Chapter 231: Mu Qingtian

"Listen, no matter what happens later, even if I'm suppressed or about to be destroyed, you must not release any spiritual energy or step out of this circle. Do you understand?"

The Empress looked down and saw that a faint, dark-gold halo had appeared at her feet. The little dragon python was obediently curled up inside it as well.

After the dragon python consumed some of the Dragon Source, its bloodline began to revert to its ancestral form, but it inexplicably fell into a deep slumber.

Ever since the group landed on Xuanguo Titan's blessed land, the dragon python's state had been steadily weakening until it completely succumbed to sleep.

However, according to Xu Yang's judgment, this was not necessarily a bad thing for it. The reversion of its bloodline meant that a vast amount of strengthening essence, exceeding its body's capacity, would be released within it. Integrating and adapting this essence with its physical body would require a process.

Rumble!

The seal near the temple completely shattered. The golden light of the Dao Heart Whisk seemed, to some extent, to have completely dispelled the supreme Daoist seal left behind by Mu Qingtian all those years ago.

However, the temple's interior remained pitch black. A tremendous pressure subtly began to pulsate, and under the protection and guidance of the guardian dragon within him, Xu Yang slowly approached the temple.

Roar!!

Without warning, an earth-shattering dragon's roar bellowed forth!

Indeed, it was a destructive pressure emanating from the dark temple.

"Heavens, this power... is it truly the legendary power of a true dragon!"

The Empress was truly stunned, realizing even more clearly why Xu Yang had told her to hide within this golden halo.

Without the protection of this Dao power, even the recent dragon roar alone could have caused irreversible damage to the Empress's soul essence!

When cultivators reach a certain level of strength, breaking through the Divine Infant stage and entering the Dao Integration Realm, they can, to some extent, wield certain powers from the myriad Daos of the heavens. A mere flick of a finger can unleash world-destroying might.

Xu Yang was now approaching the temple as an intruder, naturally eliciting an angry response from its inhabitant.

"Over six thousand years, and finally, someone has come here with my whisk! Your Excellency possesses a profound foundation; from which lineage do you hail, may I ask?"

The voice sounded somewhat ancient, but it carried a distinct human aura, completely different from the earlier dragon roar.

How could a human and a dragon be hidden together in the same temple? There was only one answer: the Sea Spirit General's words were once again proven true.

Xu Yang responded with a calm smile, neither humble nor arrogant, "Qizhou, Tianlan Sect."

"You are from the Tianlan Sect? Then what is your relationship with Xu Yang?"

"What?!"

Xu Yang instinctively stopped. Even if the opponent's pressure were stronger, it would never have made him show such a surprised expression! For someone to mention his name, they must be a figure from at least fifty or sixty thousand years ago.

It was no exaggeration to say that anyone who had lived from that era until now would be a monumental figure. Yet, Xu Yang truly couldn't recall having any past connection with Mu Qingtian...

As for the Empress in the halo not far behind him, she covered her mouth in shock. At this moment, in her eyes, Xu Yang seemed to emanate an elusive, mysterious aura from even a single strand of hair.

"What, you know him?"

Xu Yang probed with a question, only to hear a heavy sigh from Mu Qingtian.

"Years ago, before I slew the dragon, I traveled the continent and had the fortune of visiting Qizhou, even staying at the Tianlan Sect for three months. Xu Yang, the founding patriarch of that lineage, was a truly monumental figure. The cultivation method he created was unlike anything I had ever seen in my life. It was under Senior Xu Yang's guidance that I managed to break through my cultivation bottleneck at the time and enter the Dao Integration realm, thus gaining the means and the idea to slay the dragon."

Xu Yang chuckled. "In that case, you should call me Senior. I am Xu Yang."

"What!!"

From within the temple, a shadowy figure instantly flew out. This middle-aged man, entirely cloaked in a black robe, appeared decades older than Xu Yang. A strong, malevolent aura emanated from him, starkly contrasting with the ethereal, immortal demeanor one might expect from a Daoist sect leader.

"You... are Senior Xu Yang?"

"Indeed. I entered secluded cultivation for over twenty thousand years and emerged recently to revive my beloved disciple. By chance, I stumbled upon the secret of the Dragon Hoard and came all the way to the Three Thousand Dao Provinces seeking opportunities. If my guess is correct, you, along with another person, have already consumed a complete Dragon Source. Your current realm, I fear, has already entered the Tribulation Transcending stage."

"What!"

Behind him, the Empress was once again terrified and instinctively wanted to rush out of the barrier to fight alongside Xu Yang.

The Empress understood Xu Yang's good intentions. Facing such a legendary, peerless expert, Xu Yang chose to confront everything alone because he worried about her safety.

Recalling Xu Yang's words to her just moments ago, the Empress looked at his back, and her eyes inexplicably welled up.

At this moment, she unreservedly felt an impulse to stay by this man's side, even through life and death!

Grand empires, imperial foundations—everything in the world seemed insignificant in the face of this man's back.

Xu Yang...

This name had become deeply etched into the Empress's heart, turning into the sole radiance in Xue Qinghan's life! Even if they were to have no more interactions in the future, or even if their lives were to end here, this thought would never change.

"You are indeed the powerful figure I have admired for thousands of years! To be honest, my current physical condition is very unique. A complete Dragon Source cannot possibly be perfectly refined by a human body with cultivation below the peak of the Tribulation Transcending Realm. This is an experience I've personally concluded!

As I am now, I have merged with the Ghost Shadow Asura, and we are using the combined physical strength of two individuals to bear a complete Dragon Source! Simply put, the Dragon Source has become the bond between her and me, the only bridge grafting our life forces. Once the Dragon Source leaves our bodies, both she and I will perish."

Xu Yang was startled. "So... after six thousand years, neither of you has managed to fully refine the power of the Dragon Source?"

"Heh, how could it be that easy? I can tell you clearly: the complete power contained within a true dragon is infinite! Or rather, as long as the Dragon Source is intact and hasn't been damaged or cut, it can continuously generate new energy! This is the fundamental reason why the dragon race can be immortal! In other words, only by shattering the Dragon Source can the corresponding dragon truly die!

The true dragon we slew merely had its physical body shattered; its Dragon Source remained intact, and thus its soul is still present."

Only then did Xu Yang fully comprehend the knowledge related to the Dragon Source. And this was also the true reason why the dragon souls in other Dragon Hoards resonated after he had previously cut a Dragon Source!

If a complete Dragon Source isn't cut, human cultivators on this continent would never be able to perfectly refine or bear its power with their bodies alone.

In a sense, it was the cultivation methods of these cultivators on the continent that determined their inability to contain the perfect power of the Dragon Source.

If there truly was one person who could achieve this, it would undoubtedly be Xu Yang, who stood before them—the one who had refined the Qi Refinement Realm to its absolute peak through countless trials!