Dragon Tamer

Zhu Minglang had not really heard much about this term before.

“You can think of it as an immortal being demoted to a mortal, losing supreme mana, losing the aura of immortality, losing the qualification to ascend to the Heaven realm,” Mr. Jinli explained upon seeing Zhu Minglang’s confusion.

“Could it be that her realm is very high?” Zhu Minglang inquired.

“It must be high, and what you see of her may not even be her true form, but just an incarnation created by her desire for freedom. Her real self could be as magnificent as the earth’s ridge, and has completely grown together with it. Anyway, try communicating with her and ask if she is willing to lose her own destiny,” Mr. Jinli said.

Zhu Minglang already had a spirit bond with the Nuwa Dragon, and she had basically become his spirit pet by now. Communicating with her was not difficult for Zhu Minglang, but he needed her to understand that if she wanted to leave this place, she would have to give up her original cultivation base.

The Nuwa Dragon didn’t even know what a cultivation base or destiny was; she simply accepted Zhu Minglang’s proposal happily. As for what price she would have to pay, it seemed she did not care much as long as it didn’t cause the collapse of the earth’s ridge.

A cultivation base like that of gods, or possessing a high destiny, mean nothing if one is imprisoned in the dark depths below the earth, with hardly a trace of longing left.

“Can you take me to find the Divine Ridge Root that binds your life soul?” Zhu Minglang asked.

The Nuwa Dragon blinked her eyes, and after a while, she seemed to understand that Zhu Minglang wanted to help her. She swam out of the emerald pool and followed the crack that Zhu Minglang had climbed through earlier.

As she moved, she did so by swaying her waist and tail; if one only paid attention to her upper body, it appeared as though she was walking like a catwalk model.

Zhu Minglang followed her, leaving the crack.

Zhu Minglang was already lost in the Earth Vein Labyrinth, but the Nuwa Dragon was very familiar with this place. She swam into an extremely narrow vein of the earth, one that Zhu Minglang had not noticed before.

Following this vein of the earth, Zhu Minglang noticed that the rock became gradually hotter, and from time to time, he could see flames that had seeped in, blooming like stone flowers, delicate and dripping with beauty.

“This is the path to the Earth Vein Fire Pistil. I am here to help you chop away the locks on your life soul and set you free, not to have you help me find the exit,” Zhu Minglang told the Nuwa Dragon.

The Nuwa Dragon was too kind, her heart so pure it seemed to contain not the slightest malice.

“Na~” The Nuwa Dragon stretched out her slender arms and then pointed ahead, as if to tell Zhu Minglang they were close.

Zhu Minglang, slightly puzzled, continued to follow the Nuwa Dragon.

The light from the flames had already made the gloomy veins of the earth somewhat transparent, and Zhu Minglang knew they were very close to the Earth Vein Fire Pistil.

Suddenly, Zhu Minglang realized a problem.

Could it be that the Earth Vein Fire Pistil is actually the Divine Ridge Root???

Zhu Minglang carefully recalled the sympathetic dream he had before…

The crack at the bottom of the sea, the corridor leading to the veins of the Earth, and the core fire of the earth’s veins that for no apparent reason burned ceaselessly in the underworld, releasing a tremendous energy of flames!

That Earth Vein Fire Pistil, is it the Nuwa Dragon’s life soul??

Having supported the fragile earth’s ridge for far too long, her life soul had grown together with the ridge, transforming into an incessantly burning core fire of the earth’s veins, like a heart that continuously pumps ancient primal forces!

So that so-called surge of flames was actually just a beat of her heart…

“Mr. Jinli, the Earth Vein Fire Pistil has turned into her life soul!” Zhu Minglang suddenly realized.

“Her real form is truly a god of the Nuwa’s salvation level. This Nuwa Dragon is her incarnation,” Mr. Jinli said in amazement.

“No wonder, no wonder…” Zhu Minglang thought back to that heavy, dreamlike state.

“That makes things easier, much easier,” Mr. Jinli said.

“What do you mean?” Zhu Minglang asked.

“Her real form has completely merged with the veins of the Earth and the earth’s ridge. Presumably, in some era, a great catastrophe occurred here, leading to the extinction of all living things. She transformed her flesh and blood into the veins of the Earth that supported the land’s collapse and her heart and soul into the fire pistil that invigorated and solidified the earth’s ridge. The Nuwa Dragon we see is an immortal soul that has formed over the long years in these veins of the Earth, equivalent to a freshly nurtured new life. All we have to do is help her sever that thread of the fire pistil connected to the Earth Vein Fire Pistil, sort of like cutting short the umbilical cord, and she’ll become an independent life,” Mr. Jinli explained.

Zhu Minglang rejoiced.

That is to say, she can attain freedom without the need to utterly shatter the Neon Sea.

Zhu Minglang took a deep breath of relief; if just by severing one connecting thread within the Earth Vein Fire Pistil, she could be reborn, that could truly be considered perfect fulfillment!

Could it really be because he had gathered the Seven Disaster Omen Beasts that Old Heavenly Father had arranged, in the unseen world, for him to come beneath these veins of the Earth and take away the Nuwa Dragon lingering in the underground world?

“Anyone else coming here really wouldn’t be able to take her away. After all, they don’t have a special existence like the Sword Spirit Dragon. Just touching that restless fire liquid would burn them to a crisp! Zhu Minglang, Zhu Minglang, you should thank your lucky star. It’s because of this fortune that you have this heavenly destiny. Otherwise, even if you were one of the few who could save her, you could never have blindly wandered here to encounter the Nuwa Dragon by chance. From now on, you should offer more fine wine and meat to me, Mr. Jinli, get it?” Mr. Jinli began to boast about himself grandly.

“Mr. Jinli, there’s something wrong with what you’re saying. When I encountered the Seven Disaster Omen Beasts, you were there the whole time too. How come your heavenly powers didn’t manifest then?” Zhu Minglang said.

“I ask you, did the Heavenly Slaughter Dragon not end up becoming your dragon?” Mr. Jinli challenged.

“Yes.”

“Did you suffer any loss?”

“`

“No.”

“There you go, that’s what you call turning misfortune into fortune, and now this, called being under the shining protection of a lucky star!” Mr. Jinli was so spirited. If his whiskers were a bit longer, he would indeed have something of the aura of an immortal carps!

However, no matter how much an immortal carp he seemed to be, he couldn’t withstand the scorching heat of the Earth Vein Fire Pistil. Mr. Jinli slightly raised his fish nose and sniffed, somehow detecting a particularly fragrant scent!

“Wow, I’m about to be roasted and you didn’t say a word!!!” Mr. Jinli suddenly screamed like a child.

He circled around Zhu Minglang a few times, that smell becoming even more overwhelming, if only they sprinkled some green onion, cumin, spices, chili powder…

“Remember, thank me, your lucky star!” Mr. Jinli howled one last time before hurrying to become an embroidery, hiding behind Zhu Minglang’s clothes.

“Giggle giggle giggle~~~~~~” The Nuwa Dragon watched Mr. Jinli’s fiery escape and couldn’t stop laughing. Her laughter was as clear and tinkling as bells, giving off an innocent and pure vibe.

…

Continuing forward, the Nuwa Dragon suddenly stopped. A fiery red mark appeared on her chest, as if her heart was fiercely burning. The glow of the flames shone through her crystal-clear skin, casting light over her entire body.

The Nuwa Dragon retreated in fear.

This was the limit of where she could move. She couldn’t even get close to the Earth Vein Fire Pistil.

Otherwise, the fragile wisp of her spirit would be completely burned away.

“Wait here, I’ll go sever that Life Soul chain,” Zhu Minglang said to the Nuwa Dragon.

“Na na na~” The Nuwa Dragon hadn’t learned to speak fully yet and could only let out a low hum.

…

Anyway, Zhu Minglang had finally found the way back to this Earth Vein Fire Pistil.

It was a narrow fissure made of unbreakable Stone Crystals, Zhu Minglang even had to crawl to get through it.

As he was about to reach the large cave where the Earth Vein Fire Pistil was located and climb out along the rugged Stone Crystals, he heard voices arguing from outside!

Someone???

This was supposed to be the Zhu Gate Secret Area, how could outsiders arrive here??

But listening to the voices, Zhu Minglang felt they sounded familiar.

Zhu Minglang stuck his head out, looked into the large cave of the Earth Vein Fire Pistil, and saw a group of people lying on the ground, dead or injured!

Zhu Minglang was surprised.

Had the fire-fetching ritual already started??

Had he been lost in the Earth Veins for that long??

Underground, with no concept of time, Zhu Minglang had already taken a long time to fetch the fire. Then he wandered off in the Earth Veins, encountered the Nuwa Dragon, and as for that empathetic Dream World, it seemed like a long time had passed. Mr. Jinli had even specifically reminded him!

The fire-fetching ritual had already taken place?

But why were these people lying on the ground? Aside from a few important figures from Zhu Gate, there were also some dressed in red and black clothes. Some of these people also had very high Cultivation Bases!

“Zhao Yu, you’re really treacherous, and to think I, An Qingfeng, trusted you so much!” An Qingfeng’s voice came from a place Zhu Minglang couldn’t see.

He seemed to be lying in a corner, immobilized, even speaking with difficulty.

An Qingfeng was severely injured.

As for the experts in the red and black clothes, they were clearly strong members from King An’s Mansion. They had broken into this Secret Area, seeking to plot something malicious, only to find themselves outmaneuvered by Prince Zhao Yu, all of King An’s Mansion’s experts dying near the Earth Vein Fire Pistil!

It was a very strong force, with King An’s Mansion fully prepared and gathering many experts, some of whom were even at the King Level…

But in the end, they still met a tragic fate!

“Is Zhao Yu a double agent?” Zhu Minglang was somewhat surprised.

Within the Zhu Gate Small Inner Court were many of King An’s informants and inside agents, even those who had long turned traitor. They’d been plotting how to take over the Little Inner Court.

Unable to chew through Zhu Gate’s main Inner Court in the Imperial City, King An shifted his focus to this remote Little Inner Court…

Only for Prince Zhao Yu to lure them all out and catch them in a single net??

That is to say, the Zhu Gate’s secret of the Earth Vein Fire Pistil being known to outsiders was actually leaked by Zhu Gate’s own insiders, intending to use Prince Zhao Yu to draw out all of King An’s Mansion people, while also cleansing their ranks?

However, this cleansing and eradication of King An’s influence had come at a heavy cost to the Little Inner Court.