Long Tiangong sat cross-legged before the entrance to the passage, eyes closed, his body utterly still. The dense vitality emanating from him cast a faint, ghostly green hue across his features.

"Hm?"

Suddenly, Long Tiangong seemed to sense something. He breathed out a low sound, his eyelids snapping open, two tangible beams of golden light shooting forth from his pupils.

"Buzz!"

As if a massive stone had been dropped into a placid lake, the golden radiance surrounding the passage began to undulate violently. Ripples, like water rings, spread outward, pushing against the mass of green obstructing the entrance.

As time wore on, the golden light squeezed inward from all sides, while the green mass visibly receded at a rate perceptible to the naked eye. Seeing this, Long Tiangong’s eyebrows lifted slightly, and his eyes widened involuntarily. A flicker of genuine elation shone within those golden irises.

Dozens of seconds later…

Another shockwave of ripples washed over, and the remaining speck of green, no bigger than a thumbprint, vanished into smoke. The passage entrance was completely reclaimed by the golden light.

"I certainly didn't choose wrongly. That child, Nie Kong, actually broke through the Dragon Temple passage so quickly!"

Long Tiangong took a deep breath, muttering to himself with a broad smile. He surged instantly from his cushion, an aggressive burst of golden energy erupting from his sturdy frame. It tore through the Dragon Temple, ascending like a thick column of smoke thousands of meters into the sky, before splitting into sixteen smaller streams that shot off toward various sectors of Dragon Island.

"Elders, hasten to the Dragon Temple!"

…

The Dragon Orb Space.

"Awooo!"

After a long interval, under the unwavering gaze of Nie Kong, Tai Yan, and Qing Yue’s six eyes, the colossal dragon finally opened its maw. A world-shaking roar tore from its throat, echoing thunderously throughout the expanse. Accompanying this bellow seemed to be millennia of pent-up frustration and sorrow finally being vented.

Immediately afterward, the jaws snapped shut, and the dragon’s massive body began to contract rapidly. In an instant, it shrank to a mere few meters in length. This small dragon then coiled and spun, its form growing increasingly indistinct. Seconds later, it dissolved into a sphere of golden light, from which a single golden silhouette gradually emerged.

When the intense glow finally faded, the figure resolved clearly within Nie Kong’s sight.

It was a burly elder with a mane of golden hair and robes of gold. His face was a tapestry of deep, overlapping wrinkles, like the dried bark of an ancient tree, suggesting one whose body was already half-buried in the grave. At this moment, the elder’s eyes conveyed profound exhaustion, coupled with a subtle relief that followed liberation.

"Greetings, Senior."

Nie Kong quickly bowed slightly.

The Dragon Ancestor waved a withered hand, his voice sounding incredibly ancient and frail. "Nie Kong, no need for such ceremony. I never expected to live long enough to finally break free from the control of the Dragon Taming Grass."

"With your strength, how could you possibly have..." Nie Kong couldn't help but ask.

"Fallen to this state, is that what you mean?"

Finishing Nie Kong’s unspoken question, the Dragon Ancestor let out a bitter laugh. "In truth, it is a consequence of my own making. Back then, when I achieved Spirit God status, it wasn't that I didn't wish to leave the Tianling Continent. However, having reached Spirit God through the body of a Spirit Beast, life would be difficult even in the Grand Supreme Spirit Realm. Furthermore, I could not rest easy leaving my descendants behind. Thus, before the envoy from the Grand Supreme Spirit Realm could arrive, I transformed my body into this very Dragon Island."

"Besides wanting to guard my lineage, I sought to continue advancing my cultivation. My method for achieving this advancement rested entirely upon the Dragon Taming Grass. The world claims its fragrance is the bane of Dragon-type Spirit Beasts, yet they fail to realize that for us, its scent is also a potent elixir for boosting cultivation."

Hearing this, Nie Kong was surprised, but he also nodded silently to himself. Everything possessed two sides; just like a poisonous herb, it could save a life if used correctly, or end one if misapplied. The Dragon Taming Grass was the same—whether it became an aid or a hindrance depended entirely on one's own capability.

"Of course, the prerequisite is the ability to withstand the influence the Dragon Taming Grass fragrance has on one's consciousness. If one cannot endure it, it is indeed a nemesis. If one can endure, one can refine it to rapidly enhance strength. Thousands of years ago, this Tianling Continent hosted hundreds of stalks of Dragon Taming Grass, all of which I collected."

The Dragon Ancestor paused, then continued, "The fact that I broke through to Spirit God owes much to those grasses. But on the day I achieved Spirit God, nearly all the Dragon Taming Grass withered, its fragrance entirely absorbed. Only a single stalk remained. Therefore, when I turned my body into Dragon Island, I brought that last one into the Dragon Orb as well."

"My original intention was to use this Dragon Taming Grass to condense an even mightier physical form. For thousands of years, I nurtured it meticulously, even daring to use my own divine power to intensify the potency of its fragrance. Centuries ago, the Dragon Taming Grass achieved great sentience. It behaved with exceptional compliance, often keeping me company to alleviate boredom. Over time, I grew somewhat reluctant to refine it into a new body."

"Alas, what I failed to anticipate was that while the Dragon Taming Grass presented itself as respectful on the surface, it was constantly plotting against me behind my back. To maintain the existence of Dragon Island, I must enter a month-long slumber every ten years, during which time the passage at the Dragon Temple opens."

"Previously, before each period of slumber, I would place the Dragon Taming Grass outside the Dragon Orb, and it remained perfectly obedient, never wandering. Over time, I grew less vigilant toward it. Twenty years ago, as I entered slumber again, I acted rashly and foolishly placed the Dragon Taming Grass inside the Dragon Orb space, instructing it to maintain the Orb's functions in my stead. This reduced my required sleep to just ten days. I never imagined that…"

At this point, the Dragon Ancestor sighed deeply, his voice thick with bitterness and helplessness.

Nie Kong couldn't help but inquire, "The Dragon Taming Grass ambushed you, Senior?"

"Precisely."

The Dragon Ancestor nodded. "During slumber, my soul power is dispersed throughout Dragon Island, making it my weakest state. Furthermore, thousands of years of constant companionship had led me to overlook one crucial issue: under my careful cultivation, the power of the fragrance within the Dragon Taming Grass had become hundreds of times stronger than those previous stalks. This oversight was the most fatal error I committed. Consequently, while I slept, the Dragon Taming Grass poured its entire accumulated fragrance into my soul. Caught completely off guard, my consciousness became severely chaotic."

"The Dragon Taming Grass had long prepared its countermeasure. It used the scent to manipulate my mind and exploit my soul power to erect that barrier at the passage entrance, trapping all my descendants inside. Simultaneously, it continually recalled the soul power I had distributed across Dragon Island, using it to cleave open passage after passage."

"This method proved terrifyingly effective. With every new passage created, a fraction of my soul power was drained. By the time I forcibly awakened and regained control of my senses, three thousand six hundred and twenty-two passages had already been established. The vast majority of my soul power was depleted, leaving me incapable of resisting it further."

… …RO