Wu Yu only needed Princess Xi to block Prince Diablo for a few breaths of time, and he could escape completely from this world of eternal darkness.
While Prince Diablo had wanted to chase after Wu Yu, Princess Xi would not let him continue his pursuit before he released the other princes and princesses in his Tenebrous Stone Pillar.
After he had released everyone else and allowed them to recover, Wu Yu had already disappeared without a trace.
It was only now that Princess Xi did not stop him from pursuing Wu Yu.
Other people from the Nanyin Demon Continent and Emperor's Electric Reservoir watched helplessly as Prince Diablo ran away. Many of them had humiliated these Yan Huang princes and princesses before. Now these princes and princesses were still recovering. However, when these princes and princesses had regained consciousness, they would be in great trouble, especially for the people from the Nanyin Demon Continent and Emperor's Electric Reservoir. Without Prince Diablo, they had lost their main combat power.
As such, they also dispersed quickly and ran away in different directions.
Only Princess Xi and those dazed princes and princesses remained at the scene. Princess Xi's gaze followed the direction that Prince Diablo had taken in his pursuit of Wu Yu. Thinking about what had just happened, she could not hold back her laughter. She said: "Look at this Prince Diablo chasing Wu Yu so anxiously. Perhaps Wu Yu did steal his Universal Holy Gourd? Things are getting fun now."
"This rascal is quite bold. He even dared to deceive me. I will have to teach him a lesson the next time I see him."
"On the other hand, his accomplishments are astonishing, and the lightning speed that his powers had grown at is unbelievable. Could it be that Father Emperor really favours Prince Le and no longer consider us, the older princes and princesses, for the throne."
Princess Xi felt a little helpless and shook her head. She could not be bothered to look at the people whom she had saved. She left immediately after these princes and princesses have regained some consciousness.
As for Wu Yu, he was already long gone.
He was going towards the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower when he had accidentally entered Prince Diablo's Eternal Darkness. As a result, he had wasted so much time. However, now that he had escaped and gained the treasure, Universal Holy Gourd, this encounter did not result in a total loss for Wu Yu.
Wu Yu did not change his plans. Prince Diablo was still chasing after him. He proceeded upwards and prepared to rush directly into the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower. Generally, the higher you were, the more chaotic the skies would be. Hence, Prince Diablo would eventually lose his sense of direction and be farther and farther away from Wu Yu.
His Heaven Devouring Avatar was making use of the time to quickly study the Universal Holy Gourd in the Floating Dreams Pagoda. The Floating Dreams Pagoda was very powerful, directly cutting off the connection between the Universal Holy Gourd and Prince Diablo. With this connection, Prince Diablo who was still the master of the Universal Holy Gourd could find it no matter where it was. However it was now in the Floating Dreams Pagoda and disconnected from Prince Diablo. This made Prince Diablo very terrified because he could no longer sense the existence of the Universal Holy Gourd.
"Luckily, Princess Xi had helped us."
"It's really dangerous this time."
"It's hard to imagine how miserable we would be if we were caught by that lunatic Prince Diablo."
Prince Le and the others still had lingering fear from their capture.
But at this moment, Wu Yu had entered the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat. He piloted the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat and began to make a rush towards the seventh level. In the skies, there were countless pitch black storms every where. There was no way to dodge them. He could only brave through.
At present, the Imperial Seal under Wu Yu's control was definitely much more powerful than when it was under Princess Yin's control. Soon, Wu Yu rushed into the black storms. Despite having such powers, he still felt that it was very strenuous, especially after undergoing that battle just now.
In this black storm, the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat rocked from side to side resulting in violent shocks. Those storms were like countless advanced dao treasures attacking the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat. The Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat design, especially the Tortoise Dragon, played a significant role in defending against the attacks. At this time, most of the spirit designs of the Tortoise Dragon were activated.
In the dark, the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat was like a black immortal tortoise. It braved the fierce storms and moved upwards step by step silently. In fact, much of Wu Yu's powers were depleted just trying to hold the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat's defences against the storms' attacks.
He had to withstand this torturous journey now.
If they could reach the seventh level, they were only left with the eighth and ninth level in the whole Ancient Soul Tower to explore.
The Ancient Emperor’s Ancient Soul Tower was full of mysteries. Where was the Golden Bead? Wu Yu was also curious and desired to find out.
At the same time, what he desired and had persevered for, was his own dao and determination to move forward bravely.
He withstood the constant impacts and persevered. The test this time was unprecedented. When Wu Yu had finally reached the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower, he was exhausted. Fortunately, he managed to shake off Prince Diablo completely, and the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower seemed to have a good environment for hiding, so Wu Yu hid and began his recuperation.
At the same time, the Black Phoenix could repair and recover too.
The seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower was the opposite of the sixth level. The sixth level was an unbelievably dark world. It was so dark that one would not be able to see one's fingers even if one had stretched them out in front of one's face. Whereas the seventh level was full of white light. This light did not seem hot, but it was extremely vibrant. It filled every corner. It was difficult even for Wu Yu to open his eyes to look at his surroundings, let alone other people.
Under such bright light, the others could only close their eyes. Hence, although the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower was extremely bright, for any one coming up, it might feel even darker here compared to the sixth level because they still could not see anything.
At the sixth level, once there was a light, it would be very obvious. However it was different here. Even if there was a light shining, no one could see it. They could only make their judgments by listening to sounds, but this would definitely have a great limitation on movement.
So Wu Yu concluded that this place was safe for the time being. They were all in the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat and could concentrate on recuperating for now. Although he used up quite a lot of God's Way pills, it was worth it.
He just did not know what kind of Spirits of the Universe would exist in this world filled with light.
About five days later, Wu Yu had basically returned to his peak state, and the Black Phoenix was completely restored. Wu Yu transferred them to the Black Phoenix as it was easier to navigate. This metal Black Phoenix was fast. At least, it was faster than the Tortoise Shield Dragon Boat.
"It seems more difficult to spot the Yan Huang Golden Bead even if it appeared in the seventh level now. Now only the eighth and ninth level remained unexplored. I have decided to go up to the eighth level to take a look." After Wu Yu had made his decision, he informed Prince Le and the others.
Prince Le was a little confused and asked: "It is already quite hard for us to reach this seventh level. I don't think, with so many of us, that we can reach the eighth level. Besides, we cannot fight anyone in the higher levels. They are all too powerful, and no weaker than that Prince Diablo. We cannot compete at all if we go up."
Wu Yu nodded and explained: "That is why we are not going up. I will go up alone. My real body will go up alone. My avatar, Nanshan and Xixi will remain here. Of course, Black Phoenix will remain here too. They will protect you guys. You guys will remain at the seventh level for the moment. Do not move and just hide yourselves. Don't worry, my avatar will stay behind. It is the same as having me around. Once something troublesome happens here that you all cannot handle, my real body will come down from the higher levels."
At this point, Wu Yu would regret it if he did not explore the eighth or even the ninth level.
He had discussed his plans with Full Moon of Nanshan over these few days. His Heaven Devouring Avatar would remain with them. At the same time, as a precaution, Wu Yu would leave the Floating Dreams Pagoda and Gateway to the Ancient Demon Realm behind.
This time, his real body's agility was the prime choice for advancing into the eighth or even ninth level of the Ancient Soul Tower. He could not bring them along with him into the eighth or ninth levels. Hence, Wu Yu had decided that from a certain point in their journey, he would need to proceed alone.
"Don't place your hopes on the Yan Huang Golden Bead appearing at the lower levels, even though it had appeared at lower levels before. I feel that it might be at other places, and possibly at the higher levels." Wu Yu added.
Prince Le considered for a moment before nodding and saying: "Okay, we have indeed held you back from performing to your full abilities. Your strength lies in your agility and flexibility. After all, those are the strengths of your mystiques. Besides, you will be leaving your avatar and puppets behind. So, our main combat powers are still here. We only need to hide in the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower and we will not meet with any danger. Since that is the case, you should proceed to the higher levels without worry."
Actually, Wu Yu was not discussing with Prince Le. He was simply informing him.
Ultimately, it was still Wu Yu's real body who could truly guarantee their safety. Hence, at this moment, Prince Le and his group was still worried about Wu Yu leaving them. However, the situation had changed now. Anyway, Prince Le had no way of changing Wu Yu's mind.
Wu Yu made some more detailed preparations. His upcoming advance to the higher levels was one of the most important explorations that he would make in his life. He would need to be fully prepared. He had to ensure that the Heaven Devouring Avatar, Full Moon of Nanshan and the others would have a chance of retreat should they meet with any danger. Otherwise, he would have left without having to bid them farewell. After all, his white haired red eyed Heaven Devouring Avatar was still standing with them.
This was basically equivalent to having Wu Yu present with them. Full Moon of Nanshan continued to study his mystique. Ye Xixi had more to learn, for instance, about the Seraphic dao treasure and her mystiques. Heaven Devouring Avatar had to continue his blood bond and understanding of the Universal Holy Gourd. He aimed to be able to use it effectively as soon as possible.
Prince Le and the others were bored with nothing to do. Hence, they started to train as well in the seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower.
The seventh level of the Ancient Soul Tower was very quiet. At the moment, it felt as though there were no existing threats. However, Wu Yu did not dare to be careless. They had moved quietly, or more accurately, they did not really move much. Hence, they were safe for the moment.
However, such peace would not last long as there were Spirits of the Universe, other martial cultivators, ghostly cultivators, and demons here on the seventh level. There was also Prince Diablo who would definitely catch up to them.
After leaving, Wu Yu's real body went upwards discreetly. He was finally alone and had absolute freedom. He could act without any worries. Now, even if he bumped into that Prince Diablo, that Prince Diablo would not be able to land a blow on him. Even so, Wu Yu still used his Lawful Embodiment of Heaven and Earth to transform into his smallest form and pierced through the sky at his fastest speed. Actually, he was not confident about reaching the eighth level of the Ancient Soul Tower. However, he knew that he must attempt to do it!