Chapter 42

"Who is it! Who is it! Who entered the ninth level of the Green Ruins!"

Daoist Huanglong, who rushed over with utmost urgency, unceremoniously grabbed Canghai Tian by the collar, spitting saliva all over his face.

As the vice president of the Green Dragon Academy, Daoist Huanglong was, in the absence of the mysterious president who often traveled far away, the true second-in-command, effectively the world manager of the academy in the eyes of many.

It was precisely because of this that he was the first to discover that something was wrong with the "Green Ruins."

Originally, he was puzzled when someone entered the Green Ruins, as one needed a certificate issued by him, the vice president, to enter for training. With the important entrance exams approaching, he was so busy that he had no time to issue any certificates, so no applications had been approved.

Unexpectedly, just a few days after the Green Dragon's roar, the long-closed Green Ruins suddenly opened.

At first, he thought it was just some elite student who couldn't resist going to the first level for some training, so he didn't pay much attention and set it aside.

Who would have thought that just by setting it aside, when he picked up the immortal stone to check again, the light point indicating the trainee's position had already rushed straight to the ninth level.

By the Green Dragon! That was the ninth level, where a Green Dragon King was once buried, a place that had claimed the lives of countless great cultivators, the deepest area of the secret realm, the Green Ruins.

What was inside, what the characteristics of the monsters were, even he, the vice president of the Green Dragon Academy, did not know. It had been a hundred years since the last team entered the ninth level.

In that last team, there was an old friend of his, a cultivator of immortal arts whose skills were on par with his, and who had also cultivated a Dharmic Body.

However, that adventure ended in total annihilation. Although his old friend, skilled in defensive immortal arts, managed to bring out a precious immortal herb from the ninth level, he ultimately turned into a pool of blood before everyone's eyes before he could even leave a final message.

In the post-mortem examination, it was discovered that he had already lost all vital signs and had burned the power of his Dharmic Body to barely bring out the immortal herb.

This was the mental preparation one had to make when delving into an unknown secret realm. Those unexplored areas of the secret realm might indeed contain rare treasures, but to obtain them, one had to pay a bloody price.

The unfortunate Green Dragon King who fell in the ninth level was one of the blood prices paid by humanity.

Secret realms were not treasure troves for anyone to plunder; they were forbidden zones bound by the laws of the seas and mountains. No secret realm was without danger. Even in some secret realms that had long been explored, terrifying monsters sometimes appeared from unknown passages, causing rivers of blood.

"Teacher, we don't know either," Canghai Tian, who was almost shaken into a straw man, said with a bitter smile. If he knew who had entered, he would have reported it to the academy long ago.

"Don't know? How is that possible? You saw him enter with your own eyes," Daoist Huanglong's beard flew up. He rushed here with utmost urgency, not to hear this.

No matter who it was, no matter where they came from, the only ones who could enter the Green Ruins were those related to the Green Dragon Academy; otherwise, the "Green Dragon Lock" would not be a mere decoration.

At this moment, he was eager to know who had entered the deepest level. He guessed it might be a hard-training teacher, one of the geniuses who had graduated from the academy, or even a retired vice president.

Whoever it was, he wanted to know the truth now, to find out who had given him such a big surprise. He was eagerly awaiting the mysterious trainee to emerge and take responsibility for everything.

Just as he told Canghai Tian, he had already prepared the highest honor of the Green Dragon Academy for this mysterious trainee. He didn't need to bring out any rare treasures; the fact that he had entered the deepest level was enough to earn him all the honors.

Because that was the ninth level of the Green Ruins, a place he himself dared not enter.

Soon, other well-informed people followed Daoist Huanglong to the scene.

Among them were elderly men with gray hair, like the vice president, and students who had just been brought by their mentors. The news that a trainee had entered the deepest level of the Green Ruins had spread wildly throughout the Green Dragon Academy.

Everyone who heard the news first reacted with disbelief, then deep surprise after confirming it through authoritative channels, and quickly spread the news to others.

Thus, shortly after Daoist Huanglong arrived, more people braved the rain and hurried to the Green Ruins, forming a large gathering at the entrance to the Green Dragon Academy's most difficult secret realm.

All eyes were focused on the entrance of the Green Ruins, sealed by the "Green Dragon Lock," with people whispering and exchanging the latest information.

The news continued to spread rapidly, from the Green Dragon Academy to the surrounding areas and to all the floating mountains docked around the Green Dragon Mountains.

Thus, more people began to rush to the Green Ruins, just to witness the birth of a miracle.

Everyone was discussing who had entered the deepest level of the Green Ruins, and it was not a team but a single person.

What kind of confidence, what kind of terrifying strength, was needed for one person to dare to enter the deepest area of the Green Ruins, where a Green Dragon King was buried?

For everyone living in the Green Dragon Mountains, that was a place no one dared to speak of. Because it was where a legend, a genius who had just stepped onto the path of kings, had fallen.

So, when they learned that someone had entered that forbidden place alone, where the Green Dragon King had fallen, everyone was stunned.

To them, this was a miracle, a living myth being born before their eyes.

Thus, more people, undeterred by the heavy rain, held umbrellas and moved in groups toward the ancient Green Ruins.

They only wanted to confirm one thing: who this mysterious trainee was. When he emerged from the Green Ruins, they would give him the loudest cheers and applause.

Even though they didn't know his name, this mysterious trainee who had entered the deepest level of the Green Ruins alone had already become a hero in the hearts of the people who had lived in the Green Dragon Mountains for generations.

His actions deserved this honor.

"What, you can't even see what he looks like!" Daoist Huanglong, exasperated, looked at the Canghai brothers in front of him. They were the only witnesses who had contact with the mysterious trainee, yet they knew nothing.

Although he knew it wasn't their fault, there were many immortal treasures and techniques in the seas and mountains that could hide one's appearance, but this answer was too disappointing.

"Is there nothing you know? How old is he? What kind of certificate did he use?" Daoist Huanglong didn't give up. Now he wouldn't let any clue slip.

The immortal stone in his hand could only show when the person entered and which level they entered. Due to his carelessness, he only realized something was wrong when the immortal stone glowed red as the mysterious trainee entered the deepest level.

To be honest, when he saw the red alert on the immortal stone he carried, it took him a while to remember what it meant, as the vice president of the Green Dragon Academy.

In his lifetime, he had only seen the red alert once. That was a hundred years ago, when a team of several great cultivators entered.

That team included an old friend of his, a cultivator of immortal arts whose skills were on par with his, and who had also cultivated a Dharmic Body. That team, led by him, had conquered countless secret realms and entered the deepest level of the Green Ruins for a legendary rare treasure.

At that time, everyone was optimistic about the team, and many thought that the ninth boundary tower would soon be established in the unexplored deepest level of the Green Ruins.

However, the outcome was that the well-equipped team, whose strength could rank in the top ten of the seas and mountains, was completely annihilated. His old friend, who brought out the rare treasure, turned into a pool of blood and died without a trace.

So, when the red light representing the highest warning appeared on the immortal stone Daoist Huanglong carried, he was stunned for a long time.

"He is very young, definitely not over twenty, probably only seventeen or eighteen," Canghai Jiao, the most composed of the Canghai brothers, said what Daoist Huanglong most wanted to know.

"What, seventeen or eighteen? Do you know what you're saying?" Daoist Huanglong, hearing this, was the first to disbelieve.

"I won't be wrong. He's not an old cultivator who has returned to youth," Canghai Jiao was confident in his judgment. As a member of a top-tier family in the Eastern Sea, he wouldn't misjudge someone's age.

Cultivators of certain special immortal arts could indeed return to youth, but the signs of age and the aura of沧桑 (沧桑 means "the vicissitudes of life" or "the wear and tear of time") could not be changed.

"That's right, I think the guy is only sixteen or seventeen," Canghai Long supported his brother's view.

"Looks nothing like an old guy, can't help but admire," Canghai Tian also supported his brother.

Daoist Huanglong knew the Canghai brothers. They were from a top-tier immortal arts family in the Eastern Sea, one of the few families that had supported the Green Dragon Kings for generations. Among the elite students of the Green Dragon Academy, these three were also outstanding.

One person might be wrong, but it was impossible for all three to be wrong. This was not something to joke about.

Could it be that the trainee who entered the deepest level of the Green Ruins was really a young person, only sixteen or seventeen, at most not over twenty?

Just thinking about this possibility made Daoist Huanglong's body tremble uncontrollably.

What did this mean? He knew better than anyone.

Genius was not enough to describe such a person. Someone who could break through the first eight levels of the Green Ruins before the age of twenty and boldly enter the deepest area was a true prodigy of the seas and mountains, a legend that would become a legend of the seas and mountains.

However, Daoist Huanglong's shock had not ended, or rather, it had just begun.