C978 Dragon Riding
In the Forgotten Ruins, near Thylethlume, a towering elder with shoulder-length brownish-yellow hair and a natural tiger stripe on his forehead was followed by Zhao Yafu as they approached the small town. Zhao Yafu was on the brink of tears, trailing behind him with a stubborn silence.
Near Thylethlume, two new towns had sprung up, inhabited by the Zhao and Zhan families. The clanspeople from all three towns emerged upon sensing the arrival of the imposing elder.
At the entrance of Thylethlume, Yu Cen, along with Yu Feifei, Yu Lian, Yu Wei, and other younger members of the Yu family, were joined by Zhao Dongsheng, Zhao Zhenghao, and some of the Zhan family members.
Xu Zixi, known as the Python Queen, wore a look of bitterness. Since Ann Wen had discarded a spider carcass on the mid-lake island, she had lost all communication with Yu Zhu. She was aware, through information from Shadow's Keep, that Yu Zhu was now using a mystique to draw out the bloodline mysteries from the spider, preparing for her advancement.
Yu Zhu, akin to a human cultivator in deep seclusion, was currently oblivious to the dramatic shifts in the outside world and would not be able to join the battle.
Xu Zixi recognized the identity of the burly elder with the tiger tattoo. She knew he was the current leader of the Tiger Tribe, once the mightiest before the Moonfang Tiger ascended to Dark Deity status, and a ninth-level archdemon.
She understood the purpose of his unexpected visit to Thylethlume. "Elder Huang," Xu Zixi greeted with deep respect.
The Tiger Tribe's patriarch, now in human form, narrowed his eyes as he surveyed the anxious Yu family members. Yu Cen and the others felt a crushing force of demon energy bearing down on them like towering mountains, nearly suffocating them.
The weaker Yu family members collapsed to the ground, gasping for air, their gazes filled with defeat. With eyes ablaze, Yu Cen cried out, "I implore the Shadow's Keep to show mercy and grant the Yu family's youth a chance to survive!"
How could he be unaware that a ninth-level Yellow Tiger from Shadow's Keep had suddenly arrived in Thylethlume with an agenda?
"I'm well aware that Shadow's Keep intends to take the Yu family members hostage to coerce Yu Yuan into willingly unlocking the magic circle in the forbidden area," Yu Cen stated, his voice deep as he bowed his head. "I am prepared to comply with Shadow's Keep and become a hostage."
"I'm also willing!"
"Let it be me!"
Yu Lili, Yu Feifei, and other members of the Yu family began to offer themselves up one after another.
Onlookers from the Zhao and Zhan families could do nothing but sigh at the unfolding drama.
Zhao Yafu had been taken as a direct disciple by the Moonfang Tiger, and Zhan Tianxiang had received the favor of the Golden Elephant God. These two families were intricately linked with Shadow's Keep. Due to the connections between Yu Yuan and Yu Zhu, all three families were allied, forming an extended network of Shadow's Keep.
Yet, Yu Yuan had become an anomaly.
They wished to speak on his behalf, but one look at Zhao Yafu's face told them their words would be futile.
Zhao Yafu, as a disciple of the Moonfang Tiger, had overseen the Astral Tiger's extraterrestrial campaigns in recent years.
If Zhao Yafu's influence was negligible, what weight could their words possibly carry?
"Initially, by Shadow's Keep's command, I was to use my powers to transport all of Thylethlume above the Moonfall Sanctuary. This would have forced Yu Yuan to witness your plight and the town's, compelling him to dismantle the sanctuary's barrier," the muscular elder grunted. "But I've just received new information."
"This news, now verified as true, means that even slaughtering every Yu family member wouldn't sway his emotions."
"If he is the reincarnation of the God of Medicine, Hong Qi, why would he care about your fates?"
With those words, the tiger transformed into a dark yellow streak of light and soared away from Thylethlume.
"The reincarnation of the God of Medicine? Yu Yuan is Hong Qi, the God of Medicine?!"
"Has the news been confirmed?"
Yu Cen, the patriarch, along with members of the Yu, Zhan, and Zhao families, Zhao Yafu, and the Python Queen, Xu Zixi, stood frozen as if struck by lightning.
...
Within the forbidden area.
Yu Yuan sat cross-legged on the Silvery Land, with two gray-white stones resting on his knees.
One was the Dragon Slaying Stage, which entombed a frost wyrm, and the other buried a Chronowyrm.
Yu Yiyi, in a white dress and barefoot, stood behind him, her luminous eyes surveying the prostrate giant dragons.
Yu Yuan's hands were pressed against the Dragon Slaying Stages, his presence becoming ancient and shadowy.
"Assault the nine palaces formed by the Mark of the Celestials. You are tasked with keeping the Ebon Star in check."
He gazed at the golden dragons, frost wyrms, thunder dragons, and fire dragons before him. His profound eyes transformed into two enigmatic pools, with myriad dragon shadows seemingly gliding within.
"Otherwise, the three Dragon Slaying Stages will breach the largest dragon vein beneath the earth."
Upon these words, the third Dragon Slaying Stage, entombing a golden dragon, trembled violently.
All the Naga members sprawled on the ground felt their blood surge, instinctively sensing a dread that threatened to annihilate their entire race. Every old dragon and dragon whelp could perish in an instant.
With a mournful cry, Loong Jie's massive golden form transformed into a bolt of Divine Thunder, shooting straight into the "Starhaven" constructed by the nine palaces.
Following him, all the Nagas who had been granted secret clemency by the Sect Master of the Ebon Star, alongside the Sword Sect and the Sunlit Order, defected on the spot, rushing toward the nine palaces.
"I knew these filthy, hideous vermin were never to be trusted!" Ren Yun of the Ebon Star watched as a thunder dragon coiled around the palace beneath him, sparks flying from the scales and infiltrating the structure. He clenched his teeth in a curse.
As the facade crumbled, the palace revealed its true form—a green stone surface with natural lightning imprints, resembling a cluster of thunderclouds.
This palace was a wondrous inkstone, claimed by the Ebon Star from a lightning pool in an otherworldly domain, and forged into the Mark of the Celestials.
The thunder dragon coiled within the palace, its bloodline and draconic form uniquely suited to withstand the relentless assault of lightning and thunder. It could even absorb and refine the energy, which was precisely why it had chosen this location.
Ren Yun, tasked with guarding the palace, watched as it trembled and shifted position. He muttered curses under his breath while forming intricate seals with his hands.
In Yu Yuan's Mindscape, within the Lunar Spirit, memory sparkles detonated one after another. Wisps of remnant souls streamed into the two pieces he held and the Dragon Slaying Stage beneath him.
His consciousness seemed to drift through an ancient battlefield, witnessing the Dragon Gods of the Nagas being brutally slain by humans and evilkind. The scene was drenched in blood, and the dying wails of the Dragon Gods echoed in his ears.
Inside the Dragon Slaying Stage, an endless cascade of mystic runes fell like rain, morphing into a fearsome curse. This curse was infinitely more intricate than the Ghoul Glyphs used by the Binders of Shadows.
Perched atop the dragon vein, the Dragon Slaying Stage not only held sway over the fate of the entire Naga race but also harbored the potential to shatter the dragon vein below. Should it fall, the combined remnants of the ninth level, eighth level, and old dragons' power would merge with the curses. A single explosion within the dragon vein would ensure...
The Nagas would vanish from the Everlands forever!
The Dragon Slaying Stage was the ultimate weapon of doom against the Nagas, a wondrous artifact forged by the collective wisdom of the Boulderdawn, human champions, and even the Otherkin from beyond.
The Nagas were not eradicated but suppressed, forbidden from manifesting their tenth-level Dragon Gods, all because the God-King had once chosen not to pursue total annihilation.
Yet, the Dragon Slaying Stage indeed possessed the terrifying power to obliterate the Naga race!
Loong Jie and all the giant dragons converging on this location could never have imagined that Yu Yiyi had once been a mere servant tasked with watching over the Dragon Slaying Stage. Nor could they have foreseen the bizarre turn of events that now allowed Yu Yuan to subtly manipulate the Dragon Slaying Stage.
With control over the Dragon Slaying Stage, he could coerce all the giant dragons into serving his will.
With a whoosh, a Devil Spear wreathed in black flames was hurled from the void by the King of Wraiths, aimed directly at Yu Yuan's forehead.
The King of Wraiths realized that Yu Yuan had the power to control the Dragon Slaying Stage, thereby restraining the Nagas and throwing the Unbound experts of the Ebon Star into disarray. Without hesitation, he decided to eliminate Yu Yuan.
However...
The Devil Spear, ablaze with black flames, was clearly thrust within ten meters of Yu Yuan when suddenly, time and space were thrown into turmoil, and the spear ended up impaling a level eight wolf demon instead.
"Time magic!"
