207: Chapter 206 Dragon Gate Trial

"Han Zhou, I know what you are thinking."

His voice was low, each word deliberate:

"Blood Shark Island killed over a hundred people from the Prodigal Society. You want revenge; you want to destroy them with your own hands. As your teacher, I understand."

"But—"

He shifted his tone, his gaze meeting Jiang Hanzhou's eyes directly:

"The matter of the ancient flood dragon remains involves things deeper than you imagine. It isn't just something Blood Shark Island covets; it likely involves powers that you currently cannot contend with."

"The Sect will handle this matter. Do not act rashly."

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a moment before saying slowly:

"This Disciple understands."

Master Xue Mu looked at him, remained silent for a while, and then suddenly asked:

"Do you really understand?"

Jiang Hanzhou raised his head and looked at him.

Master Xue Mu said emphatically:

"Your battlefield is not in the East Sea, not on Blood Shark Island, and not among those evil cultivators."

"Your battlefield is at the Dragon Gate Trial."

"In twenty days, outside the Latent Dragon Courtyard, a thousand Outer Sect Disciples will compete for those thirty spots to leap through the dragon gate. That is where you should be putting your life on the line."

"The Sect will send people to handle the Blood Shark Island matter. As for the ancient flood dragon remains, the Sect will also investigate until the truth comes out. Your current task is to prepare well for the Dragon Gate Trial, to make yourself stronger, and to let those Inner Sect Prodigies see what kind of person my, Master Xue Mu's, Disciple is."

He paused, his voice growing even lower:

"Han Zhou, remember my words."

"Revenge requires strength. Without strength, revenge is just seeking death."

"Once you pass the Dragon Gate Trial, once you become an Inner Sect Disciple, and once you have sufficient strength—at that time, if you want to go to Blood Shark Island, I will not stop you."

"But for now—"

He stared into Jiang Hanzhou's eyes:

"Endure."

Jiang Hanzhou was silent for a long time.

Then, he took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

"This Disciple has committed it to memory."

Master Xue Mu looked at him, a flicker of gratification flashing in his eyes.

"Go on." He waved his hand. "Leave Jiang Tao here to recover from his injuries. You go to the Lijian Cliff and continue to comprehend that sword scar. In twenty days, I want to see you step into the Latent Dragon Courtyard in your best condition."

Jiang Hanzhou gave a respectful bow and turned to walk out of the stone chamber.

As he reached the doorway, Jiang Tao's weak voice suddenly came from behind him:

"Mas...ter..."

Jiang Hanzhou stopped and turned around.

Jiang Tao lay on the jade bed, his face as pale as paper, yet he struggled to open his eyes and look at him. In those eyes, there were bloodshot streaks, glimmers of tears, and an unspeakable guilt.

"Master... I failed you... Zhang Heng and the others... they are all dead..."

His voice was hoarse and intermittent:

"But... Master... that black-robed man... I've seen him..."

"On Blood Shark Island... he left behind a... Blood Soul Talisman..."

"Inside that talisman... his Aura is sealed... if tracked with a secret method... one can... can find him..."

He struggled to raise his hand, pointing at his own chest.

There, a very faint blood-colored pattern was slowly circulating.

Jiang Hanzhou stepped forward and looked down at the pattern.

The pattern was extremely fine, as thin as a strand of hair, winding across his pale skin. With every movement, a trace of very faint blood-colored light dissipated from the pattern, containing a cold and eerie Aura.

He closed his eyes, sensing it with his Divine Sense.

Deep within that pattern, a wisp of Aura was indeed sealed. That Aura was extremely weak, yet exceptionally clear—it was an Aura completely different from the evil cultivators of Blood Shark Island; it was cold, eerie, and profound, like an abyss.

He opened his eyes and looked at Jiang Tao.

"Recover well." His voice was as calm as water. "I will take this Blood Soul Talisman."

He raised his hand and lightly brushed over Jiang Tao's chest, sealing that wisp of Aura into a Jade Slip before placing it into his sumeru pouch.

Then, he turned and strode out of the stone chamber.

Behind him, Jiang Tao watched his departing back, his lips moving, but in the end, he said nothing more.

—

The moment he stepped out of Lihuo Hall, the afternoon sunlight happened to spill down.

Jiang Hanzhou stood on the stone steps in front of the hall, gazing at the bright sun on the horizon.

The sunlight was dazzling, yet he felt a bit cold.

Blood Shark Island.

The black-robed man.

The ancient flood dragon remains.

Master Xue Mu said the Sect would handle these matters.

But he knew that there were some things the Sect could not handle.

Or rather, the way the Sect handled things was different from the way he wanted them handled.

What he wanted wasn't for them to send people to purge the island, nor to capture the black-robed man for interrogation, nor to take the ancient flood dragon remains for the Sect's own.

What he wanted was to kill the black-robed man with his own hands, to destroy Blood Shark Island himself, and to use the blood of those evil cultivators to offer as a sacrifice to Zhang Heng, Old Seven Chen, A-Kun, and the others.

Over a hundred lives.

They could not have died in vain.

But he also knew that Master Xue Mu was right.

Going for revenge now would only be seeking death.

The Third Island Master of Blood Shark Island was at the Late Yuanxiang Stage; what about the Second Island Master? The Great Island Master? And that black-robed man?

He didn't know.

But Jiang Tao's near-death gaze told him that those people were very strong.

He needed to become stronger.

Strong enough to crush them.

He took a deep breath and tucked the Jade Slip containing the black-robed man's Aura deep into his sumeru pouch.

Then, he turned and walked toward the Lijian Cliff.

—

Twenty days later.

In the early morning, the horizon had just begun to turn the color of a fish's belly.

When Jiang Hanzhou stepped out of the cultivation room, the entire Red Fire Peak was shrouded in a light morning mist. In the distance, the faint sound of a bell could be heard, heavy and far-reaching; it was the bell of the Law Enforcement Hall summoning the Disciples.

He raised his head and looked toward the direction of the bell.

Latent Dragon Courtyard.

He set off, walking down the mountain.

—

The Latent Dragon Courtyard was located at the foot of the main Peak of Dragon Abyss Palace, a site specifically opened for the Dragon Gate Trial.

Outside the courtyard was a massive plaza, a thousand zhang in diameter, large enough to accommodate thousands of people. In the center of the plaza stood a three-zhang-tall green stone gate, with three ancient characters carved onto the lintel—"Leap the Dragon Gate."

At this moment, over a thousand people had already gathered on the plaza.

There were men and women, old and young, all wearing the attire of their respective Peaks—the crimson robes of Red Fire Peak, the cyan and white martial suits of Heavenly Sword Peak, the mysterious black armor of Black Tortoise Peak, and the cyan-gray Daoist robes of Danxia Peak.

Outer Sect Disciples.

They came from the seven Peaks and twenty-four caves of Dragon Abyss Palace, totaling over one thousand three hundred people.

Their gazes all fell upon the green stone gate in the center of the plaza. In those eyes, there was anticipation, nervousness, excitement, and also fear.

Jiang Hanzhou stood in the crowd, his gaze sweeping across his surroundings.

He saw Teng Yuzhi. She was still in her moon-white martial suit, with that sharp cyan sword hanging at her waist, the green jade pendant on the sword tassel shimmering slightly in the morning light. Her complexion was ruddier than it had been twenty days ago; clearly, her injuries had healed, and her cultivation had progressed further.

She seemed to sense his gaze, turned her head, and nodded slightly toward him.

Jiang Hanzhou nodded back in response.

He saw Zhao Yuanjing. He stood beside Teng Yuzhi, holding that pitch-black long spear, with a faint cold light flowing over the shaft. His Aura was steadier than before; evidently, he had not wasted these past twenty days either.

He saw Song Hu and Liu Ningshuang. Song Hu's bare arms were wrapped in bandages, but he was in excellent spirits, grinning at the people around him. Liu Ningshuang stood beside him, her face rosy, with twin swords hanging at her waist, her Aura much sharper than before.

He also saw Huo Qingfeng. That fellow stood at the very front of the crowd, holding his long sword, which was already unsheathed by three inches, with a faint cyan light flowing over the blade.

But the ones attracting the most attention were not them.

Rather, it was the three figures standing proudly at the very front of the plaza.

Leading them was a young man in mysterious black armor, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a cold face, thick eyebrows like swords, and eyes as imposing as a tiger's. A faint blue light lingered around him, within which ice crystals seemed to condense, emitting a bone-chilling coldness.

Ao Zhan.

The Number One Outer Sect Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak, possessing thirty percent Ice Soul True Intent, at the Peak of the Late Yuanxiang Stage.

Behind him stood two equally extraordinary young people, a man and a woman.

The man wore crimson robes and had a rugged face, with a faint reddish-gold light lingering around him—the Eldest Senior Brother of the Red Fire Peak Outer Sect, possessing twenty percent Blazing Sun True Intent, at the Late Yuanxiang Stage.

The woman wore a cyan and white martial suit and had a delicate face, with a faint cyan light lingering around her—the number two genius of the Heavenly Sword Peak Outer Sect, possessing twenty percent Wind and Thunder True Intent, at the Yuan Xiang middle stage.

The three of them stood at the very front of the crowd, like three towering mountains, filling the Outer Sect Disciples behind them with awe.

Jiang Hanzhou looked at those three figures, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.