Even in his predicament, Ancestor Dragon's inherent arrogance remained, his tone full of sarcasm, "You and I are no better than the pot calling the kettle black"—in Ancestor Dragon's view, Yuanfeng's escape was merely due to the help of outsiders, and was nothing to boast about.
Yuanfeng's smile remained unchanged:
"Oh? Luck is also a part of strength. At least, I can stand here and watch you trapped, while you... can only watch helplessly as the Phoenix Tribe is reborn."
She gently brushed her sleeves, her phoenix flames flickering around her, carrying the relief of someone freed from their constraints. "Ancestor Dragon, we have fought for tens of thousands of Kalpa, but now it seems that my Phoenix Tribe has ultimately prevailed."
The seawater around the eye rippled as the two confronted each other. The Dragon Clan glared angrily, but dared not make a move without the Ancestor Dragon's order.
Ancestor Dragon was speechless, Yuanfeng's words causing his dragon might to surge, tightening the chains and stirring up layers of blood mist.
I hate it!
Yuanfeng's crimson-gold feathers moved without wind, and a blazing radiance spread out, piercing through the dark barrier of the vast sea and illuminating the entire Dragon Palace as if it were a raging furnace.
The sound was like ancient ice cracking open, and a chill permeated the seabed.
The seawater beneath the Ancestor Dragon churned violently, with countless tiny bubbles scattering wildly like a school of startled fish.
Yuanfeng lowered her phoenix eyes slightly, her golden-red pupils scrutinizing her nemesis in this underwater prison, her smile both hot and sharp.
"I've come today to see you, who once stirred up storms and now look like a joke, and how you'll endure this eternal solitude in this frigid abyss of the sea!"
With a gentle flick of her tail feathers, an invisible fire mark was imprinted in the void, emitting a sizzling sound.
"Moreover, thanks to your thirty thousand Dragon Clan warriors, who 'generously' went to the Volcano of Immortality, turning their bodies into solid rocks and enduring the flames to bear the karmic calamity for my Phoenix Tribe... Now, seeing you, who dare not even leave this small, cold cave, like a stray dog, my heart... is greatly pleased!"
He then laughed heartily and left...
The final two words, "greatly pleased," fell like drops of molten lava, causing the entire Dragon Palace to tremble.
The Ancestor Dragon's chest heaved violently, and his terrifying dragon might almost tear the space apart, causing dust to fall from the broken palace pillars.
However, in the end, all the raging waves were firmly choked back, with only a wisp of black smoke escaping from his tightly closed mouth, like a silent, heavy sigh.
The Ancestor Dragon slowly closed those eyes that had once shaken the Primordial Wilderness, concealing all their breathtaking brilliance.
Boundless karma had long since corroded his bones and consumed his soul; even the once mighty ruler who dominated the scales now had no choice but to swallow this boundless bitterness.
"A petty person has gained power!"
The Candle Dragon, which had been lurking in the shadows, could no longer contain itself. Time seemed to flow in its single eye, reflecting a deep-seated resentment.
"Back then, you phoenixes and unicorns should have been crushed into dust and your bloodline burned to ashes!"
"Enough!"
The Ancestor Dragon's eyes were not open, but his voice carried an unyielding weariness and desolation, instantly suppressing the raging anger of the Candle Dragon.
He suddenly turned his head, his gaze like two tangible, icy blades, piercing through the waves and fixing on Ao Shun, the Dragon King of the East Sea, who stood frozen at the palace gate, splashing a chilling aura.
"You have all witnessed the humiliation we have suffered today. From this day forward, none of us in the Boundless Four Seas Dragon Clan shall leave our sea borders without a second thought, unless it is a matter of life and death! Avoid their sharp edge, conceal your scales, and do not give that arrogant phoenix any opportunity to take advantage!"
Having just recovered from his petrified shock, Ao Shun felt a sharp, oppressive gaze from his ancestor, causing his body to tremble violently. The scales beneath his dragon robe rubbed together, producing a faint yet piercing sound.
"I... I will obey the ancestral decree!"
He bowed his head deeply, cold sweat soaking through his heavy clothes, feeling that gaze pressing heavily on his spine. Only after a moment did he muster the remaining reverence and courage.
"However... there is something I have been pondering for a long time, and it has been bothering me. I wonder if I should speak of it?"
The Ancestor Dragon exhaled a turbid vortex mixed with cold air from his nostrils and said in a low voice, "Speak."
"Yes!"
Ao Shun, the Dragon King of the East Sea, took a deep breath of the icy seawater, forcibly calming his mind, and a thoughtful ripple appeared in the depths of his eyes.
"Our ancestor is wise; the reason why the Phoenix Yuanfeng and the Qilin Primeval Qilin were able to cleanse themselves of their boundless karmic debts and regain the freedom of the Great Dao is all due to that one on Yingzhou Island — the Venerable Qing Huan!"
These words were like ice spikes falling into the heart of a wave, even causing the trace of time in the single eye of the Candle Dragon to freeze.
"Kong Xuan, son of Yuanfeng, Si Bu Xiang, the Primeval Qilin, have both become disciples of Qing Huan and received his protection."
His words grew more urgent, his analysis becoming increasingly detailed, attempting to dispel the thick fog surrounding the fate of the Dragon Clan race:
"More importantly, it was this Venerable Qing Huan who 'guided' our clan's 30,000 elites, saying that 'the Luck and Merit of the Immortal Court can cleanse all evil,' thus enticing us young men to rush to the Immortal Court... But unexpectedly, the Immortal Court sank its entire clan to the ground, forever suppressing the Volcano of Immortality!"
Not only were the bodies of our 30,000 most valiant sons vanished without a trace, but... they also bore the burden of the boundless karmic fire that should have consumed the wings of the Yuanfeng Phoenix Tribe!
Ao Shun's voice was slightly distorted with extreme terror. The more he recounted the earth-shattering changes in the Primordial Wilderness, the more chilling and piercing the heart became.
The Immortal Court fell, and the Phoenix Tribe regained their freedom... Behind every earth-shattering calamity and turning point, the shadowy figure of the Venerable Qing Huan Daoist was faintly visible!
This chain of events is interconnected, like an invisible giant hand plucking the strings of fate. Where exactly is our race positioned in this game?
Suddenly, a deathly silence fell, even the sound of the flowing sea seemed frozen solid. Only where the Ancestor Dragon coiled, the flow of time became unusually viscous.
Qing Huan... that unfathomable being who established an unparalleled Dao Field deep within the Eastern Sea, and who self-created the innate Dao to complete the laws of the Primordial Wilderness.
This single act alone has earned him the favor of Heavenly Dao, making him impervious to the taint of Heaven's influence even after countless Tribulation. This is true transcendence!
After a long silence, the Ancestor Dragon let out a heavy, distant sigh, like an earthquake at the bottom of the sea, carrying the powerlessness of someone tightly bound by shackles:
"Whether or not this was truly Qing Huan's doing, our clan is already mired in a quagmire."
The golden light in the Ancestor Dragon flickered uncertainly; it was the wisdom of weighing the ages shining through his torment.
"Prepare lavish gifts, including several of the finest Innate Spiritual Treasure. You shall personally escort Ao Guang to Yingzhou Island to pay homage to Qing Huan."
The Ancestor Dragon's gaze was deep, and his words carried immense weight:
"First, to ascertain the truth of their words; second, to seek Thread of Life! If we could persuade Qing Huan to accept one of our Dragon Clan's direct descendants as a disciple, that would be an immense favor."
If...
The Ancestor Dragon squatted for a moment, and its body, which resembled Primordial Wilderness mountain range, seemed to sink even deeper into the abyss.
"If things fail... our clan... will have no choice but to seek another path, one that is fraught with peril and certain death."
A new cataclysmic event is looming, like a giant blade hanging overhead, its shadow silently devouring the last remaining glimmer of light.
When Immeasurable Calamity begin, how can one remain uninvolved simply by closing one's Sect Gate?
"Grandson understands!"
The Dragon King of the East Sea, Ao Shun, understood and bowed deeply, his heavy dragon robe sleeves brushing against the cold ground.
"Grandson will take Ao Guang with me immediately and do everything in our power!"