Chapter 294: Forgotten Dust World
After a long silence, the withered old woman spoke again. "So, he probably isn’t dead. But he’ll never be able to unleash that kind of heaven-defying Battle Power again. My guess is he obtained a peerless Divine Dao Body—or perhaps even a Venerable Dao Body—from some Secret Realm. He must have had just enough compatibility to bring it forth.
"Under normal circumstances, with your level of attainment, your Battle Power would only be enough to fight an Ancestor Dao expert after you’ve completely unleashed your foundations."
Long Qianying fell silent, gradually feeling relieved.
"With the Celestial Dao repairing itself and the Laws transforming, the shackles of Heaven and Earth will only become more stable and restrictive," Long Yunfan said. "When he returns, he will likely be very weak. We... we have to protect him."
"Projections of him have spread throughout the world, and his Transcendence has had a massive impact. The fact that you two are so deferential shows that the Law hasn’t erased everyone’s memory of him; it has deepened it. That being the case, who in this world would still dare to provoke him?"
The old woman’s words left Long Qianying, Long Yunfan, and the other surviving members of the Dragon Race utterly stunned.
"Go back. From now on, I will handle the affairs of the Dragon Race."
The withered old woman sighed again. She swept up Long Yunfan and the others, along with the four Saint Masters including Long Qingwan, and departed directly from the Cyan Dragon Race’s Ancient Battlefield.
Just then, with a BOOM, the last patch of ground where they had been standing crumbled completely into ruin.
...
「Forgotten Dust World.」
After emerging from the Void, once the protective barrier created by his Divine Power shattered and disappeared, Ye Tianling found himself in a bizarre and fantastical world, like something out of a dream.
"Tianling, in this place, you must abandon your dignity, abandon everything. Keep your temper in check and plead patiently. You’ll get results that way," Little Dragon Girl said softly.
Her princess dress had transformed into a small, red, cotton-padded jacket that looked somewhat tattered.
At the same time, she had become a little grimy, making her look quite pitiful.
However, she had now materialized into a solid being. Ye Tianling could even sense faint, real wisps of a sweet, fragrant scent coming from her.
A strange feeling arose in Ye Tianling’s heart, mixed with some confusion.
But he said nothing.
"This is the Forgotten Dust Road. Follow me."
Little Dragon Girl took Ye Tianling’s hand. He could clearly feel that her hand was very soft but also incredibly cold, like ten-thousand-year-old ice.
He didn’t let go.
Aside from the coldness, no frosty energy emanated from her hand to invade his.
"This is the one you’ve chosen? Throw him out, the waste!"
Just as Ye Tianling stepped onto the Forgotten Dust Road with Little Dragon Girl, a Dao Sound that was very familiar to him manifested from the Void.
But this Dao Sound was also incredibly powerful and deafening.
A single sentence manifested, its sound waves causing Ye Tianling to tremble all over, his Soul feeling as if it were about to be shattered.
"SPURT—"
Ye Tianling couldn’t hold it in and directly spat out a mouthful of blood.
He had been targeted by an unknown, peerless existence the moment he arrived.
"Sigh..."
Ye Tianling sighed.
"Father, I beg you! He... he really isn’t a waste!"
Little Dragon Girl suddenly knelt on the Forgotten Dust Road and began to kowtow repeatedly in the ritual of three kneelings and nine prostrations.
Ye Tianling wanted to stop Little Dragon Girl, but he found he was frozen in Time and Space, completely unable to move.
’This...’
Ye Tianling was deeply shaken. This feeling... it made him understand clearly that even at his absolute peak Battle Power, with a perfect Fusion of his Demon Heart Sword Body, he would be no match for the master of this Dao Sound.
’Too strong!’
A single will, as if it could pierce through everything in Heaven and Earth and command the lives of all creation.
"Not a waste? He couldn’t even hold on to his Demon Heart Sword Body. If he’s not a waste, who is? Scram!"
The Dao Sound manifested, and within the rebuke was a will of Destruction that descended, aiming to directly shatter Ye Tianling’s Dao Heart.
"Father!"
Little Dragon Girl’s voice trembled, and tears streamed down her face.
Her small body even began to tremble.
In the distance, the master of the Dao Sound seemed to fall silent for a moment.
And the pressure that had been crushing down on Ye Tianling’s will gradually dissipated.
Ye Tianling’s vision was turning black. He felt as if he had just been freed from the weight of a hundred thousand mountains.
He gasped for breath and looked at Little Dragon Girl with a complicated expression. "Little Dragon Girl, stop begging him. What kind of father doesn’t even believe his own daughter?"
"Tianling, don’t—"
Little Dragon Girl was terrified and immediately tried to stop Ye Tianling from speaking.
But with Ye Tianling’s temperament, if he could endure being berated and crushed like this, he wouldn’t be himself.
"Oh? You’re not convinced?"
The voice seemed surprised—as if to say: ’This waste actually dares to talk back to me?’
"That’s right, I’m not convinced! I may be a waste, but even as a waste, I have a Strong Heart! My will can crush any genius!"
Ye Tianling’s words were cold and resolute.
"Hmm, a decent answer."
The voice was indifferent, but it continued, "But what’s the use of talking big? As for not believing my own daughter, belief is built upon strength and Ability. My Ability is greater than hers, so naturally, I can see through everything at a glance.
"Her strength is weak, so her judgment is naturally poor.
"How long has she followed you? How much has she suffered? How many hardships has she endured? How many times has her Mechanical Heart been pushed to the brink of exhaustion?
"As a father, I naturally hope my daughter... can have a powerful Dao companion who can protect her. Not a pretty boy like you who needs her protection at every turn and mooches off her."
The Dao Sound was actually speaking in a very down-to-earth manner, yet its words were ones Ye Tianling found difficult to counter.
Every word was like a dagger to the heart.
Pretty boy.
Mooch.
Hearing these words, spoken in a tone that was both seemingly earnest and faintly mocking, Ye Tianling couldn’t help but feel a sense of melancholy.
"I understand, but... Little Dragon Girl said that you, Senior, can... save people. I wanted to ask..."
Ye Tianling knew how humiliating it was to beg, but he still forced the words out.
He felt incredibly aggrieved.
But Little Dragon Girl had brought him here.
This was currently the best way to save that person.
So what if he had to endure a little humiliation?
After all, Little Dragon Girl had been so good to him.
"Ask? How are you going to ask? Come on, first get on your knees and give me three kneelings and nine prostrations. We can talk after that."
The Dao Sound spoke, and immediately, the figure of a man cloaked in a blood-red silhouette manifested.
When Ye Tianling saw this imposing, blood-red figure, his eyes widened in shock, and a look of horror appeared in them.
"It’s you!"
Ye Tianling was both astonished and shocked!
"That’s right. It’s me!"
The man was indifferent, a cold, contemptuous expression appearing on his handsome, wickedly charming, and untamable face.
"Right... I should have known."
Ye Tianling’s whole body began to tremble. Then he gave a bitter smile and a long, melancholic sigh, his face filled with sorrow and regret.