Chapter 97 Ten Thousand Years

At this moment, in Old Ancestor Qingxuan's mind, two little figures were fighting.

One was wailing in despair, "It's over, it's over! My identity as a fake is definitely going to be exposed! The more fanatical this group of dragons was just now, the more brutal they will be tomorrow once they discover they've been deceived. I'll be torn to pieces alive!"

The other was desperately searching for a way to survive: "Calm down! Must stay calm! I've even survived the bizarre ordeal of Ascension three times; I cannot die because of this inexplicable misunderstanding. Think of a way, there must be a way to bluff my way through..."

He swallowed a mouthful of saliva; the sound of swallowing in his throat was piercingly loud inside the carriage.

Old Ancestor Qingxuan turned his neck, his peripheral vision glancing at the Elder Green Dragon sitting on the other side of the carriage.

Ever since getting into the carriage, this Elder Green Dragon had been staring at him with a certain look.

The look was kind, and also filled with worship, as if admiring a long-lost treasure. That gaze made Old Ancestor Qingxuan feel as if his Soul was being roasted over a fire.

"No, I have to test the waters."

Old Ancestor Qingxuan cheered himself on internally.

"Um... Elder."

Old Ancestor Qingxuan cleared his throat, his voice trembling.

As he spoke, he stroked the golden cage in his arms, "I suddenly remembered something. Is... this tomorrow's Blood-Drop Ancestor Recognition Ceremony absolutely necessary?"

"What I mean is, I've stayed in the Lower Realm for so many years and have long been accustomed to quiet. These kinds of troublesome, elaborate rituals... can't they be skipped? Everyone knows it in their hearts, so why bother with formalities?"

As soon as the words fell, the air inside the carriage froze.

The Elder Green Dragon's eyes stalled, and his smile stiffened.

He turned his head and looked Old Ancestor Qingxuan up and down with a certain look. In that gaze, there was doubt, confusion, and scrutiny.

"Thump!" Old Ancestor Qingxuan's heart skipped a beat.

It's over! He wailed in his heart. Why did my damn mouth have to ask such a stupid question!

This is the Dragon Clan's ancestral recognition; it's a massive event. By suggesting not to go, isn't that clearly telling them I have a guilty conscience?

This look is clearly seeing through my Human Race disguise, and he's probably thinking about what kind of torture to use to punish me, this liar? Is it skinning and tendon-pulling, or throwing me directly into that black mine pit just now for Soul Refining?

Cold sweat soaked Old Ancestor Qingxuan's back.

He closed his eyes, already prepared for the Elder Green Dragon to fly into a rage.

However. One breath. Two breaths passed.

The expected attack did not fall.

"Swish!" The Elder Green Dragon sitting opposite him stood up.

Old Ancestor Qingxuan shivered in terror.

The Elder Green Dragon knelt on one knee before him. Tears welled up in his old eyes.

Tears rolled down his cheeks and splattered onto the floor of the carriage.

The Elder Green Dragon's voice trembled, and he said with great heartache, "The Chosen Son! You... how impatient you are!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan: "???"

He gaped, looking at the teary-eyed Elder Green Dragon before him, his brain short-circuiting.

Impatient? What am I impatient about? Am I rushing to my death?

The Elder Green Dragon didn't give Old Ancestor Qingxuan any time to think; he grabbed Old Ancestor Qingxuan's hand, held it between his palms, and wailed:

"This old servant understands! This old servant understands everything!"

"The Chosen Son has endured humiliation and shouldered heavy burdens in the Lower Realm for thousands of years, even abandoning your True Dragon body, longing day and night to return to the Dragon Clan! Now that you have finally seen the light of day and returned to your homeland, that impatience to immediately prove your identity and return to the embrace of the Ancestors... this old servant feels it too!"

"On the surface, you asked if these elaborate rituals could be skipped, but in reality, you are blaming us for being too slow! You are blaming us for why we have to wait until tomorrow morning instead of taking you to the altar right now, aren't you?!"

"You are afraid that if the night is long, there will be many dreams; you are afraid that this is just a dream, and upon waking, you will still be suffering in that cold Lower Realm! The Chosen Son, how could this old servant not understand your painstaking efforts and your urgency!"

Listening to this wild imagination, Old Ancestor Qingxuan went completely numb.

He opened his mouth, trying to steer the conversation back, "No... Elder, you misunderstood, what I actually meant was..."

"The Chosen Son, rest assured!" The Elder Green Dragon didn't give him a chance to speak, his voice rising, his tone firm.

"The Blood-Drop Ancestor Recognition is the Dragon Clan's highest procedure; not a single step can be skipped, as it also concerns your legal legitimacy to rule the Dragon Domain in the future! But this old servant can guarantee with my life that tomorrow's ceremony will start on time! This old servant will go to the altar tonight to keep watch, and will never let you wait even one second longer!"

"Your wish to recognize your ancestors as soon as possible, even if I have to risk this old life, I will definitely achieve it for you!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan: "..."

He looked at the Elder Green Dragon before him, a sense of powerlessness welling up in his heart.

"I was just afraid of death, how did that become 'impatient'? Are these horned fellows' imaginations always this outrageous?"

Seeing that the path of "skipping the ceremony" was blocked and even expedited, Old Ancestor Qingxuan knew he could no longer dwell on this topic.

Otherwise, this old guy would probably drag him to the altar to bleed him tonight.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the despair in his heart, and tried to rephrase, looking for a possibility to break the situation from another angle.

"Cough... that, Elder, your good intentions, I... I accept them."

Old Ancestor Qingxuan pulled back his hand, wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and frowned, "However, I feel... is that Formation on the altar reliable?"

"Think about it, that Formation has existed for so many years after all. Could it be in disrepair and have issues? For example... for example, when detecting the Bloodline, the Formation suddenly breaks and can't recognize... hmm... there won't be any accidents, right?"

What he actually wanted to say was: Can that damn Formation be a little blind, not recognize my Human Race Bloodline, and logically give me a green light? Or is there any room for manipulation to let me bluff my way through?

But when the Elder Green Dragon heard this, he was stunned for a moment. Then, his expression changed.

That expression of sudden realization mixed with guilt made a sense of foreboding rise in Old Ancestor Qingxuan's heart once again.

Sure enough, the Elder Green Dragon revealed an expression of "I understand, I completely understand," his eyes turning red.

"The Chosen Son!" The Elder Green Dragon's voice was full of pity.

"Are you worried that the Formation is in disrepair and won't recognize the pure and flawless Ancestral Bloodline within you? Are you afraid that if the Formation makes a mistake, the fellow members of the Dragon Clan won't accept you?"

"Rest assured! Rest assured a million times!" The Elder Green Dragon patted his chest, his eyes shining with light, "That Ancestral Dragon Array is not some ordinary product set up by us Juniors!"

"That was a forbidden Formation Plate that the Ancestor personally crossed the Star Domain to borrow from that Human Race Empress back in the day!"

Hearing the words "Human Race Empress," Old Ancestor Qingxuan's eyelids twitched. Although he didn't know exactly how strong this Empress was, anyone who could be associated with "Supreme" and "Ancestor," and who could even trample the Heavenly Dao underfoot, was a terrifying existence.

"This Formation contains a trace of the Human Race Empress's Supreme Law. After passing through eternal ages, not only has it not suffered any damage, but it has instead absorbed endless Ancestral Dragon Qi, becoming even more sensitive!"

"Let alone someone with a pure Chosen Son Bloodline like you, even if a drop of sub-dragon blood, diluted to one in ten million, were dripped onto it, the Formation could analyze it clearly; it is absolutely impossible to make a mistake!"

"Moreover, this Formation comes with absolute exclusivity. Except for the true Dragon Clan Bloodline, once the aura of any outsider approaches, even if it is a disguise of an Immortal Emperor Realm, it will be instantly seen through and directly crushed into nothingness by the Formation's backlash!"

The Elder Green Dragon paused and looked at Old Ancestor Qingxuan with a certain look.

"This old servant knows that The Chosen Son has drifted outside for too long, having seen the deceit of the Lower Realm, and lacks a sense of security. But you must believe that the Dragon Clan is your home! Everyone here will protect you with their lives!"

"Tomorrow's Formation will definitely allow the Dragon Clan Bloodline hidden within you to awaken, making the Ancestral Dragon Array erupt with light! And announce your return to the Three Thousand Great Worlds!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan gave up. His opened mouth hung in mid-air for a long time, eventually closing.

"A Formation borrowed from the Human Race Empress. Absolutely sensitive. Can even see through an Immortal Emperor's disguise. Outsider auras are crushed into nothingness directly."

These words smashed into Old Ancestor Qingxuan's heart, grinding his wishful thinking into dust.

He lowered his head, hugging the golden cage, like a puppet.

In his mind, only one thought kept echoing: It's over. Tomorrow will be my death anniversary. And the kind where I'm crushed into nothingness.

...

At this time. On the other side. Longyuan Hall Main Hall.

This was the place for receiving guests in the entire Dragon Domain; the interior of the main hall was comparable to a Small World.

The Coiling Dragon Jade Pillars were carved with ancient totems, and underfoot was Star Profound Mother Stone.

Gu Heng and his group, under the escort of the Dragon Domain Lord and others, arrived here.

As for those Dragon Clan higher-ups, after settling them in, they went to deal with the "Chosen Son's Return" matter.

Gu Heng walked up to the main hall's throne and sat down.

Seventeen Immortal Emperors and Devil Emperors immediately lined up on both sides, standing with their hands hanging down, not daring to even breathe loudly, like a group of household servants.

Thunder Emperor activated the Thunder Law, adjusting the temperature around the throne to a comfortable level; Star Immortal Emperor took out a set of Immortal Domain tea sets from his storage ring, preparing to brew tea for this lord at any time.

"Hum—"

Jiang Wanyin and the others did not lower their guard after entering the hall.

Her eyes scanned the surroundings; the red rope tied with time on her ankle lit up with a red glow, turning into red gauze that wove and spread out.

The red gauze penetrated the walls of the main hall, locking the spatial nodes for hundreds of thousands of miles around.

From the outside, the Longyuan Hall Main Hall disappeared from this world.

After doing all this, Jiang Wanyin turned around, facing Gu Heng sitting on the throne, and bowed to speak.

"Master, the space here has been sealed. The Heavenly secrets of the Dragon Domain are already in Chaos, and combined with my Divine Court secret technique, even my main body cannot deduce our exact location within a short period."

"Furthermore, I have said before. The connection between this Divine Sense of mine and the Demon God Emperor's main body is currently in a blocked state.

As long as Lin Qingyue is safe, my main body will naturally not forcibly tear through the Realms to come here."

Speaking of this, Jiang Wanyin turned her head and glanced at Di Shitian, who was standing on the other side with his arms crossed.

"And as for him..."

Di Shitian sensed Jiang Wanyin's gaze and let out a cold snort. A trace of disdain flashed through his demonic eyes, but there was more wariness toward something.

"Why are you looking at this Emperor?"

Di Shitian spoke, "Although this Emperor's main body fears no existence in these Three Thousand Great Worlds, that old loach in the Dragon God Domain has lived long enough. Although he has fallen into a deep slumber, the core of this Ancestral Dragon Great World still contains the Ancestral Dragon Array he set up back then."

He paused and admitted a fact.

"Under the same Realm, even if this Emperor's main body noticed something unusual, I would never dare to barge into the core area of the Dragon Domain alone.

Once that old loach is disturbed and recklessly activates the Formation, even a God Emperor would lose a layer of skin. Unless... this Emperor joins forces with the main body of this woman, Jiang Wanyin, is it possible to forcibly break through the barrier of this Dragon Domain."

As Di Shitian's voice fell, the atmosphere in the main hall dissipated.

Thunder Emperor raised his hand, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, and felt a weight lifted from his heart.

Star Immortal Emperor also exhaled a breath of turbid air, a smile appearing on his old face.

"That's great... As long as the Demon God Emperor's main body doesn't come to kill us, we are safe in the Dragon Domain."

"Indeed, indeed. With the protection of two great God Emperor Incarnations, plus the natural barrier of the Dragon Domain, we can finally catch our breath."

The Immortal Emperors whispered below, their nerves relaxing.

Gu Heng sat on the throne, listened to the report from the two, and nodded.

"In other words, we won't be hunted down for a short time. We have a safe buffer period."

A smile curled at the corners of Gu Heng's mouth, and his gaze swept over the people in the main hall, "This is a good thing... After fighting and killing for so long, it is time to enjoy a peaceful life."

He was happy in his heart; not only did he not have to flee for his life, but he also had this group of big shots serving as his bodyguards. This Dragon Domain was a vacation resort.

Subsequently, Jiang Wanyin stepped forward, her eyes fixed on Gu Heng.

She saw what Gu Heng was thinking, pondered for a moment, and her face showed seriousness.

She spoke.

"Master."

"Now that you have this period of stability without external interference, it is the perfect opportunity to calm your heart, Cultivate, and stabilize your Dao. With the talent you have displayed..."

"As long as you Cultivate with peace of mind and are not distracted by the Karma of the Mortal world.

Within one hundred thousand years... you should be able to cross the chasm between Mortal and immortal, catch up to the cultivation of myself and the Demon God Emperor's main body, and ascend to the God Emperor Realm!"

The voice fell.

The main hall fell into silence.

"Hiss—"

The sound of gasping for air rose one after another.

Seventeen Immortal Emperors and Devil Emperors raised their heads, looking at Gu Heng sitting on the throne with a certain look.

Everyone's face was full of shock.

One hundred thousand years?!

Star Immortal Emperor's eyes widened, and the teacup in his hand stopped in mid-air.

He recalled his own years of Cultivation in his mind.

It took him millions of years to Breakthrough from the Immortal King Realm to the Early Stage of the Immortal Emperor Realm; and another five hundred thousand years to struggle from the Early Stage to the Middle Stage.

One hundred thousand years?

For him, that was just the time for a nap or a single closed-door session!

Purple lightning darted all over Thunder Emperor's body, his eyes full of disbelief.

"Without experiencing the accumulation of epochs, without needing to experience the restart and rebirth of eras, in one hundred thousand years... Master can grow to the level of a God Emperor?"

"This... this is too amazing! This is simply a taboo existence that has broken the iron Law of Cultivation in the Three Thousand Great Worlds!"

White Bone Demon Emperor's jawbone clicked, "Master's talent is unprecedented and will never be surpassed! For this old servant to be able to follow Master, it is truly a blessing of ten thousand lifetimes!"

The Immortal Emperors screamed internally, and their gazes toward Gu Heng changed from original obedience to a kind of worship.

In their view, achieving the God Emperor Realm in one hundred thousand years was a myth they wouldn't even dare to dream of.

However.

Gu Heng, sitting on the throne, twitched his face twice.

He maintained a smile on the surface, while his heart churned with waves, and he began to complain.

"One hundred thousand years?!"

"You call this an excellent opportunity? You call this Prodigy talent?!"

Gu Heng cursed in his heart.

Although he had undergone Transmigration and his cultivation had reached the Immortal Emperor Realm, his concept of time still remained at the scale of a Mortal's hundred-year lifespan.

One hundred thousand years, how many lifetimes was that? How many vicissitudes of life was that?

By the time he came out of a hundred-thousand-year closed-door session, let alone ashes, even his hometown would have been burned to cinders! Let him sit here for one hundred thousand years to Cultivate? That would be better to just kill him.

But he realized something.

Jiang Wanyin and this group of Immortal Emperors were not wrong.

They didn't know he had a cheat, they were guessing his situation based on the common sense of those Prodigies. In their cognition, achieving the God Emperor Realm in one hundred thousand years was already a very fast speed.

Gu Heng figured this out and sighed in his heart.

"They don't know that I don't need to Cultivate hard at all. As long as someone with a higher Realm than me passes by, my cultivation will soar. I can only say, as long as I have time and opportunity, I can reach the Supreme Realm."

Gu Heng calculated in his heart.

But the premise is... of course, to lay low first.

Before he had the strength to resist the main body, he must absolutely not be reckless. This Dragon Domain was his safe haven.

Thinking of this, Gu Heng collected his thoughts. He nodded, his gaze sweeping over the audience,

"One hundred thousand years is too long."

"I only seize the day."

As soon as these words came out, all the Immortal Emperors were shocked to the point of numbness, lowered their heads, and dared not look directly at Gu Heng.

The Master's Realm was not something they could fathom.

...

At the same time.

That Old Ancestor Qingxuan, who was mistaken by the high-level officials of the Dragon Domain as The Chosen Son of the Dragon Clan, was currently being escorted by heavy troops and arranged in a side hall within the Longyuan Hall complex.

Although the side hall was not as good as the main hall, it was quite nice. But Old Ancestor Qingxuan had no intention of appreciating these things.

He paced back and forth in the room.

"No! This old man absolutely cannot sit and wait for death!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan gritted his teeth, "Once the ceremony starts tomorrow and my blood drips on it, the things in this room will immediately turn into butcher knives hacking at this old man. Must escape! Escape now!"

He made up his mind, took a deep breath, and quietly walked to a window of the side hall.

He pushed the window open a crack and peeked outside.

"Hiss—"

After one look,

Old Ancestor Qingxuan gasped, closed the window, and his heart pounded.

Outside the window, it was full of Dragon Clan Imperial Guards wearing battle armor.

The aura emitted by every one of these people was not inferior to him, a True Immortal!

Moreover, in the distance in the sky, there were several Divine Senses of strong experts in the Immortal King Realm scanning.

The leading commander of the Imperial Guards bowed to the direction of the window and shouted loudly, "Please rest assured, The Chosen Son! We subordinates swear to protect the safety of The Chosen Son with our lives, not even a fly will be allowed to fly in!"

"..."

Old Ancestor Qingxuan leaned against the window and slid to the ground.

"What the hell kind of protection... This is clearly surveillance with an inescapable net!"

He was unwilling, climbed up from the ground, and his eyes fell on the floor of the side hall.

"Can't fly in the sky, can't walk outside, then this old man can escape underground, right?"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan formed seals with both hands, circulated the True Immortal power in his body, the tips of his fingers lit up with earth-yellow light, and he pointed at the ground.

"Ding!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan felt a sharp pain in his finger, as if he had poked onto a piece of Divine Iron.

He looked down and saw a layer of Formation runes emerging on the floor. That was the Vajra Truth-Breaking Formation set up by the Dragon Domain to prevent anyone from invading from underground.

Let alone escaping underground, even if he used an Emperor Weapon to smash it, he wouldn't be able to make a pit for a while.

"Oh Heavens... You are trying to play this old man to death!"

Old Ancestor Qingxuan collapsed.

All his escape means appeared so powerless in front of this heavily guarded Longyuan Hall.

He walked to the table, hugged the golden cage, and tears fell down.

"Senior Gu, oh Senior Gu... This old man was at least an ancestor of a sect in the Lower Realm. Now that I have ascended, I haven't enjoyed a single day of happiness, and tomorrow I will be ground to dust."

"This broken cage can be considered the only funeral object for this old man in this world."

Old Ancestor Qingxuan buried his face in the cage and let out a whimpering sound.

...

Longyuan Hall,

Outside the main hall door.

The Dragon Domain Lord settled that "Chosen Son" and hurried over.

He stood in front of the tightly closed vermilion gate of the main hall and took a deep breath.

Sitting inside were two God Emperor Incarnations and seventeen Immortal Emperors, a force sufficient to wipe out the entire Dragon Domain.

But at the same time,

he wanted to report the great joy of the return of the Dragon Clan's The Chosen Son, as well as the Ancestor-Recognizing Ceremony to be held tomorrow, to these big shots from the Upper Realm.

He tidied his robe before extending his hand.

"Dong, dong, dong."

Inside the main hall.

Gu Heng put down the teacup in his hand.

Jiang Wanyin raised her hand and pointed her finger in the void.

"Hum—"

The red veil covering the periphery of the main hall faded, the spatial nodes reconnected, and the spatial blockade was lifted.

As the blockade was lifted,

the joyful voice of the Domain Lord came from outside the door.

"Seniors from the Upper Realm..."

"This Junior, the Dragon Domain Lord, dares to disturb the Seniors' cultivation. It is truly because... there are some extremely important happy events that I wish to report to the Seniors."