Chapter 475: Mouth Won't Dry Up?

Hearing this, Ao Quan felt an uncontrollable impulse well up inside him and answered instinctively:

His words naturally interrupted the spirit-speech skill.

The moment the words left his mouth, Ao Quan froze, not understanding why he had suddenly responded that way.

However, having responded, he felt a sense of clarity and didn't dwell on it, continuing his spirit-speech from before: "Dragon language..."

Before he could finish, he was interrupted again:

Ao Quan instinctively responded.

"..." Ao Quan covered his mouth in disbelief. If the first time had been an accident, then twice in a row, even the most oblivious person would sense something was wrong.

"Are you also a member of the Dragon clan? Can you also use Dragon Spirit-Speech?" He stared at the other person in surprise, but from Zu An's appearance, there were no dragon characteristics at all, nor was there any aura of his kin about him.

Before Zu An could answer, Sang Qian, who was standing nearby, exclaimed, "That's right, he says he's the reincarnation of the Ancestral Dragon, and even your Dragon God has to bow to him as a junior."

"Heh, and he's still not dead after that?"

"Brother," Sang Qian couldn't help but complain, feeling that her elder brother's act of kicking someone when they were down was a bit too ugly.

Sang Qian snorted, thinking that women were indeed fickle; his sister had only met Zu An a few times and was already speaking up for an outsider.

Pei Mianman and Zheng Dan's gazes turned utterly cold, but this only strengthened Sang Qian's resolve to eliminate Zu An. Clearly, it was him or me, and at this point, he no longer cared about losing face.

"The reincarnation of the Ancestral Dragon? Even the Dragon God has to bow as a junior?" Ao Quan's expression turned cold. "Sir, you speak with great arrogance."

Ao Quan's Rage value: 567!

At this point, Zu An saw no need to pretend. He shed his recent humility and reverted to his usual flamboyant demeanor: "How do you know I'm not?"

"Of course I know. If you were of the Dragon clan, I would naturally sense it," Ao Quan snorted.

"Then how do you explain that I can also use your Dragon Spirit-Speech?" Zu An asked with a smirk.

"I don't know what demonic art you're using, but it's certainly not our Dragon clan's spirit-speech." Ao Quan's expression was serious. "The old man was careless just now and you took advantage. Now you have no chance."

Zu An spread his hands: "As expected of a spirit-speech practitioner, all talk and no action."

Ao Quan's face was ashen. "Boy, you've successfully provoked me. In a moment, I... Dragon clan spirit-speech, 'Submerge'..."

He couldn't figure out what demonic art Zu An had just used, so he deliberately used other words to make him lower his guard, then suddenly deployed his spirit-speech unexpectedly.

Little did he know, Zu An had already anticipated it:

But he still broke out in a cold sweat. He had almost let that guy unleash his spirit-speech. This old man had no sense of martial ethics; he was clearly chatting, then suddenly ambushed him with a sneak attack. It was truly treacherous.

"What are you looking at?" Ao Quan blurted out, his face turning extremely ugly.

He had tried his best to avoid distraction, but he still couldn't help but say that phrase, interrupting his own spirit-speech.

He glared at Zu An: "You little brat, what in the world..."

Learning from the recent lesson, Zu An worried he would try another sneak attack. He simply couldn't be bothered to listen to him and directly sealed off any possibility of him using spirit-speech.

Ao Quan: "..."

Ao Quan's Rage value: 999!

He had never felt so stifled before. He possessed the power to obliterate heaven and earth, yet he was suppressed by a low-level brat, unable to unleash it.

If Huang Huihong were still alive, he would surely be clapping and cheering on the sidelines, for he could deeply empathize, having also been unable to summon imperial decrees due to Zu An's silencing spirit-speech, ultimately dying in humiliation.

"What is this...?"

Ao Quan was nearly in tears. Even if he didn't use spirit-speech, he couldn't even speak a normal sentence now.

"Wait, let me..."

Ao Quan's Rage value: 666,666,666...

Sang Qian, standing nearby, was dumbfounded. Such a tactic was even possible?

Wasn't this Dragon elder incredibly powerful? He had utterly defeated Huang Huihong with a single sentence before, so how was he now being completely dominated by someone else?

I had such high hopes for you, how disappointing!

Hearing the back-and-forth exchange, Pei Mianman and the other women were initially wide-eyed in astonishment, but later couldn't help but burst into laughter. The scene looked less like a duel between two masters and more like two ruffians bickering on the street.

Sang Qian's pretty face also flushed slightly. Thinking of the various rumors about Zu An from previous intelligence, she realized he was indeed as shameless as ever: first bringing his opponent down to his level, then defeating him with his extensive experience.

After an unknown period, Ao Quan quickly extended his palm: "Stop!"

This time, Zu An didn't shout again; he was already hoarse from all the yelling.

Seeing that he didn't continue with those three devilish words, Ao Quan breathed a sigh of relief. "Isn't your damn mouth dry?"

He was old, and his cultivation of self-restraint was well-practiced. Normally, he appeared as an elder, feigning an ethereal, immortal demeanor to impress others, and had essentially not uttered a curse word in many years. But now, he truly couldn't hold back.

Zu An chuckled, "I only need to say three words, but you have to say four. If anyone's going to get dry, it'll be you first."

Ao Quan: "..."

"What you damn well said makes so much sense, I can't even refute it."

Ao Quan's Rage value: 703!

Ao Quan's face was ashen. He had already given up on using spirit-speech, because no matter how he tried, he was sealed off by those nightmarish three words. He truly didn't want to experience that feeling again.

"Do you think this old man has no other way to deal with you?" Ao Quan snorted coldly and lunged forward, striking with his dragon-head staff.

Although his close-combat abilities were weak because he primarily cultivated spirit-speech, that was relative to other members of his clan. Against a mere human of fifth-rank cultivation, his close-combat prowess was more than enough to overwhelm them.

Facing the whistling dragon-head staff, Zu An dared not meet it head-on. He quickly used Sunflower Phantoms to dodge.

However, Ao Quan's cultivation far surpassed his, and unlike Ding Run, he wasn't severely injured, so he could still keep up with Zu An's speed.

Zu An found it difficult to shake him off, and Ao Quan also struggled to hit his true body for a while. Their movements grew faster and faster, locked in a stalemate.

Pei Mianman and Zheng Dan watched anxiously. They wanted to go forward and help, but the two were moving too quickly. They couldn't tell who was who and had no idea how to intervene.

Sang Hong, who was observing, couldn't help but exclaim, "The Dragon clan truly lives up to its reputation as a favored race of heaven. Their innate physical strength far surpasses others. This Ao Quan primarily cultivates Dragon Spirit-Speech, so his physical combat ability should theoretically be weaker. Yet, as it appears now, he still possesses the strength of an eighth-rank human master. It's truly astonishing and terrifying."

"Ah, he's still eighth-rank even like this?" Sang Qian gasped. "Then wouldn't his actual strength be even greater?"

"Precisely," Sang Hong nodded. "If he could use his spirit-speech, his strength would rival a Grandmaster, and in some aspects, even surpass human Grandmasters. Fortunately, Zu An neutralized his greatest ability; otherwise, none of us would have stood a chance against him."

"I never expected so many masters to be hiding in the shadows. It seems after decades of peace, various factions are once again stirring."

Sang Qian couldn't help but complain, "The Emperor didn't send more masters, which resulted in us being hunted down and constantly on edge throughout our journey."

Sang Qian explained, "The Emperor probably didn't anticipate Zu An revealing his possession of the *Phoenix Nirvana Sutra*. Otherwise, the forces previously assigned to escort a mere son-in-law would have been more than sufficient."

Sang Hong's eyes lit up. "Qian'er, your analysis is very insightful. I was confused before, being caught in the situation myself, but this is the fundamental reason! Frankly, I truly admire this young Zu An; he managed to carve out a sliver of hope from a truly desperate situation."

"He merely stumbled upon a stroke of luck, like a blind cat catching a dead mouse. People who rise from the bottom often overturn the table and quit if things don't go their way. He's not as far-sighted as you imagine." Hearing his father praise Zu An more and more recently, Sang Qian felt extremely displeased.

Sang Qian, however, had a different opinion: "I used to think that too, but after interacting with him these past two days, that guy is definitely not simple."

Sang Qian snorted, "That guy has no other skills; he's just good at deceiving women. Stay away from him from now on!"

Sang Qian: "..."

Just then, a mighty dragon roar echoed. After countless missed attacks, Ao Quan finally lost patience and revealed his true form: a colossal azure dragon, a hundred zhang long.

"You vile, despicable human, you have truly angered me!" Ao Quan's massive dragon head glared at Zu An, his lantern-like eyes radiating furious light.

Ao Quan's Rage value: 1024!

Zu An cursed inwardly. These guys were all sore losers. If they were going to fight, they should just fight. Constantly transforming was just annoying.

"Shut your stinking mouth, what are you looking at?"

"I'll kill you!" Ao Quan was provoked again, roaring and lunging forward. In that instant, the earth seemed to crumble and the mountains split, as if all the air around them was being sucked dry.