East Sea Dragon Palace

Yet under the siege of several Witch Clan warriors, especially a mid-stage Great Witch, he was already showing signs of defeat.

Dragon scales shattered, and dragon blood rained down upon the sea.

His dragon roar carried fury and despair.

"Ha ha ha! Worm! Be good and become food for my Witch Clan, nourishing my body!"

The Great Witch, with an indigo face and vermilion hair, laughed wildly. The Xuanhua Great Axe in his hand shrieked as it tore through the air, hacking viciously toward the red dragon's reverse scale!

A flash of grief and indignation crossed the red dragon's eyes. He twisted his massive body with all his strength, but there was nowhere left to evade!

Blood was about to spill across the scene!

"Stop!"

The sharp cry was not particularly loud, yet it seemed to contain some profound principle of heaven and earth, ringing clearly in the ears of every living being present.

At the same time.

A streak of clear light arrived after the strike had been launched, yet reached its target first!

As though it had crossed space itself, it appeared instantly between the great axe and the dragon's body!

The clear light swirled and transformed into a crystalline white lotus platform, its twelve petals slowly blooming!

It was Dao Xuan's protective treasure—the Twelve-petal Pure World White Lotus!

Clang—!!!

The Xuanhua Great Axe, carrying the Great Witch's violent brute force, slammed fiercely into the lotus platform!

There was no earth-shattering boom.

Only a dull ring of metal striking metal.

The great axe, capable of splitting mountains and shattering stone, struck the lotus platform as though it had sunk into the sea!

Its violent baleful aura was instantly purified!

Its immense force was gently dispersed by layer upon layer of lotus petals!

The axe blade failed to leave even the faintest mark upon those crystalline petals!

The Great Witch only felt an irresistible yet upright and peaceful force rebound toward him!

Stomp, stomp, stomp!

He was actually forced back several steps, his blood and qi churning as the arm holding the axe went numb!

"Who is it?!"

Startled and enraged, the Great Witch abruptly looked up, his savage gaze sweeping toward the source of the clear light.

There, in midair.

A majestic Five-Colored Qilin stood upon the clouds.

Upon its back sat a young Daoist.

He wore a Blue Gauze Headband and had his hair tied in a double knot hair bun.

He was dressed in a pale yellow Daoist robe patterned with clouds, with a Heaven and Earth Knot silk sash at his waist and Cloud-Treading Boots on his feet.

His face was like mutton fat jade, his bearing elegant and refined, his eyes bright and brows clear.

Pure Qi curled around him, and Dao Rhyme came naturally to him.

It was Dao Xuan!

"Who are you? How dare you interfere with my Witch Clan's hunt for food!" the Great Witch roared. His baleful aura soared to the heavens as he locked onto Dao Xuan.

Dao Xuan's gaze remained calm as it swept over the battered true dragons before finally settling on the Great Witch.

"The Witch Clan hunting for food is not inherently wrong."

"However, the Dragon Clan is affiliated with my Mystic Sect and under my protection. Your violence here has gone too far."

His voice was mild, yet it carried unquestionable authority.

"Affiliated with the Mystic Sect?" The Great Witch paused, then burst into thunderous laughter filled with contempt.

"Ha ha ha! What bullshit Mystic Sect! My Witch Clan is Pangu's true lineage and reveres only the Father God!

Who cares about your Mystic Sect or whatever sect! These worms of the Four Seas have delicious flesh and abundant blood and qi. They are first-rate food!

Get lost if you know what's good for you, or I'll kill you too and have an extra meal!"

A chill flickered in Dao Xuan's eyes.

"Stubbornly ignorant."

He had not wished to create excessive slaughter, but the other party was this arrogant, treating the Dragon Clan as food and even insulting his sect. That had crossed his bottom line.

"Courting death!" Seeing that Dao Xuan would not retreat, the Great Witch's ferocity erupted. He swung his great axe.

"Men! Kill this meddlesome cow-nosed Daoist first! Then slaughter the dragons!"

"Roar!"

Seven or eight fierce Witch Clan warriors roared in unison. Their baleful aura joined into a single mass like a crimson tidal wave as they brandished bone clubs and stone spears, charging at Dao Xuan with mountain-splitting force!

The Great Witch led the charge. His Xuanhua Great Axe became a black streak that tore through the sky and cleaved straight toward Dao Xuan's head! He intended to split this troublesome Daoist and the qilin beneath him apart in one blow!

Faced with this siege, enough to make a Grand Unity Golden Immortal change expression.

Dao Xuan's expression did not change.

He did not even rise.

He merely flicked his sleeve lightly at the surging Witch Clan warriors.

Then he softly uttered:

"Wind."

Buzz!

A treasured fan flew from his sleeve.

Four colors flowed across its surface—green, red, white, and black—as the Origin Dao Rhyme of Earth Water Fire Wind filled the air!

It was the Supreme-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure—the Four Symbols Banana Fan!

Holding the treasured fan, Dao Xuan gave the charging Witch Clan warriors a light wave!

Whoosh—!!!

There was no earth-shattering storm.

Only an invisible, intangible, yet irresistible terrifying force that swept forth in an instant!

This force was not merely wild wind.

It contained the immense primordial power of earth's heaviness, fire's fury, water's endurance, and wind's swiftness!

It was as though heaven and earth had overturned! The Four Symbols fell into chaos!

The several Witch Clan warriors at the forefront did not even have time to scream.

The baleful aura around them scattered instantly as though it had encountered its nemesis!

Their powerful bodies, like piles of sand, crumbled inch by inch beneath that terrifying primordial power of the Four Symbols and turned to dust!

Their souls and true spirits were erased along with them!

The Great Witch following close behind saw his pupils constrict, and his soul nearly fled his body!

He sensed a fatal threat!

"Roar!"

He let out a furious roar. His blood and qi erupted like a volcano, his muscles bulging like coiling dragons as he poured all his strength into the Xuanhua Great Axe, attempting to cleave through that invisible tide of death!

However.

Before the mighty power of the Four Symbols Banana Fan.

His resistance was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot!

Crack!

The Xuanhua Great Axe, the fierce weapon that had accompanied him through countless battles and drunk endless blood, was the first to fail, shattering inch by inch!

Immediately after.

His Witch Clan true body, which he had been so proud of and which rivaled divine metal, melted and disintegrated like ice and snow cast into a furnace!

"No—!!!"

The Great Witch let out one final howl filled with fear and unwillingness.

Then his voice abruptly ceased.

His entire body, together with his shattered weapon, was completely swallowed by that invisible power of the Four Symbols and reduced to nothingness, leaving behind not even a trace.

One wave!

Just one wave!

Seven or eight fierce Witch Clan warriors, along with that mid-stage Great Witch, were all reduced to ash and wiped from existence!

Above the sea, only a few lingering wisps of baleful aura remained, along with several true dragons who had survived the disaster and now stared in utter shock.

Dao Xuan put away the Banana Fan, as though he had merely done something insignificant.

His gaze swept over the sea, confirming that no Witch Clan aura remained.

Was he afraid of offending the Witch Clan?

Dao Xuan sneered inwardly.

My grandmaster is Hongjun, the Dao Ancestor of the Mystic Sect and a Saint who merged with the Dao!

My master is the foremost of the Three Pure Ones, Taiqing Dao De Tianzun!

My martial uncles are Jade Pure Primordial Heavenly Venerate and the Heavenly Venerate of Spiritual Treasures!

My backing is hard enough to smash Buzhou Mountain!

Even if the Twelve Ancestral Witches came in person, they would have to think twice!

If I beat the young ones, would the old ones dare come? Good. Then Master and Martial Uncles can stretch their muscles!

"Many thanks, Immortal, for saving our lives!"

The surviving red dragon came to his senses. His enormous body twisted through the air and transformed into a mighty dragon general clad in crimson-gold scale armor, wearing a pearl crown, with a face like a red date and a short beard beneath his chin.

Together with several equally wounded Dragon Clan warriors who had taken human form behind him, he bowed deeply to Dao Xuan, his voice trembling with excitement.

"This little dragon is Ao Jia, First Prince of the East Sea Dragon Palace! I thank you, Immortal, for saving my life! Had you not acted, this little dragon and my brothers would surely have met a terrible end today!"

Ao Jia? Dao Xuan's heart stirred slightly. He did not know him.

"No need for such ceremony." Dao Xuan raised a hand, and a gentle force lifted Ao Bing and the others.

"You are of the Dragon Clan. Why did you come into conflict with the Witch Clan here?"

At his words, grief, indignation, and helplessness appeared on Ao Jia's face.

"Reporting to you, Immortal! After the first Witch-Demon War, most of the Demon Clan moved to the Heavenly Court, leaving few demons upon the land. The Witch Clan needs to devour large amounts of food for cultivation, and ordinary demons are no longer enough for them to hunt..."

"Though my Dragon Clan lives apart in the Four Seas, our people are numerous and reproduce quickly..."

Ao Jia's voice was bitter.

"And... and Dragon Clan bodies contain pure water essence and blood and qi. To the Witch Clan, we are an immense tonic..."

"Thus... for nearly ten thousand years, the Witch Clan has frequently harassed the Four Seas, hunting and killing Dragon Clan people for food! Today, this little dragon was patrolling the coastal waters with several brothers when we unfortunately encountered these vicious witches..."

After listening, Dao Xuan understood.

It truly was a world where the strong devoured the weak.

With the Dragon Clan in decline, they had become prime "ingredients" in the Witch Clan's eyes.

"So that was it." Dao Xuan nodded slightly. "The Witch Clan's conduct is indeed tyrannical."

"Immortal!" Ao Jia bowed again, his voice pleading. "The Witch Clan is powerful, while my Dragon Clan is weak. We have suffered beyond endurance! I beg you to show mercy and honor the East Sea Dragon Palace with your presence! My royal father will surely reward you generously for saving our lives!"

Dao Xuan pondered briefly.

He had come to seek opportunities in the first place. As the foremost of the Four Seas, the East Sea Dragon Palace might offer other gains.

Besides, the Dragon Clan was now under his protection. There was no harm in taking a look.

"Very well. I shall accompany you."

"Thank you, Immortal! Thank you, Immortal!" Ao Bing and the other dragons were overjoyed and hurriedly led the way.

The Five Spirit Qilin walked upon the waves, following Ao Bing and the others as they parted the emerald waters and descended straight into the deep sea.

There lay the underwater world:

Coral grew in profusion, and agate was piled high.

Tortoiseshell screens opened like jade, while pearl curtains hung like crystal.

Shrimp soldiers held halberds and stood in ordered ranks; crab generals wore helmets and patrolled with martial majesty.

Jade towers and jeweled palaces stood everywhere, hall upon hall.

Before long, an incomparably magnificent crystal palace rose before them.

It was the East Sea Dragon Palace!

Its entire structure was built from ten-thousand-year crystal, glazed glass, giant clamshell, and agate.

Treasure light radiated in every direction, while countless streams of auspicious aura filled the surroundings.

The lofty palace gates bore four enormous golden characters: "East Sea Dragon Palace."

Shrimp soldiers and crab generals had already gone inside to report their arrival.

A moment later, the palace gates opened wide.

A middle-aged Dragon King wearing an imperial dragon robe and pearl crown emerged personally from the gates. His face was like a silver moon, three long strands of beard flowing beneath his chin, and his bearing was both imposing and scholarly. He was followed by a host of dragon princes and descendants, the Prime Minister Turtle, whale strongmen, and other important aquatic officials.

He was the Dragon King of the East Sea—Ao Guang!

"This little dragon, Ao Guang, together with all of East Sea Dragon Palace, welcomes the Immortal's honored arrival!"

Ao Guang's voice was loud, filled with excitement and reverence, as he bowed deeply to Dao Xuan.

Behind him, all the aquatic clans bowed in unison. The scene was grand indeed.

"Dragon King, there is no need for such ceremony." Dao Xuan dismounted from the qilin and returned the greeting calmly.

Ao Guang stepped forward, his eyes full of gratitude as he looked at Dao Xuan.

"My son Ao Jia has already sent word! Had you not acted in time, my unworthy son and several Dragon Clan youths might have suffered misfortune today! For this grace and kindness, everyone in East Sea Dragon Palace is grateful beyond words!"

"It was only a small effort. Dragon King, you give me too much credit." Dao Xuan smiled faintly.

"To you, Immortal, it may have been a small effort, but to my Dragon Clan, it was the grace of saving our lives!" Ao Guang said solemnly. "Immortal, please come inside. This little dragon has prepared a humble banquet to express our gratitude. I sincerely hope you will honor us with your presence!"

Dao Xuan nodded. "I shall impose upon you, then."

Ao Guang was overjoyed and personally led the way.

Dao Xuan was welcomed into the resplendent Crystal Palace's main hall, where treasure-light shimmered in every direction.

A grand feast had already been laid out within the hall.

There were:

Eight delicacies spread across the tables, a hundred flavors arranged upon the banquet seats.

Nectar and Jade Liquid filled golden goblets, while exotic fruits and rare flowers piled high upon jade tables.

Tiger livers and phoenix marrow were commonplace; bear paws and ape lips were hardly worth boasting about.

There were also clam maidens performing dances, merfolk presenting pearls, immortal music drifting through the air, and strange fragrances assailing the nose.

Ao Guang invited Dao Xuan to take the seat of honor, while he, several dragon princes and descendants, Prime Minister Turtle, and the others attended him.

After three rounds of wine and five courses of food.

The atmosphere gradually grew harmonious.

Ao Guang raised his cup once more in a toast to Dao Xuan.

"Immortal, this humble dragon dares ask a question. Earlier, I heard my son say that you claimed our dragon clan was affiliated with the Mystic Sect and under your protection... was that truly so?"

Expectation filled Ao Guang's eyes, along with a trace of unease.

The hall instantly fell silent.

Every high-ranking member of the dragon clan held their breath and looked toward Dao Xuan.

Dao Xuan set down his jade cup. His gaze swept across the dragons in the hall, and his voice was calm, yet carried unquestionable force:

"Of course it is true."

"During the Dragon-Han Initial Tribulation, the dragon clan declined. The Dragon King understood the greater good and offered up the Ancestral Dragon Pearl, submitting to the Mystic Sect in exchange for protection."

"This pearl has been of considerable help to me."

Dao Xuan paused and watched the light abruptly flare in Ao Guang's eyes.

"Since I have accepted your offerings, I shall naturally protect your clan."

"What happened today is proof enough."

"Dragon King, remember this well."

Dao Xuan's voice lowered slightly, carrying a note of warning.

"From this day forth, the dragon clan is affiliated with my Mystic Sect and under my, Dao Xuan's, protection."

"Within the Primordial World, whether it be the witch and demon clans or any other force."

"If anyone should again bully the dragon clan without cause or freely hunt and slaughter its people..."

Dao Xuan's eyes flashed like lightning as he swept his gaze across the hall.

"They will be making an enemy of me, Dao Xuan!"

"They will be making enemies of my masters, the Venerable Daoists Taiqing, Yuqing, and Shangqing!"

"They will be making an enemy of Dao Ancestor Hongjun, Saint of the Mystic Sect!"

"As for the consequences, weigh them for yourselves!"

His voice was not loud, yet it was like Nine Heavens' Thunderclap exploding within the heart of every aquatic being!

Ao Guang's entire body shook violently, and the jade cup in his hand nearly fell!

He abruptly rose to his feet, trembling all over with excitement as tears streamed down his aged face!

"Immortal! Immortal, your great grace! This humble dragon... this humble dragon..."

He choked up, unable to continue. He only felt that the gloom pressing over the dragon clan for tens of thousands of years had been completely swept away at this moment!

The Ancestral Dragon Pearl! Giving it away had been so worth it!

This was simply an investment with no cost and endless profit—they had latched onto the thickest thigh in the Primordial World!

"This humble dragon thanks you on behalf of the East Sea dragon clan—no, on behalf of the dragon clans of the Four Seas! We kowtow in thanks to you, Immortal! To the Saints of the Mystic Sect! To the Dao Ancestor!"

Ao Guang bowed to Dao Xuan as though pushing down a mountain and toppling a jade pillar!

"We thank you, Immortal! We thank the Saints of the Mystic Sect! We thank the Dao Ancestor!"

Every dragon and high-ranking aquatic being in the hall, regardless of status, was overwhelmed with excitement and dropped to their knees in unison!

Their voices shook the Crystal Palace!

Dao Xuan accepted it calmly.

He raised his jade cup and took a light sip of Nectar and Jade Liquid.

Looking at the dragon clan kowtowing excitedly below, he thought to himself:

This bluff about being the ultimate well-connected insider was grand enough. Still, it seems to have worked rather well.

The first rule of survival in the Primordial World: a powerful backing is true strength!

The atmosphere in the hall instantly reached its peak.

The relief of surviving a calamity, the wild joy of gaining a powerful patron, and boundless hopes for the future all intertwined.

Immortal music rose once more, and the dances became even more jubilant.

Cups clinked in celebration, and hosts and guests alike enjoyed themselves.

Dao Xuan sat in the seat of honor, enjoying the dragon clan's highest courtesies.

Yet in his heart, he was calculating whether the depths of the East Sea Dragon Palace concealed any other opportunities connected to the Chaos Bead.