Chapter 180: A Heros Glory

Chapter 180: A Hero's Glory

Yu Xian rose from the lounge chair, the Hero Key in hand. In an instant, the positive thoughts gathered by the Giant Serpent Heart flowed to his right hand, then poured into the Hero Key. A massive golden door slowly materialized before him.

Yu Xian turned toward Eternal Purity. "Auntie, do you think I should open it?"

She studied the golden door and slowly shook her head. "I don't know. This is beyond the scope of my understanding. Whether the outcome is good or bad, you must make the decision yourself."

She could not discern anything about the door. In fact, unless she looked at it with her eyes, none of her other abilities could even detect its existence.

Yu Xian glanced at the Hero Key and gradually came to a decision. Since it was called the Hero Key and had been formed from positive thoughts, whatever lay beyond the door was unlikely to be evil.

He stepped forward and inserted the Hero Key into the golden door's keyhole. The door drained away every last trace of positive thought within him.

The number above the keyhole kept changing and finally stopped at seven. Then the door slowly opened. However, Yu Xian could not see what lay beyond it.

As he observed the door, Zhang Shou and the others came to him. Zhang Shou stared at the door. "Salted Fish, don't tell me this is another one of your new abilities?"

"More or less," Yu Xian replied.

Gong Qian tried to touch the door, but her hand passed straight through it. She asked, "What's inside?"

Yu Xian shook his head. "I don't know."

Zhang Shou smiled wryly. "Then we won't disturb you. Be careful in there. Just call out if you need our help."

Yu Xian nodded and smiled. "Mm, don't worry. Nothing too serious should happen."

He stepped through the golden door and vanished inside. The others found the sight rather wondrous. Gong Qian tried approaching the door, but passed straight through it. Evidently, no one besides Yu Xian could touch the door, much less enter it.

Zhang Shou gritted his teeth. "Salted Fish's abilities are becoming more and more mysterious. This won't do. I need to work hard and grow stronger too!"

He turned around and went off to train his abilities. His system's task was very simple: accumulate ability activations. Whenever he used his ability a certain number of times, the system would level up, raising his rank and allowing him to learn new abilities.

Most supernatural beings who had consumed Forbidden Fruits advanced very slowly. The longer their lifespans were, the slower their progress became. Barring any unexpected circumstances, it would take Zhang Shou at least several hundred years, or even over a thousand, to reach Dragon-rank.

Hearing Zhang Shou's words, Gong Qian instinctively turned toward Xiong Da. Xiong Da immediately shuddered, sensing something distinctly ominous about her look.

Gong Qian cracked her knuckles and walked up to him. Standing well below his height, she tilted her head back to look up at him and extended an invitation with a smile. "Xiong Da, come. Spar with me!"

After spending a month with Qilin, Xiong Da knew all too well just how terrifying Gong Qian could be. He immediately turned and fled, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Nooooo!"

"Stop right there! Don't run!" Gong Qian sprinted after him.

***

Before stepping inside the golden door, Yu Xian had imagined many grand and wonderfully optimistic possibilities. Perhaps the door concealed vast piles of treasure, an endless collection of weapons and equipment, or rows of statues honoring legendary heroes, from which he could inherit their powers.

Reality, however, was the complete opposite. He found himself standing in a narrow, gloomy, pitch-black passageway, with prison cells lining the path ahead.

Yu Xian gulped and slowly approached the first cell. Inside sat an exceptionally neat and clean-looking man, with refined, delicate features. He sat in one corner with a book in his hands, looking every bit like a cultured and scholarly intellectual. Yu Xian's arrival seemed to surprise him.

The man closed his book and smiled. "Hello. It has been a very, very long time since we last had a visitor. Welcome to the Land of Glory."

Yu Xian asked, confused, "Hello. The Land of Glory? What does that mean?"

The place was dark and cramped, with prison cells everywhere. No matter how he looked at it, it hardly seemed connected to the word "glory."

The man asked in return, "A hero defeats the Demon King and ensures that he receives the punishment he deserves. Is that not the hero's greatest glory?"

Yu Xian froze for a moment before his Super Brain caught up. "So... you're a Demon King who was defeated by a hero?"

The man narrowed his eyes and smiled. "What... do I not look like one?"

Yu Xian shook his head. "Not at all. You look more like a teacher, or perhaps a poet or an author."

The man smiled. "You have quite the discerning eye. I was indeed once a teacher. I taught my students how to cultivate more efficiently and how to become successful cultivators. However, many people considered my teachings excessively cruel and grew hostile toward me. Over time, my students began arguing with those detractors to defend me, and the disputes eventually escalated into violent conflict. Unfortunately, my students lost, and I was defeated by a hero. Thus, I was imprisoned here, with a sentence of... eternity."

While the man was speaking, Yu Xian noticed that a number was displayed beside the left side of the cell. Beneath it was information about the prisoner inside. He walked over and carefully read the text below the number.

[Prisoner No. 001]

Name: Rama

Identity: Sect Master of the Myriad Demon Sect

Crimes: Established the Myriad Demon Sect in thousands of different regions, directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of a total number of living beings equivalent to the combined populations of 911,668,621,578,691,244,663,388,774,452,212,395,541,239,857,889,544,621,455 Level-9 worlds. His crimes are unforgivable.

Sentence: Permanent imprisonment.

Yu Xian looked back at Rama. He could hardly imagine that such a cultured and scholarly-looking man was a fiend among fiends. Appearances truly can be deceiving. Judging someone by their looks is far too superficial.

Yu Xian immediately lost all desire to continue speaking with Rama. He headed straight for the second cell, where he found a dragonkin imprisoned inside. The dragonkin cast a fleeting glance at him and closed his eyes again, not deeming him worthy of even an acknowledgment.

Yu Xian did not mind. He walked over to the number and carefully read the prisoner's information.

[Prisoner No. 002]

Name: Ao Hai

Race: Darkgate Dragonkin

Crimes: Accidentally destroyed thirty major branches of the Tree Universe during his battle with Rama, bringing catastrophic devastation upon countless living beings. His crimes are unforgivable.

Sentence: Permanent imprisonment.

Yu Xian drew a sharp breath. It turned out that both Prisoner No. 001 and Prisoner No. 002 were Almighty-rank powerhouses. Is every criminal imprisoned here an Almighty-rank powerhouse?

Yu Xian immediately walked over to the third cell. Inside was a woman more beautiful than any he had ever seen. She sat in the corner with her cheek resting against one hand, seemingly lost in thought.

The moment she noticed Yu Xian, she looked straight at him and gave him an enchanting smile. Her every movement radiated irresistible charm. "Hello, boy. Am I beautiful?"

Fortunately, the cell sealed away her allure, leaving only her physical beauty. Not only was Yu Xian unaffected, but the moment she spoke, he became alert. Realizing how dangerous the woman was, he hurriedly lowered his gaze, walked over to the cell number, and examined her information.