Chapter 2719: Golden Crystal

"That shouldn't be the case." The Dragon Lord shook his head.

The Dragon Pool had existed for countless years and had been opened innumerable times, yet problems had never arisen. But if the Dragon Pool wasn't the issue, then where did the problem lie? Zhu Yin had entered and exited the Dragon Pool multiple times, so the problem certainly wasn't with her. Su Yan and Su Yun were both Phoenix clan members; although it was their first time entering, there had been precedents of Phoenix clan members cultivating in the Dragon Pool without any issues. Given this, if there was a problem, only one possibility remained.

"Let's wait and see," the Dragon Lord said, his gaze deep as he looked downwards.

Deep within the Dragon Pool, Lu Ye also sensed changes in this mystical place. As time passed, the benefits he gained from cultivating here seemed to diminish. It was as if the magical energy contained within the surrounding mist was becoming diluted. Su Yan and the others might not have noticed, but Lu Ye, who cultivated with the aid of his Talent Tree, felt it very clearly.

He didn't feel dissatisfied. Even if that magical energy had remained constant, Lu Ye wouldn't have been able to cultivate much longer. There was a limit to cultivation within the Dragon Pool, a limit determined by the cultivator themselves. At this moment, Lu Ye felt he was nearing his limit. Simply put, he was a bit "overstuffed." In a short period, his foundational strength had significantly increased, stemming from the dual strengthening of his spirit and physical body. Regarding his spirit, Lu Ye could still endure, largely due to the benefits he gained years ago in the ancestral land of the Soul Clan. However, his physical body's multi-fold growth gave him a subtle feeling of being difficult to control. If this continued, it might not be a good thing. Therefore, Lu Ye felt he could at most cultivate here for a little while longer.

A few more days later, Lu Ye stopped cultivating. He was nearing his limit. Although he could still gain benefits by continuing, his immediate priority was to quickly master his greatly transformed physical body. Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly looked in a certain direction, then shot forward. A moment later, Lu Ye called out in that direction, "Junior Sister!"

Divine sense was hindered within the Dragon Pool. Zhu Yin had actually been quite far from him, normally undetectable by Lu Ye. However, he had continuously maintained the power of his Talent Tree, its invisible roots spreading in all directions. It was through the probing of these roots that he sensed Zhu Yin's arrival. She must have been diving down from above.

"Brother-in-law?" Zhu Yin paused, looking at Lu Ye with surprise, clearly not expecting to meet him again inside the Dragon Pool. The chances of that were actually very slim.

"What are you looking for?" Lu Ye asked. From Zhu Yin's stance, she seemed to be searching for something.

"I'm looking for something," Zhu Yin said mysteriously. "Brother-in-law, come take a look too."

Lu Ye's curiosity was piqued. What else could be in this Dragon Pool? It was essentially a bottomless abyss. So far, all he had encountered was the swirling mist, nothing else. However, since Zhu Yin said there was something, it wouldn't be without reason. Following behind Zhu Yin, he sank deeper. The surroundings were empty. If Lu Ye hadn't constantly activated the power of his Talent Tree, using its roots to probe Zhu Yin's location, the two would have likely separated long ago.

Until a certain moment, Lu Ye suddenly showed a surprised expression, because somewhere below, amidst the dense mist, a point of golden light suddenly appeared in his vision. Initially, the golden light was very faint, but as they drew closer, it became increasingly clear. It wasn't dazzling, yet it illuminated a circular area within the boundless darkness.

Lu Ye and Zhu Yin approached the golden light. Zhu Yin said, "This is it!"

Lu Ye focused his gaze, discovering that the point of golden light was a golden crystal, fist-sized and hexagonal, with light flowing over its surface. It clearly wasn't an ordinary object. It simply floated peacefully at a certain position deep within the Dragon Pool. What struck Lu Ye as extremely odd was that he couldn't detect any profoundness or anomaly from this crystal.

"What is this?" Lu Ye asked.

Zhu Yin shook her head and said, "I don't know what it is, and no one does. It has existed since the Dragon Pool itself. Our clan's ancient texts speculate that it must be something left behind by our ancestors."

Lu Ye was startled. "If that's the case, why isn't it brought back to Dragon City?" If it truly was something left by the Dragon-Phoenix ancestors in the Dragon Pool, it would undoubtedly be extremely valuable, and there would be no reason to leave it here unattended.

"Brother-in-law, watch this." Zhu Yin stepped forward and reached out to grasp the crystal. A strange scene unfolded: the crystal clearly looked like a tangible object, yet Zhu Yin's small hand effortlessly passed right through it, unable to touch it in the slightest. It was as if it didn't exist there.

"It's not that we don't want to bring it back to Dragon City; it's just that no one can," Zhu Yin explained, marveling at the crystal before her. It was her first time seeing the object with her own eyes. Previously, when she entered the Dragon Pool, her cultivation was insufficient to delve this deep, so she had only heard about it but never witnessed it personally. This time, her main purpose was to see it and broaden her horizons.

"Even the Dragon Lord can't do it?" Lu Ye frowned. As soon as he spoke, he realized he had asked a foolish question. If the Dragon Lord could have done it, the crystal wouldn't still be there. As he spoke, he also stepped forward, attempting to grasp the crystal in his hand. But the result was the same as Zhu Yin's just now: the golden crystal was clearly there, yet it couldn't be touched at all. This was very strange. Yet, whether observed with the naked eye or sensed with divine perception, the crystal was clearly present!

"Some elders in our clan speculate that this might be a serendipitous opportunity left by our ancestors in the Dragon Pool, very likely a Dragon Crystal. Our ancestors used mystical means to leave it here, so those who are fated can refine it. Brother-in-law, would you like to try?" Zhu Yin said, turning to look at Lu Ye.

"You go first," Lu Ye politely declined. Zhu Yin had specifically come to find it, so she definitely wanted to try refining it. Since that was the case, it was only right for her to attempt it first.

"Alright," Zhu Yin readily agreed. She stood before the crystal, cupped her hands as if holding it, then closed her eyes and concentrated.

At this moment, Lu Ye, feeling a peculiar sensation, examined his Talent Tree. In fact, upon seeing this golden crystal, his Talent Tree had already shown an unusual reaction. The anomaly wasn't with the Talent Tree itself, but with the Fruit of Time hanging on it! It was constantly flickering, seemingly echoing the golden light of the crystal from afar.

If this golden crystal was indeed a Dragon Crystal, then Lu Ye could almost certainly conclude that this object was left to him by the Dragon-Phoenix ancestors. Or rather, it was left for whoever could resolve the ancestral abyss's restriction. That's why, even though it had remained here for countless years, no one had been able to take it, not even successive Dragon Lords. That ancestor likely anticipated that once the Dao Tree inheritor resolved the ancestral abyss restriction, the Dragon clan would grant them access to the Dragon Pool.

"It's no good!" After a long while, Zhu Yin shook her head, letting out a slight sigh. The Dragon clan had always sought to unravel the mystery of this crystal. Every Dragon clan member who entered the Dragon Pool, provided they were strong enough, would come to investigate and attempt to retrieve it, but none had succeeded. Although Zhu Yin hadn't held much hope, failing in her attempt still left her somewhat disappointed.

"Brother-in-law, will you try?" Zhu Yin tilted her head, looking at him.

Lu Ye nodded, stepped forward, glanced at the crystal, then reached out to grasp it. From his palm, invisible Talent Tree roots spread out, attempting to pierce into the crystal. Immediately, he frowned. He had thought that since the Fruit of Time on his Talent Tree echoed the crystal, it clearly implied he should use the power of his Talent Tree. He simply needed to activate it slightly, and success would be within his grasp. However, he found that this was not the case. The Talent Tree's roots passed through the crystal without any sensation of piercing a physical object. The crystal was there, yet it also seemed not to be there.

What was going on? Lu Ye was puzzled. This crystal and the Fruit of Time on his Talent Tree definitely had some connection; otherwise, the Fruit of Time wouldn't react. If that was the case, why wasn't the Talent Tree effective?

He frowned, examining the crystal before him. He withdrew the power of his Talent Tree and tried to refine it himself. It also had no effect. However, standing at such a close distance, Lu Ye did feel a slight anomaly. On the surface of this crystal, there was an extremely faint trace of spatio-temporal power flowing. This power was so subtle it was almost imperceptible; had Lu Ye not previously reconciled yin and yang as a human and evolved similar power, he would have certainly overlooked it. This was also why he hadn't noticed it before, because it was too scarce to detect from a slightly greater distance.

Spatio-temporal power? Lu Ye suddenly recalled the River of Time he had seen earlier. That momentary observation had been a significant inspiration to him. Combining that with what he saw before him, his eyes suddenly lit up as he thought of a possibility.

The Talent Tree's roots spread out once more. On the Talent Tree, the Fruit of Time shone brightly, and the power of time coiled around Lu Ye's body. The power of the Spatial Dao Seed was activated, and spatial energy merged into it. Once again, as a human, he reconciled yin and yang, evolving spatio-temporal power.

Zhu Yin watched intently from the side, having not held much hope for Lu Ye's actions. But just as Lu Ye made a grasping motion with his hand, she was astonished to find that the golden crystal, which had always been untouchable, was now directly held in Lu Ye's hand.

"Ah!" she gasped, then quickly raised a hand to cover her mouth, fearing she might disturb Lu Ye. Almost simultaneously with her gasp, the golden crystal melted away in the blink of an eye, vanishing without a trace.

"Roar!"

As an extremely high-pitched dragon roar thundered out, Zhu Yin's face changed. She felt her vital energy becoming incredibly chaotic, and her body weakened. Her body was uncontrollably sent flying by the invisible impact. She hastily steadied herself, suppressed her discomfort, and when she looked back towards Lu Ye, her eyes trembled.

By the edge of the Dragon Pool, the Dragon Lord and the guarding elder, who had been waiting there, suddenly opened their eyes simultaneously. Just moments ago, they had heard a dragon's roar erupt from the depths of the pool. The sound of that roar, upon reaching their ears, caused even powerful individuals like them to feel a slight unease and palpitations, as if a great mountain had suddenly pressed down on their hearts.

The Dragon Pool trembled!