Not far before the Dragon, He Yiming heard it clearly. Infinite curiosity welled up in his heart; he wondered what the Divine Beast had seen to become so utterly unbalanced.
After all, even when faced with the Divine Artifact, the Nine Dragon Furnace, and those top-tier Saint Beast Inner Cores, the Dragon hadn't shown any surprise. Thus, this loss of composure not only startled He Yiming but also piqued his curiosity far more. He truly could not imagine anything in the Five Elements World that this Dragon would covet.
After stating this slowly, the Dragon firmly closed its mouth, its massive eyes fixed on He Yiming, seemingly pondering something deeply.
Its appearance was terrifying, especially at that moment, when He Yiming felt an intense, almost unbearable pressure. If he hadn't already advanced to the Divine Dao, and if his Martial Might hadn't far surpassed that of an ordinary newly ascended Void God Realm expert, he probably wouldn't even be able to stand steadily right now.
“Respected Lord Dragon, may I ask what has caught your interest?” He Yiming asked as calmly as possible.
The Dragon hesitated for a moment. “Rest assured, as a member of the Divine Dragon Clan, I have no intention of coveting your possessions. I am merely curious as to why this particular item has appeared with you.”
Although He Yiming didn't believe a word of the Dragon’s statement—its previous actions clearly showed it was not a reasonable entity—he dared not reveal this thought now. Instead, he offered a slight smile. “What are you curious about?”
The Dragon’s gigantic claw gently tapped the Five Elements Ring hovering in mid-air. The Five Elements World immediately split open from within, and a small wooden box slowly floated out.
He Yiming’s expression shifted subtly. For this Dragon to be able to open his Five Elements World was truly terrifying power.
It was important to remember that the Five Elements Ring was no ordinary spatial accessory; it was He Yiming’s innate Divine Weapon. Yet, under the creature’s manipulation, it offered no resistance whatsoever. Not only had the most mysterious Five Elements Space been spied upon, but opening it was also effortlessly accomplished.
The small box drifted above He Yiming. The Dragon’s voice seemed to deepen slightly: “Do you know what this is?”
He Yiming was momentarily stunned, a growing chill settling in his heart.
This Dragon had discerned the contents of the box without even opening it. At this point, He Yiming vehemently suspected the extent of this creature’s power. It was definitely not a mere pseudo-God Realm Divine Beast.
Reaching out, He Yiming accepted the wooden box and carefully opened it.
He Yiming possessed quite a few such wooden boxes now. Most of these items he had retrieved from those secret chambers. Some were treasures from Penglai Immortal Island, and others belonged to the Da Shenyu family. Certain precious and unique things required preservation in these wooden boxes. Over time, even He Yiming himself had lost track of what was inside some of them.
A faint, delicate fragrance wafted out. The moment the box opened, this hint of fragrance permeated the air.
He Yiming’s eyebrows twitched slightly. He knew this was a material, certainly something like an herb used in refining spiritual elixirs.
Finally, a small crack in the wooden box widened completely, and the rich aroma propagated even further. Fortunately, the area was vast and sparsely populated; aside from the man and the beast, practically no one else was in sight, so this fragrance did not cause a commotion.
The Dragon’s nostrils flared, sniffing deeply, seeming quite fond of the scent.
“Heaven and Earth Sacred Fruit…” He Yiming murmured solemnly.
He finally recognized the origin of the item: it was the fruit plucked from the Tree of Life he had acquired beneath Penglai Immortal Island.
He clearly remembered that ancient tree, which looked incredibly strange, was saturated with the vitality of life, seeming even more potent than the colossal tree beneath the Grotto-Heavens. However, once he plucked the sole fruit from its branches, the entire ancient tree hidden beneath the island withered away completely.
This transformation had left an indelible impression; he would never forget it in his lifetime.
“You actually know its origin.” The Dragon’s voice was filled with surprise. “A fruit from the world’s most ancient, now extinct plant—where did you obtain it?”
He Yiming hesitated for a moment, then decided against concealment. He recounted his entire experience entering the depths beneath Penglai Immortal Island. Of course, the part about excavating the Divine Dao Sarira was selectively omitted.
After all, that deceased Divine Dao expert clearly hailed from the Five Elements Sect, and this Dragon seemed remarkably close to the Sect. Therefore, He Yiming refrained from mentioning that tangential detail to avoid increasing the creature’s displeasure.
After a long pause, the Dragon finally let out a long sigh. “So, beneath Penglai Immortal Island, there was actually such a Divine Tree. What a pity, truly a shame.”
Although He Yiming was intensely curious about the meaning of its lament, he ultimately refrained from asking.
The powerful will the Dragon had exerted slowly receded, and He Yiming’s connection with the Five Elements Ring gradually returned. A flicker of uncertain astonishment crossed his eyes, and his heart pounded even faster.
Initially, the feeling He Yiming received from the Dragon was that it intended to seize the Five Elements Ring outright. This wasn't a hallucination; it was a concrete sensation. The creature had used its supremely powerful mental ability to wrap around and sever his connection with the Divine Weapon.
While this sounded almost unbelievable, He Yiming didn't know what method the Dragon employed to actually achieve this.
Yet, upon seeing the Heaven and Earth Sacred Fruit, it had clearly changed its mind. Not only did it cease weakening his control over the Five Elements Ring, but it slowly withdrew the invasive power, allowing He Yiming to reclaim control of his innate Divine Weapon.
With a light wave of his hand, the Five Elements Ring flew back to his palm. He Yiming almost couldn’t wait to store the item in his Dantian.
Though he was well aware that if the Dragon truly wished it, it could force him to surrender the Five Elements Ring, he felt it best to hide it away until a true break in relations occurred.
The Dragon chuckled, but its expression was notably savage: “He Yiming, you need not worry. I have no intention of troubling you. I will not interfere with the grievances between you and others. Just ensure that you exercise restraint and do not take each other’s lives.”
He Yiming nodded repeatedly, but his mind churned with silent dissatisfaction.
“He Yiming, how about we strike a deal,” the Dragon suddenly proposed.
He Yiming hesitated briefly. “Lord Dragon, please state your command directly. I, He, will certainly exert my utmost effort.”
“First, I wish to ask you one question. Please answer me truthfully.” The Dragon’s voice was incredibly grave, and what surprised He Yiming even more was that it wasn't roaring this time, but condensing its sound into a fine thread that drilled directly into He Yiming’s ear.
He gave a wry smile. Throughout this day, He Yiming had silently cursed countless times. Since this Dragon possessed such immense power, it could naturally modulate the volume of its voice, but it insisted on using a booming tone, leaving people utterly frustrated.
“Lord Dragon, please proceed.”
“I need to know: can Hundred and Eight close this passage?” The Dragon’s voice was now soft, almost inaudible.
He Yiming’s body jolted. He looked up sharply, his eyes locking onto the Dragon.
Although this statement was as faint as a worm’s murmur, to He Yiming’s mind, it was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue, enough to scare away half his soul and spirit.
Hundred and Eight was devising a plan to seal the passage. Only He Yiming knew this; he hadn’t even told Liu Mu or Mou Zilong, and even Di Shitian and the others were completely unaware.
It wasn't that He Yiming intentionally tried to deceive them, but he knew clearly that if they learned prematurely that the passage could be closed, everyone’s intentions might become restless, making it virtually impossible to cooperate against those terrifying Death Creatures.
But how, then, did this Dragon learn this secret?
Seeing He Yiming’s expression, the Dragon no longer required an answer.
It spoke slowly, “Hundred and Eight can actually seal this passage? Alas, I should have thought of this long ago.” There was a taste of deep reflection in its tone; clearly, even being trapped here for five hundred years hadn't been easy for it.
“Lord Dragon, how do you know of Hundred and Eight?” He Yiming took a deep breath and finally managed to calm himself.
The Dragon chuckled. “This seat is the divine calculator among Divine Beasts, and the one who proposed the plan to open the passage back then was the divine calculator among humans. Since you are acquainted with Hundred and Eight, you should know the origin of the human divine calculator, correct?”
He Yiming’s expression remained blank. “The first Divine Dao expert Hundred and Eight encountered was the human divine calculator?”
The Dragon’s massive head nodded slightly. “You are correct. If he hadn't met Hundred and Eight and received definitive information, none of these subsequent events would have occurred.”
He Yiming raised his eyebrows slightly. “What does this have to do with Hundred and Eight? If you hadn't harbored greed, how would so many things have happened?”
The Dragon paused, then sighed. “You speak the truth. Ultimately, it is the desire for longevity that drives us. However…” It tilted its head back and murmured, “The craving for immortality—we cannot resist it. Can you resist it?”
He Yiming’s heart leaped. Although he was still young and had a vast expanse of time ahead, he knew perfectly well that he couldn't remain entirely unmoved.