Along the way, Ling Xiao took down four terrifying giant beasts, three of which were eighth-level ferocious beasts, while the fourth unexpectedly broke a seal on its body, causing its strength to surge to the level of a ninth-level ferocious beast.
This creature was a colossal elephant, standing hundreds of metres tall, like a mountain. At first, Ling Xiao nearly failed to notice it.
In the end, he killed it by relying on his human-dragon form.
After the Primordial Golden Dragon consumed its inner core, one of its scales finally lit up completely, gleaming with brilliant golden light, truly a sight to behold.
The moment that scale fully illuminated, Ling Xiao felt he could now harness the power of the Primordial Golden Dragon for battle.
However, he could likely only use it once for a long time, as the Primordial Golden Dragon had 108,000 scales, and only one had lit up so far, with a long way to go before they all would.
“Worst case, it’s just another trump card!”
Ling Xiao smiled. The more trump cards he had, the greater his chances of survival, which wasn’t a bad thing at all.
After the first scale lit up, killing eighth-level beasts for their cores seemed to have little effect, and Ling Xiao felt it wasn’t worth the effort, so he temporarily gave up. Instead, he stuck to his original plan, preparing to explore the secret location he had marked.
That said, if these monsters hadn’t had their strength sealed by the Moonlight Heavenly Lady’s arrays, any one of them could easily destroy the entire Heavenly Dragon Continent.
These creatures were simply too powerful. If they were to awaken, their strength, even if not quite matching the Moonlight Heavenly Lady’s in her prime, would likely be close, capable of causing earthquakes with a single stomp.
The Primordial Era was truly formidable!
The Ancient Era, even more terrifying!
The secrets of this Mysterious Realm really sparked a desire to uncover them.
Ling Xiao now desperately wanted to know: where had the Human King gone, and why had he never returned? Where had the powerful emperors of the former Holy Dynasty gone?
And what about the True Demon Emperor of the True Demon Empire—where had he gone?
And that woman, who with a single speech had completely convinced the True Demon Emperor—where had she come from?
There were too many questions, practically bursting his head.
He was now increasingly eager to improve his strength. He had once thought the Mortal Realm made him a powerhouse, but now it seemed he didn’t even qualify as an ant.
Shaking his head, Ling Xiao stopped overthinking.
Problems he couldn’t solve now were pointless to dwell on. Better to stick to his plan and start investigating the secret locations on the map.
Whoosh!
With a flash, Ling Xiao darted thousands of metres forward, arriving before a strange glow.
The light was peculiar, as if through it, he could faintly see shadowy figures appearing inside.
Could it be that the Moonlight Pagoda contained its own separate plane?
Ling Xiao was somewhat astonished; this was simply too extraordinary.
But considering the Moonlight Heavenly Lady’s strength and the marvels of the Moonlight Pagoda, it didn’t seem impossible.
Since he couldn’t figure it out, he decided not to overthink it and simply go in to see what was happening.
Who knows, this might be the key to reaching the fourth stage.
There was no array on the glow, so it should be open to all trial disciples, but reaching this place was likely something only Ling Xiao could manage.
The location was too hidden, and the journey was fraught with dangers. Even Bai Feifei probably wouldn’t dare to force her way through.
The puppet clone of the Demon Flame Heavenly Lord might have the guts, but it was just a puppet clone, likely unable to enter certain places, like this one.
But even if it could come, so what? Was Ling Xiao afraid of it?
With that thought, Ling Xiao hesitated no longer and stepped directly into the glow.
…
Beyond the glow was a unique place.
Amidst towering mountains and steep ridges, a bonfire was burning.
Sitting by the fire were an old man and a youth, two “people.”
They couldn’t exactly be called human, as their forms resembled Ling Xiao in his human-dragon state.
They bore many characteristics of the dragon race.
“Young Master, you must be cautious on this trip to Heavenly Dragon Mountain! The Black Dragon Clan, which now controls the mountain, has long harboured rebellious intentions. They might collude with the Black Spirits outside to escape the Moonlight Pagoda. All these years, though the Moonlight Heavenly Lady has not appeared, her aura still lingers within the pagoda, protecting us. We must not forget her kindness!”
The speaker was a silver-scaled dragonman, aged in appearance, and the secret he spoke of was unknown to the outside world.
The youth, covered in golden scales, was a Golden Dragonman, part of the dragon race’s royal lineage.
Due to their dragon nature, their age was hard to gauge, but he seemed roughly equivalent to a human teenager of fourteen or fifteen.
Aside from his dazzling golden scales, he looked like a refined young man.
The dragon youth smiled and said, “Grandpa Lin, I’ve heard the story of the dragon race and the Moonlight Heavenly Lady many times.
During the great war of the Ancient Era, the dragon race was defeated, and the human race emerged victorious. The Human King created a golden age where all races coexisted, but just as this age began, it faced a threat from the outside.
All races united to fight the invaders, but tragically, the Human King vanished in that war. The human race suffered heavy losses, losing vast amounts of precious martial arts and martial soul cultivation methods, while our dragon race was nearly wiped out.
Fortunately, before her death, the Moonlight Heavenly Lady sheltered us within the Moonlight Pagoda, saving our dragon race and allowing us to survive.”
“You understand well, Young Master. The Moonlight Heavenly Lady was kind to us, but the Black Dragon Clan doesn’t see it that way. They plan to leave the Moonlight Pagoda and slaughter her descendants. We cannot stand by and let that happen,” the old man nodded.
“Don’t worry, Grandpa Lin. At Black Dragon Mountain, I’ll act as the situation demands. If I become the next Dragon Emperor, I’ll have the power to change the current state of affairs,” the youth said.
“Young Master is wise, but beware of those Black Spirits. They’re remnants of the external invaders, sealed in the Moonlight Pagoda by the Moonlight Heavenly Lady. They’ve long harboured ill intentions. The Black Dragon Clan’s plan to cooperate with them is like seeking a tiger’s hide,” the old man said, pleased with the youth’s response but offering a reminder. “Young Master, as the heir of the Golden Dragon Clan, your main goal at Heavenly Dragon Mountain is to inherit the Golden Dragon Clan’s legacy. The Black Dragon Clan won’t easily relinquish the Dragon Emperor’s position. You must be careful!”
“I understand!” Though young, the boy didn’t seem naive. His eyes gleamed with sharpness, as if anticipating something.
About a hundred metres from the old man and youth, another bonfire burned, next to a strange beast-drawn carriage.
Two figures sat there, their dragon scales black and gleaming darkly. They were likely Black Dragonmen.
