Chapter 72: Scales, Experiments, and an Unruly Disputation

Then by all means, continue.

Without another word, Zhi Jiu gracefully turned her slender waist and vanished from Leng Xi’s view.

As Zhi Jiu departed, Leng Xi muttered under her breath, ‘She’s mad.’

“Are you still going to fight?” Wang Yu inquired.

“No, I’m not.”

Zhi Jiu’s disruptive presence had thoroughly soured Leng Xi’s desire to continue their spar.

With that, she made her way towards her own chambers.

“Hey! Wait up!”

Wang Yu hurried after Leng Xi, her voice ringing out loudly.

“Wait!”

Leng Xi, seemingly deaf to the call, ascended directly to the second floor.

Wang Yu, utterly bewildered, could only wonder, ‘What in the world is happening?’

****

City Lord’s Mansion

Xian Yuan arrived at the City Lord’s Mansion’s imperial garden and found Wang Zhe, who was admiring flowers.

“Why are you here again?”

“We’re preparing to launch our operation tonight, and I was hoping, Sister Wang Zhe, you could pen a declaration denouncing the rebels.”

“That fast?!” Wang Zhe’s beautiful eyes widened, a hint of surprise flashing within them.

Setting down the blossoms she held, she pondered, ‘This plan was only proposed last night, and they’re moving on it tonight? Is such efficiency truly necessary?’

“Are you truly ready?”

Wang Zhe still harbored a lingering disbelief. ‘Are they truly so confident? The opposing forces include Dao Venerables; even if none are at the Half-Saint level, can Zhi Jiu and Leng Xi truly contend with dozens of them alone?’

“Rest assured,” Xian Yuan said.

“Alright then, I’ll go write it later.”

A wry, helpless laugh escaped Wang Zhe. This entire situation felt utterly fantastical. ‘Something I’ve yearned to eradicate for centuries, and now a True Immortal cultivator claims they can simply sweep it away? Is this truly happening, or have I lost my mind, or perhaps the world itself has?’

“Oh, and Sister Wang Zhe, could I borrow some of your scales?”

“Hmm? What do you intend to do?”

“I’m conducting some experiments.”

“How many do you need?”

“Three hundred pieces will suffice.”

“How many?!”

‘Did I mishear? Three hundred scales? Do you truly believe dragon scales are so easily given away? How would you feel if a significant portion of your own inexplicably detached itself?’

“Three hundred.”

“Absolutely not!”

Wang Zhe decisively refused.

“Is it not possible?”

“Three hundred is out of the question, but three pieces are fine.”

“Then three pieces it is.”

With a flash of golden light, three resplendent dragon scales materialized in Wang Zhe’s hand.

“Here.”

Wang Zhe handed the three dragon scales to Xian Yuan.

“Thanks♪(･ω･)ﾉ”

Clutching the dragon scales, Xian Yuan swiftly departed from the City Lord’s Mansion, her research having reached a pivotal moment.

Xian Yuan speculated that the characteristics of the dragon scales might be related to the Royal Dragon race’s innate talent.

“Is this truly reliable?”

As she watched Xian Yuan hastily depart, a persistent feeling gnawed at her, hinting that this entire endeavor was perhaps ill-fated.

****

Meanwhile, back at the supermarket, Xian Yuan immediately sequestered herself in the third-floor laboratory.

Replicating her previous methods, she carefully scraped golden powder from the dragon scales, prepared a microscopic slide, and positioned it beneath the lens.

Indeed, beneath the microscope, the gold elements within Wang Zhe’s dragon scales coalesced into a shimmering golden vortex, akin to a miniature black hole, not only absorbing the surrounding energy but also capable of drawing forth and consuming gold elements directly from the very fabric of heaven and earth.

“So that’s how it is.”

A subtle smile graced Xian Yuan’s lips as she finally grasped the profound reason behind the Royal Dragon race’s inherently formidable power.

This singular phenomenon observed on the dragon scales illuminated everything!

Having performed dozens of these experiments, she had consistently observed four distinct phenomena: the gold element remaining inert like stagnant water, undergoing fission, continuously aggregating, or transforming into a black hole.

Both aggregation and black hole formations actively drew in gold elemental spiritual energy from the heavens and earth, signifying an inexhaustible wellspring of power.

Whether it was True Essence, Immortal Essence, Dao Rhyme, or Saint Force, each possessed an inherent upper limit, much like a cup that could only hold so much water.

However, the aggregation and black hole phenomena allowed for the automatic replenishment of this ‘water.’ While aggregation’s replenishment was inferior to a black hole’s, in terms of innate talent, aggregation denoted a genius within the Royal Dragon race, whereas the black hole phenomenon represented an unparalleled prodigy, one who appeared perhaps once every ten millennia.

Furthermore, this phenomenon also dictated the ceiling of one’s cultivation. It wasn’t to say that achieving the Quasi-Saint stage was impossible without a black hole or aggregation; such breakthroughs primarily depended on one’s comprehension.

As aggregation and black holes enabled direct absorption of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, those who possessed these traits gained a deeper understanding of elemental attributes than others, thereby accelerating their rate of comprehension.

‘Truly remarkable,’ Xian Yuan murmured to herself. ‘No wonder the Heavenly Dao saw fit to restrict the lifespan of the Royal Dragon race.’

The Royal Dragon race was naturally endowed with immense power. Based on her experimental findings, the majority of them inherently exhibited fission, with instances of stagnant, inert elements being exceedingly rare.

If they possessed the longevity of the Eastern Dragon race, what purpose would other races then serve?

****

Eastern Sea Secret Realm

Upon the sprawling southeastern grassland, a throng of cultivators had converged.

The majority of cultivators present regarded the Heavenly Gate Island contingent with overt dissatisfaction and palpable displeasure.

“A despicable group.”

One cultivator spat dismissively, his contempt for the Heavenly Gate Island team evident.

“Who exactly are you speaking to?! Do you wish to witness this young lady’s formidable power?!”

He Xiaomeng, a member of the Heavenly Gate Island team, naturally caught wind of such derogatory remarks.

Breaking away from her group, she strode towards the individual and demanded coldly, “Apologize!”

“Apologize? Why should I?! Are you truly unaware of what your Heavenly Gate Island disciple, Xian Meng, has done?!”

The young cultivator’s indignant words immediately sparked a chorus of agreement from members of the other sects.

“Precisely! What sort of moral standing does your Heavenly Gate Island even claim?!”

“Have you, perhaps, forgotten the atrocities Xian Meng inflicted upon us?!”

“…”

Most of the sect cultivators were highly agitated.

‘What exactly did Xian Meng do? How many disciples from various sects had their very ‘roots’ severed by this little demoness, leaving them with no recourse but to embrace a life of ascetic purity?’

Some among them had cherished Dao companions, yet now, due to Xian Meng’s brazen interference, they were left to merely gaze upon what they could no longer partake in.

“It’s merely severed, what’s the great fuss about?”

He Xiaomeng genuinely failed to grasp the significance. What conceivable difference did it make if ‘that particular thing’ was severed?

Predictably, the instant these words escaped her lips, the male cultivator’s face darkened instantaneously, becoming as black as the bottom of a scorched pot.

“Severed? And you claim it’s ‘no big deal’? Do you even comprehend the words spilling from your mouth?!”

Of course, He Xiaomeng could not be entirely faulted for her ignorance; she hailed from the lineage of Gu Yan Xianzi, a sect composed solely of women.

Gu Yan Xianzi herself had never imparted even rudimentary s*x education to her disciples, leaving the female cultivators of Extreme Yin Island utterly guileless. This naivety was so pronounced that numerous male disciples within Heavenly Gate Island had ‘snatched’ away disciples from Gu Yan Xianzi’s lineage to become their Dao companions.

Extreme Yin Island, nestled within Heavenly Gate Island, served as Gu Yan Xianzi’s personal Dao sanctuary.

Indeed, among the disciples of Heavenly Gate Island, Gu Yan’s lineage was widely regarded as the very embodiment of easy targets.

“Junior Sister He, perhaps it would be best if you ceased speaking.”

Xiao Yuanming could tolerate it no longer, a thought forming in his mind: ‘Truly, they are of the Gu Yan lineage.’

“Senior Brother Xiao, you’re siding with them!”

He Xiaomeng’s beautiful eyes narrowed, fixed intently upon Xiao Yuanming.

“Senior Sister, we are indeed at fault in this matter,” Zheng Mengyao admitted.

“I don’t care! No one is allowed to bully Senior Sister Xian Meng!”

He Xiaomeng surveyed the assembled cultivators, then abruptly declared, without a hint of ceremony, “If you are weak, then simply train more. If you cannot bear to lose, then do not play at all!”

Her audacious words instantly silenced the entire assembly, plunging the scene into an eerie, profound quiet.

“You, you insolent little wretch!”

“Are all disciples of your Heavenly Gate Island this arrogant and overbearing?”

“Utterly shameless!”

“…”

The cultivators, their fury boiling over, denounced He Xiaomeng one after another.

Upon hearing their Senior Sister being reviled, the disciples of Heavenly Gate Island launched their own counter-attack, embodying the ancient saying: ‘If a tiger does not bare its fangs, do you truly mistake it for a mere housecat?!’