slightly upon seeing it.
The final item on the list was none other than a saint level alchemy material!
“Interesting...” Snow Cake Tower Master tucked away the list. “You've got good luck.”
“Under normal circumstances, this would be nearly impossible.”
“But now it is different. The entire Alchemy Guild's focus is on Master Fan Sheng Za Zhong's inheritance.”
“The Alchemy Guild will inevitably dispatch personnel for investigation and rescue, I cannot prevent that.”
“But we can influence things to weaken the search team's strength.”
“I have an excellent idea.”
The Snow Cake Tower Master detailed his plan.
Mei Lin listened and let out a sigh of admiration.
The Snow Cake Tower Master knew that Da Bei, Cai Jing, and others had suffered losses at the hands of Shuang Lian. And now they were the leaders of the guild's organized inheritance group.
The Snow Cake Tower Master intended to exploit them by first transferring all alchemists skilled in investigation and search operations to the inheritance group.
This way, there would be no experts left to search for Shuang Lian, Bu Quan, and the others.
“Then, the task falls to you, Tower Master.” Mei Lin “backed out at the last moment,” avoiding contact with Cai Jing and Da Bei.
That very evening, news of Shuang Lian's disappearance had already been relayed.
The Snow Cake Tower Master invited Cai Jing and Da Bei to a banquet.
His snow cakes earned rave reviews from both guests. Da Bei even packed several slices to take home for Zhong Bei.
Neither Cai Jing nor Da Bei harbored any suspicion about the Tower Master's proposal.
After all, the feud between the two tower masters was common knowledge throughout the guild.
Both Cai Jing and Da Bei were eager to take on this task. Having suffered losses at Shuang Lian's hands, they saw this as their chance for revenge.
Upon hearing news of Shuang Lian's disappearance, they had already begun to stir with anticipation.
The Snow Cake Tower Master's invitation dispelled many of their reservations. Their actions signaled an alignment with Snow Cake Tower Master. Should Shuang Lian retaliate in the future, Snow Cake Tower Master would surely offer them refuge.
White Hair Trench.
Under the sea.
In a crude shack, Cang Xu knelt in prayer.
“Great Charming Blue Goddess, I praise Your greatness and mercy.”
“You are so mighty that when You rage, the seas tremble; when You show mercy, You grant us boundless care.”
“My Lord, oh Charming Blue Goddess, I look to Your power and trust in Your salvation.”
“I wish to ask: how much divine favor must I expend to elevate my life level?”
“To become silver, rising above iron and bronze?”
Since this prayer itself consumed several points of divine favor, Cang Xu received the answer swiftly—8,800!
To attain silver level, he had to expend 8,800 units of divine favor.
Cang Xu paled.
Ever since the fishman youngster's transcendent level ascension, Cang Xu had harbored this ambition. He never imagined advancing from iron level to silver level would require so much divine favor!
How long would it take to accumulate that much?
“With my current concentration of Hanging Corpse Tree bloodline, perhaps self-cultivation could accelerate my ascent to silver level.”
Cang Xu was only pretending to be silver level; his true level remained iron.
Meanwhile, aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster stood with solemn concentration.
Having carefully prepared his prayer, he began his invocation.
“Great Charming Blue Goddess, my Lord, I...”
Boom!
Divine radiance descended from the void, bathing the fishman youngster in its glow for a long moment.
Soon after, the fishman youngster opened the hatch, his expression oddly twisted.
“I barely started praying, I didn't even finish a sentence, yet I already received divine blessing.”
“I... just advanced to gold level?”
The fishman youngster felt as if he were in a dream.
This prayer had ended almost as soon as it began.
The life level of the fishman youngster officially ascended from silver level to gold level!
“My divine favor has surged to 8000!”
“I thought this prayer would drain it completely... yet it actually increased by so much...”