Huang Xiaolong turned into a streak of light, flying toward a peak further in the distance. Ten minutes later, his feet touched the ground at mid-mountain level.
This particular mountain peak wasn't as tall as the others in the proximity. Weeds grew tall around large and small stone boulders carelessly piled on the ground. If it weren't for Huang Xiaolong sensing the dragon qi in this particular spot, it would never have crossed his mind that the Hailstone Holy Sect's treasure vault was located in such an inconspicuous small mountain.
With some help from Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi, Huang Xiaolong swiftly arrived at the inner parts of the mountain.
In a short span of time, Huang Xiaolong was already a hundred zhang beneath the mountain, standing in front of the Hailstone Treasure vault's doors.
The Hailstone Treasure vault's doors were thirty meters tall and ten meters wide, made of a material unknown to Huang Xiaolong. The surface of the doors was inscribed with many different symbols that resembled ancient demonic beasts, or ancient talisman symbols if one looked from another angle, and they even looked as if they were depicting the scene of a battlefield.
At the center of the treasure vault doors, there was an obvious dent where a key was supposed to go.
Huang Xiaolong stared dumbly at the treasure vault doors, a helpless smile emerging on his face. Well, he found the treasure vault, but he had no key, what was he going to do now? For a powerful prominent sect like the Hailstone Holy Sect, the restrictions placed around its treasure vault were undeniably strong, striking off the option of breaking into the vault by brute force. Even if brute force could be used, the energy fluctuations would no doubt attract that six people over here. That in itself was another kind of trouble.
"First move the treasure vault away!" Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi seriously said. "You can think about breaking through the restrictions later."
Huang Xiaolong was stumped, was this also a method? He laughed at himself, moving the whole treasure vault away? That was easier said than done.
"I'll help you suppress the restrictions on the treasure vault. With your strength, it shouldn't be too hard to move the treasure vault away."
Huang Xiaolong hesitated. Even if he could take away the treasure vault, it would surely cause the whole mountain to shake in a big way, that would certainly draw that six people's' attention.
"What are you hesitating like a girl for? Even if those six people really rush over, there's still me, what's there to be afraid of?!" Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi was running low on patience, "Quick, those six people will come searching this area very soon!"
With that said, Huang Xiaolong threw away his hesitation and stood in front of the treasure vault doors. The true immortal essence in his dantian roared madly, then he stuck both of his palms right onto the doors, pulling it up as if he was uprooting a tree.
Light shimmered around the treasure vault as the restrictions were triggered. Just as a terrifying force prepared to attack Huang Xiaolong, Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi's sturdy claws slammed down, an even stronger dragon force tyrannically suppressed the treasure vault's restrictions.
Boom!
As Huang Xiaolong exerted force in a lifting action, the entire treasure vault shook violently, spreading out to the surface of the mountain.
Despite the far distance, the mountain's abnormal tremors inevitably attracted the six people's attention. All six people hastily turned around, gazing in the direction of the small mountain.
"What is happening over there?!" Azure Dragon Institute's Li Qingming exclaimed in surprise.
At this time, another strong tremor was felt.
"Someone else snuck in?!" A cold gleam flickered in Lu Cong's eyes.
"Go over there!"
All six people turned into streaks of light, rushing over toward the mountain Huang Xiaolong was in at breakneck speed.
In the inner part of the mountain, Huang Xiaolong let out a shout, both black and blue twin dragons flew out, enhancing Huang Xiaolong's strength. The treasure vault seemed to loosen slightly, but it was still stuck to the mountain.
"Forget it, let me." Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi said, the Dragon Pearl released a brilliant light as streams of dragon essence force surged out, traveling along Huang Xiaolong's arms.
With Dragon Emperor Ao Taiyi's help, the treasure vault finally began to move upward.
The whole mountain trembled as if there was a fierce beast that was about to escape from inside the mountain.
Even from afar, Lu Cong's group could see the mountain Huang Xiaolong was at shaking vigorously, seemingly without reason, slightly baffling them. Their movements slowed down due to hesitation.
In that split second of hesitation, the mountain peak suddenly exploded. The six people saw a black-haired young man carrying a giant square treasure box the size of a small hill, shooting out from the crumbling mountain.
Six pairs of eyes widened in shock.
"That… is the Hailstone Treasure?!"
Delighted, all six people lunged toward Huang Xiaolong in a flash, but before they could do anything else, the Dragon Pearl glimmered in a dazzling light as Huang Xiaolong put the Hailstone Treasure away in the Dragon Pearl's space.
In an instant, Huang Xiaolong was surrounded by the six people.
Earlier, all their attention was on the Hailstone Treasure, and due to the distance, none of them paid any attention to the Black Warrior Institute inner disciple robe on Huang Xiaolong. Now that they were closer, all of them were surprised to a certain degree looking at the robe on Huang Xiaolong.
The Black Warrior Institute's Grand Elder Nie Yu recovered promptly from his surprise. Scrutinizing Huang Xiaolong, he snapped crudely, "Impetuous! As a Black Warrior Institute's inner disciple, why aren't you kneeling in salute seeing three Grand Elders before you!"
According to the Black Warrior Institute's rules, any outer disciples and inner disciples were required to kneel in salute upon meeting a Grand Elder.
Huang Xiaolong merely sneered at his words, "Grand Elder? Working in cahoots with people from Azure Dragon Institute, according to Black Warrior Institute's rules, not only will you be stripped off your Grand Elder status, you're to be subjected to severe punishment."
Although both the Black Warrior and Azure Dragon Institutes were under the Vientiane Divine World Surface's jurisdiction, the two institutes had always been at odds with each other, the competition between them never ceased, neither did the conflicts.
Nie Yu and the other two Black Warrior Institute Grand Elders' expressions tightened, killing intent flitted across their pupils.
Black Warrior Institute's Grand Elder Zhao Lufei shook his head with a disdainful sneer, "Brat, you think you'd be able to leave here in one piece? I'll give you a choice, obediently hand over the Hailstone Treasure vault and we shall give you a painless quick death. Of course, if you think you're able to escape, you can choose to escape, however, I advise you not to do so, or you will wish you were dead!"
Lu Cong's icy voice sounded: "No need to speak so much nonsense, just kill him off directly."
Zhao Lufei and the other Black Warrior Institute Grand Elders looked at Nie Yu.
Nie Yu nodded.
Regardless of anything else, this inner disciple couldn't leave here alive. Even if the Black Warrior Institute conducted an investigation, it wouldn't involve them in any way. Even if it did, they could just simply use the excuse that the inner disciple was rebelling, thus they punished him. With the three Grand Elders' status, the institute naturally wouldn't pursue the matter too deeply.
Nie Yu, Zhao Lufei, and the other Grand Elder did not recognize Huang Xiaolong because he changed his facial features with his immortal essence force, otherwise, knowing that Huang Xiaolong was the Institute principal's personal disciple, they'd still feel a minimum amount of apprehension killing Huang Xiaolong.
Seeing Nie Yu nod, Zhao Lufei turned his attention back to Huang Xiaolong. His palm struck out through the void without a word.
Wind blades rose with the palm force, accompanied by the sound of muffled air blasts.
But, just as Zhao Lufei's attack was about to hit Huang Xiaolong, the six of them saw his forehead shine brightly, releasing a horrifying destructive power.
Startled, all six of them flew backward in retreat.
By the time they looked again in Huang Xiaolong's direction, he had already vanished without a trace.
"This?!" Lu Cong rushed to the spot where Huang Xiaolong stood earlier, his face ugly.
"What happened? Impossible, that little punk, how can he vanish? How did he escape?!" Nie Yu yelled in anger and disbelief, "Search! We absolutely must find that damn punk, we cannot let him get away!"
"He won't get away!" Lu Cong said with a cold glint in his eyes, "To leave the Hailstone Treasure space, one must know the method to open the restrictions, he's definitely still here somewhere!"