The dizzying sensation of space twisting gradually faded.
Qian Anci opened his eyes. Before him lay a lake as enchanting as a dream.
The Lake of Life.
The heart of the Star Dou Great Forest.
"Kneel."
Di Tian's voice came from behind him.
Qian Anci didn't move.
He simply gazed silently at the lake, watching the figure slowly rise from its depths.
Silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, drifting gently across the water.
The Silver Dragon King, Gu Yuena.
Ruler of the Soul Beasts, half of the Dragon God.
A being who truly stood at the pinnacle of this continent.
Waves stirred in Qian Anci's heart, but his expression remained calm.
As a transmigrator, he naturally knew her identity and origins, and he knew her attitude toward humans.
But he understood even better that the Death Dragon Spirit within him was his only protection right now.
"Human child."
Gu Yuena spoke, her voice cool as moonlight, yet touched with a hint of barely perceptible puzzlement.
"Why does your body carry the aura of the Dragon Clan?"
She approached at an unhurried pace, her silver eyes fixed on Qian Anci as if she meant to see through him, body and soul.
Qian Anci felt the Shadow of Pollux inside him tremble violently. The Dragonfall Ring appeared behind him of its own accord, gray-white Death Qi swirling around it like a thin mist.
Gu Yuena's pupils contracted slightly.
"Resentment of the Dragon God..."
She murmured softly, a complex look flashing through her silver eyes.
"This power was formed from the negative emotions scattered across the world when the Dragon God fell. After countless years, it should have dissipated completely. Why has it appeared again in you?"
She raised a hand and gently touched Qian Anci's brow with a slender fingertip.
In an instant, an irresistible force surged into his sea of consciousness.
Qian Anci didn't resist.
He knew that any resistance in front of her would be futile.
Besides, he had already discussed a plan with Castorice in his heart.
Anci, let her see, Castorice's voice sounded deep in his soul, gentle and composed. Let her see. I'll use Death Qi to conceal it. She won't notice.
Gray-white mist churned through his sea of consciousness.
Gu Yuena's intent reached into that desolate wasteland, where she saw an enormous Death Dragon that blotted out the sky.
Her breath caught.
"This is... a dragon corpse?"
There was a trace of disbelief in her voice. Confusion flashed through her silver eyes. "But this aura is unlike that of any Dragon Clan I know."
She studied the Death Dragon, as though trying to discern its secrets.
She knew the Dragon Clan's bloodlines better than anyone.
The bloodline source of every dragon-type Soul Beast on this continent, whether true dragon or lesser dragon, could be traced back to the Dragon God.
But the aura exuded by this Death Dragon, though undeniably that of the Dragon Clan, differed subtly from the Dragon God's lineage.
Gu Yuena withdrew her finger.
In the ancient legends of the Dragon Clan, scattered words and phrases had mentioned that beyond Star Dou, in the boundless universe, other Dragon Clans existed.
Perhaps their forms were different; perhaps their powers had entirely different attributes. But the blood flowing through their veins was still that of dragons.
Just as humans could be black, white, or yellow, yet all belonged to humankind.
So it was with the Dragon Clan.
And the aura of the Dragon Clan on this child clearly did not belong to this world.
"You're the reincarnation of a Dragon Clan member from beyond the Star Realm."
Gu Yuena stated it with certainty.
A complex emotion flashed through her silver eyes.
Qian Anci's heart stirred.
He hadn't expected Gu Yuena to reach that conclusion.
"I have no memories of my childhood," he said, going along with her words. "I only know that when I was still a baby, Grandpa Qian Daoliu found me in some ruins and brought me back to Spirit Hall. This Spirit only appeared on the day I awakened. As for why it belongs to the Dragon Clan..."
He paused and lowered his eyes. "I don't know myself."
Gu Yuena fell silent.
She studied Qian Anci.
This child bore the bloodline of a Dragon Clan from beyond the Star Realm, yet had been reincarnated as a human and lost all his memories of his previous life.
He didn't know where he came from, what kind of being he had once been, or even what the bloodline flowing through his body meant.
But the aura of the Dragon Clan didn't lie.
"What is your name?" Her voice softened slightly without her realizing it.
"Qian Anci."
Gu Yuena gave a slight nod.
She raised a hand and gently stroked the top of Qian Anci's head.
The gesture was stiff and clumsy, as if it had been a very, very long time since she had made such a tender gesture.
"Anci." She softly repeated his name, a hint of warmth flashing through her silver eyes. "Though you come from beyond the Star Realm, the Dragon Clan's bloodline in you shares the same source as ours.
"The Dragon Clan will never abandon one of its own.
"Even if you've been reincarnated, even if you come from another starry sky."
Qian Anci's heart stirred.
He raised his head and met those silver eyes with his own dark ones.
"But I don't know which side I belong to."
His voice was full of confusion, like a child who couldn't find his way home.
"Grandpa Qian Daoliu treats me like his own grandson, and my sister, Qian Renxue, sees me as her own little brother. I don't know what I should do."
Gu Yuena looked at Qian Anci and said nothing.
This child still held on to human emotions.
That was both good and bad.
The good was that he hadn't yet been completely corrupted by human greed and desire.
The bad was that these bonds might one day keep him from returning to the Soul Beast Clan.
But for now, she wasn't willing to force him.
"You don't have to choose right now."
Gu Yuena's voice softened.
"All you need to know is that the Star Dou Great Forest will always be your home." She paused. "Anci, do you know the plight of the Soul Beast Clan?"
Qian Anci nodded.
"Humans hunt Soul Beasts to obtain Soul Rings. Our numbers dwindle by the day, and our strongest are falling."
"Exactly." Gu Yuena gazed into the distance, as if she could see through the layers of forest to her kin being hunted by humans. "Humans treat Soul Beasts as resources for cultivation and hunt us as they please.
"And we can only hide in this forest, clinging to life."
"But this situation won't last much longer."
She turned her head, her silver eyes fixed on Qian Anci. "Anci, I need you."
Qian Anci's heart tightened.
He knew the real test had arrived.
"You're living in the human world now, in Spirit Hall." Gu Yuena's voice was low. "It's one of the most powerful forces among humans.
"I need you to be my eyes, an informant for the Soul Beast Clan in the human world. When Spirit Hall takes action against Soul Beasts, warn me in advance. When anything stirs in the human world, let me know."
Her gaze was gentle, but her authority left no room for refusal. "In exchange, I'll give you a gift that only the Dragon Clan can receive."
Qian Anci remained silent for a long time.
He weighed the pros and cons frantically in his mind.
If he agreed, he would become a double agent, caught between humans and Soul Beasts. One misstep could doom him beyond redemption.
But if he refused...
He glanced at Di Tian beside him, then felt Gu Yuena's gaze, seemingly gentle but allowing no refusal.
"I agree." He looked up, a trace of resolve flashing through his dark eyes. "But I have two conditions."
Di Tian frowned and was about to speak, but Gu Yuena raised a hand to stop him.
"Speak."
"First, I won't hurt Grandpa Qian Daoliu or my sister, Qian Renxue. They're my family."
Gu Yuena gave a slight nod. "Agreed."
"Second." Qian Anci took a deep breath and met those silver eyes directly. "I need power. Enough power to protect myself and my family.
"As for the gift you mentioned, I hope it'll be a Soul Ring."
Gu Yuena looked at him, then suddenly smiled.
Her smile was gentle, like she was looking at an innocent child.
"You're clever."
She turned toward the lake. "Di Tian, bring me that ten-thousand-year-old Dark Scale Flood Dragon."
Di Tian paused. "My Lord, that Flood Dragon was very difficult for us to—"
"Go."
There was no room for argument in Gu Yuena's voice.
Di Tian gritted his teeth and bowed before leaving.
A short while later, he returned with a Flood Dragon covered from head to tail in dark scales.
It was about eight meters long, with a single horn on its head and four claws faintly visible beneath its belly. It was clearly on the verge of becoming a true dragon.
Now, crushed beneath Di Tian's oppressive might, it couldn't move. Terror filled its dark red eyes.
"This Dark Scale Flood Dragon has a pure lesser-dragon bloodline. It's only one step away from becoming a true dragon." Gu Yuena looked at Qian Anci. "It has ten thousand years of cultivation. Will it do for your Second Soul Ring?"
Qian Anci's heart shuddered.
Ten thousand years!
A ten-thousand-year Second Soul Ring was simply unthinkable in the outside world!
"It will." He drew a deep breath and sat cross-legged.
The Scythe of Death formed in his palm, gray-white Death Qi slowly flowing around it.
Gu Yuena raised a hand, and a beam of silver light enveloped the Dark Scale Flood Dragon.
The ferocious lesser dragon didn't even have time to struggle before it turned into the purest soul energy within the silver light, condensing into a black Soul Ring.
"Absorb it," Gu Yuena said softly. "With me here, it can't hurt you."
Qian Anci closed his eyes and guided his Soul Power, slowly drawing the Soul Ring toward the Scythe of Death.
And in the unseen depths of his consciousness, Castorice's voice sounded softly.
"Absorb it without worry, Anci. I'll use the essence of the underworld to protect your heart meridians and make this Soul Ring resonate with the Ring of Pollux. This time, you'll grow stronger."
Gray-white mist and the Soul Ring intertwined, slowly merging beneath the light reflected from the Lake of Life.
Before you continue