Chapter 103: The Three Gates of the Dragon Gate: Everyone's Performance

True Spirit Continent, Southern Zhuo Region, the Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land.

The Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land has existed since the Ancient Era; it is said to have suppressed seventy-two dragon veins, and among these dragon veins, the earth-energy dragon vein beneath the Hidden Dragon Ancient City is the most supreme.

The Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land is both a land of fortune and a land of absolute slaughter.

According to ancient records, many Life-and-Death Realm Kings have fallen in the Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land, and even Emperor-Sealed existences have perished there.

Originally, the Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land was not entirely empty, but it could be said to be sparsely populated.

But now, various martial artists can be seen everywhere within the Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land; some are alone, while others travel in pairs...

Even Star-Extreme Realm experts appear from time to time!

Because the triennial Hidden Dragon List competition is about to begin, this is a contest for numerous powers in the Southern Zhuo Region to fight for the fortune of the Southern Zhuo Region, naturally attracting countless geniuses and experts from the Southern Zhuo Region to gather here.

Any genius who can break into the top seventy-two in this competition will not only receive the blessing of the Southern Zhuo Region's fortune themselves, but even their background sects and families will gain great benefits.

And in the central area of the Ancient Dragon-Suppressing Land, there is an extremely special place; winding mountain ranges from all directions seem like long dragons guarding this spot, and at the core of these ten thousand mountain ranges stands an incredibly magnificent ancient city, which is precisely the venue for the Hidden Dragon List competition in every generation: the Hidden Dragon Ancient City.

The Hidden Dragon Ancient City has existed since the Ancient Era, standing tall in this place for endless ages; even Life-and-Death Realm Kings dare not interfere with the fortune competitions held within the Hidden Dragon Ancient City.

At this moment, as the Hidden Dragon List competition is about to start, hundreds of thousands of martial artists have gathered on the vast plain outside the south gate of the Hidden Dragon Ancient City, covering the mountains and fields, truly a sea of people.

Those factions that arrived earlier have already built temporary bases, while some lone wanderers are much more casual; they either sit cross-legged on the ground waiting, or build fires to roast food, or gather with friends to chat...

And among these numerous factions, the Liupin Sects of Lady Luoxia Gate, Tianyun Sect, Wuqing Sect, Feitian Demon Sect, Fire Spirit Hall, Ice Absolute Sect, and Marquis Xuan Kong Mountain are the most supreme!

The strength difference between Seventh-Rank Sects and Ninth-Rank Sects is not too great; it is only due to differences in foundation and scale that the division between Seventh-Rank and Ninth-Rank exists!

But Sixth-Rank Sects are different!

Any Sixth-Rank Sect has a Spirit Sea Realm expert stationed there year-round; a single Spirit Sea Realm expert can alone destroy many Seventh-Rank Sects, so their status is naturally extremely high.

Even a large open space closest to the Hidden Dragon Ancient City is exclusively for these seven Sixth-Rank Sects; no one else dares to seize it, and no one dares to approach that area.

And just at this moment, more than ten figures flew rapidly from the distant horizon, precisely Ye Chen who came from afar, and Lu Qingshan and others who had just crossed the boundary.

Because of the need to participate in the Hidden Dragon List competition, except for Lu Qingshan and Tianmeng Tianmeng Bingcan, everyone else used various methods to change their appearance, transforming into their youthful forms.

At this moment, Ye Chen, Yue Buqun, Cao Cao, and Meng Huan either had swords hanging at their waists or long swords on their backs; Xiao Yan and Han Li stood with hands behind their backs; Pang Bo and the burly man transformed from Tianmeng Tianmeng Bingcan were tall and imposing, and everyone looked spirited and radiant!

And in front of these eight people stood Lu Qingshan, wearing a purple-gold long robe; even though his aura was completely suppressed, he still appeared extremely extraordinary!

"Group Leader, brothers!"

Ye Chen pointed at the Hidden Dragon Ancient City ahead and introduced, "Ahead is the Hidden Dragon Ancient City; the Hidden Dragon List competition is held there, and it is about to begin now!"

"Such a city of this scale is truly rare!"

Cao Cao couldn't help but sigh, "Even if the entire Han Dynasty pooled its strength, building a city of such magnificence would be extremely difficult!"

Yue Buqun, standing nearby, also sighed deeply in his heart; the productivity in the worlds where he and Cao Cao were from was very low, and they lacked supreme power, so naturally it was hard for cities of such scale to appear.

Fortunately, they had also visited the worlds of other group members, and even witnessed Lu Qingshan's magnificent Divine Kingdom, so after seeing the Hidden Dragon Ancient City, they were not too shocked.

"It does indeed look extraordinary!"

Xiao Yan said with a smile, "I wonder how strong the geniuses ranked high on the Hidden Dragon List actually are; can they make me go all out?"

"Hahaha!"

Pang Bo, standing nearby, laughed boldly, "Xiao Yan, don't get too arrogant; as long as the Group Leader can resolve the rules of the Hidden Dragon Ancient City, this time the two of us will compete!"

If his strength had not been suppressed, the current Pang Bo would naturally not be Xiao Yan's match, but before this teleportation, except for Lu Qingshan, everyone else had suppressed their cultivation to the level equivalent to the peak of the Bao Yuan Realm; naturally, Pang Bo wanted to see, at the same realm, whose strength was actually stronger!

And at this moment, Ye Chen continued, "Group Leader, and all brothers, the Liuyun Sect where I am from has already built a temporary base outside the Hidden Dragon Ancient City; I wonder if you are willing to go there and wait?"

"Of course we must go!"

Pang Bo immediately said, "I really want to see what the Golden Giant Dragon looks like after transforming into human form!"

Xiao Yan also said, "Actually, I also want to see; let's see what the difference is between the Golden Giant Dragon and the Taixu Ancient Dragon in my world!"

Xiao Yan had already arrived at Jianan Academy for a long time, so he had naturally seen Zi Yan, who transformed from the Taixu Ancient Dragon, and Xu Jing of the Liuyun Sect was also transformed from the Golden Giant Dragon.

Moreover, both of their backgrounds were very strange; Zi Yan was the clan leader of the Taixu Ancient Dragon clan, the daughter of the Dou Sheng Peak expert 'Zhu Kun', while Xu Jing was the daughter of the Golden Supreme, a supreme expert of the Golden Giant Dragon lineage.

"Group Leader, what do you think?" Ye Chen also asked with a smile.

"Since everyone wants to go and take a look, let's go over and say hello!"

Lu Qingshan said with a smile, "Coincidentally, I am also somewhat curious about the Golden Giant Dragon; I wonder if in my world it would be classified as a Starry Sky Beast or part of the Meng Yao Zu..."

Seeing no one object, Ye Chen quickly led Lu Qingshan and the others to the Liuyun Sect base.

At this moment, as the Hidden Dragon List competition was about to begin, the Liuyun Sect members who had already arrived outside the Hidden Dragon Ancient City were eagerly awaiting Ye Chen's appearance.

After all, Ye Chen's performance inside the Tianmeng Ancient Land was truly stunning, so the Liuyun Sect members regarded Ye Chen as the hope for the Liuyun Sect to break into the top seventy-two in this Hidden Dragon List competition.

And once Ye Chen broke into the top seventy-two of the Hidden Dragon List competition and received the blessing of the dragon vein qi, the Liuyun Sect would also be able to gain many benefits.

And just at this moment, Ye Chen quickly appeared before the Liuyun Sect members, leading Lu Qingshan and the others.

After seeing Lu Qingshan and the others, the inner sect elder of the Liuyun Sect's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Sect Master!"

The Liuyun Sect elder quickly looked at Luo Xinglie, the Sect Master of the Liuyun Sect standing nearby, and then transmitted a voice saying, "Do you remember that tall, burly man with long hair flowing down? It was him who acted back then to help us drive away the people from Chongyue Gate; his strength is unfathomable!"

"I didn't expect him to come and participate in the Hidden Dragon List competition!"

Luo Xinglie, the Sect Master of the Liuyun Sect, was also slightly startled in his heart, and then similarly transmitted a voice saying, "I wonder what identities he and the others beside Ye Chen have; most of them look young; could they all be geniuses capable of participating in the Hidden Dragon List competition?"

"Sect Master!"

And just as Luo Xinglie and others were secretly transmitting voices, Ye Chen quickly arrived before them, then slightly bowed and greeted.

"Ye Chen!"

Luo Xinglie, the Sect Master of the Liuyun Sect, nodded slightly to Ye Chen, then asked with a hint of confusion, "Who are these few?"

"We are all Ye Chen's friends!"

Pang Bo, who was carefree, directly said with a smile, "This time we came with Ye Chen, just wanting to try participating in this Hidden Dragon List competition!"

Hearing these words, Luo Xinglie's mouth corner couldn't help but twitch.

To know, the person speaking now was able to easily kill a Bao Yuan Realm mid-stage martial artist a year ago; then what kind of strength would he have now?

Even he, with peak Bao Yuan Realm strength, might not last more than a few moves against that opponent!

Soon, Ye Chen introduced Lu Qingshan and the others to several other geniuses of the Liuyun Sect: Luo Hanshan, son of the Liuyun Sect Master; Zhu Mei, a genius of the Liuyun Sect; and most importantly, Xu Jing, the golden giant dragon in human form.

Of course, though Pang Bo and the others were curious, they did not make any unusual moves toward Xu Jing.

After all, Xu Jing was one of Ye Chen's future wives, so they naturally needed to keep a certain distance.

Thus, as time continued to pass, the Qianlong Ancient City finally opened.

A booming sound echoed everywhere; the south gate of the Qianlong Ancient City crashed open, as if the gates of the Heavenly Realm had been thrown wide, leaving everyone present utterly stunned.

Beyond the south gate, the ground slowly cracked, then shifted to both sides, revealing three massive platforms several kilometers in diameter, connected to one another by rope bridges.

On the first platform, a huge curtain of light woven from blue beams blocked the path forward;

while the second platform held a towering palace cast from crystal, radiating seven-colored light; through the crystal walls, numerous jade tablets tied by silk threads to the palace roof could be seen inside;

the third platform was empty, save for a deep abyss between it and the south gate, its rocky walls carved with countless images of flowers, birds, fish, insects, and even true dragons!

These were the three Dragon Gate trials that young geniuses across the Southern Zhuo Region must pass to enter the Qianlong Ancient City; only by clearing these three trials and entering the city could they qualify for the upcoming Qianlong List competition!

Seeing the three Dragon Gate trials appear, the crowd around them immediately began discussing and speculating on how many geniuses would succeed in clearing them.

At the same time, many supreme geniuses began their attempts; the first to act were naturally those with overwhelming strength, such as Sikong Sheng, the royal bloodline of the Floating Mountain within the Liupin Sect and last year's number one on the Qianlong List; the Fire Spirit Crown Prince, who also ranked in the top ten of last year's competition; and Lin Yun, among others...

"Ye Chen!"

Seeing the three Dragon Gate trials appear, the Liuyun Sect Master quickly said, "I wonder how many of your friends intend to participate in the Qianlong List competition? Now that the three trials have appeared and time is limited, you may go ahead and attempt them!"

Hearing this, Pang Bo and the others all turned their gazes toward Lu Qingshan, who stood at the front.

Xiao Yan and Han Li, being younger, could naturally attempt the trials freely, but the others were different; without Lu Qingshan's help, they could not withstand the backlash of the Qianlong Ancient City's rules!

Seeing this, Lu Qingshan shifted his mind; formless divine power instantly spread outward, then directly penetrated the three Dragon Gate trials ahead and even into the interior of the Qianlong Ancient City.

"This Qianlong Ancient City is quite mysterious!"

While investigating the many secrets within the Qianlong Ancient City, Lu Qingshan searched for flaws in its rules: "The operational rules of this Qianlong Ancient City are quite complex; had I just broken through to Immortality, I'm afraid I would not have been able to solve this problem, but now it poses no difficulty for me!"

With that thought, Lu Qingshan quickly waved his hand, sending several streaks of flowing light toward Pang Bo and the others, then said, "I have already resolved the matter; you may all now participate in this competition. I hope you all achieve excellent results!"

Hearing Lu Qingshan's words, Pang Bo and the others, all over twenty-four years old, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

After thanking Lu Qingshan, Pang Bo and the others quickly charged toward the three Dragon Gate trials under Ye Chen's lead.

The three Dragon Gate trials consist of the Wall-Breaking Trial, the Tablet-Claiming Trial, and finally the Dragon-Leaping Gate!

The Wall-Breaking Trial merely requires using overwhelming strength to shatter the blue light curtain on the first platform; it seems simple, yet the curtain's defensive power rivals that of a Bao Yuan Realm early-stage martial artist;

the Tablet-Claiming Trial demands even greater strength, requiring one to either dodge, endure head-on, or directly blast through beams of radiant light comparable to attacks from Bao Yuan Realm early-stage martial artists, ultimately obtaining a jade tablet to succeed;

as for the final Dragon-Leaping Gate, the most difficult of the three trials, one must withstand the terrifying gravity within the abyss and the demonic sound filling one's ears while leaping directly onto the south gate of the Qianlong Ancient City!

Most members of the Chat Group possessed extremely powerful strength, so the three Dragon Gate trials posed no threat to them whatsoever.

Only Yue Buqun and Cao Cao, whose strength was comparatively weaker, presented difficulties; after all, while the Chat Group could suppress their cultivation, it could not increase it.

Precisely for this reason, the others arranged for the two of them to attempt the trials alongside Luo Hanshan and a few others from the Liuyun Sect.

Among them, Yue Buqun, with higher strength equivalent to mid-stage Bao Yuan Realm, combined with his Huashan Sword Art, found the trials quite arduous, yet ultimately managed to reach the south gate of the Qianlong Ancient City.

As for Cao Cao, whose strength was the weakest, equivalent only to early-stage Bao Yuan Realm, attempting the three Dragon Gate trials proved far more difficult.

The first trial was quite simple; after unleashing his full power, Cao Cao finally managed to pass through.

The second trial's difficulty increased significantly; normally, Cao Cao's strength would have made it hard to withstand the radiant beams and obtain a jade tablet, yet although the beams attacked swiftly, some areas were thin, and their appearances followed a discernible pattern; thus, after observing for a while, Cao Cao finally relied on his formidable calculation abilities to dodge most of the beams, then barely endured several more, ultimately securing a jade tablet.

The third trial was the most arduous; Luo Hanshan of the Liuyun Sect had failed here. He had assumed that Cao Cao, whose strength was slightly inferior to his own, would also be eliminated by the third trial, yet unexpectedly, Cao Cao, along with the others, successfully rushed to the south gate of the Qianlong Ancient City.

"Fortunately, I didn't embarrass everyone!" Cao Cao, having reached the south gate, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In truth, with Cao Cao's strength, clearing the second trial was already his limit; yet the greatest challenge of the third trial, the Dragon-Leaping Gate, was the 'demonic sound filling one's ears.' Cao Cao, having endured years of warfare in the Three Kingdoms world, possessed a willpower far beyond that of these geniuses merely in their twenties; thus, the third trial posed even less threat to him than the second, and he ultimately ascended the south wall of the Qianlong Ancient City without difficulty.

On the other side, after witnessing Yue Buqun and the others finish their trials, Ye Chen, Pang Bo, and the others quickly began their own attempts.

Although Pang Bo and the others had all had their strength suppressed, they still reached peak Bao Yuan Realm; combined with their respective formidable techniques, clearing the three Dragon Gate trials was naturally effortless for them.

Thus, as soon as they began, they surged forward with unstoppable momentum, breaking through all three trials in succession, and quickly appeared atop the south gate of the Qianlong Ancient City; their speed was no less than that of the supreme geniuses who ranked in the top ten of last year's Qianlong List.

Everyone around witnessing this scene was startled.

After all, it was not just one or two individuals who passed the three Dragon Gate trials as swiftly as Ye Chen; so many appearing simultaneously naturally drew considerable attention.

"What? Who exactly are these people? Why have I never heard of them before?"

"These people passed the three Dragon Gate trials so effortlessly, matching even the top-ten supreme geniuses; it's absolutely terrifying!"

"They must be newly emerged young experts; this year's Qianlong List competition truly lives up to its reputation as the most flourishing in a thousand years; the established geniuses were already terrifying, yet now there are so many powerful newcomers!"

"Experts; these people are absolutely supreme experts!"

"That terrifying mysterious powerhouse has indeed arrived!"

Seeing Pang Bo's figure appear atop the south gate, Yuan Hengying, the eldest disciple of the Tianying Fortress, felt a sudden tightening in his heart.

After all, the scene where Pang Bo, outside the Tianmeng Ancient Land, crushed a Zhongyue Sect elder with a single punch had left an extremely deep impression on him.

Even now, he did not possess absolute confidence to kill a mid-stage Bao Yuan Realm elder of the Zhongyue Sect, yet Pang Bo had been capable of doing so a year ago, and that too under the assault of many powerful figures!

"And that detestable Ye Chen; damn it, how did he cultivate to late-stage Bao Yuan Realm?" Yuan Hengying's heart grew extremely wary once more.

Back then, within the Tianmeng Ancient Land, he had encountered Ye Chen, whose cultivation was lower than his own, and had assumed he could crush the other, yet unexpectedly, he was defeated by Ye Chen despite being a realm higher.

This incident was naturally his humiliation; he had originally thought he could exact revenge during the Qianlong List competition, but now...

Just then, several geniuses who already knew Ye Chen, upon seeing his appearance, rushed forward to greet him, including Murong Qingcheng of the Feitian Demon Sect, who was also one of Ye Chen's wives in the original plot.

Murong Qingcheng was the second disciple of the Hei Tian Demon Sect, a Liupin Sect, and also one of the two great beauties of the Heilong Empire; combining talent and beauty, she was naturally the most perfect partner in the hearts of countless powerful genius martial artists.

Seeing Murong Qingcheng converse quite harmoniously with Ye Chen, appearing somewhat intimate, some narrow-minded and arrogant geniuses immediately felt jealousy surge within them, even wishing to teach Ye Chen a lesson; among them, the strongest was Lin Yun, the eldest disciple of the Tianyun Sect.

As the eldest disciple of the Tianyun Sect, a Liupin Sect, Lin Yun had achieved a tremendous breakthrough in strength before this Qianlong List competition; he had long felt his talent surpassed all others, even disregarding Sikong Sheng, the number one of last year's Qianlong List competition.

Indeed, in Lin Yun's heart, Murong Qingcheng was already his designated partner.

Yet now, an unknown nobody was conversing so intimately with his partner; naturally, he intended to teach the other a lesson.

Thinking of this, Lin Yun instantly channeled the conceptual realm of the Heaven Fall Grand Art he cultivated into both his eyes, then smiled as he looked directly at Ye Chen, his gaze like a falling meteor, destroying everything.

Although Lin Yun's attack was aimed at Ye Chen, the first to notice was Han Li, who was always incomparably cautious. He was seen calmly shifting his figure by one step, instantly placing himself between Lin Yun and Ye Chen.

Actually, his original habit was to retreat behind Ye Chen and the others, but considering that Lin Yun's strength was too weak, and coupled with the fact that the rules of the entire Hidden Dragon Ancient City had been broken by the group leader, he naturally had nothing to fear here, so he simply blocked it for Ye Chen directly.

Inside the chat group.

【Han Li: Ye Chen, why does this guy hold hostility toward you? Image (Lin Yun). JPG】

【Ye Chen: Thanks, Brother Han! I noticed it too just now. I was originally planning to teach him a little lesson, but you blocked it, Brother Han! This person is Lin Yun of the Heaven Fall Sect. The reason he holds hostility toward me should be because of Qingcheng!】

【Pang Bo: Damn, this guy is way too petty! Besides, what relation does that Murong Qingcheng have with him? Should we help you teach him a lesson?】

【Han Li: Better not stir up more trouble!】

【Xiao Yan: Exactly! Wait until the competition to teach him a lesson. We'll kick him out of the top ten together then — definitely more agonizing than killing him!】

【Han Li: Won't doing this get us into trouble?】

【Pang Bo: Han Li, you brat, aren't you being way too cowardly? Besides, we've got the group leader leading us this time — what are you still afraid of?】

……

On the other side, Luo Xinglie, the Sect Master of the Flowing Cloud Sect, upon seeing Pang Bo's group and Ye Chen all blast through the three Dragon Gate trials at an astonishing speed, couldn't help but exchange glances, an expression of extreme shock appearing on his faces.

"Sect Master!"

The Grand Elder of the Flowing Cloud Sect, who had witnessed Pang Bo's power, could not help but transmit his voice: "Just who exactly are Ye Chen's friends? Could it be that they are all core disciples of fifth-grade sects?"

"How would I know that?"

Luo Xinglie, the Sect Master of the Flowing Cloud Sect, similarly shook his head with a bitter smile as he transmitted his voice: "Let alone Ye Chen's friends, even Ye Chen's strength, I'm now somewhat unable to see through!"

"Previously, when I saw his cultivation rise to the late Embracing Yuan realm, I already found it incredible, but I didn't expect that this was merely a small portion of his strength!"

"Sect Master!"

The Grand Elder of the Flowing Cloud Sect transmitted his voice again: "Regardless, with Ye Chen here this time, the fortune of the Dragon Suppressing Ancient Land will surely include a share for our Flowing Cloud Sect, and a not-light share at that!"

The three Dragon Gate trials were checkpoints for the preliminary testing of the contestants' strength. From Ye Chen's terrifying speed in clearing the trials, they had also come to understand a portion of Ye Chen's strength.

"Oh right!"

The Grand Elder of the Flowing Cloud Sect quickly continued transmitting his voice: "Sect Master, aren't there still two of Ye Chen's friends who haven't gone to participate in the three Dragon Gate trials? Especially that middle-aged man wearing a purple-gold long robe. Although I cannot discern his strength, he seems even more mysterious than the sect masters of those Liupin Sect. We absolutely must not slight him!"

"I understand!" Luo Xinglie quickly nodded in response.

(End of this chapter)