Purple Gold Scales Emerge, Hidden Dragon in the Abyss

Deep within Thunder Gorge, time seemed to have lost all meaning. Only the eternal thunder and leaping arcs of lightning formed the main melody of this place.

Yu Yuanchen's heart was as still as water as he immersed himself completely in cultivation. No longer content merely to guide his soul power to heal his injuries and stabilize his realm, he began attempting to actively wield that newly born strand of Thunder God Power.

The quality of this power was exceedingly high, but its quantity was scarce, and controlling it placed no small burden on his spiritual power. At first, he could only cautiously guide it through his primary meridians, sensing how it purified his soul power and faintly nourished his body.

As he gradually grew familiar with the properties of Thunder God Power, a bold thought arose in his heart.

Since this Thunder God Power can temper the body on its own, if I actively guide it and use a particular method to stimulate the subtle parts throughout my body, could it produce miraculous results? He recalled the vague martial way theories from his previous life regarding Muscle-tendon Cleansing Marrow-washing and Body Tempering. Though this world lacked a clear cultivation system involving meridians and acupoints, the mysteries of the human body were boundless. Perhaps he could overcome finesse with sheer force?

Once the thought appeared, it became impossible to suppress.

He did not rush into it, instead choosing the safest method. Once his soul power had recovered to its peak and his control over Thunder God Power had become a little more refined, he began his experiment.

He separated a strand of Purple-Gold energy finer than a hair. Using it as a guide, he no longer restricted himself to the main meridians. Like the most delicate carving blade, he cautiously probed into the tiny meridians, muscle fibers, and even the depths of his bones—places that soul power normally found difficult to reach or flowed through sluggishly.

"Zzt..."

A faint sound, like an electric current passing over water, rang out within his body. A numbing, stabbing sensation far stronger than before swept through him, mixed with an indescribable soreness and swelling. This was not simple pain, but a deep stimulation and tempering that touched the very origin of life.

Fine beads of sweat instantly seeped from his forehead, and his body trembled slightly, yet his gaze remained incomparably resolute. He could clearly "see" that wherever the strand of Purple-Gold energy passed, minute impurities—ones that ordinary cultivation or even the tempering of Thunder Valley could not completely reach—seemed to melt under intense heat, turning into wisps of gray vapor. The pure soul power following behind carried them away and expelled them from his body. Meanwhile, the cells in those places became more solidified and vibrant amid the intertwined forces of thunder's destruction and new life.

The process was exceedingly slow and consumed an enormous amount of spiritual power. Often, after guiding that strand of Thunder God Power for only a short while, he would feel mentally exhausted and have no choice but to stop and recover.

Yet he never grew tired of it.

With every attempt, he felt as though his body had been cleansed a little more. Although his soul power level showed no obvious increase, his physical strength, resilience, and capacity to bear soul power were improving at a visible pace. The slight hidden injuries left behind from forcefully stimulating the meridians in both legs were also completely smoothed away by this meticulous tempering. He had even turned misfortune into fortune: the resilience and openness of the meridians in both legs now surpassed what they had been before.

Day after day, Yu Yuanchen immersed himself completely in this slow yet steady transformation.

He did not realize that as he tirelessly tempered himself with Thunder God Power, traces of a higher-level aura contained within it—so faint they were almost imperceptible—were quietly merging into the depths of his bloodline.

As a top-tier beast Martial Soul, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul inherently contained formidable power and potential in its bloodline. Yet after being passed down through generations, that bloodline had inevitably become mixed and thin. Thunder God Power, originating from the Thunder Spirit and carrying a trace of divine essence, possessed an exceptionally high nature. As it tempered his body, it seemed to act like an invisible sieve, as well as a strange catalyst, quietly purifying and awakening the most fundamental part of the power within his bloodline.

The process was silent and invisible, even escaping Yu Yuanchen's keen senses. His attention was wholly focused on increasing his physical strength and refining his control over power.

Until one day, after completing a meticulous tempering of his right arm, he habitually turned his awareness inward to inspect his Martial Soul Origin.

The phantom of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul remained majestic and domineering, its body covered in deep Blue Dragon Scales and wreathed in lightning. Yet above its brow, slightly higher than the center of its forehead, Yu Yuanchen noticed an extremely tiny irregularity.

There, amid the blue scales that should have been no different from the rest, there seemed to be... an incredibly tiny spot of darker light?

He focused his mind and looked closely.

That was not a spot of light, but a scale! A scale only one-tenth the size of a fingernail, utterly different in color from the other blue scales! It was not blue, but a restrained dark purple, as though it had accumulated the essence of countless bolts of thunder. Yet at its core, a nearly undetectable noble golden gleam shone faintly. Purple and gold intertwined; without careful internal observation, it would have been almost impossible to notice.

This Purple-Gold scale rested quietly among the Blue Dragon Scales. It was utterly inconspicuous, yet it seemed to be the core of the entire Martial Soul phantom, emanating an indescribably ancient and majestic aura that surpassed that of an ordinary Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon.

What is this...? Yu Yuanchen was startled, feeling a trace of surprise. He had never encountered such a subtle change in his Martial Soul, nor had he ever seen any record of it in his family's inherited texts.

He tried activating his Martial Soul. Blue Electric Light flashed brilliantly, and Dragon Might spread forth. Everything remained normal. His soul skills operated smoothly, and their power even seemed to have increased somewhat, but the Purple-Gold scale brought no additional obvious ability or phenomenon.

Could this be a change brought about by tempering my body with Thunder God Power? Yu Yuanchen pondered. He could sense that the appearance of this scale seemed to have increased the affinity between his Martial Soul and Thunder Power by a trace. Mobilizing his soul power also felt smoother and more natural, but the improvement was exceedingly subtle, like silent rain moistening all things.

Perhaps it is some kind of beneficial mutation? Or... an external manifestation of a slight increase in bloodline purity? he guessed. On Douluo Continent, Martial Souls were not immutable. Under certain special opportunities, they could indeed evolve or mutate. But a change as subtle and strange as merely gaining a single scale of a different color was simply too unusual.

After studying it for some time without reaching a definite conclusion and finding no harmful effects, while instead feeling better than ever, Yu Yuanchen temporarily set aside his doubts. He attributed it to some beneficial stimulation Thunder God Power had exerted on his Martial Soul after tempering his body and soul power—perhaps a sign that his foundation had become more solid.

Since it is harmless and seemingly beneficial, I will let nature take its course. His mindset was calm. He neither rejoiced wildly over such a trivial change nor grew anxious because he could not understand it. He knew well that the Path of Cultivation was long. So long as the direction was right, he could continue exploring any minor anomaly.

He no longer deliberately paid attention to that Purple Gold Scale and once more devoted all his focus to cultivation. He continued tempering himself with Thunder God Power, consolidating his cultivation level, while also beginning a deeper study of the various applications of his Fourth Soul Skill, Thunder God Power. He attempted more varied and intricate combinations with his first three soul skills.

He faintly sensed that this quietly appearing Purple Gold Scale might be a catalyst, an opportunity. But true transformation required deeper accumulations of power and comprehension that came naturally in time.

The Hidden Dragon remained deep beneath the abyss of thunder, yet a scale unlike all others had already quietly revealed its extraordinary potential. It waited in silence, waiting for the convergence of wind and clouds, waiting for the moment it would soar into the heavens and let Purple Gold Divine Thunder shine upon the world.

His secluded cultivation continued. Day after day, the thunder in the depths of the gorge roared on, as though playing a low and majestic prelude to the dawn of a new era.