The Fallen Prodigy? The Past of Beast Summoning Mountain! (1)

Under countless gazes,

the images on the scroll began to change, and the review of Ziyao truly began.

[Standing before you now is Ziyao—the most gifted clan disciple of the Imperial Sand Star Gate, one of the six gates of the Dragon Martial Clan in the Star Dragon Sanctuary, and the youngest prodigy in the Star Dragon Sanctuary!]

[Ziyao awakened Twin Martial Souls at the age of six: the beast martial soul—Earth Dragon! The weapon martial soul—Earth King Dragon Blade! He even broke through to the Soul Elder realm at the age of eight!]

Immediately afterward,

the scene showed Ziyao summoning his martial soul, Gabudo, as three purple soul rings slowly rose from beneath his feet.

But what shocked All Living Beings even more was that

Ziyao's Earth Dragon martial soul was actually a detached martial soul!

Ten thousand years ago,

Yu Xiaogang of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan possessed the detached martial soul Luo Sanpao.

But detached beast martial souls were pitifully weak.

If not for the immortal herbs of the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, Yu Xiaogang would never have broken through to the Soul Elder realm in his lifetime!

Yet Ziyao had actually cultivated a detached martial soul to the Soul Elder realm at the age of eight!?

"Twin Martial Souls?! This child actually has Twin Martial Souls?!"

"His beast martial soul is even detached???"

"Douluo Continent hasn't seen a detached martial soul in ten thousand years!"

"Could it be that the Star Dragon Sanctuary has a way to cultivate detached martial souls?"

"..."

All Living Beings were utterly shocked, and the discussions rang across the continent.

Shrek Academy,

in the Sea God Lake lounge, everyone present fell silent.

Although Shrek Academy had countless elites, they had never seen an eight-year-old Soul Elder, much less one whose Twin Martial Souls included a detached martial soul!

The images on the golden scroll continued to change, showing Ziyao using his soul skills.

[Earth Dragon Gabudo's First Soul Skill: Dazzling Horn Lightning!]

[Earth Dragon Gabudo's Second Soul Skill: Burrowing Lightning Armor!]

[Earth Dragon Gabudo's Third Soul Skill: Thunder Universe Sky-Breaker!]

[...]

From the scenes,

the explosive power of the Earth Dragon's three soul skills far surpassed that of the Radiant Holy King Dragon!

Ziyao recalled Gabudo and lightly clenched his right hand.

A dragon-shaped long blade, dark brown throughout, appeared in his hand.

Unique dragon patterns were carved across the blade, which faintly radiated golden light!

This long blade was his second martial soul—the Earth King Dragon Blade!

[Earth King Dragon Blade's First Soul Skill: Sand-Extinguishing Waterfall Strike!]

[Earth King Dragon Blade's Second Soul Skill: Prison Sand: Flying Blaze Slash!]

[Earth King Dragon Blade's Third Soul Skill: Ground-Crouching Chain Strike!]

Ziyao swung the Earth King Dragon Blade and unleashed its three great soul skills in succession.

The enormous sand blades howled through the air, instantly cleaving a deep ravine into the earth!

"Isn't this way too strong? This Ziyao is the real monster!"

"That's right, an eight-year-old Soul Elder! Shrek's monsters are nothing compared to him!"

"No wonder he ranked ahead of Xiao Hongchen. That talent is truly terrifying. If he reaches fifteen..."

All Living Beings discussed fervently,

but even more of them were confused about the Star Dragon Sanctuary.

Why had no one on the continent heard of this region in the past ten thousand years?

Star Dragon Sanctuary,

Dragon Martial Clan Council Hall.

The six gate masters had also gathered in the council hall, watching the images on the Sky Screen together.

The First Elder of the Star Fire Luo Gate stroked his chin, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"With the Sky Screen's reward, Ziyao's achievements will surely rise even further."

"The Imperial Sand Star Gate can be considered to have a successor."

As soon as he finished speaking,

First Elder Xi Luo glanced at Kong Sha, the gate master of the Imperial Sand Star Gate.

The latter merely sighed helplessly, a complicated look flashing through his eyes.

"Although Ziyao is highly gifted, that matter... has always remained his inner demon."

At those words,

the smiles on the six gate masters' faces instantly vanished.

Everyone thought of that name that had been buried away for so long—Zi Yu.

He was Ziyao's older brother and had once been hailed alongside Ziyao as the twin stars of the Imperial Sand Star Gate.

After the Dragon Martial Clan's disciples broke through to the Soul Elder realm, they all had to enter Beast Summoning Mountain for a trial known as "Wild Release."

Only by surviving for seven days in Beast Summoning Mountain could they earn the clan's recognition and continue living there.

But Zi Yu had died unexpectedly in Beast Summoning Mountain.

It was a regretful loss for the entire Imperial Sand Star Gate and even the Dragon Martial Clan.

After that,

Ziyao lost his confidence.

For more than a year now, his cultivation had not advanced in the slightest.

The atmosphere in the hall immediately grew somewhat heavy.

As everyone sighed emotionally,

the images on the Sky Screen continued to change.

[With the cultivation of a Soul Elder, he once slew an 8,000-year Soul Beast within Beast Summoning Mountain—the Explosive Rock Dragon!]

"!!!"

"A Soul Elder killed an 8,000-year Soul Beast!? How is that possible?!"

"That was an eight-thousand-year Soul Beast! Even a Soul King expert wouldn't dare claim a certain victory against it, would they?"

All Living Beings erupted in uproar.

An eight-year-old Soul Elder was already unheard of, yet now the Sky Screen claimed that he had once slain an eight-thousand-year Soul Beast. The word "monster" was no longer enough to explain him!

The images on the Sky Screen began to change,

finally freezing on a dense Soul Beast forest.

Towering ancient trees stood everywhere within the forest, while the roars of Soul Beasts occasionally echoed from its depths.

This was the trial ground within the Star Dragon Sanctuary—Beast Summoning Mountain.

Immediately afterward, two small figures appeared before All Living Beings.

One of them was Ziyao.

The youth beside him looked somewhat older and bore a seventy to eighty percent resemblance to him. He was clearly his older brother.

Standing before the two of them was a massive dragon with a body like a mountain.

The dragon was pitch-black from head to toe, its body covered in hard, rocky scales, while a pair of blood-red eyes stared fixedly at them.

It was precisely the eight-thousand-year Soul Beast the Sky Screen had mentioned earlier—the Explosive Rock Dragon!

"So this is that eight-thousand-year dragon-type Soul Beast? Its aura is terrifying!"

"Even the Star Dou Great Forest has never seen such a terrifying dragon-type Soul Beast. Could there be other dragon-type Soul Beasts in Beast Summoning Mountain???"

"Dragon-type Soul Beasts are already powerful by nature. This eight-thousand-year Explosive Rock Dragon is probably stronger than a ten-thousand-year Soul Beast!"

"Even with his brother there, they probably won't be able to win."

"That's my brother!"

Star Dragon Sanctuary, Dragon Martial Clan Plaza.

When he saw that familiar figure,

Ziyao's fists unconsciously clenched, and a mist of tears gradually clouded his bright eyes.

The clan disciples present all knew about what had happened two years ago. Other than Bainuo, everyone's eyes turned toward Ziyao.

"Brother Kaifeng, I miss my brother..."

Ziyao silently lowered his head, no longer daring to look at the images on the Sky Screen.

Kaifeng tenderly pulled him into his arms and comforted him.

Ziyao's sobbing body trembled faintly as he buried his face against Kaifeng's shoulder.

Luo Xiaoyi and Lan Tianhua exchanged a glance, both unable to stop themselves from sighing softly.

Dongfang Mo looked toward Ziyao.

A complicated look swiftly flashed through his eyes. His lips moved slightly, but he never spoke.

All Living Beings held their breath,

staring intently at the scene without blinking.

Zi Yu activated Martial Soul Possession and struck first. His martial soul was also an Earth Dragon type, and it appeared far stronger than Ziyao's!

Ziyao immediately summoned Earth Dragon Gabudo to join the battle.

The two brothers worked together with flawless coordination, actually forcing the Explosive Rock Dragon back!