225: Take action

Gao De controlled the dragon talisman dust mote, like a fish swimming against the current, braving the increasingly violent waves of blood and turbulent energy as he struggled to approach the core of the embryo vortex.

The piercing light and greedy intent emanating from that purple crystal stone acted like a magnet, attracting all the energy in the sea of blood, causing Gao De's heartstrings to tighten to the limit.

He could clearly feel that as a large number of Tier 4 Dragon Clan corpses were thrown in, the embryo's growth rate was skyrocketing madly.

The outline of the dark gold Dragon Embryo became solid at a speed visible to the naked eye, and ancient runes began to emerge on the faint images of fine scales. Its curled body stretched slightly, emitting a pressure that grew more and more terrifying, already faintly surpassing the scope of the Fourth Tier and carrying a hint of a Fifth-Tier aura that made Gao De's Soul tremble!

The purple crystal stone had become the eye of the entire energy storm, its light flickering unsteadily as if the galaxy within it was about to erupt.

“It's almost mature... I must get closer!” Gao De gritted his teeth, injecting Dragon Yuan into the dust mote without regard for the cost, pushing the concealment and stabilization properties of the prison dragon talisman to their limits.

The dust mote traced an almost imperceptible path through the waves of blood, bypassing several violent blood-colored tornadoes, finally reaching an area less than a hundred zhang from the core of the embryo vortex.

Here, the energy had become as viscous as a physical substance; the blood waves were no longer mere liquid but a terrifying torrent mixed with countless tiny dark gold rune fragments and dragon Soul remnants.

The spatial barrier protecting the embryo, which looked like a transparent gauze curtain, was clearly visible here.

It was not a single, complete layer, but was formed by the superposition of countless fine, constantly appearing and vanishing Spatial Folds that rippled like water, filled with destructive cutting power.

Gao De could even see a few Tier 4 dragon scale fragments that had just been thrown in being silently sliced into the finest dust the moment they approached the barrier, without even causing a ripple.

“Formidable indeed...” Gao De felt a chill in his heart.

Forcing his way in was absolutely impossible.

He had to find a fleeting “gap” or “weak point.”

He concentrated all his mind on observation, combining it with the patterns he had explored over the previous months.

He noticed that the fluctuations of this spatial barrier seemed to have an extremely complex linkage with the embryo's pulse, the flow of light from the purple crystal stone, and the rhythm of energy input from the twelve blood-colored tornadoes.

Whenever the embryo pulsed violently due to the injection of massive energy and the purple crystal stone’s light flared, the fluctuations of the spatial barrier would also reach a peak, becoming more active and unstable. The speed at which those “Spatial Folds” appeared and vanished would accelerate sharply, but it seemed... at a certain extremely short moment of transition, there would be a tiny bit of “lag” or “incoordination”?

“There it is!” Gao De's eyes lit up.

He needed to accurately predict that moment and utilize the prison dragon talisman's unique affinity for and power to suppress space. In that instant of “lag,” he would quietly “slide” in like the thinnest blade inserting into the finest crack!

This required incredibly precise timing and ultimate control over his own power, allowing for not even the slightest error.

He held his breath and focused, beginning to silently calculate the frequency of the embryo's pulse, the cycles of the crystal's light intensity, and the rhythm of the barrier's fluctuations.

At the same time, he was making another preparation—contacting the mark in the dragon girl Ao Xue's Sea of Consciousness.

Ao Xue was still submerged in a corner of the sea of blood, but Gao De could feel that the dark gold markings on the blood-colored dragon horn on her forehead had undergone some subtle changes shortly after he collected the yimu azure dragon pearl.

The markings that had been slowly crawling now seemed to have come alive, faintly producing a strange antagonistic resonance with the greedy intent emanating from the embryo core, like the repulsion of same magnetic poles.

The layer of ice protection light around her had become so thin it was almost invisible under the erosion of the blood sea and this antagonistic resonance, but her vitality seemed... to have grown a bit stronger?

“Is her mutated Bloodline absorbing the evil power of this blood sea and the embryo?” Gao De's heart stirred.

Perhaps this dragon girl's value was even greater than he had imagined.

Through the mark, he transmitted a clear thought to her: “Hold on... wait... for the chance...”

He didn't know if the unconscious Ao Xue could receive it, but it was the only thing he could do at the moment.

Just then, the blood sea space shook violently once more!

This time, the vibration did not come from an external impact, but from the embryo itself!

“ROAR——!!!”

A dragon roar that seemed to come from the primordial wilderness, filled with endless majesty and violence, suddenly erupted from the embryo!

This dragon roar acted directly upon the Divine Soul; even with the prison dragon talisman as a buffer, Gao De felt a wave of dizziness!

The dark gold embryo suddenly snapped open its tightly closed eyes!

What a bizarre pair of eyes they were!

The left eye was a pure dark gold, filled with the lofty majesty of the Dragon Clan that rules over all waters; the right eye was a roiling sea of blood, filled with chaos, greed, and evil!

Two completely different auras clashed and fused violently within the embryo, causing the pressure it emitted to become extremely unstable, at times like a god descending to the world, and at others like a demon being born.

The purple crystal stone flickered wildly, attempting to harmonize this conflict, but within it, faint dark red markings also appeared—it was the evil dragon demon seed planted by the Black-Robed Person taking the opportunity to erode and grow!

“Now is the time!” Gao De had a flash of inspiration!

Because of its internal conflict and the erosion of the “demon seed,” the embryo's aura fluctuated violently, which would inevitably cause a flaw to appear in the outer spatial barrier!

The moment of “lag” he had been waiting for was likely right now!

Without hesitation, he controlled the dragon talisman dust mote, concentrating the long-accumulated “suppression” and “spatial penetration” power of the prison dragon talisman into a single point, forming a “needle” ten thousand times thinner than a hair and almost formless. He aimed it at the most disordered position of the spatial barrier's fluctuations ahead and thrust it forward!

There was no earth-shattering noise, only an extremely faint “pop,” like a bubble bursting.

The “needle” successfully pierced the weakest point of the spatial barrier during that moment of “lag”!

The dust mote followed immediately after, like a slippery loach, passing through the “passage” that had opened for an instant—a passage thinner than a strand of hair—crossing over with extreme peril!

Success!

Gao De had entered the embryo's core area, truly coming close to the massive Dragon Embryo!

The energy concentration here was terrifyingly high; the dark gold and blood-colored light mists were almost liquid, each strand containing horrifying power.

The pressure emanating from the embryo made the dust mote feel as if it were carrying a mountain, and its concealment state began to become unstable.

The purple crystal stone was close at hand, the sight of the rotating galaxy within it clearly visible. That strand of dark red demon seed swam within it like a venomous snake, clashing violently with the crystal's own purple radiance.

Enduring the immense pressure on his Soul, Gao De quickly scanned his surroundings.

The opportunity was fleeting! He had to act immediately!

Seize the purple crystal stone? That was the core of the embryo and was connected to the Dragon King; moving it would certainly alert everyone! Furthermore, with the demon seed entangled in it, the risks were unknown.

Directly take the embryo? In his current state, that would be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot. The Fifth-Tier aura emitted by the embryo made it impossible for him to move; he could only wait for the Qianjiang Dragon King to come and break it.

His gaze finally landed below the embryo, on the “Placenta Base” area formed by the condensation of the purest dragon blood Origin.

That place seemed to be the final sediment pool of the entire Dragon Transformation Pool's energy cycle, flowing with a viscous liquid that was as translucent as blood jade and emitted an indescribable Dao rhyme—that was Dragon Blood Essence that had been refined countless times, near-Origin in quality!

Within it, there were even a few drops of special dragon blood floating, each shimmering with different colors and distinct auras; these were clearly the Essence Blood of those Dragon Clan members with unique Bloodlines!

These were the true essence of essences!

Their value was countless times higher than those corpses or reverse scale fragments! If he could collect them... though the risk of doing so was equally immense!

These Dragon Blood Essences were closely linked to the embryo and the purple crystal stone, serving as the final critical nourishment for its growth. Any slight movement would be detected!

“Wealth is found in danger! Since I've come this far, how can I return empty-handed!” A look of ruthlessness flashed in Gao De's eyes.

He did not directly go for those few drops of special Essence Blood, as the target would be too obvious. Instead, he locked his sights on the edge of the “Placenta Base,” on those relatively less conspicuous but equally pure Dragon Blood Essences.

He controlled the dust mote to quietly float over that pool of liquid and slowly descend, getting close to the surface of the Dragon Blood Essence.

This time, he used spatial collection, like a sponge soaking up water, slowly “drawing out” a tiny wisp from that pool of liquid—a dark gold blood thread about the thickness of a hair and an inch long!

The moment this blood thread left the Placenta Base, Gao De felt the entire embryo give a sudden shudder!

Those bizarre dragon eyes seemed to “look” in this direction!

The light from the purple crystal stone also abruptly turned!

He had been discovered! Although it was an extremely minor loss, in this highly sensitive core area, any anomaly would be magnified!

Gao De acted decisively, immediately stopping the extraction and pulling the blood thread into the dust mote. Simultaneously, he controlled the dust mote to simulate the appearance of being “accidentally” swept up by a chaotic energy turbulence, “drifting” rapidly away from the Placenta Base and toward the outer barrier!

“Buzz——!”

The embryo let out an angry hiss, and a powerful Soul scan mixed with terrifying energy pressure instantly swept across that area!

The purple crystal stone also shot out a beam of purple light to investigate the anomaly.

The dust mote tumbled wretchedly in the energy turbulence, while pushing the concealment and “assimilation” properties of the prison dragon talisman to their limits, mimicking the chaotic energy signatures of its surroundings.

The stolen blood thread was covered and suppressed by the power of the prison dragon talisman within the Talisman World.

The scan lasted for several breaths, and it seemed no specific “intruder” was found; it was merely assumed to be a minor disturbance caused by the embryo's own conflict and the energy riot.

The embryo's attention was soon drawn back to the increasingly fierce internal conflict and the erosion of the demon seed within the purple crystal stone. With a hiss, it closed its eyes again, focusing on the internal struggle.

Gao De breathed a secret sigh of relief, but his heart was filled with lingering fear.

That was truly too risky just now!

He had almost been exposed!

But looking at that wisp of dark gold blood thread successfully sealed within the dust mote, and feeling the surging vitality and pure power within it—far exceeding the quality of his own dragon blood—he felt it was all worth it.

If he could refine and absorb this blood thread, it would definitely be of immense benefit for purifying his Bloodline and increasing his cultivation!

Just as he was preparing to control the dust mote to find an opportunity to leave the core area or continue observing for a larger opportunity, another change occurred!

From outside the blood sea space, there came the crystal-clear sound of horns and earth-shattering battle cries, filled with solemnity and determination!

Furthermore, several dragon auras so powerful they made Gao De's Soul tremble suddenly erupted, heading straight for the entrance of the Dragon Transformation Pool!

One of those dragon auras felt somewhat familiar to Gao De—it seemed to be that Third Prince Ao Bing?

“Rebellious sons! You dare to revolt?!” Dragon King Ao Guang's roar of shock and fury drifted in through the spatial barrier, filled with unbelievable rage.

“Old geezer! You harm your own offspring and practice evil arts. Today, we shall act on behalf of Heaven and destroy this demon's den of yours!” This was the voice of Crown Prince Ao Lie, as fierce as a volcano.

“Kill! Break the Restriction and rescue our trapped brothers!” This was the steady but firm command of Crown Prince Ao Qin.

The three dragon princes, all at the Late Stage of the Fourth Tier, had actually joined forces to revolt!

And by the look of it, they had accumulated considerable strength and had fought their way directly to the outside of the Dragon Transformation Pool!

However, among the guests who had just been slaughtered were also Tier 4 Late Stage experts, so it was uncertain whether these three dragon princes could succeed even by joining forces.

But Gao De obviously would not miss this opportunity, and he followed up on their attack by taking action.

“A great opportunity!” Gao De's spirits were lifted!

The upheaval outside would surely draw away the vast majority of the Dragon King's and the Black-Robed Person's energy!

It was even possible that the Restrictions and guards protecting this place would be redeployed!

He immediately controlled the dust mote, no longer hesitating, and rushed toward the general direction where he had previously noted the storage Magic Treasure had finally tumbled and stopped!

Now that chaos had broken out, it was the perfect time to fish in troubled waters, retrieve that storage bracelet which might contain heavy treasures, and try to take the dragon girl Ao Xue with him!

He also took this opportunity to collect and suppress a large amount of Foul Blood Poison Thunders within a layer of a Small World inside the dragon talisman. These extremely unstable water thunders, while not very effective against powerful demon kings, could be used to strengthen the combat power of the Demon Soldiers under his command if he had the chance to refine them into one-time use Magic Treasures; even an ordinary Third-Tier Demon King would not be able to withstand a direct hit.

At the embryo's core, because of the external upheaval and internal conflict, the fluctuations became even more violent.

The dark red demon seed within the purple crystal stone seemed to have received some kind of stimulus, suddenly expanding by a full circle and beginning to crazily erode the crystal itself!

The embryo twisted in pain as the conflict between the dark gold and the blood-red reached a fever pitch!

The entire blood sea was completely boiling!

Gao De was like a shark that had caught the scent of blood, charging straight for his target amidst the waves of chaos.

And the dragon girl Ao Xue, whom he had “marked,” saw the dark gold markings on the blood-colored dragon horn on her forehead suddenly erupt with unprecedented light under the stimulation of the battle cries outside and the embryo's painful hissing, actually forming a miniature blood-colored dragon phantom that circled and hissed on her forehead!

Her already strengthening life fluctuations also began to fluctuate violently, as if something was awakening within her... The storm had arrived! Everyone's fate would reach a decisive turning point in the ensuing chaos and slaughter!