"Oh?"

Hearing the certainty in Nie Kong's tone, the confidence radiating from his expression, Jin Yu Long's gaze began to flicker uncertainly again, as if weighing the truth of Nie Kong's words.

Nie Kong inwardly chuckled at this.

As Jin Yu Long himself suggested, Nie Kong was indeed trying to sow discord in his mind with his words. After less than half a minute of back-and-forth sparring, Nie Kong already knew that Jin Yu Long was exceptionally suspicious; even if he saw through Nie Kong's objective, he would still unknowingly fall into the trap.

Nie Kong's actions were somewhat unavoidable.

This Dragon Taming Herb was prepared by Nie Kong for the little one's advancement to the Seventh Rank. When he initiated an attack, he could not allow Tai Yan to block in the front. Once the power within Tai Yan was fully stimulated, the Dragon Taming Herb would only be devoured by her, leaving nothing for Xiang Xiang.

Furthermore, judging by the Dragon Ancestor's current state, he was clearly in a dire situation. If Jin Yu Long went berserk and fought to the death to eliminate the Dragon Ancestor, Nie Kong’s purpose for entering the passage would be ruined.

However, while he couldn't use Tai Yan to defend, scaring Jin Yu Long with her presence was still an option.

"Nie Kong, I just praised you for being clever, and now you've become so foolish. This Dragon King is my food. Have you ever heard of anyone spitting out a delicacy they've already tasted?" Jin Yu Long suddenly stared intently at Nie Kong, his thin face laced with mockery.

"If you won't spit it out, then I'll just take it back myself!"

Catching a glimpse with his peripheral vision that the little one had already stealthily slipped beside the Dragon Ancestor, silently burrowing beneath its head, Nie Kong's heart eased considerably. The moment his words fell, he let out two loud laughs, and a 'War God Star Seal' spiraled out from his body, instantly expanding to dozens of meters in size as it hurtled toward Jin Yu Long opposite him.

"You dare attack!"

Jin Yu Long had not expected Nie Kong to strike so suddenly. He let out a sharp roar, and a golden whip, twenty to thirty meters long, suddenly materialized in his palm, snapping out with a sharp crack toward the 'War God Star Seal'. Wherever it passed, the void itself seemed to be torn open, unleashing an earth-shattering howl.

"Boom!"

The whip plunged into the golden seal that had abruptly enveloped the area. Jin Yu Long gave a sharp shake of his right hand, unleashing a terrifying wave of force that instantly shredded the 'War God Star Seal'. In the next instant, a cold smile spread across Jin Yu Long's face; the whip's momentum unbroken, it shrieked straight toward Nie Kong's throat.

"Swallow this!"

Accompanying this furious roar, Nie Kong erupted with an imposing aura capable of devouring mountains and rivers. Tai Yan, hidden in his embrace, immediately moved. Her body remained petite and exquisite, but her head suddenly swelled to an enormous size, positioning itself squarely before Nie Kong's throat just as the whip was about to make contact.

"Hiss!"

The tip of the whip landed squarely on Tai Yan's forehead.

Instantly, a burst of blood-red light exploded outward, annihilating the foot-long tip of the whip. Without pause, it surged forward along the whip like lightning. In mere moments, the blood-red glow enveloped nearly half the length of the whip.

Sensing the whip being greedily sucked away by an utterly terrifying force, Jin Yu Long turned ashen with shock, letting out a sharp scream as he frantically let go of his right hand.

Almost the moment he released his grip, the blood-red light completely covered the entire whip, then rapidly retracted, transforming into an enchantingly vibrant, eye-shaped flower that drilled back toward Nie Kong's chest, melting into Tai Yan's head, which had returned to its original small form. As for the whip, which was entirely condensed from power, it vanished into nothingness.

"What have you hidden there?"

Jin Yu Long shrieked, stark terror etched onto his pale face. He understood perfectly that if he had held on a moment longer, that terrifying power would have swallowed him whole too. A cold sweat broke out across him, and his eyes were fixed on Nie Kong's chest.

Before Nie Kong could reply, Jin Yu Long screamed in disbelief, "I know! I know... a Spirit God! You're hiding a Spirit God in there, and one who is a medicinal spirit just like me... No wonder you could enter the Dragon Pearl space without a sound, no wonder you dared to be so fearless..."

"Nie Kong, am I right?"

After screaming in panic for a while, Jin Yu Long seemed to seek confirmation from Nie Kong.

Nie Kong merely offered a slight smile, saying nothing. However, this smile struck Jin Yu Long as rather enigmatic. Despite Jin Yu Long's earlier frantic screaming about Nie Kong harboring a Spirit God, he hadn't fully believed it. If Nie Kong truly was a Spirit God, he could have easily apprehended Jin Yu Long with a mere gesture after entering the Dragon Pearl space, rather than wasting so much breath on him. His display of fear was merely an attempt to probe Nie Kong.

But Nie Kong neither confirmed nor denied, making Jin Yu Long perceive the man opposite him as unfathomably profound. His eyes darted around, and Jin Yu Long suddenly forced a smile onto his face, his sharp voice softening, "Nie Kong, how about we make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?"

Nie Kong knew Jin Yu Long was trying to stall for time, using conversation to gauge his capabilities. Coincidentally, Nie Kong also wanted to delay, so he was happy to play along.

Jin Yu Long took a deep breath, smiling amiably at Nie Kong, "Although this Dragon King is near death, he was once a Spirit God. A portion of divine power still lingers within his soul. If you're willing, I can give you all of this residual divine power of the Dragon King."

Nie Kong remained composed: "What do I need to give in return?"

"It's easy talking to an intelligent person like you," Jin Yu Long flattered Nie Kong with a winning smile. "The reason I'm still here is to absorb every last bit of the Dragon King's divine power. Since the remainder is yours, I have no need to stay any longer. How about this: you just need to take me out of Dragon Island when you leave. After we leave Dragon Island, our transaction is complete, and we go our separate ways, never bothering each other again. What do you think?"

Nie Kong pondered, "For other Alchemists, divine power is useless, but for me, the Dragon Ancestor's divine power is a great tonic. If this deal can be struck, it wouldn't be bad, but..."

His eyes fixed on Jin Yu Long, Nie Kong smiled enigmatically, "Jin Yu Long, I do have a question. You haven't left this place all this time, likely not because you intended to thoroughly absorb the Dragon Ancestor's divine power, but because you are being restrained by the Dragon Ancestor and temporarily lack the ability to leave, isn't that right?"

"Nonsense!"

Jin Yu Long roared, but a sliver of alarm struck his heart. He intended to test Nie Kong, but he hadn't expected Nie Kong's reaction to be so swift, even guessing this. His thoughts raced, and Jin Yu Long let out a sinister, cold laugh, "Nie Kong, didn't you see that the 'Dragon Ancestor' you speak of is currently suppressed? He is restraining me? You must be joking. If he had such ability, would he have ended up in this wretched state?"

"What you say has some merit," Nie Kong nodded slightly. Just then, a thought suddenly entered his mind: "Nie Kong, feel free to act. This Dragon Taming Herb can't kill this old man for now!"

... ...RO