Chapter 106: Entering the Sect as a True Inheritor, the Dragon-Form Li Yuan!

On the high platform, the hundred-plus-year-old elder was so angry he stamped his foot, his old face darkening.

In every generation of Divine Weapon Valley, the inner sect had only five great elders, and only twelve true inheritors—this was a rule passed down for over a thousand years, never altered.

Under one elder, there were only two slots; giving up one hurt more than losing an arm!

"No room for discussion?"

Han Han Chuijun narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Absolutely not!"

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong refused outright, then swept a glance at the other elders.

The three great elders, including Ku Yue, all sat back down in turn, eyes on their noses, noses on their hearts—this was something they could not concede even at death's door!

"Mm, very well."

Han Han Chuijun was not annoyed either; he merely glanced back at Liang Liang Ashui, who had been knocked to the ground, and at Shao Shao Fangbai, whose sword-light had been fierce and sharp as he passed the trial:

"The Bai and Zhao families actually dared to collude in private, making things difficult for other disciples seeking masters on behalf of their own children—this matter, this old man will certainly investigate to the end!"

"Shao Shao Fangbai is born with six forms, his talent outstanding, no less than this boy's—where is the impropriety in taking him in?"

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's face darkened, yielding not an inch.

"Whether there is or not, an investigation will tell."

Han Han Chuijun appeared very calm.

That attitude, however, made Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's expression tighten slightly; the several elders behind him changed countenance, sensing the cold intent emanating from Han Han Chuijun.

"Senior Brother Han, do not act rashly!"

At this, the remaining great elders could no longer sit still either; the disciples of the Zhao and Bai families within Divine Weapon Valley were by no means few.

"Then Shao Shao Fangbai, born with six forms, entering the inner sect is in no way improper!"

Elder Ku Yue shook her head slightly: "As for whether the Zhao and Bai families acted in private, let the Valley Master decide!"

"What Senior Sister Ku Yue says is not wrong."

The remaining elders all nodded.

The high platform was suddenly quite lively, yet no one paid attention to the arena below; Shao Shao Fangbai stood with sword in hand, and after a long while hearing no response from the high platform, his face immediately turned ugly.

Li Yuan did glance at the arena below, but his attention at this moment was naturally also on the high platform.

The factions within Divine Weapon Valley were exceedingly complex; beyond the five great inner-sect elders like Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong and Ku Yue, there were also the eight outer-sect elders, the Valley Master's own line—between them all, intricately tangled.

Broken down further, those from Fucheng, those from the commanderies and counties, those from well-off families, those from poor ones, great clans, minor clans…

It was a complete mess.

On the way here, he had made inquiries, but how could hearsay compare to seeing it firsthand like this?

"Old Han's popularity seems rather poor…"

Li Yuan muttered to himself, though he was not surprised.

As far as he knew, Han Han Chuijun's family background was quite poor, from a small village in the commanderies and counties, out of step with every faction.

Perhaps, precisely because of this, Old Han's temperament came across as so eccentric?

Li Yuan turned these thoughts over in his mind, while his peripheral vision drifted toward the Valley Master Gong Gong Yangyu, who sat unmoving—appearing utterly composed, seemingly unconcerned by the conflicts among the elders under him.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, Li Yuan's body stiffened as he felt the Valley Master's gaze upon him.

"Divine Weapon Valley has only twelve true inheritors per generation; although there are one or two vacancies now, there are no slots left under Junior Brother Han. Although it is not the case that one mountain has only two slots,

a superior six-form root is not enough to enter the sect and immediately become a true inheritor!"

Lord Master Gongyang Yu spoke, suppressing the clamor on the high platform.

Hearing his words, Han Han Chuijun raised his brow slightly and sat back down.

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's expression eased slightly, but then his brows furrowed deeply at once.

"As for whether the Zhao and Bai families colluded in private, I leave it to Junior Brother Han to investigate; if it truly happened, the Valley will certainly not show leniency!"

"Absolutely not!"

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong and the several outer-sect elders behind him spoke out in turn to stop him:

"Since Han Han Chuijun was previously unwilling to attend to the Valley's affairs, he now has no right to do so either! He…"

Their voices gradually grew quieter.

Only then did Lord Master Gongyang Yu withdraw his gaze:

"As for Li Yuan…"

Li Yuan bowed his head, a slight alarm stirring in his heart.

Every time the Valley Master's gaze fell upon him, he felt as if needles were pricking his back; it had not been an illusion before—this seemed to be an extremely masterful Wu Gong as well?

Or was it that, when Wu Gong reached a certain realm, even one's gaze gained weight?

"A superior six-form root bone may enter the inner sect. Li Yuan, Shao Shao Fangbai, Gan Wu, Tong Tong Jincheng… mm, and that Liang Liang Ashui as well, may all enter the inner sect."

Han Han Chuijun frowned and said nothing, but then, as if thinking of something, his brow smoothed out again.

"Valley Master, although Gan Wu has only a minor dragon form, he has already cultivated two Wu Gong to perfection; before the age of thirty, it is not impossible he could gather all nine forms and transform into a dragon. This old man believes he may be admitted as a true inheritor by special exception!"

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's brow furrowed as well:

"As for Shao Shao Fangbai, he is a bit young; delaying him by a year or two would also be acceptable. What does Junior Niece Ku Yue think?"

Elder Ku Yue merely glanced at Han Han Chuijun, who wore a faint smile, and hesitated, wanting to speak.

She somewhat suspected this old fellow wanted to use Old Han as a knife to kill—Old Han's manner clearly showed he had already developed killing intent…

"Not acceptable."

Lord Master Gongyang Yu dismissed it coolly, swept a glance at the many arenas on the open ground, and seemingly lost interest, preparing to leave.

At this moment, a voice rang out, drawing the frowns of those on the high platform as they looked over.

Yet it was Li Yuan who bowed slightly and asked, "May I ask the Valley Master, what does it take to enter the sect as a true disciple?"

"What place is there here for you to speak?!"

An elder rebuked him angrily.

Li Yuan did not look at him, only the name of this old fellow surfaced in his mind.

Zhao Chun Jing, one of the eight Outer Gate Elders, brother of the Zhao family head in Fucheng…

"My own disciple, may he not speak?"

Han Han Chuijun was already very displeased, his eyes drooping, radiating a dangerous and terrifying aura.

He disliked returning to the valley largely because of these people, hopping about all day long, yet he could not bring himself to slaughter them outright, which truly made his fury surge within him.

"Chun Jing, hold your tongue!"

Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong was somewhat terrified himself, turned his head and snapped a rebuke.

"In the thousand years of the Divine Weapon Valley, those who entered the sect as true disciples must possess the Dragon Form; a Lesser Dragon is but a serpent — not enough!"

Lord Master Gongyang Yu, however, was quite mild, and answered:

"Your talent is not poor, your bone structure is good; cultivate in the Inner Gate for three to five years, and it is not impossible you might be listed among the true disciples."

"Nine Forms?"

Li Yuan glanced at Han Han Chuijun, muttering to himself.

"Just work hard."

Lord Master Gongyang Yu glanced once more at the arena on the field, his heart already losing interest, rose, and, escorted by a host of elders, was about to leave.

Boing—!

At that moment, a sound like a taut bowstring snapping after being fully drawn came from behind.

"Hm?!"

Lord Master Gongyang Yu turned back in surprise.

He saw the expressions of everyone on the high platform change; that explosive sound had come, shockingly, from Li Yuan, who was bowing and looked honest and simple.

Boom!

Li Yuan tapped lightly beneath his feet, and the wooden-frame platform, more than eight meters tall, let out a buzzing hum.

Whirr!

His body seemed to flicker with firelight, his skin turned crimson, and beneath that crimson, veins swelled from small to a dark blue-green and thick!

Below the platform, Shao Shao Fangbai was just looking up, and saw Li Yuan stamp his foot, his clothes rustling loudly, and in the span of a Zha Yan De Gong, puffed out several sizes like a balloon.

Black veins coiled, clothes stretched taut, as if about to burst!

"This is…"

Shao Shao Fangbai's eyes instantly went wide.

And on the high platform, it was so quiet one could hear a pin drop; the elders all seemed caught off guard, exchanging glances, every one of them stunned and shocked.

"Dragon Form?"

"Dragon Form!"

Vast power filled his whole body; Li Yuan felt his field of vision had risen considerably, and he had to bow and lower his head to look directly at the elders on the high platform.

He could see the astonishment on Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's face, the shock of the elders behind him, and the smile on Han Han Chuijun's face…

And finally, Lord Master Gongyang Yu, who had turned back with a raised brow:

"Valley Master, is the Nine Forms like this for your disciple?"

"Good!"

Han Han Chuijun clapped his hands and laughed heartily; looking at Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong, whose face was hideously dark, he felt a great surge of satisfaction in his heart, as if drinking fine wine!

"Nine Forms?! How could it be?!"

"Gao Liu produced a Dragon Form, and for so many years no one noticed?"

"You old Han, hiding it so deeply!"

After the shock, the high platform immediately became lively; the Nine Forms as Dragon was already another kind of transformation compared to superior bone structure.

The last time the Divine Weapon Valley produced a Dragon was over seventy years ago, when Han Han Chuijun and Lord Master Gongyang Yu entered the sect!

"Dragon Form?"

Lord Master Gongyang Yu stroked his long beard, smiling and nodding:

"Good, very good!"

Hearing him speak thus, Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong's face instantly went black; he wanted to say something, yet felt he had nothing to say, so he rose at once and swept his sleeves away.

He walked quite fast, but still heard Han Han Chuijun's great laughter, and Lord Master Gongyang Yu's voice:

"Superior Nine Forms, may be made a true disciple!"

"Why don't you thank the Valley Master!"

Han Han Chuijun patted Li Yuan's shoulder, patting him down from two meters and two back to one meter eight; he was in excellent spirits, and also greatly shocked.

His bone-reading naturally could not be wrong; half a year ago, Li Yuan had truly only completed the Cloak Hammer and altered two forms.

Now, it was genuinely the Nine Forms!

"This disciple thanks the Valley Master."

Li Yuan hurriedly lowered his head.

Lord Master Gongyang Yu walked over, lightly patted his shoulder, and Li Yuan felt as if electricity coursed through his whole body:

"Ape arms and wasp waist, tiger back and bear waist? Hm, very good; the forms complement each other, combining flexibility and resilience — a notch above Junior Brother Han back in the day!"

Han Han Chuijun was not offended; innate Nine Forms came in many varieties and could not necessarily cover the whole body: "Compared to the Valley Master, still far inferior."

"Seventy-two years, and the Divine Weapon Valley sees a Dragon Form once more!"

Elder Kuyue also clapped her hands and laughed heartily, rose and walked over, and like Han Han Chuijun, pinched Li Yuan's shoulder, her gaze inevitably even more satisfied:

"Truly Nine Forms!"

"Disciple greets Elder Kuyue."

Li Yuan's expression stiffened slightly; this old lady had given him a pat, and his whole body was tingling, her grip no weaker than Old Han's.

"Dragon-Form root bone, not yet eighteen years old—if the talent is also good, then nurturing out a 'Divine Edge Force' won't take too long!"

The other two great elders also walked over.

"Disciple greets Elder Wei, Elder Wang…"

Bracing himself to pay respects to the sect's Blade Chief and Staff Chief, Li Yuan was pinched twice more in succession; these elders all seemed to have no Nine Forms, and appeared extremely curious.

"Still pinching?!"

Old Han was furious.

This was gold he had dug out of the sand; he would absolutely not allow anyone to meddle, and very decisively cut off the words of those old fellows right in their mouths.

In his heart he could not help but rejoice that he had concealed this boy's talent in forging arts, otherwise he would also have had to deal with those few old fellows in the Weapon-Forging Valley.

"Huff!"

The great stone in Li Yuan's heart fell to the ground.

Old Han was indeed reliable, and had not said that he was a Nine Forms who had changed through acquired means.

The several inner-sect elders became gentle; apart from the few outer-sect elders who had left with Qiu Qiu Zhengxiong, the rest also revealed smiling faces.

"The treatment of a genius…"