Chapter 297: The Origin of the Ancestral Dragon's Nine Sons and the Mastery of the Supreme Treasure, the Dragon Gate

Dongting Dragon Palace.

In the center of the great hall, Fang Longye's eyes flickered with uncertainty; clearly, he, a man in the late stages of paranoid personality disorder, was having another episode.

Fortunately, he soon pulled himself out of it.

"It makes no sense! Why would Yinglong Laozu plot against me? There's absolutely no reason!"

Fang Longye thought to himself.

"If she wanted to bind me completely to the Dragon Clan, the best way would not be to have me entrust my entire fortune to the Dragon Clan."

"Instead, it would be to induce me to use the Dragon Clan's resources as much as possible; under such karma, I would naturally be completely bound to the Dragon Clan."

Even now, he was a bona fide member of the Dragon Clan, and he could not simply ignore certain Dragon Clan affairs.

"Damn it!"

Fang Longye cursed inwardly, realizing he had been overthinking—at the same time,

Yinglong Laozu saw his reaction and, thinking he was merely worried about his own natal fortune, immediately began to comfort him.

She pointed to the "Young Lord Yuanlong Seal" in Fang Longye's hand and chuckled, "Do not worry about this—"

"You already possess quite a few Merit Treasures to suppress yourself, and with this Young Lord Seal in hand, even if this external fortune is surging and fierce, it will not be enough to wash away and collapse your internal fortune—"

"Take your time to adjust it in the future. The external fortune brought to you by this position of Young Lord will gradually tend toward stability and will no longer be like this."

"Besides—"

She stroked the Jade Ruyi and smiled, "While these external fortunes strengthen your overall fortune, they will also continuously nourish your internal fortune."

"It can be said that there are great benefits."

Fang Longye nodded to show he understood.

Having shaken off his paranoid personality disorder, he naturally knew that every word Yinglong Laozu said was true.

A person's fortune, simply put, can be divided into three aspects: Heavenly Luck, external fortune, and internal fortune.

Heavenly Luck, as the name implies, is favored by Heaven and Earth, with great fortune naturally descending upon one's person.

For instance, the Merit and Luck that Fang Longye previously obtained by exchanging items from other worlds through his Golden Finger was what is called Heavenly Luck.

Actually, this is not much.

Some people are born favored by Heaven, possessing great fortune even while in the womb. That is what is truly called Heavenly Luck—Heaven bestowing its fortune.

A typical representative of this is that Monkey King, Sun Wukong!

Conceived from the pure essence of Heaven and Earth, nurtured by the sun and moon over a long period, his body was favored by Heavenly Luck, which was simply enviable.

Had he not been plotted against, he would likely have reached the Great Luo realm with smooth sailing all the way.

Even so, he only suffered some tribulations, and in the end, he still attained the true fruit, ranking as the Douzhan Shengfo.

External fortune, on the other hand, is gathered from the masses; for example, an increase in status, the protection of a force behind one, or the support of subordinates—in any case, it originates from the outside.

This part has large fluctuations and many variables; it is like the rising and falling of the tide, the most unstable.

Just like now—

The fortune brought by the position of Young Lord of the Dragon Clan seems vast and imposing.

But as long as Yinglong Laozu gives an order to remove his position as Young Lord, he would return to his original state overnight, ending up with nothing but a bamboo basket to draw water.

Perhaps it might even implicate his fortune in other areas, causing him to lose even more.

"When the time comes, Heaven and Earth exert their strength together; when luck departs, the hero is not free"—this refers to external fortune.

And in daily life, when people speak of suppressing fortune, it is this part of fortune that is being suppressed.

As for internal fortune, which is the so-called natal fortune, it can be said to be the most important.

Internal fortune is not bestowed by Heaven, nor is it gathered from the masses; it is determined by the cultivator's own strength and foundation, making it the most solid.

Heavenly Luck is bestowed by Heaven; it may be consumed or have periodic fluctuations.

External fortune, needless to say, is the part of fortune most affected by external factors.

Only internal fortune, with one's own strength as the root, mixed with one's origin, status, etc., will only rise as the water rises, climbing step by step as long as strength and foundation continue to increase.

It is extremely difficult, almost impossible, for others to influence, stop, or cut it off.

In other words, for a cultivator, internal fortune is the most fundamental; Heavenly Luck and external fortune are of great help to cultivation, but they are not reliable.

Therefore, besides being used for consumption and blessing, Heavenly Luck and external fortune can also be used to nourish one's own internal fortune, that is, one's natal fortune.

And Fang Longye's initial plan for the one-ten-thousandth of the Dragon Clan's fortune that he could mobilize was to use it to nourish his own internal fortune.

In this way, the karma with the Dragon Clan would be minimal.

In any case, unless it was a last resort, he would not consume the Dragon Clan's fortune for cultivation.

Just using it to bless himself was enough.

At the very least, with a great rise in fortune, the probability of encountering opportunities and good fortune would certainly be much higher. Perhaps he could also enjoy the treatment of "opportunities coming to him on their own."

"By the way—" While deep in thought, Fang Longye suddenly recalled something; he raised his eyes to look at Yinglong Laozu, feeling rather apprehensive.

It was because he was unsure whether Yinglong Laozu actually cared about the process by which he obtained these Merit Treasures in his hands.

She probably didn't care.

But that was just his guess.

"What is it?"

Seeing Fang Longye's gaze, Yinglong Laozu was stunned for a moment, then immediately understood that he was worried she would settle scores later.

She burst into laughter.

"Haha! Rest assured—this palace is not that narrow-minded. That you could obtain these from that old Monkey is your own ability—"

Yinglong Laozu laughed again and again.

Clearly, she was not entirely ignorant of Fang Longye's past.

Fang Longye hesitated, wanting to ask about the situation regarding the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon.

It was just that he did not know how to bring it up.

Seeing this expression on him, Yinglong Laozu raised her slender eyebrows and said lightly, "Are you intending to ask me about the matter of the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon?"

"Laozu is wise!"

After clarifying Fang Longye's thoughts.

Yinglong Laozu was silent for a moment, her gaze like water, appearing to reflect a distant past, a look of contemplation on her face as she clearly reminisced about the past.

After a long while, she spoke softly, as if sighing with emotion: "The nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon, ah~"

The lingering sound remained, long and unending, carrying memories of years gone by~ She collected her thoughts, looked at Fang Longye, and said with a smile that was not quite a smile: "If this were before the last epoch, for an act like yours of coveting the origin of the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon, even if you carry the legacy of Xihuang, I would have fought you to the death."

This tone was calm, yet it made Fang Longye shiver involuntarily.

"Few people know that, in fact, before I attained the Dao, the Ancestral Dragon did not have these nine sons of varied forms."

"The birth of the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon was entirely influenced by my Great Dao after I attained the Dao."

"You also know that my Great Dao upholds the principle of all things turning into dragons, and dragons giving birth to all things."

"And this principle, as my realm grew, spread to all space and time in the past and future. In the end, it directly distorted the past."

"Only then did the Ancestral Dragon give birth to Qiuniu and the others."

Hearing this, Fang Longye was dumbfounded.

Although he knew that for those above the Daluo, their own Great Dao was imprinted on the past and future, and with a wave of their hands, like splashing ink on a painting, they could rewrite everything.

But to be able to directly influence a Great Divine Ability like the Ancestral Dragon, as Yinglong Laozu did, still felt inconceivable.

Seeing his expression, Yinglong Laozu shook her head and explained: "It is not as powerful as you imagine; it was only because I was in a later age, and the Ancestral Dragon had already fallen in the present world, that it was so easy." "That is still the boundless divine might of Laozu~" Fang Longye hurriedly flattered.

Facing his flattery, Yinglong Laozu ignored him and said faintly: "Now, you understand the significance of the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon to me, right?"

"I understand~" Fang Longye said, feeling uneasy.

These nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon are less 'nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon' and more 'nine sons of Yinglong'.

In essence, they are no different from Qiantang Longjun and the other first-generation River Dragon Lords; they are all products of Yinglong Laozu manifesting her own Great Dao.

They represent a verification and manifestation of the Great Dao.

It is just that they are more important~

They are equivalent to a foundation manifestation of Yinglong Laozu's Great Dao in the present world, especially since it involves past time, and it has its own profound mysteries.

It is not something the current him can understand or penetrate.

But there was one point that Fang Longye understood in his heart.

That is, the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon are very important to Yinglong Laozu's Great Dao.

If they were to cease to exist, although it would not cause Yinglong Laozu any damage, it is clear that it would affect the progress of her Great Dao.

How could this not make Fang Longye uneasy? Seeing his unease, Yinglong shook her head and laughed, saying: "Fortunately, I have long since passed the stage where I needed them as my Dao markers."

"As long as the fact that the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon were born remains unchanged, whether the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon in the present world live or die is no longer that important~"

Yinglong Laozu then smiled, graceful and luxurious, and said: "I did not manage them before because I wanted to use them as tools to hinder the return of the Ancestral Dragon."

"But you also know~"

Her gaze was distant, looking at the surging Yellow River and the Yu Huang Nine Tripods that were emitting arrogant roars in the dark.

"Now someone has employed means to reverse them into tools for welcoming the return of the Ancestral Dragon."

Speaking of this,

She suddenly turned her head, looked at Fang Longye, waved her sleeve, and smiled brightly: "Since you want these nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon, then I shall grant them to you!"

Fang Longye hurriedly thanked her.

After Yinglong Laozu accepted it calmly, she adjusted her hair, a faint smile appearing on her face, and said: "No need for thanks! However, I will not say more about the matter of the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon!"

"For now, your strength is still too weak; if you want to scheme against the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon, you had better put it aside for now!"

Fang Longye nodded to show he understood.

He had self-awareness.

Do not look at how the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon have always been at the mercy of others, with both Yinglong Laozu and the high-level Human Race treating them as tools.

But that does not mean that the nine sons of the Ancestral Dragon will be kittens in front of a Golden Immortal shrimp like him.

Afterwards, Yinglong Laozu stretched and looked at Fang Longye.

Raising her slender eyebrows, she said meaningfully: "What you need to do right now is not anything else, but to use the resources in your hands to grow as quickly as possible."

"I will not hide it from you, although I have conferred upon you the title of Young Lord of the Dragon Clan, it does not mean that you can truly sit back and relax in this position!"

"The principle of virtue not matching one's position is quite prevalent even in our Dragon Clan."

Yinglong Laozu said earnestly.

The Dragon Clan is not her personal domain.

She is indeed the strongest among the Dragon Clan now, but that does not mean she can ignore the opinions of other Daluo of the Dragon Clan.

Moreover, the Daluo are easier to deal with; as existences who can overlook the long river of time, they can basically understand her actions.

But those of the Taiyi Realm are hard to say.

As a Great Divine Ability who illuminates the universe, she knows that when she announced it to the heavens, a considerable portion of the Taiyi Realm Dragon Clan had many complaints about Fang Longye's ascension.

Among them, the Taiyi Dragon Clan who fought in the worlds beyond under the leadership of the Daluo were the most dissatisfied.

It is understandable; they shed blood and sacrificed for the Dragon Clan, only for an unknown Young Lord to be parachuted in.

Who wouldn't have an opinion? Especially when this Young Lord is only a Golden Immortal.

And he is not even a direct descendant cultivated by the clan, but a wild dragon who recognized his ancestors halfway through.

This is even more controversial! This portion of the Taiyi Realm Dragon Clan dared not have complaints against her, the clan leader, so the pent-up fire naturally had to be directed at Fang Longye~ Hearing Yinglong Laozu's words, Fang Longye's thoughts turned, and he understood the general situation, immediately his heart tightened, not daring to be careless.

However, he had no fear, and said decisively: "I hope Laozu can rest assured, Yuanlong will certainly not fail Laozu's high expectations!"

Just kidding~

Having come this far, with so many resources poured into him, if he still couldn't suppress the criticisms of some people within the Dragon Clan, he might as well just slit his own throat! If he couldn't even withstand the probing and suppression from his own people, how could he expect to compete with others in the outside world?

How could he even talk about attaining the Great Dao of Daluo? Or speak of looking toward the Hunyuan? Not to mention seizing opportunities in this great era to ascend to the peak of immortality~ Did he really think that by relying on the title of successor to the legacy of Xihuang, he could make people yield all the way to the peak?

Let alone the peak of the Great Dao~ Once he advances to Taiyi Golden Immortal, the situation he faces will absolutely change drastically~ The cake is only so big; if you eat one more piece here, I will eat one less piece there.

It is fine when there are no conflicts of interest; everyone is a decent person, and the ways of the world are still observed.

But once interests are involved, no one will ever show him mercy just because he has connections with big shots like Hongyun and Xihuang.

They will strike to kill just the same.

Especially at the final stage of attaining the Great Dao of Daluo, no one's face is worth anything.

Did he really think that in the Honghuang world, one could just cultivate in carefree leisure?

Honghuang also has the contention of the Great Dao.

Seeing the firm look in Fang Longye's eyes, Yinglong Laozu nodded and said, "Very good! If you don't even have this much self-confidence, you might as well abdicate and let someone more worthy take your place!"

"Of course~"

She paused, then continued, "After all, you are the Young Lord of the Dragon Clan that I have personally appointed, so the support you should have will still be there~"

Having said that, she flipped her right hand, and within her palm, seven-colored, misty, and brilliant light appeared, accompanied by the sound of a dragon's roar, revealing a stone gate.

"This is... the Dragon Gate?"

Fang Longye looked at this stone gate.

He said with some uncertainty.

It was truly very different from what he had previously seen at Long Xuan's place. Except for the consistent Aura, they were fundamentally two different appearances.

But looking at this stone gate, it was ancient, simple, and imposing, not at all as ornate and exquisite as before.

On the two stone pillars, both were carved with the forms of five-clawed Yinglong, baring fangs and brandishing claws, soaring into the sky, with their heads facing each other in the center of the stone gate.

Together with a purple-gold Dragon Pearl in the middle, they formed the posture of two dragons playing with a pearl.

The entire stone gate surged with Dragon Qi, making one feel an urge to prostrate and worship.

"So this is the true appearance of this supreme treasure?" Fang Longye thought to himself.

He realized that the image of the Dragon Gate he had seen earlier was likely its state after being activated by Dharma power.

"That's right, it is indeed the 'Dragon Gate'."

Yinglong Laozu tossed it casually, and Fang Longye hurriedly caught it; it was extremely heavy, almost pressing him to the ground, and he had no way to control it at all.

Fortunately, the 'Young Lord Yuanlong Seal' tied to his waist stirred, drawing out an inexplicable light that wrapped around a wisp of his divine sense and cast it into the Dragon Gate.

It instantly became light, and he was able to control it.

Yinglong Laozu waved the Jade Ruyi in her hand, and Divine Light shimmered, with Golden Flower and tassels appearing continuously.

"This Dragon Gate is my treasure of attainment, ranking supreme within the Dragon Clan; from now on, it is handed over to you, the Young Lord of the Dragon Clan, to wield~"

"Remember not to abuse it!"

(End of chapter)