91: Chapter 91, Part 18

The dragon gate appeared, the Azure Water Flood Dragon coiled, and the white jade tower ship floated silently.

When the voice of the Middle-aged Scholar fell like a decree from heaven, the waters of the Seven Star Reef fell into a near-frozen silence, only to be broken by an irrepressible commotion.

"Token Holders, pass through this gate."

"Those who attempt to enter without a token shall have their Divine Soul destroyed."

These two simple sentences caused the hearts of the vast majority of those present to sink.

Yes, the vast majority.

Among the hundreds of Martial Artists gathered here, very few actually possessed a summoning token.

The East Sea is vast; the Dragon Abyss Palace opens its gates once every three years, releasing only twenty summoning tokens into each of the four sea regions: East Sea, West Sea, South Sea, and North Sea.

Combined across the four sea regions, that is only eighty tokens.

Eighty tokens, scattered into the vast, endless sea, appearing randomly near islands, reefs, shipwrecks, or even the nests of dangerous sea beasts. Those who can finally obtain one and arrive safely at the Seven Star Reef are all individuals with excellent Luck, strength, and cunning.

Most others came merely with a sense of wishful thinking.

Either they wanted to witness the grand selection of this East Sea martial arts Holy Land with their own eyes and broaden their horizons.

Or they wanted to observe who the people obtaining the summoning tokens this time were, to establish a good relationship or probe their backgrounds.

Still others thought perhaps they could catch a glimpse of an Opportunity while others were passing the trial... or even snatch one?

But when the pressure of the Azure Water Flood Dragon suppressed the sea area like a physical force, and when the gaze of the Middle-aged Scholar swept calmly across, all unrealistic thoughts were instantly crushed to dust.

The gap in strength was simply too great.

It was a suppression at the level of life itself, leaving one without the slightest desire to resist.

After a brief commotion, changes began to occur within the crowd.

"Hahaha, in that case, this old man shall take the first step and scout the path for everyone!"

A burst of aged yet resonant laughter rang out.

On the massive reef protruding from the sea, that old man Wu Huo, dressed in brown short-sleeved martial attire with a weathered face, slowly stood up.

He casually lifted the pitch-black ironwood fishing rod beside him. As the rod shook in his hand, it emitted a crisp, metallic ringing sound, as if it were not a fishing rod, but a sword concealing its edge.

Wu Huo swayed, drifting away from the reef like a withered leaf. Stepping on the smooth, mirror-like surface of the sea, he strode toward the azure dragon gate.

His steps appeared casual, yet were shockingly fast; within a few breaths, he had already arrived before the dragon gate.

Standing still, Wu Huo looked up at the endlessly flowing, profound runes on the door frame, a hint of solemnity flashing in his eyes.

He reached into his robes and pulled out an object.

It was a palm-sized, cyan token that was neither gold nor jade. On the front was a pattern of mist-shrouded peaks, and on the back was an ancient seal script character for "Dragon," flowing with a warm, gentle luster under the sunlight.

The summoning token!

Wu Huo took a deep breath, gripped the token in his palm, and stepped into the rotating azure vortex.

The moment he stepped in—

"Hum!"

Above the dragon gate, those flowing runes suddenly brightened, and a clear, hazy radiance descended from the door frame, enveloping Wu Huo's entire body.

Wu Huo's body trembled slightly, and the summoning token in his hand simultaneously emitted a soft cyan light, reflecting the radiance of the dragon gate.

After a few breaths, the radiance faded.

Wu Huo's figure had safely passed through the dragon gate and appeared on the other side.

He looked back, a look of relief appearing on his face. Then, his form unfurled like a nimble fish, and stepping across the sea, he arrived beneath the white jade tower ship in a few leaps.

The massive head of the Azure Water Flood Dragon lowered slightly, its cold, vertical pupils glancing at him, and it exhaled two streams of misty white breath from its nostrils, but it did not block him.

A pure white jade ladder descended from the side of the ship.

Wu Huo did not hesitate, climbing the ladder and quickly boarding the deck, where he stood to one side with hands clasped, head lowered, in a respectful posture.

Once there was a first, there was a second.

"Whoosh!"

A pale blue figure soared up like a light swallow.

It was the Blue-clothed Woman from the willow-leaf boat.

She did not even approach by boat, but leaped directly into the air. Her posture was light and graceful, her toes tapping continuously on the smooth sea surface; each tap sent out a tiny ripple, like a Fairy walking on waves.

She also held a cyan token in her hand, her eyes beneath her veil calm and waveless. She passed directly through the radiance of the dragon gate, verified her identity, and then floated onto the ship.

Next was the dark-skinned, brawny man carrying short halberds on his back.

He walked a path of brute force, actually stomping the sea surface until it exploded. Using the recoil, he charged across the sea like a wild elephant with a thunderous roar, his momentum terrifying.

When the radiance of the dragon gate swept over him, his Qi and blood surged, faintly emitting the roar of tigers and leopards, and his token's cyan light also shone, allowing him to pass smoothly.

The youth dressed as a scholar put away his book, tidied his clothes, and then walked across unhurriedly, elegant and graceful.

The figure in the black robe was like a ghost; wherever he passed, faint black traces were left on the sea, only to be quickly purified and dissipated by the seawater. When he passed, the radiance of the dragon gate seemed to ripple for a moment, but ultimately still let him through.

Zhao Yuanjing watched these people pass the trial and board the ship one by one, gripping his folding fan so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and said calmly to the guards and maidservants behind him: "Wait here."

"Young Master!" a guard could not help but whisper.

Zhao Yuanjing waved his hand, saying no more.

He smoothed his brocade garments, tapped his toes lightly on the deck, and his figure rose like a cloud, traversing the air toward the dragon gate.

The light-body technique of a noble Family member emphasizes elegance and beauty. His execution of the "Azure Cloud Step," with his sleeves fluttering and his folding fan swaying lightly, truly possessed the bearing of a refined Young Master from the mortal world, drawing low exclamations of admiration from many onlookers in the distance.

Zhao Yuanjing felt slightly reassured, and his face regained that touch of noble detachment.

He landed steadily before the dragon gate and took out his summoning token.

It was a cyan token that matched his status, with fine gold threads inlaid along the edges, obviously more exquisite than the ones in the hands of the others.

The dragon gate's radiance swept over, and the token responded.

Zhao Yuanjing curled his lips into a smile and passed through with composure.

When he climbed the jade ladder, his gaze swept over Wu Huo, the Blue-clothed Woman, and the others already on the deck. He nodded slightly, acknowledging them, then walked to the vicinity of the bow and stood still, looking into the distance with his hands behind his back, as if admiring the seascape, while actually secretly comparing the strength and backgrounds of these "peers."

One, two, three...

As time passed, one after another, more than ten people successfully passed through the dragon gate and boarded the tower ship.

These people had different appearances and temperaments; some were steady as mountains, some had piercing sharpness, and some were cold and reclusive. But without exception, they all held genuine summoning tokens and passed the inspection of the dragon gate unscathed.

When the eighteenth person...

A youth who looked no more than fifteen or sixteen, yet had an exceptionally mature gaze, boarded the deck. The Middle-aged Scholar at the bow, who had been closing his eyes to rest, slowly opened his eyes.

His gaze swept over these eighteen individuals who had passed on the deck, and he nodded slightly, seemingly satisfied.

Then, he looked up at the sky.

The sun had already tilted slightly to the west, and the sea surface was glistening with golden light.

"The time is approaching," the Middle-aged Scholar said calmly. His voice was still not loud, yet everyone heard it clearly. "Wait another incense stick's time."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the eighteen people who had already boarded the deck varied.

Some breathed a sigh of relief, some were secretly anxious, some were expressionless, and some had a flash of understanding in their eyes.

It seemed that the twenty summoning tokens for this sea region had not all appeared; some people had not yet arrived.

Zhao Yuanjing's brows furrowed imperceptibly.

Having been raised by his Family since childhood, he knew some of the unspoken rules of the Dragon Abyss Palace's selection.

Although the summoning tokens were scattered randomly, the Dragon Abyss Palace had its own secret methods to sense their general location and the status of the holders.

Generally speaking, Token Holders who failed to reach the Seven Star Reef within the stipulated time had either died or given up voluntarily.

The envoys from the palace would not wait indefinitely.

An incense stick's time was the final ultimatum.

On the sea, the hundreds of Martial Artists who were watching also began to stir.

"Only two spots left!"

"I wonder who will be the last to arrive?"

"Heh, maybe no one is coming at all. I heard something big happened in Donghai Prefecture this time, many people died; maybe some Token Holder had bad Luck and ran into it..."

"It's also possible the token was lost, or snatched by someone..."

The hushed discussions drifted away in the sea breeze.

Time passed bit by bit.

An incense stick's time quickly burned to the end.

The Middle-aged Scholar raised his eyes again and looked at the sky, his face neither happy nor sad.

He gently raised his hand and pressed it vaguely in the direction of the dragon gate.

"Withdraw."

As his voice fell, the "dragon gate," which was thirty zhang high and formed entirely of seawater and blue light, began to fluctuate slowly. The azure vortex inside the gate gradually slowed its rotation, the light of the runes on the door frame began to dim, and the entire portal showed signs of dissipating!

At the same time, the pale golden runic chains wrapped around the neck and body of the Azure Water Flood Dragon glowed faintly. This colossal beast let out a low dragon roar, turned its head toward the white jade tower ship, and paddled the seawater with its four claws. Its massive body began to turn slowly, clearly preparing to tow the tower ship away.

On the deck, the eighteen who had passed had varied expressions, but most breathed a sigh of relief.

Regardless, they were now confirmed to be the reserve Disciples of this Dragon Abyss Palace selection.

Zhao Yuanjing's lips curled into a reserved smile. His gaze swept over the onlookers below on the sea who were still craning their necks and looking up, but were destined to have no chance, and a sense of superiority welled up in his heart.

Peasants are peasants after all.

Is the gate of the Dragon Abyss Palace so easy to enter?

However—

Just at the moment when the dragon gate was about to dissipate completely, the Azure Water Flood Dragon had fully turned, and the white jade tower ship began to move slowly!

A sudden change occurred!