"Just you two venomous worms?"
Thunderbolts burst around Yu Yuanzhen as nine Soul Rings circled him. The pressure of a Level 95 powerhouse surged from his body.
"So what if Dugu Xuan has broken through? In a head-on assault, my Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon is still the best in the world!"
"The best in the world at a head-on assault?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo, who had remained silent until now, finally lifted his eyelids.
A terrifying aura, as immense as a mountain, instantly crushed Yu Yuanzhen's thunderbolts back into his body.
"Yu Yuanzhen, do you think you're worthy of speaking about 'assault' in front of me?"
Yu Yuanzhen's face turned deathly pale, and his body began trembling despite himself.
"This aura... A Level 99 Limit Douluo?! Who are you?"
"My teacher, Golden Crocodile Douluo, the Second Worship of Spirit Hall."
Dugu Ce stepped to the front. Looking at Yu Yuanzhen, who was struggling to hold his ground, he spoke coolly.
"Yu Yuanzhen, don't waste your efforts. Hand over the complete method for advancing the 'Dragon Transformation' secret art. Then kneel before my great-uncle and cripple your own Soul Power. Perhaps I'll consider leaving your Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect a surviving bloodline."
The 'Dragon Transformation' of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul, combined with the secret art that the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect had studied for generations, was what allowed its power to reach its full potential.
Though Dugu Ce's Martial Soul wasn't the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, he did at least possess the bloodline of a True Dragon.
If he obtained the Dragon Transformation secret art and studied it, Dugu Ce would surely benefit immensely.
"You... You can dream on!"
Grinding his teeth, Yu Yuanzhen looked toward the Second Master, Yu Luomian, who was hurrying over.
"Second Brother! Quickly, lead the disciples and activate the Sect Protection Array! Even if we perish together today, we mustn't let these villains have their way!"
However, when Yu Luomian reached them, he ignored Yu Yuanzhen and instead bowed slightly to Dugu Ce.
"Young Master Dugu, I've sent all the hardliners in the sect who support Yu Yuanzhen to the back mountain. We can make our move at any time."
"Second Brother? You... You actually betrayed the sect?!"
As if struck by lightning, Yu Yuanzhen stared at his own younger brother in disbelief.
"Elder Brother, those who adapt to the times are the true heroes."
Yu Luomian raised his head without a trace of emotion.
"Under your leadership, what has the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect gained besides arrogance and enemies? Since the Dugu Family can give our clan a better future, it's time for you, the sect master of a bygone era, to step down."
"Hahahaha! Good! What a perfect case of being abandoned by everyone!"
Dugu Bo laughed wildly and swept out a hand. Emerald-green poison mist instantly transformed into countless snake shadows, surging toward the sect's gates.
"Yu Yuanzhen, feel what true despair is!"
"Yu Yuanzhen, still don't understand?"
Dugu Ce watched Yu Yuanzhen struggle under the pressure, his face flushed red. His tone remained utterly calm.
"Before absolute power, your pride and joy, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, is nothing but a slightly larger loach."
"You... You people..."
Yu Yuanzhen suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood. He glared at Yu Luomian, eyes bulging with fury.
"Yu Luomian! You beast! You've let the wolves in. Do you think they'll spare you? The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect's thousand-year legacy has been destroyed by your hand!"
"Legacy?"
Yu Luomian sneered from behind Dugu Ce, his expression sinister.
"Elder Brother, you've shut yourself away from the world for too long. Following you will only make the family offend Spirit Hall and the Dugu Family, until we're ultimately destroyed. Young Master Dugu has promised that once you step down, I'll become the next sect master, and our family will flourish even more under Spirit Hall's protection."
"Dream on! True Dragon Avatar, activate!"
Yu Yuanzhen roared. The lightning around him showed signs of breaking through Golden Crocodile Douluo's pressure, and his nine Soul Rings flashed wildly.
Golden Crocodile Douluo merely snorted and pressed his right hand down in the air.
"Get down on the ground!"
"Boom—!"
The lightning filling the sky went out in an instant. An invisible force slammed Yu Yuanzhen straight into the earth, shattering every bluestone slab before the gates of True Dragon Mountain.
The bones throughout Yu Yuanzhen's body creaked, and even his Martial Soul Possession was forcibly dispelled.
"Playing with dragons in front of me?"
Golden Crocodile Douluo spoke indifferently.
"Even if your ancestor came back to life, he wouldn't dare act so recklessly before me."
Dugu Xuan walked to the edge of the pit and looked down at Yu Yuanzhen, who was in a wretched state.
"Yu Yuanzhen, when you crippled my son's foundations all those years ago and caused him to die in his prime, did you ever imagine this day would come? This slap is for my poor, dead son!"
With that, Dugu Xuan struck from afar. A streak of emerald Soul Power lashed Yu Yuanzhen across the face, sending his teeth flying.
Dugu Yan also stepped forward, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
"Yu Yuanzhen, look at your most prized grandson. If you still refuse to tell us where the secret art is, I'll cripple his Martial Soul first and let him taste what it's like to become a cripple!"
Yu Yuanzhen looked at Yu Tianheng, unconscious nearby. At last, a flicker of desperate struggle appeared in his eyes.
"The secret art... It's in the Dragon Lair chamber in the sect's forbidden grounds at the back mountain... Only the bloodline of a sect master from past generations can open it..."
"Very well."
Dugu Ce turned to Yu Luomian.
"Lead the way. If you've told a single lie, today True Dragon Mountain will be renamed Venomous Snake Valley."
"Yes, Young Master. Please follow me."
Yu Luomian bowed and led the way. His obsequious manner made the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect disciples nearby shudder with revulsion.
Liu Erlong looked at Yu Yuanzhen, sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, and shook her head mockingly.
"So this is the dignity of a sect master you were so proud of? Faced with death and the end of your bloodline, it amounts to nothing. Yu Yuanzhen, you lost—and you lost utterly."
"Let's go get what we came for."
Dugu Ce took Dugu Yan by the hand and strode through the gates of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect, protected by Golden Crocodile Douluo.
"Young Master, the forbidden Dragon Lair is just ahead. It's where sect masters of past generations went into seclusion and stored their treasures."
Yu Luomian led the way, his expression ingratiating. He paid no heed to the sect disciples trembling on either side.
Dugu Ce glanced at the fearsome Dragon Head Relief carved into the stone door and gave a cool command.
"Old Poison, bring that old dragon over. He said a sect master's bloodline is needed to open it."
Dugu Bo casually tossed Yu Yuanzhen, drenched in blood, in front of the door.
"Yu Yuanzhen, quit pretending to be dead. Will you bleed yourself, or should I drain you dry?"
"Yu Luomian... You'll die a miserable death..."
Yu Yuanzhen's voice was hoarse, his gaze unfocused, yet he continued staring fixedly at the stone door.
"That's the sect's last reserve... You actually dared..."
"A reserve? Something that can't save your life isn't a reserve. It's a burial offering."
Dugu Ce stepped in front of Yu Yuanzhen and planted his foot on his wrist, sending Soul Power stabbing into it like needles.
"I don't have the patience for your nonsense. Sis, do it."
Dugu Yan snorted. Soul Power formed a blade in her palm, and she slashed Yu Yuanzhen's hand open.
His bright red blood was drawn by the Soul Power and instantly disappeared into the Dragon Head Relief's mouth.
"Rumble—"
The heavy stone door slowly opened, and a dense rush of dragon aura mixed with the might of thunder came surging toward them.
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