133: Chapter 133 Introduction

His voice was not loud, one could even say it was quite flat, yet it rolled across the sky like a thunderclap, clearly reaching the ears of everyone present.

"The quota for the legacy of the Dragon Slaying True Person is set at one hundred."

"Thirty for the Dragon Abyss Palace, thirty for the Black Jade Mansion, and thirty for the Sea Quelling Department."

"The remaining ten are for the Loose Cultivators to claim themselves."

He paused.

"Anyone with objections may raise them now."

On the sea, there was dead silence.

Those Loose Cultivators who had just been arguing excitedly, calculating in the shadows, and itching to act were now as if gripped by an invisible giant hand, their breathing becoming extremely light and shallow.

Objections? Who would dare to have objections?

These three standing there were the most irrefutable answer within a thousand miles.

Some lowered their heads, some clenched their fists, and some gritted their teeth, swallowing the bitterness in their throats.

No one made a sound.

Teng Yuzhi withdrew her gaze.

She heard a Dragon Abyss Palace Disciple behind her lower their voice and say, "Thirty spots... how many can our Bibo Pool occupy?"

"Do not rush, listen to the Elder's arrangements."

"I heard people from Heavenly Sword Peak are also coming, they are on the way..."

"So what? Elder Yuheng is here; is it Heavenly Sword Peak's turn to speak?"

The murmurs were kept extremely low, like an undercurrent surging.

Yuheng paid no attention to this.

She merely turned to look at Teng Yuzhi. In those eyes that were usually filled with a hint of teasing amusement, only calmness and solemnity remained now.

"This time, you should go in and try as well."

Teng Yuzhi was slightly stunned.

Yuheng continued, "The Dragon Slaying True Person set this threshold with a purpose. For those of the Primal Form Realm entering, the difficulty will not exceed the trials of the Dragon Fetus Realm. Since the Immortal Master set the rule that only those who have not obtained Spiritual Opportunity may enter, he would not set up a dead end inside that only those of the Dragon Fetus Realm could handle."

She paused. "But danger still exists. The legacy of the Immortal Master, even if it is an Opportunity left for the Primal Form Realm, is by no means an easy path."

She took out a Talisman folded into a square knot from her sleeve.

The Talisman was about the size of an infant's palm, pale green throughout, with fine silver runes flowing on its surface. Each line seemed like a living creature, slowly moving under the moonlight.

"This is a Talisman Treasure." Yuheng stuffed the Talisman into Teng Yuzhi's palm. "It was bestowed upon me by my Revered Master when I entered the Dragon Elephant Mutual Harmony. It seals one strike of her 'Green Sea Tide Sword'."

Her tone was flat, as if she were speaking of an ordinary, trivial matter.

But Teng Yuzhi knew the weight of this Talisman.

A Talisman Treasure personally crafted by the Grand Elder of the Bibo Pool. It sealed the full-strength strike of a powerhouse in the Dongxuan Realm.

This was a life-saving item, and even more, it was the greatest protection her aunt could provide, solemnly placed into her hands.

Teng Yuzhi did not decline. She accepted the Talisman, hid it close to her body, and whispered, "Yes."

Yuheng nodded and said no more. The sea breeze brushed over the bow of the ship, blowing her pale green skirt into a soft arc.

Teng Yuzhi looked toward that ink-green palace gate standing silently in the sea, looking at the slowly rotating blue light curtain in the center of the door.

Inside the light curtain, a deep red vortex was slowly taking shape.

It was not large, about a zhang in radius, with deep azure edges that grew darker toward the center, finally condensing into a dazzling crimson point right in the middle.

It was as if a portal leading to another world was slowly opening a gap, facing this world.

Teng Yuzhi looked at the vortex, and a faint trace of regret suddenly arose in her heart.

What a pity. It is a pity that Jiang Hanzhou is in seclusion.

She did not know where this regret came from.

In terms of friendship, she and Jiang Hanzhou had only met a few times since their first encounter in the outer sect, and their conversations could be counted on one hand.

In terms of strength, she was not without confidence in entering the Dragon Slaying Cave Mansion this time.

But she just felt it was a pity.

If that person with great Luck were also here, perhaps it would be very interesting.

She wanted to see how that youth from the outer sect hall would now step into this gate, which had gathered the gaze of the entire East Sea.

What a pity. Teng Yuzhi withdrew her thoughts and buried that trace of regret deep in her heart. She did not think about it anymore.

— Meanwhile. — Ten thousand miles away.

Gloomy. Dead silence. Fishy and salty.

Jiang Hanzhou opened his eyes.

He did not know how long he had slept in the belly of the giant whale. Perhaps half an hour, perhaps a day, perhaps longer.

In this Chaos where even light could not penetrate, time had lost its meaning. Only darkness, like a tide, without beginning or end, engulfed him.

He did not panic. He gripped the tiger soul saber tightly, confirmed that the sumeru pouch was intact, and that the piece of gold marrow cloud-patterned iron and the remaining two Spirit Stones were still there.

Then he restrained his breath, sat cross-legged, and waited quietly. This was an instinct he had honed through countless life-and-death moments. The more desperate the situation, the calmer one must be.

What about the Moonlight Spirit Clam?

He separated a strand of Divine Sense to explore his surroundings, but only sensed dead silence.

That Essence Spirit that had tangled with him for so long did not know which corner of the giant whale's belly it had been swallowed into. Perhaps it was already deeper, perhaps it had been digested, perhaps—

Jiang Hanzhou did not dwell on it. The most urgent matter was to find a way out.

He looked up. High above, the arc-shaped gap that had sucked him in had completely closed.

There had once been a sliver of daylight there, but now only a darkness deeper than the surroundings remained. That was the whale's mouth. It was also the only direction he could identify at this moment.

Jiang Hanzhou stood up, stepping on the soft, sticky layer of whale stomach deposits that had accumulated for who knows how many years, and walked toward the direction of the vanished fissure.

Every step was very slow. It was not hesitation, but perception.

The giant whale's belly was not completely silent. In the distance, there was a faint, low rumbling like muffled thunder; that was the sound of the giant whale's organs pulsating. Occasionally, small undercurrents brushed past him; those were the traces of digestive fluids flowing as the stomach wall churned.

He moved forward in the darkness. He did not know how long he walked. Perhaps an hour, perhaps longer.

Then he saw light. The light was extremely weak. In the boundless darkness, it was like a flickering firefly, far away on the horizon. But Jiang Hanzhou saw it.

He did not hesitate at all and walked toward that point of light.

The light grew closer. It was not the fluorescence of the whale's belly itself, not the glow of any spiritual object, nor any natural light source he knew.

It was a door. A door standing in this giant whale's belly, in the depths of the gloomy stomach, that had existed for who knows how many years.

The door was not high, about a zhang, deep ink-green throughout, with unknown pale gold ornaments inlaid on the edges.

The patterns were complex and ancient, not any Formation runes he had ever seen, but more primitive, as if they were traces of the Dao that had existed since the creation of heaven and earth.

The door was half-open. Inside the door was a bottomless azure. That blue was extremely pure, without any Impurities, like a solid block of deep sea, standing there quietly, waiting for thousands of years.

Jiang Hanzhou stood before the door. He lowered his head and looked at the bottom right corner of the door.

There was a small plaque there, no, rather than a plaque, it was more like a brand, deeply engraved on the ink-green stone door with some unknown technique.

The brand had only two characters. Ancient seal script. With the force of a thousand jun. dragon slaying.

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a long time. Then, he reached out his hand. He pushed open that door.