C588 A Drop of Dragon Blood!

Outside the Sword Prison, a clear dragon's roar suddenly echoed from a small carriage suspended a hundred meters away from a silvery mountain peak. The mysterious woman concealed within the carriage briskly lifted the curtain and stepped out with confidence. Adorned in a golden dragon robe, her exquisite features exuded an air of indescribable nobility as she stood atop the floating carriage, her gem-like eyes piercing into the depths of the Sword Prison.

Her skin bore a rare purple-red hue, horns adorned her forehead, and the air around her was thick with dragon's breath. "Qiao Mizhen!" exclaimed Zhang Miao, a practitioner of the Nightbane's spell, upon catching sight of her. Zhao Jie's lips curled into a knowing smile. "You're mistaken."

Tan Yuan, Shen Feiqing, Yan Qiling, and others also gazed with curiosity at the enigmatic woman who had been guiding the carriage and had until now remained unseen. "A drop of my father's dragon blood has escaped from his body!" The mysterious woman inhaled deeply, her gaze lifting to the white robe hovering above. "Could my father perish within the Sword Prison?"

The blood ties of the Nagas were profoundly mysterious, and she, being his progeny, had keenly sensed the departure of Loong Jie's dragon blood. "Father, the dragon blood..." Zhang Miao's mind reeled for a moment before clarity dawned upon her.

Qiao Mizhen, of the Qiao family from the Empire of Dawn, was celebrated as a prodigious talent of her generation, rivaling only Chen Qingyan and Liu Ying. She had been the focus of the Empire's adulation and extensively promoted by the Qiao family. Zhang Miao had met her once before, leaving a lasting impression, which is why she recognized her immediately.

Yet, the Qiao Mizhen she knew had been declared dead by her family, a casualty of a Lunar Spirit possession gone awry. Zhang Miao's surprise stemmed from her belief that Qiao Mizhen was no longer among the living.

Earlier, at the forest's edge, General Lee Yuchan had lashed out at Yu Yuan in a fit of rage, claiming the mysterious woman was an acquaintance she recognized as Qiao Mizhen. Lee Yuchan had been determined to enter the carriage to verify if the Qiao Mizhen, declared deceased by her family, was indeed inside.

At that moment, Zhang Miao was astonished to see someone who should have been dead emerge from the suspended palanquin, standing atop it and speaking. She couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

However, as soon as Qiao Mizhen mentioned her father and the dragon's blood, Zhang Miao understood the situation.

The Qiao family from the Empire of Dawn had long been in cahoots with Dragon Lake. The exceptionally gifted Qiao Mizhen of this generation had been nurtured by Dragon Lake as a dragon whelp, with the Dragon Soul and dragon's breath seeded within her.

The fate of the dragon, whose real body was elsewhere, was uncertain—whether it had perished or suffered some unforeseen calamity.

Ultimately, the dragon parasitized Qiao Mizhen, using her blood, physique, and soul to resurrect itself.

Qiao Mizhen wasn't as fortunate as Zhao Yafu; she never encountered Yu Yuan.

Unlike the Zhao family, the Qiao family did not resist when they learned of the mishap with the dragon whelp implanted in Zhao Yafu. Instead of devising a "Dragon Devour" strategy like the Zhao family, they resigned themselves to fate and sacrificed Qiao Mizhen in accordance with their agreement.

Though the Qiao family wielded considerable power within the Empire of Dawn, they lacked the Zhao family's resolve when it came to treating their kin.

As a result, the once brilliant Qiao Mizhen perished, and the dragon was reborn through her demise.

The former patriarch of the Nagas, confined in Sword Prison, was the father of the female dragon that had taken Qiao Mizhen's life for its own.

If word got out that the family's most promising member had been sacrificed to revive a female dragon, the Qiao family's reputation would be in ruins.

This would lead to disdain from sects and families with even a shred of integrity toward the Qiao family.

For this reason, the Qiao family concealed the truth, claiming Qiao Mizhen died due to a cultivation mishap.

The dragon, cloaked in Qiao Mizhen's guise, remained hidden in the palanquin, likely to keep the truth under wraps.

"Loong Jie is your father, the former patriarch of the Nagas, who was merely imprisoned in Sword Prison for five hundred years," the host said with a gentle chuckle. "Loong Yang, there's no need for undue concern. From what I know of your father, while others might perish in Sword Prison, he will surely survive."

"If my father dies, the agreement between you and Dragon Lake will be null and void!" Loong Yang, the female dragon, declared icily, disguised in the form of Qiao Mizhen.

"Relax, if I say he won't die, he won't die," the voice from within the white robe assured.

Yan Qiling smirked and turned to Loong Yang, clicking his tongue in disapproval. "Since you're the old dragon's daughter, that makes Loong Tianxiao your brother. And you allowed the Amethyst Dragon to slowly devour him on his way here?"

"Loong Tianxiao is a mongrel!" Loong Yang spat out harshly.

Yan Qiling's expression turned bemused.

"I've personally killed seven mongrels like him!" Loong Yang's eyes blazed with fury. "Impure mixed breeds don't deserve to live! And Father certainly doesn't care whether such mongrels live or die!"

"The Naga clan is truly... bizarre," Yan Qiling muttered, shaking his head, choosing to withhold further judgment.

...

Within the Sword Prison.

Yu Yuan gripped the sword sheath, traversing the stone path imbued with the essence of the sword's will, and once again entered the cave where Chen Qingyan and Zhongli Dapan were located. "Loong Jie is quite reasonable. He gave me a drop of dragon's blood without any fuss!"

The instant that drop of dragon's blood entered his middle elixir field, Yu Yuan's parched little world of vitality was revitalized as if infused with the waters of life.

The Blood Altar within him quivered, releasing the concealed essence of vitality.

The essence that sustained the Blood Altar's normal function was generously redirected and expelled, nourishing Yu Yuan's body, which was in dire need of recovery.

After being bombarded by Zhongli Dapan, his wounds were immediately suffused with new vitality.

This explained why the old dragon suddenly felt much more spirited.

The Blood Altar had freed up its hidden vitality upon detecting new prey that could mend all imperfections, focusing its energy on assimilating that drop of dragon's blood!

Yu Yuan discovered that the Blood Altar's craving for that drop of dragon's blood surpassed all else!

As he passed the giant crocodile, the Forgeroses cultivators, akin to Du Huang, were also consuming the crocodile's vitality, and he could sense the Blood Altar's overwhelming desire and greed.

Yet, this moment surpassed all previous ones!

Yu Yuan now understood the significance of this single drop of dragon blood to the Blood Altar; nothing else could compare!

With a sudden rip, hundreds of purple-red lightning bolts erupted from the middle elixir field in his chest.

Upon closer inspection, one would see that these bolts had transformed into slender purple-red dragon whelps.

In another cavern, the old dragon unleashed a frenzy of roars and curses, employing the Nagas' blood magic to reclaim the drop of dragon blood that had seeped into Yu Yuan's little world of vitality.

"Hahaha! Lad, you've indeed got some tricks up your sleeve!" Zhongli Dapan laughed boisterously.

The hundreds of purple-red lightning bolts scattered, chaotically zipping around the cavern.

Between the caverns, the barriers formed by the sword's will and sword light were something the delicate purple-red dragon whelps dared not touch.

"Return to me!"

Yu Yuan stood unyielding as a mountain, letting out a cold huff. He once again engaged the "Evil Body Refining Technique," drawing upon the Blood Altar within his little world to consume the essence of the dragon's blood.

Those hundreds of purple-red lightning bolts were merely manifestations of that one drop of dragon blood, with a fraction of its essence swirling within.

As Loong Jie's drop of dragon blood entered his vitality's little world, it unleashed its savage and murderous instincts, attempting to shatter his realm with the might of that single drop.

The instant the dragon blood penetrated his defenses, Yu Yuan knew Loong Jie harbored malevolent intentions—he sought Yu Yuan's demise.

What Loong Jie hadn't anticipated was the presence of a Blood Altar within Yu Yuan's little world, forged from the Sunsorrow of a giant beast!

The Blood Altar instantly seized the dragon blood upon its arrival!

It unleashed a formidable magnetic force, ensnaring the drop of dragon blood and gradually drawing it in.

Unable to escape, the dragon blood released the dragon's breath coiled around it, resulting in hundreds of visible purple-red lightning bolts that materialized outside his body.

At Yu Yuan's cold snort, the drop of dragon blood was ultimately consumed by the Blood Altar.

As the dragon blood was absorbed, the translucent and enigmatic altar erupted with a radiance unparalleled in brilliance!

The delicate strands of purple and red dragon's breath, in their frenzied flight, were as if seized by an unseen force. One by one, they were forcibly pressed back into Yu Yuan's little world of vitality.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Hundreds of dragon's breaths, under the dazzling light of the Blood Altar, vanished one after another into the altar.

Yu Yuan abruptly sat upright, feeling the surge of life essence emanating from the Blood Altar. He channeled it through his limbs, bones, and the many meridians and organs.

His body, gravely wounded by the powerful blow from Zhongli Dapan, began to heal rapidly, recovering significantly from the brink of death.

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