Chapter 96: The Might of a Single Finger

Dragon. A symbol of nobility, sovereign power, and overwhelming might. In the ancient age, the dragon race teemed with formidable beings: the Ancestral Dragon, the Turbid Dragon, the Azure Dragon, the Dark Dragon, the Primordial Dragon... They dominated the primordial wilderness and were first among the clans. Even the qilin race had once sunk into dependence upon them. Had it not been for internal discord, arrogance, and the Demonic Ancestor Luo Hou fanning the flames from the shadows, their decline might not have been so ruinous. Still, a starving camel is larger than a horse; even in its weakened state, the dragon race remained the third great lineage of the primordial world. And had its great experts not fallen one after another, it might even have stood shoulder to shoulder with the witch and demon races.

"True dragons, and not weak ones either. They must be of royal blood from the North Sea Dragon Palace."

With a single glance, Qingxu saw through the origins of the two dragons. They were both true dragons. The one fleeing in front was at the middle stage of the Taiyi True Immortal realm, while the pursuer behind him was at the early stage of that same realm. As for the several hundred armored soldiers, all of them were at the Profound Immortal level.

True dragons were the offspring of the first divine dragons, bred generation after generation. Within their bodies, to a greater or lesser degree, there lingered the mystic aura of heaven and earth’s creation, which made their cultivation astonishingly swift. By contrast, mixed-blood dragons and false dragons born from true dragons mating with other beings were not worth mentioning at all. In fact, many powerful figures captured mixed-blood dragons and false dragons to use as mounts, pets, or slaves. The dragon race paid little heed to this. Dragons were naturally lustful and profligate; mixed-blood and false dragons were scattered everywhere throughout the primordial wilderness, so even if they wanted to control it, they could not. In ancient times, when the dragon race’s power inspired fear, those mighty beings still had some restraint. But now that the dragons had declined, others acted with utter impunity.

When the ancient dragon, phoenix, and qilin races fought their great war, eight or nine out of every ten true dragons in the world perished on the spot. The few survivors were almost all transformed into the veins of the earth, using themselves to redress their karmic sins and leave blessings for future generations. That was why true dragons were now so exceedingly rare within the dragon race—only a few hundred remained. Each one was a treasure to the dragons, and a hope for their resurgence.

"Though both are true dragons, they are drawing steel against one another. There must be some hidden story here. Still, better to avoid trouble when possible. Even in their decline, the dragon race still has several Great Luo Golden Immortals. If I offend them, it will be a real headache."

Thinking this, Qingxu was just about to step aside to avoid being swept up in the conflict and suffer an undeserved disaster. Unfortunately, he was a step too late. The moment he spotted the two true dragons, the young dragon fleeing ahead also noticed him. Joy lit his face at once.

"Fellow Daoist, save me!"

Qingxu’s avatar of the Great One and Mysterious Yellow Spirit had a rather ugly appearance, short in stature, with shifty brows and beady eyes, quite sleazy in bearing. Yet he possessed the cultivation of an early Great Luo Golden Immortal, which no one could afford to look down upon. Of course, that only held true for those at the Great Luo level; a Taiyi True Immortal could not possibly discern his true cultivation. The fleeing youth was clearly grasping at straws, pleading with anyone in sight, not caring in the least whether he might drag another into the mess.

Now that they were closer, Qingxu could see things clearly. The youth in splendid robes was covered in blood, his expression haggard and his aura faint; he was plainly severely injured. By contrast, among those pursuing him, only a few armored soldiers bore minor wounds, while the rest were wholly unscathed.

"So he’s badly injured. No wonder a mid-stage Taiyi True Immortal has been reduced to such disgrace, chased by an early-stage Taiyi True Immortal and a pack of Profound Immortals, fleeing like a rat."

Seeing that the youth in splendid robes wanted to drag him into the calamity, Qingxu had no desire to interfere. He was about to slip away and pretend he had seen nothing.

In terms of strength, if he acted alone, he could wipe them all out with ease. But true dragons were no ordinary beings. If even one of them died, the dragon race would probably have secret methods to trace the matter back. By then, he would be hunted by the dragons, and the North Sea would become a place where he could not take a single step without danger. If they wanted to slaughter one another, that was one thing, but he had no wish to meddle in a matter whose roots he did not know.

"You wretched monster, stop right there!"

The gold-armored young dragon had sharp eyes. Seeing Qingxu trying to hide, he immediately shouted. With a wave of his hand, the dozen or so armored soldiers behind him fanned out in a flanking maneuver and moved to encircle Qingxu.

"You’re pushing things too far."

If you want to kill that youth in the splendid robes, then kill him. I never provoked you at all, and yet you still refuse to let me go. Do you really think I am afraid of you?

Perhaps because he had long dwelled beneath the teachings of the Jade Void lineage and had been influenced by those junior brothers of his, a streak of arrogance had taken root in Qingxu’s heart. Or perhaps it was simply disdain, though usually suppressed by reason. Yet once his cultivation surpassed others and he held the advantage, that air of arrogance naturally revealed itself, without even his own noticing.

When he had first tried to avoid them, he had already felt somewhat indignant. After all, he was now at the early Great Luo Golden Immortal level; Taiyi True Immortals were nothing more than ants to him, beings he could crush into dust with a casual wave of his hand. Those Profound Immortal soldiers were no more than paper tigers, utterly vulnerable.

He had never imagined that, having no desire to invite trouble and wishing only to keep the peace, the other side would instead refuse to let him go. Their arrogance was overbearing; with a single word, they had surrounded him from all sides. Judging by that murderous momentum, they clearly did not intend to leave any survivors.

What can be endured, and what cannot?

A Great Luo Golden Immortal had his own dignity. If some cat or dog dared to offend it, then that dignity had to be defended.

A man must fight for a breath of pride; a Buddha for a stick of incense. Qingxu ceased trying to evade them. He stood directly upon the rolling waves, coldly watching the armored soldiers closing in from all directions. His brow-eye opened, and with it the law-eye at the center of his forehead. The truth of their origins immediately became clear: dragon whales, tiger sharks, giant turtles and the like. Their blood was hot and vigorous, their natural strength prodigious, and in close combat they were indeed fierce. But how could such creatures enter his eyes? Even if he stood there and did not strike back, they might not necessarily be able to breach the defenses of his divine body.

"Kid, don’t blame us for being ruthless. If you’re to blame anyone, blame your bad luck for seeing something you shouldn’t have. Die!"

In the blink of an eye, the dozen or so armored soldiers had surrounded Qingxu completely. One burly man with a face full of flesh gave a vicious grin and raised his thick-backed ring saber high. Nine saber rings flew free from the spine of the blade, slicing through the air at random. In the reflected sunlight, the blade’s silver gleam flashed so fiercely it was almost impossible to look at directly. A dense, chilling killing intent, sharp as a tangible force, shrouded Qingxu.

Almost at the same moment, the other soldiers acted in the same fashion. In an instant, more than a hundred saber rings whirled wildly through the sky, dazzling the eyes and stirring wind and clouds. Within a thousand miles, the sea suddenly boiled with raging waves, and turbid breakers towered skyward.

"Hmph. They do have some skill."

Each of those saber rings carried force no weaker than the killing power of a normal early Profound Immortal’s flying sword. More importantly, their gleaming light could greatly hinder one’s vision, while the frontal power of their downward cleaving strike, bolstered by their innate strength, might even compare to a casual blow from an early Taiyi True Immortal. If these dozen joined forces, even an early Taiyi True Immortal would have to give way at the first clash.

Qingxu thought as much, but he was not polite about it. He simply extended the index finger of his left hand and pointed forward. Rings upon rings of golden divine power radiated outward from the fingertip, spreading in all directions. Whether it was the saber rings, the thick-backed ring sabers, or the armored soldiers themselves, the instant they touched those golden circles of divine force, they were reduced to dust and vanished from heaven and earth.

Fast. Astonishingly fast.

From the moment the dozen soldiers struck to the moment they were obliterated, only a blink of an eye had passed.

Not only the youth in splendid robes who had been fleeing, but even the pursuers behind him all froze in utter shock, staring stupidly at Qingxu.

"This man... this man is truly terrifying. I fear that within my North Sea dragon clan, only my father and the Ten Elders could stand against him."

The youth in splendid robes thought this in secret.

"A Great Luo? He must be a peerless expert of the Great Luo Golden Immortal realm! Heaven above, I actually provoked a Great Luo Golden Immortal myself. Wasn’t that just courting death?"

The gold-armored youth trembled all over, his face ashen, terror nearly stripping him of his wits. The proud expression that had once been on his face was now gone, replaced by the mournful look of one whose parents had just died. The soldiers behind him were even more pathetic, some nearly scared enough to wet themselves. More than a few had gone weak in the hands, and their weapons slipped from their grasp and sank into the sea.