Chapter 357: Azure Dragon Bloodline

With the resurgence of spiritual energy, the old order is crumbling; before a new order is established, the entire society will remain in turmoil and instability.

Under such harsh realities of survival, for ordinary people and even cultivators to stay alive and develop, the best approach is to join a major faction platform, seeking shelter and support; only then is it possible to preserve oneself amidst the turmoil and increase the hope of survival.

The Hua family now faces precisely this dilemma: insufficient strength to protect themselves amidst the chaos.

Above Xuanyuan Prefecture, Hua Changxi sat cross-legged upon spiritual clouds, silently observing the region below where infrastructure construction was proceeding in full swing.

She disliked being constrained; she did not wish to divert her attention to worrying about the safety of the Hua family whenever she acted or made decisions, nor did she want her relatives to suffer innocent repercussions because of her.

To some extent, the Hua family had become her weakness.

Yet she was unwilling to step forward as the Hua family's guardian, unwilling to waste time and energy protecting them.

Thus, to ensure the Hua family's stability and peace, she could only seek external assistance.

On the Central Continent, judging by current circumstances, the top ten powers should be Xuanyuan Prefecture, the Five Sacred Lands, and the Four Elephant Cities.

Arranging for the Hua family to join one of these factions to gain protection was the best solution she could currently devise.

Among the Four Elephant Cities, apart from some activity in Southern Elephant City, the other three had not shown even a whisper of movement.

Hua Changxi had considered arranging for the Hua family to enter the Lingguang Hall or the blessed lands within the Southern Elephant City under her control, but she quickly dismissed the idea.

At this stage, Southern Elephant City, where cultivators and demon beasts gathered, was far too dangerous.

As for the four Sacred Lands of Pill, Artifact, Talisman, and Formation, each emphasized specific cultivator talents and spiritual roots; since the Hua family members possessed varied talents and roots, it would be difficult to accept them all.

Therefore, the best destinations for the Hua family were the Central Sacred Land and Xuanyuan Prefecture.

Hua Changxi had wished to negotiate a deal with Wei Zhenjie to place the Hua family within the Central Sacred Land, but unfortunately, Wei Zhenjie was absent.

Nowadays, only Xuanyuan Prefecture remained.

Hua Changxi had been sitting cross-legged above Xuanyuan Prefecture for nearly half an hour; she was hesitating.

To arrange for the Hua family to enter Xuanyuan Prefecture, she would need to offer something of corresponding value.

As it happened, she actually possessed such a thing.

While battling the Xuanyuan Sword, she had been pulled into an ancient battlefield where external realm cultivators invaded; during that time, she saw a golden Qilin seal struck flying.

If her guess was correct, that must have been the city lord's seal of Xuanyuan City.

She believed that exchanging the location of the city lord's seal for the qualification for the Hua family to enter Xuanyuan Prefecture was a deal the Five Generals of Xuanyuan would absolutely not refuse.

However, Xuanyuan City bore the fortune of the human race, and the selection of its city lord was of grave importance; she feared her actions might trigger some adverse consequences.

"Hmm?"

Just as Hua Changxi hesitated, ripples spread across the barrier of Xuanyuan Prefecture, and the next moment, two familiar figures emerged from the barrier.

Dongfang Hao and Dongfang Xu!

How were they here?

No, the question should be: how did the Five Generals of Xuanyuan allow them to enter Xuanyuan Prefecture?

The moment Dongfang Hao exited Xuanyuan Prefecture, he sensed a gaze fixed upon him; lifting his head, he looked directly into the high sky, his divine sense piercing through the spiritual clouds to 'see' Hua Changxi sitting cross-legged above.

Seeing that Dongfang Hao had discovered her, Hua Changxi raised an eyebrow; deciding to hide no longer, she flashed forward and landed directly before Dongfang Hao and Dongfang Xu.

"Peak Master Hua!"

Hua Changxi's sudden descent not only startled Dongfang Xu but also nearly caused the Demon-Suppressing Army guarding the Xuanyuan Prefecture barrier to draw their blades.

"What are you two doing here?"

Hua Changxi smiled at the Dongfang brothers before her; although the two had appeared with the Xia family at the Medical Bureau, unlike Meng Qingyao, Xia Ziyang, and others, these brothers did not possess a particularly strong presence.

At this moment, the spiritual energy surrounding both of them was somewhat chaotic, as if they had just finished battling.

Five-colored spiritual light flickered in Hua Changxi's eyes as she activated her Eye of Truth; the next moment, her pupils trembled violently.

A vivid, green-scaled, flowing-light Azure Dragon phantom coiled around Dongfang Hao.

She still remembered that when she first met Dongfang Hao, her Eye of Truth was not yet perfected, so she had been unable to discern his constitution; now, she finally saw it clearly.

Dongfang Hao actually possessed the Azure Dragon bloodline, and the degree of ancestral regression was extremely high!

This discovery made Hua Changxi's heart beat uncontrollably.

Just moments ago, she had felt that the other Elephant Cities showed no movement, yet now she encountered someone possessing the Azure Dragon bloodline.

Based on her own experience controlling Lingguang Hall and the Zhu Que Army, she could not help but suspect that the Mengzhang Hall and the Azure Dragon Army had also emerged, though outsiders remained unaware.

Dongfang Hao disliked the way Hua Changxi looked at him; it always gave him an awkward sense of being completely seen through from inside out, along with a feeling of crisis.

Noticing his elder brother frowning, Dongfang Xu immediately laughed heartily at Hua Changxi: "Then, Peak Master Hua, why are you here?"

Hearing the question, Hua Changxi withdrew her gaze.

Now she was certain that the spiritual energy in both brothers' dantians was nearly exhausted; they must have fought within Xuanyuan Prefecture.

Seeing Hua Changxi did not respond, Dongfang Xu smiled again: "Everyone thought Peak Master Hua was severely injured by Duke Liang, but judging by current appearances, those rumors are wildly inaccurate."

Hua Changxi looked at the brothers: "I was indeed injured, but I have recovered."

Dongfang Hao looked at her: "Has Peak Master Hua come to request an audience with the Five Generals of Xuanyuan?"

Hua Changxi replied: "Yes. Duke Liang's residence oppressed the Hua family; I have come to ask the Five Generals of Xuanyuan to uphold justice for me."

Dongfang Hao: "..."

Dongfang Xu scratched his head: "...Doesn't this kind of matter fall outside the jurisdiction of the Xuanyuan Army?"

Hua Changxi looked at him: "Why was I pursued by Duke Liang? It was because I found Xuanyuan Prefecture. In other words, my family and I suffered disaster because of Xuanyuan Prefecture. Tell me, shouldn't Xuanyuan Prefecture handle our family's affairs?"

Dongfang Xu actually felt this reasoning made perfect sense: "This..."

Seeing his foolish younger brother about to meddle in matters between Hua Changxi and the Xuanyuan Army, Dongfang Hao quickly restrained him, then said to Hua Changxi: "In that case, we shall not disturb Peak Master Hua from seeking justice from the Five Generals of Xuanyuan; we will take our leave first."

Watching the brothers depart, Hua Changxi's eyes flashed with light.

Since a person possessing the Azure Dragon bloodline has appeared, what about those with the White Tiger and Black Tortoise bloodlines? Have they emerged as well?

Hua Changxi withdrew her gaze and walked toward the Demon-Suppressing Army stationed at the Xuanyuan Prefecture barrier: "Please convey a message; Hua Changxi requests an audience with the Five Generals."

The Demon-Suppressing Army commander rejected her directly: "We are not responsible for conveying messages."

Hua Changxi frowned, thinking he was deliberately making things difficult for her: "Then how did those two people get in just now?"

The Demon-Suppressing Army general replied: "Those two contacted General Huo before entering the residence; it was General Huo who came out personally to escort them in."

After hearing this, Hua Changxi fell silent for a moment: "I cannot contact the five generals directly, so I must trouble you, General, to pass the message for me." Seeing him about to refuse again, she added directly, "I found this place; if I could enter once, I can enter a second time."

Upon hearing these words, the Demon-Suppressing Army general knit his brows, looked at Hua Changxi in silence for a while, then took out a palm-sized rectangular piece of white jade that resembled a 'mobile phone,' fiddled with it for a moment, and said to Hua Changxi: "I have contacted the five generals; just wait."

Seeing that he had passed the message, Hua Changxi felt relieved, then shifted her gaze to the white jade in his hand and asked curiously: "General, is this a message stone of the Xuanyuan Army?"

The Demon-Suppressing Army general was somewhat surprised that she did not recognize the object in his hand: "This is a new spiritual artifact refined two years ago by the Artifact Sage Palace, named One-Thought Connect; it can be used to transmit both messages and images."

"Nowadays, any cultivator with even slightly ample funds uses this to transmit messages; it is far quicker and more convenient than the former message talismans or message stones."

Hearing this, Hua Changxi's eyes brightened; Tong Yao had indeed managed to craft a cultivation-world version of the 'mobile phone.'

"Buzz~"

The Demon-Suppressing Army general's 'mobile phone' vibrated.

The Demon-Suppressing Army general glanced at the information displayed on the 'One-Thought Connect' and said to Hua Changxi: "The five generals have agreed to see you; you may enter."