The setting sun bled across the small courtyard, and a night wind swept against the city walls. Fu Chong sat atop the wall of the small county town: "Do you know why Murong Huangfu lost to me?" Lu Yuan placed his hand on his wine gourd: "First, I don't know; second, I don't care to think about it. Say whatever you like." With that, he picked up the gourd and took a long, noisy swig.

"Excellent, interesting. Truly a man audacious enough to insult the majesty of the Great Yong Kingdom." Fu Chong remained seated, then flicked his wrist, unleashing a magical artifact. This artifact immediately sealed the surrounding sounds, ensuring that the water mirror spell could not pick up any noise from this small county scene.

Seated high above, he spoke with extreme satisfaction: "In every previous cycle, the Great Yong Kingdom has held an absolute advantage among the top ten; the first place has always belonged to one of ours, practically without fail. But this time, during the Southern Territory Assessment, our people from the Great Yong Kingdom were thoroughly disgraced. We only secured four spots in the top ten, and precisely the four lowest ranks." "The Great Yong Kingdom is the foremost power in the Southern Territory." "The culture of the Southern Territory springs from this foundation." "Everything in the Southern Territory originates from this source." "Our generation was supposed to be the 'Elite Generation.' Instead, when facing those of you from non-Yong territories in the assessment, we were slapped hard across the face.

Do you know how the people of the Great Yong Kingdom have discussed us over the last six months? They call us the 'Fallen Generation.'" "Hahahaha, hahahaha, the Fallen Generation." Fu Chong laughed, perched above. "The glory of the Great Yong Kingdom cannot be allowed to fall." Fu Chong turned his gaze to Lu Yuan: "Therefore, my master, Lord Nalan De, personally oversaw my meticulous training.

What is a thirty-day genius training plan? The resources and education afforded to every supposed genius in that program pale in comparison to what I received. I am the last true elite of the Great Yong Kingdom, their final weapon." "This time, I will represent the Great Yong Kingdom and fight my way into the top five." "I had hoped to face someone else, but running into you, the successor of Yan Cangtian, means we get to have a spectacular battle." Fu Chong chuckled.

"Oh, and the reason I defeated Murong Huangfu is because I possess the Sky Dragon Carving artifact, meticulously prepared for me by my master. This Sky Dragon Carving can unleash a massive number of puppet dragons." "You heard me correctly—the adjective is massive." "Massive puppet dragons, each possessing the power of a single dragon. A master-level expert with the strength of one dragon is formidable; now, what about a massive number of them?" Fu Chong looked at Lu Yuan: "Murong Huangfu is indeed powerful.

He managed to hold out until I unleashed eighteen puppet dragons, but that was his limit. Murong Huangfu is currently at the peak of the seventh level of the Great Dao Realm. Even with his Star-Shifting Great Law, he could only manage eighteen puppet dragons.

How many can you handle? I am truly eager to see." In his mind, Lu Yuan couldn't possibly surpass Murong Huangfu by much; in fact, Lu Yuan's strength was likely beneath Murong Huangfu's, given that Murong Huangfu had won every previous contest between them. Lu Yuan was lucky not to have encountered him; Murong Huangfu was unlucky to have encountered him, thus failing to reach the top ten.

Fu Chong smiled. He was utterly satisfied. As someone who had defiled the dignity of the Great Yong Kingdom, Lu Yuan, like all the others, needed to be defeated.

And since Lu Yuan was Yan Cangtian’s inheritor across generations, his defeat was even more crucial. Fu Chong envisioned the beautiful future ahead—ah, how exhilarating! He was already in the top ten.

After easily defeating Lu Yuan, he would secure second place. Moreover, perhaps he could annihilate Xiao Fengxiong with seventy-two puppet dragons, giving him a genuine chance to seize the summit. To reach the top among forty thousand geniuses—what a delightful sensation that would be.

He was guaranteed passage into Civilization. However, the rank determined the treatment he would receive upon entering Civilization. If he entered Civilization with a top rank, he would undoubtedly become a priority subject for their cultivation.

Wonderful! Of course, first, he had to overcome Lu Yuan, the defiler of the Great Yong Kingdom’s honor. Fu Chong sat on the high wall, and a dragon carving materialized in his hand.

The statue was not large, but the dragon within was exquisitely detailed, seemingly embodying infinite draconic majesty. This was the Sky Dragon Carving artifact, specifically researched and crafted for Fu Chong by Nalan De—an artifact possessing nearly boundless power. Mysterious light shimmered across the artifact.

Fu Chong clapped his hands, and instantly, two white dragons flew forth from the carving. They were tiny upon emerging but swelled rapidly to immense size. These white dragons were clearly alive, implying that Nalan De had captured true dragons alive to forge this item.

Capturing a true dragon was not impossible for someone at the Chaos Hole Realm, though true dragons were scarce outside the Central Celestial Dynasty. Nalan De had connections there and had captured these creatures. The two white dragons stretched leisurely in the air, their bodies, dozens of zhang long, rippling subtly, showcasing the sheer aesthetic beauty of a dragon.

The most beautiful, elegant, and noble beings in heaven and earth moved with effortless grace. Fu Chong tightened his hand into a sign and roared: "Go!" The massive eyes of the two white dragons focused on Lu Yuan, regarding the insignificant human below. Then, with a deafening roar, they lunged forward, plunging directly toward him.

As the two forty-foot dragons moved, they generated a powerful wind shear. "Is it starting?" Lu Yuan flicked the wine gourd into a spatial artifact and simultaneously brought forth his 'Nourishing Spirit Sword.' With a single move, 'Wind and Cloud Accelerate Change,' he entangled the two dragons. Those dragons, each dozens of zhang long, incessantly spat torrents of ice.

Vast amounts of spiritual power surged, but they were held at bay by Lu Yuan's single long sword. Indeed, he had grown stronger. Previously, facing even one dragon with a single dragon's power was impossible; now, he could easily fend off two true dragons.

Fu Chong watched from the city wall, unsurprised that Lu Yuan resisted the dual dragons—it would have been the real surprise if he hadn't. A mere pair of dragons; he estimated Lu Yuan could handle about ten, perhaps similar to Murong Huangfu. With another gesture, he unleashed four red dragons.

These four rushed forward, immediately surrounding Lu Yuan, bringing the total to six true dragons swirling around him. The white dragons spat ice, the red dragons spewed fire; above was endless flame, below, endless frost. The six true dragons writhed and coiled, yet Lu Yuan held his ground without hesitation, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

Fighting dragons was interesting; he had never battled this type of divine beast before! While fighting, Lu Yuan continually tested their resilience, trying to locate a weakness. He recalled rumors of the dragon's 'reverse scale,' so he decided to test it.

Lu Yuan, in his normal human form, moved with lightning speed beneath the head of a crimson dragon. He spotted the reverse scale and drove his sword toward it. Aoooh!

The red dragon shrieked, a roar so powerful it left Lu Yuan's ears ringing with near numbness. Dragon roars were indeed loud, but this red dragon seemed barely affected, taking little visible damage. It instantly became utterly enraged, its attacks faster and fiercer, spitting dragon fire wildly.

If six Flood Dragons aren't enough, perhaps fourteen? Fu Chong channeled his energy into the Sky Dragon Carving, instantly summoning eight black dragons. These eight appeared far more imposing and mysterious than the preceding two white and four red dragons.

The eight black dragons coiled and intertwined in the air. Upon a signal from Fu Chong’s hand seals, they instantly charged Lu Yuan. These black dragons did not use ice or fire; their weapons were their claws, tails, and heads.

The eight dragons sped toward Lu Yuan, engaging him in close combat. Now there were fourteen in total. Fu Chong settled back to watch the show.

Murong Huangfu had struggled immensely against fourteen. Consequently, Fu Chong had only used four true dragons to decisively eliminate Murong Huangfu, securing his victory in that bout. Since Lu Yuan’s strength had always lagged behind Murong Huangfu’s, he should be struggling terribly to cope, even if he could manage them.

After releasing the eight black dragons, Fu Chong waited for the expected difficulty to arise, but Lu Yuan maintained the same composure: his body weaved, and his sword flowed, striking east and then west—seemingly ordinary movements, yet he handled the pressure with effortless ease. Even with fourteen true dragons, he was still managing effortlessly? Fu Chong blinked in surprise.

If that was the case, he would unleash something stronger. He slapped the Sky Dragon Carving again, summoning sixteen green dragons. These sixteen formed a formation in the air—a Green Dragon Array.

Within this array, an enemy’s spiritual power was supposed to be weakened, and their speed of movement and attack decelerated. By this point, a total of thirty true dragons had appeared. Fu Chong felt a significant drain on his spiritual power.

While controlling dragons via the precious Sky Dragon Carving didn't consume his energy excessively, commanding thirty true dragons to attack simultaneously was taxing. Fu Chong felt a slight weariness. Thirty true dragons at once—surely that should be sufficient.

Murong Huangfu, with the peak power of the seventh level of the Great Dao Realm and his Star-Shifting technique, was overwhelmed by eighteen true dragons. It should be entirely normal for Lu Yuan to be instantly annihilated by thirty. Fu Chong secretly mused that with the Sky Dragon Carving unleashing these thirty dragons, securing the title of the foremost expert at the seventh level of the Great Dao Realm would be effortless.

Fu Chong watched with high expectations, only to see the thirty true dragons besieging Lu Yuan, who still appeared entirely at ease. This... Fu Chong felt his composure beginning to shatter.

What in the world was happening? When facing two true dragons, Lu Yuan was at ease. When facing six true dragons, Lu Yuan was at ease.

When facing fourteen true dragons, Lu Yuan remained at ease. When facing thirty true dragons, Lu Yuan was still at ease. These were thirty true dragons!

He defeated Murong Huangfu with eighteen; he defeated Feng Helie, one of the ten great masters of the Eastern Territory, with sixteen. And Lu Yuan was still holding steady against thirty? Just how strong was this man?