There aren't many records of the first two Dragon Transformation.
After the banquet, Wang Ye went to the residence of the Shen Family's Laoliu. In the innermost part of the house, Shen Yixin took out some of his records.
"But it's not entirely without a trace." Shen Yixin handed the notebook to Wang Ye and said, "After all, each time the ancestor supports a branch of the family, they possess top-tier skills in the world, and most of them were acquired from outside through marriage. The origins of these skills can be traced."
After taking it, Wang Ye examined it carefully. He was shocked after just one glance. The Shen Family had collected so many techniques! Their inventory was almost comparable to that of the Yin-Yang Academy!
"Why keep collecting new techniques?" Wang Ye asked curiously. "Since the first Dragon Transformation was successful, it means that the nine main branches prepared the first time were correct, right? Why change to completely different techniques later?"
"Well," Shen Yixin chuckled, "It's because each Dragon Transformation is actually a process of deception, so you have to prepare new things each time. The same trick won't fool the Heavenly Tribulation twice!"
"A scam? A heavenly tribulation?" Wang Ye was completely confused.
"The Nine Sons Transforming into a Dragon is a calamity!" Shen Yixin patiently explained, "This is what's known as the Dragon Transformation Tribulation. According to ancient records, the lifespan of a true dragon is the same as that of ancient demons—ten thousand years. Dragons are lustful, and many Magic City dragon blood. The original principle of the so-called Dragon Transformation Spell is actually a return to ancestral traits!"
"Using demonic bloodlines as a vessel, and activating it with various dragon-related techniques recorded in ancient texts, the vessel is ultimately reverted to its ancestral form, the bloodline is reshaped, a heavenly tribulation is triggered, and a human-made Dragon Transformation is finally achieved—this is the so-called dragon transformation!"
"However," Shen Yixin shook his head, "There are too few records, which means we always fall just short. Even if we trigger the Heavenly Tribulation, we can only form a half- Dragon Transformation form, which only extends our lifespan by three hundred years. If we want to extend our lifespan again, we have to go through the process again using the same method, but the technique cannot be the same as before."
"I see." Wang Ye nodded in understanding, once again marveling at the vastness of the world, which truly is full of wonders.
"Then why did the problem occur earlier this time?" Wang Ye asked curiously. "And you said before that techniques cannot be repeated, so why is the technique used by the eldest branch of the Shen Family family the same as before?"
"That was also what my elder brother couldn't understand back then," Shen Yixin sighed. "Back then, my elder brother was already close to three hundred years old, reaching the limit of a sorcerer. Only then did he discover from some clues that his technique was actually the same technique that our ancestor used when he successfully Dragon Transformation. As for why our ancestor would use the same technique on him, he couldn't understand it at all, and it also made my usually intelligent elder brother sense that something was wrong."
"Moreover, at that time, the ninth branch of the Shen Family was slow to emerge. The patriarch had been experimenting with the so-called Insect Spell for nearly a hundred years, almost to the point of madness. Seeing that the eldest brother's lifespan was nearing its end, he still refused to initiate the Dragon Transformation ritual. The eldest brother married Murong Yunji, and the Divine Wind Spell he brought back also contained records of the wind dragon from back then. He was a very suitable candidate for the ninth branch, and there were also suitable descendants in the clan at that time to inherit this technique."
"But."
"The Ancestor is unwilling?" Wang Ye stirred, and he quickly asked.
"Yes!" Shen Yixin nodded. "The ancestor is obsessed with the Insect Spell and continues to experiment on living people on that Withered Cloud Island. Human Dao. Countless Gu insects have combined with people to form human Gu, numbering in the tens of thousands. Every time we go to the island, we are horrified. Hundreds of thousands of people! How could such a large-scale population disappearance be kept secret forever? Back then, even the Laoda couldn't bear it anymore and went to the island to question the ancestor. It was after that questioning that he died not long after!"
Wang Ye, seemingly having thought of something, glanced towards the direction outside the city and lowered his voice, saying, "It's said that the Insect Spell array this time also seals insects?"
"Yes!" Shen Yixin nodded. "We noticed it in the first few days as well. Inside those living corpses were some kind of extremely dangerous poisonous insects. If Laojiu had been there, he might have been able to control these insects. That's when we realized something was wrong."
"A month ago, the Laoda's body was suddenly used by the ancestor to go to the West Sea. Now, the river is shrouded in fog, and the entire Jiangnan is sealed off. The fog is filled with those terrifying poisonous insects. Considering the ancestor's past obsession with insect sorcerers, we can't help but have our doubts."
"Is this mist formation related to Shen Jialong's transformation?" Wang Ye immediately understood what the other party meant.
"It's highly likely related!" Shen Yixin said in a low voice, "But we can't figure out the details, we don't understand why the Ancestor did it. If all of this is related to the Ancestor, what does it mean? The poisonous insects in the mist are indeed terrifying, but even if we can control those insects, what does it have to do with the Ancestor's Dragon Transformation Technique?"
Wang Ye frowned upon hearing this. Chen Qing had given him limited information, and he couldn't make any guesses for the time being.
"May I ask, Sixth Master, when were the remaining three families decided upon? And what was the ritual performed?"
It's a bit taboo to ask this, but at a time like this, we can't worry about that now.
As expected, Shen Yixin didn't mind and replied without hesitation, "The last three branches were established quickly after the Laoda's death. The Laoshi, Shen Yiqing, inherited the Divine Wind Spell from his sister-in-law Murong Yunji's family. The Laoshiyi, Shen Yisen, inherited the Divine Wood Spell from the Mu Family of Yunnan. And the Laoshi'er, Shen Yichen, inherited the Divine Fire Spell from the Nangong Family Nanyang, which had been lost long ago!"
He paused for a moment, then continued, " The Laoshi'er's technique is the same as the Laoda's; it's a repetition. According to the records, the first successful Dragon Transformation was achieved using this Divine Fire Spell. At that Elder Hou manifested as Fire Dragon!"
" Fire Dragon?" Wang Ye asked in confusion, "Dragons have different appearances?"
"Of course!" Shen Yixin nodded. "Dragons have nine sons, and naturally, the dragons that different sons transform into have different appearances. The previous generation of Dragon Transformation used the Xiushe Technique and became a black dragon!"
"Nine different dragon appearances, different techniques." Wang Ye frowned, feeling as if he had grasped something.
Calm down, Wang Ye, and think about it carefully.
Wang Ye closed his eyes, and all the information Chen Qing had said flashed through his mind!
Including some seemingly unimportant words—yes, unimportant words!
Wang Ye suddenly remembered that Chen Qing had mentioned in a conversation that the misty formation was called Nine Heavens Mirror Valley. The formation was divided into nine layers, and the deeper one went, the more dangerous the sealed things became. The innermost layer sealed nine poisonous insects, each with extremely terrifying abilities.
Nine poisonous insects, nine magical techniques, and the nine sons of the dragon!!
Wang Ye suddenly stood up!
"Has something come to mind, Lord Shaoqing?" Shen Yixin's eyes lit up as he looked at Wang Ye's expression!
"I think I understand." Wang Ye's eyes brightened as he finally grasped the situation.
" The Shen Family patriarch knew of the existence of the Nine Heavens Mirror Valley long ago, and may even have already made contact with those things in the mist. The reason for using the same technique repeatedly is that, coincidentally, those things in the mist need your technique."
"What do you mean?" Shen Yixin frowned, a sense of unease rising in his heart.
"The ninth branch of your Shen Family in this generation," Wang Ye said with absolute certainty, "Is the vessel!!"
--
"You're Chen Qing?"
Deep in the sea, inside a giant seashell, Chen Qing saw for the first time the woman who captivated Yuchi Feihong.
But in Chen Qing's eyes, in the world he could only see through the power of the Divine Path, he could clearly see that this incomparably beautiful woman was already rotten beyond recognition, and if a new vessel was not found soon, she would only have half a year left to live!
"Junior Chen Qing greets Senior!"
"You're so young," the woman chuckled. "I've heard Feihong talk about you. He said you know everything?"
"I wouldn't say I know everything," Chen Qing said modestly.
"Do you know what will happen to me if I disturb my hibernation?" The woman smiled faintly, but a terrifying chill caused the surrounding black liquid to spread. The eerie coldness made the Ghost Child standing to the side tense up, blocking Chen Qing's way and glaring fiercely at her.
" Ghost Child?" The woman was taken aback. "That's impressive! You can actually activate such an ancient seed!"
"You flatter me, senior," Chen Qing said with a smile. Looking at the black liquid around him, he confirmed once again. " The Shen Family, the Mysterious Water Technique!"
The moment those words were spoken, the entire space fell silent, and the woman's smile froze for a moment.
"It seems I wasn't wrong," Chen Qing said with a smile. " Shen Laosan, Shen Yimiao, is the vessel you've been eyeing, Senior?"
"It seems Feihong wasn't wrong," the woman said quietly, "You do know quite a lot!"
"Then it seems that's correct." Chen Qing sighed and shook his head, "Where is the Shen Family patriarch? When the Shen Family patriarch first opened the Nine Heavens Mirror Valley and was tricked into going inside by you, he was already gone without a trace. You used the fake dragon energy to deceive the Nine Heavens Mirror Valley, which means that you had already escaped decades ago, right?"
Upon hearing this, Yuchi Feihong behind him shuddered and stared in horror at the woman inside the seashell.
He had witnessed the power of these creatures and had always been thankful that they were controlled by this formation, but he never expected that one of them had already escaped?
"Aren't I right here?" the woman said with a soft laugh.
"Senior, you didn't have time to escape," Chen Qing said with a smile. "That's why you took such a risk when the formation was restarted, running to the outer edge of the formation and even cooperating with General Yuchi. Besides being wary of the other like-minded people still inside the formation, weren't you also trying to find out about the situation of those like-minded people outside?"
The woman's smile finally vanished, and she stared intently at Chen Qing: "Who exactly are you?"
How come this guy acts like he saw it with his own eyes?
"Someone who can cooperate with you, senior?" Chen Qing smiled. "Look at me, I've taken a great risk to come here, which shows I'm a person of great courage. Moreover, I can freely enter and leave the Nine Heavens Mirror Valley. So, senior, would you like to consider cooperating with me?"
"What do you want?" the woman asked Chen Qing warily.
"I need your help to seize the other prefectures, and then I'd like some intelligence."
"I thought you knew everything." The woman laughed. "What other information do you want from me?"
"I want to know. Which of your brothers and sisters escaped?" Chen Qing asked quietly. "Which of the heads of the Shen Family have been possessed?"