The Azure Spirit Dragon's vertical pupils contracted slightly as its forked tongue flickered repeatedly, searching the air for the source of that aura.
It was an aura that made it tremble from the depths of its bloodline.
It was not fear.
It was submission.
The instinct carved into its genes when a lower bloodline faced a higher one.
"Azure Dragon Possession."
Qing Mufeng walked toward the valley, one unhurried step at a time.
As he walked, he circulated the Soul Power within his body.
The possession of the Azure Dragon Martial Soul made him sturdier, taller, and stronger, filling him with power.
Even his pupils had become vertical and golden.
At that moment, he felt like a superhero.
This kind of power was simply intoxicating.
A deep-yellow soul ring lit up, and his right arm began to transform into that of a dragon.
Azure scales emerged, his fingers turned into claws, and his entire arm thickened by a full circle.
At the same time, just in case, he called upon another ability in his heart.
Azure Dragon Armor—assemble!
Azure light surged from within him, condensing over his body into that set of azure wooden armor.
A breastplate with wood-grain patterns, limbs covered in snake scales, shoulder guards shaped like snake heads, and a half-covered helmet.
The armor gleamed with a faint azure light beneath the sun, wrapping his entire body tightly.
With his dragonized right arm and full-body armor, the six-year-old looked like a miniature god of war.
Qing Zhengyue watched from behind, a complicated look flashing through his eyes.
This armor, combined with that soul skill, and the Azure Dragon's bloodline suppression over serpent-type soul beasts...
Perhaps it really could work.
Qing Mufeng stepped into the valley.
When he was ten paces away from the Azure Spirit Dragon, he stopped.
It was not because he dared not go any farther. This distance was simply perfect.
Too far, and he could not hit it. Too close, and he would not be able to escape.
The Azure Spirit Dragon finally moved.
It slowly raised its snake head and uncoiled its body.
Its eight-meter-long body stretched out completely, like an azure dragon lying across the center of the valley.
Its vertical pupils stared fixedly at the tiny figure before it, while its forked tongue flickered faster and faster.
It was hesitating.
A thousand years of instinct told it that the human child before it was merely food, something it could swallow in one bite.
Yet the trembling deep within its bloodline told it not to move.
If it moved, it would die.
The two instincts clashed fiercely within its reptilian brain.
Qing Mufeng saw its hesitation.
He did not wait.
His right foot slammed into the ground, and his small body shot toward the Azure Spirit Dragon like an arrow released from a bow.
His dragonized right claw swept high into the air. Five azure claw streaks gathered at his fingertips and tore through the air with a sharp howl as they raked viciously at the snake's body.
Azure Dragon Claw Probe!
The Azure Spirit Dragon reacted with astonishing speed, abruptly curling its body and barely dodging the strike.
However, the claw streaks still grazed its scales, leaving five shallow white marks on its deep-azure scales.
They had not broken through its defense.
Qing Mufeng frowned.
The defensive power of a thousand-year soul beast was stronger than he had expected.
But he had achieved his purpose.
Though that claw strike had not inflicted any substantial damage, it had thoroughly enraged the Azure Spirit Dragon.
The fear brought by bloodline suppression was overwhelmed by fury at that moment.
Its tail swept out violently, lashing toward Qing Mufeng with the force of a thousand jun.
The attack was unbelievably fast.
Qing Mufeng had no time to dodge. He could only cross his arms before himself and take the blow head-on.
Bang!!!
He was sent flying.
His small body spun twice through the air before crashing heavily onto the ground. He rolled another three or four meters before finally stopping.
Spiderweb-like cracks appeared across the spot on the Azure Dragon Armor that had been struck by the tail.
"Feng'er!" Liu Yunlan cried out and was about to rush forward.
"Wait." Qing Zhengyue pressed a hand onto his wife's shoulder.
Liu Yunlan turned and glared at him, only to see a trace of surprise flash through the old man's eyes.
Following his gaze, she froze.
Qing Mufeng climbed to his feet.
He dusted the dirt from himself and flexed his arms, which had gone numb from the impact.
The cracks in his armor were repairing themselves at a visible speed. In less than three breaths, it had returned to normal.
This was the terror of the Azure Dragon Origin.
And this was only its effect while restricted by his low Soul Power Level.
Once his Soul Power Level rose in the future and the restrictions were gradually lifted, its effects would become even more terrifying.
As he was now,
his defensive power had greatly increased.
His recovery ability had greatly increased.
Those two "greatly increased" were not mere words.
Qing Mufeng looked at his arms, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
He had taken a blow from a thousand-year soul beast head-on and had merely been knocked away, without suffering any injury.
The Azure Dragon Armor's defense was even stronger than he had expected.
He resumed his fighting stance, his gaze locking onto the Azure Spirit Dragon.
That strike just now had confirmed several things for him.
First, the Azure Spirit Dragon's attack power was within the Azure Dragon Armor's defensive range. He could withstand it.
Second, the Azure Dragon Armor's recovery ability was formidable. As long as he was not killed in one blow, he could recover quickly.
Third, the bloodline suppression was indeed effective. The Azure Spirit Dragon's reaction speed was noticeably slower than normal, and its attacks lacked decisiveness.
Fourth, his own attack power was still insufficient to break through its defense.
The first three points were good news. The fourth was a problem.
If he could not hurt his opponent, being able to endure hits was useless.
Qing Mufeng did not rush to attack again. Instead, he stood where he was, staring at the Azure Spirit Dragon and thinking quickly.
His attack power was insufficient because his Soul Power Level was too low, and the power of Azure Dragon Claw Probe had yet to be fully developed.
But he did not need to kill the Azure Spirit Dragon.
Grandfather and Grandmother were behind him and could intervene at any moment.
He only needed to wear it down.
Qing Mufeng moved.
This time, he did not charge straight at it. Instead, he began circling the Azure Spirit Dragon at high speed.
Though the body of a six-year-old was small, it was agile.
He darted between the grass and rocks like a nimble monkey, constantly changing positions.
The Azure Spirit Dragon's snake head turned along with his movements, but it clearly could not keep up.
The bloodline suppression had slowed its reactions.
Seizing the opportunity, Qing Mufeng rushed in from the side and unleashed another Azure Dragon Claw Probe against the snake's body.
This time, the claw streaks struck the same patch of scales.
The white marks deepened, but they still did not break through its defense.
Qing Mufeng did not linger. He retreated the moment he struck, swiftly opening the distance.
The Azure Spirit Dragon hissed furiously, its tail sweeping madly around and smashing the surrounding grass and rocks to pieces.
But Qing Mufeng was too small. Amid the chaos, he slipped about like a loach, passing through gaps in the tail's attacks time and again.
Azure Dragon Claw Probe.
Retreat.
Azure Dragon Claw Probe.
Retreat.
Azure Dragon Claw Probe.
Retreat.
Attack after attack, retreat after retreat.
The white marks across the Azure Spirit Dragon's scales grew more numerous and deeper.
Finally, after the seventeenth attack, the first scale shattered.
Qing Mufeng's dragon claw left the first wound on the snake's body.
Blood gushed out.
The wound was not deep, merely a flesh wound.
But to the Azure Spirit Dragon, it meant that this human child it had initially dismissed could truly injure it.
Fear once again overwhelmed its anger.
The Azure Spirit Dragon began to retreat, its body shrinking back toward the depths of the valley.
It was fleeing.
Qing Mufeng did not pursue it.
More than half of his Soul Power had already been consumed, and the Azure Dragon Armor would not last much longer. Pursuing it further would be reckless.
He stopped and turned to look at his grandfather.
"Grandfather," he said. "It wants to run."
Qing Zhengyue looked at his grandson in silence for two breaths.
Then the old man smiled.
It was a hearty, wholehearted smile.
"Good."
Qing Zhengyue drew his long saber.
The aura of a Soul Emperor surged out like a gale, pressing down upon the fleeing Azure Spirit Dragon.
The Azure Spirit Dragon's body suddenly stiffened.
It sensed the aura of death.
That white-haired old man who had been standing behind them all along was the true threat.
Qing Zhengyue's figure flashed and vanished from where he stood.
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