Chapter 1333: The Ancestral Dragon Soul Core Under the Sea

Zhou Yuan stared blankly at the chaotic, mysterious liquid in the underwater vortex, his heart churning with shock, for this very liquid was the "Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow" that Cang Yuan had previously mentioned to him.

According to Yao Yao, this Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow was indispensable if his Origin Infant wanted to break through its limits.

Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow only forms by chance when the remnant souls of the Ancestral Dragon reach a certain concentration, making its rarity self-evident. Therefore, when Zhou Yuan suddenly spotted a drop, even with his usual composure, he couldn't help but rub his eyes, almost unable to believe it.

"Is Yao Yao blessing me?" Zhou Yuan blinked. Indeed, trusting Yao Yao brought good fortune!

Without further hesitation, he moved, transforming into a streak of light that plunged into the ocean, swiftly making his way towards the underwater vortex.

A few breaths later, Zhou Yuan appeared outside the vortex.

From such close proximity, Zhou Yuan could distinctly perceive the immense and ancient mystical power contained within that drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow. At that moment, he even felt his Origin Infant within his Divine Dwelling quivering subtly.

That sense of craving was so intense, it was as if even his Origin Infant was on the verge of losing control.

Zhou Yuan stared intently, his throat bobbing, his eyes burning so fiercely they seemed almost to evaporate the surrounding seawater.

This was indeed a drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow; the only pity was its small size.

Yet, Zhou Yuan understood that condensing a single drop of soul marrow this tiny would require the convergence of countless Ancestral Dragon remnant souls. To stumble upon it here truly meant he was blessed with good fortune.

"I went to great lengths to deal with Yuan Quan. It's not unreasonable for me to have this drop of soul marrow to myself, is it? If anyone has an objection, speak now." Zhou Yuan asked.

Tun Tun, perched on Zhou Yuan's head, looked around blankly. Seeing only itself and Zhou Yuan in the seabed, it rolled its eyes. *This scoundrel,* it thought, *he wants it, yet he insists on pretending to be fair. How shameless.*

Seeing no objections, Zhou Yuan nodded in satisfaction. Without hesitation, his Spirit power swept forth, parting the seawater in front of him and channeling it into the vortex.

Carried by his Spirit power, the chaotic liquid slowly floated up, emerged from the vortex, and hovered before Zhou Yuan.

"Guard me."

Zhou Yuan instructed Tun Tun, then sat cross-legged as his Spirit power manipulated the seawater to form a water lotus beneath him.

The drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow flew directly towards Zhou Yuan and was swallowed by him in one gulp.

With the Stone Dragon struggle now in full swing and both the All-Heavens and the Saint Race unleashing their full power, Zhou Yuan knew his current strength might be a bit insufficient if he wanted to participate in the subsequent phases. Having just stumbled upon a drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow, he naturally wished to enhance his power as much as possible.

The only regret was that this drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow was too small to truly enable his Origin Infant to break its limits. However, it should still provide some enhancement. While this wouldn't grant him the power to contend with the Saint Race's top third-stage Law Domain experts, it would at least offer him more self-preservation capability, right?

The moment the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow entered his body, Zhou Yuan felt his internal Genesis Qi become somewhat erratic. He observed his Genesis Qi scattering, avoiding the Soul Marrow as if it feared something.

This development gave Zhou Yuan a headache. If his Genesis Qi dared not approach the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow, how was he to refine it?

Zhou Yuan observed the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow darting erratically through his meridians. After a moment's contemplation, he began to guide it, eventually directing it straight into his Divine Dwelling.

The moment the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow entered the Divine Dwelling, the dwelling itself began to vibrate slightly, with faint, ancient dragon roars echoing within.

The Origin Infant, seated at the center of the Divine Dwelling, opened its eyes, fixing an intense gaze upon the drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow. It then directly flashed out, seized the drop, and, in its Origin Infant form, swallowed it whole.

At that instant, myriad rays of light burst forth from his body, and the Origin Infant's physique became as lustrous as jade.

An incredibly terrifying power was brewing within the Origin Infant, as if it was about to erupt and tear the entire Origin Infant apart.

An ordinary person facing this scene would likely be filled with terror, but Zhou Yuan remained unpanicked. After all, he had become quite familiar with Ancestral Dragon remnant souls during his two years of secluded cultivation.

His Origin Infant sat down, rapidly circulating the Ancestral Dragon Scripture. Within the Divine Dwelling, billions of Genesis Qi stars shone brightly, illuminating the space.

Zhou Yuan used his Origin Infant form to contain the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow, then suppressed and refined it with the Ancestral Dragon Scripture—a valuable technique honed during his two years of secluded cultivation while dealing with Ancestral Dragon remnant souls.

This procedure indeed yielded significant results. Although the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow within the Origin Infant remained restless, it gradually weakened. Moreover, as the Ancestral Dragon Scripture circulated, subtle threads of mystical power began to leak from the Soul Marrow, eventually being absorbed by the Origin Infant.

Consequently, at that very moment, Zhou Yuan thrillingly perceived that his Origin Infant, which had long been dormant, was finally showing subtle signs of change.

While Zhou Yuan found a drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow at the bottom of the sea, outside the Stone Dragon Secret Realm, the All-Heavens Saints also perceived this scene.

"This Zhou Yuan has quite good luck; to be able to find a small drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow in this outer battle zone," a Saint said in surprise.

Generally, Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow forms in areas with exceptionally dense concentrations of Ancestral Dragon remnant souls. For the seventy-seventh battle zone to produce a drop was quite fortunate.

Green Willow said expressionlessly, "Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow is the ultimate reward. Zhou Yuan should wait for this great victory to be over, then it should be distributed based on merit. His current private possession probably doesn't conform to the rules, does it?"

Due to their past grievances, Green Willow naturally found Zhou Yuan somewhat displeasing. A greater reason, of course, was his ongoing conflict with Cang Yuan. Although the Saint Race posed a formidable immediate threat, internal disputes are always unavoidable where people gather.

In the current struggle for the Stone Dragon Secret Realm, Green Willow naturally desired his disciple, Xu Beiyan, to become the most brilliant figure, seeing it as a prime opportunity for Xu Beiyan to attain sainthood. Regarding Zhou Yuan, although he merely appeared to be in the Origin Infant stage, Green Willow, as a Saint, possessed the insight to recognize him as an anomaly. Despite being in the Origin Infant realm, Zhou Yuan commanded Genesis Qi reserves comparable to a Law Domain expert, indicating an exceptionally high-quality Origin Infant. Green Willow felt that if this young man were allowed to continue developing, he could very likely pose a threat to Xu Beiyan.

Upon hearing this, Cang Yuan said indifferently, "Ancient Venerable Jin Luo already stated that all gains within the Stone Dragon Secret Realm are personal opportunities. Green Willow, your unreasonable behavior is completely tarnishing the dignity of a Saint."

Green Willow's brows furrowed slightly. "Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow is not something an Origin Infant or Law Domain expert can easily refine. It requires the help of a Saint. Your disciple's appetite is far too great; isn't he afraid of being consumed by the Soul Marrow directly?"

"I'm saying this for his own good," he said, feigning concern for Zhou Yuan.

Other Saints nodded slightly in agreement. Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow, formed from the condensed remnant souls of the Ancestral Dragon, contained mysterious power that even Law Domain experts found difficult to refine directly. For Zhou Yuan, merely an Origin Infant, to forcibly absorb it seemed overly rash.

Cang Yuan smiled, slowly saying, "You don't need to trouble yourself with this, Grand Venerable Green Willow."

Green Willow sneered, about to retort, when he heard low gasps of surprise from the surrounding Saints. He immediately looked over, his eyes involuntarily narrowing.

Because they all sensed that the drop of Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow Zhou Yuan had swallowed was actually beginning to be refined and absorbed by him.

Green Willow's aged eyes narrowed to slits. "This Zhou Yuan... he truly is a monster."

This feat of refining Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow purely by his own power was something even Xu Beiyan couldn't achieve. Fortunately, this young man's foundation was ultimately somewhat shallow, and there was still a significant gap compared to Xu Beiyan.

Perhaps he was aware of this, which explained his eagerness to refine the Ancestral Dragon Soul Marrow to enhance himself. However, such last-minute efforts might be too late.

Therefore, the greatest opportunity in this Stone Dragon Secret Realm struggle would undoubtedly belong to his disciple.