TL: GoldenLung
Huang Yuanlang followed Huang Daoqi into the study. As soon as the door closed, he blurted out impatiently,
“Father, this isn’t what we agreed upon! Didn’t you say that if she proved useful to the family, you would propose a marriage between us? Why did you suddenly change your mind?”
Huang Daoqi shot him a glance. “Why did I change? That’s something you should ask yourself. You know better than anyone how many resources the family has poured into you. But you also know what your cultivation is now. Your absorption of Dragon Force isn’t even one-tenth as effective as Xiuxiu’s, and it’s getting worse each time. With your current state, even reaching my level in the future will be difficult. Frankly speaking, I long ago stopped holding out hope for you to become a Dragon Knight.
“My original plan was to unite you with Xiuxiu, so the two of you could make a push together. But after what happened in the Dragon Force Hall today, you saw it yourself—her talent is far greater than we imagined. I can tell you this: even in Celestial Dragon City, I’ve never heard of a clan descendant who could, on their very first absorption of Dragon Force, completely absorb it all into themselves without losing a single trace.”
“This means that Xiuxiu has a tremendous chance of becoming a Dragon Knight in the future—and not just any Dragon Knight, but a very powerful one once she matures.”
Huang Yuanlang said in confusion, “Wouldn’t that mean it’s even more important to bind her to me now, before she grows too powerful? Wouldn’t that secure her loyalty?”
“You don’t understand,” Huang Daoqi said coldly. “As a clan chief, one must look farther ahead. A single Dragon Knight’s support can secure the family’s stability. But what if there are three Dragon Knights backing us? Do you want our Huang Family to remain at the bottom of the Ten Great Families forever? With Xiuxiu’s looks, attracting other powerful Dragon Knights in the future is guaranteed. If she herself becomes a Dragon Knight, and with the support of the Ink Terror Dragon Knight, then our Huang Family will have three Dragon Knights. At that point, everything will change. That is worth far more than you marrying her. That is why I adopted her as a daughter. Once I publicly declare her my own flesh and blood, she will carry our Huang brand forever and can only be used for our benefit.
“The only thing our Huang Family lacks is strong support.”
Huang Yuanlang fell silent for a while before asking, “Father, what if in the future she refuses to obey us?”Huang Daoqi said evenly, “It won’t be that easy. Our Huang Family’s Dragon Force Hall also has Dragon Force Shackles. If she disobeys, the same power that allowed me to raise her up can just as easily destroy her.”
Huang Yuanlang was shocked. “You’ve already planted Dragon Force Shackles inside her?”
“Of course. Did you really think I would simply trust an outsider?” Huang Daoqi replied. “As long as she obeys, nothing changes. But if she resists, the Dragon Force Shackles will immediately lock down all her dragon power.”
While father and son were conversing, Lan Xuanyu and the others had already been delivered by dragon carriage back to Bai Xiuxiu’s residence. Elaysion escorted them all the way to her front gate before leaving with the carriage. Because servants were nearby, Bai Xiuxiu said nothing until she brought the group straight into her life-energy-filled chamber.
Closing the door, Lan Xuanyu cast an elemental barrier.
“Whew—” Bai Xiuxiu let out a long sigh, her tense nerves finally relaxing. She looked at Lan Xuanyu and chuckled, “Doesn’t it feel like I’ve just acknowledged a thief as my father?”
Yuanen Huihui couldn’t help but laugh. Lan Xuanyu, however, did not. With a solemn expression, he said, “Xiuxiu, sit down first. Let me check your condition.”
Seeing the seriousness on his face, Bai Xiuxiu quickly complied, sitting down. Lan Xuanyu sat behind her, placing both hands on her back, focusing his senses.
The first thing he felt was the surging torrent of soul power and bloodline energy within her body. From absorbing Dragon Force just once, Bai Xiuxiu had already reached the peak of a seven-ring Soul Sage, nearly at the level of an eight-ring Soul Douluo —just a single step away from breaking through.
And with the Abyssal Demon Dragon Queen within her, as long as she mastered the Queen’s abilities, she needed no additional Spirit Souls or soul beasts to keep raising her cultivation.
Lan Xuanyu carefully probed, and Bai Xiuxiu relaxed completely, allowing his soul power to flow into her body. To her surprise, Lan Xuanyu’s soul power was like a vast river, endless and powerful, far stronger than her own.
Though she knew he had broken through, she hadn’t expected that even with only six rings, his soul power could be this overwhelming.
His first impression was that there was nothing wrong with her soul power—everything was circulating normally. Only then did he cautiously extend his bloodline power to touch Bai Xiuxiu’s.
Her bloodline aura was icy cold, the signature of her martial soul, the Abyssal Frost Demon Dragon. Her bloodline energy circled ceaselessly around her soul core. Stimulated by the Dragon Force, it appeared clearer than before, like flowing ribbons of light.
Lan Xuanyu slowly infused his bloodline power, quietly sensing the changes.
After a long moment, he discovered a problem.
Her bloodline aura was far more turbulent than usual, likely because she had just absorbed Dragon Force and hadn’t fully digested it yet. But within this turbulence, he sensed a constraining force—as if some invisible power was binding her bloodline energy, preventing it from spilling outward. At first glance, this seemed beneficial for helping her assimilate the Dragon Force. Anyone unfamiliar with her would mistake it for her own self-control.
But Lan Xuanyu knew her too well. They often cultivated together, with Bai Xiuxiu relying on his bloodline aura to strengthen herself. He immediately realized this restrictive force was foreign—something implanted, most likely tied to the Dragon Force itself.
He gently withdrew his soul power and bloodline aura, opened his eyes, and patted her shoulder. “Xiuxiu, summon the Demon Queen.”
Bai Xiuxiu shook her head. “The Queen fell asleep after fusing with the Dragon Force. I can feel her power merging more perfectly with mine. If I hadn’t deliberately suppressed it, I would have already broken through just now. I can break through to eight-ring at any moment. But I’m holding it back because I’m afraid the breakthrough would trigger phenomena—if my soul rings were to appear, that would be a huge problem.”
Lan Xuanyu stood up and pulled her to her feet.
“Is something wrong?” Bai Xiuxiu asked anxiously.
Lan Xuanyu nodded. “Yes, a small problem. It’s hidden deeply, but I still found it. Huang Daoqi must have left something inside your body.”
“What? He suspects me?” Bai Xiuxiu’s heart tightened.
“Not necessarily suspicion,” Lan Xuanyu replied. “In fact, today went even better than I expected. First, Huang Daoqi’s cultivation—he’s only at the god-rank, not even a true-god, let alone a super-god. That’s very favorable for us. The gap of a single level is enormous—his perception and spiritual strength are limited. He definitely can’t see through the illusions Little Trea creates.
“Second, the Dragon Force Hall is an unexpected boon for us. If I’m not mistaken, their so-called special dimension and the Dragon Force within it must be the same thing I sensed back in Celestial Dragon City. If that’s true, everything makes sense. That dimension is filled with dragon aura, which is why it called out to me. The fusion of Dragon Force helping you rise is certainly a good thing. The only reason I think there may be a problem is because Huang Daoqi trusted you too readily.”
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