1: Chapter 1 The Awakening of the Shadow King

"Twenty-seven steps are destined by heaven! On the Reverse Flow River, I go where I please!"

Seeing the climax of the plot, this reader couldn't help but sigh with such emotion.

But unfortunately, amidst that spirited and generous cry...

...it was accompanied by the crash of thunder...

Bang!

...

"Pain!"

"It hurts so much!"

"The pain is killing me!"

In a deep pool, a silver Dragon writhed its body, its face contorted in agony, its massive frame churning the pool into a muddy mess.

"Where is this?"

Relying on muscle memory, the silver Dragon coiled its body, and its expression gradually softened.

Only those steel-like dragon teeth, each as long as an adult's arm, were still bared.

Then, the massive silver-white Dragon seemed to realize something.

It suddenly puffed out its gills and lungs, burying its head within its body.

"This is underwater! I can actually breathe!?"

Feeling the strangeness of its body, it couldn't help but stretch out and swing its body freely, experiencing the "Heaven-Defying act" of breathing underwater.

Water poured in through its upturned nostrils, moving quickly along a fleshy line, extracting the small amount of air contained within.

The processed, airless water was then expelled through the gaps in its armor-like dragon scales, repeating the cycle.

"I've turned into a Dragon?! And I'm in a pool of water."

The silver Dragon poked its head out and surveyed the surrounding landscape.

This place was a circular stone clearing with a natural granite roof above. Some aquatic plants grew around, and one or two small fish swam nearby.

However, they were frozen in place by the Dragon's movements, at a complete loss.

The overall layout was like being inside an inverted pot.

The only difference was a circular hole directly above, leading to the outside world.

The silver Dragon began to ponder its identity, relying on the fragmented memories in its mind.

After a moment, he knew everything...

"I am the third son of the West Sea Dragon King, Ao Run—Jade Dragon Ao Lie! That demoted little dragon?"

"So, I've transmigrated into the Journey to the West world? Not only was I backstabbed by my biological father, but in the near future, I'll also have my horns sawn off and scales stripped by Bodhisattva Guanyin."

"Then I'll serve as Tang Sanzang's mount, suffering the humiliation of being ridden day and night."

At this thought, Ao Lie grew frantic. His dragon claws dug into the mud and stones, clutching the aquatic plants to alleviate the anxiety in his heart.

Transmigrating to this world, he felt a sense of unfamiliarity—not just the strangeness of being a newcomer, but a specific unfamiliarity with certain things.

If he understood the Journey to the West world and had read the original novel, perhaps it would be better.

But the mistake was that he hadn't finished reading Journey to the West in his past life, and he hadn't studied it when he should have, so he didn't understand the detailed plot at all.

Aside from the mentions of Journey to the West in the Xuanhuan novels he usually read, he knew nothing else.

"That said, if I don't do something, I'll repeat the mistakes of my predecessor and become a sacrificial lamb in this Great Tribulation of Journey to the West."

"I think the ultimate winner must be Tathagata of the Western Paradise. After all, he is the one who orchestrated the Great Tribulation, all to promote himself to a Saint through the Karma of preaching and teaching."

...

Outside Yingjian Cave, birds chirped in unison, charging into the pool as if they didn't care for their lives.

The main reason was that the surface of the pool in Shepan Mountain's Yingjian Cave was as smooth and calm as a mirror.

The reflections of the birds flying freely in the sky appeared on the surface of the pool, making them mistake it for a flock flying at low altitude. They followed one after another, ultimately giving up their lives.

Ao Lie swung his body and rushed out of the cave, then activated the pearl at the center of his brow.

The pearl emitted a curtain of light that covered Ao Lie's massive dragon body. Then, his body began to compress bit by bit until the dragon form gradually transformed into a human body.

Afterwards, except for the pearl at his brow which didn't disappear but instead hung around Ao Lie's neck, everything else—claws, teeth, horns, dragon roots, and so on—all transformed into human structures.

The Dragon Clan is born with the ability to float and dive. Thus, while passively in the air, Ao Lie tried to control his body using the memories in his mind.

Through trial and error, he finally gained proficient control over his body and soared between heaven and earth.

He followed the birds, flying with them, feeling the flow of the wind and the moisture in the air that had become sensitive to him.

Ao Lie's black hair fluttered in the wind. His pearl-white, jade-like body made one feel as if they were in a bathhouse in the Immortal Realm—exquisite and beautiful beyond words.

Perhaps tired of playing, Ao Lie flew back to the cave entrance.

By now, the place was already bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, incredibly beautiful.

Staying above the cave entrance for a short while, he quietly watched the water's surface and the reflection of his white, graceful body.

Then, Ao Lie seemed to remember something. He activated his magic power, drawing the dragon skin he had shed years ago.

He then cut and tailored it, crafting a piece of armor comparable to a treasure—the "jade dragon armor."

Wearing the jade dragon armor protects one from mosquito bites and wards off wild beasts.

Of course, the most important ability was water avoidance. Its effect was equivalent to the Water Avoidance Spell Monkey King used to dive to the bottom of the sea when he asked the East Sea Dragon King for a Magic Treasure.

It even completely outclassed the Water Avoidance Spell. After all, between maintaining a spell and using a water-avoiding Magic Treasure, if fighting underwater, the latter would certainly have the upper hand.

Once the armor was on, Ao Lie leaped into Yingjian Cave, entering the vast space at the bottom of the pool.

For a member of the Dragon Clan like Ao Lie, even if reduced to occupying a mere pool, there would surely be lower-ranking aquatic beings to serve him.

Lying on the stone bed at the bottom of the pool, he closed his eyes and fell into deep thought.

He hadn't been thinking for long when a peculiar, low voice came from the stone door inside the cave.

"Lord Lie, it's time for dinner! Elder Turtle is already waiting for you at the stone table."

Ao Lie opened his eyes, focused his magic power to cover his eyeballs, and then looked through the stone door to see the scene outside.

It was a Shrimp Soldier holding a stone fork, hurrying over to call for Ao Lie.

"Lord Lie, I called you just now, but you didn't seem to be here. Little Red Fish said you went out?"

Ao Lie went to the stone door and gave it a gentle push. The stone door immediately rolled and moved to both sides.

"Yes, what of it? Am I not allowed to go out?"

The Shrimp Soldier was instantly at a loss for words. He hurriedly waved his jade-like claws and shook his head in denial.

"No, no, it's just that the Dragon King and Bodhisattva Guanyin said Lord Lie must not leave this place without permission, otherwise..."

Ao Lie's gaze turned cold. With his hands in his pockets, he leaned down and looked at the Shrimp Soldier with a frigid face, his black hair falling over the Shrimp Soldier's head.

"How could I not know this? Bodhisattva Guanyin already instructed me to stay here and wait for a bald..."

"Hmph, you understand? If you understand, then get out of my way!"

Ao Lie spat inwardly, cursing these Shrimp Soldiers, Crab Generals, turtles, and small fish as nothing more than the lackeys and eyes of the West.

...

After the dinner ended, Ao Lie returned to the stone room, pulled the stone door shut, and poked his head out to look around.

Seeing that no one was paying attention, he closed the stone door like a thief.

Even then, he still felt uneasy, so he formed hand seals and cast a high-level Concealment Spell to isolate any sound or movement within the room.

Ao Lie walked to the stone table, pulled out a stone stool, and muttered to himself in a flat tone.

Then, once the excitement in his heart had calmed down, he walked to the stone bed and slowly lay down.

His breathing gradually slowed, and only strands of his black hair floated upwards in the direction of the water bubbles.

Ao Lie probed his own body with his Divine Sense, scanning it step by step, as if searching for something.

"That power! A power that even transcends planes..."

As Ao Lie probed step by step, finally, the moment his Divine Sense entered his mind, he felt a peculiar energy.

Different from the magic power of the Journey to the West world, it was a terrifying Shadow Power.

Right now, this power was slowly assimilating his magic power, gradually becoming a power recognized by this world.

Ao Lie waited patiently. He had already guessed the source of this power.

It was exactly the ability from a manga he had read in his past life, the authority of the Shadow Monarch—Shadow Extraction!

"Creatures killed by oneself can undergo Shadow Extraction, and the extracted shadows evolve along with oneself..."

Thus, with a heart full of excitement, Ao Lie fell into a deep sleep until the next day.

The rising sun could not reach the bottom of the pool, which should have been pitch black.

But Ao Lie's Immortal Cave was quite different, all because the surrounding walls were embedded with night-luminescent pearls, making it bright almost all night long.

...

Ao Lie was awakened by a voice from his mind. He felt the call of that power, and immediately, he opened his eyes.

"The power of the Shadow Monarch..."

(Chapter one of the novel. The writing style is still a bit immature, so please give me your support. I'll delete some redundant parts later.)

(To be honest, I planned to publish this novel on Qidian, but they didn't think much of it. Sob, sob. Great Author, I still don't know how to write an opening.)

(I really, really can't write a 'Golden Opening,' so after much deliberation, I can only ride the coattails of 'The Records of Insects.')

(Anyway, fighting!)