Chapter 498

"Does anyone here know what Zhao Yun actually did?"

"Headmaster, I've heard about it!" Jiang Gan stepped forward from the crowd.

"Six days ago, Hedong High School sought out children under ten across the country, forcing them to sign life-or-death contracts binding them to Hedong High School forever."

"After hearing about it, Zhao Yun went alone to the Hedong school where the elementary students were imprisoned, broke through several checkpoints, and rescued A Dou—who was held captive—truly legendary!"

Jiang Gan praised.

Wang Yun heard that this was what had happened.

"Zhao Yun did nothing wrong; we have no reason to hand him over to Hedong High School."

Guan Yu also believed Zhao Yun should not be handed over to Hedong High School.

"Headmaster! Guan Yu and Zhang Fei request permission to break the formation!"

Lin Yu was not brought along because Guan Yu feared Lin Yu might be injured during the formation breach.

"I'll break the formation." Zhao Yun suddenly appeared.

"Why are you only showing up now? You just got here and already cause trouble." Zhang Fei disliked Zhao Yun.

"Third brother, let Zhao Yun go ahead—this isn't the place for us to act." Lin Yu whispered.

After hearing this, Zhang Fei nodded inwardly; after all, his elder brother's true identity was highly mysterious.

"Zilong, I leave it to you!" Lin Yu greeted Zhao Yun first.

"No problem!" Zhao Yun bowed, then stepped into the formation.

"The Eight Gates Golden Lock Formation set by Li Ru was originally designed for battlefield warfare—it traps enemies and slowly wears them down. To break through, you either need enough numbers or to stop its constant shifting positions. Clearly, we meet neither condition, so we must find another way." Lin Yu explained from the side.

Lin Yu did not wish to intervene; he saw this as a trial for them. If he stepped in too easily, the experience would lose its value—he planned to observe first, learning how to set formations in preparation for the coming war in the Demon Realm.

Zhao Yun, unconvinced, decided to test it himself. He entered through the Life Gate and burst out through the Death Gate; he looked again, entered through the Death Gate, and emerged through the Rest Gate. Finally, Zhao Yun advanced deeply through the Rest Gate—and never reappeared.

"'Zhao Yun!'" The students of Donghan Academy cried out anxiously upon seeing this.

"Hmph, who told him to ignore my elder brother?" Zhang Fei grumbled.

"Third brother, don't say more—Zhao Yun hasn't broken out yet. Let's quickly ask our elder brother how to break the formation." Guan Yu turned to Lin Yu for help.

"Hard charging with your current strength is impossible to win. The only option left is to find someone to help." Lin Yu finished, then turned his gaze toward Cao Cao, hinting for assistance.

"Speaking of helpers, I know one—Ma Chao. From a martial arts family, trained rigorously since childhood, with solid foundations and formidable combat power." Cao Cao replied.

"Then go get him quickly." Lin Yu, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei set out to find Ma Chao.

On the beach, a young man in yellow swim trunks stood at the shore, holding a blue surfboard, gazing at the distant waves.

"That guy with the surfboard—looks like Ma Chao, right?" Guan Yu pointed at him.

"Looks right. Let's go over." The three walked toward Ma Chao.

"You're Ma Chao, right?" Zhang Fei blurted out first.

【323】 Zhang Fei, loves to screw over his brothers the most!

"Yeah! You guys wanna surf too? But today the wind's strong and the waves are huge." Ma Chao replied, his eyes sweeping over Lin Yu and the others.

"We're not here to swim—we need your help to break the formation and rescue the captives, to resolve the academy's crisis." Guan Yu spoke bluntly.

"I don't like fighting—I'm afraid you'll be disappointed." Ma Chao turned, preparing to walk away.

"It's not fighting—it's saving lives, helping Handong Academy." Guan Yu quickly added.

Ma Chao didn't stop walking. "It's the same thing."

Seeing this, Guan Yu pressed further: "When a friend is in trouble, shouldn't you lend a hand?"

Ma Chao stopped. "But do we even know each other?"

"Then let's spar—no fight, no friendship!" Zhang Fei was pleased with his own idea.

"To befriend someone, you must connect hearts—strength alone is useless." Ma Chao rebutted.

"If fists are useless, why train martial arts at all?" Zhang Fei countered.

"You revere martial strength so much? Fine—I'll stand here. Let you punch me a few rounds. If you knock me down, I'll help you." Ma Chao set his condition.

"Fine, no problem!" Zhang Fei eagerly stepped forward, certain his fist could not be resisted.

A fist strike, heavy and solid, slammed into Ma Chao's chest—he stepped back a few paces, yet felt nothing.

"This time I won't hold back." Zhang Fei gathered his strength and struck with full force.

Ma Chao, like a living cushion, effortlessly absorbed Zhang Fei's punch—this time, he didn't move a single step.

"You're truly strong—I used my full strength and still couldn't budge you." Zhang Fei marveled.

"Indeed impressive. This is the first time I've seen martial arts cultivated to this level." Guan Yu could not help but admire.

Ma Chao, slightly embarrassed by the praise: "Nothing special—my mother taught me since childhood. I'm still far from mastery."

"All your martial arts were taught by your mother?" Guan Yu was astonished.

"Yes. Since you can't defeat me, I'm leaving." Ma Chao turned to go.

Guan Yu turned to Lin Yu: "Elder brother, only you can handle this—Ma Chao is too powerful for us."

"You'll help us if you're knocked down?" Lin Yu asked Ma Chao again.

"Correct. If you can make me fall to the ground, I'll go with you." Ma Chao's tone was firm.

Seeing Ma Chao's combat power was 55,000, Lin Yu still felt confident.

"Alright, watch closely—I'm coming." Lin Yu walked forward slowly.

"Go ahead." Ma Chao remained unconcerned.

Though Lin Yu's combat power was suppressed to 60,000 in the Silver Realm, he still felt confident—he gently extended his hand, curled his finger, and tapped Ma Chao's forehead with a soft "snap."

"Ow! That hurt!" Ma Chao sat down on the sand, clutching his forehead.

"You're amazing! What technique is that? Finger Snap Divine Art?" Ma Chao eagerly asked.

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei exchanged glances, staring at Lin Yu in confusion.

"That? Just flicking the forehead," Lin Yu said calmly.

The crowd fell silent, thinking it was some lost technique, only to find it was merely flicking the forehead. Yet Lin Yu's mere act won Ma Chao's admiration and earned the respect of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei.

"Alright, I'll help you rescue them," Ma Chao stood up and called out, "Huang Zhong!"

"He's Huang Zhong—never misses a shot. Wherever his eyes fall, he never fails," Ma Chao introduced.

"Really? Can he come with us too?" Guan Yu pressed.

"Wherever Ma Chao goes, I go," Huang Zhong replied.

"Good. I, Guan Yu, thank you both," Guan Yu bowed his fists in gratitude.

"Not at all!" the two returned the bow.

"Now we have enough. Let's return and break the formation." Lin Yu, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Huang Zhong, and Ma Chao set off toward Handong Academy.

At the school gate, Wang Yun watched them with worry. "Are you certain you can break the formation?"

"Fifty-fifty, but we'll give it our all," Guan Yu replied on behalf of the group.

Wang Yun, after hearing this, gave serious instructions: "Good. Be extremely cautious. If you can't break it, it doesn't matter—what matters is protecting yourselves."

"Understood!"

"Enter the formation!"

Lin Yu, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Huang Zhong, and Ma Chao all entered the Eight Gates Jin Suozhen. All faculty and students of Handong Academy cheered them on.

Each of the five chose a gate and entered, yet they met again inside the formation.

"The first trial is the reunification of the Eight Gates. Brother, what do we do next?" Guan Yu and the others looked to Lin Yu, awaiting orders.

"Next, the five gates merge into one: Jing Men pairs with Jing Men, Xiu Men with Kai Men, Du Men connects with Shang Men. Then the path ahead will open—just walk forward," Lin Yu instructed.

"Alright! Let's go." The four followed Lin Yu's directions, step by step, passing through each gate until they reached the rear.

At the third trial, the gatekeeper transformed into the form of the peerless beauty Diao Chan. Guan Yu's face instantly turned the color of a dog's rear end—like a kettle heated to boiling, steaming almost visibly.

"Guan Yu, what's wrong?" Ma Chao and Huang Zhong, confused by his expression, grew uneasy.

"Oh no, his old problem again! My second brother—" Zhang Fei began, but Guan Yu stepped on his foot. This embarrassing matter was better left unspoken before outsiders.

【324】 The Mockery of Dengtian Pavilion

"I'm perfectly fine! Just a bit suffocated," Guan Yu laughed awkwardly, struggling to mask his expression.

"Enough. Let's keep breaking the formation!"

All eyes turned to "Diao Chan," waiting for her to speak.

"Welcome to Math Class—actually, a mental arithmetic test. Answer correctly, and you pass. Answer wrong, and you get a small punishment. But Liu Bei, you're exempt—this is too easy for you. Even if you answer right or wrong, you won't be punished!"

After all, in this Silver Space, math skills were shockingly low—even single-digit addition and subtraction were beyond many. Lin Yu, posing as Liu Bei, found such mental arithmetic trivial. The designer of this formation, Zuo Ci, had truly profound intentions.