"Hahaha..."
'Tap.'
'Tap.'
Bao Fei came to stop right in front of Zhao Luo while Zhao Luo enjoyed the rhythmic laughter of the third elder.
'The sound of his steps is intensifying the melody behind his laugh.'
Zhao Luo deduced while hearing the third elder's laugh.
But now the third elder was staring at him again.
"Let me 'SEE' what makes you special that even a disciple like him would consider you so great."
The third elder said loudly with his eyes locked on Zhao Luo.
"Hmm, You believe yourself. You want to achieve something big...."
The third elder took another step closer to, Zhao Luo.
"You led many disciples on the dragon road. You followed the teachings so perfectly that there was no error. You helped the dwarves and led the disciples who followed you in helping them."
The others also listened to Zhao Luo's evaluation by the third elder.
For the others, Bao Fei only had a line to say. It wasn't even about how they did on the dragon road. But for Zhao Luo, the elder started from a random self character of Zhao Luo to his performance on the dragon road.
His decision and his action were all known by this half-bald man who was standing in front of them.
The third elder continued.
"But you have a big problem."
The third elder looked devastated.
He waved his hand and the cloud under their feet became invisible. The dragon road became invisible too.
They were still standing on it but couldn't see it anymore.
'What did he do?'
Zhao Luo wondered as he looked at the third elder.
Zhao Luo could see the elder looking somewhere through the invisible Dragon Road.
He followed the sight and looked there too.
Zhao Luo was sure that he was looking back at the way he came from.
Then he saw a big green area, which was the forest where Zhao Luo had fought with the Monwolves.
He could see many monwolves lying there in tragic forms. Some were missing their arms while some didn't have their legs.
Some beasts were even headless. Then among these hundreds of monwolf. There were three who were cut cleanly in two to three pieces.
'That was me.'
Zhao Luo had a smile on his face when he saw this scene.
But soon his smile disappeared and Zhao Luo had a devastated look on his face.
"What? Why are they lying around there?"
Zhao Luo stepped back as if he couldn't believe it.
Wu Yang and the others saw the scene too.
"Did they fight among themselves?"
Wu Yang said as they had killed all the monwolves.
Zhao Luo was watching the disciples that he had left behind. They were still in the forest and were in awful shape.
Everyone was just lying around the trees with bloodstains on their robes. Their limbs were turned in such a way that slowed a clear fracture in their bones.
"Why would they fight?"
Zhao Luo mumbled unconsciously.
"It was because you underestimated the dragon road and gave them a responsibility that was too big for them."
The elder answered Zhao Luo with a straight face.
"The coins were never for everyone, thus they were tested and they failed. The disciple with the most greed is still running around the forest with the reward."
The third elder pointed downwards and Zhao Luo could see a disciple who looked way better than others from his outer appearance.
He had a pouch in his hands and was running around the trees inside the forest.
After watching him for a while.
'He is trapped.'
Zhao Luo believed as the disciples would always turn left or right whenever he would come close to the exit of the forest.
"Yes, he is."
Bao Fei added like he could read Zhao Luo's thoughts.
"You could have helped them all."
Zhao Luo took a step back as the elder took a step towards him while pointing out a fact.
"You could have divided the reward too."
The third elder took another step towards Zhao Luo while Zhao Luo took another step back.
"You could have brought them all to the end."
The elder declared.
"It's all my fault."
Zhao Luo blamed himself. He looked drunk with the third elder's words.
Zhao Luo stumbled back and was going to fall.
Wu Yang caught him so he looked back and saw the faces of others that were telling another story than the one the third elder was talking about.
"They had chosen this fate for themselves. They left me, I didn't. So how am I at fault here when they just got what they had opted for?"
Zhao Luo retaliated against the Elder's remarks.
"I never said that you were at fault. I was talking about the possibilities. But your true fault lies somewhere else."
The third elder told Zhao Luo.
The third elder looked at the disciple who was lost in the forest and threw his hand towards him.
The next moment, the third elder pulled his hand back with a pouch hanging down from his grip.
"This is your fault. This reward was never for your followers, it was for you. Yet you never fought for it and gave it away without even fighting for it when you could easily have it. By force and by words."
The elder threw the leather pouch towards Zhao Luo and Zhao Luo grabbed it.
'Thap.'
Zhao Luo could feel the weight of the pouch unlike before when he had handed it over to the disciples in the forest.
"The forest, the beasts, the dwarves, the missions are nothing more than an illusion.
The only truth is in your hand, and above all of your heads."
The third elder told them as Zhao Luo looked at the crimson bar above his head.
The others also looked at their bars.
The third elder patted Zhao Luo's shoulder and brought his mouth closer to his ear.
"What if someday, someone claims your goal and throws you off from it. Will you let him take it too like this pouch?"
The third elder whispered in Zhao Luo's ear and asked him. He wanted to show Zhao Luo the reality and the aftereffects of his choices.
Zhao Luo shook his head as he looked at the third elder with bright eyes.
The third elder stepped back and looked glanced at Zhao Luo.
"Bright personality, with unparalleled charisma. Hidden talents bound to gather around as flies gather around the light. But it's not just the personality that makes you special. Hmm, you may just be the dragon many were waiting for."
The third elder turned around as he left his final remarks on Zhao Luo.
Zhao Luo had a wide smile etched on his face.
"I will become that dragon."
Zhao Luo murmured while looking at the back of the third elder.
Zhao Luo was quite satisfied with what the elder had to say about him.
He also got the pouch back.
Zhao Luo had already put the leather pouch in his storage space.
"Come."
The third elder said loudly with a commanding tone.
Zhao Luo went towards the elder with the others right beside him.
The third elder turned around and had eight sunflowers in his hand. All eight of them had the 'sun' part of the sunflower dyed red.
Wu Yang, Feng Mei, Yan, Mite, Su Shi, Mo Lee, Wei Bin, and Hong Ling, were all given one of the red sunflowers by the elder.
While the elder pulled out a bigger and crimson sunflower which was given to Zhao Luo.
"Close your eyes and concentrate on the sunflower in your hands. Imagine that you are becoming one with it and it's merging with your insides."
The third elder guided them as they followed his advice.
Zhao Luo had it easy as he could be called a mastered absorption for he had already absorbed his apparitions many times.
The moment Zhao Luo closed his eyes, the sunflower started flowing include him in the form of crimson light.
In less than three seconds that big crimson sunflower had died down as Zhao Luo had absorbed it completely.
"Huff."
Zhao Luo took a deep breath and opened his eyes and realized that eight red lights were shining around him.
'They are still absorbing it.'
Zhao Luo thought as he felt a pricking sensation and realized that the third elder was staring at him.
"You should be more careful. Try to hide your abilities in front of others. The geniuses aren't those who are strong but the ones who can truly be called a genius, are those who survive till the end."
The elder advised Zhao Luo with sincere eyes.
Zhao Luo already knew that the third elder had his own way of worrying. But his speed of absorption was still two times slower than how fast he could absorb his apparitions.
"I will remember your advice."
Zhao Luo bowed his head as he thanked the elder.
After half an hour, everyone had finished absorbing the red sunflower inside them. They had perfectly assimilated the red essence of the sunflower within their bodies.
"Look at your arms."
The third elder told them suddenly.
Everyone looked at their right arm hurriedly as the elder had declared it so suddenly that they moved on impulse.
"There is nothing..."
Zhao Luo and the others said with a dull look.
