"This must be the lair of China’s Divine Dragon—awesome, the dragon has to be inside!" Right now, as the Divine Dragon Hide gently descended, Guihai One‑Blade, who’d been unconscious beside me, finally stirred awake. He stared at the massive, mysterious Crystal Palace, eyes wider than anyone’s; clearly, he’d been searching for this place for ages too.
Meanwhile, Ghost Elder inside Ryan’s body started getting hyped too—it was that classic ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ feeling. Deep down here, we’d totally lost our bearings, and honestly, finding China’s Divine Dragon felt like a long shot. The ocean’s way too big, and if even Niyama’s whole army couldn’t find it, how could just the three of us?
But hey, sometimes the universe just likes us. Even when we were totally lost, we somehow stumbled on this icy Crystal Palace.
“So pretty—is this the legendary Dragon Palace?” Paula Bloom’s jaw dropped, clearly not daring to believe it.
“Isn’t it a joy to welcome friends from afar!” Just then, a strange sound echoed above the Crystal Palace, and a mighty voice boomed straight into Ryan’s ears.
“It’s China’s Divine Dragon!” Ryan gulped hard, his heart pounding like crazy. No way was he hesitating now—the Divine Dragon Hide twitched again, and his whole body shot toward the Crystal Palace at top speed.
From above, it hadn’t looked like much, but now that we were right in front of the Crystal Palace, Ryan finally got what ‘majestic’ really meant. The Divine Dragon’s lair was absolutely massive—standing in front of this giant palace, the three of us were basically ants.
And honestly, if you compared our strength, we really were nothing but ants.
Ryan was just at the Golden Core Stage, while China’s Divine Dragon wielded the insane power of Heaven Tribulation. Ryan could only look up in awe—the gap between him and the dragon was just way too huge.
Just then, the giant palace doors slowly swung open. Ryan and the others were welcomed inside like VIPs. The whole interior was packed with sparkling crystal stones—luxury from top to bottom.
Ryan was basically stunned—he’d never set foot in a place this mystical before.
"Ryan, welcome!" Just as he was spacing out, a booming voice seemed to cut straight through time and space into his ears.
"Is that China’s Divine Dragon?" Ryan jolted, spotting a massive dragon shadow swimming back and forth up ahead. The thing was so huge it touched the sky—no way to see it all at once. The sheer force of real dragon qi hit, and Guihai One‑Blade and Paula Bloom instantly dropped to their knees. It wasn’t even their choice—the dragon’s aura was just that overwhelming. The second its presence hit, their legs went jelly.
Honestly, even Ryan himself nearly went down on his knees.
But just as he was about to kneel, the Divine Dragon shot out a breath of dragon qi and held Ryan steady.
"My friend, I can't accept a kowtow from you!" The dragon’s words landed, and Ryan was suddenly standing tall again.
It was only now that Ryan finally saw the Divine Dragon’s true form. This thing was pure majesty—the dragon’s head alone was four or five stories tall, and the rest of its body stretched on forever. But it was obvious the last Heaven Tribulation had left it badly hurt; blood still streaked its scales.
"China’s Divine Dragon!" Ryan was totally fired up inside.
But before he could even get the words out, the Divine Dragon smiled and said, "I know what you want to say. Right now, Huaxia is in trouble, and only you can save it. The Kunlun League has done me dirty, and I’ll have to face them eventually—but not yet. My Heaven Tribulation wounds won’t heal for months, and I’ve got to prep for the next one. If I fail, I’ll be gone for good!"
The Divine Dragon composed itself and went on: "The Kunlun League’s current agents are just small fry—I think you can handle them. You’ve been through so much; now it’s time to really break through to the Nascent Soul Stage!"
Ryan shivered all over at those words—the Divine Dragon was clearly a being above everything. Before Ryan could even speak, the dragon already knew what was on his mind.
Ryan nodded hard, and the Divine Dragon slowly spat out a Dragon Pearl from its mouth. "This Dragon Pearl is priceless. I’ll let you use it for cultivation, but how much you get out of it is up to you. Take it!"
As the Divine Dragon finished speaking, the mysterious, dark-glinting Dragon Pearl slowly dropped into Ryan’s hand.
Guihai One‑Blade and Paula Bloom were both staring, eyes practically glowing!
No doubt about it—they were super jealous!
"Paula Bloom!" Suddenly, the Divine Dragon’s gaze landed right on Paula.
Paula was stunned—she hadn’t expected the Divine Dragon to actually know her. She froze up on the spot.
"Paula, the Divine Dragon’s talking to you!" Ryan nudged her, and Paula finally snapped out of it.
"Divine Dragon rules! Divine Dragon’s invincible! Long live the Divine Dragon!" In a flash, Paula was shouting on the floor, totally losing it.
"Paula, no need to get so worked up. I saw all the effort you put in during my Heaven Tribulation—thank you!" The Divine Dragon smiled at Paula, then added, "While Ryan cultivates with the Dragon Pearl, you can join him. I hope your strength gets a big boost too!"
"Really? Is this for real?" Paula’s mouth hung open in shock—she could barely believe it.
"It’s real!" The Divine Dragon nodded, still looking totally friendly.
"Awesome!" Paula nearly jumped for joy. Everyone knew the Dragon Pearl was the ultimate treasure—even a tiny bit of its power was a massive boost for any cultivator.
Seeing Paula so hyped, Guihai One‑Blade looked a little down.
But just as that thought hit him, the Divine Dragon’s gaze swung his way: "Guihai One‑Blade, you were that kid on the sea who lived for the blade—and now you’ve gone gray at the temples. Time really flies, huh!"
"Divine Dragon, you know me?" Guihai One‑Blade nearly jumped out of his skin, totally stunned. He stared at the dragon, eyes wide with disbelief.
"Of course I do. I see everything on the sea—who’s good, who’s evil, all living things. You’re a man of virtue. Don’t worry about what the world thinks; just walk your own path, and I’ll back you!" The Divine Dragon spoke slowly, full of hope.
Hearing the Divine Dragon praise him like that, Guihai One‑Blade was already crying old-man tears. His whole life had been a mix of fame and infamy—some people thought he was a nutcase, even more thought he was a devil.
But getting such honest praise from the Divine Dragon—China’s ultimate totem—Guihai One‑Blade felt totally satisfied.
The Divine Dragon nodded slightly, and suddenly a dragon-shaped wild saber appeared in mid-air, dropping perfectly into Guihai One‑Blade’s hands.
"Wait, is this the Mad Dragon Saber—one of the last three Crazy Sabers in the world?" Guihai One‑Blade had spent a lifetime with blades; he recognized it instantly and was totally floored.
"That’s right, it’s the real deal. Take it—consider it a little encouragement from me. Help Ryan out, and your future’s limitless!" The Divine Dragon nodded.
"Thank you, Divine Dragon!" Guihai One‑Blade was so moved he dropped to his knees again, crying like a baby.
"Alright, no need to be so dramatic—you earned this. Work hard!" The Divine Dragon sighed, then said, "You don’t have much time. Train hard! I can’t help you directly for now, but I hope all three of you reach your goals. Go on!"
As the Divine Dragon finished, its whole body slowly faded away. Right then, the surroundings shifted, and two training chambers appeared—one for Ryan and Paula Bloom, and a solo one for Guihai One‑Blade.
Ryan took a deep breath. There was no room for hesitation—this was a heaven-sent chance to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage. If he pulled it off, the Century Witch and Infernal Raksasha Ksitigarbha were as good as dead!
"Breakthrough!" Ryan shouted, officially starting his assault on the Nascent Soul Stage...