327 Door to Rank 4

"They have paid for what they have done to me. I no longer want my path to be filled with despair and cries, but happiness. I wish to be happy with my friends and future friends that I have not met yet."

She didn't want to learn martial arts just for the sole sake of revenge. There were times when she felt that she truly wished to destroy them, but she knew that it was not worth it. She has her own dreams too, which was to reach the peak and protect everything that she treasured.

Revenge might be part of it, but it wouldn't be the entirety of her path, just like what Lu Wan told her.

"Do you think you can be happy?" 'Ye Jiao' asked with derision, there was a dark laugh beneath the young girl's face.

Ye Jiao looked at her own expression and smiled. She knew that she doubted herself that she would be happy with the numerous enemies that she had. Her life might always be filled with danger and all, but she knew that it would not be the entirety of her life.

"Why not? Even in little things, I can be happy."

'Ye Jiao' looked at her with her hollow expression as her body started to disintegrate.

Watching that expression on her face along with the darkness around the girl's body, Ye Jiao knew that it was herself. To be exact, it was part of her heart when she wanted to kill everyone in the Wei Family. She had long wished for it because she knew what they have done to her was something that she could not forgive easily.

But this was not real.

She didn't want to destroy everyone's life just because some of them have destroyed hers. There was a part in her heart that didn't wish to see their death.

'I might be a bit too soft and naïve, but I'm not going for that path.'

She had seen for herself how the circle of revenge worked. With grievances that were embedded deeply into their heart, they would do anything just to take their revenge. It was scary and dark.

It was not the path that she wished to take.

Ye Jiao watched as gold appeared in front of her, but she didn't show even the slightest interest. She did like wealth, but she already had enough of them. Rather than living while drowned in wealth, just having enough of them for her use would be enough.

The gold disappeared as soon as it appeared as if it understood that Ye Jiao would not have any interest in it.

Truth be told, if she had any interest in material wealth, she would have tried to take a lot of them from Qin Zheng from a long time ago. After all, that man was basically a walking treasure trove.

Afterwards, Ye Jiao could see that she was standing at the peak with numerous people behind and below her. They were looking at her with reverence as if they were looking at someone from above.

A small smile appeared on the corner of her lips. "It's my dream to reach the peak, but I know that I'm not worthy of such a thing yet. There is still a long way to go, and I'll do my best to reach it. Someday, I'll surely reach the peak."

As soon as she finished talking, the scenery changed once again.

This time, Ye Jiao could see that she had returned back to the mountain once again. Qin Zheng was standing in front of her, looking at her with interest. The other two also seemed to have just woken up from something. Still, they seemed to be in a daze as if they were not here.

"That's…"

"Everything you have witnessed is your desires, regret, and also your goal. It'll show everything interchangeably. If you couldn't get past them, you won't be able to wake up, and after an hour, you'll be sent directly to the mountain foot," Qin Zheng explained with a smile.

Ye Jiao turned to look at Gao Yun, who seemed to have focused his gaze again. He looked at Qin Zheng with a frown.

"Can you repeat it?"

Qin Zheng repeated it exactly the same while the two of them contemplated. Ye Jiao had never thought that her desire to see her parents again would be that big. However, she knew that they have always been her idols, whom she loved very much. It wouldn't be weird for her to miss them very much.

"Senior Qin Zheng, is this test not just designed for us to pass?"

Hearing the question from Gao Yun, Qin Zheng smiled. "What do you think the purpose of the test is?"

"It's also to allow us to know ourselves better."

Ye Jiao furrowed her brows. Rather than to know themselves, she saw it more to let them reflect. "It's not just seeing, but also reflecting on our path."

By this time, Han Fu seemed to also refocus his gaze. He looked at the two of them with confusion.

"What? What? What did you two just say?"

Qin Zheng seemed to prefer to ignore the young man as he nodded his head. "You're not wrong. The purpose of the test is indeed not just to test your capabilities, but also to let you reflect on your path. It'll allow you to have a clearer view of your path and possibly help you reach rank 4."

Even though it was designed as such, he knew that the three of them ended the test too quickly for it to help much. They must have a firmer mind and a clear view of their own path. They would once again reflect on it when they were about to reach rank 4, but at that time, a small confirmation would be enough.

These three didn��t seem to have many doubts about their own path.

"How long did I took to finish the test?" Han Fu asked hurriedly. Rather than caring for the purpose, he seemed to care more about the time.

Qin Zheng arched his eyebrows. "Around 4 to 5 minutes."

"That long? Damn!"

The others were looking at Han Fu with disbelief. If those were categorized as long, what would those people who struggled for an hour? After all, the time limit for the test itself was an hour.

"What? I heard that you need to finish it in under 3 minutes to be qualified to reach rank 4. That means I still need more time to reflect on my path," Han Fu sulked. He wanted to be able to reach rank 4 quicker and this realization just hit him hard. He thought that he was ready, but it didn't seem to be the case.

Qin Zheng nodded his head. "You still have some time before your Eon Energy reaches the required amount. During that time, I'm sure that you will be able to think more about your path and reach the requirement."

"That's still going to be a long way to go," Han Fu groaned. Cutting down even a little bit of time would be hard because he knew that he would answer the same way now. Besides, it just meant that he was not ready yet to become Eon Energy Master Rank 4.

Ye Jiao blinked her eyes. "It seems that it's important to reach rank 4?"

"There are two barriers to rank 4! Don't you already know that? This annoying path is one of them…"

As Han Fu began to complain, Qin Zheng turned his body around and started walking again. The other two were also following behind him while Han Fu quickly stopped his rambling. He still wanted to talk, but the others didn't seem to be willing to talk with him.

While the four of them and other youngsters who followed behind started to walk again, on top of the mountains there were five people watching them with interest.

"It seems that there are more outstanding youngsters this year."

"Indeed."

"If they manage to be nurtured, that event is going to be extremely lively," A woman said as she sipped her drink calmly. She was wearing a peach colored robe with her long hair fluttered behind her back. Even though she was already in her forties, she still looked no different than youth in their twenties.

The first man who talked was a middle aged man with a slightly plump body. He has a calm aura, which made one respect him in a single glance. Listening to what the woman said, his eyes lit up in interest. "Elder Xin is correct. Do you have any youngsters that you set your eyes upon?"

The woman glanced down at the four youngsters who were going up. They were much faster than the others as they were still struggling in either the empty path or the illusion that tested their heart.

"That young man called Gao Yun is not bad at all. He's very suited for our academy."

"I disagree," the other middle aged man raised his voice. He has a large body with bulky muscle, yet the trace of old age has started to become apparent. His sharp eyebrows were twined together, showing his displeasure.

"Why is it, Elder Yi?"

"He's more suited to my academy."

The second woman passed a glance at the middle aged man named Elder Yi. She has tender skin and a fair appearance. Dressed in pale blue dress and white cape, she looked like a fairy that was capable of enchanting every man she met. That was only if she hadn't opened her mouth.

"You? Don't joke with me, Elder Yi. You should just go and recruit a youngster who's more suited to the water element."

"My academy is not just for water element specialists, Elder Cai. Please mind your words."

"Is that so? Why did I think that you're only recruiting them lately?"

"Please, you're just going to smear my academy name if you continue."

The other three people decided to ignore these two. They already knew that Elder Yi was famous for his short temper while Elder Cai was famous for her feistiness. When these two met, these kinds of clashes would become extremely common. And unfortunately, the two of them were also very petty.

It would be better if they didn't get involved, or it might not end well.