Jian Wushuang returned to where Yin Min and Ling Tianhao were after his conversation with Mr. Huo.
“Brother Swordsman, what did His Excellency say?” the impatient Ling Tianhao immediately asked.
“He asked me if I want to join the Dragon Palace,” Jian Wushuang said.
“Join the Dragon Palace?” Ling Tianhao stared at him wide-eyed.
“The Dragon Palace?” Yin Min was also looking at him in shock.
The warriors who accepted the mission with them also overheard Jian Wushuang’s answer and their expressions changed. Some looked envious, some appeared shocked, and there were also those who shot him looks of longing.
Dongfang Yu’s expression, in particular, was complex beyond measure.
He still remembered how his Great Master, Zhu Tao, had been complimenting him on his ability to join the Dragon Place when they were in the Golden Dragon Subsidiary Palace. He said Dongfang Yu only lacked someone to recommend him. But Mr. Huo did not even spare him a glance.
Yet Mr. Huo had taken the initiative to invite Jian Wushuang to join the Dragon Palace?
The way he treated them both was too dramatically different.
“Humph! So what if Mr. Huo is willing to play matchmaker? The recommendation list is with the Golden-dragon Ambassador, not Mr. Huo. Even if Mr. Huo has the recommendation list, it’s not like he’ll be able to join the Dragon Place if he wants to.” Dongfang Yu was feeling a deep envy toward Jian Wushuang.
“Now, listen carefully.” The sonorous voice of Mr. Huo suddenly reverberated as his gaze traveled around the place. “The missions issued by our Golden-dragon Palace have always been secrets. Though you’ve joined the mission, you mustn’t reveal anything about it whether it’s the process or the result. If it is leaked and we find out it’s you, we’ll kill you no matter who you are.”
Everyone looked serious. No one dared to defy the rules of the Golden-dragon Palace.
“Well, let’s go back to the Qingdong City.” With a wave of Mr. Huo’s hand, everyone immediately embarked on their way back to the Qingdong City.
They all felt tense when they made their way here, but much more relaxed now that their mission was done. Those who had officially became the One-Clawed Golden Dragon Guard were in especially high spirits.
Before long, they made it back to the Golden Dragon Subsidiary Palace in the Qingdong City.
The second they reached the place, Mr. Huo immediately said to Jian Wushuang, “Young man, come with me to see the Golden Dragon Ambassador.”
“Sure.” Jian Wushuang nodded.
“Brother Swordsman, I really need to thank you this time. Go ahead and see the Golden Dragon Messenger. When you return, we must have a good drink,” said Ling Tianhao, smiling.
“Haozi (Mouse) and I will be waiting for you at the Celestial Immortal Residence with good wine,” Yin Min said with a smile.
“No problem.” Jian Wushuang nodded with a smile. He then followed Mr. Huo in the direction of the inner hall of the attic.
When they came to an empty secret room, Mr. Huo said, “Wait here for a moment. I’ll go meet the Golden Dragon Ambassador.”
“Thank you.” Jian Wushuang nodded.
Mr. Huo was not gone for long. Soon, he returned with a grim-looking middle-aged man dressed in a crimson robe.
Jian Wushuang had met this man before. It was none other than the Golden-dragon Ambassador who had killed 14 experts of the Gold Core Realm of the Tianhuan Sect.
He immediately bowed. “Your Excellency, Golden Dragon Ambassador.”
“Huo Man, is he the young man who you mentioned has the chance to cultivate in the Dragon Palace?” The middle-aged man asked.
“Yes, his name is Swordsman,” Huo Man replied.
“Swordsman? It’s probably a pseudonym.” When the middle-aged man looked at Jian Wushuang, he felt as if he was being targeted by an ancient fierce beast.
“I’ll introduce myself first, young man. I’m Ye Rufeng and, as for my rank, you should be aware that I’m the Golden-dragon Ambassador of the Golden-dragon Palace,” Ye Rufeng said slowly. “Earlier Huo Man has told me about you and he spoke highly of you. But the recommendation list to enter the Dragon Palace is in my hands. So if you want to join us for cultivation, you must first display enough talent to satisfy me.”
“I understand.” Jian Wushuang nodded.
“Good. I”ll be your opponent. Show me all that you”ve got and remember, you don’t have many opportunities,” Ye Rufeng said.
“Yes.”
Jian Wushuang took a deep breath, his expression turning solemn. As what Ye Rufeng had mentioned, he truly did not have many opportunities.
“Golden Dragon Ambassador, I’ll start.” He was already gripping his Triple-kill Sword and a strong fighting desire rose in him.
“Feel free to come at me.” Ye Rufeng had his hands behind his back and wore an indifferent expression.
“Anonymous Swordsmanship, Sword-killing Movement.” Jian Wushuang’s eyes turned cold as he gathered his killing intent.
A stream of dazzling bloody sword essence burst forth. His killing intent rose sharply at that moment, before being pushed to its peak.
Ye Rufeng was surprised. “Oh? It’s the Formless Swordsmanship?”
He, as the Golden Dragon Messenger and the strongest warrior at the Yin-Yang Void Realm, was naturally familiar with the so-called first in the world, the Formless Swordsmanship.
He did not use any Martial Arts Technique or show any of his amazing Cultivation of Spiritual Power. With a simple wave of his sleeves, he easily defused Jian Wushuang’s strongest sword move. When he was done, he stretched out his fingers.
Clang!
He caught the edge of the Triple-kill Sword like a pincer. No matter how much Jian Wushuang struggled, he could not move the sword out of Ye Rufeng’s firm hold.
“This…?” Jian Wushuang was greatly shocked.
He had long known that Yin-Yang Void Realm warriors had impressive strength but he did not expect it to be this strong.
After making a breakthrough into the Ultimate Spirit Sea level, he could kill the strongest Initial Gold Core Realm with ease. But now the strongest move he could use was so easily defused by Ye Rufeng, to the point where his sword was even being controlled by mere fingers.
“You’re already pretty good to be able to use the second type of the Formless Swordsmanship to this extent.” Ye Rufeng was still holding the Triple-kill Sword in place but he was now smiling at Jian Wushuang. “You imbued the Sword Essence of Gale in your swordsmanship and you also have a high comprehension of it. Not bad. Not bad at all.”
He finally loosened his grip, allowing Jian Wushuang to retrieve his sword.
“It’s a shame that I don’t have a swordsmanship suitable for the Sword Essence of Earth. Otherwise…” Jian Wushuang balled his hands into fists, feeling unsatisfied with the outcome.
He had comprehended Sword Essence of Gale and Sword Essence of Earth at nearly the same time. Though he comprehended the former earlier, he later realized that he comprehended Sword Essence of Earth faster and ended up doing just that in the Dark Forest in the past three months.
Thus, he had a better comprehension of the Sword Essence of Earth.
Unfortunately, he did not have a suitable swordsmanship to display it.
Take his strongest move, the Anonymous Swordsmanship, as an example. It emphasized on speed and was most suitable to be used with the Sword Essence of Gale. When paired with the Sword Essence of Earth, it not only seemed out of place, its might was also reduced greatly.