Chapter 1548

The blood river surged.

The Great Li transformed into a rainbow, the dream kingdom became broader, more complete, and full of life, while the Heavenly Fire Sect was completely stalled.

The door was half-closed, bumping against the wall in the wind, weeds everywhere, red spider lilies planted in the fields, untended, the village empty everywhere.

Ordinary people were burned clean by the Taizu of Great Li, like an ant nest with only the queen left, dragging her swollen abdomen, struggling forward, the cave behind filled with spiderwebs, chunks collapsed.

"What a pity…… it should have been a prosperous great world, taking in wandering souls, the heavens and earth, the river realms—none compare."

Returning to the old place, Liang Qu sighed, walking silently on the field ridge, recalling the past.

When Long Eying first spoke of her parents, she said they died in the last major conflict between the dragon people and the snake tribe.

His memory was still fairly clear.

The dragon people, dragon sturgeon tribe, and snakes, iron-head fish tribe, had clashed more than once. The Dragon Lord vanished a hundred years ago, the flood dragon took over the Long Gong before the sexagenary cycle, afterward the dragon people launched several counterattacks, Eying's parents died in the last conflict, roughly thirty years ago, situated between the flood dragon's takeover of the Long Gong and Liang Qu's contact with the dragon people.

Afterward, the two tribes were reduced to a few stray cats, one hiding in the Dragon Abyss, one as a heavenly water morning dew, panting, pouring out in full force.

But that was already twenty years ago.

Now everything must be shifted back twenty years; fortunately, twenty years is not long. Stepping onto the Heavenly Fire Sect on Cloud-Upper Immortal Island, almost no one remained.

Wu Lingxu and Fei Taiyu sat head-down in meditation, no longer paying attention to outside developments, utterly unaware of the uninvited guests, the various disciples had scattered and fled within two months, desolate indeed.

Entered the central courtyard hall.

Footsteps stopped.

Inside the hall, monks with disheveled hair, eight figures, each making different hand seals, holding different ritual implements, occasionally shaking violently, faintly able to hear indistinct muttering.

"Yo, isn't this the Lotus Great Scholar? Haven't seen you in two months, so thin?"

Liang Qu originally intended to go up and greet him like that, but after thinking, worried the monk would go mad and cling to him, so he didn't, instead crouching down to listen carefully to the muttering.

"Hehe, haha, I have guided forth a god!"

"I have guided forth a god!"

"Liang Qu, if you anger me, I will spare no cost, destroy the human realm."

"..."

After a long silence, Liang Qu stood up, continued walking deeper. He had more important matters.

Dead dragon people cannot be found simply by searching in the dream kingdom; they may not reincarnate, as seen from their mass, those able to move freely are forever only a small part of the dead; they are more often turned into blood treasures, becoming small units in world construction.

Need to go deeper, to excavate and restore.

The Earth's Storehouse completely occupied the dream kingdom, firmly suppressing it, Pangu split open all obstacles, indirectly mastering world authority.

"Ordinary people half a year, four passes a year, galloping horse three years…… the realm of Entering Zhen Xiang has increased not a little, able to retain two sexagenary cycles?"

Slowly, some dragon people distinct from ordinary Entering Zhen Xiang emerged.

Dragon people belong to the "mixed-blood," their qi characteristics obvious.

"Dug up!"

The number is astonishing.

After screening all, there are actually over one hundred and sixty Entering Zhen Xiang-level dragon people!

"Strange, not few."

Liang Qu was startled. One hundred and sixty dragon people alone, plus dragon sturgeon, shouldn't it be double?

Just by number, enough to see a prosperous Jianghuai era.

Thinking of it, I feel excited, not knowing how my father-in-law and mother-in-law view me, this rainbow-transforming son-in-law.

"I don't know what Long Eying's parents look like…… on qi they should be similar to the Great Elder Long Chen and Eying, father has both ends touched, mother is a first-generation dragon person, so I can only base it on Eying……" Liang Qu pondered.

Long Eying's side has little parent information, while the Great Elder Long Chen's side has much.

Dragon people's strength depends entirely on bloodline.

The Great Elder is the leader of the elderly generation.

Eying's parents, Long You and Long Xi Ti, are the military leaders of the middle generation, excellent bloodline, status equal to the youth Eying, Yanrui, and Binglin.

Long You is the son of the Great Elder, Eying's biological father, a pure second-generation dragon person combining one generation and another, yet having received two essences-blood grants, bloodline potential not weaker than the first, even stronger.

Long Xi Ti is thoroughly a first-generation dragon person.

Thus, Long Eying is nominally third-generation, but actually her bloodline is stronger than some second- and first-generations; Long Binglin and Long Yanrui can stand out, their experiences are no different from this.

Reviving all dragon people at once is certainly convenient, but, many people inevitably cause chaos, better to revive two first, then have them lead and help explain the rest. Following this clue, after searching half a day, Liang Qu narrowed the range, locked onto two targets.

"Anyway, all need reviving, might as well try."

Reached out and firmly grasped, pulled hard!

At some corner of the world, dug out and refilled, the essential source rapidly transformed and reorganized, tracing back, seizing time.

Transform the false into the real!

Two human forms instantly materialized……

Anger!

Boundless anger!

"Scale exhausted!!!"

In the void, born was a fierce color.

Long You's eyes turned red, surging with intense grief and indignation, like a volcano about to erupt, yet before it could burst, everything already fell back, the emptiness and hollowness deep in the heart rapidly inverted, as if a crack had opened somewhere, no target, all emotions surging out.

Anger and emptiness intertwined, head dizzy, vision blurred. Long You supported his forehead, gazed at the blood-red heaven and earth, impact strong, eyes wide open.

"This…… this is where?"

The blood river flowed.

Is it all the clan's blood?

Long You panicked, breath short, he clearly fought Scale Exhausted, last was half his body cut off by Scale Exhausted, father wanted to save……

Could it be that, at the final moment, Father successfully saved him?

Long You was stunned, and lowered his head.

Suddenly, his peripheral vision caught something; he looked over abruptly, and his whole being was thoroughly shocked.

"Xi Ti?!"

Long You involuntarily retreated two steps; very quickly he realized something, and hurriedly stepped forward again, but any further and he was at a loss, hands trembling, wanting to touch yet not daring, as if afraid that what lay before him was a dream that would shatter upon contact.

"You?"

Long Xi Ti's eyelashes trembled; she opened her eyes, and at a glance saw the at-a-loss Long You, instinctively responding. "I, it's me!"

Long You was excited, at a loss, and even more completely bewildered.

Surviving himself was already thanks to Father saving his unconscious self at the final juncture; but what about Xi Ti? She clearly perished before his eyes, he watched with his own eyes as her vital breath vanished entirely; how could this be, how could this be?

An illusion, a trap, a feigned death...

Long Xi Ti was utterly bewildered; seeing Long You, she instinctively raised her hand.

Long You subconsciously moved to meet it, then immediately pulled back, but ultimately couldn't hold back, and made contact.

Fingertip touched fingertip.

Soft.

Warm.

Pliable fingertip pads pressed against each other; at first the force was light, able to feel the friction of fingerprints, then they pressed tightly together, able to sense the bones, hard, wrapped beneath the softness.

It was this feeling, it was this feeling.

Long You shed tears. Dream, hallucination, deathbed recollection...

Whatever it was, none of it mattered, as long as he could, as long as he could touch her one last time.

"You..."

Long Xi Ti's eyelashes trembled; the blankness in her eyes gradually faded, and she smiled as she wiped the tears from Long You's cheek. Although she didn't understand what was going on, this scene before her, no matter how you looked at it, wasn't bad at all.

If only E Ying were here.

Long Xi Ti thought to herself.

She's still so small, home alone; would she be afraid at night...

"Cough!"

The tender sentiment dissipated entirely.

Long You's hair stood on end; he abruptly turned around, his back blocking Long Xi Ti, arms spread as he retreated backward, like a mother hen protecting a chick, and demanded sternly, "Who are you?"

"Who are you?"

Long Xi Ti grabbed Long You's arm, trying to press it down, but found she couldn't budge it no matter what; calmly she said: "You, don't be tense; it should be him who helped us husband and wife reunite. I remember, I clearly already died." Long You froze for a moment.

Liang Qu's eyes lit up.

Mother-in-law is clever.

Father-in-law is just so-so.

In terms of looks, E Ying should have inherited from the mother-in-law; not saying Long You is ugly, but if she inherited from Long You, she probably wouldn't have reached the current level.

Long Xi Ti continued: "You, since you're here, it should be the same as me, right? Being able to let us husband and wife reunite, whatever the reason, right now it's all good; why not listen first, perhaps we can understand the cause?"

Long You fell silent for a moment.

He...

Died?

Struggling to recall the final memory, a segment of terrifying memory suppressed in the deepest depths jumped out again — not Lin Jie carving away half of him, but...

His head.

Long You stared blankly, lowered his head and clenched his hands, full of bewilderment. So it was true, he...

Really died.

"Xi Ti, you're right." Long You took a deep breath, lowered his arms, all hostility throughout his body completely dispersing, and looked toward Liang Qu again, sizing up this youth who looked unexpectedly young. "Then, my lord, can you tell us exactly what happened? Where is this, the Netherworld Underworld? And what's the situation with me and Xi Ti?"

Long Xi Ti bowed deeply: "Please, Mr., resolve the confusion for us husband and wife."

Liang Qu shifted slightly to the side, avoiding it.

Long Xi Ti's eyes flashed.

The now-calm Long You also detected the situation; his eyes revealed surprise, his mind searching — did he know this person?

"Ha!" Liang Qu scratched the back of his head, grinned, "First time meeting, pretty awkward, didn't know what to say all of a sudden, but since you both have memories of the final moment, you should be able to guess — you two have already... perished."

Long Xi Ti had anticipated this; she took a deep breath: "So, this really is the Netherworld Underworld?"

"Counts as." Liang Qu nodded.

Long You asked urgently: "Then how's the battle situation with the snake clan? Was the Jiao Dragon driven away?"

"Ma! This I actually don't understand too well, but the post-war outcome is clear — only one Grand Elder and one Second Elder are Entering Zhen Xiang, the rest are all Hunting Tiger, and the Hunting Tiger aren't especially numerous either, sheltered by the Turtle King and Frog King in the southwestern waters' junction." "Two, two Entering Zhen Xiang?"

Long You's eyes went wide; he collapsed onto the ground.

Fortunately Long Xi Ti reached out and caught him; after a silence she said: "Then who is this Mr.?"

"Cough." Liang Qu covered his mouth, another tactical cough. "As for me, I roughly count as you two's..."

Eyes darting left and right, simultaneously scanning a full circle.

"Son-in-law?"

The enormous grief was toppled by a single sentence that came out of nowhere.

Long You looked up, dumbfounded.

Long Xi Ti: "?"

Long Xi Ti's brain spun rapidly, searching for homophones of "son-in-law", wondering if she had misheard.

Finally discovered...

No. Not a single word close to "son-in-law" fits the current context.

Combined with Liang Qu earlier avoiding bowing, the two gradually went blank in their minds.

Son-in-law? Is it Long Eying? But Long Eying is only four years old? Even counting nominal age...

Brainstormed for a long time.

Long You rubbed, generating unnamed fire, clenched his fists—could it be that the clan married off their daughter with some child engagement to a human second generation for blessings, exchanging for survival space? Long maidens are beautiful, often coveted, even a four- or five-year-old girl is too...

This person even has short hair! Who knows if they committed crimes and served time.

"Have we been dead for a long time?" Long Xiti suddenly asked.

Liang Qu was truly startled.

Beiting Xianzhi Jiang just wanted to have fun; true intelligence still depends on the mother-in-law.

He raised his thumb: "Mother-in-law, you're amazing!"

Long Xiti felt embarrassed for a moment.

In memory, Long Eying was clearly only four or five years old; back then, the dragon people fled east and west, she gave birth in haste, caring for her was already difficult, never imagined her daughter's future wedding scene, suddenly such a grown son-in-law appeared—hard to adapt. Long Xiti tugged Long You again. Long You was dazed, pondered twice, then came to his senses: "So, Long Eying has grown up now? Can we discuss marriage?"

"Exactly, the Grand Elder has already agreed. The two of you actually fell long ago—already... over forty years, but due to death, there's no intermediate memory."

Over forty years?

Really... such a long period of time.

Long Xiti grieved.

Long You dazedly wondered if he had perfectly missed his daughter's life? And then inexplicably gained a grown son-in-law?

The two suddenly had too many, too many problems.

"Since the Grand Elder agrees, it must be an excellent match." Long Xiti quickly composed herself, smiling, "What's your name, young sir?"

"Liang Qu."

"Good name."

Liang Qu grinned: "No wonder, the Sacred Emperor once orally commanded praise for me, saying I am a bridge-builder, a canal-digger."

"Pillar of talent, truly excellent!" Long Xiti caught the implied meaning, joined in praise, "How old are you this year?" "Thirty-three."

Long Xiti was even more surprised—so young, thirty-three and already receiving the Sacred Emperor's oral command?

Though I don't know which emperor reigns now, but whoever it is, it carries weight.

Moreover, I've been dead for over forty years—Liang Qu must be much younger than Long Eying?

Then...

Long Xiti worried Liang Qu was some second-generation nobody who came from somewhere, taken by Long Eying's beauty, hearing his description, the dragon people are already in peril—if it's for protection, then they'd have to...

"So you're not a dragon person?" Long You sized him up.

"Indeed not, a native of Jianghuai Pingyang, oh, now Pingyang, formerly called Huayin."

"Huayin? Huayin Prefecture? I have a vague impression—I said you're so short, if you're human, that's passable."

Liang Qu: "..."

Long You continued sighing: "It's a pity you're not a dragon person—originally bloodline thin... without defeating the flood dragon, we can't possibly defect..."

Long Xiti jabbed Long You: "Haha, rest assured, before death, I was indeed obsessed with dragon bloodline continuation, but after dying once, I've let go, consider myself open-minded—as long as you two are in love... wait!" Long You suddenly realized something was wrong: "You said this is the underworld, I died, but how can you see me? You, you also died?"

Long Xiti followed with her gaze.

She was equally curious, just didn't know how to ask at first.

"No, I'm not dead—this isn't Long Eying's enthronement ceremony coming up soon, and in two months it's my and her wedding, bringing back the fallen father-in-law and mother-in-law to attend together!"

"?"

"?"

This guy, what is he talking about?

Long Xiti tried to think, then thought failed, her mind slowly smoking.

"What are you talking about?" Long You bluntly said, "I can't understand."

"Eh, this, actually it's a long story—find a dragon to tell you, back then we were acquaintances, credibility would be higher?"

Liang Qu raised his hand and lifted—a azure dragon, white mist surging all over its body, was grasped in his hand.

The Flood Dragon King was forcibly split apart, barely breathing, dazed, no trace of dignity left. Yet the residual terrifying aura, just a thread, made Long You and Long Xiti suffocate, instinctive fear.

Dragon!

True Dragon!

Long Xiti's pupils dilated, firmly believing she wouldn't mistake it.

Such a terrifying creature, simply held in Liang Qu's hand! Like grabbing a chicken?

"What, what is this?" Long You exclaimed.

"Betrothal gift."

"?"

"?"

Long You always felt something was off everywhere, confused: "What betrothal gift?"

"Wedding betrothal gift, Father-in-law, didn't I just say I and Long Eying will marry?" He flicked his hand holding the 'long serpent'—"Flood Dragon! Jianghuai Flood Dragon, Father-in-law and Mother-in-law didn't recognize it? Back then, it was this flood dragon's underlings that harmed you, which I caught.

Oh, now it's changed a lot—after all, it transformed into a true dragon, plus some white mist swirling." Long You and Long Xiti recoiled in fear: "This is a flood dragon!?"

Long You stared wide-eyed, carefully looking—and actually saw a hint of flood dragon outline.

That lofty, cold-eyed, slaughtering clansmen, occupying the dragon palace—how could he forget that flood dragon!

Boundless terror, boundless rage.

"Right! Genuine article, hey, wake up, wake up, don't sleep!" Liang Qu gave the flood dragon two heavy slaps, fanning it awake, and jerked his chin toward Long You and Long Xiti, "These are my father-in-law and mother-in-law, dead forty-odd years, clueless now, you explain it."

Me?

Explain?

The flood dragon panted heavily, head splitting with pain, looked at Liang Qu, then turned to look at the bewildered, furious Long You and Long Xiti, understood, and found it amusing, suddenly speaking.

"He is Hua Hong."

Dead silence.

The blood tide stretched on endlessly, flowers swaying.

"What flower red?" Long You looked around, "Are the Red Spider Lilies planted here red?" Flood dragon: "..."

Liang Qu: "..."

Long Xiti's thoughts raced like lightning, heart shaking violently, carefully probing: "Skin, Flesh, Bone, Blood, Galloping Horse, Beacon Smoke, Hunting Tiger, Zhen Xiang, Perishing Dragon, Furnace, Hua Hong's... Hua Hong?"

Liang Qu gave a thumbs-up again: "Mother-in-law is formidable!"

"He at eighteen Hunting Tiger, twenty-two Zhen Xiang, twenty-seven Perishing Dragon, thirty-three, crossed the Furnace, leaped to Hua Hong... defeated the Great Li Taizu who schemed for ten thousand years and the Whale Emperor who schemed for thousands of years, capable of anything, revered by all, awe-inspiring, resurrected you, married your daughter, caught me as betrothal gift." As he spoke, the flood dragon himself laughed, looking at Long You and Long Xiti, "You two, understand now?"

So terrifying!

Long Xiti clenched Long You's arm tight.

Long You stared blankly for a long while, shook his head: "Didn't understand a single word."