Playing Dead!

Ye Tianming had just reached the grass at the edge of the swamp when the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon coiled atop a rock opened its eyes.

A pair of golden slit pupils turned coldly toward him.

Man and dragon stared at each other from a dozen or so paces apart.

Even at that distance, Ye Tianming could feel the pressure rolling off it. Part came from its strength as a Hundred-Year Soul Beast; the rest was the innate dominance of a dragon-type Soul Beast.

It might have been a dragon of mixed blood, but that was more than enough against an ordinary Hundred-Year Soul Beast.

Ye Tianming, however, was no ordinary Soul Master. As he felt the pressure bearing down on him, he acted at once.

He activated the Azure Dragon Martial Soul within him, sending a wave of dominance that had no business coming from an eight-year-old body straight at the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon.

The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's pupils abruptly contracted.

How could this tiny human cub's aura be purer than mine?

But its mind, shaped by only a hundred years of cultivation, told it that if it swallowed the tiny human cub before it, it might break through and become a Thousand-Year Soul Beast!

Hiss!

With a piercing screech, the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon sprang from the rock. Its massive tail swept across the water, sending the whole swamp splashing into the air.

It moved with startling speed, shooting toward Ye Tianming's face like a jade-green arrow.

Ye Tianming shifted his footing and slipped half a step aside. Almost at the same instant, the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's jaws grazed past his shoulder.

Before Ye Tianming could steady himself, its tail was already upon him.

It felt as though an iron pillar had struck him across the waist. He flew sideways and slammed into a tree trunk with a bang.

A metallic sweetness rose in his throat, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"Tss... I really did underestimate you."

Ye Tianming gritted his teeth and climbed to his feet.

But the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon gave him no chance to catch his breath. It lunged at him again.

This time, Ye Tianming did not dodge. He let out a low shout.

"Then let's see which of us is tougher!"

Soul Power surged through his right hand, and a faint layer of azure scales appeared along his arm.

Ye Tianming met the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's claw with a punch.

Boom!

Man and dragon collided. Ye Tianming was driven back dozens of meters, his entire arm numb.

The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon merely shook its head. Its armor of scales was as hard as steel.

Ye Tianming's heart sank.

So my body alone still isn't enough to match it?

Once the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon recovered, it charged again.

This time, Ye Tianming did not meet it head-on. He began leading it around the large trees beside the swamp.

Dai Hao stood in the distant shade of a tree, watching with his arms folded. He showed no intention of intervening.

But his taut body and the wisps of pressure leaking from him made it clear he was nowhere near as relaxed as he looked.

The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon chasing Ye Tianming seemed to have had enough of the nimble human cub.

It reared up, opened its jaws wide, and gathered a jade-green breath in its throat.

Ye Tianming's pupils contracted. Without a second thought, he threw himself aside.

A jade-green beam shot through the spot where he had just stood and struck the tree behind him.

It corroded a gaping hole straight through the nearly meter-wide trunk. Black smoke still rose from within.

Ye Tianming lay on the ground nearby, staring at the hole as cold sweat broke out across his skin.

One hit from that, and I'd be off to meet my great-grandmother.

But that attack also showed Ye Tianming his chance.

Beneath the python dragon's four short legs, a patch of soft flesh lay exposed on its belly, unprotected by scales.

Ye Tianming's eyes lit up. Without hesitation, he sprang from the ground and drove off hard with his feet, hurtling forward like an arrow.

The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon had only just begun to turn its head when Ye Tianming reached its underside.

Every azure scale on Ye Tianming's right hand flared, and he poured all his Soul Power into his fist.

The Azure Dragon Martial Soul let out a dragon's roar from his fist.

His punch slammed into the patch of soft flesh.

Roar!

The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon shrieked in utter agony, its massive body thrashing wildly.

Its tail lashed blindly at the surrounding trees, snapping several trunks as thick as a bowl was wide.

Ye Tianming was flung away as well. He hit the ground hard and rolled several times.

He pushed himself up, blood coating the corners of his mouth, but his eyes stayed locked on the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon.

His blow had torn a huge, bloody hole in the python dragon's belly. Jade-green blood ran down its scales.

After a while, the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's movements weakened. It struggled a few last times, its huge body slowly going limp, then toppled beside the swamp with a boom.

Seeing it lie motionless, Ye Tianming walked over slowly to finish it off.

Just as he reached the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon, the creature sprang up again.

Its jaws snapped at Ye Tianming as he moved in for the killing blow.

"Hmph. Did you really think I couldn't tell you were playing dead?"

Ye Tianming had read The Art of War thoroughly in his previous life. How could a cheap trick like that fool him?

He shot backward in an instant. The Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's lunge missed, and an azure-scaled dragon claw met it instead.

Boom!

The punch smashed the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon into the ground. Then a yellow Soul Ring slowly rose from its body.

Ye Tianming stood there, breathing hard. Dai Hao stepped out of the tree's shadow.

He glanced first at the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's corpse, then at Ye Tianming, who stood covered in dirt with blood at the corner of his mouth. For once, he nodded.

"Not bad. Better than I expected."

Ye Tianming grinned, though the blow from that tail still left him aching.

"Godfather... can I absorb it now?"

Dai Hao nodded and pointed at the Jade-Scaled Python Dragon's corpse.

"Yes. Absorb it. I'll keep watch."

Ye Tianming nodded, walked over to the corpse, and began absorbing the Hundred-Year Soul Ring.

The moment he began, a scorching force surged out of the Soul Ring and raced wildly through every limb and bone.

Ye Tianming grunted. How does this hurt even more than that tail strike?

The force was like countless red-hot needles stabbing into his meridians.

Ye Tianming could clearly feel his muscles tearing and his bones creaking.

At that moment, the little azure dragon coiled within him seemed to be stirred by the foreign force. It let out a dragon's roar.

Then it opened its mouth and swallowed the rampaging force in a single gulp.

With each swallow and breath, that once-raging force was gradually tamed.

The power the dragon breathed back out began flowing slowly through his meridians.

Sweat covered Ye Tianming's forehead. He could feel his Soul Power growing at a furious pace.

(Okay, updates might be limited to one or two chapters a day for the next few days. The author needs to reach 50,000 words by Wednesday to get exposure, so there may be fewer updates these next couple of days.)

(Please send update reminders, recommendation votes, and lots of comments!)