A gentle breeze blowing across the lake tousled the boy's hair, skimming across the rippling water.
Huo Yuhao lay prone among the mud and weeds, his expression completely unchanged.
No matter how eloquently the silver-haired girl lied, even if she dragged all nine ancient dragon kings out of their coffins and lined them up, he was determined to pretend to be deaf and mute.
In this forbidden land controlled by ferocious beasts, saying even one extra word could lead you into a trap they've dug.
However, before he could adopt a more resolute stance of silence, the silver-haired girl standing in front of him uttered her second sentence.
"Time and space are inherently inseparable."
Gu Yuena looked down at him, her expression solemn as if she were reciting the great principles of heaven and earth.
"Back in the realm of gods, the Dragon God personally arranged a marriage between me and the Time Dragon King."
"Now the Dragon God has fallen, and the Time Dragon King has long since vanished."
"Since you have inherited his mantle and will become the second Time Dragon King, then this marriage contract that has been suspended for many years should naturally be fulfilled by you."
These words drifted into my ears on the gentle breeze.
Huo Yuhao, lying face down in the mud, was completely frozen in place.
He subconsciously raised his head, his gaze fixed on the girl's flawless face.
There wasn't a trace of redness on her cheeks.
Even the depths of those pale purple double pupils maintained a calm and indifferent clarity.
How could this person make such an absurd lie sound like a law of nature?
Huo Yuhao's lips curled into a strange smile, and even his eyelids twitched twice.
This is unbelievable.
In all his years, he had seen coercion and bribery, and people who used their power to oppress others, but he had never seen anyone forcibly force a cheap wife onto someone's face.
Moreover, the excuses they made up were so clumsy that even a three-year-old would shake their head at them.
This woman just now shamelessly claimed to be the Dragon King of Space, and in the blink of an eye, she arranged a cross-time marriage for herself from the ancient times of the God Realm.
How on earth does this brain circuitry come about?
Does she think that all human boys in the world, as soon as they hear the word "marriage," will be immediately blinded by beauty and foolishly allowed to be manipulated?
Gu Yuena seemed completely oblivious to the boy's speechlessness, and even took half a step forward.
Her long, white dress billowed slightly as she crouched down, her amethyst-like double pupils meeting Huo Yuhao's icy blue eyes at the same level.
"No doubt about it."
The girl's expression was solemn, and her tone was exceptionally serious, "According to the rules, I am now your future wife."
Huo Yuhao let out a long sigh, and listlessly rested his chin back on the grass.
He felt like his head was about to explode.
He had experienced this absurd scenario of being forced to acknowledge someone as a relative without his knowledge before, back in Mingdu.
When Ju Zi first "invited" him back to the Sun and Moon Empire, she said something similar to him.
I thought that experiencing that kind of drama once would be the end, but I didn't expect that hiding under the Lake of Life in the Star Dou Great Forest would lead to an even more direct encounter.
Is he just destined to be surrounded by romantic opportunities, or does he possess some strange attraction that draws in fiancées?
Why are people from all walks of life, from the rulers of the human empire to the ancient soul beasts that crawled out of the lake, coming one after another to stage an accident?
Gu Yuena quietly looked at the human boy in front of her who looked utterly hopeless.
Beneath her seemingly calm and composed face, her thoughts were far from as composed as they appeared.
This abrupt and bold decision was the best solution she came up with after careful consideration.
As the half-body of the Dragon God, and the nominal supreme ruler of these surviving soul beasts, the burden she carried was heavy enough to crush the entire plane.
Although she possesses the authority of the Dragon God to control the creation of elements, her memories are incomplete, and she is unclear about what the Dragon God was thinking and doing back then.
The rules and shackles set up by the divine realm are like a malignant tumor, completely blocking all paths for soul beasts to become gods.
She has been hiding at the bottom of this Lake of Life for hundreds of thousands of years, and her severe injuries have not yet been fully healed.
With those few stupid beasts outside who can do nothing but brute force, trying to lead this group of defeated soldiers back to the realm of gods to break their shackles is no different from lining up to die.
The path of Soul Beasts has long been exhausted within the established rules.
However, the appearance of this human boy tore through this thick fog that had kept the sun out of sight.
Whether it's the method of creating soul rings with bare hands, or the Titan, True Dragon, and Time Godhood forged within the opponent's body, they all far exceed the scope of common sense.
More importantly, she had clearly heard every word the young man said when he was cursing the Ten Ferocious Beasts deep at the bottom of the lake.
This human is not hostile to the soul beasts.
On the contrary, the exasperation and disappointment in the other party's words clearly showed that they held some special expectations for the future of the Soul Beast race.
Since that's the case, we absolutely cannot let him get away.
Since conventional contracts and alliances are easily diluted by time, let's use the most reliable and direct method to completely bind this boy who controls the future to the war chariot of the Soul Beast race.
As for dignity and status, they are utterly insignificant in the face of the survival of the tribe.
She was even willing to stake her own dragon god essence on it, and along with the nominal status of a wife, what did that matter?
This is the extraordinary wisdom unique to the Dragon God.
As long as we can break the rules through this boy and end this absurd era where soul beasts cannot become gods, any price will be worth it.
Thinking of this, Gu Yuena's gaze became even more determined.
"Now that the matter between the two families has been settled, there's no need to delay any more formalities."
The girl nodded slightly and calmly outlined the next steps.
"I think tomorrow is a good day. We can have Di Tian and the others clean up the lakeside and hold the wedding ceremony."
"Once we're married, six months from now, we can naturally have a litter of baby dragons to carry on the bloodline of our two clans..."
"stop!"
Huo Yuhao's feigned composure completely crumbled.
He braced himself against the grass with both hands, ignoring the heavy feeling of oppression on his back, and loudly interrupted the other person's grand plan.
"Stop! You need to stop right now!"
The shout startled several birds in the surrounding trees, causing them to fly away.
Getting married tomorrow?
Will she give birth to a litter of baby dragons in six months?
What kind of utter nonsense and inappropriate language is this!
Even the strange tales written by roadside storytellers wouldn't dare to be so wild and unrestrained.
The mighty Silver Dragon King, a supreme being of the divine realm who has lived for hundreds of thousands of years, is even more ferocious in urging marriage and childbirth than those old country ladies who are eager to have grandchildren.
"Big sister, can you calm down?"
Huo Yuhao took a deep breath, his brows furrowed into a tight knot.
"Who wants to marry you? Who wants to have a litter of baby dragons with you?"
Do you even know what you're saying?
Gu Yuena tilted her head, her expression remaining perfectly solemn.
"Of course I know."
"This is for the future of the Soul Beast race, and also to fulfill the marriage agreement made in the God Realm back then."
"Who knows whether this engagement is real or fake?"
Huo Yuhao rolled his eyes without any politeness, staring directly into those pale purple double pupils, and decided to make his point clear.
"Nobody's a fool; there's no need to put on this pointless show."
"You, the sovereign ruler of the deepest part of the Lake of Life, have lowered yourself to come before me and spout this nonsense. What exactly do you want?"
Faced with the boy's direct questioning, Gu Yuena showed no sign of panic.
She slowly stood up and looked down at the wary human boy.
A gentle breeze lifted her long, silvery-white hair, which shimmered with a faint iridescent light in the sunlight.
The girl no longer brought up those absurd excuses about the Dragon King; her eyes were straightforward and undisguised, and her tone was firm and composed.
I want you!
If an ordinary teenager heard this, he would most likely be completely bewildered.
After all, the person standing in front of him was a stunningly beautiful girl with flawless features, silver hair that reached her ankles, shimmering purple eyes, and uttering such straightforward words.
But Huo Yuhao stared blankly at those unwavering purple eyes.
He was quite certain that the other person was neither interested in him as a person nor making any kind of heartfelt confession.
That's just plain stupid.
This silver dragon king, who has lived at the bottom of the lake for countless millennia, exists in a state of complete detachment from reality in terms of thought and logic.
Huo Yuhao sighed and simply rested his chin on the grass again. "Has no one ever said your acting is bad? There was no need to put on this show."
"If there's anything I need to do, just draw the path."
"Let's not treat each other like fools by using these roundabout and empty excuses."
Gu Yuena looked down at him quietly, without any embarrassment at being exposed.
Her cool and aloof face revealed an almost stubborn seriousness, and the hem of her plain white dress clung gently to her legs in the breeze.
"I need you to save the Soul Beast."
The girl gave a straightforward answer, her tone calm and without any emotional fluctuation.
"The power that the Dragon God left me is incomplete. I don't know how to lead my people to break the rules set by the gods."
"Those ferocious beasts outside can do nothing but brute force."
"Since you can see the crux of the problem and possess the essence of an ancient dragon king, then you should take my place and find a way out for the soul beast race."
Huo Yuhao shook his head repeatedly as he listened.
"That's quite a heavy accusation of yours. How could I, a mere Soul King, possibly be qualified to handle this situation?"
His tone was cold, and a hint of mockery even flickered in his eyes.
"Moreover, in my view, the extinction of soul beasts is an inevitable historical trend."
Even if a celestial being descended to earth, they couldn't reverse this predetermined fate.
Gu Yuena frowned slightly, a hint of confusion flashing in the depths of her pale purple double pupils.
"Why?"
Huo Yuhao rolled his eyes and decided to speak frankly.
"From your lifestyle habits to your savage and primitive reproductive logic, and your long growth cycles that often take hundreds or thousands of years, you are rotten inside and out."
"Those creations that fail to keep up with the times will ultimately be eliminated."
Huo Yuhao's words were completely sincere, hitting the nail on the head every time.
The current soul beasts, besides lamenting and complaining about their past glory, have not done a single thing that conforms to the laws of survival and evolution.
The so-called harm inflicted by humans is nothing more than the impotent rage of the weak when faced with the selection process of natural laws.
Standing on the sidelines of human civilization as a whole, and watching these once-powerful ancient overlords fall into decline, is truly a soothing experience.
Today, humanity is the absolute ruling force and the greatest variable in the ecosystem of this planet.
If you can't adapt to the new human-dominated environment, then just obediently go to your coffin and lie down.
If you can't stand it, then you can go and develop industry and create soul-guided devices.
When the Star Dou Great Forest can also deploy a row of level nine fixed-position soul-guided cannons and bombard human cities several times, then no one will have the right to point fingers at soul beasts.
Truth always lies within the range of a shot.
However, it's one thing to think that way in your heart, but you can't say it out loud.
After all, he was still on someone else's territory, with the might of an 800,000-year-old ferocious beast pressing down on his back. It wouldn't be worth it to completely provoke this real Buddha.
Huo Yuhao's mind raced, and he casually pulled out the same line he had used to fool the Snow Empress and the Ice Empress in the far north.
He cleared his throat and put on a sincere and serious expression.
"Breaking out of this predicament isn't as mysterious or complicated as you think."
Gu Yuena took half a step forward, listening attentively, "How?"
Huo Yuhao casually shrugged, "It's simple, have more children, stockpile more resources, and slowly gain dominance."
"As long as the number of births is large enough, the original predicament will naturally be resolved."
"Look at that bear, it does nothing productive all day long, all it knows is to go all over the mountains and fields looking for female bears to reproduce."
"But what was the result?"
"The cubs of the Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear are born capable of fighting, and can withstand battles that last for hundreds or even thousands of years. They have single-handedly raised the bar for the entire species."
"This is the most vivid example of success."
Huo Yuhao continued to deduce this logic logically, his tone resolute.
"As long as Di Tian also takes action and stops putting on a stern face and pretending to be some unfathomable beast god."
"Let it find more female dragons, make more effort, have two in three years, and a whole flock in five years."
"Give it a thousand or eight hundred years, and it will produce hundreds or thousands of pure-blooded dragon cubs. Wouldn't your dragon race then flourish again?"
These outrageous remarks echoed on the quiet lakeside.
Gu Yuena stood there, lost in deep thought.
Her double purple pupils flickered slightly as she carefully deduced the logic in her mind, and the more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.
The example of Xiong Jun is right before our eyes; it cannot be faked.
The reason why the dragon race declined was not only due to the encirclement and suppression by the gods of the divine realm, but also because its population was too small. Every death of a dragon meant one less dragon.
If they could truly conjure up hundreds or thousands of young dragons out of thin air, even without godhood, their pure blood power alone would be enough to sweep across the entire Douluo Continent.
This human boy was indeed quite capable, seeing through the most basic underlying mechanisms at a glance.
Thinking of this, Gu Yuena immediately stopped dawdling.
She gently raised her hand, and a faint halo of spatial light emanated from her body. Instantly, a divine message carrying supreme majesty swept into the depths of the void.
In the blink of an eye, several dark gaps quietly tore open in the surrounding void.
The several ferocious beasts, which had been scattered, gathered together from all parts of the forest at top speed.
Emperor Tian, who was at the head of the group, stepped out of the void with a solemn expression.
Bi Ji, Zi Ji, Chi Wang, Xiong Jun, and Wan Yao Wang followed closely behind, all kneeling on one knee with the utmost respect.
"I wonder what important matter Your Majesty has summoned me for so suddenly?"
Di Tian lowered his head, his voice deep and steady.
Gu Yuena looked down at the Black Dragon Clan Chief with a solemn expression and an exceptionally serious tone.
"Just now, I discussed the grand plan for the revival of our tribe with this young man, and we came up with a highly feasible solution."
The beasts were stunned for a moment, their gazes involuntarily drifting to Huo Yuhao, who was lying in the mud beside them.
Di Tian frowned slightly. "Please enlighten me, Your Majesty."
Gu Yuena nodded slightly and announced her decision in a measured and methodical manner.
"For the sake of the Dragon Clan's great cause, from this day forward, Di Tian, you should no longer concern yourself with those trivial matters."
"Go to various parts of the Star Dou Great Forest and find more suitable female dragons to reproduce as soon as possible."
"We don't need too many. Let's set a small goal first: to have a few hundred little dragons to bolster the top combat power of our Star Dou Great Forest."
As soon as he said that...
The entire Lake of Life fell completely still.
All the ferocious beasts: ...
An unprecedented and eerie atmosphere permeated the air.
Di Tian's expression changed from cold and stern to stiff, and the corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably a few times.
Zi Ji's mouth was wide open, big enough to fit an egg, and her purple eyes were full of absurdity.
Brigitte's gentle face flushed slightly, and she looked away with a flickering gaze.
Only Xiong Jun straightened his back, grinned widely, revealing a relieved smile that suggested he had finally found a kindred spirit, and secretly praised the lord's wisdom.
Di Tian knelt on the ground, feeling an inexplicable anger rush to his head.
Will it produce hundreds of baby dragons?
Do you think a dragon lays eggs like a hen, clucking and laying a whole nest?
Everyone in the entire plane knows just how low the chances of conception are for the True Dragon Clan.
The beasts looked at each other, their faces filled with embarrassment and frustration.
His high and mighty master had been hiding at the bottom of the lake for many years, sleeping and recuperating. He had never laid an egg in his life, nor had he ever considered any specific physiological issues.
They possess the mindset of a supreme deity, yet lack even the slightest common sense about life, completely unaware of how difficult and arduous the process truly is.
A gentle breeze blowing across the lake stirred up a few blades of grass, which landed on the calm water.
Di Tian knelt on one knee in the soft, damp grass and took several deep breaths to forcefully suppress his surging blood and qi.
The black dragon patriarch who ruled over all beasts raised his head, meeting Gu Yuena's unwavering purple double pupils, his expression more troubled than ever before.
"My lord, this matter must not be rushed."
Di Tian lowered his voice, his tone tinged with bitterness and helplessness.
"Since ancient times, there have been very few dragons with pure bloodlines. To give birth to a pure-blooded true dragon, it is not only necessary to consume a huge amount of life essence, but also to spend hundreds or thousands of years carefully nurturing it."
"If we were to allow them to multiply as you suggest, not only would we be unable to find many purebred female dragons in this forest, but the sheer amount of damage would be too much for my cultivation foundation to handle…"
Before the Beast God could finish pouring out his grievances, Huo Yuhao, who was lying in the mud, interrupted him without any politeness.
"Who gave you permission to give birth to a pureblood dragon?"
Huo Yuhao tilted his head with difficulty, his icy blue eyes filled with obvious disdain.
"Pureblood true dragons are rare items; there are only a handful on the entire continent. Where are you going to find so many female dragons of the same level to make up the numbers?"
"Open your mind and broaden your perspective."
"Pure-blooded dragons have a hard time conceiving, but aren't hybrid dragons with some true dragon bloodline also difficult to conceive?"
Upon hearing the boy's words, the expressions of the several ferocious beasts kneeling around him all froze.
All the ferocious beasts: ...
Huo Yuhao completely ignored the strange looks and continued to pontificate with an air of entitlement.
"Whether it's a lizard, a python, or a pangolin with scales, as long as it's a live female soul beast with some dragon-related characteristics, bring them all over for breeding."
"Even among these mixed-blood descendants, the probability of a true dragon bloodline reverting to its ancestral form is only one in ten thousand."
"But as long as you put in the hard work, if you can breed 10,000 sub-dragons a year and throw them into the pool for screening, you're bound to find a few exceptional geniuses with mutated bloodlines."
"What if we extend the timescale to decades or centuries?"
Huo Yuhao shrugged, his tone resolute, "We can even forcefully pile them up to create several pure-blooded true dragons!"
"This is called probability theory. Do you understand what it means for the cardinality to determine the upper limit?"
This inhumane theory drifted across the lake with the wind.
Several veins bulged on Di Tian's forehead, and his face trembled violently a few times.
The supreme overlord, who had lived for eight hundred thousand years, saw his restraint completely crumble.
He suddenly stood up, pointed at the boy lying in the grass, and roared loudly.
"Damn it! This is impossible!"
Di Tian's roar shook the entire Lake of Life, causing ripples to spread across its surface, and the leaves in the forest rustled and fell to the ground.
"You damned human, you're a complete beast!"
"So those born weren't your flesh and blood?"
"You make it sound so easy for you to say 10,000 dragons a year, but what about the remaining 9,999 hybrid offspring? Are you just going to ignore them?!"
After shouting these words, Di Tian's chest heaved violently, clearly enraged by the other party's inhumane scheme.
The lakeside fell into a long silence once again.
Murasaki: ...
Brigitte: ...
King of Ten Thousand Demons: ...
Apart from Xiong Jun, the other ferocious beasts all lowered their heads and fell into deep thought.
Xiong Jun scratched the back of his head, looking completely bewildered, his large, bronze-bell-shaped eyes even showing a hint of confusion.
Isn't it normal to give birth and then ignore it?
It has been sowing seeds in the forest for so many years, and every time it has just had its fun and left. The mother bear can take them if she wants, and if they don't survive, so be it. Why bother with so much effort?
But most of the beasts present had long since surpassed the primitive stage of wild animals.
They possessed wisdom superior to that of humans, and over the long and lonely years, they naturally developed delicate emotions that were not much different from those of humans.
They cannot be as heartless as the bear in pulling up radishes, nor can they treat their own flesh and blood as cold data to be discarded at will.
Brigitte, dressed in a light green dress, let out a soft sigh.
The Emerald Swan Clan Chief, known for her compassion, slowly raised her head, a hint of helplessness on her gentle face, and began to explain softly.
"Young Master Huo, the reproduction of soul beasts is not as simple as you imagine."
"After a human child is born, with just a few years of careful nurturing, he or she can discern right from wrong, understand language, and possess a complete intelligence."
"But we soul beasts are different."
A hint of sorrow lingered between Brigitte's brows, her voice soft yet heavy.
"When a soul beast cub is first born, it is no different from an uncivilized ordinary wild beast."
"They need to endure hundreds or even thousands of years of hardship in this dangerous forest, following the instinct of the survival of the fittest, eating raw meat and drinking blood, before they may be able to develop a sliver of intelligence and the ability to understand and communicate."
"During these long years of growth, a slight misstep can turn you into food for other predators."
Brigitte looked at the boy lying on the grass and shook her head.
"Even if we are ferocious beasts with extraordinary cultivation, possessing the most outstanding bloodlines and unparalleled combat power in the world, the flesh and blood we give birth to are still just ordinary, ignorant young beasts in the earliest years of their lives."
"If ten thousand sub-dragons were to be born, we would not only have to expend endless effort to protect them, but also have to guard against them killing each other day and night due to their wild instincts."
"That kind of situation is simply a burden we cannot bear."
Brigitte's logical explanation fell to the ground.
"..."
Huo Yuhao lay face down in the mud, speechless for a moment.
He blinked unconsciously, his mind racing.
No wonder these old monsters at the top of the pyramid would rather sleep all day than have more offspring.
So, in their eyes, having a child is no different from opening a blind box.
Knowing that their offspring will be born with a congenital disability, with incomplete cerebellum, completely underdeveloped cerebrum, weak limbs, and numerous health problems, and even unable to recognize their parents, no one would want to give birth to such a child.
No one wants to spend hundreds of years carrying a child only to give birth to a mentally challenged lizard that can't even speak.
Huo Yuhao silently pressed his chin back onto the damp grass.
It seems I had taken this matter for granted before.
Thinking about the problem solely from the perspective of large-scale aquaculture in the past completely ignores the huge physiological deficiencies of native species.
As expected, one has no right to speak without investigation.
Gu Yuena, who was standing to the side, paused slightly after hearing this conversation.
For the first time, a rare look of confusion appeared on that flawless face.
The girl lowered her long eyelashes, her pale purple double pupils shimmering with light, and fell into complete silence.
Before this, she had never thought about it in detail.
In those grand memories inherited from fragments of the ancient dragon god, the bloodline of the pure-blooded dragon race was incredibly sacred and noble.
Those dragon princes born in the realm of gods, the moment they emerge from their shells, are just like six or seven-year-old human children, with the unique childlike innocence of children, exceptionally intelligent, lively and agile, and with a little guidance they can control the wind and clouds.
She could never have imagined it.
These descendants of their kind, now stranded in the mortal realm, are born with such a pathetic appearance—dull-witted, stupid, and resembling wild beasts.
The sky above the Lake of Life was forcibly divided into three vast, distinct regions.
The clouds churned and surged, and muffled thunder rumbled in the deepest part of the sky, yet not a single raindrop fell.
Huo Yuhao maintained his chin-to-the-ground posture, slightly raising his gaze to observe the battle of the gods high in the sky.
Occupying the easternmost part of the sky was a dark, earthy yellow cloud, thick and heavy, carrying a wild and desolate aura that seemed to devour the heavens and the earth.
That was Taotie Douluo Xuanzi from Shrek Academy. He probably rushed over to strike a pose after returning to the Sea God Pavilion to fetch reinforcements.
The due north was completely dominated by a green, eerie halo, with surging energy like a vast ocean, even reflecting half of the sky as if it were emerald glass.
That domineering and unparalleled source power could only be unleashed by the Sect Master of the Body Sect, Du Busi, throughout the entire Douluo Continent.
As for what looms in the very center, forcing both massive forces back to the edge, there is a dark abyss that is almost pure black.
Dark clouds covered the sky and the sun, and amidst the churning, one could vaguely see the shadowy silhouette of a giant dragon, stretching for thousands of feet, weaving through the sea of clouds, its pure golden eyes looking down upon everything below.
The most ferocious beast in the world, the 890,000-year-old Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King, Di Tian.
The gathering of these three powerful figures, who could roam freely in any corner of the mainland, was bound to cause quite a stir.
Their intentions were extremely simple and straightforward.
They were all there because of the human boy lying in the mud by the lake.
This situation seems somewhat absurd and laughable.
Huo Yuhao's lips twitched slightly as he calmly watched the collision in the clouds.
Sure enough, before the life-or-death struggle could truly erupt in the sky, the yellowish-brown clouds began to shake violently.
With a long, unwilling howl, the yellowish-brown stream of soul power spun in the air before rolling away towards the western horizon without any hesitation.
He ran so cleanly and efficiently.
This is very much in line with Master Xuan's consistent style: when he sees that things are not going to work, he immediately tries to protect himself and retreat.
As the earthy yellow aura receded, the previously balanced triangular standoff instantly shattered.
The dark clouds, like a tidal wave bursting its banks, pressed down on that verdant territory.
A colossal, jet-black claw emerged from the void, tearing through layers of air waves as it slammed down with an overwhelming aura of supreme power.
The emerald light only lasted for a few breaths before it crumbled under the oppressive might of the true dragon that transcended the plane of existence.
A muffled groan came from deep within the clouds, and the azure light was completely swallowed up by pure darkness.
The fierce winds high in the sky suddenly stopped.
This battle, which impacted the top echelons of the Chinese political landscape, came to a complete victory for the Golden-Eyed Black Dragon King.
Huo Yuhao remained calm and waited quietly.
Not long after, a faint rustling sound came from the dense bushes beside him.
A small golden beast, covered in shimmering fur and shaped like a lion cub, trotted out, bathed in a pale golden glow.
The three-eyed golden lion walked briskly to the boy and looked down at him from its height.
That fluffy little face had an undisguised playfulness, and its golden tail swung rapidly behind it.
"Hey, lying down?"
The little beast tilted its head, its crimson vertical pupils slightly narrowed, "Those old men in the sky were fighting so fiercely just now, it was all for you. You're really in high demand."
Huo Yuhao slowly turned his head to the side, his tone showing no trace of embarrassment as a prisoner.
"That's right, that's right. After all, a human pillar with such extraordinary talent as me is highly sought after wherever I go."
Following up on the other person's line of conversation, Huo Yuhao suddenly realized that the heavy pressure on his back was receding like a tide.
The immense soul power emanating from the Black Dragon King slowly dissipated among the blades of grass, and the bones that had been tense for seven days finally relaxed.
Huo Yuhao braced himself against the soft soil with both hands, and with a slight exertion of his waist, his tall and slender figure stood upright.
He casually patted the weeds and mud that clung to his chest and clothes, and exhaled a long, foul breath.
He was forced to lie face down in the mud for seven days and seven nights. Even if his muscles and bones were strong, his body would become somewhat stiff.
As the soul power within his body circulated once, his limbs and bones quickly regained their abundant vitality.
The three-eyed golden lion tilted its head back, gazing at the boy who was much taller than itself, its eyes filled with a complex light.
It had lived in the Starry Sky Forest for over ten thousand years and had never seen any human cause so much commotion in the Lake of Life, and yet still manage to escape unscathed.
"My godfather just sent me a telepathic message."
The little beast shook its ears, its tone unreadable, "He said you can get out of the Star Dou Great Forest now."
Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao was slightly taken aback, and his eyebrows rose.
Di Tian was actually willing to let him leave.
However, after thinking about it for a while, it didn't seem that strange.
Since the Silver Dragon King at the bottom of the lake, who controls the creation of elements, has already reached a consensus with him, and now that powerful human beings outside are coming to his door one after another, continuing to confine himself to the core area will only bring endless trouble.
Letting him go is the wisest choice right now.
Huo Yuhao nodded, but did not rush to move.
This place is rich in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and is protected by countless top-notch restrictions, making it an excellent feng shui treasure land for breaking through barriers.
Now that we've come this far, wouldn't it be a waste of these seven days of hard work if we didn't refine and perfect our trump cards before leaving?
He flipped his hand slightly, and the Qiankun Creation Cauldron deep within his sea of consciousness trembled gently.
A hazy, chaotic mist quietly dissipated from the palm of my hand.
As the energy of creation was released, an irregular emerald green crystal fell into his palm.
It was a strangely textured metallic crystal, no bigger than a walnut, yet its surface radiated an incredibly pure and massive wave of vitality.
The withered grass that had been trampled flat by the dragon's might sprouted tender green shoots at a speed visible to the naked eye the moment it came into contact with this vitality.
Even more miraculously, each of the refracting facets of that emerald green crystal seemed to be a glass mirror that peered into the passage of time.
Each surface reflects different light and shadow; some reflect falling leaves, while others depict the first rays of dawn, as if carrying hundreds of distinct and independent time periods.
This is the crystal he nurtured earlier in the Creation Cauldron with the essence of creation.
A whole large piece of living gold served as the carrier of life, the divine dragon core left behind by the Time Dragon King Di Yaluka served as the core of the law, and with the aid of his own spacetime power, after being polished by the Great Dao of the world inside the cauldron, it was finally completely fused into such an unparalleled divine object.
The three-eyed golden lion's breathing slowed down by half a beat for a moment.
Its golden eyes stared intently at Huo Yuhao's palm, a faint gurgling sound emanating from deep within its throat, and even its four hooves involuntarily moved forward half an inch.
It could clearly perceive that the tiny crystal contained a supreme power that could overturn ordinary understanding.
Huo Yuhao remained calm and composed, gently lifting the divine object that emanated the ripples of time with his five fingers.
Without the slightest hesitation, he raised his arm and placed the irregular, emerald-green metallic crystal directly against his brow.
Upon contact, the hard crystal surface rippled like water, then, like a cool liquid, it melted into the skin deep between the eyebrows without any obstruction.
Huo Yuhao closed his eyes, and his soul power instantly subsided, allowing him to enter a meditative state without any defenses.
The Three-Eyed Golden Lion looked at the human boy who was sitting casually by the lake in seclusion, and its face fell. It was utterly speechless.
Isn't this bastard afraid that I'll stab him in the back?
However, before it could finish mentally berating the other party's arrogance, a layer of fine, pale golden texture quietly appeared on Huo Yuhao's originally smooth and clean forehead skin.
A mysterious and obscure wave spread from the top of the boy's head.
The skin and flesh slowly parted to the sides, and a ray of bluish-gold light shone through. In the dim light, it seemed that a strange, upright eye was taking shape on the forehead.
The three-eyed golden lion's steps froze completely in place.
Staring at the not-yet-fully-open vertical pupil, the little beast's third eye, a crimson-gold color, suddenly blazed with a dazzling light.
The power of destiny that had been quietly dormant deep within its origin suddenly began to violently tremble uncontrollably, transforming into strands of golden silk that echoed towards the boy's brow.
The three-eyed golden lion lowered its head, trying to regain control of its uncontrollably trembling vertical pupil.
The fine scales beneath the golden fur stood up in layers, as if resonating with some kind of rule that was of the same origin but of a higher order.
This feeling is so strange.
The human boy clearly didn't possess the true destiny of a mythical beast, yet from the crack in his forehead flowed a pulse of time and vitality that even the beast found unsettling.
It didn't linger in place for long. Its four hooves shattered a ring of golden light, transforming into a long rainbow that plunged straight into the calm, emerald-green lake.
Not a single drop of water splashed out of the lake.
Passing through layers of thick, dense moisture, the space below suddenly stretched out.
This is not the usual lakebed silt, but a secluded, folded paradise.
The entire secret realm is vast and boundless, filled with pure, almost liquid, primordial energy of heaven and earth.
In the center of this empty space, a huge, emerald-green stone, as large as a small mountain, floats.
The stone's surface was warm and smooth like jade, radiating endless essence of vegetation. It was the core of the Starry Sky Forest, which had stored up countless years of its essence, and the largest piece of living gold on the entire continent.
A colossal dragon, over a thousand feet long, was now quietly coiled atop the golden mountain of life.
The dragon's entire body was covered with crystal-clear, silvery-white scales, each scale shimmering with mysterious elemental light.
However, on its side, there was a horrific wound that ran through half of its body.
The wound edges were charred and blackened, with a strange and brutal interplay of dark red and gray-white seeping outwards, exuding a chillingly supreme killing intent.
Those are the divine laws that have transcended countless eras and still have not been completely eradicated.
This sword mark was made by the first Asura God.
At the end of that great war that shook the entire divine realm, the Asura Demon Sword split the supreme Dragon God in two.
That sword strike severed the very essence of the most powerful divine beast in the divine realm, and the destructive power it unleashed was virtually unstoppable.
The Golden Dragon King and the Silver Dragon King, who split off from the original dragon, each shared half of the damage from that sword strike.
Although it was supposed to be a flat distribution, the outcomes for the two half-bodied figures were vastly different.
The Golden Dragon King fully inherited the Dragon God's immortal physique and immense vitality.
That kind of abnormally powerful physical recovery ability means that, given enough time to recuperate, broken bones and flesh can be forcibly reconstructed using the body's abundant blood and energy.
Even the lingering sword intent could be completely digested by that extremely savage and destructive power.
However, the Silver Dragon King followed a completely opposite evolutionary path.
She inherited the Dragon God's ultimate control over the elements of heaven and earth, as well as the spiritual creative authority that encompasses Yongzhen.
In terms of pure bone and muscle strength and self-healing blood circulation, she is far inferior to her brother who only grows muscles.
The more troublesome part is that, as one of the five supreme authorities in the divine realm, the power of the Asura God is inherently endowed with the characteristics of absolute demon-slaying and magic-suppressing.
Any attempt to repair the injury using elements of heaven and earth such as fire, water, wind, and earth will be forcibly destroyed the moment it touches the sword wound.
This resulted in the Silver Dragon King possessing unparalleled elemental creation techniques, yet being unable to use them on himself.
She could only coil her enormous dragon body here, mobilizing the life force within her body, like water dripping on stone, to gradually wear down the persistent Asura divine power.
This grinding process took hundreds of thousands of years.
If this were in the realm of gods, the Golden Dragon King would probably be alive and kicking by now.
Even today, this grotesque, unclosed gash remains on her body.
However, the long years were not in vain.
The dark red Asura power that had been entwined deep within the wound has now weakened, with ninety-nine percent of its full power being forcibly worn away.
Once the last trace of divine power dissipates completely, and the obstacles of the magic law are removed, the remaining flesh and bones will be fully restored within a few hundred years thanks to the nourishment of the living gold beneath.
With a crisp sound of its hooves splashing in the water, the three-eyed golden lion landed on the edge of the gold of life.
"My lord."
The little beast tilted its furry head back and called out softly.
The enormous silver dragon, coiled on the rocky mountain, slowly shifted its neck, its huge, pale purple vertical pupils opening to reflect the small figure below.
"What's up?"
A clear and majestic voice echoed throughout the entire secret realm.
The three-eyed golden lion flicked its tail, its tone filled with confusion and surprise.
"That human brat outside just took out a strange green rock and shoved it right into his forehead."
It raised its front paw and gestured, "That stone not only smells entirely of living gold, but also carries a very strange power of time."
"He's now splitting open a third eye on his forehead, and even the life force within me is being drained and is causing it to jump around wildly."
Upon hearing these words, the enormous silver dragon paused slightly.
A creation where the essence of life and the laws of time intertwine?
And he's even trying to condense a third eye?
A flash of enlightenment crossed the depths of the silver dragon.
She knew very well what the fate of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion meant.
That is predetermined by the supreme laws of destiny; mortal beings cannot possibly take away their fortune or trigger the power of destiny for no reason.
Unless the other party's methods have reached a level that can interfere with the cause and effect of heaven and earth.
The enormous silver-white dragon's body shimmered with a dazzling silver-white light.
The dragon, which was thousands of feet long, began to shrink rapidly, and the light in the sky gathered and condensed. In just a few breaths, it transformed back into the slender girl in a plain white dress.
Gu Yuena smoothed her skirt with her hand, shattered the void, and stepped out of the secret realm with the three-eyed golden lion in one step.
The water rippled slightly.
A gentle breeze blew across the lake, ruffling the girl's long, silvery-white hair that reached her ankles.
Gu Yuena stood on the lake shore, her light purple eyes landing directly on Huo Yuhao, who was sitting cross-legged on the grass.
The boy's aura was now stable, and the crack on his forehead had completely opened up.
A vertical eye, radiating a pure emerald green and a deep lapis lazuli luster, is quietly embedded between the skin and flesh.
To ordinary creatures, it was nothing more than a slightly peculiar Spirit Eye Martial Soul variant.
However, under the gaze of Gu Yuena's double pupils that could see through the essence of the elements, the entire network of the laws of heaven and earth completely changed.
In the ethereal realm of cause and effect, an extremely solid golden thread extended from the vertical eye between Huo Yuhao's eyebrows, traversing space without obstruction, and tightly wrapped around the neck and forehead of the three-eyed golden lion beside him.
That wasn't an ordinary soul power connection.
That is the outward manifestation of the laws of fate being forcibly anchored.
Gu Yuena gazed quietly at the ever-flowing golden thread, her plain white sleeves swaying gently in the wind.
Her mind flashed back to the boy's arrogant demeanor as he pointed out the world by the lake, his seemingly unorthodox yet fundamental theory of reproduction, and the many divine beast origins residing within his body.
The chips this human held were far heavier than she had anticipated.
Since the web of fate has already cast its own string, this is no longer a coincidence, but the result of the forces of nature.
By simply hiding at the bottom of the lake to recuperate, the Soul Beast race is destined to slowly perish, even if it survives for another million years.
Rather than waiting to be killed, it's better to go with the flow and completely pull this biggest variable into our camp.
As long as he is bound to the war chariot of the Soul Beast Clan, the Star Dou Great Forest will have a trump card to overturn the table, whether facing the gods of the God Realm or the strongmen of the human race in the future.
Thinking of this, Gu Yuena withdrew her gaze and turned to look at the somewhat cramped little beast beside her.
"Go over there."
The girl's voice was calm and clear, exuding an undeniable authority.
The three-eyed golden lion paused for a moment, then subconsciously took half a step back. "Huh?"
"Put your third eye on."
Gu Yuena raised her fair finger and pointed to Huo Yuhao's vertical eye that was emitting a halo of light on his forehead.
"Complete the welcoming ceremony with him."