Chapter Thirty-One: Refusing Emotions (Part One)

  Looking at the tall back of the sea dragon, a strong sense of loss rose in Dao Zun's heart, as if he had lost something.

  Hailong and Hongzhi returned to the room, where Hailong said, "Little Zhi, help me guard my law, I want to cultivate for a while first, don't call me, let me wake up on my own." After finishing speaking, he took advantage of his calm mood at this time to easily enter a meditative state. His mind sank into the Golden Elixir in his spiritual platform, and the thick meridians inside his body clearly appeared before his eyes. The Golden Elixir emitted a faint soft glow, and the gentle divine power circulated through the meridians, rapidly rotating. With the enlightenment he had gained earlier and his calm mood at this time, he drove his own divine power to continuously strengthen itself.

  Xianzhao Main Peak somewhere.

  "A cold voice said: 'Both of you have entered the top sixteen. Remember, this time no matter what, you must take that girl's life. Whoever encounters her, I allow you to use the residual heart gun and residual sun knife techniques. The hatred of killing one's child is not shared by heaven and earth. Now that she has finally come out of Qianhui Valley's ghostly lair, this time I will definitely make her unable to leave Xianzhao Main Peak.'"

  Another younger voice said: "Master, won't this lead to revenge from the people of Senkei Valley? After all, it's during a match."

  "Revenge? That's impossible. During the competition, the immortal technique is blind to eyes, even if you kill her, I can just say it was an accident. At worst, let you return to the mountain and face the wall. This is the best opportunity. You must seize it, whoever kills her, I will help him become the next heir of the sect."

  "Yes, Master." The two young voices responded in unison.

  "Alright, you all go back and cultivate now. In three days' time, for the round of 16 match, if you don't encounter her, you must win."

  He responded again, and the two figures disappeared into the darkness. A middle-aged man walked out of the corner, with moonlight shining on his already somewhat distorted handsome face, making it look even more sinister. He clenched his fists tightly and said in a hateful tone: "Tianqin. This time I will definitely make you lose your soul, to relieve my hatred." The middle-aged man with the distorted face was Xing Tiandao Zun, the second master of the Qitian Sect. Not long ago, he and Xuanyu had just broken through the unyielding realm.

  Two days later, the dragon king woke up from his meditation. He clearly felt that after two days of cultivation, the golden elixir in his spiritual platform was more condensed than before.

  "Big brother, you're awake."

  Hailong glanced at Hongzhi, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed opposite him, and smiled: "Xiao Zhi, thank you for helping me guard the law. These two days of cultivation are very important to me. The golden elixir is now completely stable."

  Hong Zhi smiled and said: "These, it seems that they were all stimulated by that girl named Tian Qin the other day. Big brother, your mood has changed a lot these days, what's wrong?"

  Hailong patted Hongzhi's bald head and said, "Don't ask anymore, I don't want to mention things that have already passed. Don't worry, I'm fine now, still the same old Hailong. From now on, I won't be bothered by any emotions again. Among us cultivators, those girls always have this or that concern. Humph, let them worry about it themselves."

  Hong Zhi suddenly realized something and laughed: "So, big brother, you're troubled by love! Did Yuhua reject you? Unlikely. I saw that little girl's eyes on you were quite different. And it's not just her, even Yeping has some subtle intentions towards you. Big brother, although you're not very handsome, you're still pretty likable to girls."

  "Hai Long let out a snort and said, 'Don't come here again. From now on, don't mention girls in front of me. I've already said it, from now on I won't be affected by them anymore. Yu Hua and Yu Ping are not bad, but we're also impossible. Not to mention other things, just the fact that our masters wouldn't approve is enough. That day, the sect master even said he didn't agree with people in our sect becoming dao companions.'"

  Hong Zhi smiled mysteriously and said, "That's not necessarily true. If you win the championship in this tournament, can't you just confess to whoever you like? At that time, even Tian Dao Zun won't be able to stop you." Hai Long glared at him with a bad temper and said, "Are you mocking me? You clearly know I've already been eliminated and yet you're still saying things like this."

  Hong Zhi walked up to Hai Long's side and smiled, "How dare I mock Big Brother? I was telling the truth, although you were eliminated that day. But now you've been revived. The original top 16 had already been decided, but one of Wu Zhao Xian's disciples was injured too severely and couldn't recover in a short amount of time, so he forfeited. In order to maintain fairness in the competition, the various sect leaders and elders decided to randomly select one person from the two disciples who were already eliminated to fill the spot. And this lucky person just happens to be you. You don't have to rush off now, do you?"

  Hailong Leng stood still and muttered: "No way. When did my luck become so good?"

  Hong Zhi laughed and said, "It's not that you've become good at some point, but rather you've always been good. Ever since I followed you, your various strange encounters have made me envy you to no end! You truly are blessed without realizing it. By the way, there's something I haven't told you yet. A few days ago, when you were gloomy every day, under Lian Shu Zong Zhu's introduction, I met Wu Yun Zong Zhu. Wu Yun Zong Zhu's cultivation is really worthy of my admiration, far surpassing that of my deceased master. He has now entered a realm equivalent to the mid-term of the Dou Zhuan period in your Xiuzhen world. I believe it won't be long before he transcends the Buddhist calamity. Wu Yun Zong Zhu seems to be very interested in our Chan sect and invited me to visit their Fan Xin Sect, but I haven't responded yet."

  Hai Long thought back to his past experiences and silently said to himself, "Yes! My luck has indeed been very good. More than 800 years ago, I was just an orphan in a remote village. Later, under a series of coincidences, I joined the Lianyun Sect, and then met a strange person who helped me become one of the fastest-progressing disciples of my generation. I also obtained the small iron rod and the Inverse Heaven Mirror. All these experiences seem to have been arranged by fate. The rematch, the round of 16? Alright, since I've entered the rematch, my goal is now only one - the championship. If I meet Tian Qin again on the competition stage, I'll fight her fairly. Let's see whose strength is greater, her Nine Immortal Zither or my small iron rod.

  "Xiao Zhi, if you want to go to Fan Xin Zong, then go. After all, you are a Buddhist cultivator, and in that sacred land of Buddhism, it should be very beneficial for your cultivation."

  "Hong Zhi nodded and said, 'Yes! There, I might be able to enter the state of Dharma Wheel earlier. Since you agree, Big Brother, after this Newcomer's Great Competition ends, I'll follow Wu Yun Sect Master for a trip. I won't be gone for too long; as soon as I gain some insight, I'll immediately return to Lianyun Sect to find you. Hehe, don't miss me too much!'"

  Hailong snorted disdainfully, saying: "Think of you? Don't dream on. You're not a beauty anyway. Lately, have you been getting close to Master Lian Shu? Be careful! Don't let your heart run wild. With Master Lian Shu's profound cultivation, she can't be swayed by mortal emotions."

  "Hmph, get lost. Do you think I'd stoop to your level? I admit, I have a good impression of Master Lian Shu, but that's the purest form of respect."

  "Haha, you're still pure? I don't know who's always sneaking into the kitchen of Xianzhao Peak to look for wine and meat. What a pity! This is someone else's sacred place for cultivating immortality, how can there be any impurities here? Are you very disappointed?"

  Hong Zhi's face turned red and he awkwardly said: "You, how did you know? You're always depressed, aren't you?"

  The dragon smiled and said, "Although I was in a bad mood those few days, your breath is the clearest to me. With my heavenly ear, I can naturally distinguish what you're doing. The vast Xianzhao Mountain doesn't even have a bit of wine or meat, it's really infuriating this poor monk." His last sentence was spoken in the tone of Hongzhi. After finishing speaking, he burst out laughing.

  Hong Zhi's face was as white as jade, and she was about to argue when she heard the sound of light footsteps coming from outside the door.

  "Hongzhi brother, has Hailong woken up?" A very low voice sounded, and Hailong's heart moved. He recognized that it was Yu Hua's voice. Hongzhi stepped forward to open the door, and saw Yu Hua sisters standing outside the door. He hurriedly invited them in, smiling: "Your brother Hailong just woke up not long ago. This is already your seventh visit."

  Yu Hua's pretty face turned slightly red, and she glanced at Hai Long before saying, "Tomorrow is the rematch of the Seven Sects' Newcomer Competition. I was afraid that Big Brother Hai Long would be late for the competition because of his cultivation, so I came to call him."

  Hailong didn't have the same playful attitude as before, and calmly said: "Congratulations to both of you for successfully entering the rematch. I'm just a substitute anyway. It doesn't matter whether I participate or not."

  Yu Hua clearly felt that, from Hai Long's body, a kind of aura was emitted that made people feel distant, as if several days had not passed, but in their midst, a thick barrier had already been formed. Her slender eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she said: "Hai Long big brother, how can you be so self-deprecating? I heard from Master Piao Miao that your cultivation is actually very strong. The failure in the preliminary round was just due to carelessness."

  Hailong no longer wanted to get entangled with the girls, nor did he want to give Yu Hua and her sister any hope. He stood up, walked to the door, took a deep breath of fresh air, and said: "Two junior sisters, tomorrow is the competition, you should go back and meditate now, and raise your cultivation to its best state. I still need to cultivate, so you two can go back first."

  Yu Hua and her sisters looked at each other in dismay, they naturally wouldn't understand Hai Long's current mood. Yu Hua quickly walked to Hai Long's side and softly scolded: "Hai Long big brother, what's wrong with you? Don't you like us?" Hai Long glanced at her lightly and didn't respond, turning his head to gaze into the night sky instead.

  Yu Hua said indignantly, "I know, you've taken a liking to the heavenly zither in Qian Hui Valley, haven't you? But you didn't have to treat us like this! Are you that impressive? We were only being polite to you because of your past help to our village. I never thought you'd be this kind of person. I really misjudged you."

  Yu Ping pulled her angry sister back and said in a low voice: "Sister, forget it. Let's go back."

  Hai Long let out a soft sigh and said, "You're right, I'm nothing special. I'm just an orphan. Tian Qin is a rare talent among people, it's not something I should be hoping for. You can leave now."

  Jade's eyes flashed with a burst of light, and she suddenly pushed Hailong away, running quickly. The corner of Hailong's eye caught a glimpse of several sparkling tears on Jade's face.

  Watching Yuhua and her sister leave, Hongzhi said with some puzzlement: "Big brother, why must you do this? They were actually quite good to you!"

  Hai Long turned around, his eyes shining brightly, "They have been good to me. That's why I don't want them to get hurt. Now, I'm not interested in women. In this world, only strength can prove everything. What I need now is powerful strength. When I can single-handedly defy the heavens and all living things, then I'll consider other things. At that time, even if I take all the beauties of the world as my own, no one will dare say anything." A strong and tyrannical aura wildly burst forth from Hai Long's body.

  Hong Zhi suddenly became solemn, the Buddhist rosary appeared in his hand, and he said in a low voice: "Big brother, you are too obsessed with power. Don't you know that this will lead you to the devil's path?"

  Feeling the Buddha's aura enveloping him, the Sea Dragon did not resist, but instead said coldly: "I am obsessed with power, but I will not be possessed by it. I want to become an immortal. And I must become the most powerful immortal of all time. From the moment I was humiliated for my lack of strength, I vowed that one day, I would become the strongest existence in both the heavenly and earthly realms. In heaven and on earth, only I am the sole immortal."

  Hong Zhi's whole body shook, and a burst of silver light suddenly erupted from Hai Long's chest, completely blocking his Buddhist aura outside. His own cultivation was clearly much deeper than Hai Long's, but he couldn't penetrate his shield in the slightest. With a sigh, he dispersed the Buddha's power on the rosary beads, and Hong Zhi murmured: "You can only deal with your own affairs yourself. No one can help you. Big brother, I just want to advise you that sometimes, strength doesn't represent everything. Don't let your expectations blind your eyes." At this moment, he was like a Buddha statue filled with peaceful energy.

  Looking at Hongzhi's calm face, Hailong walked up to him, patted his shoulder and said: "Don't worry, I have my own measure. I know you're sincere towards me. No matter what happens in the future, you'll always be my good brother. Just now, you could have used your Buddha power to forcefully break through the barrier I set up, and then use your Buddha power to influence my mood, but you didn't do that. That's enough." After finishing speaking, Hailong floated over Hongzhi's body, rose into the air again, and re-entered his meditative state.