Wayfarer

Chapter 530: A Superior Draconic Vein

On the ruins of Thousand-Spirit Island, Xiao Nanfeng commanded, "We have to act quickly. Sage Yellowbrow might return at any moment."

"Yessir!" the spectral guards replied.

They were quickly setting up the Immortal's Destruction.

"Xiao Nanfeng, why was that Ao Shuai fellow glaring at us so angrily? Do you know what's up with him?" Ao Zhou asked.

"He's a dragon too."

"A dragon? He shares my surname, Ao—could he be a relative of mine?" Ao Zhou wondered.

Xiao Nanfeng gave him an odd look. "What, don't you think others can share your surname without being blood relations?"

"Ah, well, no, but it's a little strange..."

"Don't worry about that for now. Focus on what's before us."

"Right, right, what's underneath Thousand-Spirit Island? A draconic vein?" Ao Zhou asked.

"That's right, but no ordinary one. It's a superior draconic vein," Xiao Nanfeng replied.

"A superior draconic vein? One that has developed rudimentary intelligence? They possess incredible spiritual aether, and I heard they manifest as peak Golden Immortals as a result..." Ao Zhou exclaimed.

Xiao Nanfeng nodded. "One of the seventy-two Martial Aspects of the Imperial Court is a manifestation of a superior draconic vein. It's supposed to be incredibly strong."

"Could that be Ao Shuai's father, that Ao Canghai you were talking about?"

Xiao Nanfeng shook his head. "Not him. Ao Canghai's background is a mystery, and I haven't been able to unearth anything."

"I heard that divine empires would quickly corral and induct any superior draconic veins into their capitals. Why would there be an undefended one here?"

"I'm not sure. However, it's clear that this superior draconic vein hasn't yet reached the point of manifestation. Such draconic veins don't tend to stay in one place for long—they'd just run off. However, this one seems to be fixed right here. There must be something below the island tying them here."

"More treasures?" Ao Zhou's eyes lit up.

"I'm not sure, but we'll find out in a moment. Prepare to capture the draconic vein."

"Got it!" Ao Zhou watched on in anticipation.

Not far away, You Jiu shouted, "Your Majesty, the Immortal's Destruction is ready."

"Very good. You Jiu, take the lead!"

"Understood!" You Jiu replied.

Following what Xiao Nanfeng had taught him, You Jiu activated the Immortal's Destruction. Eighteen Immortal-binding chains emerged from the relic and burrowed into the ground.

After absorbing the draconic aether all over the island, the Immortal's Destruction radiated with golden light.

Then, even more Immortal-binding chains shot into the air and burrowed deep underground.

Within moments, a hundred Immortal-binding chains were extending out of the Immortal's Destruction, causing the entire island to shake.

A superior dragon's cry rang out from deep underground. The island shuddered, and giant waves formed all around the island. Even the neighboring islands began to shake.

"What frightening strength," Croak cried out. "Can we really take down this superior draconic vein?"

"There's nothing to worry about. Even if we can't do anything, the Qitian Alliance has elders here that can! They were the ones who killed the majority of the spirit kings on the island. Don't worry, we'll be able to devour it all!" Ao Zhou cried out in excitement.

Just then, Xiao Nanfeng frowned. "A hundred Immortal-binding chains aren't enough. You Jiu, release more."

"Understood!" You Jiu replied.

Even more Immortal-binding chains shot into the air and burrowed into the ground, causing even more violent vibrations.

The dragon's keening grew louder and louder from underground, causing the waves around the island to swell in magnitude.

"Rise!" You Jiu commanded.

The entire Thousand-Spirit Island seemed to jump. A giant pit formed as a massive figure was dragged out of the ground, a golden dragon thirty thousand meters long. It howled into the air as it was dragged aboveground.

Clouds surged toward the dragon, forming a huge ring that revolved rapidly. It exuded a draconic might that quelled all that surrounded it.

The golden dragon howled loudly and wildly.

It tried to flee, but in addition to the golden Immortal-binding chains that restrained it, there was also a thick black chain tying it down.

The golden dragon lowered its head in fury and saw the cultivators on Thousand-Spirit Island. Its golden eyes glowed with light, seeming to penetrate the cultivators. A frightening aura exuded from its body, forcing a great many cultivators to stumble back.

"Heaven Immortals? You'll be of great help to us. Free me from this place. Break that black chain, now!" the golden dragon roared.

Xiao Nanfeng and his party blinked in surprise. This superior draconic vein wasn't anything like what they had expected—nor anything they had encountered to date.

"What are all of you waiting for? Do you want to die?" the golden dragon demanded.

"You're the one who wants to die, it seems," Ao Zhou retorted. "You've been trapped by the Immortal-binding chains of our Immortal's Destruction. How dare you attempt to command us!"

The golden dragon scoffed. It spat out a bolt of lightning, obliterating a patch of ground right by the side of the Immortal's Destruction and forming a huge pit. Dirt and boulders flew into the air; the attack was so strong that Ao Zhou reared back in shock.

"It would be trivial for me to destroy your relic. If not for these Immortal-binding chains competing against the black one for dominance, I would already have done so," the golden dragon gritted out.

Ao Zhou whispered, "Xiao Nanfeng, something's wrong. This superior draconic vein is too strong for the likes of us, or even for the Immortal's Destruction itself. We've neglected to account for its strength. Even if it can't manifest, it surely has the strength of a Golden Immortal. Can we really take it down?"

"You intend to take me down? How foolish you are. If you weren't of use to me, I'd already have eaten you all."

"You're a draconic vein. You eat people?" Ao Zhou exclaimed.

"You don't believe me? Just look!"

The golden dragon vomited out a huge pile of bones, some of which still had strands of blood and flesh attached, as though they had only recently been digested.

"Does it really eat humans?" Ao Zhou murmured.

"Yellowbrow brought me these spirits and humans just now. That damned fool, does he really think I'm just a slave for producing spiritual aether? He feeds me all manner of spirits daily and has me distill their essence into spiritual aether, which he drains. He doesn't even leave any for me! Once I escape, I'll eat him alive!"

"Do superior draconic veins need to be fed with spiritbeast flesh? Are these really draconic veins...?" Ao Zhou wondered.

Xiao Nanfeng murmured, "Sage Yellowbrow is known for conquering all sorts of spiritbeast lairs and Immortal sects from all around the region. He caught countless strong cultivators and spirits, all of whom vanished mysteriously. So that's what he's been doing—feeding them to this superior draconic vein! And the disappearances of spirits from Thousand-Spirit Island must be for the same reason."

"Is there some incredible treasure underneath the Thousand-Spirit Island? This superior draconic vein must have been chained up to nurture it..." Ao Zhou murmured.

The golden dragon, seemingly displeased with Ao Zhou and Xiao Nanfeng's conversation, shouted, "Didn't you hear what I said? Cut apart the black chain, or I'll blast you to pieces!"

"If you're so strong, why not do so yourself?" Xiao Nanfeng replied.

The golden dragon snarled, shooting out a bolt of lightning at Xiao Nanfeng so quickly that he wasn't able to dodge.

Xiao Nanfeng was sent flying. He smashed into the ground, forming a huge crater.

Xiao Nanfeng's robes were incinerated by the lightning, and his body was charred black.

"Your Majesty!" the cultivators all around him cried out. 

"I'm alright," Xiao Nanfeng replied, clambering out from the pit. His face was dark.

"You can block my lightning strikes, kid? That wasn't at full strength. If I were actually trying to kill you, all of you would die. Now, cut apart that black chain, or I really will kill you all!" the golden dragon threatened.

Xiao Nanfeng frowned. Ao Zhou whispered to Xiao Nanfeng, "There has to be something wrong with the black chain. We can't attack it. Let's go!"

"Die!" the golden dragon roared.

It had clearly heard Ao Zhou's words. It widened its mouth and began to suck Ao Zhou and Xiao Nanfeng in. They were flung high into the air, moments from being gobbled up by the dragon.

"Save me!" Ao Zhou cried out, struggling furiously.

Xiao Nanfeng narrowed his eyes. "You dare try to consume me? Everyone, retreat!"

"Understood!" the cultivators replied.

They dove into the sea as though planning to swim away.

"None of you shall leave!" the golden dragon thundered.

It sent Xiao Nanfeng and Ao Zhou flying with a huff.

It was waiting for them to rescue it; if they all left, it was bound to suffer. It had no choice but to give up on consuming Xiao Nanfeng and Ao Zhou.

As Xiao Nanfeng landed, he shouted, "Gather around me!"

"Understood!"

The cultivators that had dived into the sea resurfaced, joined in opposition against the giant golden dragon.

The golden dragon glared at Xiao Nanfeng in malice.

"Cut apart the black chain and I'll let you leave, or I'll kill every last one of you," the golden dragon threatened.

"Let's negotiate," Xiao Nanfeng suggested."

"No. Do it now!" the golden dragon roared.

"Let's say you do kill us all. So what? We're all avatars; our main bodies are elsewhere. At worst, we lose one of our bodies."

"You're all avatars? You dare trick me?" The golden dragon clearly didn't believe them.

"Try it, then. If you kill any one of us, the rest of us will drop everything we're doing and flee. Even if we all die, we won't break open your chain for you."

The golden dragon scowled. It didn't believe Xiao Nanfeng, but neither did it dare to risk it. It could only shout, "I'll give you a quarter of an hour to do so!"

Xiao Nanfeng waved a hand, covering everyone up in fog. Then, he closed his eyes and inquired of the black lotus, "Senior, I learned that there was a superior draconic vein here, not expecting its strength and intelligence to have developed to such an extent. I overestimated myself. Might you know what that black chain is? Why doesn't the superior draconic vein break itself free?"

The black lotus slowly revolved. "That black chain is a curse. It won't be able to free itself; the more it tries, the more tightly the curse will cling to it."

"It wants us to break that black chain to transfer the curse to us?" Xiao Nanfeng asked, guessing what was going on immediately.

"Indeed so. This superior draconic vein has been trapped for many years, and its budding personality has long since been twisted into something vulgar, ferocious, and cruel. It was staring at you with greed and bloodlust, but it had no choice but to restrain itself while it was still trapped. If you free it, none of you will be able to escape. I'm sure all of you will end up as food."

"Senior, can you possess and control it?" Xiao Nanfeng asked.

"I can't. It has the might of a Golden Immortal and can block my possession."