Stranger Danger

Long Ao was feeling very worried and panicked right now. He needed to return to the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace as soon as possible and inform his father that he had killed Fang Muyun. He needed to prepare his people for the incoming human assault.

He did not know why things had turned out this way. Everything was going so smoothly until Fang Muyun suddenly appeared at White Fish Island?

Worse, they outnumbered Fang Muyun many times to one and had the upper hand for most of the battle. Then, at the last possible moment, the bastard had damned near wiped out all of them. Although they ultimately managed to kill Fang Muyun, he himself had taken such severe injuries that he lacked even the power to clean up the battlefield.

In his current state, it would take far too long to wipe out the traces. The humans would most likely reach White Fish Island before he could finish. Even if he did manage to wrap up his business before the humans showed up, he would not have the time to escape. He would die.

Therefore, the only thing he could do was to escape immediately, reach the eastern sea in the shortest amount of time possible, and inform the Four Seas Dragon Palace about this crisis.

Of course, as hurried and panicked as he was, he didn’t actually think that the humans could find him.

First, the sea was deep and vast. Countless things were happening in the sea at every moment. Trying to locate anyone or anything in the sea was like trying to find a needle in a haystack.

Second, he was a dragon and proficient in the art of transformation and concealment. If he transformed into an aquatic animal, then few humans would be able to detect him.

That was why he believed that his escape was never in question. The real question was: Could he return to the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace in time?

This was why he was anxious. It was a centuries-old plan that had been long in the making after all. It could not be allowed to fail because of him.

That was why he swam faster and harder than normal.

“Huh? Since when are there five mountain peaks in this area? Strange.”

Suddenly, Long Ao saw five peaks in the far distance. They were tall and straight like spears, and they were lined up in a row. Long Ao wasn’t too familiar with the sea region, but he thought he would surely recognize such a distinct geography.

Why does it look like five fingers?

Suddenly, a strange thought flashed in Long Ao’s mind. Before he could mull over it, he saw the five mountain peaks bending at the center and moving straight toward him.

“They really are fingers! I’ve been found!”

Long Ao felt chilled to his core. If those “mountain peaks” were fingers, then he was at the center of a palm!

Long Ao stopped hiding himself. He morphed into a true dragon and charged toward the edges at top speed while carrying the Myriad Dragons Palace on top of his head.

A dragon was a master of water in more ways than one, capable of overturning seas and controlling the cloud. While inside a body of water, they could unleash their greatest strength. Combined with the Myriad Dragon Palace, Long Ao was able to cross hundreds of meters in a single breath.

However, when he looked up to check his position, he discovered in horror that the five fingers were still towering over him. Not only that, they were coming closer and closer. The ground beneath him was rising rapidly as well.

He knew it wasn’t ground. It was a palm, a palm that stretched from one end of the horizon to the other.

Despair gradually overwhelmed Long Ao. It was because he realized that no matter how fast he swam, no matter how hard he pushed his injured body, he was unable to leave the palm’s range. He could only watch in helplessness as the five fingers descended and closed around him.

He felt like an ant trying to defeat the sky, and losing.

“No… our centuries-old plan cannot be ruined by me!” Long Ao roared and proceeded to ignite his soul. He was going to execute the Dragon Soul Sacrifice.

The Dragon Soul Sacrifice was a forbidden spell of the dragon race. By burning their draconic soul and offering it to the First Dragon, they could temporarily borrow its power and greatly increase their power.

When the time was up, the victim’s soul would burn out, and they would experience true death.

Long Ao wasn’t executing the Dragon Soul Sacrifice to defeat his mysterious opponent, of course. The strength they had displayed far exceeded his imagination. Forget him in his current state, he could not have dealt any damage to his mysterious opponent even if he had executed the forbidden spell when he was completely healthy.

He was just trying to commit suicide.

The Dragon Soul Sacrifice could only be executed by one possessing the bloodline of the First Dragon. Not only that, every true dragon possessing the First Dragon’s bloodline would feel it when it was executed.

The Dragon Soul Sacrifice was an irreversible process that resulted in true death. He was the third crown prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon King. If he died, his father would surely notice. Combined with the Dragon Soul Sacrifice, he would understand that something had gone terribly awry and be ready for what was to come.

“You think you can die without my permission?”

The next moment, a cold, emotionless voice boomed in Long Ao’s ears. The next moment, he saw a sun and a moon.

It wasn’t actually a sun or a moon. It was a pair of eyes. It was just that one eye was as bright and dazzling as the sun, and the other as clear and soothing as the moon.

The next moment, the sun rose, and the moon fell. The rotation of the sun and moon felt like the flow of time itself.

Long Ao gasped in shock and disbelief. He realized that the Dragon Soul Sacrifice that was halfway toward full activation was reversing itself. Before he knew it, he was back at the point before he executed the forbidden spell.

Before he could react eyes flashed with profound light, and darkness swarmed his vision. Long Ao fell unconscious again.

Not again—huh? What am I thinking? It’s almost as if this isn’t…

That was the last thought in Long Ao’s mind before he fell unconscious.

“Your Magia is astounding, Your Highness. This old one is most impressed.”

Above the sea, Heavenly Palace Taoist praised from the bottom of his heart after watching Chu Xunxian scooping up Long Ao with an unbelievably vast palm and even seemingly reversing time itself to interrupt his Dragon Soul Sacrifice. “Congratulations on catching the murderer of your genius.”

“You flatter me. I wouldn’t have the chance if it wasn’t for your discovery,” Chu Xunxian saluted him.

“It is nothing. You’re welcome.”

Heavenly Palace Taoist performed a qishou before asking, “So, who is this little dragon? What spurred him to do such an audacious thing?”

“He is the third crown prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace,” Chu Xunxian answered honestly.

“What? The third crown prince of the Eastern Sea Dragon Palace?!” Despite his composure, Heavenly Palace Taoist simply could not stop himself from blurting, “What on earth possessed him to do such a thing?”

“Oh, he’s not the only one. The Four Seas Dragon Palace is possessed as well,” Chu Xunxian replied emotionlessly.

“What do you mean, Your Highness?” Heavenly Palace Taoist asked in confusion.

“Patience, Reverend. I will speak of everything when our fellow seekers have joined us,” Chu Xunxian said.

A dozen or so breaths later, three people appeared one after another.

When everyone had arrived, Chu Xunxian waved his hand, and a small triangular flag flew out of his sleeve. It was dark black in color with cloud embroidery and the words “Northern Black Tortoise”.

Black water began flowing around them, and dark light descended from above. In just the blink of an eye, the world around them was shrouded by darkness. The surroundings looked blurry, the celestial bodies were blurry, and the rivers of fate were impossible to decipher.

“What is the meaning of this, Your Highness?” A woman asked with a frown on her face. It was because the surrounding space was sealed, and the rivers of fate were muddied.

The woman was in her thirties and sported an average countenance. Despite this, she was imposing and proud like a fiery phoenix. She was the equal of any man.

The woman’s name was Shentu Huang. She was commander of the Phoenix Feather Cavalry, one of the Six Cavalry of Yan.

Yan possessed a lot of land and was rich in fine horses and famous steeds. Famous for their horse archery, their cavalry was renowned throughout the four nations. Out of all of them, the Six Cavalry of Yan were the strongest.

Despite being a woman, Shentu Huang was able to overcome the gender bias and become the commander of the Phoenix Feather Cavalry, one of the strongest cavalry troops in the entire world. Naturally, she was quite an outstanding person.

Chu Xunxian replied, “This is a matter of grave importance, and there are ears even in the walls, much less the open. It is a necessary precaution.”

“What is going on that you will resort to such precaution?” A man wearing luxurious mianfu[1] asked. He looked like a deity as he was surrounded by a sheen of golden light.

His name was Qi Yuanyou, and he was an imperial relative of Qi and one of the five first rank priests of the Platform of Gods. His full title was Yuanyou Center Heaven Priest, and he possessed the power to govern all deities under Qi.

Chu Xunxian slowly swept his gaze across everyone’s face before declaring, “The Four Seas Dragon Palace is conspiring to betray the human race.”

It was a stunning declaration to say the least.

1. Mianfu is a kind of Chinese clothing in hanfu; it was worn by emperors, kings, and princes, and in some instances by the nobles in historical China from the Shang to the Ming dynasty. ☜