Chapter 141: Shrouded in Mist, the Mythic Age, and the Second Ancient Celestial Emperor Token

The Yinglong was defeated.

Right in front of everyone.

Even the body it took such pride in could not withstand the onslaught. It was suppressed directly and forced to retreat to the side.

Zhu Qingyu and the Ice Fairy could not help but cover their mouths in astonishment. While they had indeed embarked on the path of the extraordinary and become awakened ones with considerable talent, a dragon was, after all, a legendary existence—a symbol of profound significance. Yet, Lu Yuan had defeated it head-on, leaving it looking rather disheveled.

At this moment, they no longer harbored any doubts. If he wished, he could even slay a dragon. They had already made a high estimate of his combat strength, but it now seemed that estimate was far too low; he was truly unfathomable.

Meanwhile, Lu Yuan advanced once more. His battle intent surged, his internal organs vibrated, his skin glowed, and his flowing vitality dyed the surrounding seawater a golden hue.

"Stop, stop, I yield," the Yinglong said, shrinking its head back. It continued, "You are truly strong."

This was the truth. It had been sealed by its own kin precisely because its potential was immense, and its combat power was among the best of its generation. Having just emerged, it had been defeated by a human—overpowered directly, without any trickery. Thus, the Yinglong conceded defeat. Furthermore, it had never intended to fight to the death from the start.

"You are not bad yourself," Lu Yuan said, stopping and retracting his aura. The terrifying pressure vanished, and he appeared as ordinary as any other person.

His praise was sincere; to have held out for so long against his power, the Yinglong lived up to its name. Of course, Lu Yuan also knew that the creature only desired a battle and had no ill intentions, which was why he had never intended to deal a lethal blow.

With this thought, he smiled and added, "Now, can our transaction be completed?"

He was, naturally, referring to the exchange of items for that pool of blood.

"I will give it to you directly," the Yinglong replied. "Since my birth, I, Ao Ze, have only admired those stronger than myself. Your strength surpasses mine, and as the saying goes, the capable should possess the best resources. Besides, my transformation is complete, and the blood pool is useless to me. If you want it, it is yours."

Ao Ze was its name, and it was magnanimous, gifting the dragon blood pool outright. Lu Yuan nodded; since things had reached this point, there was no need for further formalities. Perhaps one day, he would have the chance to bring this Yinglong into the Heavenly Court to expand its influence.

"Ao Ze? The Dragon Clan of the Four Seas also carries the surname Ao. Is this truly the Dragon Palace of the Four Seas?" Zhu Qingyu and the others heard the key detail and couldn't help but ask.

"Why wouldn't it be? The Dragon Clan of the Four Seas has always existed, but after a great upheaval occurred, they migrated out of this world," Ao Ze said, shrinking its body to about three meters in length. It clearly knew a great deal.

"A great upheaval?"

At these words, Lu Yuan recalled the stone tablet left behind by the Human Emperor Shennong in the Shennongjia mountains, which also bore the two characters for "Great Catastrophe." He immediately looked at the Yinglong and continued, "What is this great upheaval you speak of? And you said you were sealed—why would the Dragon Clan do that?"

He had already gathered much information, and all of it pointed to the same issue: a great upheaval had occurred in the past. This was likely one of Earth's ultimate secrets, and Lu Yuan was determined to understand it.

"I don't know the specifics; I am one of those left behind by my clan," the Yinglong shook its head and explained again. "In the thousands of years following the Severing of Heaven and Earth, all living things were suppressed, and the bloodlines of all deities degenerated, including my own. Before my father sealed me, he said I did not belong to this era. He sealed me before I was even three years old."

"It is not just my Dragon Clan; many creatures in this world migrated to the lands beyond the realm."

"This blood pool was left behind by my kin a long time ago."

As it spoke, it glanced at the Golden-Winged Peng and the Spirit Monkey, its gaze lingering on the Peng with a strange look. In mythology, these two species were predators of one another, and in some sense, natural enemies. Even though the Yinglong had never met one before, it could sense this deep within its bloodline.

The others present were startled. So, this Yinglong was only three or four years old?

"What is so strange about that?" the Golden-Winged Peng spoke up. "I am only about five or six years old myself."

The Spirit Monkey nodded. In truth, any exotic beast with a powerful bloodline was essentially still in its youth.

*Severing of Heaven and Earth?* Lu Yuan had heard these four words once again. Combining them with what Jiang Ningxian had said, he thought of many things. In ancient times, and perhaps even afterwards, Earth had possessed a brilliant civilization—perhaps the mythical age from the stories—but for some reason, the human sages of old had taken the initiative to suppress this land.

"Wait, that's not right," Zhu Qingyu said, confused. "The Severing of Heaven and Earth is said to have been performed by Zhuanxu, one of the Five Emperors. And according to records, Emperor Zhuanxu lived less than five thousand years ago."

She found it strange that the creature's timeline placed it after the Severing of Heaven and Earth, a time when historical records already existed. She felt it contradicted historical facts.

"Some history has been sealed and covered up; otherwise, according to standard history, many things should not have happened," the Pure Yang Little Celestial Master spoke, his tone serious. These were the clues he had found in the ancient texts of the Longhu Mountain Celestial Master Mansion.

"Indeed, my Buddhist sect also has relevant records," Monk Huikong agreed, believing that the current situation could no longer be explained by history alone.

Lu Yuan remained silent, contemplating many issues. Were figures like Guang Chengzi and Laozi, recorded in history, truly from that era? Or did they live until that time and happen to be recorded? All of this remained unknown. According to Jiang Ningxian, no one could uncover the ultimate truth except for figures like the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. Furthermore, there was a group of people who were originally from Earth but had migrated out of this world—like the Jiang and Ji clans—and now, they were returning.

"It seems you aren't completely ignorant after all," Ao Ze the Yinglong said, looking slightly surprised. It knew that a long time had passed since its original era, but it didn't know exactly how long. After all, whether among the Dragon Clan or humans, it was still considered a child.

"Very well," the Yinglong said, looking at Lu Yuan. "I am glad to have met an opponent like you so soon after waking."

"Once my transformation is complete, my bloodline ascends to another level, and my strength increases, I will find you to spar again. For now, I have promised someone else to attend to some matters, so I will take my leave."

With that, it nodded to Lu Yuan and surged outward. Being of the Dragon Clan, leaving this shattered folded space was no feat at all.

*The Severing of Heaven and Earth caused all living things to degenerate. Now that the restrictions are beginning to vanish, can they evolve once more?* Lu Yuan mused. He thought of his mount, the Golden-Winged Peng; it possessed a mythical bloodline and should not have been so weak—the root cause lay here. The same was true for the Yinglong, whose innate talent had been suppressed and required the dragon blood left by its kin to purify it again.

Indeed, the more he encountered and the stronger he grew, the thicker the fog became.

"Alright, let's collect that dragon blood pool," Lu Yuan said, putting aside his thoughts and addressing the group.

This trip to the East Sea Dragon Palace had been very smooth. There had been few dangers and various unexpected gains. Moreover, Zhu Qingyu, the Pure Yang Little Celestial Master, and the others had gained valuable experience. In the future, they would begin to stand on their own. Given the conditions of this world, he was certain that the Heavenly Court would inevitably grow stronger. After all, Lu Yuan's gaze was already fixed upon the deep cosmos.

The Galactic Starfield was once incredibly brilliant—the birthplace of the ancient Heavenly Court. Even those who emerged from it became overlords of the universe, one of the top hundred starfields. Why could he not restore the Heavenly Court?

At this moment, acting on Lu Yuan's orders, the group re-entered the Crystal Palace. The Golden-Winged Peng once again used its supernatural ability to swallow the blood pool. Since the Yinglong had used some, there wasn't much left, but it was still sufficient for their needs.

The others searched the immortal mansion, hoping for other discoveries, but unfortunately, there was nothing else besides the palace itself. The chair at the highest point was quite nice, and the Spirit Monkey thought that since it couldn't take the iron staff, it could at least take the chair—it would be quite a surprise to throw it at an enemy later. However, it found it couldn't budge it either.

Seeing this, Lu Yuan couldn't help but smile. The Spirit Monkey was, after all, still a monkey.

He didn't say much. With a flick of his hand, he produced the Fuxi Bagua Map. Although he knew there might be nothing left, he wanted to try one last time. He dripped a drop of blood onto it, and the Bagua Map began to rotate automatically.

*Hum~*

A moment later, a tiny bright spot appeared at a certain coordinate on the map. The Bagua Map, left by the Human Emperor Fuxi, would only react to items that were, at the very least, divine objects.

Without hesitation, he walked toward that spot. The Golden-Winged Peng and the Spirit Monkey saw this and signaled to the Ice Fairy and the others; they knew that everyone had their secrets and there was no need to interfere. The Pure Yang Little Celestial Master and Monk Huikong had no objections; Lu Yuan was the Master of the Heavenly Court, and in a sense, they followed his orders.

Soon, Lu Yuan was the only one left in the Crystal Palace. Following the indication of the Fuxi Bagua Map, he walked to the very center of the palace. The blood pool had been there, but now that the Golden-Winged Peng had removed it, a smooth surface remained. It was paved with individual crystal tiles, indistinguishable from the rest of the floor, and would never have caught anyone's attention. Had it not been for the Bagua Map, even Lu Yuan would not have noticed it.

"Is the item beneath this?" he wondered, feeling a bit troubled. This was built by the Dragon Clan, and the material was so unique that even if he wanted to move it, he couldn't.

However, Lu Yuan decided to try anyway. He placed his palm gently against the floor.

*Hum~*

The next moment, he felt the blood in his body surging. Then, the crystal tile under his hand rose automatically.

Lu Yuan's expression changed as he realized what the item was.

A piece of archaic, purple-gold token lay there, radiating brilliance and an supreme, inviolable majesty. Engraved upon it were two characters: *Heavenly Emperor!*

The second piece: The Ancient Token of the Heavenly Emperor!