Chapter 542: Heaven's Pride (13)

"You say you are unwilling."

The mysterious person appeared calm upon hearing Zhang Mang's reply; they had perceived his answer long ago, even earlier than Zhang Mang himself.

Even though Zhang Mang's constitution was special, he was still too weak, and his inner thoughts could not be hidden at all in front of a true powerhouse.

But even though they had known the result long ago, this mysterious existence still wanted to hear an answer from Zhang Mang in person.

"Why?"

"Do you know what kind of person was qualified to enter the Dragon Transformation Pool in the past?"

"Even the descendants of Immortal Gods had to pay a huge price and pass through layers of trials before they were finally qualified to stay in the Dragon Transformation Pool for half a day."

"And you, a weak mortal, merely a descendant of a Heaven Girl from who knows how many generations ago, without having undergone any trials, were not qualified to enter this place at all. Yet, out of consideration for my friendship with your ancestor, I made an exception and let you enter the Dragon Transformation Pool to be baptized, and you actually do not appreciate it?"

"Tell me, your reason for giving up."

The mysterious person was not angry; they did not care about Zhang Mang's refusal, they just wanted to hear his inner thoughts.

Why would he make such a choice?

"Do you not want to become a dragon? Do you not want to possess powerful strength? Do you not want to take revenge on that person outside?"

"My lord, I do."

Seeming to have set down a burden after speaking the answer, Zhang Mang regained his previous calmness at this moment.

"I want to gain strength, want to avenge Huhu, and want to make that guy pay a painful price."

"However, I do not want to obtain it for nothing; that... is not what I want."

Zhang Mang's face now held a maturity and calmness beyond his years; he had not been blinded by temptation and had strictly guarded his own Dao Heart.

"Then, what do you want?"

"I want..."

Hearing this, the youth pursed his lips, a touch of shyness appearing on his face. He raised his hand to scratch his face, his expression somewhat hesitant, but in the end, he still lifted his head and spoke firmly:

"I want to make my master feel proud of me, and I want to live up to his expectations of me."

"When I became his apprentice, my master gave me a name: Mang."

"Mang, a great snake."

"A great snake becomes a python, a great python becomes a boa, a great boa becomes a flood dragon, and a great flood dragon becomes a dragon."

"He said he hoped that one day I could become a flood dragon and transform into a dragon, and I also hope to fulfill his expectations."

When talking about his master, the youth shed all his feigned maturity and truly became a somewhat shy, somewhat stubborn little child.

"But... as I am now, I am not yet qualified."

"Right now I am only a snake, not even a python; if I were to become a dragon overnight, I fear I would lose myself."

He pursed his lips, clenched his fists, and whispered: "I am afraid I will disappoint my master."

"My lord, although my eyes are blind, my heart is not."

Zhang Mang lifted his gaze, his pupils—which should have been lifeless—turning slightly to find the mysterious person's eyes, and then he shook his head slowly but firmly.

"I am unwilling."

He said:

"The path beneath my feet is one I must walk myself."

"If I accept your charity today, I will accept charity from others in the future, and in the end, I will completely lose my own direction."

"No Heaven's Pride grows by relying on the charity of others."

Foolish.

The mysterious person looked at the youth, shook their head slightly, and could not help but want to sigh.

To give up such a precious opportunity for a bit of insignificant persistence was truly foolish.

In their view, the youth before them was still too weak to understand the meaning represented by the Dragon Transformation Pool, which was why he could give it up so decisively.

"... Heh."

But to have such thoughts while being so weak was not bad either.

If he could persist in this way, his future achievements might not be inferior to his ancestor's.

"Little fellow."

They shook their head with a laugh, pointed at Zhang Mang and gestured in the air several times, before finally saying helplessly: "You really are... the same temperament as your ancestor; not much ability, but stubborn to the core."

"Fine, since you have such great determination, I will not force you, lest it seem like I am trying to ruin your Dao Heart."

"I hope you will not regret it in the future."

The opportunity had already been given, but the person did not care for it.

Fine.

Then let it be so.

The mysterious person shook their head, then flicked a finger, instilling a complex stream of information into Zhang Mang's mind.

"Don't say I don't look after you; this is your ancestor's cultivation method from when they were weak. It is enough for you to use until the Void stage; you will have to explore the path after the Heaven Realm yourself."

"Learn this if you want, or don't if you don't; regardless, I have given it to you."

Zhang Mang:!!!

The chaotic information in his mind caused Zhang Mang's brain to crash for a moment, and he stood blankly on the spot.

After looking after the descendant of an old acquaintance, the mysterious person laughed and shook their head, turning to walk toward the wall under the plaque, muttering to themselves:

"Heh, truly, since when did the qualification to enter the Dragon Transformation Pool need to be forced upon someone? This is really..."

As their body was about to touch the wall, a magnificent gate appeared out of thin air, the doors opening automatically to reveal an endless pool behind them.

The pool water was filled with mist, the surface shimmering with ripples and shining with seven-colored light; one could faintly see illusory dragon shadows appearing on the water, then suddenly vanishing into the distance.

Unfortunately, Zhang Mang, this little blind boy, could see none of this splendor.

He was not entirely unable to perceive it; the moment the great gate opened, he saw the sky-filling, dazzling radiance erupting from the pool water, and he was stunned into a daze.

As the mysterious person moved forward step by step, slowly walking into the pool water, their body gradually submerged into the water.

Not until the water surface was about to pass their waist did they suddenly turn their head, smile at Zhang Mang behind the gate, and speak in a somewhat eerie manner.

"Little one."

"That resolute gaze of yours is not bad."

"It's just that your discernment isn't very good; it's lacking far too much."

Zhang Mang:?

Wha, what does that mean?

Just as the youth was bewildered, the mysterious person could not help but laugh, saying teasingly:

"Who is your uncle?"

Their originally masculine voice shifted as the tail end of the sentence fell, turning into a crisp, young girl's voice.

"Hehe~"

Zhang Mang:?

???

"Sen, Senior!?"

The naive youth only then realized he had mistaken the other party's gender, and for a moment, he truly panicked.

No joke.

Zhang Mang was scared to death!

He had truly never considered this possibility at all!

"I didn't mean it! Senior! Sen..." Zhang Mang hurriedly shouted for a long time, but in the end, he could only helplessly shut his mouth.

The great gate closed, and the other party had completely departed from here.

"..."

Zhang Mang fell silent, then turned his head to look at the Yellow Sand Tiger, which was still playing dead, and raised his foot to kick it in a fit of pique.

Making you play dead!

Making you play dead for me!!!

Thump, thump, thump!

The youth was of flesh and blood and had no way to cause any trouble for the Great Demon Yellow Sand Tiger, but these continuous kicks did convey a signal to it.

Sa, safe?

Is it all over already?

After hesitating for a moment, the Yellow Sand Tiger lifted the Seal on its four senses, but it did not react directly; first, it sneakily took its claws off the top of its head and furtively observed its surroundings.

After seeing only the youth full of anger, it let out a long breath, and regardless of the fact that it was being kicked, it sprawled on the ground without any dignity, its body trembling uncontrollably.

"Ha! Ha, whew..."

Sca, scared the tiger to death!!!

"You knew the whole time?"

Zhang Mang kept a cold little face, grabbed the Yellow Sand Tiger's whiskers with both hands, and felt that this fellow was truly too unreliable.

"Why didn't you warn me?"

【"..."】 The Yellow Sand Tiger rolled its eyes, giving an answer through its actions.

Where would I dare to speak?

If that great one didn't take the initiative, how would I dare to expose it? What if I ruined the great one's good mood?

That person was quite good to you, but that doesn't mean they would be good to a tiger like me!

This tiger doesn't want to become a tiger-skin ornament...

"Hmph!"

After Zhang Mang had taken his fierce revenge, he also felt some lingering fear and lay weakly on the Yellow Sand Tiger's back. One person and one tiger, one big and one small, piled up together, and they both let out a long breath, both feeling a sense of having survived a disaster.

After a long while, Zhang Mang finally came back to his senses, still harboring some grievances in his heart regarding the mysterious woman's teasing of him.

"This senior is truly a peculiar existence."

"Clearly so powerful, yet she would actually bully a child..."

Thinking of this, Zhang Mang suddenly shivered uncontrollably.

He remembered a woman he had met before who had this same strange personality!

It was precisely after meeting her on the city wall that his eyes became blind, and to this day, he still cannot truly see the light again.

"If I had been able to see before, there wouldn't have been so much trouble!"

Zhang Mang pouted secretly, feeling somewhat wronged, and complained silently in his heart: "Sure enough, the teachings in the Jade Pendant left behind by Master were right..."

"Women are all bad things! Never trust them lightly!"

Zhang Mang's performance when facing the mysterious woman was, if not one hundred percent, at least seventy percent learned from the Jade Pendant Ren Yidao left him.

"However, now that that great one has left, what should we do now?"

The mysterious woman thought Zhang Mang made such a choice because he did not understand the value of the Dragon Transformation Pool.

But in reality, it was not so; he had made the difficult decision only after weighing the pros and cons.

The knowledge Ren Yidao left him and the guidance Chu Hairen had arranged for him previously both made him clear on the value of this opportunity.

Zhang Mang did not regret giving up this chance, but he was a bit lost now.

"If that Hu Family ancestor keeps waiting, are we supposed to just keep wearing him down like this?"

Zhang Mang thought anxiously for a while, then finally comforted himself: "Fortunately, I swindled all the Spirit Stones away; he shouldn't be able to hold out longer than us."

No matter how intelligent he had appeared before, or how much persistence he held in his heart, at this moment he was just a child with little experience.

At this moment, Zhang Mang naturally felt lost.

"Will Senior Uncle Chu and the others come to save me?"

Ever since he was kidnapped, they had not appeared; had they encountered some danger? Or were they avoiding harm and abandoning him?

Even though Zhang Mang understood that all of this was normal, his mood was still somewhat low.

He buried his whole body behind the fur of the yellow sand tiger and muttered in a muffled voice:

"... Master, what exactly should I do now?"

"Dao, Daoist! Where are we going now?"

Dong Rong knelt respectfully on the back of the Baihu Daoshen, asking Ren Yidao with an excited face: "Have you already found clues to the whereabouts of your disciple?"

Ren Yidao had previously killed the two withered elders in an understated manner, which made Dong Rong extremely excited, feeling that the pent-up anger in his chest had finally been vented, and he had completely become a fanatical fan of Daoist Ren.

And Qiu Yuyao, who was by his side, did not have a much better expression; compared to her husband, she had noticed the shout Chu Hairen made when he lost his composure earlier.

"Ren Yidao..."

"We have witnessed a true Heaven-gifted talent!"