Volume One, Chapter 19: The Fall of the Yellow Dragon, A Sudden Cataclysm!

“Why, why! Why am I a dragon!”

The True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon roared, as if lamenting the hardships endured over so many years.

A massive red pearl shot from his body, forcing back Ao Lie’s dragon claw.

The True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon stood up, three pearls swirling around him, his emotions overwhelming, his dragon form trembling violently.

“I—I am a god! Why! Why won’t you teach me!”

Ao Lie’s eyes remained filled with contempt, showing no trace of sympathy. On the contrary, his gaze revealed an unmistakable murderous intent directed at the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon.

Chen Yan glanced at the stone platform thick with tension and shook his head. It was no surprise, for during Ao Lie’s era, the Four Seas Dragon Clan had been crushed by this True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon, imprisoned atop the Panlong Pillar to guard against demons in the mortal realm, never to see daylight again.

Back then, the dragon clan was the strongest force in the mortal world, yet they could not break free from the control of the heavenly realm.

When the East Sea handed the Ruyi Jingu Bang to Sun Wukong to mount resistance, they initially ignored warnings from the heavens. After all, the heavenly realm found dragons in the mortal world useful, and no one dared provoke the ancestral dragon behind them—not even the Celestial Sovereign would act rashly.

But precisely because of this, the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon saw his chance to ascend.

Using his connection to the ancestral dragon, he deceived it into the wilds beyond the Three Realms. This gave the Celestial Sovereign the perfect opportunity.

The dragon clan was stripped of the Ruyi Jingu Bang, and a litany of charges was levied against them, causing severe losses to the heavenly court.

All the dragons of the Four Seas were imprisoned atop the Panlong Pillar.

What was the Panlong Pillar?

It was a prison that continuously absorbed the dragons’ power and damaged their bodies, capable of suppressing most demons.

By the Tang dynasty, the dragons had been tortured beyond recognition by the heavenly realm.

Under constant oppression from traitorous kin and the heavens, the last dragon eventually died, extinguishing any remaining spirit of resistance.

With the dragon clan’s fall, the mortal world’s final flicker of defiance vanished.

When the ancestral dragon returned to this scene, he was powerless despite his will.

Losing the dragons left him to face the heavens alone—a feat even he could not accomplish.

Thus, the ancestral dragon left the Three Realms, and no more prodigies emerged in the mortal world; even the ruthless animal kingdom knew no challengers.

All of this stemmed from the scheming of the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon.

Without him, there would have been no Panlong Pillar imprisoning the Dragon King, nor the complete annihilation of the mortal world’s resistance.

Yet Chen Yan was puzzled. He couldn’t understand why the heavens would send such a weak True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon. Had they merely grown bored?

But that theory was untenable. The heavens would never squander such a vast reserve of spiritual energy like the “Supreme Bright Jade Perfect Heaven” just to eliminate a mere Yellow Dragon.

It also couldn’t have been a ploy to lure out the ancestral dragon—Ao Lie himself was a dragon, with purer bloodline than the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon.

Only one possibility remained.

This True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon had a powerful background.

Chen Yan’s mind raced, searching for any information about the True Dragon’s origins, but found nothing.

His furrowed brow deepened as he studied the True Dragon’s face, his disdain giving way to serious contemplation.

Not only was the True Dragon’s background a mystery, but even his very appearance was absent from the memories of Chen Yan, the sovereign of past, present, and future.

This proved without doubt that the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon was no ordinary being.

Just as he was about to warn Ao Lie, he noticed the two massive dragons were already locked in fierce combat.

Though the True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon was inferior in strength, with the aid of his treasures—the Opening Heaven Pearl, Earth Clearing Pearl, and Primordial Pearl—he held his own.

The dragons’ battle was less bloody and more serpentine in nature.

Their serpentine bodies coiled tightly around each other, massive claws raking relentlessly.

The True Dragon of the Yellow Dragon could not break Ao Lie’s defense, unable even to pluck a single scale from him.

In contrast, each strike from Ao Lie shed several of his opponent’s scales.

His grip tightened, attempting to strangle the True Dragon to death.

But whenever the True Dragon neared collapse, the three pearls would strike Ao Lie just in time.

The searing pain forced Ao Lie to loosen his hold, granting the True Dragon a brief reprieve.

Yet this could not last.

The True Dragon’s eyes burned with madness—his desperation to be recognized had driven him to the brink of insanity.

Crash! Crash! Crash!

The three pearls shattered instantly, releasing three tremendous bursts of energy that surged into the True Dragon’s body.

In the next moment, his massive form shrank and transformed into a human shape, save for two incongruous dragon horns.

Though still tightly gripped by Ao Lie, the smaller size greatly alleviated the suffocating pressure.

His hands shot out, desperately prying at the dragon scales on Ao Lie’s body.

Blood seeped from his hands, but his eyes remained fixed on the one scale in his grasp.

“I am a god! I am a god! How dare you mortal dragons be so arrogant! Ahhh!”

The True Dragon roared, and Ao Lie howled in pain.

Against all odds, the scale was torn free.

“I—I did it!” The True Dragon gazed at the scale with uncontrollable joy. “Master, Celestial Sovereign, did you see? I did it!”

He raised the scale triumphantly, only to be swept away by Ao Lie’s massive dragon tail the next moment.

He slammed hard onto the stone platform, creating a pit over a meter deep.

“Lowly dragon, truly a disgusting creature!” Ao Lie snarled fiercely, though a trace of respect glimmered in his eyes.

Bloodline mattered, but dragons held those with courage and fighting spirit in higher esteem.

Though his view of the True Dragon had shifted slightly, this was still a battle.

Ao Lie no longer held back. His enormous body surged downward as a colossal water spear materialized behind him.

Clang!

With one strike, the True Dragon’s hands, clutching the dragon scale, were severed instantly.

The water spear pierced his heart.

“Cough, cough, no, I cannot die! I must... I must ascend!” The True Dragon clung desperately to the spear, trying to pull it free. “I am a god! I cannot die!”

At the edge of the pit, Ao Lie shifted into human form.

He sighed as he looked at the maddened True Dragon striving for divinity.

“You are a pitiful soul, but alas, the hatred of kin-slaughter is irreconcilable.”

“Please, I beg you!” The True Dragon implored, tears in his eyes. “The heavens promised me—if I obtained this scale, I could ascend. Please, don’t kill me, don’t kill me!”

But as time passed, golden blood seeped into every corner of the pit.

The True Dragon’s vision blurred, his pupils lost all life, forever sealed within that pit.

Seeing this, Ao Lie turned to Chen Yan and bowed.

“Ao Lie of the Dragon Clan, I have not failed the mandate of the Sovereign.”

Chen Yan opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but no words came forth.

“Well done. Return now,” Ao Lie said, bowing once more.

Just as he was about to merge back into Chen Yan's body, an overwhelmingly powerful aura erupted from the pit.

A pillar of fiery red spiritual energy shot skyward!

“You dare challenge me? Prepare to meet your death!”

Chen Yan’s pupils constricted in shock.

“This… this is!”