Chapter 563 - 345: Publishing a Paper Again, A Scholar’s Experience

Chapter 563: Chapter 345: Publishing a Paper Again, A Scholar’s Experience

Inside the Time Tower.

The veins of the Time Law were like flowing threads of silver light.

They were clearly visible before Li Wen’s eyes, each pulse containing the ultimate principles of the universe’s operation.

He was immersed in it, his mind completely fused with this space-time, which had been accelerated two hundredfold.

One hundred days and nights of focused cultivation—a mere half a day in the outside world—had deepened his understanding of the Time Law.

A strong premonition lingered in his mind.

With just a few more deep comprehension sessions like this, he would be able to cross the threshold.

He would officially advance his mastery of the Time Law to the Mid-stage Saint Realm.

"BEEP! User Li Wen, your current cultivation session in the Time Tower’s east gate is about to reach the twelve-hour limit. Please conclude your session and exit the Time Tower. Thank you for your cooperation."

The Time Tower’s impassive automated voice forcibly jolted Li Wen from his deep state of comprehension.

He shifted his gaze away from the trajectory of the Time Law before him.

’The twelve-hour limit already...?’ Li Wen muttered to himself.

The Source Net branch’s Time Tower only had four chambers, making it a precious resource.

To prevent anyone from monopolizing a chamber for too long, this strict rule was indeed in place.

He understood the necessity of the rule. Although he longed to continue, his reason prompted him to quickly collect himself.

Before getting up, he had a thought and used his Time Token to slowly lower the 200x time-flow rate in the room.

The silvery radiance gradually subsided, eventually stabilizing at a thirty-fold flow rate.

「At the same time, outside the Time Tower.」

Three young Cultivators in different attire were waiting restlessly, their faces etched with impatience.

They were all geniuses from the Alka Empire’s Source Net branch.

They had never been forced to wait this long before, but they were stuck here because the east gate had been occupied for a full half-day.

A faint sense of anxiety hung in the air.

"Tsk, who the hell is that guy in the east gate? He’s been in there for half a day and still isn’t out? Can he even withstand the erosion of time after cultivating for so long? What a criminal waste of a precious resource."

A burly young man in Titan-style battle armor couldn’t help but complain. He was the most impatient of the group and had already been pacing back and forth for a while.

"Let’s check the records," a young man with a somewhat androgynous air beside him said, frowning as he pulled up his smart projection and swiped his fingers quickly.

"East Gate... User: Li Wen? Entry time... Hiss! 11 hours and 57 minutes! It’s almost twelve hours! He’s been in there for that long?" His voice was filled with clear surprise and a hint of displeasure.

"Li Wen? You mean *the* ’God of Slaughter’ Li Wen?" The third person, a young woman, reacted abruptly, her voice dropping a few notches.

"The God of Slaughter? The one who’s ranked second on the general leaderboard?" The burly young man froze. The impatience on his face instantly solidified, and then, like a popped balloon, all his bravado deflated. "Ah... It’s... it’s him..."

Just as the three of them were looking at each other in dismay, their earlier discontent replaced by awe...

The east gate of the Time Tower slid open without a sound.

WHOOSH!

The trio’s gazes instantly focused on the doorway, filled with intense curiosity and scrutiny.

Li Wen’s figure calmly stepped out from the hazy glow, which was suffused with the aura of time.

His expression was placid, his aura deep and restrained, as if he had just awoken from an ordinary meditation session.

He showed not the slightest sign of fatigue from enduring half a day under a high-multiple time-flow rate.

He didn’t notice the few people waiting outside the tower.

Or rather, his mind was still immersed in the afterglow of his recent comprehension of the Time Law.

With a single step, his figure vanished from the spot without a sound, as if melting into space itself.

He left behind only a faint, peculiar fluctuation of the Time Law.

Only when Li Wen’s aura had completely disappeared did the three outside the tower collectively let out a sigh of relief.

They exchanged glances, each wearing a slightly sheepish smile.

Their complaints from moments ago now seemed so inappropriate.

"Ahem... So it was the God of Slaughter. No wonder..." The burly young man scratched his head, his tone a bit awkward.

"To be able to stay inside for half a day... You have to respect that kind of power," the young woman said, shaking her head in admiration.

"My turn." The androgynous-looking young man who had checked the records took a deep breath and walked toward the newly opened east gate.

He stepped into the cultivation chamber Li Wen had just left, and a strange sense of space-time that hadn’t fully dissipated immediately enveloped him.

He keenly sensed the residual energy fluctuations in the air.

It was the aftereffect of a stable thirty-fold time-flow rate.

’Thirty-fold... He actually maintained a thirty-fold flow rate to cultivate for a full half-day?’ The androgynous young man’s pupils constricted as shockwaves tore through his mind.

He himself had tried a twenty-fold rate, and that was already his limit. He would get dizzy and disoriented within minutes.

’Thirty-fold? That’s just unimaginable.’

’What a monster... Truly worthy of someone who majors in the Time Law,’ he thought, clicking his tongue in amazement. At the same time, a competitive fire was lit within him.

He took out his own Time Token and directly set the multiplier to twenty-fold, a rate that had given him immense trouble in the past.

HUMMM!

The pressure of the Time Law descended abruptly, like an invisible sledgehammer pounding his spirit.

Almost instantly, his face turned deathly pale, cold sweat beaded on his temples, and his body began to tremble uncontrollably.

After holding on for less than three minutes, sharp pains stabbed through his sea of consciousness.

He frantically grabbed his Time Token and rapidly decreased the multiplier.

In the end, he struggled to stabilize the rate at eighteen-fold before he felt he could barely withstand it.

He gasped for breath, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead as he stared at the "18x" displayed on the Time Token.

Then he thought back to Li Wen’s completely unbothered demeanor upon leaving and the residual aura of a thirty-fold flow rate in the air.

A profound sense of helplessness and even greater awe washed over him.