Chapter 406 Entering the Dragon God Temple for the First Tim
already dark outside.He walked along the quiet campus to the main gate, where he caught the last bus home to his seaside villa.On the way, Hao Ren called Zhao Hongyu to report Uyan Zi's midterm exam...Chapter 406: Initial Entry into the Dragon God Temple
Ding ding ding... The dismissal bell for Friday rang.
Hao Ren carried his schoolbag and walked out of the classroom.
In these four days, he successfully repelled twenty-six dragon cultivators from Donghai University. Among them were three Grade D, twelve Grade G, and eleven Grade Z cultivators.
Hao Ren's classmates filed out of the classroom one after another.
Outside the classroom, Su Han stood quietly. She wore a round-neck T-shirt with a little boy printed on it, and she had a pink sports hoodie draped over her shoulders with its zipper open. Her hands were in the pockets of her jacket, and she wore a yellow baseball cap atop her head, looking very youthful and stylish.
Just as Hao Ren stepped out of the classroom, he saw Su Han standing at the door.
"Let's go!" Su Han said cheerfully to Hao Ren.
The students around them were left speechless.
This... What is going on here Su Han personally waiting for Hao Ren at the classroom door when he gets off school, this... Isn't this something that only a couple would do
"Alright!" Hao Ren nodded and slung his bag over his shoulder, following Su Han towards the stairs.
Marina, standing by the classroom entrance, was stunned. When Hao Ren and Su Han had walked down the stairs, she finally snapped out of her trance and bumped her arm against Xie Yujia beside her, "H-H-He...
"It's fine!" Unexpectedly, Xie Yujia just smiled reassuringly without any anger or jealousy.
This generous display left the students from nearby classrooms speechless.
“Aren't you breaking up with Hao Ren” Marina looked at Xie Yujia in puzzlement.
"No, I still really like him," Xie Yujia answered frankly and smiled as she tugged on Marina's arm, heading towards the stairs.
Hearing this, the guys were almost overwhelmed with emotions—Hao Ren deserves divine punishment!
“Have you prepared everything” Outside the classroom, Su Han asked Hao Ren.
"Everything is ready," Hao Ren answered.
Though he grew up in modern times and had participated in all sorts of exams, competitions, and contests from a young age, participating in the Dragon God Temple's imperial examination was still his first time.
With backpack on and stepping out through the school gate under the setting sun, it felt rather like going to the capital for an exam in ancient times.
The fights these past few days had quickly increased Hao Ren’s practical experience. Truth be told, most of these young cultivators from Donghai University could not be considered the best among dragon cultivators because truly elite dragon cultivators were all nurtured by their respective dragon factions and wouldn't be sent to cities.
But precisely because they weren’t the strongest in their generation, they had become perfect warm-up opponents for Hao Ren.
Su Han was well aware of Hao Ren's capabilities and wasn't worried that he would lose easily. Moreover, she was quite satisfied with his performance—If Hao Ren couldn't even get past this school stage, then participating in the Dragon God Temple's imperial examination wouldn't have much meaning.
Seeing Hao Ren dressed in a thin short-sleeved shirt and relaxed pants, Su Han’s expectations for him were growing higher and higher.
Might this boy really make it into one of the top three
Su Han silently wondered to herself.
The two walked out of the school gate and casually hailed a taxi, gradually moving away from everyone's sight.
In Lu Qing's office, several young male teachers glared at him angrily. "Principal, what exactly is going on here! Teacher Su walking so closely with a male student will affect the school’s reputation!"
"Principal, you really should take action. The rumors are getting out of hand! Teacher Su is a focus among students but acting this way, isn’t she too dismissive of everyone's reactions"
"Teachers should adhere to their professional conduct and discipline standards. I think that student also needs handling! Lately, many male students have challenged him in private duels, some even female students directly approach him for talks outside the classroom. This clearly shows Han Xuan has stirred up dissatisfaction among all the students!"
"Principal, you can’t keep protecting Teacher Su or this Han Xuan anymore!"
The male teachers were fired up and almost ready to bang their fists on the table. Sitting calmly in his chair, Lu Qing was unperturbed; he clearly understood these young men's thoughts.
Most of the boys had a crush on Su Han, how could the male teachers not have any thoughts
These male teachers tried to approach Su Han openly or covertly but she ignored them completely and couldn't even remember their names!
Now that Su Han was seen walking in and out with a boy, of course it would make them jealous.
"I won’t handle this matter," Lu Qing said coolly to state his position.
The male teachers were stunned for a moment before exploding. "Principal, how can you not deal with it!"
Lu Qing remained seated and calmly looked at them. "Does the school have a rule against teachers running together with students to come to school"
"This…," The male teachers glanced at each other, speechless.
"What about a rule that forbids teachers from leaving school with students after class"
"This…," Again the male teachers were lost for words.
Lu Qing leaned forward slightly. "Are you saying Su Han and Hao Ren are in a relationship"
This made the male teachers turn red, unable to utter a single word.
Su Han and Hao Ren seemed friendly but it was far from being a romantic relationship. Plus, they didn’t want to admit this either.
"Are there any other doubts you have" Lu Qing asked slowly.
"Principal, even if Teacher Su isn’t the issue, we can’t let that student get away with his behavior!" A male teacher finally spoke out. "He frequently skips school without reason, according to our rules this is considered severe truancy! At least a serious warning should be issued!"
"Right! Right! Su Teacher isn’t the issue but this student needs punishment!" The other male teachers echoed.
Lu Qing remained silent with a cold expression on his face.
"Principal Lu, if you don't handle it, we'll go to the principal ourselves!" Seeing that Lu Qing wasn’t responding, their attitude became resolute.
Although Lu Qing was the vice-principal (First Vice-Principal), there was still a regular principal above him!
"Hao Ren’s situation is approved by me. If you have any doubts, you can feedback to the principal," Lu Qing said.
"Let's go! We're going to see the principal!"
The male teachers were so enraged at this moment that they didn’t even fear offending Lu Qing and gathered to run towards the regular principal’s office next door.
Half a minute later, in the principal's office next door, a roar sounded: "What are you guys trying to do! Hao Ren is the son of Hao Zhonghua and Yue Yang! Giving Hao Zhonghua’s son a severe warning punishment, what consequences will arise, you take responsibility yourselves!"
The principal's office was silent for half a second.
Rushing sounds followed, as male teachers nearly fled from the principal's office.
Hao Ren and Su Han were in a taxi, arriving at the entrance of a small park several kilometers away from the school.
Under the envious gazes of those around them, Hao Ren led Su Han to the ticket booth and bought two tickets to enter the park.
The park was very tranquil. However, Hao Ren and Su Han did not have time to leisurely stroll about. They found a secluded place where Su Han erected a red barrier and then flew her white jade long sword carrying Hao Ren up into the sky.
Where they were heading was the Dragon God Temple!
In Su Han's ascent speed, Donghai City rapidly shrank as she passed through layer upon layer of clouds. Su Han increased her speed to its maximum!
A shiny token peeked out from around Su Han's waist; this was an inspector’s identity badge. The forces encountered along the way could not impede Su Han!
"Have you already memorized the manual" Su Han further confirmed, asking Hao Ren.
In the slight breeze at high altitude, Su Han's black hair fluttered, incredibly alluring.
"I have already committed it to memory," said Hao Ren. To memorize that super-thick manual, he had spent several all-nighters and his head was pounding with so much information. It wasn't surprising that even Su Han herself couldn’t remember the specific content of the manual.
"Hope you don't disappoint me." Su Han said coldly.
Standing behind Su Han, Hao Ren inhaled her縷縷清香 (slender fragrance) from her hair and felt somewhat touched. Although Su Han's words were cold, he could understand the expectations she held for him.
"I'll do my best," Hao Ren clearly answered.
“Mm.” Su Han nodded slightly as she released a beam of white light from her long sword and sped towards the heavens.
About an hour later, Hao Ren saw a magnificent platform appear in the sky!
Beneath it, other cultivators were rushing past to get there, clearly participants of this year's Dragon God Temple examinations.
The entire platform radiated with a faint red glow; this was a barrier!
"The Dragon God Temple only opens for three days during the Dragon Boat Festival each year for these exams. Normally, no one can enter except official inspectors with tokens or criminals arrested and brought back," Su Han explained to Hao Ren's slightly surprised expression.
"So there are prisons inside the Dragon God Temple" asked Hao Ren.
“Dragon cultivator criminals are all imprisoned in the heavenly prison of the Dragon God Temple. Furthermore, each of the Four Seas' dragon palaces also has their own dungeons," said Su Han.
In Hao Ren's mind: The East Sea Dragon Palace had a dungeon… probably an ice cellar or something like that…
As they spoke, Su Han used her long sword to carry Hao Ren up to the platform’s upper level.
Hao Ren looked around and saw thousands of orderly cells stretching as far as the eye could see!
In the middle of the entire plain was a massive black palace. Around this palace were over one hundred large martial arts competition grounds in all four directions!
The platform, supporting thousands of cells, hundreds of arenas, and a huge palace, floated high up in the sky!
"Do you feel that it's similar to the Nine Dragons Palace" Su Han asked Hao Ren.
"A little..." Hao Ren said.
If the area of the Nine Dragons Palace was like a super city, then Longshen Hall would be like a scaled-down version. Inside the Nine Dragons Palace, there were mountains and rivers, abandoned palaces, and towering pagodas; while supporting this large platform for Longshen Hall, there are just densely packed exam rooms, neatly arranged arenas, and one gigantic palace made up of tens of thousands of rooms.
"Longshen Hall was modeled after the Nine Dragons Palace. It's just that we don't have enough power to support such a large area, so this is already at our limits," Su Han said.
Hao Ren couldn't help but be impressed.
The Nine Dragons Palace was a dragon palace left over from the ancient times, and it was the common ancestral temple for the five dragons' races. The nine original dragon palaces scattered within it each had their own positions, changing like stars in the sky based on different time periods. Essentially, it was an incredibly complex array system, naturally profound.
Longshen Hall was modeled after the Nine Dragons Palace, but to achieve this scale and remain suspended high in the air proves that Longshen Hall's power is not to be underestimated!
"No need to waste time. You have a little bit of time left to prepare," Su Han slowly lowered herself until she landed on the platform.
The written exams start tonight at midnight, and I've already gotten your provisional identity card for you in advance. Your exam room number is Ren Yin 246. After a while, from the hour of H亥 (9 PM), Longshen Hall's array system will activate again; then, anyone without a token won't be able to fly except for the formal inspectors who are allowed. So once you find your own exam room, don’t wander around.
Back in the past, Su Han wouldn't have said more than necessary. But since this is Hao Ren's first time participating in Longshen Hall’s imperial examinations, she went through everything clearly to avoid any mistakes on his part.
Su Han reached into her ring and pulled out a yellow wooden card, handing it to Hao Ren.
Hao Ren looked at the wood card which had "Ren Yin 246" carved onto it. Other than that, there was nothing special about it.
"I have to report back to Longshen Hall now; I won't be around you anymore after this. Once you find your exam room, take some rest yourself. There's a set of clothes in your exam room for you: change into them quickly and tie the temporary token on your waist. After the hour of H亥 (9 PM), if you're not wearing the designated clothing or don't have the token, the inspectors patrolling around can execute you as a suspicious person at any time,"
Su Han said that, then stepped onto her sword and flew towards the black palace in the center.
Hearing Su Han's calm words of "execute", Hao Ren couldn't help but shiver. It would be better to avoid offending these short-tempered inspectors here as much as possible.
The dense exam rooms inevitably formed narrow lanes that crisscrossed each other.
With the dark green stone pathways and some faded gray walls, Hao Ren felt like he was lost in an ancient town.
In the alleys came and went test-takers who looked hurried. Some wore modern clothing, others wore rough hemp clothes; there were male cultivators, female cultivators... This scene formed a bizarre yet vivid picture within these overlapping narrow lanes.
Hao Ren was directly brought by Su Han so he didn't need to pick up his provisional identity card; other cultivators would have to report themselves and collect their cards by themselves.
The exam venue wouldn’t allow unrelated personnel to enter, meaning that the elders from various sects who sent their juniors here for the exams could only stay in the outer area overnight.
In short, any cultivator participating in this imperial examination was just an ordinary test-taker regardless of which dragon race they were from or where they came from.
"Ren Yin 243... Ren Yin 244... Ren Yin 245... Found it."
Hao Ren followed the directions indicated by the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches to finally find his own exam room.
Like all other exam rooms, this was a small room no larger than half a square meter with a table, a chair, a set of clothes, and stationery inside.
Hao Ren infused spirit energy into the temporary token to unlock the transparent barrier sealing his exam room.
The clothing was a brown robe. However, unlike the other test-takers he had passed by on his way here, Hao Ren's robe had two tiny silver dragons embroidered onto both shoulders.
(To be continued)thing to do with the token; the Dragon God Temple’s intelligence network has already spread above Layer Five Sky and their information-gathering capabilities are unstoppable."I just took a stroll in L...