A strange smile suddenly curved the corner of Nie Kong’s lips upon hearing Jin Yulong’s words, and a thought instantly flashed toward the little creature: “Xiangxiang…”
“Ayayaya!”
When Nie Kong and Jin Yulong had been grappling just moments before, the little creature had secretly embedded almost all of its vital medicinal energy near the upper jaw of the giant dragon’s head, poised and ready. Upon receiving Nie Kong’s thought, the little creature burst into an excited cheer, and a surge of green energy erupted outward.
“Hmm? What is this…”
Jin Yulong seemed to sense something and let out a suspicious murmur, but in the next instant, he shrieked in a mixture of shock and fury, “What is this? Old fellow, what devilry are you up to?”
It turned out that as soon as the little creature’s vital medicinal energy surged from the upper jaw, it instantly drowned the dozen or so roots of the Dragon-Taming Grass like a terrifying tidal wave, then began absorbing them frantically.
In this world, the little creature’s existence was an absolute anomaly. Even something as potent as the ‘Reminiscence Grass’ was powerless when its medicinal energy was being absorbed by the little creature, provided its eyeball-like flower was not touched; how much less so the Dragon-Taming Grass, currently possessing only the strength of a Celestial Spirit.
Thus, in a split second, Jin Yulong felt his very life draining away like a breached dam, an unstoppable torrent.
This sudden turn of events sent an uncontrollable chill and dread deep into Jin Yulong’s heart.
“Not the old fellow, it’s Nie Kong!”
Jin Yulong’s spirit trembled, and his panicked voice echoed from within the giant dragon’s head, “Nie Kong, what trap did you set inside this old fellow’s head to make him absorb my life force?” For an herb, the vibrant medicinal energy contained within was its lifeblood.
Nie Kong grinned, stating casually, “I just let my little pet slip into the Dragon Ancestor’s head while you weren’t paying attention.”
“Little pet?”
Jin Yulong was momentarily stunned, then let out another frantic scream.
He realized that in that brief moment of distraction, a significant portion of his life force had already vanished. Although what was lost now was only a tiny fraction of his vital aura, it had only been a short while. If this continued, all his life would be sucked dry, without question.
Like a gecko severing its tail, Jin Yulong willed his thoughts, directly severing the section of roots enveloped by the green energy. But before he could catch his breath, that massive wave of green energy followed him like a shadow, once again tightly ensnaring his dozen or so roots.
“Ah!”
Jin Yulong let out a piercing roar. Inside the giant dragon’s massive head, the roots encased in green energy transformed into pinpricks of golden light. To his astonishment, this tactic, which had repeatedly worked against Nie Kong, proved useless; the life essence contained within the golden light continued to drain away.
“Stop! Nie Kong, make it stop!” Jin Yulong could no longer suppress his terror and screamed madly.
“Jin Yulong, give me a reason to stop first,” Nie Kong chuckled, his broad, giant palm gently stroking the crown of the dragon’s head. Where the Dragon-Taming Grass had grown moments ago, there was no sign of a crack or hole—it was unclear if it had healed or if there had ever been one.
“A reason?”
Jin Yulong was so agitated he was nearly driven mad, screaming shrilly, “Nie Kong, if you don’t stop, I’ll drag this old fellow down with me—that’s my reason! Didn’t you enter the Dragon Temple passage because you wanted to resolve the problem of Dragon Island? If the old fellow dies, how will you explain it to the Dragon Spirit Race?”
Nie Kong replied dismissively, “That reason is too far-fetched. I don’t accept it!”
If it had been before, Nie Kong might have considered it carefully, but after receiving that thought from the Dragon Ancestor, he was completely unconcerned by Jin Yulong’s threat. A starving camel is still bigger than a horse; the Dragon Ancestor was a Spirit God after all; it wouldn't be so easy for Jin Yulong to drag him down.
“You…”
Jin Yulong felt like spitting blood.
Nie Kong spoke unhurriedly, “Jin Yulong, I’m very curious. How exactly will you drag him down with you? Could you perhaps demonstrate for me?”
“You… you forced me to do this!”
Jin Yulong shrieked wildly, like a savage beast provoked by blood.
Immediately, inside the giant dragon’s skull, the dense, tangled mass of roots thrashed violently. The Dragon-Taming Grass fruit, which had retracted, emitted a chilling, cold golden-yellow luminescence. Its broad leaves acted like four golden hooks, fiercely grabbing the dragon’s skull and tearing at it savagely.
“Roar!”
Though its mouth was closed, the dragon’s pained roar echoed throughout the entire space. Its previously calm, thick body thrashed violently, its tail whipping up and down against the side walls of the Dragon Pearl space. It even arched upward from time to time, only to smash back down onto the ground like a meteor with ceaseless booming sounds.
However, no matter how its body twisted and writhed, the dragon’s head refused to budge even an inch.
Nie Kong frowned slightly, a subtle worry creeping into his heart: After being tormented like this by the Dragon-Taming Grass, was the Dragon Ancestor truly alright? If he couldn’t hold on…
“Nie Kong, did you see? This old fellow is about to die!” Jin Yulong shrieked in crazed laughter, though the fear in his voice grew more profound. Although he was causing the Dragon Ancestor extreme pain, the flow of his own life essence was accelerating. This filled him with dread.
“Don’t worry, this old man can still hold on!” The Dragon Ancestor’s thought came through the little creature again, laced with a hint of blissful relief amidst the pain.
“Hah!”
Nie Kong felt slightly relieved.
With a shift of thought, Nie Kong instructed the little creature to simultaneously administer ‘Spring Breeze Transformation Rain’ and the ‘Heaven-Reversing Medicine Canon’ to the Dragon Ancestor while absorbing the Dragon-Taming Grass’s medicinal energy, seeking to alleviate his suffering. The little creature’s vital medicinal energy proved miraculously effective; although the dragon’s body was still struggling violently, the Dragon Ancestor was no longer roaring.
However, Nie Kong soon noticed that the Dragon Ancestor’s soul aura was rapidly dissipating.
“Beiye Pearl!”
Still concerned, Nie Kong suddenly recalled that supreme treasure of the Fish Spirit Race which possessed the power to stabilize the spirit. He quickly summoned it from the ‘Pet Backpack’ and pressed it against the dragon’s forehead. His fingers tapped swiftly, and a ball of deep azure light instantly burst forth from the shell-like pearl, enveloping the dragon’s head.
Seeing that the Dragon Ancestor’s soul dissipation had indeed stopped, Nie Kong finally felt completely reassured.
“What’s going on?”
Sensing the change in the Dragon Ancestor, Jin Yulong screamed in even greater panic, “Nie Kong, I don’t believe you can protect this old fellow forever!” As he spoke, the Dragon-Taming Grass roots thrashed even more wildly, but its body retreated from the dragon’s head, moving along the neck and directly into the abdomen.
By this time, the little creature’s body had coiled around the Dragon-Taming Grass, following its movement.
Through his mental link with Xiangxiang, Nie Kong perceived that the four leaves of the Dragon-Taming Grass were now slicing madly at the dragon’s body. This giant dragon was entirely condensed from the Dragon Ancestor’s soul power. Without the ‘Beiye Pearl,’ his current actions could indeed inflict greater harm upon the Dragon Ancestor.
But now, all of Jin Yulong’s maneuvers were futile.