Chapter 310: Spring of Spiritual Qi, Ninth-Rank Floating Island, Void Seed Sprouts!

"Yin Xiu, wasn't he in deep slumber? He actually came?" Ye Ye Yukong could not help but be shocked.

He had personally felt Yin Xiu's strength; even while asleep, the Dragon Spirit alone made him, an unparalleled Second Grade, gasp for breath.

In fact, it was not just him; Ji Mengjun and Tong Jin, both at the First Grade Fate Palace Realm, had also gone to exchange and felt the same.

Impossible to fight with force!

Otherwise, Great Zhou should have considered how to seize Yin Xiu's treasure, rather than exchanging.

"Do not worry, he has come to pledge loyalty," Zhao Xing said with a smile.

"Even a Sinister Dragon or a Rebellious Dragon cannot enter the Central Dragon Court. Any Dragon Clan that can come must obey the Heavenly and Earthly Rules set by the Dragon Court."

Now that he had unsealed the Dragon Clan's Divine Artifact, he could openly speak of information known from his past life.

"Pledge loyalty?" The Shen Luo King noticed this word and his pupils trembled.

"Wasn't it said that when the Dragon King awakens, there is a period of weakness as strength recovers, and during this time he stays in Wang Cheng to pass through the weak period?" Jiang Chuan was also somewhat shocked.

"Yin Xiu actually ran over to pledge loyalty regardless of danger?"

For the Dragon Clan, this time was not short.

Yin Xiu had awakened and immediately rushed out; according to Jiang Chuan and others' understanding of the Dragon King, this was precisely when Yin Xiu was weakest!

"He is different," Zhao Xing said. "Yin Xiu was already near awakening. Furthermore, during his slumber he could accept tributes because his Dragon Spirit maintained reading and cultivation."

"Thus, after he awakened, there would be no cost, and he could immediately exert peak strength.

"Of course, even if there were a cost, he would still rush over. Because he absolutely supports the Dragon Court."

"This dragon is strangely good," Ye Ye Yukong said.

"Truly a loyal minister of the Dragon Clan," Tong Jin evaluated thus.

"What other special qualities does he have?" Ji Mengjun asked.

"'Yin Xiu is the inheritor of the Eastern Emperor Scripture (the Dragon King is also called the Eastern Emperor),' Zhao Xing said.

"He is a loyal supporter of Dragon King Jie, and his ambition is to continue Dragon King Jie's will and reshape the Dragon Court."

"Now that I have inherited the Dragon King's Codex, it is equivalent to me being the Dragon King's successor."

"That is why he rushed over voluntarily."

"In fact, without my active summoning, the Dragon Kings in various places only sensed it, but because of this point, he rushed over."

Ji Mengjun nodded slightly, but her hand tucked inside her sleeve still did not loosen.

Gu Ting Wang Cheng, the military hall by the North Sea.

When Dragon King Yin Xiu awakened and left the North Sea's underwater Dragon Palace, Great Zhou's experts arrived at the military hall to seek Seeing Ji Si.

"My Lord Seeing Ji Si, what is happening? Dragon King Yin Xiu has awakened!"

"Where did he go?"

"Can our exchange continue?"

"What exactly is happening—"

Seeing Ji Si opened his eyes and looked at the experts who had come to inquire, their emotions agitated.

"Everyone, please be calm; allow me to calculate."

Having spoken, Seeing Ji Si rose with an agitated expression and went to the secret chamber.

After arriving at the secret chamber, Seeing Ji Si could no longer hold back.

"Hahahaha!"

"Hahaha!"

Seeing Ji Si laughed for a long time before finally stopping.

He then walked to a table.

A pile of bamboo slips lay upon it.

The bamboo slips were pure white, emitting a warm, lustrous glow.

【Cloud Satchel Time Tag】

This was a communication tool exclusive to First Grade Fate Officials.

"Shuffle~"

Seeing Ji Si began carving characters onto the bamboo slip.

"The twentieth year of Great Zhi, June twenty-fifth, my elder brother King Tianyan must see this tag."

At present, it was clearly December twentieth of the third year of Great Zhi, but the time Seeing Ji Si wrote was June twenty-fifth of the twentieth year of Great Zhi.

Why? Because this was originally an official document written to the future!

This is the method of high-grade Fate Officials.

"My elder brother King Tianyan" is the designated recipient.

"Must see this tag" is to strengthen the directionality of the spell, and also a regulation.

The Dragon Court's Ancient Land will close in the twentieth year of Great Zhi; according to plan, Seeing Ji Si would also go out at that time.

At the same time, outside.

The Palace of the Ruler, the Hall of Heavenly Secrets.

King Tianyan, who was in a beam of light, suddenly moved his eyes.

He tapped his hands continuously, pointing to the fifty-kilometer mark on the southeast corner of the light beam.

A picture floated above, reflecting exactly a Cloud Satchel Time Tag.

【—----Since Zhao Xing obtained the Dragon Clan's Divine Artifact 'Dragon King's Codex', he has been researching for over half a month. Yesterday he went to the Central Dragon Court. Today Yin Xiu awakened and went to the Dragon Court, proving he has successfully unsealed and mastered the Divine Artifact—.. —】

【The Imperial Edict for Sealing the Saint has not yet been used—····】

King Tianyan watched silently, a look of surprise appearing on his face.

"Summoning Dragon King Yin Xiu? A true Divine Artifact!"

Although the Human Race's First Rank is said to match the Dragon Clan's Dragon King level, in reality, a First Rank cannot defeat a Dragon Clan Dragon King.

The main reason is insufficient rank.

The Great Zhou has merely four King-level Dragon Dukes; for everyone else, no matter what flashy Dragon Clan titles they obtain, they are still one level below a Dragon King.

To strike at a superior from below: if within the same kingdom, the Dragon Court's laws of heaven and earth would strike them down as 'Rebellious Dragon' or 'Sinful Dragon'.

Except in certain specific areas, without a Dragon Clan identity, being within the Dragon Court means one's power cannot be unleashed at all, and they would be attacked by all.

Even between different kingdoms, the conditions for a Lord to challenge a Dragon King are extremely harsh: either under the command of another Dragon King, or in the Grand Arena—in all other cases, a lower rank striking a Dragon King is a grave act of disrespect,

and their power will be severely weakened.

Therefore, Bai Yun Wu and the other three who obtained King-level titles appear all the more precious.

Because as long as one follows these four, most actions within the Dragon Court's Ancient Grounds will be unimpeded. Now Zhao Xing holds the Dragon Emperor's Codex and can actually command a Dragon King?

It is simply incredible!

King Tianyan was trembling with excitement at this moment!

What difference is there between this and holding Your Majesty's Imperial Decree within the Great Zhou? One Imperial Decree strips off official rank, reclaims power, and forces one back to their original form!

There is still a difference: the hierarchy within the Dragon Court's Ancient Grounds is even more rigid; what Zhao Xing holds is not an Imperial Decree, but the Dragon Emperor's Codex, which can mass-produce Imperial Decrees.

"Good lad, good lad!" King Tianyan's fingers were so excited they turned white from gripping.

On the other side, Ji Si, who was in the midst of carving, stopped and revealed a hint of helplessness.

Because he sensed King Tianyan's excitement, which increased the difficulty of his carving, he could only pause writing to let the other's excitement subside.

However, half a day passed and the other still had not come to his senses, so Ji Si could only offer a reminder, carving on the Cloud Talisman:

"Brother, stop being so excited; I am still casting spells here."

Shai shai~

The sound of the carving knife entered King Tianyan's mind.

He immediately saw these words.

"Ahem ahem————·- My apologies." King Tianyan instantly came to his senses.

Shai shai~

Ji Si crossed out this line again, then continued speaking.

".. —In my humble opinion, you could immediately advise Duke Yang to invest all remaining power, and take this opportunity to utterly defeat the enemy's conspiracy——·."

After finishing, Ji Si put the carving knife aside and carefully stored the bamboo slips.

If the bamboo slips were lost during this period, or if King Tianyan died, it would cause him to be unable to deliver the letter in the twentieth year of Dazhi, and he would suffer a powerful backlash from the laws.

Various accidents would inevitably occur during this period, causing him to lose or forget to complete this event.

Therefore, from this moment on, Ji Si must carry them at all times.

He also had no possibility of participating in the battle, because if he were cut down by someone, the secrets on these bamboo slips would be fully revealed to others.

"Writing so many copies in half a year, I am shortening my own life," Ji Si muttered.

"Why didn't the sages of old develop a 'collect on delivery' function? That way, it would be my brother's life that is shortened."

In any case, he would not live long; wouldn't it be convenient to bear all the costs before dying?

"This method can be researched later," Ji Si thought. Suppressing this thought for the time being, Ji Si continued to write the second copy.

"Twentieth year of Dazhi, June twenty-fifth, your humble brother presents this memorial to His Majesty; His Majesty must see this talisman."

"As Your Majesty predicted, within the Ancient Grounds, the West Sea Water Clan 'Bo Yi' has indeed rebelled—-- He invited Bai,"

Tang, and Ao Ying to explore the Nine Stars Fire Prison. Dragon King Bai played along with the plan and has already hidden within the Fire Prison. He possesses the treasure bestowed by Your Majesty and can hold out for ten years without issue."

"Since the day of being trapped, issuing orders to launch a rescue, there have been Luo Guanxiu, Mou Dingbang, Lan Zhongji—--- and fifteen others whose hearts are unclear, whose loyalty is not evident; enjoying the fortune of the imperial court, yet they are selfish and evasive—-"

"Marquis of Divine Might Zhao Xing has obtained a Dragon Clan Divine Artifact named 'Dragon Emperor's Codex' and a Earth Divine Artifact 'Kun Primordial Spirit Hoe'———"

"There is a slight discrepancy with the time point obtained through deduction, arriving nearly five years early."

"Marquis of Divine Might is heading towards the Fire Prison Plains."

Writing to the end, Ji Si suddenly chatted about other trivial matters.

"Your humble brother had a sudden inspiration, thinking of a new method for Fate Officials; if the Cloud Talisman Time Talisman could be combined with the Shi Guan's spells,"

"perhaps this method could find a new path·."

Inside the Ju Zi Palace, King Tianyan had no idea that his little brother had actually produced such a heaven-defying idea, planning to change the cost of the Fate Official's 'Time Letter Talisman' spell to a collect-on-delivery version.

He quickly walked out at this moment and sent a message to King Luo.

"Luo, the situation within the Dragon Court's Ancient Grounds has undergone a major change; we can begin preparations for a counterattack."

King Tianyan informed King Luo of the situation described by Ji Si.

King Luo frowned: "Is all of this too—"

King Tianyan spoke in a low voice: "Luo, do not think what you should not; if you guess, do not speak."

King Luo was silent for a moment, then nodded: "I will notify Yang Xiongying."

King Tianyan put away the Earth Mirror.

Shortly after, King Luo contacted Commander-in-Chief of the Jinwu, Duke Yang, and Vice Minister of Works Lu Ying through the Earth Mirror.

"Duke Yang, a major change has occurred within the Dragon Court; you must enter immediately——"

Listening to King Luo's words, Yang Xiongying's expression grew increasingly serious.

True Long Wang Cheng, the teleportation array.

After a burst of scorching seven-colored light flared, a Dragon Clan formation appeared above the square,

"Voom~"

Golden light rippled for a hundred li as Dragon King Yin Xiu unfolded his domain.

Behind him stood five hundred Dragon King guards, all Count Meng lords with dragon heads and human bodies, each wielding a ninth-rank divine weapon.

When Yin Xiu arrived via teleportation, Zhao Xing ceased flight and landed on the wasteland, waiting for Yin Xiu's approach.

If he flew proactively to Wang Cheng to seek Yin Xiu, wouldn't that be utterly uncool? It had to be Yin Xiu who came to him.

Yet his position was not far from the True Dragon King's City.

Soon, Yin Xiu arrived with his dragon guard army, soaring over the wasteland.

"Roar~"

Zhao Xing's forty-eight dragon lords grew agitated.

Because they owed no allegiance to the Gu Ting Kingdom, and Yin Xiu's pressure upon them was overwhelming.

"Silence!"

Zhao Xing flew out of the dragon ship and roared at the surrounding lords; the dragon lords instantly fell still. Moments later, Yin Xiu and his dragon guards halted three thousand meters ahead.

A golden domain rippled like mist, obscuring forms; the five hundred Count Meng lords stood in rigid formation beneath the clouds.

A massive dragon head emerged from the golden clouds, its entire body dark gold, but with two purple scales on its brow—one square and book-like, the other shaped like a blade without a hilt.

Ji Mengjun clenched his lips, the imperial edict in his sleeve ready to be thrown.

Tong Jin's entire body tensed, his heart pounding uncontrollably.

As for Jiang Chuan, Ye Ye Yukong, and the Divine Ruler King, they felt nothing but sheer magnitude.

At this moment, Dragon King Yin Xiu was far stronger than them—they could no longer perceive just how strong he truly was.

Zhao Xing remained in human form, silently staring at Yin Xiu, holding the Dragon Emperor's Codex in his hand.

Yin Xiu studied Zhao Xing, a sense of familiarity rising within him.

In his enormous dragon eyes, a clear flicker of confusion appeared.

Wasn't this the one who exchanged with me half a year ago—the "Fire" one? What was its true dragon name again?

Was it "Zhao"?

But Zhao Xing's aura now differed vastly from half a year ago; even Dragon King Yin Xiu dared not be certain.

Yet he only paused for a second—then the dragon clouds sank, and the dragon head bowed low, lowering itself to Zhao Xing's feet.

"Yin Xiu of Gu Ting, pays homage to the great Dragon Emperor Heir."

What Yin Xiu spoke was the same dragon tongue Zhao Xing used when casting decrees—both were the 【Dragon Emperor Golden Script】 created by Dragon Emperor Yan.

"Yin Xiu, why have you come?" Zhao Xing asked calmly.

"To follow in your footsteps," replied Dragon King Yin Xiu with deep reverence. "Myself and my vassal lords are willing to serve you."

Zhao Xing flew to the front of Yin Xiu's dragon head: "Yin Xiu of Gu Ting, I accept your allegiance."

"Your true name shall be inscribed upon the Codex—you shall be my first Dragon King!"

Saying this, Zhao Xing extended one hand and pressed it upon the sword-scale of Dragon King Yin Xiu.

The Codex in his other hand erupted with a surge of golden light; layered dragon shadows coalesced into Yin Xiu's name, appearing upon the Dragon Emperor's Codex.

This was the Enfeoffment Spell cast through the Dragon Emperor's Codex. Under its power, he was only of rank equal to a Great Dragon King—but lacked the corresponding strength; he must master all Nine Spells to truly possess such power.

The Enfeoffment Spell he now cast upon Yin Xiu held little real effect—it was merely symbolic.

For the remaining power within the Dragon Emperor's Codex was insufficient to enfeoff Yin Xiu as a "Great Dragon King."

Even after recovering part of its power earlier, it was still far from enough to elevate a Dragon King to Great Dragon King status.

But enfeoffing a dragon lord as a Dragon King was sufficient.

Yet to achieve this, one must first master the third page of the Dragon Emperor's Codex and cast the 【Dragon King Enfeoffment Spell】.

Time was too short—Zhao Xing had not yet mastered any of the Nine Spells, including the Dragon King Enfeoffment Spell.

Great Dragon King? Even less possible.

Even if he could, Zhao Xing would not enfeoff one.

Enfeoffing a Great Dragon King consumes vast amounts of spiritual energy, and maintaining the state requires constant, unceasing spiritual energy.

This is why the Great Dragon Kings of each kingdom fall into slumber.

It is entirely passive!

Without sufficient spiritual energy to sustain their state, they must sleep.

Zhao Xing himself lacked spiritual energy—how could he possibly create a Great Dragon King?

"Huang~"

Zhao Xing let out a dragon roar, imprinting his voice upon Yin Xiu's reverse scale.

Unless Yin Xiu willingly abandons his dragon identity and becomes a Reverse Dragon, he cannot defy Zhao Xing's command.

"Thank you, my king, for this gift," said Yin Xiu, his emotions stirred; though the power was faint and offered him little benefit,

it was the very Dragon Emperor's might he had once felt!

With the ritual complete, Zhao Xing immediately said:

"Yin Xiu, a great battle is unfolding on the Fire Prison Plain."

"I suspect the actions of Tian Yuan and Nie Hai, attempting to defile the sanctity of the Dragon Clan's ancestral grounds."

"Come with me to quell this rebellion!"

"The Zhou Dynasty has four human beings who have attained the rank of Dragon King."

"Other factions combined have three."

"One is Pang Beile of the Southern Barbarian Purple Dragon Court, who spent three hundred fifty-six years completing the arduous trials of the Dragon Court's ancestral grounds, received the ancient Heavenly Dragon blood, and attained Dragon King status, known as the 'Heavenly Dragon King.'"

"Jin Yu Court's First-Rank Heavenly Shaman Tuo Yan, who spent five hundred eight years slaying thirty thousand and seven hundred Reverse Dragons in Nie Hai, endured the trials of blood and fire, received the blood of the ancient Fire Dragon, and attained Dragon King status, known as the 'Fire Dragon King.'"

"The other comes from an ancient Japanese tribe, named Yi Chuan, who spent five hundred thirty-four years obtaining the Chaofeng bloodline from Tian Yuan, known as the 'Wind Dragon King.'"

Inside the dragon ship, Ji Mengjun recounted these details.

"The siege of the Fire Prison Plains was led by these three, who launched a surprise attack on the White Dragon King's forces.

"Apart from the White Dragon King, who are the other three Dragon Kings of our dynasty?" Zhao Xing asked.

"The Golden Dragon King Yang Xiongying, the Rites Dragon King Gao Feng, and the Ice Dragon Wang Ji Ji."

Zhao Xing nodded.

It is not easy for a human to obtain the position of Dragon King after entering; the chain of quests is not so simple to complete.

Of course, the actual time was not as exaggerated as Ji Mengjun had said.

The Dragon Court opens for about 15 to 20 years; she counted from the moment the trials began, and the time spent outside was merely preparation.

The Sect Realm has no qualification for such an opportunity; the position of Dragon King is prepared with the entire nation's strength, consuming vast manpower, material resources, and wealth—where is there any share for a sect?

"Ten thousand high-grade warriors fighting sounds exaggerated, but in reality, it was just these three Dragon Kings using their authority to mobilize Dragon Clan Lords from various regions. The actual number of 'people' participating was not large."

Zhao Xing already had Yin Xiu here, plus 548 Dragon Clan Lords!

Apart from the human Dragon Kings, no purebred Dragon Kings participated in the Fire Prison Plains.

However, looking at the latest intelligence, Zhao Xing raised several questions:

Why has the Golden Dragon King Yang Xiongying not entered yet after half a year?

Bai Yunwu is trapped; why were only two human Dragon Kings, Gao Feng and Ji Ji, sent to rescue him?

"Having taken the initiative, the intelligence still makes it look like a evenly matched fight."

Information transmission in the Dragon Court ancient land is somewhat slow and not as comprehensive as fighting within the Great Zhou army, after all, this is the Dragon Court, involving two separate systems.

"I remember reviewing the archives in my past life; the loss of powerful figures in the Great Zhou at the end was a six-to-four split."

"Yet now that I am in the midst of it, why does it feel a bit off?" Zhao Xing closed his eyes and began to think.

"Even without me, if the current situation continues to develop, could the Great Zhou really lose so many First-Rank experts?"

"Could this be part of the Sixty-Year Purge?" Thinking of this, Zhao Xing's expression instantly became quite dramatic.

"Damn it, if you don't kill them all clean, you won't have sons, right?"

Old Master Zhao shrank his neck, feeling that the old fellow, Emperor Jing, seemed to be orchestrating the Dragon Court dungeon from behind the scenes.

Great peace, my foot! Peace, my feathers! You have been killing all along, never stopping at all!

"If this is truly the case, Bai Yunwu is simply walking into a trap voluntarily; there absolutely won't be any danger."

"On the surface, the Dragon Kings cannot escape the Nine Stars Fire Prison; once inside, they cannot get out, which is indeed a perilous situation. No, wait—if the imperial court obtained the Nine Stars Fire Dragon Token? Then Old Bai is just seemingly trapped inside."

Zhao Xing could not be sure; if Emperor Jing was setting a trap, the details would certainly be very realistic.

The only one who could survey the entire situation was Emperor Jing; if Old Master Zhao hadn't seen the archives, he wouldn't have generated any doubts now.

However, once doubt arises, it simply cannot be stopped.

"Wait! Damn it, damn it!"

"In my past life, it was Tang Yinglong who was trapped, but in this life, it has become Bai Yunwu!"

"The connection between me and Bai Yunwu is the Dragon Seal—could that intelligence have been deliberately shown to me?"

"Damn it! Did I fall for the old fart Emperor Jing's big trick too? Did he include me in his calculations?!"

Under the clear blue sky, Zhao Xing sat atop a Dragon King, yet he still couldn't help but sweat.

The more he thought, the higher he felt the probability was!

"Awesome, Old Jing!" Zhao Xing couldn't help but sigh, having walked this path with extreme caution all along.

He had finally entered Emperor Jing's sight.

"If this plan incidentally included me, then it is likely a test."

"A test of what?"

"Loyalty! Whether there is a second heart!"

"This is probably the true reason for the deaths of so many First-Rank experts in the archives," Zhao Xing tried to think from Emperor Jing's perspective.

The reason he concluded it was a 'test' rather than something else is very simple.

Emperor Jing certainly did not do this because he knew his secrets.

Otherwise, he would have just taken people to interrogate them directly—what couldn't Emperor Jing do?

"If it's not because of my memories, then it must be my talent."

"The talent I have displayed is even more terrifying than Liu Tianning's, and I have no roots, unlike Liu Tianning who has a great family behind him."

"If he wants to use me, or rather, save me for the next generation of emperors to use, my loyalty must be up to standard; otherwise, I would just be an added burden."

"Bai Yunwu is trapped, and the Dragon Seal list is on it; is this to observe my reaction?"

"Rescuing Bai Yunwu aligns with the imperial court's interests, and the Dragon Seal is also a comrade-in-arms and a brother of life and death from the army, which aligns with my personal emotions."

"If I remained indifferent upon seeing that intelligence, then I would be done for." Looking at the problem from Emperor Jing's perspective made it very clear.

Now there is a perilous situation here; resolving this peril aligns with both the Great Zhou's interests and your personal interests. If you remain indifferent to this and dare not act,

such a selfish person, no matter how talented or monstrous, what use are they to the Great Zhou?

"Whether one can do it is one thing; attitude is another. Moreover, that intelligence came to me half a year after I obtained two divine artifacts."

"I also have the Ten Thousand Dharma Divisions, and even the Shang Tang Token; Emperor Jing must know this as well."

"Looking at this, Ji Mengjun and Tong Jin must be carrying an imperial edict of ennoblement."

"If I really go, you certainly won't bear to let me die; that edict, which can temporarily grant First-Rank peak combat power, will certainly remain in the hands of one of the two of them."

The temporary First-Rank peak ennoblement edict; Zhao Xing, of course, knew about this thing; it had appeared a few times in past Dragon Court expeditions.

"Tong Jin is too weak; it must be in Ji Mengjun's hands. Let me guess the conditions for using it: the guards are almost all dead—... and finally use this edict to rescue me?"

"To protect me, even First-Rank experts could die in battle, and in the end, they saved me; I would be moved to tears..."

"Clap, clap, clap!" Zhao Xing clapped his hands within the Memory Palace: "Impressive, Emperor Jing; for the sake of your successor, you have truly gone to great lengths."

"It just seems now that Emperor Jing and the Fate Official Ji Si also didn't expect that the divine artifacts I obtained could be this awesome."

"Even Dragon King Yin Xiu has arrived; the current trial holds no difficulty for me, unless there are further arrangements."

"What other arrangements?" Zhao Xing shook his head: "I cannot think about it. Even if I guess, I must act as if I know nothing. Even if I know, I must still act as if I do not."

"Even without these, my interests align with Great Zhou; I have no fear of his verification."

"Even without these, I would still go to save Long Xiao. The grace of protecting the Dao when I was weak, fighting and dying together at Fire Dragon Pass, advancing and retreating together against Liang Wang, the Dragon's Protection Pass fighting for my rank—if I do not save him when he is in trouble? Such a cold-blooded immortality is meaningless!"

"From the very beginning, I never intended to pursue a cold-blooded immortality, but an immortality with emotion and righteousness!"

"If I were a ruthless practitioner of the Dogmatic Dao, I could never get along with Wu Di in the future; waiting for him to emerge from the East Sea for so many years would have lost its meaning."

At this thought, he instantly became enlightened, and Zhao Xing opened his eyes from meditation.

He completely stopped thinking about those speculations just now and simply acted according to his original intention.

"Aaaah!"

Just then, dragon roars echoed from ahead.

A Dragon Clan Lord signaled:

"The Fire Prison Plain has arrived."

The sky was black, yet the ground was a sea of scarlet.

The Fire Dragon Clan Lord 'Qi' could no longer distinguish whether the surging below was erupting earth-fire or fresh blood.

"Hiss~"

The Fire Dragon Clan Lord 'Qi' looked up and roared, wanting to summon the dragon generals beside him, only to find his voice no longer resounding but hoarse.

He weakly spat out a mouthful of dragon flame, only to discover that what emerged was merely a cloud of black smoke.

Looking back, the dragon generals beside him were already completely submerged in a blue ocean.

Half of his dragon scales had fallen off; his powerful flesh was torn open, and several segments of his dragon tendons were severed.

Facing the siege of hostile Dragon Clan Lords, Qi was powerless to break out of the encirclement.

"Aaaah!"

Qi let out a final roar, spewing a torrent of flame toward a dragon ship a thousand meters below.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh~"

Ten dragon spears shot out from the dragon ship, piercing through his surging layers of flame and surging upstream.

"Pfft~"

The dragon head of the Fire Dragon Clan Lord 'Qi' was pierced through; his massive form instantly became like a kite with a broken string,

falling downward.

"Aaaah!"

Qi's death was insignificant, because here, thousands of Dragon Clan Lords like Qi were still fighting to the death.

Lightning flashed and thunder rolled; the Fire Prison Plain seemed like the prelude to the end of the world.

Five square formations covered the entire Fire Prison Plain, respectively led by the Heavenly Dragon King 'Pompey',

the Fire Dragon King 'Tuo Yan',

the Wind Dragon King 'Yi Chuan',

the Ritual (Law) Dragon King Gao Feng,

and the Ice Dragon Wang Ji Ji.

The five Dragon Kings led the Dragon Clan Lords here in a fierce battle!

No Dragon knew that their Dragon Kings were actually humans in disguise; they only knew to obey orders and kill any Dragon Clan marked as hostile by the spell!

"(Dragon Tongue) Dragon King offers blood, divine power boundless!" Gao Feng stood atop a 【Battle Order】 on the dragon ship,

cast the incantation, and simultaneously spat out a wad of golden blood.

"Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh~" The blood dripped into a Jimon square formation below the dragon ship.

"Roar!"

All the Jimon Lords instantly grew larger, rising from fifty meters to eighty meters!

"Kill them!" Gao Feng roared to the sky, ordering the three hundred Jimon below to charge toward Pompey's 'Heavenly Dragon' guard.

The Jimon Dragon Clan's forms were relatively smaller than the Heavenly Dragons, but they were skilled at using weapons.

Every Jimon held a trident, their dragon scale armor shimmering with a cold blue light.

The Jimon Dragon Clan excelled at manipulating water power, and their close combat was also extremely formidable.

As the three hundred Jimon square formation moved out, a torrential rain instantly poured from the sky, with raindrops shooting toward the enemy like sharp arrows.

Upon reaching the enemy square formation, every drop of rain instantly transformed into surging waves, gathering into a river of Weak Water,

sweeping toward the enemy.

The river of Weak Water contained powerful corrosive power; it was rumored that the outer sea of the Sinful Sea was entirely made of Weak Water.

"Aaaah!" The Flying Dragon square formation roared, generating whirlpools beneath their claws, actually dragging mountains from the ground to block the river of Weak Water.

The heavenly and earthly rules here had become completely chaotic; mountains and rivers suddenly appearing in the sky were commonplace.

The dragon breath exhaled by the Ice Dragon Clan contained the terrifying true meaning of fire.

Ice Dragon Wang Ji Ji and Law Dragon King Gao Feng stared coldly ahead.

They had been attacking for a long time, yet still could not break the encirclement formed by Pompey, Yi Chuan, and Tuo Yan.

Gao Feng and Ji Ji did not know this was a trap; the current situation was merely average.

Bai Yun Wu Di's life or death was unknown, and they could not break in.

Reinforcements were constantly arriving from all four sides, but the enemy also had reinforcements.

The number of Dragon Clan Lords dying had accumulated to a shocking quantity over these days.

If this batch of Dragon Clan Lords died, not only this time, but the next and the time after that when the Dragon Court Ancient Land opens,

The Great Zhou forces were all at a disadvantage.

"Ji Ji, has Duke Yang Guo not arrived yet?!" Gao Feng asked via transmitted voice.

They had attempted several times these past days and confirmed it was very difficult to break through the defenses of the three Dragon Kings opposite to rescue Bai Yun Wu.

"Duke Yang Guo will definitely arrive!" Ji Ji said in a deep voice. "Reinforcements are also on the way!"

"I am asking when he will arrive!"

Ji Ji fell silent.

When he would arrive? That was not within his knowledge; the order was simply to have them come first and attempt the rescue.

"Retreat, Ji Ji. We cannot break through this time." Gao Feng looked ahead. "My Jimo Guard cannot pierce the line."

Ji Ji also intended to retreat and was about to give the order when he noticed the Wind Dragon Clan in the south attacking a distorted patch of space frantically.

A vast number of dragons were diverted southward.

Gao Feng also sensed this change and immediately asked Ji Ji: "Ji Ji, what are they attacking?"

"What? The Dragon King of the Gu Ting Kingdom, Yin Xiu!" Yi Chuan's expression shook violently. "How could this one be participating in the battle? Wasn't he in slumber?!"

At this moment, Yi Chuan stood upon the Dragon King's War Decree, his eyes filled with sheer horror.

Just now, another Dragon King suddenly appeared on the battlefield, sweeping away the outer resistance of the Fire Prison Plain with a domineering realm and driving straight into the combat zone at the plain's center!

"Voom~"

Jin Guang rippled. Countless golden scales, like a torrent, pierced through the blocking Dragon Lords and upheld a brilliant golden sky in the southeast.

"A Ninth-Rule Realm!"

"Pompei, Tuoyan, the situation has changed!"

"What? Dragon King Yin Xiu is participating?" Pompei, who had transformed into a Heavenly Dragon form in another direction, was also shocked. "How is this possible?!"

"A Ninth-Rule Realm? Both Pompei and I, along with Yi Chuan, are only at the Sixth-Rule Realm." Tuoyan was also stunned.

Although Dragon King Yin Xiu brought only over five hundred Dragon Lords, the collision of realms immediately revealed the superiority.

They simply could not hold; this caused the Dragon Lords under their command to suffer severe suppression as well.

As one side waned and the other waxed, Dragon King Yin Xiu was like a sharp blade, directly piercing through the defensive line organized by the three of them.

"Dragon King's Reverse Scale? A sword? Oh heavens, Yin Xiu is also carrying the Gu Ting Kingdom's Divine Artifact! Save me!" Yi Chuan's soul nearly fled in terror. He only possessed a Sixth-Rule Realm; it was impossible for him to clash with Yin Xiu, let alone when Yin Xiu carried the Gu Ting Kingdom's Divine Artifact. This was completely overwhelming pressure.

But when he wanted to flee, it was already too late.

Dragon King Yin Xiu was very clever; he waited until the very end, when he was extremely close, before releasing his aura and unleashing his killing move.

When he spat out the Dragon King Sword, forged from over ten thousand Dragon King Reverse Scales, he had already completely locked onto Yi Chuan.

"Whoosh~"

The dragon scales unfolded, and the sword, initially dozens of meters long, quickly expanded to over a thousand meters.

Yi Chuan's body was only ten thousand meters; when he tried to use his Wind Realm to escape, the Dragon King Sword pierced through his realm's defense.

In that patch of green space, a very distinct streak of Jin Guang appeared!

"No, no!"

Yi Chuan roared, frantically manipulating his Rule Realm to resist.

He used every trick in his arsenal, including transforming into human form or throwing out magical treasures to distract attention.

All these methods were utterly useless!

"The Dragon King Reverse Scale Sword is hailed as a soul-locking Divine Artifact." Zhao Xing watched quietly from afar. "Once the sword is drawn, it must pierce the Reverse Scale. With every dragon it kills, the sword grows greater. I do not know how many generations it has been passed down, but among treasure-grade Dragon Divine Artifacts, it can surely rank first."

"In his past life, Dragon King Yin Xiu possessed the strength to conquer nine nations. He had many treasures, and not one was not a powerful Divine Artifact."

"If he had not been so impulsive, attempting to enter the Sinful Sea and the Heavenly Abyss before advancing to Great Dragon King to retrieve the Codex, he might truly have had a chance of success."

"Pfft!"

The Dragon King Reverse Scale Sword split Yi Chuan in two.

Jin Guang flashed, and the green world instantly shattered.

"What?!"

Pompei and Tuoyan immediately fled in a frenzy.

As for the other humans, they completely ignored the orders and fled along with them.

"!"

However, just as they intended to flee, they heard a voice that seemed to come from the ancient primordial era.

Immediately, a golden carved tablet fell above them.

【Divine Court Decree: True Words are the Order!】

【I, in the name of the Dragon Emperor's Successor, strip 'Pompei' and 'Tuoyan' of their Dragon King titles! Proceed immediately to the Dragon Prison for a thousand years of punishment!】

"Voom~"

The golden stone tablet instantly generated a powerful suction force.

The Dragon Emperor's Golden Culture transformed into Jin Guang, piercing through Pompei's Heavenly Dragon body and Tuoyan's Fire Dragon King body.

It then sank into the Dragon Emperor Codex.

"Boom~"

The two could no longer maintain their respective dragon forms and directly transformed back into human form.

"This... how is this possible?!" Pompei's eyes widened as he looked toward the direction of the voice.

There, a five-clawed golden dragon stared at him coldly.

"No!" Tuoyan roared. He found his clear perception rapidly fading.

Originally, as a Dragon King, both his realm and his spells received bonuses within the Dragon Court.

But now, it was as if a layer of gray mist had been draped over him, making his perception incredibly vague. He had been able to look down upon other First-Rank Dragon Kings, but now he was merely a normal human First-Rank.

Slightly different from those enemies of the Baigu Sect.

Tuo Yan and Pompei Lai possessed a certain resistance; they had endured the numerous trials of the Dragon Court to prove their worth as Dragon Kings, their bodies already half-dragonized.

Therefore, the true decree Zhao Xing issued was to detain them first.

If the two resisted this order, they would become traitorous dragons, and then the execution order could be issued.

Pompei Lai and Tuo Yan, having no idea what was happening, naturally fled; how could they possibly obey the order?

Imprisoned for a thousand years; this was no different from death.

Thus, their act of fleeing became the basis for Zhao Xing's second decree.

"By the name of my Dragon Emperor successor, I command all dragons to slay the traitorous dragons!"

Consequently, these two met the same treatment as Gu Er.

The dragon lords who originally obeyed them all lunged at them.

However, these two still had some reserves; they immediately threw out two sets of Ninth-Rank magical treasures to block the attack, then swiftly fled.

Zhao Xing did not pursue; before mastering the Nine Great Spells, he lacked the ability to chase people and could not kill these two First-Rank beings.

He could have let Yin Xiu chase the two, but the situation was not yet clear, so it was better for Yin Xiu to stay by his side.

In any case, these two would never appear within the Dragon Court's range again.

The only two places they could go were the Sinful Sea and the Heavenly Abyss.

If they truly went there, that would be even better.

Given the current strength of those two places, going there would be suicide.

"This..."

Gao Feng and Ji Ji, watching from a distance, were completely stunned.

What divine being is this? To possess such power!

"Dragon Emperor successor? Should I... should I kneel?"

"How would I know?"

Ji Ji and Gao Feng looked at the groups of dragon lords lying prostrate.

"Perhaps we should kneel as well; their status is clearly different from ours."

"That makes sense."

Ji Ji and Gao Feng immediately knelt down.

"You two are allies; no need to kneel." Zhao Xing's voice came through; this time he used the language of Great Zhou. "Hurry and pursue the remnants of the Southern Barbarians!"

Allies?

Ji Ji and Gao Feng exchanged a glance, their hearts filled with immense curiosity.

But this was not the right time for discussion; they must expand the results of the battle.

"Yes!"

Ji Ji and Gao Feng swiftly gave chase.

Of the three Dragon Kings, one head was severed by Yin Xiu, and two escaped.

But the two who escaped were likely doomed anyway.

Zhao Xing did not know if this interfered with Emperor Jing's plan, but he could not worry about such things.

After swallowing the Code of Laws back into his stomach, he flew toward the entrance of the Nine-Star Fire Prison.

"Yin Xiu, guard this place; only allow exits, no entries."

"I carry out your will."

Yin Xiu respectfully landed on the plain.

The entrance to the Nine-Star Fire Prison stood at the eastern end of the Fire Prison Plain.

It resembled a door formed by four cracks splitting the sky like a curtain.

It belonged to the category of a world within a world.

"There is Qi within the Nine-Star Fire Prison."

"I must hurry in and grab some."

Zhao Xing thought silently.

He had to grab whatever he could while he could; who knew if Emperor Jing would assign him some other task or trial later.

Working under Emperor Jing was not easy; raising his favor was even harder.

Now that he possessed such a great weapon as the Dragon Emperor Code, he imagined there would be far too many things to do afterward.

"If I can't provoke them, can't I hide?"

"I will enter the Nine-Star Fire Prison, then slip out through another entrance secretly, and secure the benefits first."

"When I reappear, it will be just as the entrance is about to close."

The Dragon Court Code was soul-bound; unless he died, it could not be dropped or given to others.

He did not worry about Emperor Jing forcibly taking it; what he feared was Emperor Jing issuing an imperial decree of "Unifying the Dragon Court."

That would be the end of him; at this time, who would dare to unify it?

"Yin Xiu, remember: absolutely do not come looking for me. Just guard here; guard for two years, then return to the Kingdom of Guting. Without my summons, you must not come to pay court on your own initiative!"

"I strictly obey your orders." Although Yin Xiu found it somewhat strange, two years was not long in his concept, so he did not take it to heart.

The Nine-Star Fire Prison was surrounded by darkness.

The heaven and earth here seemed to have no light, only dim fire.

As soon as Zhao Xing entered, he saw a piece of land floating in the darkness, with huge chains formed of fire

locking a dragon skeleton thirty thousand meters long.

"The dragon is dead, yet the lockdown still holds—I wonder how many years have passed," Zhao Xing thought to himself.

The Nine-Star Fire Prison is where dragon clan criminals are imprisoned.

Unlike the Sinful Sea, which is theoretically a place for executing death-row offenders, the Dragon Prison still offers the possibility of release and return to the Dragon Court.

A prison of the Nine-Star level can hold even a Dragon King.

"Sssss~"

As soon as Zhao Xing entered, chains formed from flame surged to bind him.

But after Zhao Xing spat out the Dragon Emperor Scripture, the chains vanished instantly.

"White Dragon King! Where is the White Dragon King!"

Zhao Xing shouted loudly, searching deep within the prison.

On a stretch of land ten thousand li away.

"Hm?"

9

A white dragon suddenly opened its green eyes.

The dragons beside him, Long Xiao and Bai Yang, jolted awake.

"Grandpa, what's wrong?"

"I heard a call—it sounded a bit like Zhao Xing?"

"Impossible," Bai Yang scoffed. "How could Zhao Xing possibly appear in the Nine-Star Fire Prison and call out to you?"

"Even if he did enter, he'd be bound the moment he arrived."

"Others, maybe. But Zhao Xing? Anything could happen to him," Long Xiao said. "He's unpredictable."

"Grandpa, why don't you go check?"

Bai Yunwu shook his head: "No. If we're going to play this part, we must play it fully. They saw me locked up with their own eyes—how could I just walk out now?"

If he truly wanted to leave, he would've left long ago.

Staying here was part of a plan: to coordinate an inside-out strike at the agreed time.

Right now, he wasn't alone—there were nearly a hundred high-ranking prisoners here, including Tang Yinglong, Ao Guang, and ten others of the first and second ranks, both dragon and human.

He didn't go searching, but the voice grew clearer and clearer.

Zhao Xing traced the signs, following them here.

"Shhh~"

A five-clawed golden dragon appeared above Bai Yunwu's prison land.

"Hm?" Bai Yunwu, Tang Yinglong, and Ao Guang were startled—they immediately dropped to their knees.

Because the aura emanating from Zhao Xing was impossibly high in rank!

To move freely through the Nine-Star Fire Prison, Zhao Xing had activated the full power of the Scripture.

The dragons nearby collapsed like worms, utterly limp.

Long Xiao felt nothing—he wasn't even a dragon.

"What the—"

"Long Xiao."

Zhao Xing's voice came, and at the same time, he took human form.

"Holy shit—it's really you!" Long Xiao burst out in delight. "Grandpa, it's really Zhao Xing—? Why are you all kneeling?"

"Good question," Bai Yunwu groaned. "I just feel like kneeling."

Long Xiao: "??"

Tang Yinglong:

Ao Guang:

Bai Yang:

"Ahem, sorry," Zhao Xing immediately reined in the Scripture's power.

Bai Yunwu and the others finally stood up.

Seeing this, Zhao Xing immediately used the Scripture to dissolve the crimson chains binding them.

He was playing the part to the end—pretending he didn't know Bai Yunwu possessed the Nine-Star Fire Prison Token.

"Zhao Xing, how did you get here?" Long Xiao asked.

"I obtained a dragon clan relic—the Dragon Emperor Scripture," Zhao Xing smiled. "I heard the White Dragon King was trapped, so I came to lend support."

Zhao Xing briefly explained how he had acquired the dragon clan relic and unlocked it.

Bai Yunwu stared in shock: "The Dragon Emperor Scripture actually exists—and it was in Yin Xiu's treasure vault?"

"And you used the supreme treasure given to you by Dragon King Yin Xiu to summon Dragon King Yin Xiu?" Tang Yinglong and Ao Guang were stunned.

It sounded like a fairy tale!

"Dragon King Yin Xiu helped you cut down Yi Chuan?"

"What? Dragon King's Reverse Scale Sword? Hss!"

Amid the group's shock,

Bai Yunwu was pondering a grave issue.

"We must leave immediately—to hunt down the remnants!"

"We must crush our enemies beyond the borders once and for all, restoring our lost honor!"

"Then let me send Old Master out," Zhao Xing said.

"Aren't you coming out with us?" Long Xiao asked.

"Inside the Nine-Star Fire Prison, I sensed the fluctuation of a Divine Artifact. Now that I have authorization, I wish to go explore." Zhao Xing said.

"Won't you be in danger? I'll go with you!" Long Xiao said.

"What use are you staying here for?" Bai Yunwu shouted. "You have no authorization; staying here is just a burden."

Long Xiao gloomily touched his precious sword.

Seeing this, Zhao Xing transmitted a secret voice: "Long Xiao, after you and the White Dragon King leave, take over the Dragon Ship I left outside."

"I left a letter on it. You and the White Dragon King must sail it back to the Gu Ting Wang Cheng, find the Life Official Ji Si,

and he will know what to do."

Since the Jing Emperor wanted to test his loyalty, he could not keep the Wuji Sword Embryo and the Giant Divine Soldier.

But he also left a letter for Ji Si, suggesting that Long Xiao inherit the Wuji Sword Embryo, because Long Xiao was more suitable.

As for Xia Jing, he is a Qi Sect cultivator; from the very beginning, he has used Wu Ji such as fists, feet, and fingers.

For the Giant Divine Soldier, he also left a suggestion that it could be used by the Shen Luo King.

If Ji Si does not accept the suggestion, no matter what, the user who obtains the Divine Artifact will owe him a favor.

There are plenty of Divine Artifacts for other professions; his original plan was to forge a bond of goodwill. If Long Xiao doesn't use it, he can find another one later.

He carries the Kun Primordial Spirit Hoe with him, so he cannot hand it over; he intends to break through to the Second Grade right here in the Dragon Court and use it himself.

"Good, I understand." Long Xiao nodded. "Be careful."

"Rest assured, I know my limits." Zhao Xing nodded.

After separating from the crowd, Zhao Xing began to explore the Dragon Prison.

"The Nine-Star Fire Prison is only one part of the Dragon Prison. It is vast; to maintain the operation of the Dragon Prison,

spiritual qi is indispensable."

"Among them, the most important are the wells of the Spiritual Spring of Heaven and Earth."

"The Spiritual Springs of Heaven and Earth are distributed in three places: the Dragon Prison, the Young Dragon Ace Wang Cheng, and the Secret Sa Palace."

The springs of spiritual qi within the Dragon Prison are mainly to keep the imprisoned Dragon Kings alive.

In ancient times, spiritual qi was relatively common; it was cast into wells of spiritual springs to maintain the survival of the Sinful Dragons.

"Hmm?" After flying for a while, Zhao Xing felt a sudden intuitive sensation.

Soon he saw a micro-continent. Unlike the desolate land where Bai Yunwu and the others were, the land ahead still held a trace of green.

In the center of the land, many secret-pattern chains locked a Dragon Well.

"What good luck, I've already encountered one." Zhao Xing was overjoyed and flew over rapidly.

"Hoo~"

As he flew closer, Zhao Xing discovered this was a landmass fifty kilometers in circumference.

The Dragon Well in the center had a well-mouth radius exceeding one hundred meters.

"This is the place." Zhao Xing rushed over rapidly.

"The secret-pattern chains here are merely decorations."

"That's right. Now it seems the precious springs of spiritual qi were common in ancient times; who would seal a Dragon Spring for drawing water so tightly?"

Zhao Xing pulled the chains open as easily as lifting a well cover.

"Boom~"

A torrential surge of spiritual qi erupted from within.

Due to the nature of spiritual qi, a small portion of it instantly dropped in tier the moment it appeared, transforming into dense primordial qi.

"Pure Primordial Projection!"

Zhao Xing, having not expected such a fierce eruption, immediately enveloped and wrapped the spiritual qi to prevent it from dissipating, effectively replacing the well cover to seal the spiritual qi.

"Sss~" Zhao Xing greedily absorbed the spiritual qi, lying by the well, his eyes shining.

"Too much! Indeed, the Dragon Court is a good place. The spiritual qi here is so dense it has almost reached a liquid state! It is nothing like the mere wisps from before!"

"Hahaha, it's all mine! Give it to me to absorb!"

Zhao Xing immediately jumped into the Dragon Well and began to devour the spiritual qi crazily.

"Boom~~"

The Pure Primordial Soil expanded wildly!

The floating vine at the very center, directly from the peak of the Seventh Grade, instantly broke through to the Eighth Grade—the peak of the Eighth Grade—very quickly reached the Ninth Grade, and was still transforming!

"Hmm?" Zhao Xing's gaze lingered on the floating vine for a moment before settling on that mysterious Void Seed.

At this moment, a touch of green appeared on the exterior of the Void Seed.

"The Void Seed has finally sprouted!"