by Dragon King
He still felt like he was a member of the East Ocean Dragon Clan.
“People have different ambitions… I won’t ask you again,” the Shrine Master said mildly.
After a few seconds of silence, he saw that Hao Ren was still standing in the secret chamber and said, “If you have nothing else to say, you are free to go.”
“I’m afraid I have one thing…” Hao Ren said.
“Speak.”
“When will the Dragon God Shrine return the item that it borrowed from the East Ocean Dragon Clan?” Hao Ren asked.
Facing the stone wall, the Shrine Master inhaled deeply, and the nature essence released from his body suddenly increased.
Hao Ren stood steadily on the floor. Now that the nine deputy shrine masters had left, and he faced the leader of the Dragon God Shrine directly, he asked the question that he had been holding inside for a long time.
“There are two things in the world that you can believe, and they are strength and rules.” The Shrine Master lifted one hand. “Which do you believe in?“He is a famous immortal in the book, Journey to the West. Almost all Chinese people know him.
678 Level 4 Inspector!
“I believe in rules,” Hao Ren answered.
“In this world, rules are made by powerful people.” The Shrine Master released a wave of pressure from his palm.
The force hit the stone wall and bounced back onto Hao Ren who was standing in the middle of the secret chamber.
Hao Ren was sent flying backward for five meters before he crashed heavily on the closed stone door.
“I’ll give you a chance. When you are sure that you can block 20 strikes from me, I’ll give you that thing back.”
The Shrine Master said coldly toward the stone wall.
“Ok.” Hao Ren regained his balance and brushed the dust off his clothes.
“The level 4 inspector’s robe has been delivered to your room. I see your meridians are injured, and you need to heal,” the Shrine Master continued.
Hao Ren touched his chest and found that his meridians that had been damaged due to his forced use of Zhao Haoran’s peak Qian-level in the Demon Sea had returned to their original state.
Hum!
The stone door opened suddenly, and Hao Ren was tossed out instantly.
The dominant force sent him flying along the long corridor and to the side of the spiral staircase.
“20 strikes…” Hao Ren clenched his fists and thought.
Although the Shrine Master didn’t injure him, he insulted Hao Ren by tossing him out of the room.
A white misty energy sphere suddenly rose around the entrance of the top floor. Hao Ren reached out to touch it and immediately withdrew his hand when he felt stinging lightning bolts enter his body.
The inspectors in the Dragon God Shrine rarely saw the deputy shrine masters and never entered the secret chamber where the Shrine Master cultivated.
In fact, it was the first time that the Shrine Master had summoned an inspector and made an agreement.
Which inspector dared to fight with the Dragon God Shrine Master?!
Hao Ren wasn’t afraid!
After all, 20 strikes would only take a short while during battle!
Hao Ren cleaned and straightened his clothes and walked downstairs.
Below the top floor was the cultivation area for the level 4 inspectors. The nature essence intensity there was almost as abundant as that in Ethereal Summit on Fifth Heaven.
The floor below was the prison with thin nature essence, and all kinds of criminals were locked in there.
Further down was the cultivation area of level 3 inspectors and the stations for regional inspectors.
Hao Ren walked to the room that he shared with Su Han and saw three silk robes including black, red and blue hanging at the stone door.
The robes had four-clawed golden dragons embroidered on the shoulders, which signaled that the wearer was a level 4 inspector.
Hao Ren picked up the robes, opened the stone door with his token, and saw Su Han cultivating on the white jade bed.
Su Han turned her head, startled by Hao Ren’s sudden arrival.
When she saw the level 4 token at Hao Ren’s waist and the three robes in his hands, she looked surprised.
However, Su Han was cold and didn’t ask him anything.
Hao Ren looked at Su Han on the jade bed through the square door and vaguely saw her skin beneath her thin robe.
“Go!” Su Han frowned, and her longsword on the side of the bed stabbed at Hao Ren suddenly.
Hao Ren immediately blocked it with his palms in which the lightning energy formed a hard sphere, but he was still forced back three steps by Su Han’s longsword.
When he regained his balance, Su Han had already put on a black robe.
Su Han got down to the ground from the jade bed and summoned the longsword back to her hand.
“The top-tier Dui-level…” Su Han said after looking at Hao Ren while emphasizing each word.
“I was lucky,” Hao Ren said shamelessly.
“Good. Now you are qualified to enter the Nine Dragon Palace with me.” Su Han looked calm, but she was secretly relieved. Now that Hao Ren had reached top-tier Dui-level, she didn’t have to use the essence transfer technique that Lady Zhen had given her.
Su Han’s gaze rested on Hao Ren’s level 4 token as she asked, “Which one of us is the boss?”
“You are. You are,” Hao Ren answered immediately.
“Ok…” Su Han nodded with satisfaction.
She was displeased that Hao Ren had been promoted to level 4 while she remained a level 3 inspector. However, Hao Ren still listened to her.
“I’ll leave the robes here; I have to head back to deal with some business.” After handing the three robes to Su Han, Hao Ren said hurriedly.
“Ok…” Su Han nodded coldly. When Hao Ren walked out of the stone door, she suddenly realized that he had wanted her to hang the robes for him.
Su Han gritted her teeth and walked into the inner chamber before putting Hao Ren’s three silk robes into the wardrobe.
She had appointed Hao Ren as her assisting inspector, but he had now been promoted to a higher position than her. This brought some dissatisfaction to her.
Meanwhile, Hao Ren had dashed down the stairs swiftly back to the hall on the ground floor.
The level 1 inspectors who had been cultivating in the hall were astonished when they saw Hao Ren’s level 4 token.
Several low-level inspectors saw his token and immediately stood aside to give way to him.
Hao Ren had arrived a while ago as a level 3 inspector, but now he had been promoted to a level 4 inspector!
Although there was only one level between level 3 and level 4, it was quite difficult to get the elevation!
The Dragon God Shrine were quite picky with the selection of inspectors and had tight control of the number of inspectors. From the dragon cultivators all over the world, it only selected hundreds of inspectors in which only about 100 were level 3 inspectors. In addition, there were only about a dozen level 4 inspectors!
One could reach level 3 by accumulating contribution points, but the promotion to level 4 must be proposed by one deputy shrine master and be agreed by the other eight deputy shrine masters and the Shrine Master.
Since the Shrine Master rarely showed his face, not even at the annual general exams, level 4 inspectors were in the top of the pyramid in many low-level inspector’s minds.
Hao Ren hurried toward the gate, oblivious to the envy in the eyes of the low-level inspectors.
The golden shield went out from Hao Ren’s necklace and sucked in some of the abundant nature essences in the Dragon God Shrine. However, it didn’t dare to suck too much, knowing that they were in a unique place.
“Is that a supreme spiritual treasure…”
“Yeah… I guess…”
Seeing the small black shield following Hao Ren, the low-level inspectors asked each other in surprise.
&
nbsp; Although they were older than Hao Ren and joined the Dragon God Shrine earlier than him, they had never seen a supreme spiritual treasure which could move freely like spirit beasts!
“This Hao Ren is not only a level 4 inspector but has his own supreme spiritual treasure as well!” they thought to themselves.
Comparing themselves with Hao Ren, the cultivators who had been proud of being official inspectors of the Dragon God Shrine felt ashamed!
They probably would never become level 4 inspectors or possess a supreme spiritual treasure all their lives!
“Well… It’s you?”
Hao Ren was about to walk out of the Dragon God Shrine when Qin Shaoyang walked in with a fiery red coat.
Hao Ren was surprised to see Qin Shaoyang, but he ignored him and walked to the gate with a cold snort.
“Humph!” Qin Shaoyang snorted with a louder voice and reached his right hand toward Hao Ren.
He had come to the Dragon God Shrine to do his routine report and was surprised to encounter Hao Ren. If he hadn’t lost to Hao Ren in the Dragon God Shrine’s general exam, he wouldn’t have been sent to such a remote place to be a regional inspector!
Now seeing Hao Ren, Qin Shaoyang wouldn’t let him go easily, especially when he saw that Su Han wasn’t with Hao Ren!
Bang!
Hao Ren punched on Qin Shaoyang’s arm heavily.
He was still displeased that the Dragon God Shrine Master had tossed him out of the door, and he encountered Qin Shaoyang.
“Dui-level… top-tier?!”
Qin Shaoyang widened his eyes, astonished that Hao Ren had elevated from Zhen-level to top-tier Dui-level in the short period since they last met!
When he saw the golden token with the four-clawed golden dragon hanging on Hao Ren’s belt, he backed off three steps in shock!
In the strict system of the Dragon God Shrine, Qin Shaoyang, a level 3 inspector, had committed an offense by attacking a level 4 inspector!
“This…” Qin Shaoyang looked at Hao Ren in astonishment.
He wondered how Hao Ren had become a level 4 inspector with his current strength.
Hiss… Bang!
The golden shield which had been following Hao Ren closely spun and shot a golden light at Qin Shaoyang.
Not noticing this black shield which had been absorbing nature essence, Qin Shaoyang was hit on the shoulder by the sudden attack and fell to the ground!
Despite his Kun-level, he was no match for the supreme spiritual treasure which had elevated to a higher realm!
With his Kun-level, Qin Shaoyang could block the attack of an ordinary dharma treasure with his body, but the attack of the golden shield made him dizzy!
“How could it be like this! How come Hao Ren has become so powerful in such a short period!” Holding his shoulder in pain, Qin Shaoyang thought to himself when he realized that Hao Ren’s temperament had changed completely!
“Humph!” Hao Ren snorted and walked around Qin Shaoyang before heading toward the exit of the Dragon God Shrine.
Holding their breaths, the low-level inspectors in the hall looked at Qin Shaoyang from the corner of their eyes.
The dragon cultivators including inspectors were forbidden from fighting each other, but they had witnessed a level 3 inspector getting struck to the ground after challenging a level 4 inspector.
Qin Shaoyang used to be a level 4 inspector and a dominant figure in the Dragon God Shrine, but Hao Ren had made him fall with one attack!
Seeing the low-level inspectors sneaking glances at him, Qin Shaoyang gritted his teeth and stood up, but he almost stumbled at the acute pain in his shoulder.
Hao Ren had walked out of the gate, and a snow lion flew over from a distance and carried him to the sky.
“That black, crooked small shield seems to be my uncle-master’s Heaven-Reaching Shield…” Qin Shaoyang was deep in thought as he looked out of the gate.
679 The Golden Shield Must Do Work!
Sitting on Little White’s back, Hao Ren flew out of the array formation of the Dragon God Shrine and toward the seashore.
He was surprised to encounter Qin Shaoyang in the Dragon God Shrine, but he didn’t mind fighting the latter to test his own strength.
However, he had just returned from the Demon Sea and hadn’t recovered his full strength yet. Besides, he wanted to go back and ask Zhen Congming to appraise the things that he took from the Dragon God Shrine, thus having no time to fight with Qin Shaoyang.
Since Qin Shaoyang remained at mid-tier Kun-level, Hao Ren thought that he could win against Qin Shaoyang if he could get to Gen-level and learned the third sword strike of the Mystic Water Sword Techniques.
The golden shield stayed by Hao Ren’s side and occasionally shot thin golden light beams at Little White. Now that it had advanced in realms, it felt freer than before.
Although it didn’t belong to Hao Ren, it favored him emotionally. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have attacked Qin Shaoyang when the latter tried to attack Hao Ren.
At level 4 which was equivalent to top-tier Core Formation Realm, Little White bared its teeth at the golden shield and spat out fireballs when the latter provoked it.
Ignoring their playful fight, Hao Ren took out the Mystic Water Sword Techniques from his necklace and began to study it in peace.
Different from the Light Splitting Sword Shadow Scroll, the Mystic Water Sword Techniques must be opened layer by layer according to the practitioner’s spiritual senses and realms, which meant that if Hao Ren lost this jade slip, he couldn’t learn the rest of the techniques.
In the dangerous journey to the Demon Sea, it was fortunate that he didn’t lose the jade slip which contained the Mystic Water Sword Techniques.
Hao Ren merged his spiritual senses into the slip and saw the words and pictures of the second passage which had been vague to him.
It consumed lots of energy to read the jade slip with spiritual senses. After memorizing the first nine variations of the second sword strike, Hao Ren had used up his energy.
If not for the Light Splitting Sword Shadow Scroll which forced him to cultivate all five elements and controlled thousands of sword energies with far better spiritual senses than ordinary cultivators, he probably wouldn’t be able to finish reading all 18 variations of the first sword strike with his current realm of Dui-level.
It had taken Zhao Haoran who was a peak Qian-level cultivator many years to break the array formations on the jade slip. With his high realm, Zhao Haoran couldn’t read all the information, which showed that the jade slip had a much higher standard for cultivators than all the other precious techniques stored in the East Ocean Dragon Palace. This jade slip could very well be called an Immortal Object.
After disengaging his spiritual senses from the jade slip, Hao Ren put it back into the necklace carefully.
Little White had returned to the sky above East Ocean City, but it didn’t land without Hao Ren’s order. The sky was getting dark while the city was still engulfed in a drizzle.
“Let’s go back!”
Hao Ren put away the golden shield and patted Little White’s head.
In the small house, Zhao Yanzi and the others were waiting for his return. The moment that he entered the house with Little White in its puppy form, he was greeted by Grandma’s complaint.
“Little Xue’s family came to visit us and left after dinner. You bad boy! You were out for the whole day!” Grandma waved the cane in her hand as if she were going to hit Hao Ren with it.
“It’s my fault. My fault…” Hao Ren surrendered immediately. Then, he saw the rosewood cane in Grandma’s hand and asked, “Where did you get this?”
“Little Xue’s mother gave it to me. She brought it especially from another city!” Grandma poked Hao Ren lightly with the tip of the cane, not wanting to hurt him.
Hao Ren was surprised that Wu Luoxue’s family had come to visit. However, upon the second thought, the two families were close because of Zhen Congming, and it wasn’t so strange that Mayo
r Wu came to visit them.
Hao Ren hadn’t met Wu Luoxue’s mom yet, and he felt bad that he wasn’t home when her family came to visit his family.
“Grandma, come and visit my school with Mom and Dad tomorrow. I’ll go back to school tonight! Afraid that Grandma would hit him again, Hao Ren said in a hurry.
“Ok. I’ll go with your mom and dad. Will Little Su be in the school?” Grandma asked.
“Yeah…” Hao Ren sweated, knowing that Grandma missed Su Han.
Xie Yujia and others were ready to return to school as well, and they had their bags ready in the living room. They had been waiting for him to return. Otherwise, they would have gone back to school in Mayor Wu’s car.
“I’ve packed clothes for you. It’s getting cold, and I packed several thick jackets for you,” Xie Yujia lifted the bag and said.
She was a careful and considerate girl, and Hao Ren didn’t have to worry about anything in everyday life.
“Ok… Wait a minute.” Hao Ren walked to Zhen Congming’s room after pushing open the door.
Using the keyboard and the mouse skillfully, Zhen Congming was sitting in front of a brand-new laptop, playing an online game.
Hao Ren didn’t remember his parents buying a laptop for Zhen Congming, so he guessed it must be a gift from Wu Luoxue’s parents.
It seemed that Wu Luoxue’s parents liked Zhen Congming. Of course, they also wanted to be in a good relationship with Hao Ren’s family.
“Hey! Have a look at these two things for me.” Hao Ren dug out the white cloth and the glove that he got from the Dragon God Shrine and placed them in front of Zhen Congming.
Zhen Congming stopped gaming for a second and glanced at the two things in Hao Ren’s hands, saying, “Garbage.”
“Look carefully!” Hao Ren pushed the things before his face.
Zhen Congming took them up and turned them around in his hands impatiently.
“This cloth is made with heavenly silk spat out by Heavenly Silk Worms, Ding-level demon beast. The silk threads are very hard, and the things made with them are water-proof and fire-proof. Besides, no matter how dirty it gets, it will get clean again when you burn it with fire or put it in water.”