Chapter 1843

Roar.

The dragon soul broke free of its bonds, no longer bound by the corrupt aura, he began to swell, the vast dragon soul looked down on a strand of Chen Chuyang's soul, as if trying to make Chen Chuyang collapse, thereby withdrawing from the dragon pearl.

Chen Chuyang gazed at the dragon soul before him and gave a cold laugh: 'You, a remnant soul on the verge of collapse, dare to wield dragon soul power, using the last bit of strength—aren't you afraid this dragon soul will collapse?'

'Dealing with me, is it worth you making such a fuss?'

Upon hearing this, the dragon soul's body paused slightly, its eyes gradually regained clarity, turning to stare at Chen Chuyang, as if recognizing this person; after confirming, the dragon soul could contract its soul, the vast soul power gradually shrinking, soon condensing into a person.

He had the appearance of a middle-aged man, yet his body was filled with majesty, bearing a noble aura inherent to a true dragon—something others could neither impersonate nor imitate; the man's eyes carried Dragon Might, and as he glanced over, the Dragon Might followed.

That inherent Dragon Might, awe-inspiring without anger, left Chen Chuyang's expression unchanged; he felt no fear of this dragon soul, as he had said, this dragon soul was already on the brink of collapse, retaining only a final remnant soul, hardly different from death.

Even if he could revive, it would be his last strength—the remaining power of the dragon soul, which would be exhausted upon use, unable to sustain this dragon soul any further; this was his final strike, and also to protect the existence below.

He would guard it at the cost of his life and dao; the existence below was surely something he cared deeply about.

'You are not his follower.' The dragon soul spoke, staring at Chen Chuyang's remnant soul, speaking lightly, yet its pressure surged toward Chen Chuyang.

Dragon Might blazed, yet Chen Chuyang paid it no heed, saying: 'Who is he? The Kunpeng Guardian? Or… is your condition caused by him? That corrupt aura, carrying terrifying corrupt power, constantly erodes your body; this body of yours has reached its limit, everything corroded away.'

'Tsk tsk, to have survived until now is truly no easy feat; that power is profoundly strange, ordinary means cannot oppose or dispel it.'

'This move is indeed excellent; whoever is hit by it faces a dead end.'

The dragon soul stared at Chen Chuyang; he naturally knew this man had swallowed that power yet suffered no ill effect, this soul showed no sign of collapsing—instead it became more solid; the dragon soul wondered how he had done it.

'How did you manage that? Human.'

Chen Chuyang laughed: 'Before asking me questions, shouldn't you introduce yourself?'

The dragon soul fell silent for a moment, then said: 'I am Ao Zhong, guardian of the Blackwater Dragon Palace, a senior general of the Blackwater Dragon Palace, and one of its dragon sons.'

'And you, human? How should I address you?'

He acknowledged Chen Chuyang's strength; in his heart, Chen Chuyang deserved such an inquiry.

The weak are unworthy to reveal their names.

'Chen Chuyang.' Chen Chuyang directly spoke his name, without any concealment.

This true dragon's soul has reached its limit, yet we cannot therefore underestimate him; an existence of this level surely has a trump card.

Both were sizing each other up, also thinking of ways to deal with the other.

'Chen Chuyang, right? I have remembered your name.' Ao Zhong's voice, full of majesty, came forth; he had remembered Chen Chuyang's name, and also remembered the person.

'Could you tell me how you managed that? That is the Kunpeng's Dead Kun Blood Curse; once afflicted, within seven days the flesh rots, the soul is devoured by corrupt turbid qi, ultimately turning to dust.'

'The reason I have clung to life until now is due to the existence of the Blackwater Dragon Palace, and also because I abandoned my flesh, entrusting my soul within the dragon pearl; even so, I have reached my limit, and were it not for you swallowing all the corrupt aura inside the dragon pearl, I might not have been able to revive.'

'That corrupt aura is something humans cannot absorb; your body and soul could not possibly withstand it.'

Even his true dragon's body could not bear it, nor resist it.

When the dragon soul is on the verge of collapse, a mere human's soul and body stand even less chance of blocking it.

For him to have lived until today is already extremely difficult; his entire being has been corroded, Ao Zhong has no recourse—merely staying alive is already hard, let alone hoping for a full recovery, which seems unlikely.

His physical condition, he himself knows, cannot be restored.

'Is it that hard?' Chen Chuyang answered with a laugh.

He raised his right hand, caught a clump of corrupt aura, and swallowed it in Ao Zhong's presence.

In one gulp he swallowed it; his soul came into direct close contact with that aura, Ao Zhong's eyes fixed unblinkingly on Chen Chuyang, watching his every move to see if he would collapse.

Time passed bit by bit.

After a quarter hour, Chen Chuyang's soul showed no reaction; he stood there, his face wreathed in a smile, as if utterly unaffected.

Continuing to wait, another quarter hour passed.

Chen Chuyang raised his hand toward Ao Zhong and smiled: 'To me, these auras are not poison; rather, they benefit me.'

'Your body has already collapsed, irreparable, and your dragon soul is the same.'

Ao Zhong had reached his limit, already seeing death, beyond remedy.

Even Chen Chuyang could not accomplish that.

He has not a shred of vitality left, unlike when facing Zhuge Gui; if there were even a hint of vitality, there would still be hope of recovery.

Such a physique is worth Chen Chuyang's study, and the Kunpeng Guardian's Dead Kun Blood Curse—this divine ability intrigues him greatly; if he were to learn it, wouldn't that be...?

Against the Dragonherd Clan, this move would be very useful; perhaps it could directly shift the conflict, setting the Dragonherd Clan against the Kunpeng Guardian, letting them destroy each other.

'I know, my body is beyond saving.' Ao Zhong accepted his death calmly.

At this point, resistance and resentment are useless.

At that moment, his resentment dissipated; he saw Chen Chuyang, he saw hope.

'Daoist Chen Chuyang, how about we make a deal? Regardless of whether it succeeds, this body of mine and everything I possess will be yours, Daoist.' Ao Zhong pointed to his flesh, and also to this dragon pearl, which still had some use.

Chen Chuyang took a liking to his physique; Ao Zhong naturally knew.

'I still have some savings; I will give them all to you, Daoist, if you would do me a favor—how about that?'

Ao Zhong, with a hint of pleading, fixed his gaze on Chen Chuyang, hoping he would agree to his request.

Chen Chuyang narrowed his eyes, gazing at Ao Zhong; this condition is not bad—securely obtaining all of his, flesh or dragon pearl, everything on him, his arts and divine abilities, would be his; he himself does not need them, but his avatar Qinglong Daoren does.

The Azure Dragon Clan and the Blackwater True Dragon Clan are alike, both being dragon races, so their divine abilities are naturally the same.

'What favor?' Chen Chuyang pondered, then asked; this deal seemed quite good, and he felt moved.