Di Jun's offer was certainly generous, and someone else might have been tempted.
But Ao Ping was an old dragon who had survived the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity. He would never be swayed by just a few words!
The Dragon Clan was now weakened and on the verge of extinction!
Their most important task was to multiply and grow stronger, not rashly involve themselves in the struggles of the Primordial World!
Di Jun made it sound easy, but how difficult would it be for the Demon Clan to unify the Primordial World?
Setting aside the Witch Clan, whose strength was no weaker than the Demon Clan's, the other myriad races of the Primordial World certainly would not easily submit to the Demon Clan either!
Even if the Demon Clan truly succeeded in unifying the Primordial World, they would inevitably encounter countless enemies and endless slaughter along the way!
Although the Dragon Clan was extremely powerful, with even an adult dragon reaching the Heavenly Immortal realm at minimum, their numbers were simply too low. They could not afford such losses!
Therefore, no matter how generous Di Jun's offer was, Ao Ping would never agree!
"You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit!"
Hearing Ao Ping's refusal, Di Jun's expression immediately turned cold. He directly ordered Eastern Emperor Taiyi beside him, "Take him down!"
Di Jun knew that Ao Ping was the only Grand Luo Golden Immortal in the entire Dragon Clan!
If they could capture Ao Ping directly, the other dragons would no longer be a threat.
"Boom!"
Hearing Di Jun's order, Eastern Emperor Taiyi did not hesitate. He immediately revealed his Golden Crow true form and pounced toward Ao Ping!
Eastern Emperor Taiyi's Golden Crow true form had a wingspan of a million zhang, and its size was no smaller than Ao Ping's massive dragon body!
After refusing Di Jun's recruitment, Ao Ping had already prepared himself for battle.
Now, seeing the Three-legged Golden Crow rushing toward him, Ao Ping swung his dragon tail and lashed it viciously toward the Golden Crow!
"Bang!"
The two sides collided, instantly erupting with a heaven-shaking boom!
Terrifying sound waves blasted the sea below into waves more than a hundred thousand zhang high!
Eastern Emperor Taiyi's body was sent flying more than a hundred thousand li. Feeling the numbness in his wings, he could not help exclaiming, "As expected of the Dragon Clan's patriarch. You're truly powerful!"
The Dragon Clan had once been able to become the overlords of the Primordial World precisely because of their powerful dragon bodies!
During that collision, Eastern Emperor Taiyi could sense the terrifying strength contained within Ao Ping's dragon body. Even his Three-legged Golden Crow form could barely withstand it!
However, Eastern Emperor Taiyi's greatest strength did not lie in his Three-legged Golden Crow true form, but in the Innate Supreme Treasure he possessed—the Chaos Bell!
"Dang!"
As a resonant and majestic bell chime rang out, a massive bell, more than ten thousand zhang tall, appeared out of thin air and floated above Eastern Emperor Taiyi's head!
Its surface was engraved with images of the sun, moon, and stars, mountains and rivers, and the myriad races of the Primordial World. Dazzling five-colored radiance emanated from the bell, illuminating the entire sky in five colors!
"The Chaos Bell!"
Sensing the powerful aura from the massive bell that shook the entire universe, Ao Ping's expression changed dramatically!
He no longer dared to continue fighting Eastern Emperor Taiyi. He immediately dove headfirst toward the sea!
Although Ao Lie also had several Innate Spiritual Treasures protecting him, even combined, their power could not compare to the Innate Supreme Treasure, the Chaos Bell!
If he stayed, Ao Ping feared that he truly would not be able to escape!
"Dang!"
Just as Eastern Emperor Taiyi was about to activate the Chaos Bell and completely suppress Ao Ping, Ao Ping had already plunged into the sea, his figure vanishing without a trace!
"Hmph, you sure ran fast!"
Seeing this, Eastern Emperor Taiyi let out a cold snort before putting away the Chaos Bell.
"Brother, that old fellow Ao Ping escaped. What should we do next?"
Walking up before Di Jun, Eastern Emperor Taiyi reported to him.
"Hmph! The Dragon Palace is right below us. Where can he run?"
Di Jun gave a cold laugh and directly ordered, "The entire army, advance! Attack the Dragon Palace!"
"Woo! Woo! Woo..."
Following Di Jun's order, the horns sounded once more, and a hundred thousand demon soldiers and generals charged straight toward the Dragon Palace!
"Kill!"
"Kill all these dragons!"
"..."
The Demon Clan army's battle cries shook the heavens, and terrifying killing intent swept across the entire Eastern Sea!
"Quick! Activate the Dragon Palace formation immediately! All members of the Dragon Clan, prepare for battle!"
Ao Ping had already fled back to the Dragon Palace. He immediately shouted his orders to the gathered dragons!
Ao Ping knew very well that since he had rejected Di Jun's recruitment, the Demon Clan would never let the Dragon Clan off easily!
"Patriarch! What happened? Why did you suddenly start fighting?"
"Patriarch, what exactly does the Demon Clan want by coming to our Eastern Sea?"
"..."
The senior members of the Dragon Clan had been waiting for news. When they saw Ao Ping return, they hurriedly questioned him one after another!
"The Demon Clan came to the Eastern Sea this time to recruit our Dragon Clan and have us join under their command. I rejected them..."
Ao Ping did not conceal anything and immediately revealed the Demon Clan's intentions.
"Our Dragon Clan truly cannot join the Demon Clan. Otherwise, we would inevitably become their cannon fodder!"
The senior members of the Dragon Clan nodded one after another, all believing that they should reject the Demon Clan's recruitment.
Most of them were also old dragons who had survived the Dragon-Phoenix Calamity. They were certainly not fools!
Rejecting the Demon Clan now would indeed lead to war with them.
But if they joined the Demon Clan and became cannon fodder in its campaigns against the myriad races, that would be like being cut by a dull knife or boiled slowly like a frog!
By the time the Dragon Clan suffered heavy casualties, it would already be too late to turn against the Demon Clan. They would no longer have the qualifications to do so!
"But the Demon Clan is immensely powerful. Now that they've come to attack the Dragon Palace, can we withstand them?"
A Dragon Clan elder asked worriedly.
Although the Dragon Palace was protected by a grand formation and there was no need to worry about the Demon Clan breaking through it for the time being,
a defense held for too long would inevitably fail!
Their Dragon Palace was surrounded by a hundred thousand troops from the Demon Clan. Even if the enemy slowly wore them down, they would eventually be able to break through the Dragon Palace formation!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
A series of booming sounds came from outside the Dragon Palace, and the entire palace began to tremble violently.
Clearly, the Demon Clan army outside had already begun launching probing attacks.
If the Dragon Palace formation had not been personally arranged by the Dragon Ancestor back then, with extraordinarily powerful defensive capabilities, it likely would have been breached by the Demon Clan immediately!
"Remaining trapped in the Dragon Palace is not an option. We must seek outside help! Otherwise, if we remain trapped like this, our Dragon Clan will undoubtedly perish!"
Sensing the commotion outside, Ao Ping could not help frowning as he spoke.
"But our Dragon Clan has rarely appeared in the world, and we've never had dealings with the major powers of the Primordial World! At a time like this, who would be willing to risk offending the Demon Clan to come rescue us?"
First Elder Ao Ying said with a frown.
When the Dragon Clan had dominated the Primordial World, they had offended countless factions!
If those factions learned that the Dragon Clan was in trouble, it would already be a blessing if they did not take advantage of the situation. It was impossible for them to come to the Dragon Clan's aid!
"Boom!"
Ao Ping's figure flashed, and he plunged headfirst into the sea, vanishing in an instant.
Now that he had figured out the Demon Clan's intentions, Ao Ping naturally would not stay any longer.
Before you continue