At this moment, Jacob and Autarch stood in a clearing, gazing toward the horizon, a sight to behold—a ring of endless sunrise surrounding a towering silhouette hidden within the clouds.
But Jacob wasn't here for sightseeing or to admire this phenomenon. He was focused on the small compass in Autarch's hand. Autarch had taken the elf's body as his puppet, and the compass pointed directly toward the horizon.
"Are they in those clouds?" Jacob asked with a hint of uncertainty.
Although he had already seen many celestial bodies in the strange sky of the Path of Legend, he had never considered the possibility of them playing a significant role. Now, he realized he had been wrong, and everything was part of the Path of Legend.
"Yes, Sir. This compass is given to every close member of Samantha's group, and it can help them locate each other. It is protected by a secret method, and no one can use it without the members' knowledge," Autarch replied emotionlessly.
Jacob nodded, not doubting Autarch. In the next moment, two golden flying discs appeared before them. Jacob had gathered hundreds of them in his last battle on the Unique Plains, knowing they were far more powerful than the gray and bronze flying discs.
"Just use your mana to operate it. It's fairly simple," Jacob instructed as he stepped onto the golden disc. When he imbued his mana, it attached directly to his feet.
The next moment, information about the disc suddenly appeared in Jacob's mind, and he smiled in satisfaction. 'It's an advanced Inception Legend Rank treasure with the abilities of stealth and speed. The stronger one's mana, the more powerful the stealth and speed. But I have to control how much mana I inject into it, or it might blow up since it's limited to the quasi-Legend Rank. It can't handle my current mana!'
Autarch seemed to experience the same realization as they both began to fly toward the horizon, directly heading for the towering silhouette within the clouds.
Once they shot out of the golden clouds, Jacob was surprised to see what lay beyond.
Like a Solar Bastion, a unique, otherworldly plateau hovered as an isolated floating island above an endless sea of golden clouds. The plateau radiated with a faint golden hue, constantly bathed in the soft glow of perpetual dawn, as though the sun was always on the verge of rising but never fully doing so.
In the center of this island stood an ancient tower. This unique area was saturated with the essence of light itself, giving the air a faint shimmer. The atmosphere felt warm, as though the land was alive with the energy of the sun, yet it wasn't unbearably hot.
The most striking feature of the Solar Bastion was the Eternal Horizon—a ring of endless sunrise surrounding the plateau. From their vantage point, they could see golden rays just peeking over the edge of the clouds, casting long, ethereal beams of light that danced across the surface.
The neon sky was clear, with constellations visible even in the golden light, giving the impression of standing at the meeting point between day and night.
Solar Pools, natural basins filled with liquid light, were scattered around the plateau. They rippled gently, casting reflections of stars even in the golden light.
But Jacob's attention was fixed on the awe-inspiring structure in the center, visible even from afar—there was no doubt that this was the Tower of Leo.
Unlike the Tower of Taurus, the Tower of Leo was built entirely from radiant, golden stone that gleamed as though illuminated from within by the light of a thousand suns.
Its smooth, reflective surface captured and magnified any light that touched it, giving the illusion that it was both solid and ephemeral, like a structure made from pure light. Standing nearly one thousand meters tall, its tapered, spire-like form rose into the neon sky, stretching toward the stars.
Massive crimson stone pillars surrounded the Tower of Leo, towering over the land like ancient sentinels. These pillars were carved with intricate lion motifs and had veins of golden energy running through them. They absorbed and amplified the light in the environment, acting as conduits to stabilize the tower's intense radiant energy.
Jacob knew he had reached his destination. He glanced at Autarch and said, "There's no need for her anymore. Come back!"
Autarch obeyed without hesitation, vanishing from the elf's body and returning to Jacob's solar plexus space.
The elf's body lost its life and started to fall along with the disc, but Jacob used his soul force to stop her. He retrieved the disc, absorbed all her blood, and let her dry corpse fall.
After dealing with this small matter, he activated the stealth ability and headed directly toward the tower.
As he got closer, he noticed more details. At the tower's peak sat a massive, radiant Lion's Crest, a glowing sigil in the shape of a roaring lion's head formed from pure golden light. Within this sigil were crimson stars representing the constellation of Leo, constantly emitting beams of shimmering light.
Moreover, three enormous floating golden rings slowly rotated around the spire. Each ring pulsed with energy, resonating with the tower's constellation symbol.
Lastly, from the very top of the tower, the Pillar of Starry Light shot straight into the heavens. This light beam was like a bridge between the tower and the stars, connecting the Tower of Leo to cosmic forces and signaling its alignment with celestial power. The light wasn't constant; it shifted between shades of gold and crimson and occasionally burst into rainbow hues, mimicking the vibrant colors of the stars—much like the Tower of Taurus.
Jacob quickly reached the area near the tower and instantly spotted elves adorned in white robes, dressed similarly to the female elf. Their auras were just as powerful, if not stronger.
Fifteen elves stood like guards at the base of the Tower of Leo, right in front of a grand entrance carved into the radiant stone. Above the entrance, Leo's constellation glowed faintly, and the archway was framed by golden light.
Jacob also noticed hidden rune arrays near the elves, emitting dangerous energy. These arrays were clearly recently created to guard against intruders who might try to ambush Samantha after she obtained the Cosmic Vestige.
But could this formation stop Jacob? The answer was no!
Jacob used his soul force, and the elven guards' expressions changed as they felt the mountainous pressure lock onto them. Before they could react, Jacob crushed their heads in an instant.
No blood spilled as he gathered everything into a blood orb and safely landed in front of the tower entrance. The elves didn't even have the chance to activate the formation.
Without delay, Jacob took out the Legendary Key given to him by the Tower of Taurus. The moment the key appeared, the tower's voice rang out.
"Seeker of Zodiac, you may enter!"
In the next moment, the majestic door of the Tower of Leo began to open before Jacob's blazing eyes. Yet, a hint of uncertainty remained in his gaze because of how the tower had just addressed him!