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In a deep valley in Purple Bamboo Island’s northeast:
This place was blazing hot with no vegetation around. Many dragon race guards stood in the valley’s perimeter.
The valley was not dark. On the contrary, it was extremely bright, as there was a crater below where surging, fiery-red lava churned.
There were two strange pill furnaces with ritual arrays carved on them above the lava pool. These pill furnaces also bore the words “Heavenly Demon.”
The ritual arrays seemed to draw on the lava’s energy, continuously refining it and amplifying the flames.
This was especially so for one of the pill furnaces, which had earthen flames rus.h.i.+ng out. The ritual array’s refinement even produced a black flame to heat the pill furnace.
“Southern Sea Dragon King, I have an indestructible body. Knives and spears cannot penetrate me; water and fire do not damage me. You cannot refine me!” Shangguan Hen’s frustrated voice came from the pill furnace.
Three people were sitting on a platform to the side: Ao Shun, Ao Sheng, and the Southern Sea Dragon King.
As the Southern Sea Dragon King looked at the pill furnace, he revealed a cold smile. “We already knew since the peak master captured you. Your cultivation technique is indeed strange. A black tortoise excels at defense in the first place. Their sh.e.l.ls are extremely hard to break. Now, you even cultivated this Eight Nines Profound Technique? Even the peak master could not break your body. However, don’t get c.o.c.ky. Do you know what this is? This is the Earthen Flame Burning the World Furnace that the peak master borrowed from the Unrestrained Heavenly Demon after visiting the nether realm. It can draw in the essence of earthen flames, a divine furnace that can burn the sky and refine the ground. This is the strongest pill furnace of the Spirit Mountain Holy Land.”
“The Earthen Flame Burning the World Furnace? Haha! If you are trying to burn me to death, why did you put in those herbs?” Shangguan Hen roared furiously in the furnace.
“You are hurting now, right? I finally caused you pain. Hahaha! Herbs? What are the herbs for? You are the Black Tortoise Prime, possessing the black tortoise deity and an indestructible body. If I concoct you into a medicinal pill, it will be an excellent divine pill! Hahaha!” the Southern Sea Dragon King guffawed.
“You want to concoct me into a medicinal pill? How dare you?! His Reverence will never let you off!” Shangguan Hen roared furiously from the furnace.
“If Gu Hai comes, I will also concoct him into a medicinal pill! Just enjoy the process. Hahahahaha!” Ao Sihai guffawed.
“You b.a.s.t.a.r.d! Argh! Argh!” Shangguan Hen’s pained cries came from the furnace.
“Prime Shangguan, Ao Shun has brought harm to you!” Ao Shun suddenly knelt on the platform.
“Elder Brother, I brought harm to you!” Ao Sheng cried in pain.
Ao Sheng’s eyes had been dug out. There were a pair of gory holes on his face and countless wounds on his body. All his tendons and veins had been broken, and blood stained his clothes; he appeared to be in a wretched state. His cultivation had been sealed, and ropes bound him, preventing him from moving.
Ao Shun was no better. While his eyes were fine, there were two bleeding holes in his head. Two dragon horns lay at the side, probably Ao Shun’s. He also had his cultivation sealed, and chains bound him.
“Hah! You still can think about Shangguan Hen at this moment?” the Southern Sea Dragon King sneered.
Ao Sheng, with his eyes dug out, presented a horrifying appearance. When he heard Ao Sihai’s words, he scowled ferociously. “Ao Sihai, you said you would help me regain the position of the Northern Sea Dragon King. You said if I followed you, I would serve only you. The rest of the Southern Sea Dragon Palace would obey me. You said you would support me, as we were all descendants of the Ao Clan! You lied to me! You fraud!”
The Southern Sea Dragon King sneered, “Lie? Ao Sheng, I can only say you are too naive. To think you believed such words? How could there be someone who would be so nice to you for no reason? Oh! That’s right. Ao Shun might be such a person. However, that is only because he is your elder brother. But what about you? You thought about killing him at every moment. Hahahahaha! You call me a fraud? Well, you are stupid! Your stupidity will drag Ao Shun to death with you!”
When Ao Sheng heard Ao Sihai’s words, he strangely did not refute them. Two rows of b.l.o.o.d.y tears flowed out of the gory holes. Blood covered his entire body, looking like he bled from every vein.
“Elder Brother, Younger Brother was ignorant. Younger Brother was incapable. I harmed you so many times, yet you still came to save me. Elder Brother, I let you down!” b.l.o.o.d.y tears flowed as Ao Sheng knelt.
“Ao Sheng, don’t give up hope. His Reverence will rescue us!” Ao Shun consoled.
“No. No one…no one else will rescue us. There is no rescuing us!” Ao Sheng cried.
“Hah! Alright, I don’t have time to waste on this nonsense. Ao Shun, you should understand that I spared Ao Sheng to lure you here. However, you are truly stupid. To think you really sent yourself to death for this fool? Hahaha!” the Southern Sea Dragon King sneered.
“He is my younger brother!” Ao Shun snarled.
“There’s no need to look at me like that. You have suffered from torture over the past few days. As I said before, force out the ancestor dragon’s blood in your body, and I’ll let you die an easy death!” the Southern Sea Dragon King said coldly.
“The ancestor dragon’s blood has already entered our hearts and merged with our souls and flesh. How can we force it out? If we force it out, the two of us will become walking corpses!” Ao Shun shouted.
“Then don’t blame me. Humph! I initially wanted to give you easy deaths. Since you refuse, go into the pill furnace. I will force out the ancestor dragon’s blood!” the Southern Sea Dragon King said coldly.
“Ao Sihai, I’ll give you my ancestor dragon’s essence blood. My death is inconsequential. Let my elder brother go. I’ll give you mine!” Ao Sheng suddenly roared angrily.
“Shut up! Who is letting you die?!” Ao Shun immediately said anxiously.
The Southern Sea Dragon King smiled coldly. “Ao Sheng, do you think I did not think of that? Hah! Unfortunately, it’s useless. You only have half a drop in your body. I want an entire drop of ancestor dragon’s essence blood. That requires both of yours!”
“Why?! Why do you need the ancestor dragon’s essence blood?!” Ao Shun demanded, unresigned.
Buzz!
The Southern Sea Dragon King took out a fist-sized azure pearl with a flip of his hand. When the pearl appeared, an intense aura flooded the surroundings.
“A dragon pearl? This aura is…,” Ao Shun said in shock.
“This is the ancestor dragon’s dragon pearl, the dragon pearl he spat out before dying. The ancestor dragon sealed his inheritance within it, and I need a drop of the ancestor dragon’s essence blood to open the seal. Hahaha! That fool, the Western Sea Dragon King, obtained the ancestor dragon’s essence blood, but he did not know how to use it. Since he did not know, he should have given it to me. Why did he give it to two pieces of trash? Humph! Once I force out the ancestor dragon’s essence blood in your bodies, I can activate this dragon pearl and obtain the inheritance. I can restore the glory of the ancient dragon race!” the Southern Sea Dragon King said c.o.c.kily.
“So, that’s the case! Hahaha! Southern Sea Dragon King, no wonder you thought highly of me. It was not me you thought highly of, but my blood! Blood!” Ao Sheng roared in pain.
The Southern Sea Dragon King said coldly, “I’ll ask once more. Will you force out the ancestor dragon’s essence blood or not?!”
“Ao Sihai, I’ll force it out. Let my elder brother go. I beg you, please!” Ao Sheng pleaded in pain and grief.
The Southern Sea Dragon King ignored Ao Sheng.
However, Ao Shun shook his head. “Ao Sheng, never give up until the final moment!”
“Elder Brother!” Ao Sheng said in pain.
“Humph! You two pieces of tras.h.!.+ Why am I wasting time talking nonsense with you? Since that’s the case, I’ll force it out myself!” the Southern Sea Dragon King shouted coldly.
“Don’t!” the blinded Ao Sheng cried out.
However, it was already too late. The Southern Sea Dragon King flung out his hand, tossing the two into the other Earthen Flame Burning the World Furnace above the lava.
The pill furnace’s lid closed.
“Earthen flames, rise!” The Southern Sea Dragon King waved.
Boom!
Surging black earthen flames rushed out, heating the pill furnace and making it incomparably hot.
The pill furnace contained a large s.p.a.ce. The countless ritual arrays and restrictions inside pulled in the earthen flames outside and refined them further before sending the flames at the two.
“Argh!”
Ao Shun and Ao Sheng turned into their dragon forms, and the flames immediately burned their flesh.
The flames were too powerful. Even Shangguan Hen found them unbearable, what more these two dragons?
“Elder Brother, I let you down!” Ao Shun said sorrowfully.
“Never give up until the final moment, Little Sheng!” Ao Shun cried out in pain.
“Elder Brother, I can’t take it any longer. I feel that this earthen fire has burned its way into my marrows. I…I…,” Ao Sheng said somewhat weakly.
Whoos.h.!.+
Ao Sheng suddenly felt something wrap around it; Ao Shun had used its body to protect Ao Sheng. Ao Sheng immediately felt much better.
Ao Sheng had its eyes dug out. Although it could not see Ao Shun, it still could feel Ao Shun hugging it.
“Elder Brother, what are you going to do if you are hugging me?” Ao Sheng asked weakly.
“I’m fine! I’m fine! Just wait some more. Just wait some more, and it will be fine!” Ao Shun exhorted through gritted teeth.
“Alright!” Trembling, Ao Sheng nodded.
The flames burned them for three days and three nights.
Although Ao Shun wrapped around Ao Sheng’s body, a wisp of earthen flames continued to burn Ao Sheng from within. Its consciousness turned hazy from the pain.
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Outside:
Shangguan Hen’s pill furnace slowly fell silent. However, the Southern Sea Dragon King only looked at Ao Shun’s pill furnace.
Soon, a faint blood mist came from a small spout on the lid.
“The ancestor dragon’s essence blood?” The Southern Sea Dragon King became excited and immediately placed the ancestor dragon’s dragon pearl on that spout.
Buzz!
The dragon pearl gave off a vast amount of azure light, and a loud dragon roar came from it.
“Alright! Alright! Hahaha! The ancestor dragon’s inheritance?” The Southern Sea Dragon King’s eyes blazed with excitement as he waited eagerly.
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Inside the pill furnace:
Ao Sheng’s consciousness turned hazy from all the burning. It looked like it would not last much longer.
“Elder Brother, I can’t hold out any longer. Even though the earthen flames have lessened, I feel the ancestor dragon’s essence blood in my body is evaporating. Elder Brother, I can’t hold on!” Ao Sheng said in a daze.
Buzz!
However, Ao Sheng felt a liquid seeping into its dried skin, slowly permeating its arteries and replenis.h.i.+ng its blood loss.
“What is this? Elder Brother, I feel a little better,” Ao Sheng said weakly.
The dazed Ao Sheng vaguely heard Ao Shun’s voice.
“Little Sheng, Mother died early, and Father is already gone. You are my only family left in this world. Although you are not as talented as me, Father once said that if you walked the right path, your future accomplishments might be no inferior to mine. This is because you are stubborn. Being stubborn is a basic quality of an expert. Because of that, you are more resilient. Before Father died, he told me to take care of you. Elder Brother is useless and no longer has any more chances to take care of you. You have to take care of yourself in the future. As long as you are alive, my Northern Sea Dragon Palace will never perish. If possible, follow His Reverence, Gu Hai. He will help me take care of you. He will bring you to the right path. Little Sheng, take care!”
“Elder Brother, I feel so hot. It is very unbearable. Am I going to die?” Ao Sheng trembled while still in a daze.
Besides the liquid entering his arteries, he suddenly felt the veins that the Southern Sea Dragon King had broken reform, and something fused with them and nourished them.
“Elder Brother, why are my veins being fixed? Where did these veins come from?” Ao Sheng asked in a daze.
Buzz!
There was a cooling sensation. Then Ao Shun felt its dug-out eyes return.
“Eyes? Where did the eyes come from? Dragon’s eyes?” Ao Sheng said in a daze.
“Roar!”
“Roar!”
Two dragon roars rang out, startling the dazed Ao Sheng. It felt something enter its forehead.
“Dragon deities? The Northern Sea’s dragon deity? The Western Sea’s dragon deity?” Ao Sheng said in a daze.