Dao Qing's wild laughter and arrogant figure made Mu Zixu's fists clench tight, a flicker of malice flashing in his eyes.
Nothing had gone his way recently!
That idiot Wu Qingfeng still hadn't found Song Wanníng!
Mu Zixu forced down the fury boiling in his chest and put on a mask of indifference. Because of that extra fragment of memory in his mind, his hatred toward Song Wanníng had only grown worse. He wished he could descend personally and cut her down.
But the restrictions of the Heavenly Dao bound him. He could only act through Wu Qingfeng. What he couldn't understand was how Song Wanníng had managed to step into the flow of the past. No matter how, Dao Qing had always had a thing for her.
Really, vermin gathering with vermin!
"Mu Zixu, stop staring like that. You're already showing signs of falling into inner demons." Wang Yang walked over. Seeing the way his friend's aura shifted again and again left his heart heavy.
Once, Mu Zixu had been a free-spirited, radiant cultivator. But endless struggles with Dao Qing had twisted him into someone unrecognizable. He'd backed himself into a dead end, treating Dao Qing as his lifelong enemy, slowly losing who he was. Now Dao Qing had practically become his heart demon, but Mu Zixu didn't even notice.
Wang Yang sighed inwardly. He didn't want to watch his friend walk a road of no return.
"Inner demons? What nonsense are you spouting?"
Mu Zixu turned, his eyes flashing with disdain.
"Dao Qing, become my inner demon? Don't make me laugh!"
A burning fighting spirit lit his gaze. "One day, I'll crush Dao Qing beneath my feet!!!"
With that, he strode off. He was going straight back to his furnace. Next time, in the grand competition, he absolutely couldn't lose to Dao Qing.
Wang Yang stared at his fading back for a long while, his emotions tangled. Everyone had their own path. Beyond offering a word or two of warning, there wasn't much else he could do. All he could hope for now was that Mu Zixu would break free from illusion and return to the true Dao.
…
In the Spirit Realm, Song Wanníng still had no idea that her awakening of the golden dragon bloodline had shocked the entire Immortal Realm.
The Immortals hadn't expected the awakening to happen in the lower realms, and now they'd sent people everywhere to search.
Inside the grand hall, Song Wanníng sat cross-legged, her aura growing deeper by the breath. Her cultivation was surging on its own, smoothly breaking through to the Unity stage, almost effortlessly. But the rise didn't stop there. Golden light burst brighter and brighter from her body.
In her sea of consciousness, a colossal golden dragon coiled and roared, its cry shaking heaven and earth. Because she had lived through the golden dragon senior's entire life, cultivating dragon clan techniques came to her as naturally as breathing. She could sense them, understand them, and embody them with ease.
In this state, the contents carved on those massive stone pillars unfolded before her eyes with crystal clarity. All she needed now was time to digest and transform them into her own.
…
Elsewhere, Gong Ye had also stepped into the palace. But unlike her, he found no pillars, no recliner, and no chance to experience the life of a golden dragon. He was in a series of rooms, each lined with medicine bottles that crumbled to dust when opened. After much searching, he finally found a room with a few treasures, but their rank was too low to matter.
Room after room, his expression grew uglier.
What he thought would be a great fortune was turning out to be nothing but trash. Judging from the decayed pills, this palace had probably been abandoned for countless years. But until he found the palace's core, he couldn't recognize it as his own. Without that, he couldn't refine it, and the treasures hidden within would remain beyond his reach.
Gong Ye let out a long breath, forcing himself to calm down. The recent turmoil in Bai Yao Palace had left him impatient, quick to anger. That wasn't good.
He chanted a calming spell, steadied himself, and continued searching. There was no way such a massive palace would yield nothing. He was the child of Luck, Heaven's favored son.
Full of confidence, he threw himself back into the hunt.
Meanwhile, Liu Lanyi was also combing through the palace. Her target was the Soul-Swapping Pearl. It had fallen into the yellow sands, but when the giant maw devoured them all, this palace had appeared.
That was why she believed the pearl must be inside. So much time had passed. Gong Ye might've already gotten here. If the Soul-Swapping Pearl ended up in his hands, all her efforts would be wasted.
The thought made her speed up even more.
…
Time ticked on. The initial excitement among the beast cultivators finally cooled. Still, more and more of them kept pouring into the palace, each one dreaming of finding treasures and rising to the peak.
The Peacock clan and Snake clan had both arrived too. No one could resist such an opportunity. But after a quick council, their patriarchs issued orders. They suspected Gong Ye had come here as well and told their disciples to keep an eye out. The moment he was spotted, they were to report immediately.
With so many of their people gathered, they were confident they could take Gong Ye down for good.
Half a month later, beast clans from all around had gathered, and cultivators began running into each other in the palace's many rooms. But since the rooms held nothing useful, large-scale conflict hadn't broken out yet.
Even so, Gong Ye's luck seemed to run dry. He ran straight into members of the Serpent clan. Though he struck fast, the news spread. In an instant, both the Snake clan and the Peacock clan knew he was here.
"Once you discover Gong Ye's location, retreat immediately. Don't waste a single breath!"
The clan leaders gave the order at once. They weren't about to watch their disciples throw their lives away.
Once they had his position, they'd come personally to finish him.
"Finally found you, Gong Ye!"
The Peacock patriarch's eyes blazed with killing intent. His figure flickered as he sped toward the reported location. He still hadn't let go of Hua Kongque's death. His enemy couldn't be allowed to live.
Unfortunately, when he arrived, Gong Ye had already slipped away without a trace. The patriarch vented his fury by smashing the surrounding rooms to rubble, his anger only burning hotter.
"Run all you like! Let's see how far you get!!!"
His cold shout echoed as he took off after him once more.
…
A familiar glow flashed ahead, and Liu Lanyi's face lit up. At last, she saw the pearl she'd been searching for.
The Soul-Swapping Pearl!
But the moment it sensed someone approaching, the bead bolted.