198: Chapter 198 The Dao Fruit Appears in the World, the True Dragon Reveals His True Colors!

Pieces of the Ancient Hall's front outer wall crumbled away, revealing a portal hidden behind the wall.

The door was not fully open, leaving only a narrow gap.

Yet the aura seeping through the gap caused the entire inner sea to fall silent for an instant.

Su Yuxi took a step forward.

Lin Yi still held her wrist; he did not stop her, only accompanied her forward.

Su Yuxi stared at the door, her voice tight but incredibly clear.

"The place where I went into seclusion in my past life!"

As she spoke, the phantom of a crystalline Dao Fruit flashed within the Ancient Hall portal.

Greed surged in Aotian's eyes, and dragon shadows instantly wrapped around his arms.

Lin Yi stepped across in front of Su Yuxi, Sword Intent flowing between his fingers.

The ancient black lotus bridge crumbled behind them. The black water beneath the bridge churned.

Before the Ancient Hall gate, killing intent fully emerged.

Inside the Ancient Hall, the phantom of the crystalline Dao Fruit had only flashed for a moment.

Medicinal fragrance, dao rhyme, and the aura of the Empress all spilled out from the crack in the door.

Xu Chen had just caught his breath, his eyes nearly popping out.

"Good heavens."

"This thing doesn't look like a mortal object at all!"

Chu Wanqing held the imperial zither, her fingertips still stained with black water. She looked at the crack in the door, her tone devoid of its usual jest.

"Is this the Dao Fruit left behind by Sister Yu Xi from her past life?"

Shen Qingyue stood on the other side, Hunyuan Qi swirling in her palms. She did not rush to speak.

That dao rhyme was too pure, completely opposite to the black disaster and Death Qi encountered along the way on Burial Emperor Island.

It was as if this place were the only lamp still lit in the entire sea of mist.

Su Yuxi gazed into the door, her fingers tightening involuntarily, and the Jade Slip in her palm trembled slightly.

It was not a summons, but rather like a long-awaited reunion.

Lin Yi glanced at her, his tone decisive.

"Go in with peace of mind."

"Leave the outside to me!"

Su Yuxi felt a lump in her throat. She had never been a weak person.

But at this moment, as those words fell upon her ears, her chest felt as if it had been struck by something.

"Lin Yi!"

She spoke softly.

Lin Yi looked toward the front of the Ancient Hall, not turning back.

"Hmm?"

Su Yuxi's fingertips moved, and in the end, she only said one sentence.

"Don't get hurt."

Lin Yi chuckled softly.

"Don't worry."

"The ones who should get hurt are on the other side."

Xu Chen felt invigorated upon hearing this and immediately hoisted the ancient desolate hall onto his shoulder.

"I love hearing that, Big Brother!"

Chu Wanqing glanced at him.

"Weren't you tired just now?"

Xu Chen puffed out his chest, his tone resolute.

"Tired is one thing."

"But my mouth can't stop."

"This is my core competency."

Chu Wanqing couldn't help but be amused, nearly laughing out loud.

But just as the amusement surfaced, the Dragon Might in front of the Ancient Hall suddenly surged.

Aotian took a step forward, the black lotus beneath his feet shattering, and dark golden dragon shadows spread from the water surface to the front of the palace gate.

Those cold golden vertical pupils stared fixedly at the Dao Fruit inside the door. Greed and malice were completely unconcealed!

"Empress Daoxi."

He bared his teeth, his tone as if tempered in ice.

"You hid the Dao Fruit deep enough."

"Unfortunately, I still waited until now!"

Su Yuxi raised her eyes to look at him, the fluctuations in her pupils slowly subsiding.

"You won't be able to wait for it."

Aotian sneered.

"By relying on you?"

"By relying on this current body in the Divine Fire Realm?"

He raised his hand, and dragon patterns gathered in his palm into a ball of dark golden light.

"In your past life, you were indeed qualified to stand before this door."

"But in this life, you are merely a splash of water that has not yet returned to its place!"

Lin Yi took a half-step forward, blocking the pressure Aotian was casting toward Su Yuxi.

He did not say much, the Sword Intent between his fingers slowly coalescing.

Aotian's gaze shifted to Lin Yi, the disdain on his face thickening.

"You are certainly in a rush to protect her."

"The Human Race always loves to do useless things."

Xu Chen poked his head out and pointed at him.

"Where does a loach of a Clone get such a sense of superiority?"

Killing intent flashed in Aotian's eyes, and the black water under the bridge instantly exploded.

A black lotus vine shot out from under the water, stabbing straight at the center of Xu Chen's eyebrows.

Xu Chen shrank his neck in fright.

"Damn it, a sneak attack!"

Lin Yi flicked his finger, and the Grass Sword Intent flew out, instantly severing the lotus vine.

The severed vine fell into the sea, splashing up a patch of foul-smelling black water.

Xu Chen hurriedly patted his chest.

"Big Brother, steady."

"It almost cracked my skull open."

Chu Wanqing plucked a string on her zither, and a sound blade flew past Xu Chen's ear, cutting off two more vines that were creeping in from the shadows.

She huffed.

"Still joking?"

Xu Chen immediately shut his mouth, but a breath later, he couldn't help but mutter softly.

"If I don't joke around a bit, the atmosphere is too tense."

Aotian couldn't be bothered to look at him anymore. His gaze swept over Su Yuxi and landed on Shen Qingyue.

That look of appraising an object made Shen Qingyue's brows chill slightly.

"Primordial Bloodline."

"The Shen Family guarding the door back then was somewhat useful after all."

The Hunyuan Qi in Shen Qingyue's palms trembled.

"You were involved in the Shen Family's affairs too?"

Upon hearing this, Aotian acted as if he had heard something funny.

"Involved?"

"Your Shen Family is nothing more than gatekeepers."

"If that door didn't require a key, who would remember you?"

Shen Qingyue's knuckles turned white. Chu Wanqing's expression also turned cold. A chill rose in the depths of Su Yuxi's eyes.

Lin Yi did not strike immediately. He looked at Aotian, his tone flat.

"Keep talking."

Aotian lifted his chin.

"What, trying to bait me?"

Lin Yi smiled.

"With a brain like yours, you'd say it yourself without being baited."

Xu Chen slapped his thigh on the spot.

"Well said."

"Big Brother's mouth is truly a critical hit with every strike."

The mockery on Aotian's face stiffened for half a breath. Afterward, the dragon patterns around his body suddenly ignited.

The black lotuses on the sea surface turned in unison, and the Killing Formation on the outer wall of the Ancient Hall was triggered by the dragon blood.

Lines of dark red patterns crawled out from the ground.

Wang Hong, guarding the bridge entrance with several Elders, saw their expressions change in unison.

"Saint, be careful!"

"There is a hidden Killing Formation here!"

Lin Yi scanned it; the Killing Formation was divided into three layers. The outermost layer stirred the black lotuses. The middle layer awakened the Dragon-Blood Specters. The innermost layer locked the palace gate, and once forced, even the Dao Fruit would be affected.

This move by Aotian clearly showed he did not want Su Yuxi to enter the palace easily. He wanted to drag everyone in front of the door and then seize the Dao Fruit in the ensuing chaos.

Grandmist immortal light flashed in Lin Yi's eyes.

"Elder Wang."

"You break the outer formation."

Wang Hong responded in a deep voice.

"Understood!"

He raised his palm and struck out with Saint King Law, directly blasting toward the black lotus formation patterns on the outside of the Ancient Hall. Two other Elders followed immediately.

Holy Light collided with the black lotus patterns, inciting a large, ear-piercing explosion.

In the black water, dozens of Dragon-Blood Specters climbed out simultaneously. The remaining Elders immediately moved to intercept them.

These specters were fiercer than the previous batch. Wrapped in dragon blood symbols, their claws could tear black marks into the Void Realm when they landed.

The Cultivators in the back who wanted to pick up scraps had just approached when they were scared into crawling back.

Someone gritted their teeth and shouted.

"The Empress's Dao Fruit is right inside the door!"

"As long as we rush over, we can ascend to heaven in one step!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a Dragon-Blood Specter turned and pounced, directly pressing that person into the black water. The scream had just begun when it was drowned out by the sound of chewing.

The faces of the others turned pale.

Xu Chen, carrying the ancient desolate hall, shook his head as he watched.

"Ascend to heaven in one step?"

"This isn't ascending to heaven."

"This is one step to the stomach!"