" I'm doing none of those things. I'm telling the truth. I just heard that there was a powerful cultivator who was killed by the Dragon. The people said the cultivator was almost as strong as me. That's why I thought that it was you who died because amongst us, only you could have gone from there," The Western General said, frowning.
"Now I know that it was I who was misunderstanding about the identity of that person. But it's the real truth. I checked the marking myself. It seems to be the work of the Blood Dragon. So we should leave this meeting and check what it was about," he further said.
"If you all still doubt me, you can come and check for yourself."
"Are you sure that it seemed like the work of Blood Dragon? Because it's highly unlikely that they left the Dragon Temple," The Northern General asked, squinting his eyes.
"I'm sure of that," the Western General replied calmly.
"Don't believe him. He also assumed that it was me who had died. And we all know how wrong he was. I doubt we can trust his assumption," the Southern General said, still not trusting him.
" Come on, do you really have to be that suspicious?" The Western General asked, frowning.
"Who will be suspicious if not me?" The Southern General retorted, still not giving up.
"Did you see a Blood Dragon with your own eyes?" Eastern General asked, chiming in.
Western General shook his head.
"So couldn't it be another beast who can leave the marks similar to a Blood Dragon?" The Eastern General asked, frowning.
"Another beast that can breathe fire as well?" Western General asked sarcastically.
"Don't tell me the people there told you that? The same people that saw someone as strong as us there too? They're idiots as proven," the Southern General said, rolling his eyes.
"Come on! Can we get over that thing already?" The Western General asked, getting irritated. The Southern General was acting like a child now. He had caught one thing, and he wasn't letting that go.
"No, I can't. Because that point already proved they were lying. The only people who are stronger than us are the four Emperors, and I am sure none of them was there," the Southern General said again.
"Alright, this is annoying right now. I don't even want to talk to this idiot anymore," the Western General said as he smacked his fist on the table while standing up.
"I'm talking to the two of you that are sensible. It was a Blood Dragon! It has left the Dragon Temple for some reason which means something is changing. As for what it is, I don't know. That's why we need to investigate," the Western General said.
"Alright. I'll take your words seriously in that case. I'm talking to His Majesty to get the information to investigate. He shouldn't say no," the Northern General said as he stood up.
"Are you really taking that seriously?" The Southern General again chimed in.
"We must investigate. If it's a lie, we'll lose our time. But if it's the truth, then you can imagine how important it is," the Northern General said as he talked to the Southern General.
"You don't have to come since you think it's a lie. No one will force you, don't worry," the Western General said, grinning. He knew there was no way this guy was going to let others enter while others stayed behind.
It didn't matter that the Dragon Temple was in the Northern Empire. It was the property of all four Empires since it was such a significant place. No single empire could hoard this place.
"Alright. The meeting was adjourned for a moment. The three of you can leave. My men will take you to the guest rooms. Please stay there while I talk to His Majesty. As soon as I have any update, I'll inform you," the Northern General said before he left the room.
While leaving, he didn't forget to tell his men what they needed to do.
...
Unaware of the commotion in the Northern Empire, Long Chen was still busy in his travel.
He stayed in meditation as ten more days passed before they actually managed to get to the Northern Empire.
Long Chen had stopped his meditation as he observed the map which was in his hand.
"That's right. This is where the territory of Western Empire ends," Long Chen said before he folded the map. It was useless now since, from here, the territory of the Northern Empire started. He didn't have the map of the Northern Empire after all.
Only the maps of the Western Empire were available in the Western Empire at best.
"Where to now?" The Snake Monarch asked as he finally stopped since they didn't know where to go.
"Take the left. The Dragon Temple should be in that direction," Long Chen said as he pointed in a certain direction. "Even though the Dragon Temple comes under the Northern Empire, it's close to all four Empires. It's only ten kilometers inside the Northern Empire from the center."
"As you say," the Snake Monarch said as he started moving.
....
On a different hand, a team of the four Generals had also gotten ready to leave from the Royal Capital. The Northern Emperor had permitted them to investigate what was happening inside and if this news was true.
The Four Generals left together, advancing towards the Dragon Temple, somewhat excited. It was going to be their first time entering the Dragon Temple since no one was permitted to enter otherwise.
Only with the permission of one of the Four Emperors could someone enter the Dragon Temple as it needed a special key.
There were only five such keys. Four of them were kept by the four Emperors, as for the fifth one, it was someplace unknown.
....
Ten more hours passed before Long Chen landed in the middle of a dessert. As far as the eyes could see, nothing was visible except for one giant door.
The fifteen feet tall door seemed to get made of pure gold that was shining brightly under the rays of sun. Other than the door, there was nothing.
There was also a keyhole in the door.
"Only a door? Is this the Dragon Temple? Whoever made this Temple really did a bad job. They made the door but forgot to make the rest of the Temple," Snake Monarch commented as he started laughing.
"I was jealous of Dragons for having a Temple before, but man, if this was their Temple, I am glad I don't have one," He further said.