As Yin Zhang continued climbing, the higher he went, the more clearly he felt the vastness of heaven and earth.
"So high…"
He looked down. The Supreme Pontiff Palace below had already shrunk to the size of a fingernail, while the Hall of Worship above still seemed impossibly distant.
His muscles were beginning to ache. He slowly massaged them, lifted his foot, and prepared to continue upward.
The mountain where the Hall of Worship stood was nothing like an ordinary peak. Seen as a whole, it resembled a massive pillar, with a spiraling path coiling around it. One had to keep moving forward and upward along the winding route—one careless step, and it would mean falling straight into the void.
Careful. Careful again. And even more careful.
Yin Zhang's nerves were stretched taut as he trudged upward step by step.
A quarter of an hour later, he stopped once more, panting heavily. His face was flushed, yet not a single bead of sweat appeared. The higher he climbed, the colder the air became.
"You've done very well. You're worthy of being my disciple."
With the sound of air being torn apart, Golden Crocodile appeared beside Yin Zhang in midair, his gaze filled with approval.
"Teacher."
Yin Zhang finally let out a breath of relief. Golden Crocodile had arrived—otherwise, he had no idea how long he would have needed to keep climbing.
"Alright. Summon your martial spirit and come up with me," Golden Crocodile said with a chuckle. "Your consecrator uncles are all very curious about you."
He looked Yin Zhang over, quickly assessing his physical condition.
"Mm, okay!"
Yin Zhang summoned his martial spirit, Charizard, letting it possess him. With a single flap of its wings, he flew up to Golden Crocodile's side.
Though his body was exhausted, his wings were unaffected, and his flying speed was no different than usual.
Whoosh!
The two flew together toward the summit.
After landing steadily, Yin Zhang withdrew his martial spirit and finally looked toward the Hall of Worship standing before him.
The gate alone was over ten meters tall. Above it hung a plaque bearing three gilded characters:
Hall of Worship
"Let's go. Everyone's waiting," Golden Crocodile said. "If not for your aptitude, the High Priest wouldn't have agreed to let you enter the Hall of Worship to take a look after advancing to Spirit Elder."
Golden Crocodile walked with powerful, dragon-like strides, his golden armor clanking softly with each step.
By contrast, Yin Zhang's steps were slightly unsteady. He did his best to suppress it, and after a few paces, his breathing gradually stabilized.
Entering the Hall of Worship as a Spirit Elder… I really am a special case, Yin Zhang thought as he observed the structure.
Tap. Tap.
Their footsteps echoed loudly as they entered the vast interior of the Hall of Worship.
At first glance, Yin Zhang saw the enormous statue of the Angel God standing at the very center. Beneath it stood a handsome middle-aged man—Qian Daoliu.
On either side of him stood five figures each: Xiongshi, Qingluan, Guangling, Qian Jun, and Jiangmo—the Five Great Consecrators.
All of them turned their gazes toward Yin Zhang, with Qian Jun and Jiangmo looking the most curious.
Because of Qiangu Yuan, these two knew more about Yin Zhang than the others.
Naturally, Yin Zhang's self-created techniques had already caught their attention.
Although his self-created techniques—Dragon Claw, Double Team, Flamethrower, and Dragon Tail—weren't as individually overpowering as the famed self-created techniques of others, such as the Clear Sky Sect's Clear Sky Nine Absolutes, they had one overwhelming advantage:
There were many of them.
With numerous techniques and no real concern about spirit power consumption, Yin Zhang could treat them like basic attacks—leaving opponents with no chance to even release their own spirit abilities.
Not to mention, most people didn't possess a single self-created technique at all.
"Ahem. Big Brother, brothers—look here!" Golden Crocodile laughed loudly, placing a massive hand on Yin Zhang's shoulder. "This is my disciple, Yin Zhang!"
Yin Zhang felt his right shoulder sink, as though a heavy boulder had been placed on it.
Though uncomfortable, he maintained a polite smile and said respectfully, "Junior Yin Zhang greets all the Consecrators."
There was no choice—his strength was still lacking. When necessary, humility was the correct attitude.
Golden Crocodile looked extremely pleased, and the six—including Qian Daoliu—each offered words of praise.
Xiongshi even chuckled and said, "If I'd known Xiao Zhang was such an outstanding seedling, I would've fought Second Brother for him back then instead of letting him decide so easily. What a pity."
Yin Zhang smiled in response, while Golden Crocodile shot Xiongshi a glance.
"You brat—back then, you were the one least willing to take on a disciple."
"Hahaha—!"
For a time, laughter echoed throughout the Hall of Worship.
After that came the formal acknowledgments, greeting each Consecrator in turn. Technically, they weren't uncles, but that was how seniority worked.
As for seniority relative to Qiangu Yuan and others, that was calculated separately.
They didn't give any gifts, only saying that if Yin Zhang ever ran into trouble, he could come find them.
Whether they said it or not made little difference.
After all, Yin Zhang's teacher was Golden Crocodile, the Second Consecrator of the Hall of Worship. If trouble truly arose, Golden Crocodile alone would be enough—and if needed, the others could join in. But that scenario was unlikely.
Once Golden Crocodile made a move, most problems simply ceased to exist.
After leaving the Hall of Worship, Golden Crocodile brought Yin Zhang back to his residence in Spirit City.
"Show me your third spirit ability," Golden Crocodile said. "I want to see what you gained from this trip."
"Okay, Teacher."
Yin Zhang nodded, summoned his martial spirit, and three deep-purple spirit rings rose into the air.
Just as he expected, Golden Crocodile only glanced at them for a few seconds and didn't question the color.
After seeing Yin Zhang's third spirit ability, Golden Crocodile nodded in satisfaction.
"Very good. Now show me your tail strength. Use your Dragon Tail."
Yin Zhang complied.
Ever since Golden Crocodile had taught him how to properly use and train his tail, its power had increased at astonishing speed.
Even without activating Dragon Tail, a sudden swing was enough to shatter stone.
After demonstrating and leaving behind a pile of shattered rocks, Golden Crocodile gave him a few more pointers, which Yin Zhang accepted humbly.
Before leaving, Golden Crocodile said meaningfully, "I won't pry into your secrets. If you encounter any trouble, come find me."
What a good teacher…
Yin Zhang couldn't help thinking that.
Looking at the now-empty courtyard, he decided to rest for the remainder of the day and return to the academy tomorrow.
Just as he sat down and took out the Glazed Tea Leaves he'd quietly taken from Qiangu Yuan's office, preparing to brew them—
A notification rang out in his mind.
[Detected that the host is about to return to the academy. Triggering the following choices:
Option One: Be a good child, study diligently, and improve every day. After returning to the academy, focus on cultivation and advance to Spirit Ancestor as soon as possible.
Reward: Skill Disc (Ember)
Option Two: …]