Xiao Yan strolled down a bustling street in Heaven Dou Imperial City. This was the center of the imperial city and the heart of the entire Heaven Dou Empire's economy and development. Even from the perspective of Xiao Yan, who had spent many years as the Pope's personal disciple in Spirit City, the place was dazzlingly magnificent. The men and women were richly dressed, merchants gathered on every side, and long lines stretched outside every shop. Several enormous, luxurious sailing ships lay at the docks, their cargo enough to buy ten or even a hundred Holy Soul Villages. It was like a gold-devouring beast, greedily sucking up all the wealth of the Heaven Dou Empire. Yet it was also like a port, sending the empire's prosperity out to the four seas and five lakes. Even Xiao Yan could not help but exclaim, "Heaven Dou City truly deserves its reputation as the greatest city in the north of the continent. I wonder just how prosperous Star Luo Imperial City, which stands alongside it in fame, must be."
The stunningly beautiful girl with silver hair and violet eyes followed Xiao Yan, her hands clasped behind her back as she eagerly explored the streets. She could hardly tear her eyes away, as though she were seeing these things for the first time.
"Tell me, Lady Silver Dragon King, are you really such an inexperienced ruler of all Soul Beasts?" Xiao Yan said, holding his forehead. For the twentieth time, he had slowed down because Gu Yuena's gaze had been drawn by something novel, leaving her lingering beside a stall. "These things are indeed fairly rare on the Douluo Continent, but aren't you a god? How have you never seen anything like them?"
Gu Yuena pouted at the blunt Xiao Yan, who paid no heed to a lady's curiosity. Yet the gesture did not look ugly on her; instead, it was indescribably adorable. Ignoring the feelings of the tactless Xiao Yan, she looked over the novel trinkets at the stall and replied, "In the human world, it would be better not to use that title. Besides, even if I had more memories, I doubt there would be many exquisite little trinkets in the Divine Dragon Realm."
"Wait, you said memories...?"
"Mr. Xiao, even if the information about me is of no value to you, surely you can't have forgotten everything I said?" Gu Yuena spoke in the same teasing tone Xiao Yan had used when calling her "Lady Silver Dragon King." "This body of mine was not formed from the Silver Dragon King's true body. Nor could the Silver Dragon King let her wounded body enter the human world alone, surrounded on all sides by human experts. Didn't you already know all that?"
"I'm merely a clone formed from a wisp of the Silver Dragon King's divine sense, a vessel into which she separated her excess seven emotions and six desires, a humanlike soul born from her vast and intricate wisdom. I'm also a tool the Silver Dragon King uses to enter the human world and achieve her goal of finding you. All my thoughts, emotions, and powers were set by the true Silver Dragon King so that her tool could blend into human society. The true Silver Dragon King is still sleeping and recuperating in the Lake of Life at the center of the Star Dou Great Forest."
"So I'm only Gu Yuena, a part of the Silver Dragon King who inherited her emotions and wishes. I'm just a tool, neither human nor dragon, and I will never be the Silver Dragon King." Gu Yuena's expression grew somewhat desolate. Clearly, being only part of a great existence, possessing that existence's fragmented memories but never being the complete her, troubled and saddened her deeply. Though Xiao Yan knew full well that the Silver Dragon King did not understand the current state of his body, he still thought with a sigh, So the only person in this world qualified to speak with me as an equal truly is like this...
Xiao Yan patted Gu Yuena's shoulder as she stood there looking desolate and said gently, "I'm sorry, Miss Gu Yue..."
Only now did he understand clearly that the girl before him was not that ambitious ruler of all Soul Beasts. She was merely a lost and immature human girl with no one to rely on.
Gu Yuena noticed the change in how he addressed her. Her lonely heart seemed to feel a little warmth for the first time. Yes, the boy before her was another existence who should not be here, another fragmented soul. Perhaps only the two of them could perceive each other's pain. With that comfort, Gu Yuena felt much better. At heart, she was, after all, only a recently born, immature and fragile soul. She rubbed away the tears at the corners of her eyes and said with a smile, "Actually, my surname isn't Gu Yue..."
"I know. I'm not stupid," Xiao Yan said, scratching his head awkwardly. "I just thought it sounded nicer to call you that..." After he spoke, both of them turned bright red. Xiao Yan swiftly withdrew the arm resting on Gu Yuena's shoulder. The man stood and the woman crouched, their hearts racing for a time with shyness and delight.
"Ahem, shall we... keep going?" Gu Yuena spoke first, but kept her head lowered. Xiao Yan nodded, too embarrassed to look at her. They walked all the way to the end of the road without another word.
"That brat..." Yan Xiao said with a fond laugh. "The 'Xiao Yan' of today is a soul that grew anew along with this body after it returned to youth. Come to think of it, he really has reached the age when love first blossoms..." With that, he made no attempt to interfere and returned to the sea of fragmented memories, fishing for anything useful.
The day soon passed.
Xiao Yan and Gu Yuena returned to the small room at the Great Soul Arena. They laid everything they had purchased that day on the floor and began cultivating the "Blood Refining Method" Gu Yuena had mentioned.
"Unlike humans, we of the beast clans also cultivate by refining the primordial Qi of heaven and earth and seizing the good fortune of heaven and earth, but we do not need to cultivate painstakingly day after day. Our power is hidden within our noble bloodlines, passed down for thousands upon thousands of years. Thus, besides the method of refining the primordial Qi of heaven and earth to increase our years of cultivation, beast clans also have a cultivation method that uses all manner of heavenly treasures or devours other bloodlines to increase the concentration of our own. It is also called the Blood Refining Method. The Man Faced Demon Spider population you encountered relied on this method, devouring smaller Soul Beasts to increase their own bloodline concentration, then using quantity to achieve quality and draw out the power deep within their bloodline. That is also why powerful Soul Beasts all carry ancient bloodlines. If one can find the key to unlocking a bloodline's seal, one can ascend to heaven in a single step and head straight for the supreme realm."
"Although you are not a member of our Soul Beast Clan, a supremely pure and exalted dragon bloodline lies within your blood. With the strength of that bloodline, you can also use our Soul Beast Clan's Blood Refining Method to fully awaken its power. Your Blood Essence Soul Ring is proof that your bloodline power has already aligned with the rules of this world, allowing its cultivation to reach an even higher level than in the other world."
"Today, we gathered all the dragon-related heavenly treasures available in Heaven Dou Imperial City's markets. Although not all of them are suitable for you, the vast majority can still stir your bloodline power and increase your Bloodline Power."
With that, Gu Yuena told Xiao Yan to sit cross-legged on the floor and stretch his hands forward. Then she sat in the same posture, placed her hands against his, and closed her eyes slightly.
"Now, I will teach you this forbidden Blood Refining Method, which our Dragon God lineage once kept strictly secret. With these heavenly treasures of the same attribute, your blood Qi will be further tempered until it reaches a higher level. Of course, your current Bloodline Power cultivation is not enough to refine so many dragon-blood heavenly treasures. Though your Bloodline Power is strong, you lack the skill to use it, and you cannot take in so many heavenly treasures on your first attempt with the Blood Refining Method. I will refine them with you, both to help you and to strengthen my own bloodline. After all, you wouldn't have the heart to make me work for nothing, would you?" Gu Yuena chuckled softly, and a gentle, guiding wave of power spread from her body. Xiao Yan understood at once. He closed his eyes tightly and followed her example, releasing his Bloodline Power as well. For a time, two streams of power, one purple-gold and the other silver-white, mingled like a thin mist. A purple-gold dragon with phoenix wings and a silver-white dragon swimming through the air circled above their heads. A harmony like that of a dragon and phoenix bringing good fortune surrounded them both, and before they knew it, a night had passed.
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Xiao Yan and Gu Yuena opened their eyes beneath the morning light and yawned, all their fatigue swept away. The dragon-related heavenly treasures gathered the day before had been completely consumed, as though they had never existed. Only the two of them knew that those rare treasures had fused into their bloodlines, becoming part of their bloodline power.
Xiao Yan shook his slightly aching limbs. Countless beads of sweat the size of beans dripped from the edges of his clothes onto the floor, showing how much suffering he had endured in his very bones and blood. But the pain had not been for nothing. A night of painstaking blood Qi cultivation had brought his body considerable benefits. If the Xiao Yan of before had merely been a human with a peculiar bloodline, his body was now beginning to evolve toward a true Ancient Dragon Sacred Body from the other world. One could say that the present Xiao Yan was already a humanoid magical beast.
Xiao Yan examined his body with satisfaction. A pure power flowed through his limbs and bones. His blood could no longer be called human blood; it was a pure source of power. After looking himself over, he turned toward Gu Yuena. She too had just opened her eyes. Her captivating amethyst eyes blinked, and as her long, curled lashes fluttered, she seemed like an empress reigning over the world, yet also stirred an irresistible affection. Those two utterly opposed impressions did not clash in her. Instead, they complemented each other, making her beauty all the more incomparable.
Xiao Yan was drawn to her eyes and stared, a little dazed. Whether it was because Gu Yuena's spiritual power had improved again after her breakthrough, or because Xiao Yan understood her better now and had formed a slight attachment to her, he did not know. Whatever the reason, Xiao Yan gazed at her in a trance. Perhaps it was not romantic affection between a man and a woman, but simply an appreciation of the utmost beauty in the world.
Gu Yuena opened her eyes and met his gaze. The two gazed tenderly at each other for a long time. Clearly, after a night of cultivating together, their souls had begun to resonate. Without saying anything, each could sense what the other was thinking and feeling.
Suddenly, Xiao Yan saw a flush appear on Gu Yuena's pretty face. Then she cried out and pushed him out the door, leaving him baffled.
After pushing Xiao Yan out, Gu Yuena leaned against the door alone and patted her burning cheeks. "That idiot..." she said shyly.
Xiao Yan had been so absorbed in Gu Yuena's violet eyes, which seemed almost able to speak, that he had naturally failed to notice her clothes, soaked through with a night's fragrant sweat. Half concealing and half revealing her, they gave her a different kind of beauty... It was precisely because Gu Yuena had suddenly realized this that she had been too embarrassed to say a word and had pushed Xiao Yan out of the room. Xiao Yan remained puzzled for a long while before finding the answer in his own sweat-dampened clothes. His face suddenly turned red as well, and he shook his head hard, trying to cast those images from his mind. Seeing no one around-the owner had arranged for the entire floor of the Great Soul Arena to be cleared, evidently not wishing to offend the two important figures on the top floor-Xiao Yan quickly changed into clean clothes. Then, looking a little awkward, he knocked on the door.
Meanwhile, Gu Yuena sat on the floor with her arms wrapped around her legs and her flushed face buried against them. Only after a long time did she finally calm down. She used the water and wind elements to wash her body, then changed into clean clothes. When she heard Xiao Yan knocking outside, she wanted nothing more than to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it, never to come out again. She kept her face buried and let her thoughts run wild for a long while before finally standing up and opening the door. "You didn't see anything," she stammered to Xiao Yan, turning her head aside as she spoke, unwilling to look at his face.
Xiao Yan was somewhat bewildered, but seeing Gu Yuena's pretty face so red it looked ready to drip, he could only nod foolishly and make himself forget those things. At that, Gu Yuena nodded too, then pulled Xiao Yan into the room with a certain reckless abandon. She sighed and said firmly:
"You've experienced the wonders of the Blood Refining Method now, haven't you?"
Xiao Yan nodded. The secret method truly had boundless wondrous uses. His Bloodline Power was now so strong throughout his body that he was like a humanoid Ferocious Beast. Though his Soul Power had not increased at all, his combat strength had unquestionably risen by a whole level.
"The power of your bloodline is far greater than I previously imagined. Though these heavenly treasures benefited you immensely, their effect on you was actually only two or three tenths of what it would have been on an ordinary person. For the supreme dragon bloodline in your body, the quality of these materials is still too low."
Gu Yuena fell into thought for a long while. Then she opened her eyes, seemingly having made a decision, and said to Xiao Yan:
"Xiao Yan, I know a treasured place. Perhaps only there can your bloodline power be awakened to its fullest."
"But you must promise me that if I help you, you'll help me too. Help me obtain something."
"Only with your help will I be completely certain of obtaining it."
"Xiao Yan, I need you to help me obtain the Dragon God's Heart."