Sunset Forest.
Three figures raced through the forest, heading ever deeper into its depths.
Guibao and Yang Wushuang followed behind Bai Wanwan, spreading their spiritual power to monitor every movement around them, lest a Spirit Beast lurking in the shadows suddenly leap out and attack Bai Wanwan at the front.
Bai Wanwan, who remained in the lead, shared none of their concerns.
She had visited quite a few Spirit Beast forests growing up. Though they had only been small and medium-sized forests, no Spirit Beast had ever attacked her. Many even went out of their way to avoid her, never approaching her at all.
Moving at such a brisk pace, they soon reached the forest's central region.
But the moment they arrived there-
Bai Wanwan felt her heart give a sudden, powerful beat. Something seemed to tug at her bloodline, stirring it into motion.
She followed that pull onward.
Two striking mountain peaks gradually came into view, along with a poison formation someone had laid around their perimeter.
Before Bai Wanwan could speak, Guibao stepped in front of her and raised a barrier with his soul power, keeping out the poisonous mist spreading from the formation.
They passed through the poison formation and climbed the steep mountain. A hollow came into view, and as they approached it, waves of heat washed over them.
Bai Wanwan glanced down into the hollow. Feeling the pull grow stronger, she jumped without the slightest hesitation.
As she fell, Bai Wanwan released her Martial Soul: the Water Dragon King. Five Spirit Rings-one yellow, two purple, and two black-flashed beneath her feet. Dragon wings spread behind her, and with a few beats, she landed steadily on the ground.
"Good heavens, snow silkworm, the finest variety of cordyceps, and cinnabar lotus for treating fire poison. There are top-grade medicinal herbs everywhere."
Following close behind, Yang Wushuang surveyed their surroundings, his eyes widening involuntarily.
The Breaking Clan specialized in refining medicine. As the younger brother of its clan leader, Yang Wudi, Yang Wushuang knew better than anyone just how valuable these herbs were.
Just as I thought, the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well belongs to my family.
Bai Wanwan thought this silently as she looked toward the depths of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well. She gave a light wave of her hand and walked straight toward it.
The closer she drew to its depths, the stronger the pull within her bloodline became.
Behind her, Yang Wushuang's exclamations of wonder continued to ring out.
When they reached the deepest part of the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, Yang Wushuang's eyes suddenly lit up at the immortal herbs before him.
"Immortal herbs! There... there are actually immortal herbs here!"
Yang Wushuang gazed at the surrounding immortal herbs, his eyes brimming with excitement.
Guibao shot Yang Wushuang a disdainful glance. Though he did not know what immortal herbs were, Yang Wushuang had been exclaiming every few moments since they arrived, as if he had never seen anything of the world.
"Yang Wushuang, pick all the immortal herbs around here. Uncle Guibao, help him."
Bai Wanwan stopped before the red-and-blue pool, her gaze resting quietly on its surface. She paid no attention to the immortal herbs around her.
That pull was coming from beneath the water.
After weighing it carefully-
Bai Wanwan jumped straight into the blue half of the pool.
"Young Lady..."
At the sight, Guibao's eyes widened involuntarily.
Though he did not know what the red and blue spring waters were, he could easily sense the scorching heat and extreme cold they gave off.
"It's fine. Just help Yang Wushuang gather the immortal herbs."
With that, Bai Wanwan dove beneath the surface and disappeared.
The freezing spring water had no effect on Bai Wanwan. If anything, it felt comfortable. With her Water Dragon King Spirit, she descended through the water very quickly.
As she continued diving-
The remains of two enormous dragons gradually grew larger before her eyes.
A crimson dragon lay at the bottom of the red pool. A massive wound ran from its chest to its abdomen, and all the scales around the wound had shattered.
The dragon at the bottom of the blue pool looked exactly like Bai Wanwan's Martial Soul, as though it were an enlarged version of it.
Clearly, these two dragon corpses were the Water Dragon King and Fire Dragon King, who had fallen here. The pull within her bloodline came from the Water Dragon King's remains at the bottom.
Reaching the Water Dragon King's remains, Bai Wanwan saw the enormous bloody hole over its heart. An inexplicable sadness rose within her, and she instinctively reached out to touch the corpse before her.
The instant her fingertips touched it, a brilliant blue light appeared over the Water Dragon King's remains.
The light grew ever brighter until it enveloped the entire corpse.
A dragon's roar that resounded to the heavens rose from the bottom.
The roar carried both the sorrow of death and the joy of rebirth.
The brilliant blue light spread along Bai Wanwan's fingertips and over her body.
Within the light, the Water Dragon King's remains began dissolving from the tail onward into scattered motes of light. Yet its spine grew increasingly radiant.
Gradually, the spine changed shape. Ice-blue dragon scales covered it, forming a spear shaft adorned with deep-blue dragon patterns. Motes of light from the dragon's claws gathered at the front of the shaft, forming a spearhead that gleamed with a chilling light.
The spear, roughly four meters long, floated silently before Bai Wanwan.
The Water Dragon King's horns transformed into a Silver Crown covered in blue, rippling patterns. A sapphire that pulsed like liquid was set in its center.
Bai Wanwan's eyes slowly closed. The Silver Crown settled silently upon her head, and her pale hand reached out instinctively to grasp the spear floating before her.
Meanwhile-
Outside.
Sunset Forest.
Every Spirit Beast within reach of the lingering dragon's roar turned toward the central region in unison. Then they prostrated themselves, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.
Only when the roar had completely faded did their trembling stop, but their gazes remained fixed on the center of the forest.
Star Dou Great Forest.
The Core Area.
At the bottom of the Lake of Life, a pair of purple dragon eyes quietly opened and looked toward Sunset Forest.
"Di Tian."
A melodious voice drifted out.
Barely had the voice faded when a figure appeared before the purple dragon eyes.
"Master."
Di Tian dropped to one knee, his voice resonant with authority.
"I sensed the Water Dragon King's presence. Bring her to see me."
The purple dragon eyes gazed quietly toward Sunset Forest.
"The Water Dragon King?"
"Hadn't she already..."
Di Tian raised his head in surprise.
"In the memories the Dragon God left me, the Water Dragon King did indeed perish. But at the moment of her death, she also gained new life."
As the melodious voice faded, the purple dragon eyes slowly closed.
Di Tian nodded thoughtfully, then vanished from where he stood.
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