Trapped in an Illusion

The dragon's roar quickly spread throughout the entire Gleaming Gold Island. Almost the instant the roar sounded, the Demon Beast that were confronting the cultivators in the dense forest immediately bowed down in worship.

The vines, which had been baring their fangs and claws to kill the intruders, seemed to be frightened and retreated back to the tree they were clinging to.

Several Nascent Soul Cultivator hurriedly dropped their prey, not even bothering to wipe away the blood stained with the Demon Beast, and headed straight for the source of the dragon's roar.

Similarly, Hai Pingge picked up the demon core that had fallen to the ground and solemnly ordered the others, "Come with me to take a look!"

Following behind him, Su Fuyun secretly touched the jade pendant, her heart filled with resentment: If Hai Pingge hadn't been so domineering and wouldn't listen to advice, she should have been the one to open that altar! This time, she wondered who had gotten the upper hand first.

Having gained the upper hand, Sang Ying and her two companions were completely unaware that they had now become the object of everyone's jealousy and hatred. After the secret passage beneath the altar opened, they quickly went inside.

Unlike the scorching heat on the ground, the underground palace was chilled by the long-lost sunlight. Even cultivators like Hai Tingzhou found it difficult to bear for a while.

Fortunately, he was from a prominent Lineage and had many valuable items, so he quickly found a magical Law Artifact to resist the cold and damp aura. Fang Chi hand, was born with Fire Spirit Root and his fiery energy was very strong, so he was not afraid of these things at all.

As they sailed along the Hai Tingzhou couldn't help but mutter, "I'd heard from my elders before that there were good things hidden on Gleaming Gold Island, but I didn't know there was also an underground palace."

Fang Chi, being quite accommodating, then asked, "What did your elders say?"

"They say that Gleaming Gold Island is a divine object sent from heaven. Anyone who can pass three trials can take away a peerless treasure from here. However, these trials vary from person to person, and everyone may encounter different ones. It can be said that danger and opportunity coexist," Hai Tingzhou explained to her in detail.

The two chatted idly behind, with Sang Ying walking at the front, sword in hand.

As they walked, their voices gradually faded, and the road ahead of Sang Ying seemed to be shrouded in a thin mist, making it impossible to see clearly.

When the next foot landed, Sang Ying completely lost consciousness.

When Sang Ying woke up again, everything around her was blurry, and she felt as if she were trapped in some small place.

She tried desperately to break free, but to no avail.

Fortunately, a voice from outside came in at just the right time. "Father, will Qinglong really be able to hatch? Today is the deadline. If Qinglong can't hatch, she'll be thrown into the Fallen Dragon Pit!"

It was a woman's voice, tinged with a sob. Sang Ying tried hard to understand the meaning behind her words, but suddenly realized that she seemed to have lost her memories of the past.

She remembered that her name was Sang Ying, but she couldn't recall why she was trapped in this indistinct place.

After the woman's voice faded, an aged voice quickly followed. "Today is the final deadline. If Qinglong still cannot break free, then it is the will of Heaven, and my White Dragon Clan should disappear without a trace."

The old man let out a long sigh, a sigh that contained an untold amount of helplessness.

"No!" the woman cried out in defiance. "My White Dragon Clan will never accept such a fate!"

Immediately following was the old man's exclamation. "A Lan, stop!"

Click!

Something shattered, and with a cracking sound, a ray of light finally appeared in front of Sang Ying.

She struggled toward the light, only to find her limbs bound, making escape extremely difficult.

Fortunately, she was finally able to escape the place that had trapped her.

When she looked up again, a beautiful face, streaked with tears, appeared before Sang Ying. To her surprise, this beauty had two snow-white antlers growing from her forehead... or perhaps dragon antlers?

"Alas, A Lan, you were too impulsive." Following the voice, an elderly man with white hair and beard was gazing at Sang Ying, his eyes filled with an indescribable regret and pity.

Before Sang Ying could figure out where she was, a pair of gentle hands lifted her up.

It was the beautiful woman with dragon horns. "Qinglong's father and three brothers have all died on the Gods and Devils Battlefield. He and I are left with only this one child. I would rather Qinglong live a difficult life than see me and his child thrown into the dark, Fallen Dragon Pit."

The beauty's tears fell like pearls from a broken string, each drop landing on Sang Ying's head.

She instinctively shook her head, but found it felt incredibly heavy.

Sang Ying reached out to touch her head, but when she looked down, she saw that where her hand should have been, a snow-white claw was sticking out instead.

No one noticed her confusion. Seeing his daughter-in-law's tears, the elderly man could only sigh helplessly, "So be it. Now that Qinglong has been safely born, there's no going back. But the fact that you were the one who broke Qinglong's shell to bring her into the world must not be known to a third person, otherwise Qinglong's fate won't be much better than being thrown into the Fallen Dragon Pit."

After saying this, the old man hurriedly left. Watching his departing figure, Sang Ying felt that his posture seemed even more hunched than before.

The beautiful woman hugged Sang Ying tightly, as if she were holding her own precious treasure. "My Qinglong, I will never let you follow in the footsteps of your father and brothers. I will protect you and make sure you live a happy life!"

Sang Ying turned her head slightly and was surprised to see her current appearance in the mirror beside her—a slender body, beautiful scales, and jade-like horns. This was clearly a dragon!

So, the "Qinglong" they were talking about was themselves?

The Upper Realm, where cultivators vie to ascend, is a place where Gods and Devils coexist and war rages on.

The Dragon Race, one of the divine beasts, settled here and divided up a large area as their territory. But just as human cultivators are divided into factions, the Dragon Race is also divided into five groups based on their own colors.

The Azure Dragon, as the direct descendant of the High Antiquity divine beasts, occupies the dominant position, followed by the Black Dragon, Red Dragon, Golden Dragon, and White Dragon.

The White Dragon Tribe is weak, and most of its territory has already been occupied by the Black Dragons. Moreover, not long ago, the young patriarch of the White Dragon Tribe and his eldest son also lost their lives on the Gods and Devils Battlefield.

In an instant, the White Dragon Tribe became a piece of fat meat, just waiting for the old patriarch to die so that they would become the meal of other Dragon Race.

Fortunately, the young patriarch left behind his only bloodline, giving the White Dragon Tribe a glimmer of hope for revival. However, in the old patriarch's eyes, this hope had already been shattered.

Sang Ying only learned later that it takes a hundred years for Dragon Race to hatch, but dragon eggs that have not hatched after a hundred years will be thrown into the Fallen Dragon Pit and become nourishment for other dragons.

Dragon Race can only hatch by themselves. If an outsider helps them break the shell, even if the young dragon is born safely, it is destined to be mediocre for life and unable to shoulder important responsibilities.

When Sang Ying learned all this, she finally understood the predicament she was facing, and even greater disasters awaited her.