The Golden Dragon, Progenitor of Strength

For the entire morning, Tang Wulin had been distracted.

In class, Wu Changkong earnestly explained the profound principles of soul guidance fundamentals. Every word was precious knowledge for cultivation, and all the students around him listened intently, not daring to lose focus. Tang Wulin alone stared blankly, his thoughts having long since drifted beyond the classroom, his mind elsewhere throughout the lesson.

His mind was a tangled mess. One head felt as though it had swollen to twice its size.

He had heard of century ice crystal fruit and century scarlet flame fruit, those two treasures of nature. A single fruit cost at least eight hundred thousand Federation Credits. Medicinal treasures of that caliber rarely circulated in ordinary shops; they generally appeared only at high-end auctions in major cities. Once put up for auction, they would inevitably draw countless factions into a bidding war. With each successive bid, even a conservative estimate put the final price of a single fruit above a million Federation Credits.

That astronomical expense alone was enough to make the cash-strapped Tang Wulin shrink back.

Yet compared with the third ingredient, those two spiritual fruits were actually the easiest things to obtain.

Ten drops of essence blood from a hundred-year soul beast carrying a pure Dragon Clan bloodline-that was the truly insoluble problem.

On the present-day Douluo Continent, soul beasts already stood on the brink of extinction, their numbers dwindling to almost nothing. Anything associated with them-hide, sinew, bone, or essence blood-was a priceless treasure that even a fortune could scarcely buy, let alone the rarest essence blood carrying a Dragon Clan bloodline.

Beset by anxiety, Tang Wulin instinctively thought of his teacher.

As an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman, Mu Chen had extensive connections, vast knowledge, and wealth far beyond that of ordinary people. With his help, finding those three treasures would surely become countless times easier.

But no sooner had the thought arisen than Tang Wulin fell into another struggle, torn by guilt.

Just yesterday, the incident with Guang Biao had already forced him to trouble Teacher Mu Chen to intervene and resolve an enormous crisis. Now, barely a day later, he would be going to him for help again. He could not help mocking himself inwardly. Aren't I treating Teacher Mu Chen, who's taken such painstaking care of me, like a tool I can pick up whenever I need it?

Yet without Mu Chen's help, given his age, connections, and finances, he had absolutely no chance of gathering those three things. He would only be waiting helplessly for death, walking straight into a dead end.

Another fatal question left him even more at a loss-the reason.

If he asked Mu Chen to help him find the ingredients, Mu Chen would certainly ask why he urgently needed those three treasures of nature.

He could hardly say that they were needed to stabilize his golden dragon king bloodline and suppress the life-and-death calamity within him.

His martial soul was merely the seemingly ordinary blue silver grass. It had no need for such rare medicinal treasures of utmost yin and utmost yang, attuned to dragon power. There was simply no good way to explain it.

The dilemma pulled furiously back and forth in his mind, tangling around itself again and again, leaving him restless and his thoughts in turmoil.

For precisely that reason, Tang Wulin spent the entire morning's lessons with his mind wandering beyond the heavens. Like a sleepwalker, he missed everything being taught.

Wu Changkong's gaze was cold and clear as he took in the condition of every student in the classroom. Naturally, he immediately noticed the boy who had been lost in thought throughout the lesson.

The spacious classroom was silent enough to hear a pin drop, and a sharp chill quietly spread from Wu Changkong.

His gaze suddenly darkened, its coldness piercing to the bone. His indifferent voice rang out abruptly, cutting through the silent classroom. "You dare let your mind wander in my class. Tang Wulin, how very impressive."

The bone-chilling voice came crashing down, forcibly dragging Tang Wulin's scattered thoughts back to reality.

His entire body stiffened, his mind jolting violently, and he instinctively looked up.

At the lectern, Wu Changkong's dark green eyes held not a trace of warmth. His icy gaze locked onto Tang Wulin like snow covering a freezing pool, and an oppressive weight swept over him.

A chill ran down Tang Wulin's spine, every hair on his body standing on end. His tangled worries vanished in an instant, leaving only deep unease and tension.

The entire classroom fell deathly silent. Every student's gaze landed on him at once, and no one dared utter a sound.

Wu Changkong parted his thin lips, each word cold and utterly calm. "Go stand at the back."

Those few words contained neither a reprimand nor anger, yet carried an absolute authority that brooked no argument.

Knowing he was in the wrong and having nothing to say in his defense, Tang Wulin obediently rose. Head lowered, he hurried to the back of the classroom and stood straight.

After delivering the punishment, Wu Changkong's expression remained unchanged. The biting aura around him slowly receded, and he turned his attention back to the textbook and lectern. His voice returned to its usual cool steadiness as he continued methodically explaining soul guidance knowledge, as though the little interruption had never happened.

But standing at the back, Tang Wulin still felt a heavy weight in his heart. His anxious worries over the golden dragon king bloodline and the three rare treasures continued circling within him, refusing to fade.

When the lesson ended, all the other students left. Tang Wulin alone was summoned to Wu Changkong's office for losing focus in class.

Inside the simple, austere office, the still atmosphere felt somewhat oppressive.

Wu Changkong sat upright in his office chair, his bearing straight and tall. His dark green eyes rested directly on Tang Wulin before him, cool and still, without the slightest flicker of emotion.

"Speak." His voice was as cold as shattered ice, without a trace of warmth. "Why were you distracted in my class?"

It was a simple question, yet its powerful pressure trapped Tang Wulin in an instant.

Tang Wulin choked slightly, momentarily at a loss for words, his heart full of difficulty.

The secret of the golden dragon king bloodline was the greatest taboo of his life, buried deep within his soul. He could never reveal the slightest hint of it to anyone else. Yet his distraction today had been far too obvious, and Wu Changkong was meticulous. He certainly would not be easily brushed off.

His thoughts spun rapidly as he weighed the gains and losses.

The simultaneous appearance of the Clear Sky Hammer and the blue silver grass martial soul would be far too shocking. Until he had strength of his own and his wings had fully grown, he absolutely could not expose them. But the Golden Dragon King's power hidden within his bloodline was different. It was an innate source of power that subtly influenced his body and mind. Even if it occasionally stirred, he could find an explanation.

Concealing his secrets while reasonably explaining his abnormalities had now become a difficult test of his wits.

After weighing the matter from every angle, Tang Wulin gathered his thoughts, put on an aggrieved, helpless expression, and spoke miserably. "Teacher, I'm suffering."

Wu Changkong simply sat quietly in his chair, his dark eyes clear and indifferent, watching Tang Wulin's deliberate attempt to elicit sympathy without saying a word.

That lucid, penetrating gaze was utterly unaffected by his emotional performance. He plainly saw through it but chose not to say so, quietly waiting for Tang Wulin's real explanation.

Under those eyes that seemed to see through everything, Tang Wulin's confidence faltered. The misery on his face instantly became impossible to maintain. He hurriedly dropped the exaggerated expression, straightened his posture, and began explaining seriously.

"Teacher Wu, you've always known that my physique far surpasses that of ordinary soul masters, and that I was born different from other people, haven't you?"

Hearing this, Wu Changkong nodded slightly.

It was a fact everyone could see. At such a young age, Tang Wulin's physical strength and bodily resilience surpassed even those of quite a few low-ranking soul masters. That talent was strange and astonishing, and Wu Changkong had naturally noticed it long ago.

Seeing Wu Changkong react as expected, Tang Wulin steeled his heart and gritted his teeth, making a decision that all but went against his conscience and deceived the world.

To conceal the ultimate secret of the golden dragon king bloodline and explain all his abnormalities, he could only use a martial soul as a cover for everything.

"Actually... I have a second martial soul."

The instant those words fell, the air in the office abruptly stilled.

For the first time, Wu Changkong's normally calm, cold dark green pupils contracted slightly, and disbelief rippled through his eyes.

Twin martial souls!

Across the entire Douluo Continent, twin martial souls represented a supreme talent found in fewer than one in ten thousand people. They were exceedingly rare.

But after that brief shock, he recalled Tang Wulin's inconceivable physical prowess, which utterly overwhelmed his peers, along with his bodily strength and self-healing ability that far exceeded common sense. Most of his astonishment immediately faded. Instead, he felt that everything now had a reasonable explanation.

An ordinary blue silver grass martial soul was weak and unremarkable. It could never produce such a physique. Only an exceptional, supreme beast martial soul could achieve that.

Before Wu Changkong could speak, Tang Wulin steadied himself and pronounced, word by word, a name capable of shaking the entire soul master world:

"My second martial soul is called-the Golden Dragon."

"What?!"

At that moment, Wu Changkong, who normally never showed joy or anger and remained as cold as ice, abruptly lost his composure and shot to his feet.

His usually steady voice was colored by overwhelming shock, and his eyes filled with horror:

"The progenitor of strength, the Golden Dragon?!"

Yes, Tang Wulin had to seize this opportunity today to lay his cards on the table before Wu Changkong.

He, too, had been forced into this by circumstances.

The road of cultivation ahead was long. He could not forever rely solely on the body tempered by the golden dragon king bloodline to passively fend off enemies. Sooner or later, he would have to use the dragon power hidden inside him. Rather than wait until his power went out of control and exposed countless flaws that invited suspicion, he would confess now, using "a Golden Dragon second martial soul" as a reasonable explanation for every abnormality and concealing the earthshaking secret of the Golden Dragon King.

At the same time, it would perfectly explain why he had been distracted in class today, killing two birds with one stone.

Suppressing his emotions, Tang Wulin looked at Wu Changkong, who had risen in shock, and hurriedly raised a hand to calm him. His tone held a measure of helplessness and bitterness. "Teacher, please don't get worked up yet."

"My second martial soul didn't appear during my martial soul awakening. It had always been hidden inside my body, completely concealed and impossible to detect. If it had remained dormant, everything would have been fine. But a little while ago, this golden dragon martial soul suddenly awakened on its own. Instead of bringing me an extraordinary opportunity, it brought me a catastrophe."

He paused, deliberately slowing his speech as he wove a seamless explanation.

"When I was little, I happened to come across a Damaged Ancient Book. The draconic bloodline and unusual physical signs recorded in it were exactly the same as my current condition. My golden dragon martial soul is extremely unusual. The martial soul and bloodline are fused as one, with fortune and disaster intertwined. It's incredibly dangerous."

"Simply put, right now I can't control the power of the martial soul or bloodline inside me at all."

Tang Wulin lowered his eyes, his expression grave and his voice filled with genuine anxiety. "The dragon blood's power is far too domineering and powerful. It far surpasses me, its host. That ancient book clearly stated that if I fail to tame and control this restless bloodline for too long, the violent dragon power will eventually turn against me. The bloodline will devour my consciousness and my very essence, until both my body and soul are annihilated. I'm only one step away from death."

His words were half true and half false.

The danger was real, and the threat of death was real. He had merely attributed everything concerning the golden dragon king bloodline to the hidden dangers of the golden dragon martial soul.

It explained both his terrifying natural physique, unmatched among his peers, and his recent unease and distraction in class. More importantly, it laid the most reasonable groundwork for any unusual changes in his power in the future.

The office was silent.

Wu Changkong fell silent.

His silence did not stem from disbelief. Instead, his mind plunged deep into thought, frantically searching through the ancient texts and records from Shrek Academy stored in his memory.

Shrek had endured for ten thousand years, its collection of texts as vast as the sea. Yet records concerning the golden dragon martial soul were so scarce that they were almost nonexistent.

Throughout those ten thousand years, there had been only one historically documented bearer of the golden dragon martial soul.

That had been during the era when Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao swept across the world. A woman named Wang Qiu'er had possessed the supreme golden dragon martial soul, known as the progenitor of strength. But everyone knew that she had originally been the Emperor Auspicious Beast of the Star Dou Great Forest, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, who had taken human form. Through the power of destiny, she had formed a dragon body and manifested a dragon martial soul-a unique miracle wrought by heaven and earth.

After that, the years passed, and no second golden dragon martial soul ever appeared.

Ordinary Dragon Clan martial souls and draconic bloodlines were countless. But the true ultimate martial soul bearing the name "Golden Dragon" had vanished for ten thousand years, leaving no successor.

Precisely because the records were so sparse and its existence so extraordinary and rare, the shock in Wu Changkong's heart grew even deeper. He stared at Tang Wulin, still young, his features still immature, and every doubt in his heart dissolved.

Given Tang Wulin's physical gifts that far exceeded common sense and his inconceivable bodily strength, the presence of a legendary golden dragon martial soul would provide the most reasonable explanation for every abnormality.

After a long while, Wu Changkong suppressed the surging waves of shock within him, gathered his emotions, and spoke gravely:

"Can you release this martial soul and let me see it?"

Hearing this, Tang Wulin promptly shook his head lightly, his manner honest and helpless:

"Not at the moment."

He raised his eyes to Wu Changkong, genuine anxiety and powerlessness filling them. "Teacher, the dragon blood power inside me is far too domineering. It isn't under my control at all. It lies dormant throughout my limbs, blood, bones, and marrow, constantly eroding my body. With the slightest misstep, it could turn against me at any moment and take my life."

"The reason I was dazed and distracted throughout the whole lesson today was that I was trying to think of a solution."

At this point, Tang Wulin gritted his teeth and revealed the entire solution he knew. "In a fragment of an ancient text, I once found a way to suppress the danger and temporarily stabilize the bloodline's backlash. But its requirements are demanding, and it's extremely difficult to accomplish."

"I need three things-century ice crystal fruit, century scarlet flame fruit, and ten drops of essence blood from a hundred-year soul beast carrying a pure Dragon Clan bloodline."

Wu Changkong quietly listened to Tang Wulin's account, remaining silent inwardly for a long time.

Such a crushing life-and-death crisis resting on the shoulders of a boy who was still so young was truly cruel. Ordinary children his age only needed to cultivate peacefully, free from worry. Yet Tang Wulin had to bear the shadow of his bloodline turning against him and bringing his life and cultivation to an end at any moment, day and night, treading carefully with every step.

He carefully considered the three treasures required.

Century ice crystal fruit and century scarlet flame fruit, supplemented by the essence blood of a hundred-year Dragon Clan soul beast, formed an exceptionally high-grade medicinal formula for tempering the body and fortifying its foundations. The fusion of utmost yin, utmost yang, and dragon power could cleanse the marrow and meridians and temper the body's foundation. For a soul master with a beast martial soul who pursued strength, it was a supreme treasure for building a foundation in youth, its effects nothing short of extraordinary.

But the more precious a treasure of nature was, the harder it was to obtain. Its price would also be frighteningly high, beyond the reach of ordinary soul masters.

Seeing Wu Changkong deep in silent thought, Tang Wulin spoke again, his tone somewhat apprehensive and earnest. "Teacher Wu, today I was troubled by the hidden danger in my body. That's why I couldn't focus on the lesson and kept losing myself in thought. I have no real chance of finding these three treasures on my own, so I wanted to try asking my master for help."

"Your master?"

Wu Changkong's gaze shifted as he immediately understood.

He had almost forgotten that behind this seemingly ordinary boy stood an Eight-Star Saint Craftsman.

An Eight-Star Saint Craftsman's status, connections, and wealth stood at the very pinnacle of Eastsea City, and even the Federation East as a whole. Finding a few rare medicinal treasures and some special soul beast essence blood would be as difficult as ascending to heaven for anyone else. For Mu Chen, it was hardly such a monumental task.

Having understood the circumstances, Wu Changkong remained silent for a moment. Some of the sternness quietly faded from his cold features, replaced by an almost imperceptible gentleness.

He looked at the boy before him, who was pretending to be composed while silently bearing the pressure, and slowly spoke. "All right. I understand."

Although Wu Changkong suspected that there were many details about the golden dragon martial soul Tang Wulin had not disclosed, as a proper teacher, he did not press him for further details, nor did he continue lecturing or rebuking him.