I always had a feeling they had ill intentions.
In the North Sea, the youngest son of the Duke was with his uncle Bai Sang, while Xiang Tianyu was with several other retainers heading to another Dragon Transformation location recommended by Yaksha.
"There's no such thing as a free lunch."
"You could tell that?" Bai Sang suppressed a laugh.
"Nonsense, do you think I'm that stupid?"
"But there's nothing we can do," Bai Sang said seriously. "The other side is indeed problematic, but we have neither intelligence nor the ability to refuse them. We can only take it one step at a time!"
He could certainly see that the so-called Yaksha had ill intentions. "After Dragon Transformation, the Dragon Palace will temporarily be under your command?"
Is there really such a good thing?
He didn't believe it, but he had no choice but to refuse. These Yaksha were far stronger than they had expected. If a real fight broke out, his side had no chance of winning. What else could he do?
They beat you up, but at least they smiled and tried to appease you. How could you possibly turn on them?
The key question is, what exactly does the other party want from us?
Bai Sang secretly pondered that the other party's reasoning was actually quite reasonable. Since the advanced dragon species could not be revived, if they, who had successfully Dragon Transformation, could indeed represent the strongest fighting force of the Dragon Palace and help them overcome the crisis, it seemed that compromising and opening up most of the benefits of the Dragon Palace to him was a necessary move.
But is that really the case?
What if, after we Dragon Transformation into dragons, we forcibly control the essence and blood resources, delay the revival of advanced dragon species, or even never allow them to be released?
Aren't they worried?
Or do they have ulterior motives?
Think about it calmly. As a top-notch strategist with many years of experience, Bai Sang quickly grasped the key point.
What this place lacks most right now is high-quality essence blood, so that's probably what the other side is after.
Was the intention to deliberately lure them into failing their Dragon Transformation, so they could obtain high-quality Blood Essence Stone?
wrong
There have already been examples of failure among my men. After failing to Dragon Transformation, they were covered in pus and blood. The Blood Guard could only extract a small amount of blood essence, and a large part of it was wasted. It was probably not as good as the blood essence obtained by killing them directly.
Since failure doesn't provide high-quality Blood Essence Stone, does that mean it's a success?
Upon thinking of this, Bai Sang's eyes lit up.
That's the only way!
According to them, after Dragon Transformation, they would immediately gain Transcendent combat power. Chen Qing had also mentioned that even the lowest-level dragon species had the ability to crush 99% of the non-dragon blood in the Dragon Palace. Therefore, he had suggested to them that if they weren't greedy, becoming a first-level dragon was also an option.
Would Chen Qing lie?
Bai Sang couldn't explain it clearly for a moment. The other party's origins were mysterious, and it wasn't impossible that they were indeed actors sent by the Dragon Palace.
However, if Chen Qing is truly on the side of the Dragon Palace, the low-level dragons Dragon Transformation are no match for these Yaksha and would become nourishment for the dragon race. Now that they have entered the Dragon Palace, they have almost no ability to resist and are like turtles in a jar.
Such doubt is meaningless.
If Chen Qing isn't an actor from the Dragon Palace, and the previous intelligence was accurate, then perhaps there's still a glimmer of hope!
Bai Sang squinted and began to think quickly.
If I'm not mistaken, after the Dragon Transformation, as the other party said, one can indeed enter the Transcendent and become a top-tier combatant. However, it's very likely that there will be a period of weakness immediately after the successful Dragon Transformation!
Yes, that must be it. During that vulnerable period, it's possible that these Yaksha themselves turned them into Blood Essence Stone!
Fattening them up first and then bleeding them dry—what a vicious scheme!
"Humans... this is it!" Just then, the Yaksha in front of them stopped and grinned, "This is a thousand-year-old dragon crab with extremely high bloodline quality. Even if you were to fight against a Dragon King Breed, you would have more than a 20% chance. And if you are willing to submit to the bloodline and fight against an Armored Dragon, you would have an 80% chance. What do you think?"
Looking up at Bai Sang, he saw that the other party had opened the barrier, revealing a giant, frozen crab inside. Its armor looked to be of extremely high quality, even surpassing the quality of meteorite iron. The Armored Dragon the other party had mentioned must be a heavily armored species with excellent defensive capabilities.
Sure enough, the next second they heard the other party introduce, " The Armored Dragon is a high-level dragon species within the Dragon Palace, ranking below the Nine Sons. It belongs to the top of the Second Tier dragon species, sharing the same status as the Jade Dragon of the East Sea and the Coral Dragon of the North Sea. Moreover, its combat power is the ceiling of the Second Tier dragon species. Even if the Dragon Palace is fully restored in the future, with your Armored Dragon bloodline, you will at least be Third Rank general in the Dragon Palace, a prestigious position that you will definitely not be at a disadvantage!"
"Really?" Bai Sang pointed to another case under the giant crab with a puzzled look. "This plan says there's a 100% probability, wouldn't it be better to use this one?"
Yaksha's expression visibly paused for a moment, then he immediately laughed and said, "Oh, that one? That's Thousand-Footed Dragon. It increases the success rate by retaining the crab's amputated bloodline, but the upper limit after Dragon Transformation is much lower. Thousand-Footed Dragon are in the same category as Poison Dragon, belonging to the lower grade of the third-tier dragon species in the Dragon Palace. Their upper limit is extremely low. Even with enough effort, in the Dragon Palace, they can only reach the level of Fifth Rank Water General at most."
"But it has a high success rate," Bai Sang said earnestly. "Given the current tense situation, shouldn't we prioritize stability?"
"An 80% probability isn't low!" Yaksha advised in a low voice.
"Eighty percent isn't low, but there's always a chance of failure, isn't there?" Bai Sang shook his head. "The example of my men failing and being covered in pus and blood just now was truly shocking. Moreover, we in the North are facing a severe calamity and must go to provide support as soon as possible. The higher the success rate, the better!"
Upon hearing this, Bai Sang noticed a visibly twitch on the Yaksha's face, but the man still smiled and said, "Since you have your own considerations, then go ahead and do as you see fit. I'm just offering a suggestion; after all, it would be a shame if someone with your talent were to transform into Thousand-Footed Dragon."
"There's no other way," Bai Sang laughed. "At my age, I don't pursue so much anymore. Let the younger generation have the good opportunities. If I succeed, let this junior try my luck at becoming the Third Rank general you mentioned."
"Alright." Yaksha nodded with a smile, not stopping him, but Bai Sang could clearly sense that the other's expression was somewhat unnatural.
I have a rough plan in mind!
"Before Dragon Transformation, I have some things to tell them. Could you perhaps excuse me?"
Yaksha gave the other person a long, cold look, and finally nodded. "Not too long."
"Don't worry, sir."
After the two Yaksha got away, they immediately noticed that the other side was actually using their sorcerers to transmit messages in secret, and their expressions turned even more grim.
Did they discover something?
"That shouldn't be the case." Another Yaksha shook his head. "The other side clearly has very little information about Dragon Transformation. I just observed that the process of Dragon Transformation was too crude, obviously they didn't have more detailed records. They probably don't know about the weakened state."
"Let's hope so. Keep a close eye on them later; that Thousand-Footed Dragon is much faster than Armored Dragon. We can't let it get away!"
"Um"
--
"Uncle Bai, is there really a problem?" the youngest son of the Duke asked with a grave expression.
"That should be it!" Bai Sang said, "If I'm not mistaken, the moment the Dragon Transformation will be the time for them to make their move!"
"Should we make our move only after the Dragon Transformation is complete?" The people around were immediately puzzled.
Bai Sang immediately repeated her earlier guess.
"I knew it!!" the Duke's youngest son said bitterly.
"What do we do then?" The sorcerer beside him asked anxiously. Those two Yaksha were far stronger than them, and if they Dragon Transformation, they would be vulnerable during their weakened state, leaving them like lambs to the slaughter.
"I just tested them!" Bai Sang whispered, "If I'm not mistaken, the lower the level of the dragon species, the shorter its period of weakness. That's why they were so insistent on recommending the Armored Dragon, which has a high success rate and a higher potential in the later stages."
"Think about it, if you just want to gain temporary combat power, the lower the dragon species' upper limit, the easier it is to control, right? The fact that the other side is doing the opposite only shows that the dragon species they recommended are easier to attack!"
"I see!"
"And this Armored Dragon they recommended... I just thought about it. Its armor is thick and heavy, which should make it difficult for it to move around. That's why they brought us here. They want us to Dragon Transformation a dragon that's weak for a long time and not very agile, so that it will be easier for them to attack!"
"They really know how to scheme!" the youngest son of the Duke sneered.
"Their expressions changed immediately when I mentioned choosing the Thousand-Footed Dragon," Bai Sang analyzed. "Judging from its name, this dragon species should be similar to a centipede, with no fewer than a thousand limbs. Such a dragon species should be extremely agile, which is why they changed their expressions."
"What does Uncle mean?"
"The moment I successfully Dragon Transformation, you must immediately climb onto me and hold on tight. Whether we can escape and avoid the weakened state is the key to whether we can truly occupy this Dragon Palace!"