169: Chapter 169 The Majestic Gate

"Husband's aura has vanished."

Just as Xia Jin entered that stone gate, Leng Yuexi, far away in the Great Xia Imperial Palace, suddenly stiffened. She subconsciously touched the beaded necklace around her neck that Xia Jin had left for her.

"Sister Yue Xi, did you... just say he's gone?" Su Xuanji's right hand, which was holding her sword, trembled involuntarily as she hurriedly looked at Leng Yuexi sitting beside her.

"Yes. He must have left this Dongxuan Continent and gone to the Temple." After Leng Yuexi came to her senses, she took Su Xuanji's hand, a faint smile appearing on her face. "Don't worry. With Husband's strength, even if he goes to the Temple, I believe he will return here very soon."

"Sister Su, what's wrong? You seem very worried about Husband?" Leng Yuexi looked at the somewhat dazed Su Xuanji and couldn't help but tease her.

"Hmph! Who... who's thinking about that guy?" Su Xuanji's face flushed red as she turned her head away in embarrassment.

...

After Xia Jin and the other two stepped out from the other side of the stone gate, they found themselves in a hazy, gray space. Aside from a stone path beneath their feet leading to an unknown destination, they couldn't see their surroundings at all.

"You've finally arrived!" Suddenly, a cold voice came from beside the stone gate. As Xia Jin and the others looked over, they saw a white figure standing quietly to one side of the gate.

It was the same white-veiled woman who had previously led them to participate in the Temple's assessment.

"Let's go. All three of you, follow me." She didn't wait for Xia Jin and the others to react before speaking again, skipping any unnecessary pleasantries.

However, as she spoke, her eyes fell upon Xia Jin and lingered for a few seconds, a faint, imperceptible flicker of something unusual crossing the depths of her gaze.

Why is the imperial aura on this guy getting stronger and stronger?

"What? Why is she staring at this King? Could it be that she's also taken a fancy to me?" Xia Jin noticed the woman's gaze and raised an eyebrow slightly, casting a suspicious glance back at her.

The woman calmly withdrew her gaze and turned to walk forward, saying no more.

Xia Jin and the other two exchanged looks and didn't ask further, following after her.

The stone path was very long.

As Xia Jin walked, he surveyed his surroundings. He discovered that besides the stone path he was on, there were several other identical paths.

However, those paths were empty, with no one in sight.

Clearly, there were other people who had passed the assessment being led by different guides toward the same destination.

The group walked in silence like this for an unknown amount of time.

Finally, the mist ahead gradually dissipated, and a massive palace slowly appeared before their eyes.

When the full view of the palace became clear, even the usually calm Xia Jin couldn't help but narrow his eyes slightly.

Huge!

It was truly massive!

Xia Jin estimated that just the outermost bronze gate alone was over a hundred zhang high! And the lingering dark-red bloodstains on that bronze gate filled anyone who saw them with a sense of awe and dread.

"Is this... the Temple?"

Jian Wuhen stood before the gate, looking up with his mouth agape at the hundred-zhang-tall bronze door, momentarily dazed. He considered himself someone who had seen many grand sights, but the scene before him still left him deeply shaken.

Venerable Miaodi also looked up at the giant gate, his hands pressed together in prayer. He remained silent, but a complex look flashed through his eyes.

Xia Jin withdrew his gaze, a slight smile playing on his lips, and a hint of anticipation flashed in his eyes.

Interesting.

This Temple is indeed not simple.

He stepped forward, intending to push the gate open and go inside to take a look.

However, the moment he took a step, the white-veiled woman blocked his path.

"What?" Xia Jin stopped and looked at her, asking with a frown, "You brought us here, but you're not going to let us in?"

"Of course not. It's just that among your batch of successful candidates, there are still a few who haven't arrived. Wait a moment longer." Although Xia Jin's tone displeased her, she still patiently explained.

"Others!?" Xia Jin immediately thought of the two teams from the Tianqi Continent and the Xiji Continent who had passed the assessment alongside them. He glanced at the veiled woman and said nothing more, leading Venerable Miaodi and Jian Wuhen to step aside.

Since they had to wait, they would wait.

Sure enough, in less than fifteen minutes, the sound of footsteps finally came from the distant mist.

Two groups of people arrived almost simultaneously from different directions.

Leading the way were two other women also wearing white veils. Behind each of them followed a team.

Xia Jin's gaze swept over the two teams, and when he saw the members within them, he suddenly smiled.

That smile carried a hint of playfulness and mockery.

"Eh, strange..." Jian Wuhen also surveyed the two teams, his gaze passing over the members from the Tianqi Continent and the Xiji Continent. He then leaned toward Xia Jin and said in confusion, "Brother Xia, look at the people from the Tianqi Continent. Why is one missing?"

He remembered very clearly that when the last Temple assessment ended, three people from the Tianqi Continent had survived. At that time, their leader had even tried to seize their rewards.

But now, in the Tianqi Continent team following the guide, there were only two.

One was a middle-aged man with a spear on his back and a sinister expression.

The other was a pale young swordsman who had lost half an arm.

The missing person was exactly the man who had tried to take their rewards back then.

"Hahahaha!! Because that man was slaughtered by this King, so naturally he couldn't come!!" Xia Jin suddenly burst into laughter after hearing Jian Wuhen's words.

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire area fell silent.

The two people from the Tianqi Continent both stiffened. Their eyes instantly landed on Xia Jin, a flash of terror appearing in their gaze.

The middle-aged man with the spear leaned toward his companion and said warily, "I was wondering why Big Brother Li didn't come this time... Could he really have been killed by this guy?"

"Lower your voice! This guy doesn't seem to be lying!" The one-armed man stared intently at Xia Jin, his face turning extremely grim. "Otherwise, with Li Chen's personality, there's no way he would miss this opportunity to go to the Temple!"

"But... Big Brother Li..."

"Stop asking! From now on, stay far away from this person!"

Facing Xia Jin's arrogant laughter, the two of them exchanged a few whispers but didn't dare show even a hint of dissatisfaction, fearing that Xia Jin might attack them right then and there.

On the side of the Xiji Continent, the elderly leader glanced at Xia Jin and then at the silent Venerable Miaodi, a trace of wariness flashing in his eyes.

"Creation Realm!... These two actually stepped into the Creation Realm in such a short amount of time!!"

"Elder Kong, what are you saying?" Behind the old man, a simple-looking man asked in a low voice.

"It's nothing." Elder Kong shook his head, but then he couldn't help but warn, "Remember, even after entering the Temple, make sure not to provoke these people."

"Everyone has arrived. Go inside."

As soon as the words were spoken, the hundred-zhang-tall bronze gate suddenly emitted a dull rumbling sound and slowly opened to both sides.