After everyone had received their rewards, they left the Sea God Pavilion to rest. Only Yu Daoyun and several elders remained.
Yu Daoyun kept his expression calm, but inside, he was delighted.
He didn't need to think twice to know that Mu En must have a reward to give him privately.
Just then, Mu En glanced at Yan Shaozhe and the others again. "You can leave too. The academy has plenty of matters waiting for you. You can't stay here forever."
"Daoyun, come inside with me."
With that, Mu En set off at the front, and Yu Daoyun immediately followed.
Yan Shaozhe, Xian Lin'er, and the elders cupped their hands in farewell and left.
Elder Mu had something to tell Yu Daoyun, so they naturally couldn't eavesdrop.
Before long, the old man and the young man arrived in a quiet room in the Sea God Pavilion. Yu Daoyun immediately felt a vast force enter his body.
It was the energy of the Life Ancient Tree, one of Shrek's greatest treasures.
Mu En turned around and said kindly, "If you hadn't urged Xuan Zi during this mission, I'm afraid something would have gone wrong again. So I've decided to give you a special reward."
"It's all thanks to your guidance, Elder Mu," Yu Daoyun replied.
"Very good..."
Mu En nodded with satisfaction, then said, "Sit down and calm your mind. Feel the power here. Soul Power is slow to cultivate with an Ultimate Martial Soul, but there are other ways."
"The Life Ancient Tree of Shrek can't solve the problem of an Ultimate Martial Soul's slow cultivation, but at this stage, it can speed up your progress to a certain extent."
As soon as he finished speaking, Yu Daoyun obediently sat cross-legged and began to meditate, using the Life Ancient Tree's power to increase his Soul Power.
With such abundant life force, it was almost like cultivating with a small piece of Living Gold.
His Soul Power, usually as calm as still water, began to rise.
Mu En gazed at Yu Daoyun and sighed inwardly.
He hadn't expected to gain another promising talent in his twilight years.
This child was far more outstanding than Beibei. He could definitely shoulder the burden of Shrek.
As he thought this, Mu En opened his hands. A golden core appeared in his palms.
When he was young, he had entered a secret realm and obtained this Dragon Core from a Dragon Clan burial ground. In the end, it had helped him reach the Limit Douluo realm.
For a Soul Master with a Dragon Martial Soul, this Dragon Core was the greatest of treasures.
And now, he had no use for it.
Mu En had a feeling that he wouldn't live another ten years, so he had to make plans for Shrek well in advance.
If Yu Daoyun could cultivate with the Dragon Core's help, his future would be limitless.
With that thought, Mu En sat down cross-legged as well. He released the Dragon Core's energy and guided it toward Yu Daoyun.
In an instant, white energy slowly entered Yu Daoyun's body.
While meditating, Yu Daoyun suddenly heard a dragon's roar. He felt the blood in his veins leap, as if some source of power had been awakened.
This energy was so pure!
Suddenly, Yu Daoyun thought of something.
The Dragon Core!
One of Mu En's greatest opportunities, the Light Holy Dragon's Dragon Core—a true treasure of the Dragon Clan.
Just then, Mu En's calm voice came through. "Don't let yourself get distracted. Focus on your meditation."
Yu Daoyun suppressed the restlessness in his heart and continued to meditate.
At a speed invisible to the naked eye, the Dragon Core's energy began to affect Yu Daoyun's bloodline.
Tiny golden dragon scales started to appear all over his body.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
In the quiet room, Yu Daoyun's aura grew purer and purer. The Dragon Core's power purged every impurity from his bloodline, transforming it toward that of a true dragon.
His Soul Power soared from level thirty-two to level thirty-six.
Mu En was overjoyed.
The Dragon Core really was effective.
Just then, something strange happened. The Dragon Core floating above Yu Daoyun's head seemed to have awakened its own intelligence and slipped into his Spiritual Sea.
Mu En thought, This is bad! He tried to stop it, but it was already too late.
At that moment,
images of the Dragon Clan's sorrow and the ten thousand dragons falling in Dragon Valley appeared in Yu Daoyun's Spiritual Sea, battering it with tremendous force.
He froze.
How had his consciousness been brought to Dragon Valley?
Suddenly, a massive dragon soul in Dragon Valley transformed into the Golden Dragon King and looked down at Yu Daoyun.
"G-Golden Dragon King!"
Yu Daoyun cried out, unable to believe his eyes.
The dragon soul before him was none other than the true Golden Dragon King, one of the Dragon God's two avatars.
The Golden Dragon King spoke. "I never expected someone to establish a connection with me through the Light Holy Dragon's Dragon Core. You're a fine successor. I really would like to use your body to resurrect myself."
Yu Daoyun's gaze instantly turned wary.
The Golden Dragon King was different from the Silver Dragon King. He bore the Dragon God's negative emotions and power, and his malice was terrifying.
Nothing good ever came from running into this fellow.
Sure enough, after muttering to himself for a while, the Golden Dragon King turned to Yu Daoyun again. "Child, do you want to become a god? I am an avatar of the Dragon God. I can grant you the chance to ascend to godhood."
"If you just nod, I can send my bloodline power to you through this Dragon Core and grant you the Golden Dragon King's overbearing strength."
Yu Daoyun raised his head and asked, "What do I have to do?"
The Golden Dragon King burst into laughter, then said, "You don't have to do anything. Once you become a god, come to the Divine Realm and save me. Then I'll grant you the true Dragon King bloodline and make you a true god of the Dragon Clan."
"Before then, you only need to break the seal I left inside you."
"This Dragon Core can serve as your Divine Core in the future."
Yu Daoyun fell into thought.
As expected, the crafty Golden Dragon King had no good intentions. But a bloodline power from the Dragon King that he could get for free was too good to pass up.
So Yu Daoyun asked, "If you leave the seal inside me, can you take it back whenever you want?"
The Golden Dragon King fell silent too.
To be honest, the risk was considerable. He had only one chance, and if the human god-kings of the Divine Realm discovered him, he'd be in danger.
But the Golden Dragon King was nearly driven mad. He had no idea when he would break free of this accursed seal.
His only chance of survival was to give this boy his essence and wait for the human to come save him.
He had to take a gamble if he wanted any chance of leaving the Divine Realm.
The Golden Dragon King then explained, "Once I give you my essence, I can't simply take it back. But I can't give you all of it either. After you become a god and come to the Divine Realm to save me, I'll give you the rest and help you become a god-king."
"Then swear it," Yu Daoyun said.
The Golden Dragon King furrowed his brows, a trace of unease stirring in his heart.
Was this human boy really so quick to trust a dragon?
But time was running short, and they couldn't keep talking. He could only give his essence to this human brat through the Dragon Core and wait for him to come to the Divine Realm and save him.
Then the man and the dragon swore a bloodline curse: if either broke the oath, their bloodline would be destroyed.
Yu Daoyun also promised the Golden Dragon King that he would save him after becoming a god.
Once the oath was complete, the Golden Dragon King's eighteen seals entered the Dragon Core, and Yu Daoyun felt his aura surge.
Before leaving, the Golden Dragon King reminded him, "Little fellow, I've given you a Divine Core. The moment you break through the level-ninety-nine limit, those human god-kings will definitely discover you. When you ascend to the Divine Realm, remember to come save me."
"If you break your oath, the bloodline curse will make your body explode."
With that, the Golden Dragon King disappeared.
Yu Daoyun gazed at the Dragon Core, now radiating the Golden Dragon King's essence, and was delighted.
Didn't this mean he now had what it took to challenge the Child of Destiny?
Even without Huo Yuhao's opportunities, he could still take that final step.
The Golden Dragon King deserved praise for going all in. He was a good dragon.
Before you continue