CHAPTER 115 — Return to the Outer World: The Dragons Await
Light swallowed Lin Xuan whole.
A ringing hum filled his ears—
half dragon's roar, half radiant hymn—
as the Trial Realm collapsed into a vortex of swirling gold.
Then—
A weightless moment.
A breath caught between worlds.
And Lin Xuan opened his eyes.
---
1. The Dragon Court Watches His Return
He stood again upon the transcendent platform of the Draconic Sanctuary, where the trials had begun.
But now…
The air felt different.
He felt different.
The aura around him—
quiet, restrained, yet impossibly vast—
made the space itself shiver.
Dragons circled high above.
Primordial scales glinted.
Their enormous bodies coiled through the heavens like living continents.
The moment Lin appeared—
The dragons roared.
Not in threat.
In acknowledgment.
As if they recognized something in him that had not existed before.
Solarius stood beside him, arms folded, the golden glow of a miniature sun flickering in his hair.
He studied Lin for a long, silent moment.
Then smirked.
> "You have returned… different."
Lin exhaled slowly.
"I feel it too."
His world seed pulsed in agreement.
Not violently—
but like a heart beating inside a sleeping giant.
Solarius circled him once, examining him from head to toe.
> "Your eyes have changed."
Lin blinked.
Solarius nodded.
> "Before, they looked outward—seeking threats, seeking growth, seeking purpose."
"Now they look inward—toward the infinite space you carry."
Lin hesitated.
"Did I… pass?"
Solarius raised a brow.
> "The third trial is not 'pass or fail.'"
He lifted two fingers.
> "It is truth… or denial."
Then he tapped Lin's chest lightly.
> "And you did not deny your truth."
---
2. The Primordial Dragon Bestows His Recognition
The world trembled.
The sky split like fabric.
A massive golden eye the size of a mountain opened in the clouds.
The Primordial Dragon—
so vast his true body could not fit inside mortal dimensions—
peered down at Lin.
His voice boomed like creation itself:
> "HUMAN CHILD."
> "YOU HAVE MET THE MEASURE OF OUR TRIALS."
Lin bowed deeply.
"Senior Primordial Dragon."
The eye narrowed.
> "YOUR WORLD—
SMALL.
YOUNG.
UNSHAPED."
The dragons observing stirred.
> "YET IT HOLDS THE SEED OF SOVEREIGNTY."
A pause.
> "WE GRANT YOU— RECOGNITION."
A pillar of draconic light descended—
and struck Lin in the chest.
His bones ignited with radiant power.
His blood pulsed with draconic heat.
His meridians hissed like molten gold.
Lin gasped, clutching his chest.
"This is—?"
Solarius answered:
> "The Draconic Recognition Mark."
"A fragment of dragon authority."
Lin felt an imprint burn into his soul:
A coiling dragon of gold and white—
its head bound by tribulation lightning,
its tail dipped in cosmic starfire.
It merged into him like destiny sealing itself.
Solarius nodded.
> "Now, dragons will not simply see you."
> "They will feel you."
---
3. Bai the Dragon Awakens to His Growth
A streak of gold burst from the distance.
It spiraled downward—
BOOOOM!
—landing beside Lin with a force that sent cracks rippling across the platform.
Bai.
Not the humanoid spear-wielding Bai—
but Dragon Bai, newly strengthened and grown from the time spent within the inner world.
His once-sleek serpentine body was now broader, more majestic.
Scales shimmered like mirrors made of lightning.
His horns curved elegantly like celestial crescents.
His eyes burned in pairs of gold and amethyst.
Bai's voice echoed in Lin's mind—
older, deeper, yet still carrying the warmth of a loyal companion.
> "Master."
Lin smiled.
"You've grown again."
Bai lowered his massive head.
> "When your world evolved—
my slumber deepened."
> "When you completed your trials—
I awakened stronger."
Lin stroked the side of Bai's horn gently.
"I'm glad."
Bai's tail flicked with pride.
> "You shook the laws of creation while I slept."
"It is only proper that I grow to follow you."
---
4. Solarius's Warning — A New Threat Looms
Solarius suddenly turned sharp.
His gaze locked beyond the horizon.
Golden fire gathered in his pupils.
Lin stiffened.
"Senior?"
Solarius raised one hand.
The air cracked.
A ripple—
so faint an ordinary god would miss it—
cut across the far reaches of the draconic dimension.
> "Lin Xuan."
Solarius spoke without looking at him.
> "You should know something."
He gestured—and space opened before them like a window.
The image beyond:
A battlefield of broken realms.
Corpses of beasts.
Ruins of sects.
Stars falling like rain.
And shadows devouring it all.
Lin's heart clenched.
"The abyss…"
Solarius nodded.
> "This was not caused by the Abyssal Ancestor."
Lin froze.
"…What?"
Solarius turned toward him—
expression grave.
> "The Abyssal Ancestor is marching toward your world."
"But another being—older, deeper—has awakened in the abyss."
Lin narrowed his eyes.
"What kind of being?"
Solarius's next words were quiet—
which made them infinitely more terrifying.
> "A World-Eater."
Lin's breath halted.
Solarius continued:
> "It senses your inner world."
"It desires it."
The Primordial Dragon's voice thundered again:
> "SEED-CHILD."
"YOU WILL FACE NOT ONE, BUT TWO CATACLYSMS."
The massive golden eye focused on Lin.
> "PREPARE YOURSELF."
Lin bowed deeply.
"I will."
---
5. A Path Opens — and a Choice Must Be Made
Solarius stepped closer.
> "This trial taught you truth."
"Now you must choose your direction."
He lifted a hand—
and light formed into two paths before Lin.
Path of the Dragon Pact
A road of golden scales leading to a distant star.
Path of the World Sovereign
A swirling vortex of cosmic dust and planetary orbits.
Solarius spoke:
> "One binds you to the dragons as a vassal."
> "The other… isolates you as a ruler."
Lin stared at the two paths.
Bai—dragon and human both—waited silently beside him.
Lin took a slow breath.
His world seed pulsed again, deep within.
He already knew his answer.
He stepped forward—
toward the swirling path of cosmic dust.
Solarius smiled faintly.
> "…As expected."
The Primordial Dragon rumbled with approval.
Light surged.
The path swallowed Lin whole.
---
6. Return to the Mortal World
The world flashed.
Space folded.
And Lin Xuan stepped out…
…onto the mortal plane again.
Wind kissed his face.
The scent of scorched earth and distant blood greeted him.
War drums echoed across the horizon.
The abyssal army's pressure hung thick in the air.
Bai appeared at his side—both forms merging into one radiant silhouette.
Lin tightened his grip on his spear.
Solarius's final words echoed in his ears:
> "Your next battle will decide the future of your world."
Lin exhaled.
"Then let's make sure it survives."