Tavern Drunken Talk · Scarlet Dragon Breaks Its Shackles

--

Nan Feng pushed open the door to the "Old Blacksmith" tavern and saw seven jars in the corner.

Liu Erlong lay on the table, clutching the eighth jar in her right hand.

"They've been drinking since the afternoon," the proprietress said in a low voice, "and they've been cursing non-stop, calling him a 'coward,' a 'liar,' and a 'thief.'"

Nan Feng sat down. Liu Erlong looked up at him.

"Hey--isn't this the Tower Master from our Soul Master Tournament who can 'fight four-ring opponents with a three-ring' skill? Come on, have a drink with me!"

She reached for the altar, but her hand slipped. Nan Feng caught her.

Liu Erlong took a sip.

"You know what? I went to watch the match. I saw you beat Wang Chong with a three-ring shot! You played so well!"

"I was sitting in the VIP section, holding a wine glass. When I heard you say, ' Yu Xiaogang's theory is wrong,' I almost crushed the glass."

"Twenty years." Liu Erlong took another swig. "Twenty years ago, Yu Xiaogang held up that tattered manuscript and told me, ' Erlong, our Martial Soul are incompatible; we can't be together.' I believed him. I fucking believed him for twenty years."

He said he rejected me because he wanted to research Martial Soul Theory, for a greater cause. I was touched at the time, thinking he was great and that I wasn't good enough for him. Later I heard that those theories were stolen from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan! Stole them from my family!

"Senior Liu..."

"Don't call me 'senior'!" Liu Erlong slammed her hand on the table. "Just call me Erlong! I'm not that old!"

"... Erlong," Nan Feng said, "Yu Xiaogang rejected you with the excuse of 'incompatible Martial Soul.' But you are a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, Scarlet Dragon Martial Soul, one of the strongest Beast Martial Soul on the continent. What right does he, with his Martial Soul ruined and his Soul Power stuck at level twenty-nine, have to say 'incompatible'?"

Liu Erlong was stunned.

"He... he said his Martial Soul is Luo Sanpao, a failed mutation, unworthy of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon..."

"Then who does he deserve now?" Nan Feng asked. "Someone who can't even understand how to cultivate his own Martial Soul, yet he uses stolen manuscripts to present himself as a ' Grandmaster '."

"Taking on apprentices, giving speeches, writing books. He doesn't deserve you, Erlong. He never did."

"You say his theory is wrong... but do you know, Nan Feng —my Soul Power was stuck at level thirty-nine back then."

He told me, ' Erlong, your talent has reached its peak; you'll never break through level 40 in your lifetime.' I believed him. I fucking believed him again!

She stood up abruptly, and the bowl shattered.

"I've been stuck at level 39 for twelve whole years!" Liu Erlong roared. "Twelve years! I've cultivated for six hours every day, practicing until I vomited blood, but I still couldn't break through level 40! I thought I wasn't working hard enough, I thought I lacked talent, I thought this was how my life would be. Until I saw you!"

"You're a Three-Ring Soul Elder, your third ring is worth ten thousand years! You're telling me that Soul Ring lifespan can be exceeded? That theory is wrong. You've shattered what I've believed in for twenty years!"

Nan Feng walked up to her.

"Erlong," Nan Feng said, "There's nothing wrong with your Martial Soul. The reason you're stuck at level 39 is because Yu Xiaogang planted a thorn in your heart. He said you couldn't do it, and your Martial Soul believed him. Every time you try to break through to level 40, a voice deep in your soul says, 'You've reached your limit, give up.' That's Yu Xiaogang's voice."

"You are a direct descendant of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan," Nan Feng said. "Your Martial Soul is weeping, suppressed for twenty years. You think you hate Yu Xiaogang, but actually you hate yourself the most. You hate yourself for believing his lies, you hate yourself for wasting twenty years."

Her knees buckled, and Nan Feng supported her.

"Can I... still break through?" She looked up. "I'm over thirty... my Soul Power has been stuck for three years..."

Nan Feng raised his hand, and a thin golden light condensed at his fingertips, which he pressed against her heart.

Her body stiffened. Power surged into the Martial Soul Core, more ancient and domineering than Soul Power. A crack appeared in the bottleneck.

"This is..."

"The Primordial World Power," Nan Feng said, "I can only help you open a crack. Whether you can break through depends on yourself."

"Why are you helping me?" she asked. "We're not related, we're not even friends."

"Because Yu Xiaogang's theories have harmed too many people. You are one, and there are many more you don't know about. I'm helping you because you deserve it. Your Martial Soul deserves a true limit, not a fake limit drawn for you by a fraudster."

"Nan Feng." She called his name for the first time. "You said my Scarlet Dragon Martial Soul was crying, and you were right. It's been crying for many years. Every time I failed to break through the bottleneck, I felt it wailing in my soul. But I thought it was normal, that it was my limit."

She poured another bowl. "You say Yu Xiaogang's theory was stolen, do you have any evidence?"

"The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan possesses secret research manuscripts containing detailed data on the lifespan of Soul Ring and the resilience of Martial Soul," Nan Feng said. "Yu Xiaogang's core theory, 'The lifespan of Soul Ring cannot be exceeded,' is based on this data. However, he only copied the conclusions, not the derivation process, which requires data on the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon's bloodline. He doesn't have that."

Liu Erlong gripped the bowl tightly. "How did you know the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had a secret manuscript?"

"Yu Tianheng told me," Nan Feng said. "He personally admitted that the family is investigating. Moreover, your Martial Soul is the best evidence."

"Yu Xiaogang said your talent has reached its peak, but just now, when my Primordial World Power entered the Martial Soul Core, your Scarlet Dragon almost ejected my power. It almost unleashed the power it had been holding back for twenty years. Your Martial Soul has never reached its peak; it's your own mind that's holding you back."

"I hate him," she said. "He stole from my family, lied to me for twenty years, and made me think I was a piece of trash. What's worse, I can't let him go. I hate him, but I can't let him go."

"It's normal to not be able to let go. Twenty years of relationship can't just disappear like that. But you don't need to let go, you just need to see things clearly. See what kind of person he is, and see what you're worth."

"That power within your soul..." Liu Erlong said, "Is more ancient than Soul Power. When I sensed it, my Martial Soul trembled. It wasn't fear, it was awe. Who exactly are you?"

"A person who wants to shatter all false theories."

Liu Erlong smiled.

"Good," she said. "What a brilliant 'shattering all false theories'! Nan Feng, I'll remember you."

"I'm not so drunk I can't walk. I'm coming to find you tomorrow. I need your help with that golden power of yours. I want to break through level seventy-eight. I want to show Yu Xiaogang what this 'limit' he's talking about really is."

She walked towards the door and stopped.

"What you said in the Great Soul Arena was heard throughout the entire continent. The Spirit Hall will not let you get away with this. Chrysanthemum Douluo was watching you from the VIP seats that day. You'd better watch out."

"I know," Nan Feng said.

Liu Erlong pushed open the door. The night wind rushed in.

"Nan Feng," she said, "Thank you for not mistaking me for a drunkard."

She stepped into the night. Nan Feng raised his glass. "You're welcome, Senior Scarlet Dragon. When you break through, I'll treat you to even better wine."

Old Huai said, "This girl's Martial Soul is quite impressive. Her Scarlet Dragon Origin has been suppressed for twenty years. Just now, when you unleashed that Primordial World Power, her Martial Soul almost overturned the tavern."

"I know," Nan Feng said. "She can break through. She just needs time."

"You helped her, not just because of Yu Xiaogang, right?"

"If her Scarlet Dragon Martial Soul breaks through its limits, it can evolve into Scarlet Dragon Immortal Emperor in the future," Nan Feng said. "I need allies. True allies are not sheep tamed by theories."

"You brat, you're even more cunning than I thought."

"This isn't a scheme." Nan Feng strode towards her residence. "This is giving her a choice. She's been trapped for twenty years; someone should tell her the door wasn't locked."

Inside the tower, the light of "Creation" on the third level flashed.

"Wait until her Martial Soul breaks through level seventy-eight..." Old Huai said.

"Once her Martial Soul breaks through level 78, the Scarlet Dragon Origin will be fully awakened," Nan Feng said. "At that time, her Scarlet Dragon Martial Soul will undergo a transformation; that will be her opportunity. I'm just opening the door a crack in advance."

Xiao Wu's seeds sprouted, Ye Lingling's crabapple blossoms were bathed in golden light, Dugu Yan's snake venom mutated. Liu Erlong was the first to break through the shackles.

"You can't absorb Soul Ring unless your Soul Power Level is a multiple of ten. If you don't absorb Soul Ring is a multiple of ten, your Soul Power Level can't be increased further," Nan Feng silently recited the ironclad rule. "But Liu Erlong is stuck at level seventy-eight, and she can break through without Soul Ring. What she lacks has never been Soul Ring."

The Nan Feng took out the flower petals.

"Tomorrow..." he closed his eyes, "Is another new day."

In the back alley of the tavern, Liu Erlong sat leaning against the wall.

She looked down at her palm.

"Twenty years..." She clenched her fists. "I've been fooled for twenty years."

"Yu Xiaogang, you just wait."

The golden pattern shone as brightly as a newly lit star.