Landing on the ground beside Young Master Chun’s corpse, Aotian looked seriously at his shattered, scaled fist.

The dragon scales summoned by the Formation-Tier spell he had synthesized upon entering the mansion no longer needed to be maintained and began to dissipate.

After canceling the spell, the right fist Aotian had been staring at was finally revealed—raw flesh, with even some bone exposed. A ring still clung to his finger, and as a superb Void-Tier artifact, it had survived the clash without a single scratch.

‘This is probably the first time I’ve truly been injured in my main body after a real battle. Although it has happened once or twice with my avatars, having it occur with the main body is still a bit unsettling.’

He thought with a complex expression, but soon shook his head.

‘Haah… I’m being too arrogant. I wasn’t fighting a simple cultivator of a higher realm than mine. I was facing a genius with a sacred talent, whom I gave the opportunity to attack me instead of going all out from the beginning.’

‘The power of that attack was so great it could be considered half a step into the Void Refinement Realm, as evidenced by the faint cracks it left in the void. I’m already lucky I only injured my hand.’

‘But this also serves as a warning to never underestimate anyone. If I had let him complete the attack, or if I hadn’t destroyed his body and allowed him to use his talent fully, things could have turned very bad, and Old Long and Grandpa Liu would probably have had to intervene to save me.’

Aotian reflected seriously while feeling a slight tingling in his injured hand.

Looking at it closely, he saw that the flesh seemed to be—albeit very slowly—moving and growing, restoring itself without the use of any pill, which made Aotian nod to himself.

‘Body refinement made a huge leap after the Nascent Soul realm. Fortunately, the Tribulation helped refine my physique and break through the small barrier that remained for my breakthrough in body cultivation, completing the advancement in both cultivation and physique at the same time.’

‘Without a doubt, the best part of such an advancement in my physical cultivation is that it’s no longer just about strengthening my physical strength and resilience to the level of spiritual beasts of the same tier, but also about awakening special abilities similar to theirs, albeit weakened.’

‘Growing or shrinking my body—which I used against Young Master Chun to enhance my strength and resilience when I grew larger—and now this slow regeneration… these are the abilities awakened through physical refinement at the Nascent Soul Realm.’

He pondered as he watched the flesh trying to cover the bones of his hand, but at the current speed, it would still take about a day for full regeneration.

“Tian’er, are you alright?”

Aotian was pulled from his deep thoughts by his wife’s worried voice as she approached, her nervous gaze fixed on his bloody hand.

When she felt the threat that water spear represented, she had been extremely worried and was about to ask Lord Long and her grandfather for help to defend her husband. Although they couldn’t act against that Young Master Chun unless he took the initiative to break his own protection first, the two powerhouses could still defend Aotian from the attack.

She herself had been ready to step forward, but had been stopped by Aotian’s sound transmission, telling them not to worry, that it wouldn’t be a problem.

Moreover, everything had happened too quickly, and she had barely had time to react, leaving her with no choice but to trust her husband that he could handle it.

Fortunately, he had done as he said, but seeing him injured for the first time still made her extremely anxious.

“Don’t worry, I’m fine, it’s just a few scratches.” Aotian looked into her worried blue eyes and smiled as he took a pill from the ring and tossed it into his mouth.

Under the effect of the medicine, a refreshing sensation flowed through his body, and the wound on his hand began to heal much faster. Moments later, his fist was intact again.

Still worried, Rihai began examining him with distress.

Aotian smiled somewhat helplessly and began comforting her with soft and gentle words.

Some time later, the others approached the couple, who were talking quietly and intimately. Liu Taixuan, pursing his lips at the sight of the grown man holding hands with his precious granddaughter, couldn’t help but interrupt.

“Ahem!” He coughed into his fist, drawing their attention.

Aotian turned his face toward him and rolled his eyes disdainfully.

“Old man, this is the first time I’ve heard of a ghost needing to clear his throat,” he mocked, annoyed at having his moment with his wife interrupted.

Rihai looked at the two with a helpless expression, resting her head against her husband’s chest, already prepared for them to start arguing again.

And, as expected, Old Liu widened his eyes in fury.

“You brat! You—” He gritted his teeth, about to retort, but forced himself to stop. Closing his eyes for a moment, he calmed down. “Damn it, you’re going to drive this old ghost to resurrect just so I can die of anger all over again! Fine, I won’t argue with you right now. But tell me… what are those purple spots on your soul?”

Despite his complaining tone, Liu Taixuan took a deep breath and decided not to argue. He had many doubts, and his curiosity was greater than his desire to quarrel with the boy at the moment.

Aotian smiled slightly, feeling that he had won the argument once again, which made the old man’s face darken, but he didn’t leave him in suspense.

“Well, it’s no secret. It’s basically what you said before. That purple portion is a sign that my soul has reached a level very close to that of a Supreme Soul of the Soul Formation Realm and has acquired some of its traits.” Aotian shrugged, treating the matter lightly.

But his simple explanation silenced everyone, who began staring at him in disbelief, as if he were a monster.

Aotian rolled his eyes once more.

“Don’t look at me like that. The Infinite Dao Sect isn’t something you can comprehend with your common sense—you have to open your minds so you don’t live in constant shock,” he joked, lowering his head to look at his wife leaning against his chest, who gazed at him with amusement and exasperation in her beautiful blue eyes.

“That… then does Hai’er also have a soul like that?” Old Liu swallowed and asked in surprise, shifting his gaze to Rihai.

It seemed that the secret wasn’t in the boy, but in his mysterious sect.

However, that assumption was immediately shattered when he saw the couple shake their heads at the same time.

“No, Hai’er’s foundation, even with my help, hasn’t reached such an extreme level as mine,” Aotian gently stroked his wife’s head as she lay against his chest while explaining in a steady voice. “But I believe that soon her soul will also develop those spots as she advances in the Nascent Soul realm, since her foundation has also reached a terrifying extreme with the sect’s techniques.”

With his explanation, Rihai’s, Old Liu’s, Cang Song’s, and Hui Lang’s eyes lit up. That was extremely encouraging information for everyone.

The old Dragon at the side also took a deep breath and turned toward the little girl, only to see her looking back at him with shining golden eyes.

Without a doubt, the same thought passed through both their minds.

‘A soul with properties equivalent to a Supreme Soul of the Soul Formation Realm, yet still only at the Nascent Soul Realm… something this inconceivable could mean that the sect defended by the former Patriarch Liu truly possessed extraordinary methods. Perhaps this really is the chance to save the world!’

If before the two of them hadn’t paid much attention when the people of the Infinite Dao Sect said they had a way to fix things, now they were truly willing to bet on it.

Apparently, hearing about a sect that possessed immortals, even with such information backed by a powerhouse at the peak of Tribulation Transcendence, was not as convincing as a single small concrete proof of something extraordinary.

While the two were lost in complex thoughts, a sudden call from Aotian awakened them.

“Senior Long, beautiful little sister, it’s time for me and my companions to leave and prepare for what comes next.”

The four members of the Infinite Dao Sect, along with Old Liu, had already stopped talking and were now facing them together, apparently ready to depart. Even Young Master Chun’s corpse had been taken by Aotian for later study, leaving no reason to remain there.

It was time to say goodbye.

Taking a deep breath and calming himself, the dragon nodded solemnly.

“Go, I will await your good news. Neither I nor the clan of spiritual beasts can help you in the struggle for Authority that lies in human hands, but if you appear in the other trial grounds, I can directly hand over to you the entire share of Authority I hold in each of them.”

“Hmm! I’m grateful.” Aotian nodded seriously, then turned to the little dragon girl with a kind smile.

“Go, big brother, I’m cheering for you! Please help save the world and all of us,” she asked with firm eyes, though her little face was slightly flushed as she tightly held the fabric of her blue dress.

“Don’t worry, everything will be fine,” he promised softly, making the little girl smile.

“Hmm!”

Hearing her firm assent, Senior Long placed a hand on her shoulder with a gentle expression, determination growing in his eyes.

Sensing that this was the moment, the little girl waved goodbye to the group, and, controlling the formations, the quintet disappeared in a flash of light.

…

The world spun, and when Aotian felt his feet touch the ground again, they were somewhere else—or rather, back in the cave where the City Lord had brought them to participate in the challenge for Authority.

To his relief, everything had gone well. Rihai, Cang Song, and Hui Lang were by his side, while Old Liu had already returned to the necklace where he resided.

When Aotian was about to speak to his companions, a loud shout suddenly echoed.

“City Lord! Dragon seed masters! It’s them! The impostors really managed to come back!”

Looking toward the shout, the members of the Infinite Dao Sect saw the City Lord’s guards pointing and yelling at them, and immediately understood the situation.

They exchanged helpless glances. Apparently, the real dragon seeds whose identities and opportunity they had taken had truly arrived.

At that same instant, five figures appeared before them, staring with gloomy faces.

Among them, even the friendly and short City Lord, Leung Tinhou, now wore an expression twisted by a scowl. Not a single trace remained of the good humor and kindness he had shown when they first met.

Aotian was not surprised. Even setting aside the fact that they had deceived him, if before all this had happened they had appeared before him without a great identity in that small world, what they would have encountered would not have been a friendly City Lord, but most likely a cold and indifferent Leung Tinhou.

And now, adding the absence of a respectable background to the fact that they had deceived him in such an important matter, Aotian would have truly been surprised if he still received them with a smile.

Besides, because of them, the City Lord had probably offended Dragon Peak, which was indeed a bit cruel and made Aotian feel slightly guilty. He even intended to see what he could do for him later, if he was a good person, of course.

But the City Lord was not the protagonist among the five who had arrived; in fact, he was probably the least important there, and so he did not move first.

No, the one who moved was a blue-haired young man whose face was even more twisted and ferocious than the City Lord’s, filled with hatred. He stepped forward threateningly, growling like a rabid dog.

“You insolent worms are actually alive! That’s good! Very good! That way I can make you pa—”

Before he could continue, Aotian suddenly raised his hand, interrupting him.

“Stop!” he shouted, rolling his eyes. “Does Dragon Peak not have a less generic villain?”

Snorting, he didn’t wait for the other side to respond.

With a simple command using his energy, he transmitted his intent to the mansion’s formations, finally activating the permission he had obtained upon reaching 10% Authority of the small world.

Thus, before the Dragon Peak group could react, say anything else, or seal them to torture them as they had originally planned, Aotian and his companions suddenly shone and vanished in the blink of an eye, leaving everyone frozen in place.

When they came back to their senses, only confusion and doubt remained about what had just happened.

…

Once again, the sensation of dizziness arose, and when Aotian regained perception, he and his companions were in a vast desert.

This time, even Rihai and the other two were confused, not understanding how they had ended up there.

“Tian’er, what happened?” his wife asked, blinking her blue eyes in confusion.

“Well, I gained a permission when my Authority reached 10%. I can bring people from inside to outside,” Aotian smiled, explaining casually.

As soon as those words were spoken, the three were surprised and then smiled. They knew exactly where they were.

At that very moment, an elderly man wearing yellow robes and bearing a warm smile appeared before them, emanating a calm aura.

“Hello, little ones! Welcome back.”

Bao Wuji smiled at them, and they immediately widened their eyes and respectfully bowed before the newly arrived ancestor.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep