Chapter 167: Dragon Kun Solo Show

Long Kun slumped to the ground, propping his chin with a look of helplessness. He had always been accustomed to idleness. Despite being the old woman's disciple for many years, he hadn't learned any serious skills. His cultivation had only just reached the Nascent Soul stage, and he lacked any significant combat ability.

"Sigh, I've really felt how difficult it is to live in this world over the years. If only there were a cultivation method that could make me more resilient, that would be enough! Ideally, something that makes me unkillable, like a mountain of flesh—does such a technique exist?"

No sooner had Long Kun finished his wish than two dusty ancient scrolls flew from the bookshelf into his hands. With just a few casual flips, dense texts of cultivation techniques poured like a spring into his spiritual sea. Unbeknownst to him, this was the true inheritance and gift the old woman had bestowed upon her beloved disciple before her departure.

"This is... the Profound Tortoise True Art! Phoenix Nirvana? Oh my goodness..."

Everything felt unbelievably like a dream. The phoenix flapped its wings, gradually departing until it vanished at the end of the bookshelf corridor.

"Xiao Kun, remember this: Once the Dragon Hoard is opened, the Dragon Veins of the Yuanyang Empire will surely be severed, and chaos will erupt throughout the empire. That will be your best opportunity to embark on a path of resurgence. Whatever life you wish for in the future, strive for it yourself with these two great cultivation methods. Our master-disciple bond ends here. Farewell..."

"Master!!"

Long Kun, his mind reeling, scrambled to his feet and desperately chased after the fading phoenix, but ultimately failed to reach it.

"Master... I finally understand. You were the Dragon Hoard Guardian from the stories, a true member of the Phoenix clan!!"

***

After Xu Yang's entire team broke free from their dreams, the library began to collapse amidst violent tremors, and everyone regained full consciousness.

"Ancestor, it looks like this place is collapsing. Where do we go now?" Ling Qingshu asked anxiously as countless ancient books in front of them toppled and piled up.

"Follow me!" Guided by the Phoenix Soul, Long Kun had already seen the exit. He roared and was the first to rush towards it.

Xu Yang picked up Xiao Tuantuan and, along with the three goddesses, followed closely behind. Finally, guided by Long Kun, a teleportation aura appeared at the end of the collapsing darkness, and everyone stepped into it. In an instant, after a tumultuous rush of thoughts in their minds, the scene before them underwent a dramatic transformation.

"A desert!! Is this another illusion?" Bai Lianxue, utterly shocked, was the first to speak. As the owner of the Golden Light Clay Bodhisattva, she was also the only one who had seen a desert in her dream.

"No, the spiritual traces here are clear, and the life aura is rich. This is a real desert! Only the sky is illusory..."

Everyone looked bewildered by Xu Yang's words.

"What do you mean? How can the sky be fake?"

Xu Yang chuckled, "Because this place is underground!! If I'm not mistaken, this is located beneath the Yuanyang Empire, an underground space left by predecessors through heaven-defying creation. It's incredible... The Dragon Hoard is likely hidden here!"

Hiss, hiss, hiss...

No sooner had Xu Yang finished speaking than the little Dragon Python in his pocket poked out its head. After a brief observation, it suddenly transformed into a half-human, half-snake form, as if it had discovered a treasure.

"My heavens, you actually succeeded? The dragon energy here is incredibly dense; this must be the location of the Dragon Hoard!" Although the Dragon Python possessed only a faint trace of dragon bloodline, its ability to perceive was unparalleled by humans.

"Among you, who can pinpoint the exact entrance to the Dragon Hoard? Or the place with the strongest aura?"

Xu Yang glanced around; everyone stared blankly at each other, unable to provide a clear answer.

"Let me try..." Bai Lianxue suddenly remembered her Sacred Heart Buddha Lotus. When it finally formed in her dream, it had been guided by golden Buddha light. Perhaps the direction the golden Buddha pointed was the entrance to this Dragon Hoard underground palace!

"Sister Bai, she's actually entered the Soul Formation Grand Realm too!" Ling Yao exclaimed in surprise. She had initially thought only she had broken through, but now it seemed everyone who had entered the library had received a valuable inheritance.

Rumble!

Suddenly, a muffled roar came from not far away. Under Xu Yang and his companions' feet stretched miles of yellow sand. In such a place, it was almost impossible to pinpoint the exact location of an explosion immediately. Sure enough, in a short while, a gigantic purple scorpion beast swarmed towards them, accompanied by countless smaller scorpions. The leader of the giant scorpions had a remarkably powerful aura, capable of exuding a chilling oppressive presence even when facing Xu Yang and his group.

"Hiss! Hiss!!" The scorpion swaggered, flaunting its power, and didn't forget to brandish its two sharp pincers at everyone.

"Everyone, fall back! I'll handle this!"

The dense swarm of scorpions began to advance! This time, Long Kun finally didn't have to be a coward anymore. He charged forward first. Xu Yang initially wanted to stop him but then realized that Long Kun's foundation had also undergone an astonishing increase.

"Phoenix Flame!"

Boom! Boom!

After gathering a surge of spiritual essence, Long Kun violently spewed a crimson wave of fire forward. A massive amount of flames swept out, instantly incinerating hundreds of the smaller scorpions in front of him into ash.

"Phoenix True Fire!! Teacher Long Kun, you..." Everyone looked utterly dumbfounded. They all knew what kind of person Long Kun was before; calling him a good-for-nothing sounded harsh, but it was essentially true. Many students in the Stone Tower were far stronger than him.

"Hehe, keep it low-key, keep it low-key. Your teacher is no longer the good-for-nothing I once was!"

"Watch out!" Bai Lianxue warned him, but Long Kun was too busy showing off and had no time to defend himself. The enormous scorpion tail pierced directly into his abdomen.

Long Kun felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. Instinctively, he activated the Profound Tortoise True Art, and a dark green light rapidly expanded around him. The giant scorpion let out a piercing shriek, but a grimacing Long Kun, with a single palm strike, severed its massive tail!

"What?!" Xu Yang's team's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets...

The enraged giant scorpion began to rampage, relentlessly pounding Long Kun's body with its two massive pincers. However, the protective power provided by the Profound Tortoise True Art made Long Kun's body invulnerable, emitting crisp, metallic defensive sounds. He was truly immune to all poisons and impenetrable by blades or spears! Even the potent venom that remained in the scorpion's tail was refined into nothingness in an extremely short time...

"My goodness... so a 'loser's' comeback can really be this easy??"

"Our Teacher Long Kun is no longer the timid fellow he once was; he has truly risen!"

Xu Yang and the others no longer had any intention of intervening. Simply watching Long Kun powerfully dominate the 'rookies' was a spectacle in itself...