"Taizu regarded it as a curse."
The Emperor lowered his eyes to look, then glanced at the old eunuch, Meng Lin.
Meng Lin removed the Dragon Pearl, which resembled a glass bead, from the Nine-Dragon Instrument and respectfully placed it onto a silver tray held by another eunuch.
A eunuch hurried in, carrying another small jade-colored bowl. There was nothing inside but a strand of black hair and a drop of fresh blood rolling at one side as if alive.
The contents of the bowl were poured over the pearl, and the hair and blood fell together onto the Dragon Pearl.
In an instant, both objects vanished into the Dragon Pearl.
Yet the Dragon Pearl still shimmered with flowing radiance, utterly empty upon its surface.
Holding the pearl, Meng Lin silently knelt.
"I should raise a dragon." The Emperor withdrew his gaze from the ritual artifact and spoke softly. No further order was needed before someone brought over a silver needle.
The Emperor casually took the needle. Without even looking closely, he pricked the pad of his finger.
The ten fingers were linked to the heart; blood from the fingertip could also be counted as heart's blood.
A drop of heart's blood fell onto the silver tray at the very center of the ritual artifact, where wisps of white mist still rose. In that instant, the artifact, formerly a dead object, came alive!
Streams of light rapidly spread outward from its core.
Even though it could not be seen with the naked eye, one could sense that the artifact's power had already enveloped everything, radiating a chilling aura.
Other than the Emperor himself, anyone who approached it would be injured at best and killed at worst.
The Emperor's lips curled faintly. He took up the Dragon Pearl that had absorbed