Breath of Thunder

Dusk was like blood, staining the vast Star Dou Wilderness red.

Yu Xiaogang traveled alone through the ravines, a Hoe-Sickle slung over his shoulder, his robes dust-stained. After quelling the chaos of the "Thunder Attraction Array" in the Capital of Blue Electric, he had quietly left the city and embarked on a journey to seek out the continent's surviving bloodlines. He knew well that although Qian Daoliu had been defeated, Spirit Hall's roots remained, and the shadow of the abyss had never truly receded. Only by awakening more dormant bloodlines could this land truly be protected.

Suddenly, the earth shook and the mountains trembled ahead. A Dragon's roar tore through the sky, shattering the cliff walls. Yu Xiaogang's pupils contracted—that was no ordinary soul beast's roar, but the furious cry of dragon bloodline, containing exceptionally pure thunder power.

"This aura... is it actually of the same origin as the Thunder Vein of the Blue Electric Clan?"

He hurried forward and crossed a broken cliff, only to see a massive soul beast fiercely battling several black-clad soul masters amid the ruins of an ancient battlefield. The soul beast resembled a Tyrant Dragon, its entire body covered in dark-blue scales. Lightning flowed across every scale, and with each sweep of its enormous claws, electricity spread like a net, shredding all its enemies.

Beside the soul beast stood a youth of about sixteen or seventeen. His black hair was like ink, while his eyes were golden and marked with lightning patterns. He wielded a long spear blazing with thunderlight. Every thrust was like a dragon's strike, fierce and domineering, and despite being only a Soul Ancestor, he had three Soul Kings pinned down.

"The Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul... really exists?" Yu Xiaogang was shaken.

He had long read in ancient records that one branch of the Blue Electric Clan had been expelled from the main clan because their Martial Souls were too violent and difficult to Control. They had wandered into the wilderness, establishing themselves as the "Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan." They inherited the blood of ancient thunder dragons, and all who underwent Martial Soul Awakening possessed tyrannical thunder physiques. Yet their lifespans were short, and they were highly susceptible to losing themselves to madness.

The youth before him had clearly reached the peak state of Martial Soul Awakening.

"Boom—!"

The youth drove his spear into the ground. A phantom thunder dragon soared into the air, blasting the last black-clad soul master several yards away. He withdrew his spear and stood still, breathing somewhat heavily as his golden eyes swept the surroundings, his vigilance unabated.

"Are you Spirit Hall's 'cleaners'?" he asked coldly. "Or Qian Daoliu's lackeys?"

Yu Xiaogang stepped out of the shadows, spreading his hands. "Neither. I'm merely a passerby."

The youth's gaze flashed like lightning as it locked onto Yu Xiaogang. "You carry... the aura of the Capital of Blue Electric, yet it's different. Your thunder is colder, heavier, like... thunder sealed in ice."

Yu Xiaogang smiled faintly. "Your senses are sharp. I am Yu Xiaogang, the Grave Keeper of the Capital of Blue Electric."

"Yu Xiaogang?!" The youth's pupils suddenly shrank. "The Yu Xiaogang who suppressed the Thunder Attraction Array alone and reversed the Ice God Trial?"

"A name is only a label." Yu Xiaogang looked toward the Tyrant Dragon soul beast. "But you—being able to command such pure thunder dragon blood—you must be a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan?"

The youth put away his spear and cupped his fists. "Yu Luomian, young clan master. Our ancestor once fought alongside the Blue Electric main clan, but was later expelled because of the disaster of 'Thunder Rampage.' For generations, we have guarded the edge of Star Dou, waiting only for someone who can truly Control the power of the thunder dragon."

"Waiting for whom?" Yu Xiaogang asked.

"Someone who can fuse ice and thunder." Yu Luomian looked him straight in the eye. "Waiting for you."

Yu Luomian said, "Our clan's ancient teachings record: 'When ice and thunder reunite, the Dragon Soul returns to its rightful place; only then can the blood of the Tyrant endure forever.' We have always been searching for the true heir of the 'Child of Thunder'—not a false god like Qian Daoliu, but someone like you, who can bear Ice Thunder Power with flesh and blood."

Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "I did not come to inherit anything. I only want to know whether you are willing to join forces with the Capital of Blue Electric and resist the abyss together."

"Join forces?" Yu Luomian sneered. "Your main clan cast us out as 'seeds of calamity' back then, and now you want us to submit?"

"Not submit." Yu Xiaogang planted the Hoe-Sickle into the ground, thunderlight flickering around it. "Stand shoulder to shoulder. I did not come as a member of the main clan, but in the name of the 'Grave Keeper.' What I protect is not the hierarchy of bloodlines, but every person on this land who refuses to bow their head."

He raised a hand. Ice Thunder Power intertwined and formed a spiraling pillar of lightning that slowly rose into the air. "If you cannot trust the main clan, then trust me. Trust this power—it belongs to no family. It belongs only to protection."

Yu Luomian stared at the lightning pillar, his golden eyes trembling faintly. The Tyrant Dragon bloodline within him began to resonate, and his scales glimmered with dark-blue light, as though worshipping some more ancient source.

"You... can truly command dual thunder?"

"It is not command." Yu Xiaogang spoke softly. "It is coexistence. Thunder is not a tool; it is life. It is violent, yet gentle. It destroys, yet it also gives rebirth. Just like the dragon blood within you—it need not be suppressed, only guided."

Yu Luomian led Yu Xiaogang into the clan's secret ground—the "Dragon Abyss." It was an underground rift, at whose center stood a massive dragon-bone altar. The bones were covered in thunder patterns. They were the remains of an ancient Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.

"Our clan's Martial Souls originate from these dragon bones," Yu Luomian said. "But for three hundred years, no one has been able to truly 'awaken' them. Only one whose bloodline and will have both reached their limits can receive the 'Dragon Soul's acknowledgment.'"

Yu Xiaogang approached the altar and placed a hand upon the dragon bones. Ice Thunder Power slowly seeped into them. In an instant, the dragon bones hummed, lightning surging like a river and illuminating the entire rift.

"Roar—!"

A Dragon's roar that seemed to transcend time and space rang out from within the bones. A phantom emerged—a colossal Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, its eyes like Thunder Pools and its scales like the heavens, looking down upon all living things.

"You... are not of my clan, yet you carry the source of my clan." The Dragon Soul murmured. "Are you willing to bear my wrath and protect those who come after me?"

Yu Xiaogang dropped to one knee, his voice resolute. "In the name of the Grave Keeper, I am willing to take this oath. Not for rule, not for conquest, but only for protection."

The Dragon Soul fell silent for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "Good! What a 'only for protection'! Three hundred years... at last, someone understands my will!"

In an instant, the Dragon Soul transformed into a streak of lightning and entered Yu Xiaogang's body. Thunder patterns appeared all over him, and his skin took on a dragon-scale-like sheen. Yet he did not lose Control; instead, it fused perfectly with his Ice Thunder Power.

"You... received the Dragon Soul's acknowledgment?" Yu Luomian was stunned.

"It was not I who received it." Yu Xiaogang rose to his feet, lightning flowing through his eyes. "It chose to walk beside me."

That night, Yu Luomian gathered the clan elders for discussion.

"Though Yu Xiaogang is not of the main clan's orthodox line, he bears the dual origins of ice and thunder, has earned the Dragon Soul's acknowledgment, and holds all living beings in his heart." He stood upon a high platform, his voice ringing with force. "I propose that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan form a 'Thunder Covenant' with Yu Xiaogang. We will neither depend on nor submit to one another; we will protect the continent together!"

The elders remained silent for a long while. Finally, the oldest grand elder rose. "If he can truly guide the blood of the Tyrant rather than suppress it... then we are willing to swear an Oath of Dragon Blood and return to the Blue Electric bloodline."

Yu Xiaogang stepped forward and pressed his hand against the dragon-bone altar. "In the name of the Grave Keeper, I swear—starting today, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan shall no longer be exiled 'seeds of calamity,' but the thunder-edged vanguard that protects this land and its people. Should the abyss descend again one day, I will fight shoulder to shoulder with you."

In an instant, ten thousand bolts of lightning roared through the rift, as though heaven and earth themselves were bearing witness to this covenant.

Several days later, Yu Xiaogang prepared to depart.

Yu Luomian escorted him to the edge of the wilderness. "Where are you going?"

"To Heaven Dou City." Yu Xiaogang gazed into the distance. "The empire intends to absorb all the sects. I must stop a bloodbath."

Yu Luomian smiled. "Then I'll go too."

"You aren't afraid of bringing trouble upon yourself?"

"I am." Yu Luomian tightened his grip on his spear. "But I fear even more that—when history repeats itself—we will still fight alone."

The two exchanged smiles and set out on the road to Heaven Dou City. Behind them, thunderclouds churned above the Star Dou Wilderness, as though cheering for the birth of a new legend.