Gonna finish inner core to 8, then do my teslas to 7 and start TH10!
Starting town hall 10 probably in 2 weeks:)
What Level are your Heroes
Your description of your base is missing the information on your heroes' levels. I would certainly get heroes to at least level 15 before going up. If it were me, I would use Elixir for legos, Gold for skulls and DE for heroes and stay at 9. You will rarely be raided for loot as your resources will go immediately into walls.
I have just finished legos, King is 15 and Queen is on her way to 17 and plan on staying at 9 and learn how to attack better.