Nether Dragon

"Boom—rumble—rumble!"

The two Yin-Yang Flood Dragons were instantly pinned beneath the island, dust and debris flying in all directions.

The Yin-Yang Flood Dragons writhed wildly, still struggling to resist.

Qing Huan's lips curled into a smile as he stepped before the two flood dragons.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk."

He struck directly, beginning to draw out the innate Yin-Yang Qi from the two flood dragons.

"Roar!"

The flood dragons' eyes burned with hatred as they glared viciously at Qing Huan, constantly twisting their bodies—but the Xuanhuang Seal pressed them down relentlessly, leaving them utterly unable to resist.

As the Yin-Yang Qi was extracted from their bodies, the two flood dragons instantly went limp.

"Haha, this trip finally netted me the first target. The remaining four will be a bit trickier, but there's always a way around difficulties."

After storing away the innate Yin-Yang Qi origin, Qing Huan looked at the two flood dragons before him and decided to refine them into magic treasures.

An innate spiritual treasure was out of the question—after all, he had already drained the Yin-Yang Qi origin. But refining an acquired spiritual treasure was still feasible. These flood dragons were treasures through and through, born of heaven and earth.

Qing Huan took out a branch from the Immortal Apricot Tree, added a strand of Golden Thunder origin, and directly pulled out the flood dragons' sinews and bones, beginning the refinement process.

A thousand years later, a bow imbued with the power of wind and thunder appeared in Qing Huan's hand.

Raising the Wind-Thunder Bow, he drew the string, aiming at the other flood dragon, which was on the verge of death. An arrow of wind and thunder materialized on its own.

"Whoosh!"

The arrow, crackling with wind and thunder, shot straight toward the dying flood dragon, leaving a bloody hole in its body.

Qing Huan's gaze lingered on the long bow wreathed in wind and thunder, and he gave a slight nod.

"Mm, passable. Though it's merely a Top-grade Acquired Spiritual Treasure, its offensive power is not weak. A little trinket to toy with."

His fingertip brushed across the bow's body, sensing the Law of Wind and Thunder contained within, but then he shook his head lightly.

"Still, to refine a Supreme Acquired Spiritual Treasure... these materials are ultimately a bit lacking."

"After all, the power of a Supreme Acquired Spiritual Treasure should rival that of an Innate Spiritual Treasure."

With a flicker of thought, the Wind-Thunder Bow was put away.

His gaze shifted to the other, relatively intact corpse of the Yin-Yang Flood Dragon. Qing Huan wasted no time. His five fingers spread wide, and vast Magic Power surged forth.

In an instant, the flood dragon's sinews and bones sang in unison, its scales and armor peeled away, and under his refining technique—one that seemed to flow with the rhythm of the Dao—they transformed into a gleaming Dragon Binding Rope and a cold, sharp Dragon Scale Armor.

Just as he was admiring these two newly forged treasures, their auras perfectly harmonious, the calm sea surface below suddenly exploded!

A jet-black water pillar, thicker than a mountain, shot skyward, carrying an oppressive, gloomy pressure that pierced straight through the nine heavens!

"Heh, interesting."

A playful smile tugged at Qing Huan's lips. His Spiritual Sense had already pierced through the layers of water.

"That little Nether Dragon is back? Faster than I expected. Pity... still nothing but an ant."

"Roar—!"

A dragon's cry shook the sea, splitting clouds and stone! A massive Nether Dragon, pitch-black with gleaming scales, burst through the sea and sky, circling several times in the heavens.

Its dragon pupils burned with suppressed fury and unwillingness. Finally, with a flash of dark light, it transformed into a man in a black robe with a grim face, landing not far from Qing Huan.

The black-robed man—Nether Dragon—forced down the turmoil in his heart, took a deep breath, and bowed deeply to Qing Huan.

"Senior's divine might leaves this junior in awe. This pair of Yin-Yang Flood Dragons was something I discovered in my early years and guarded in secret for a long time. Unfortunately, my strength was insufficient."

The Nether Dragon's voice was strained, carrying a hint of pleading.

"Now that Senior has taken what he needs... might I ask that the remaining dragon remains be granted to me?"

Though the Nether Dragon was fierce-tempered, he was no reckless fool.

The being before him radiated an aura as vast and deep as an abyss—clearly a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal!

The Dragon Clan was no longer the hegemon that once dominated the Primordial Wilderness and looked down on all living beings.

Ever since the disastrous defeat in the Dragon-Han Primordial Calamity, countless elite dragons had fallen, the Ancestor Dragon was suppressing the Sea Eye, and the remnants had been forced to retreat to the boundless Four Seas, licking their wounds and barely surviving.

He had personally lived through that era of heaven-and-earth upheaval and blood-soaked wilderness. The Dragon Clan had long lost the capital to stand proudly above all.

Provoking a clearly stronger Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal? That would be no different from seeking death.

Qing Huan's gaze lingered on the Nether Dragon for a moment, carrying a hint of scrutiny.

"Among the Dragon Clan, there aren't many left who know how to read the situation and hold back like you do."

Qing Huan's tone was flat, impossible to read.

"Very well. Since you've asked, I'll give you the remaining remains."

With a casual wave of his sleeve, the two flood dragon corpses—now quite mangled after having their essence drained by the Wind-Thunder Bow, Dragon Binding Rope, and Dragon Scale Armor—floated lightly over to the Nether Dragon.

Staring at the shattered dragon corpses, the Nether Dragon felt a deep pang of regret and pain!

These Yin-Yang Flood Dragons, a perfectly good Innate Spiritual Treasure, were gone just like that. And now... circumstances dictated otherwise!

Nether Dragon clenched his jaw, forcibly suppressing the surging emotions within him, and bowed deeply once more to Qing Huan:

"Senior is generous; Nether Dragon will engrave this in his heart! If ever there is a need for my service, as long as it lies within my power, Senior need only command, and Nether Dragon will not refuse!"

"Mm."

Qing Huan gave a slight nod.

"This promise, once made, becomes Karma. I trust you will remember today's words and not bring harm upon yourself."

The words had barely faded when his figure turned ethereal, and along with it, every trace of his presence on the entire island dissipated in an instant, vanishing without a trace, as if he had never been there.

"Sigh..."

On the solitary island, Nether Dragon slowly clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white from the excessive force.

He stared at the direction where Qing Huan had disappeared, his gaze immensely complex—regret, resentment, unwillingness, and fury ultimately condensed into a single stifled, long sigh.

"How infuriating!"

A low growl was suppressed in his throat.

"If not for my Dragon Clan's failed struggle for the Primordial Wilderness's Luck, our vitality shattered, forcing us to hide in the Four Seas, how could I allow a mere..."

Nether Dragon ultimately dared not utter the words "Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal," but his mind drifted back to past glories.

The Dragon Clan once possessed over a dozen Golden Immortal of the Origin experts, and Ancestor Dragon himself, as the sovereign of the myriad scaled tribes, was a pinnacle existence at the Golden Immortal of the Origin realm, dominating the Primordial Wilderness!

What a glorious era that was! Now... all gone! Merely dust and phantoms scattered in the River of Time.

Shaking his head with self-mockery, Nether Dragon put away the tattered Flood Dragon materials and, filled with desolation, transformed into an inky streak of light, diving deep into the vast Eastern Sea.

Qing Huan rode a purple cloud, drifting leisurely through the boundless skies of the eastern Primordial Wilderness.

A full Huiyuan Era had passed since the matter with Nether Dragon. He had traversed nearly all the great peaks, ancient marshes, and secluded valleys of the East, his Spiritual Sense spreading like a net, sweeping across every direction.

Yet the results left him rather helpless—among the Innate Spiritual Treasures famed in legend, not a single one had he found!

What he occasionally stumbled upon were merely a few Acquired Spiritual Roots of passable quality.

He clearly knew that the Treasure Dropping Coin lay in Mount Wuyi... yet he had found nothing at all...