Chapter 377: The Flood Dragon Spirit
Given the current situation, all the disciples were desperately trying to get out of the abyss. So consumed were they about their safety that they didn't worry about how the others were doing.
Rocher jumped quickly from one floating rock to another higher floating rock using his Sword Steps. When he encountered tiny floating stones, he would crush them with his sword intent.
As he was nearing a safe distance, Rocher turned to check if his companions were all right. The color drained from his face when Rocher saw that Zen was falling toward the flood dragon.
“Zen!” he exclaimed in horror.
Rocher's scream attracted the attention of others who were struggling to climb up. They swiveled to see what had happened. Astonishment reflected on their faces when they saw Zen.
When Frank noticed that the disciple from Cloud Hall was pulling Zen toward the mouth of the flood dragon, a cold sneer appeared on his face. He had long felt that something was suspicious about the Cloud Hall's disciple. He had even considered the possibility that the disciple was plotting something sinister! As the Cloud Hall's disciple had not done anything unusual and evil, Frank didn't bother to figure out what he was plotting.
He had certainly not expected the disciple to become crazy and drag Zen to the flood dragon's mouth!
'Zen, you deserve it! Yet, you still have so much Dark Devil Phantom essence. If you die in the abyss, I'm afraid I won't be able to get it. What a great pity that is!
Never mind! You are so powerful despite being at the nature level. If in the future, you become an elite disciple of the Cloud Hall, you may be one of my greatest enemies!' Thousands of thoughts were running through Frank's mind when he saw the danger Zen was in. Frank, no matter how overconfident he was, had to face these facts.
'In that case, the belly of the flood dragon is a good place for your grave.' Frank smiled at the thought.
As he climbed up, a wide smirk replaced Frank's disgruntled expression. He had been dissatisfied with the earlier distribution of the Dark Devil Phantom essence. But now, the thought of Zen dying pleased him, much like that a warm, spring wind was stroking on his face.
Frank did know that he had missed a rather rare chance. If Zen hadn't shown up, this big opportunity would have been his. Unfortunately, Zen's presence changed Frank's destiny forever.
To some extent, Frank suffered a significant loss because he was not strong and lucky enough! And since Zen was much stronger and luckier, he was in a position to rob Frank of this opportunity.
Meanwhile, Rocher and Patrick were in a bleak mood. They had faced the trials of Cloud Road with Zen. It had never occurred to them that Zen would die here...
Zen felt the disciple from Cloud Hall grabbing him as they plummeted toward the flood dragon. Now that the disciple had come closer, Zen wrinkled his nose as a familiar scent enveloped him.
At that moment, Zen seemed to recall that the Cloud Hall's disciple walked awkwardly. Somehow, the disciple's gait seemed rather feminine. Thinking of that and the disciple's strange and charming smile along with the familiar fragrance...
'That's right! The Cloud Hall's disciple is a woman!' Zen concluded.
However, at this point, such a conclusion was useless to him. Even though he had figured out that the disciple was a woman, what could he do to her?
The colossal flood dragon was at the bottom of the abyss. Since Zen and the disciple were hurtling toward it, the flood dragon kept its mouth open in preparation to swallow them. To Zen, being swallowed alive was a worse fate than falling into the abyss.
“Why... Why did you have to drag me down?” asked Zen nervously as they fell further into the abyss.
The disciple smiled. Her smile confirmed Zen's earlier suspicions. Indeed, this disciple was a woman disguised as a man! “Because I chose you!” Her voice was as soft and gentle as a summer breeze.
“What do you mean by that?” Zen asked. Unable to understand her cryptic message, bewilderment reflected in his eyes. Zen thought it was a waste of time trying to decipher her puzzling answer when all they had were a few precious moments before they died. 'I do not know her at all, so there can't be any bad history between us. Why choose me? Why did she pick me to die with her?' Zen wondered.
The disciple from Cloud Hall said no more. Instead, she pushed Zen under her as they tumbled toward the flood dragon.
The flood dragon sensed that they were close enough, so it opened its mouth suddenly and swallowed them in one giant gulp.
As soon as the flood dragon closed its mouth, darkness engulfed Zen and the disciple. Subconsciously, Zen clung to the disciple from Cloud Hall. Together, they crashed and tumbled down the insides of the flood dragon. The continuous rolling movement made them dizzy and disoriented.
Fortunately, the insides of the flood dragon were soft. As such, Zen and the disciple suffered no injuries from the impact of the fall and the subsequent tumbles. After a while, Zen and the disciple's momentum slowed down before they finally came to a stop. Zen's shoulder collided with something soft.
Zen pressed the soft object with his hand and said in a relieved tone, “Well, luckily, the inside parts of the flood dragon are soft. Otherwise, we would have suffered severe injuries from our fall.”
“Remove your hand!” screeched the disciple.
At once, Zen felt his arm being grabbed and twisted before he felt himself being thrown away.
It was not until Zen landed on another spot that he realized that he hadn't been touching a part of the flood dragon but her breast instead…
“You're not pretending anymore? Why do you dress like a man?” asked Zen as he glared in the disciple's direction even though it was dark.
“Hum!” the disciple from Cloud Hall snorted coldly. Then a dim light appeared in her hand—illuminating the surroundings at once.
To Zen's surprise, she didn't feel the need to hide her identity anymore. Thus, she removed her facial disguise and showed her true self.
In the faint light, still dressed in the white robe specially made for Cloud Hall's disciples, the woman appeared almost angelic. Her loose robe did little to hide her well-shaped figure. Her dark hair was casually placed on her left shoulder. Zen admired how natural and attractive she appeared.
Even though the light was dim, he could still see her fair skin and beautiful features. She looked gorgeous, even though she was not wearing any make-up or jewelry. Zen was stunned for a while.
“You are so beautiful. I don't understand why you're dressed up like a man,” Zen said abruptly.
“It's none of your business, all right?” said the woman coldly.
Zen smiled and continued, “You are right. It was not my business. However, you dragged me down here. I believe it's only fair for me to ask for a reasonable explanation. We're stuck inside the flood dragon now, right? Tell me, what exactly were you trying to do? And… Are you really at the first grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm?”
Although the woman's strength appeared to be at the first grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm, a moment ago, she had seen through the secret hidden in his basic swordplay skills within seconds. What was more surprising was that she had broken his swordplay using only her hands. This was impossible for disciples whose strength was only at the first grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm.
'Isn't Frank supposed to be the strongest participant? He should be the most powerful among the disciples who have just entered the Illuminating Soul Realm. Even compared to the warriors in the Central Region who have recently advanced to the Illuminating Soul Realm, Frank would rank at the top. It is possible to imagine Frank reacting in an instant. Armed with his long spear, Frank could be powerful enough to break through my basic swordplay. However, it would be impossible for him to make a breakthrough with his bare hands.
However, cultivators beyond the third grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm are banned from participating in the Cloud Road test. From this aspect, the woman cannot exceed that level, ' Zen rationalized.
Based on the conflicting details, Zen felt rather confused. Thus, he had to ask the question to clarify his doubts.
“You asked a meaningless question. I wouldn't be able to participate in the trials of Cloud Road if I were not at the first grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm,” the woman replied coldly.
“Then how could you break through my swordplay with your bare hands?” Zen asked, puzzled.
“Why should I tell you?” the woman lifted her chin in defiance as she spoke.
“Explain why you brought me here, inside the flood dragon?” Zen continued.
“Why should…? I'll tell you later!” the woman said as she glared at Zen. Her attractive eyes shone with mischief and radiance.
After a while, Zen and the woman felt a violent trembling. Finally, after a loud sound, the shaking stopped. Zen presumed that it was because the flood dragon had rushed to the abyss and then slowly returned to its nest.
“Let's move forward!” the woman said before turning and walking past Zen.
“Where exactly are we going? Are we safe in this flood dragon?” Zen couldn't help but ask with curiosity.
“If you don't shut your mouth, I'll never speak to you again. Just follow me,” said the woman as she walked in front of him. Although her voice was cold, it was also silvery and lovely. Zen found himself attracted to her.
“At the very least, tell me your name. Otherwise, I won't follow you,” Zen said and stopped walking. He knew that the woman seemed to have plans for him, which was why he wouldn't die anytime soon.
When she heard his request, the woman thought for a few seconds and then said, “You can call me Tia…”
“Tia?” Zen asked with a smile.
“Yes!” she said quickly. With a last glance at Zen, the woman turned and marched forward.
To Zen's surprise, the flood dragon's inside seemed to be empty and dry. If it were a live flood dragon, both he and Tia would have landed in its stomach. But under the dim light held up by Tia, Zen discovered that human beings had transformed the inside. Instead of a stomach, Zen and Tia were walking in a palace.
At this point, the cyan dragon in Zen's mind spoke with him, “This flood dragon was transformed a long while ago. Don't worry. It is dead.”
“A dead flood dragon? But just now…” Zen replied in his mind.
“Well, as you can see, it was transformed by humans. They drained its blood and soaked its skin and flesh using a secret method so that its body would not decay. Then they converted it into a puppet,” the cyan dragon explained.
“Why are you speaking to me after such a long silence? What do you want?” Zen asked bluntly. The cyan dragon in his mind was always in a deep sleep. He would only wake when intrigued by something. Even when Zen was facing a life-and-death crisis, the cyan dragon would not show. After experiencing this several times, Zen had figured out how the cyan dragon worked.
“Hoho, you sneaky boy…” Despite having lived for thousands of years, the cyan dragon had become impervious to sarcasm and lack of respect. He didn't mind that Zen had figured out his character and had spoken in such a direct way. He continued, “The flood dragon's blood was drained a long time ago. Even its bone marrow has been totally absorbed. Thus, its body has no use or value. So low is its value that it cannot be compared to that bone spear made from the flood dragon's bone. At least that bone spear still had the blood of the flood dragon. So, its body is no longer useful to me. However, I can sense that the flood dragon's spirit is hidden somewhere. I want to devour that spirit!”
“Flood dragon spirit? Didn't you just tell me that the flood dragon died a long time ago?” Zen asked doubtfully. According to Zen's understanding, if the flood dragon's corporeal body had died, its spirit was bound to be gone as well.
“It's not easy to control a flood dragon puppet. The best way is to extract the flood dragon's spirit, refine it, and seal it in somewhere near the puppet. That's also the most effective way,” the cyan dragon explained.
'Good method! The sixth-grade sect had such strength. Not only did it kill this flood dragon, but it also drained its blood, extracted its spirit, and refined it to make a flood dragon puppet. How unusual is that? Is this the work of the Blood Fiend Emperor?' Zen wondered.
“However… I can feel that the seal of the flood dragon's spirit seems to have loosened a bit. The nature of flood dragons is lewd and evil. You and the woman... Be careful,” the cyan dragon said seriously.
Zen nodded slightly as he stared at Tia's back. She was still walking in front of him. After studying her for a while, Zen asked, “I have another question. Do you notice something unusual about her? Why is her strength so terrifying?”