Shadows Beneath the Lake

Within the Five Mountains Sect, beside a vast blue lake, a figure was moving swiftly, stirring up faint howls of wind. His body held a somewhat bizarre posture, as though he were a swimming fish. Yet within that strangeness was a trace of agility. It was Zeng Fan, bitterly practicing his killing technique by the lakeside.

As time passed, the figure gradually slowed. Hoo~ hoo~ hoo~ A series of violent pants escaped Zeng Fan's mouth. Although his body was utterly exhausted, his expression was exhilarated. After several days of practice, Fish Dance had grown familiar to him. When paired with his cultivation method, every change in movement allowed him to feel a bit of strength quietly accumulating within his body. Once that strength reached its peak, it would surely shatter the heavens and split the earth.

What surprised Zeng Fan even more was that as he cultivated Fish Dance, he could clearly feel the Spiritual Energy within his body being compressed. The meridians in his body were absorbing spiritual energy faster, and he was drawing ever closer to Body Tempering Muscle Mastery.

Zeng Fan could faintly sense that the moment he completely mastered Fish Dance would be the moment he broke through to Body Tempering Muscle Mastery.

It was just that he had no clue how to practice Dragon Dance. According to the cultivation method, he needed to find a dragon-type demonic beast, observe its movements, and imitate its form. Among demonic beasts, dragons were supreme. Every pureblood dragon was an absolute overlord, and cultivators generally did not wish to provoke them. Even the descendants of dragons would not be weak as long as they possessed even the slightest trace of dragon blood. In the cultivation world, dragons were renowned for their absolute strength and defense.

Zeng Fan shook his head and simply stopped thinking about it. He would first master Fish Dance, then inquire where within the sect he could find a dragon-type demonic beast to observe.

Zeng Fan stripped off his clothes and slowly entered the water. He discovered that practicing Fish Dance in the water was actually more effective than practicing it on land. Holding his breath, Zeng Fan slowly swam toward the school of fish. Yet in the depths of the lake, without Zeng Fan noticing, a gaze was fixed tightly upon him. When it saw Zeng Fan enter the water, the owner of that gaze looked away and swam toward the lake's deeper reaches. The figure was dozens of meters long and shaped like a winding snake. Its entire body was snow-white. As sunlight reached the bottom of the lake, its scales glittered with scattered points of light.

While Zeng Fan was cultivating underwater, a graceful figure slowly approached the lake. It was unmistakably a young girl. She muttered under her breath as though complaining about something, yet her feet never stopped, and she headed straight toward the lake with a clear goal.

"Seriously, they're making me come feed the big guy again. Those people are all bullying me because I'm new. They're so lazy! Hmph! Once my cultivation improves, I'm not doing this anymore." The girl was still grumbling when she reached the lakeside. She was just about to call out.

With a splash, a snow-white naked body suddenly leaped from the water and landed on the shore. It was Zeng Fan, who had just finished cultivating. Zeng Fan froze when he saw the girl by the shore, but before he could react,

the girl let out a shriek. "Aaaaaah! You pervert! Go to hell!" The girl gathered her Spiritual Energy and viciously thrust a palm toward Zeng Fan.

Zeng Fan had no time to speak and could only dodge first. His body slid away from the edge of the girl's palm in an eerie posture, just like a swimming fish.

The girl let out a startled cry, then grew even angrier. "You pervert! You dare dodge?" She struck out with another palm, putting several more layers of force into it.

However, the words spoken by that snow-white figure made the girl stop.

"Murong Xue? What are you doing here?"

The girl was none other than Murong Xue, whom he had not seen for nearly a month. Murong Xue froze, then looked at the owner of the body. The attack she had been preparing also came to a stop. However, the girl immediately turned her back, her voice filled with embarrassment and indignation.

"Zeng Fan? What are you doing here? And why aren't you wearing clothes? Isn't the place you live far from here? I thought some pervert had come from somewhere. No, maybe you really are a pervert!" A string of hurried questions spilled from the girl's mouth. On her elegant, slender neck, a flush of red continued to creep upward.

"I broke through to Body Tempering Muscle. The Disciple Competition is coming up soon, so I came here to cultivate my killing technique. What are you doing here? I'm dressed now, so you can turn around." Zeng Fan put on his clothes, then spoke to Murong Xue.

Murong Xue turned around, her face still flushed. When she saw Zeng Fan's handsome face and recalled the naked body of the young man she had seen moments ago, the redness in her cheeks seemed to deepen again. She hurriedly spoke to cover up her embarrassment.

"I came here to feed the sect's spirit beast. What killing technique are you cultivating that requires you to practice beside the lake?" As she spoke, the girl gradually forgot her earlier awkwardness. Since he was someone she knew, she could not help feeling curious.

Zeng Fan slowly explained the matter of cultivating Fish Dragon Dance. "I've already reached the entry level in Fish Dance, but I can't make heads or tails of Dragon Dance. Do you keep any dragon-type demonic beasts in your Earth Vein?" Zeng Fan knew that the areas where disciples of the Earth Vein lived were adjacent to those of several elders. The elders within the sect were all powerful, and some of them might have raised the demonic beasts he needed.

"Do you know what kind of spirit beast I came here to feed?" The girl's eyes curved into a pair of crescent moons, revealing a hint of cunning.

Zeng Fan froze. Seeing Murong Xue's expression, his heart stirred. Could the spirit beast she had come to feed be the dragon-type demonic beast he needed? Some dragons favored water, so it was not impossible for one to live in the lake. But why had he not seen it after cultivating here for so many days?

Seeing Zeng Fan's expression, Murong Xue knew he had guessed something. She no longer kept him in suspense and pulled a small bell from her bosom, shaking it.

A crisp jingling rang across the lake. A moment later, the sound of water approached. Zeng Fan turned his head and saw a trail of water racing from the depths of the lake toward the shore. As it drew near, an enormous figure expanded in Zeng Fan's vision.

With a splash, a snow-white spirit beast appeared before Zeng Fan. Its body was long and powerful, its white scales glittering with scattered points of light. Its head was long and imposing, and its two enormous eyes held a humanlike liveliness. When it opened its mouth, it revealed sharp teeth that seemed capable of tearing anything apart with ease. At that moment, its long tail was repeatedly smacking the surface of the water, as though expressing its dissatisfaction.

Murong Xue seemed to understand what it meant. She stuck out her little tongue. "I know, I know. I'll come earlier next time. Don't be so stingy."

The demonic beast glared at Murong Xue when it heard her. Then it made a move that left Zeng Fan dumbfounded: it actually raised a claw and crooked a finger at Murong Xue. The girl understood and took several pills from her Storage Ring. With a flick of her hand, she tossed them into the demonic beast's mouth. The demonic beast opened wide and swallowed them in one gulp, then shook its huge head, looking delighted.

"This is... a White Dragon?" Zeng Fan stared wide-eyed at the enormous creature before him. No, although the creature in front of him resembled a dragon, its sharp claws had only four toes, and it had no horns on its head.

"This is... a flood dragon?" Zeng Fan asked Murong Xue. As if it understood his words, the enormous creature glared at Zeng Fan in displeasure. It then whipped its tail, sending a wave crashing directly over Zeng Fan. He failed to dodge and was drenched from head to toe, looking utterly miserable.

"This thing has quite a temper." Zeng Fan cursed inwardly, but he did not dare say anything else and looked toward Murong Xue.

Seeing Zeng Fan dripping wet, the girl laughed until she doubled over. But when she saw his soaked clothes clinging tightly to his body and outlining his clear muscular lines, her face flushed again. Recalling what had just happened, she answered Zeng Fan's question with reddened cheeks.

"This is the Disciple Hall Elder's Jade Spirit Flood Dragon. We new Earth Vein disciples have to take turns coming here every so often to feed it pills. Don't let its size fool you—it's still an underage child, only equivalent to the Foundation Establishment stage among humans. Once it reaches adulthood, it'll probably be several hundred meters long. Flying through the sky and diving through the water will be effortless for it! I've been coming during this period, so I've gotten familiar with it."

Hearing Murong Xue praise it, the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's enormous eyes actually curved like a human's, and its tail swayed nonstop, stirring up wave after wave.

Zeng Fan was shocked. It was already equivalent to the human Foundation Establishment stage as a mere juvenile. The dragon race was truly terrifying. Yet as he looked at the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's body, his heart gradually grew feverish. He had found the answer to Dragon Dance!

With that thought, Zeng Fan immediately shouted to Murong Xue, "Miss Murong, could you help me tell Senior Jade Spirit Flood Dragon that I've always admired the bearing of the dragon race and would like to stay by Senior Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's side for a while to learn how the great dragon race lives?" As he spoke, Zeng Fan winked frantically at Murong Xue.

Murong Xue immediately understood what he meant. "This request of yours is difficult for me, too. After all, dragons aren't creatures just anyone can meet, let alone our Senior Jade Spirit Flood Dragon. It isn't an ordinary dragon~~~" Murong Xue dragged out the final note, her eyes also drifting toward the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon.

The Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's large eyes had narrowed into slits, and its tail was swishing incessantly. It was clearly enjoying Zeng Fan and Murong Xue's words. After hearing Murong Xue, it let out a low growl, as though agreeing to Zeng Fan's request.

Seeing this, the girl knew the matter had succeeded. She coughed several times, then smiled at Zeng Fan. "Lord Jade Spirit Flood Dragon has agreed to your request. You can follow Lord Jade Spirit Flood Dragon for a while and properly admire the bearing of the dragon race!" After speaking, Murong Xue glanced at Zeng Fan, a trace of mischief curling at the corners of her lips.

"You can start following Lord Jade Spirit Flood Dragon right now."

Zeng Fan froze. Before he could recover, his body tightened. The Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's tail had already wound firmly around him.

"What's happening, Murong? What's going on?" Zeng Fan tried to struggle, only to find the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's tail winding tighter and tighter.

Murong Xue burst into laughter. "Now you know why the other disciples don't want to come, right? Because every disciple who brings pills to the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon has to play with it properly."

"Play? What kind of play?" Zeng Fan stared blankly. Then an irresistible force came surging over. The Jade Spirit Flood Dragon flicked its tail and sent Zeng Fan straight into the air. Before he could react, its tail wrapped around him again and dragged him underwater.

"That's how you play," Murong Xue said with a giggle to the now-empty surface of the lake.

Zeng Fan now felt like a toy being tossed around at will by the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon. He was suffering terribly, but the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon knew its limits and controlled its strength, ensuring that he was not injured. Otherwise, if this Foundation Establishment spirit beast became even slightly serious, Zeng Fan would probably have been crushed to pieces on the spot.

Zeng Fan was already dizzy and disoriented. Yet as the Jade Spirit Flood Dragon's tail coiled around him again and again, he could feel how each muscle along the flood dragon's tail exerted force, unleashing terrifying strength. Enduring the dizziness, Zeng Fan began to comprehend it with all his might. The cultivation of Dragon Dance had finally begun to take shape...