"After receiving the Far Ancestor's heritage, I'll be the Far Ancestor?"
Xu Ying's heart pounded wildly. What did that mean?
Did it mean that after receiving the Far Ancestor's heritage, he would inherit his mantle, or that the Far Ancestor would possess him?
If the former, his status would rise immensely; if the latter, his life was forfeit!
Xu Ying looked at the altar once more. He was no stranger to altars; in the Yuanshou world, altars could be found everywhere, and he had encountered them frequently. Thus, he knew a fair bit about them.
The structure of this altar looked remarkably like an altar of sacrifice!
In that case, the meaning behind "you will be the Far Ancestor" could not be more obvious!
"Becoming the Far Ancestor is our dream!" Long Yu's gaze was fanatical. "Yet our possessions failed, leaving us unable to become the Far Ancestor. Only you succeeded, and it was a perfect possession at that! Long Ying, you can inherit the Far Ancestor's heritage flawlessly—you are the one with the greatest hope of becoming the Far Ancestor!"
Before his voice had even faded, blazing gazes fell upon Xu Ying, full of envy.
A weathered dragon immortal with fluttering long eyebrows and a prominent draconic nose looked toward Xu Ying, his voice booming like a great bell: "Every step of our Dragon Court's revival plan is of paramount importance; not the slightest misstep can be allowed. Refining the Myriad Dragons Banners helped our Primordial Spirits survive the cataclysm. Back then, who knows how many of our kin failed to enter the banners and perished, their Dao extinguished; there were also banners that failed to withstand the cataclysm and were destroyed within it, reducing the Primordial Spirits of tens of thousands of dragon immortals to ash. Crossing ten million years of time was equally crucial!"
As he spoke, the other dragon immortals closed their mouths, remaining utterly silent.
The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal walked forward, continuing, "The Primordial Spirits of countless Dragon Race experts decayed and vanished into nothingness over those ten million years. Nurturing the people of Yuanshou with the Dragon Court's qi was just as critical; without transforming their karmic fortune, there would be no grand plan for rebirth today! If any of these three steps went wrong, it would have thoroughly buried the Dragon Court and destroyed the Dragon Race!"
His status was evidently exceedingly high, and the immortals parted before him as he approached.
"Yet all of that is behind us. What matters most now is reviving the Far Ancestor!"
The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal came before Xu Ying, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Our Dragon Court's grand revival was plotted against. Someone divined our revival in advance and substituted the people of Yuanshou with people from another world, intending to make our court's immortals fail their possessions! Qing Mufeng deduced ten million years of time, yet failed to foresee that on this day, ten million years later, an enemy would attempt to bury our race for good! Fortunately, you successfully possessed a man of Yuanshou!"
He looked Xu Ying up and down as if regarding a priceless treasure. "Once you become the Far Ancestor, our Dragon Race will possess supreme might and be able to survive in this world! The Dragon Race will be reborn through you!"
His final words were delivered with stirring force, deeply shaking the soul and rallying the spirits of the hundreds of dragon immortals around them, all of whom stared intently at Xu Ying.
Xu Ying hurriedly cried out, "If I receive the Far Ancestor's heritage and become him, I'll die!"
The surrounding dragon immortals burst into laughter.
"You won't die!" The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal chuckled. "How could you die by becoming the Far Ancestor?"
Xu Ying said, "Then my consciousness will be gone! Without my own consciousness, the one occupying this body will be the Far Ancestor's consciousness. How is that any different from being dead?"
The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal frowned slightly. Long Yu stepped forward hastily and said, "Elder Jin, he is still young and does not understand the reason behind it. Let me explain it to him. Long Ying, when you become the Far Ancestor, you won't die. Your physical body will become his, and your consciousness will merge with his. You and the Far Ancestor will never be parted; you will become part of him!"
Xu Ying snapped in fury, "Then I'd rather be dead!"
The dragon immortals around them flew into a rage, rebuking him one after another:
"To merge with the Far Ancestor is the lifelong dream of our kind! How dare you say you would rather die than become him? Treasonous!"
"A disgrace to our draconic ancestors!"
"Unworthy of being a dragon child!"
Long Yu could not contain his anger either, barking, "Little dragon, why are you so selfish? Which member of our race wouldn't yearn to receive the Far Ancestor's heritage and become him? Yet you push it away and make excuses! We will not tolerate your insolence!"
His magic power erupted, bearing down like tumbling mountains and surging seas. Xu Ying tried to resist, but having incurred collective fury, the surrounding dragon immortals unleashed their magic power at once, crashing down on him with a thunderous roar that pinned him flat onto the altar!
The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal was also quite irritated, but he remained rational. He inquired, "Long Yu, our race has always considered merging with the Far Ancestor an honor. Why is he so resistant, even feeling he would rather be dead? Did you verify his true identity?"
Long Yu quickly smiled and replied, "Elder Jin, I inspected his Primordial Spirit. His possession was utterly flawless. Were he not a man of Yuanshou, such harmony would be impossible."
Elder Jin scrutinized Xu Ying, who lay pinned and immobile on the altar, unable to spot any issue.
Xu Ying's physical form was genuinely that of the Dragon Race. Though smaller in stature than the others, that was only because he was young; compared to them, he was still a dragon youth.
As for his Primordial Spirit, under a state of perfect possession, it bore human traits; after cultivating for some time, it would gradually usurp the host and become a dragon Primordial Spirit.
Elder Jin's brows and beard fluttered. He turned his head toward the Dragon Abyss, thinking, *He possesses a resistant consciousness and is not the ideal vessel for the Far Ancestor's descent. However, a formidable expert has already arrived here. That person's strength is immense; he must be the one who sent people from other worlds into the Dragon Court to ruin our revival plan.*
Sensing the arrival of the Heavenly Venerable and knowing time was running short, he immediately barked: "Dragon immortals, heed my command! Offer a blood sacrifice to the Far Ancestor and summon his descent!"
Xu Ying wanted to speak, but suppressed by the crowd of immortals, he could not utter half a syllable. The essence qi of these dragon immortals soared skyward, as though tearing open another abnormal spacetime and establishing contact with an ancient entity within it.
They burned their vitality and blood, burned their mental spirits, straining with all their might to open another spacetime completely distinct from the mortal universe!
The lightning and thunder in the sky grew ever more violent, and the call of the Far Ancestor grew clearer.
To Xu Ying in particular, the sensation was sharper than to anyone else.
He sensed an unimaginably ancient, immense consciousness oscillating in that other spacetime. That spacetime bore similarities to Daoist Wukong's Taishang Cavern Abyss, yet was even grander, teeming with the energy of the Great Dao and devoid of any material substance.
Only non-physical forms like thoughts, consciousness, or Primordial Spirits could exist there!
*In the primordial era where the Dragon Court existed, there was also a cave abyss!*
Xu Ying was astounded. Yet the cave abyss of the Dragon Court era was simply too colossal—even more vast than what was known as a Supreme cave abyss today, boundless and without end!
Suddenly, his consciousness connected with that of the Dragon Race's Far Ancestor. At that moment, Xu Ying's conscious universe was flooded. All his senses—eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind—fell into disarray. He could not see, hear, smell, or taste; he knew not where his body was or where his mind drifted.
He felt all his perception blotted out, leaving only absolute darkness in the universe of his mind.
*The Far Ancestor is too powerful! I might really die...* Panic gripped his heart.
More dragon immortals and half-human, half-dragon beings converged from all directions, numbering in the thousands within a short time, joining the blood sacrifice.
They sacrificed themselves, bathing the entire altar in this sacrificial torrent, submerging it in blinding light. Thunder in the sky grew denser, and accompanied by the crisscrossing lightning, streaks of ancient consciousness descended from that other spacetime.
From afar, they looked like vigorous divine dragons swimming across from another realm; their thoughts and consciousness alone emanated peerless might!
Draconic roars reverberated, shaking the soul.
Those dragons were the Far Ancestor's consciousness. His mind was so immense, so powerful, that the Dragon Court era could not keep it in the mortal world.
His power and scale would disrupt reality and trigger dreadful anomalies.
He could only dwell within that mysterious, abnormal spacetime to endure across eternity.
Now, the resurrected survivors of the Dragon Race were using their finite lives to summon their Far Ancestor back to the world, to rejuvenate their race and restore the Dragon Court!
One draconic stream of consciousness descended after another, burrowing into the crown of Xu Ying's head amid the thunder before vanishing. Cascades of thunderous light detonated inside Xu Ying, illuminating his body from the inside out until it was translucent—his bones and even his Realm of Xiyi were clearly visible!
Suddenly, Elder Jin's expression shifted slightly. He said to Long Yu, "Grand General, that expert has entered the Dragon Court. If he finds this place and disrupts the Far Ancestor's descent, the survival of the Dragon Court and our race will fall completely into his hands! I will go intercept him and stall his advance at all costs. You preside over the grand ritual!"
Long Yu's expression was conflicted. "Elder Jin, take care!"
"I am the only revived Elder. The responsibility falls to me, and I shall not shirk it even if it means ten thousand deaths."
Elder Jin turned and strode away.
The Heavenly Venerable walked into the Dragon Court. Looking into the distance toward the sky above the court's center, he saw streaks of dragon-shaped consciousness plummeting toward the ground below. Yet he was in no hurry at all, continuing forward with leisurely, unhurried steps.
His title was Heavenly Venerable. In any spacetime, as long as there was a heaven, he was its supreme ruler!
Unrushed, he even stepped into an immortal palace to inspect its layout before emerging to continue on his way.
He had not walked many paces when he halted and looked ahead.
A strange being with a dragon's head, a human body, and long eyebrows strode toward him. "Strange" was only from a human perspective; to the Dragon Race, this long-eyebrowed dragon immortal possessed quite a handsome countenance and an extraordinary bearing.
The Heavenly Venerable was a tall, imposing man with the presence of a heroic champion. As the Heavenly Venerable of the Thunder Department, he oversaw the department's one mansion, two courts, and three offices. The Shenxiao Yuqing Mansion alone was comparable to a minor Immortal Court; every official post in the Immortal Court could be found within it!
From this, he had cultivated an extraordinary aura akin to an immortal emperor.
"Had you been in your prime, Fellow Daoist, you might have contested with me and matched your skills against mine," the Heavenly Venerable said calmly. "Regrettably, your Primordial Spirit has been ravaged by ten million years of time and has long decayed. Furthermore, you have possessed a body that ill suits you. Your strength is far from what it once was."
The long-eyebrowed dragon immortal stopped opposite him and said, "In life, this old man reached the Seventh Realm of the Dao Realm. Though your cultivation is profound, you appear to be merely at the Sixth."
The Heavenly Venerable was surprised. "The Dao Realm? It seems the cultivation realms of the Dragon Court era differ from ours today."
Elder Jin's goal was to stall for time for the Far Ancestor's descent. Seeing that the man was in no rush to fight, he was glad to explain: "My Dragon Race is far better suited to comprehending the Great Dao of heaven and earth than your human or demon races. When humans and demons are born, they are ignorant and muddle-headed, knowing only to eat, drink, defecate, and urinate, understanding nothing of what the Dao is. But when our Dragon Race is born, our bloodline awakens, and we naturally know to feed on wind, drink dew, and absorb heaven and earth's spiritual qi to cultivate. Thus, when dragons become immortals, what we cultivate is the Dao Realm."
The Heavenly Venerable smiled. "I see. In different eras, because the rulers of heaven and earth differ, the realms differ as well. Yet as long as what one comprehends is the Dao, all paths lead to the same destination."
He slowly released his bodhimanda, remarking leisurely, "And I have already reached the verge of that common destination."
His bodhimanda gradually brightened. World after world emerged within it, slowly lighting up—the forms of the myriad heavens and realms, serenely floating within his bodhimanda.
An ancient tree stood tall, the myriad heavens and realms revolving slowly around it.
Beyond that, the Ancestral Court and the Immortal Realm were also encompassed within!
This was his cultivation technique: the Myriad Realms Dao Venerable Indestructible Scripture!
This art was famed alongside the Imperial Monarch's Nine Heavens and Ten Earths Po Du Technique and the Primordial Monarch's Thirty-Three Heavens Divine Confluence Technique, yet when displayed by the Heavenly Venerable, it felt as though it even surpassed those two arts!
Seeing his technique, Elder Jin's expression changed abruptly. Even in his peak condition, he would have had to treat such an entity with the utmost gravity!
"You are truly extraordinary!"
Elder Jin took the initiative to attack, unleashing the supreme art of his lifetime from the very first strike without holding back anything!
He dared not hold back.
The level of Dao comprehension the other man displayed was close to his own peak; any reservation would be suicide!
The Heavenly Venerable stood in place, letting the attacks come, shifting his steps only occasionally. Yet after three exchanges, Elder Jin was already at a disadvantage.
After five exchanges, Elder Jin coughed blood.
After ten exchanges, the Heavenly Venerable unleashed the Dao Venerable Indestructible Scripture, severing all his life force and heavily battering his Primordial Spirit.
Elder Jin's aura plummeted, his vigor rapidly waning. He rasped, "Your attainment in the Dao has already reached the Seventh Realm of the Dao Realm. Why haven't you broken through?"
The Heavenly Venerable's expression turned desolate and somber. "That is precisely the crux of why I had to lay out this scheme for the Dragon Court. I refuse to dwell beneath others for my entire life. I, too, wish to ascend—ascend to the Supreme Realm. Alas, without a Supreme cave abyss, it is all wishful thinking."
Elder Jin collapsed with a thud, his breath extinguished.
His Primordial Spirit had appeared formidable, but was fragile in truth.
Ten million years had left it rotted through. Faced with ten of the Heavenly Venerable's divine arts, it crumbled entirely.
The Heavenly Venerable said to the corpse, "As for the Seventh Realm of the Dao Realm you spoke of, it has piqued my interest. If there is a seventh realm, are there an eighth, ninth, and tenth? Yet the Supreme Realm is clearly the pinnacle..."
He turned his gaze toward the Dragon Court's core and murmured, "The Dragon Court is truly a vast treasure trove. It must be brought under my control!"
Above the altar, Long Yu's heart sank. He sensed Elder Jin's aura suddenly vanish; disaster had surely befallen him.
*In such a short time... Back in my prime...*
His eyelids twitched. Suddenly, he said, "Huo Wenxiu, take charge of the grand ritual. I will take Elder Jin's place."
The dragon immortal beside him was shocked: "Grand General!"
Long Yu said resolutely, "I doubt I can hold him off for long either. When I die, step up after me. We must hold out until the Far Ancestor descends!"
The dragon immortal Huo Wenxiu nodded silently.
Long Yu turned and walked toward the place where Elder Jin had fallen, his voice detonating in the air like thunder: "Our Dragon Race cannot fail this time. We will not allow failure! If we fail, it will be eternal damnation!"
Chapter 549