Chapter 386: 夺运功法

Qin Mu surfaced from the river. A giant flood dragon, the Flood Dragon King God, swam past him and plunged into the water. Qin Mu stopped to observe, noticing a bamboo pole lodged in the forehead of the sapphire-blue flood dragon, which was bubbling blood.

"Grandpa Blind's bamboo staff!" Qin Mu emerged from the water and walked towards the bank. Dragon Qilin, along with over ten flood dragons, carefully approached, carrying Ling Yuxiu, Hu Ling'er, and Si Yunxiang on his back. It seemed the battle between the Blind Man and the Flood Dragon King God had just concluded, and they had been delayed by avoiding its aftermath.

Hu Ling'er finally woke from her hangover, curiously looking around, bewildered as to how she had ended up there from the small town's wedding banquet.

Qin Mu looked around and saw the Blind Man. He was in a sorry state, covered in mud, his clothes tattered, and wounds all over his body. Clearly, his struggle with the Flood Dragon King God had been extremely arduous.

The Flood Dragon King God was incredibly powerful, having ascended to divinity from a flood dragon, possessing immense magical abilities, and being a water-elemental flood dragon. The Blind Man had fought with all his might, ensuring the Flood Dragon King God didn't have an easy time, but he himself was injured.

Dragon Qilin flew over and landed. Hu Ling'er jumped off his back, still in her small fox form, and hopped onto Qin Mu's shoulder. Only then did she notice the black flood dragon on his other shoulder, causing her fur to stand on end and her tails to straighten in fright.

She would revert to her original form when drunk and had forgotten to transform back into her human shape.

"Don't be scared, Ling'er. This is the black flood dragon I just acquired; it's done a great service." Qin Mu reassured the little fox, then glanced at the Blind Man, winked, and smiled, "Sister Yuxiu, Saintess Xiang, I want to show you something big."

The two women were very curious. "What big thing?" they asked.

Standing by the river, Qin Mu called out loudly, "River-Suppressing Dragon King, why haven't you come out yet?" Suddenly, the river surged with towering waves. The gigantic dragon, into which Dragon Herder Lord had transformed, lifted its head from the water, rising like a mountain. Its long, crystal-clear whiskers hung down, swaying in the wind.

The dragon's whiskers were over a hundred yards long and very beautiful.

Dragon Herder Lord lowered his head and asked, "What are your orders, Lord?" The two women were stunned, and even the Blind Man was utterly shocked.

Qin Mu puffed out his chest proudly, glanced around, and, seeing everyone's expressions of awe, placed his hands on his hips and chuckled, "Nothing important, just wanted you to come out and meet everyone."

Dragon Herder Lord's face remained serious. Suppressing the urge to swat this tiny human, he was about to sink back into the water when Qin Mu quickly said, "Don't rush down yet. You just promised to teach me how to gather dragon veins and how to harness the power of the True Dragon Lord."

Dragon Herder Lord immediately stopped, refraining from sinking into the water.

Qin Mu then boasted again, "Grandpa Blind, what do you think?"

"You're getting too big for your britches," the Blind Man replied with a broad smile.

Qin Mu's eyes gleamed. He secretly took out his golden flute and immediately activated the Dragon Control Art. Numerous flood dragons flew towards the Blind Man, coiling around him! These flood dragons were immensely powerful; once they bound the Blind Man, he would be utterly unable to escape!

Just then, the Blind Man flicked his finger. Qin Mu let out a muffled groan as his three divine treasures instantly closed, sealed once again by the Blind Man. The flute music abruptly ceased, and the flood dragons looked around bewildered, not attacking the Blind Man.

"My boy, you're quite naughty." The Blind Man flicked his finger again, sending golden ropes flying out to securely bind Qin Mu's hands and feet. He sighed, "Talents emerge from generation to generation, and the new waves die on the beach. But old ginger is spicier; your move was still a bit slow. Did you think you could control the flood dragons to tie me up? It's not that easy."

Qin Mu plopped to the ground, his face as black as charcoal. Just as he was about to order Dragon Herder Lord to capture the Blind Man, the Blind Man stuffed a cloth strip into his mouth, rendering him speechless.

"This marriage will still happen, and this child will still be born!" The Blind Man lifted Qin Mu and said to Dragon Herder Lord, "Carry us along the river to the Great Ruins. We're going back to the village to continue the wedding! There are still two more ceremonies. If you do well, I'll invite you to the wedding feast."

Dragon Herder Lord hesitated, then looked at Qin Mu, who was muffledly struggling. After a moment, Qin Mu dejectedly nodded.

Dragon Herder Lord felt a secret satisfaction: "This seemingly simple boy is so cunning; so he does have his moments of defeat. Serves him right—" He then prostrated himself, exposing his long dragon back like a narrow island in the water, and called out, "Come onto my back!"

The Blind Man carried Qin Mu onto the dragon's back. Dragon Qilin quickly followed, and many flood dragons crowded around, jostling together.

"These are all the flood dragons I raised, and every single one is an ungrateful wretch..." Dragon Herder Lord felt another pang of pain. But what was done was done; it was beyond recall. If he could do it all over again, he would have immediately struck and killed this seemingly innocent boy the moment they first met.

On the dragon's back, Qin Mu seemed resigned, neither struggling nor attempting to have Dragon Herder Lord take action. The Blind Man removed the cloth strip from his mouth and said, "Let this Eel Lord teach you then."

Qin Mu extended his hands. The Blind Man untied the golden ropes from his wrists, but the golden ropes on his legs remained bound.

Qin Mu's eyes flickered. "Grandpa Blind, why are you so cautious? I need to use my magic power to learn how to gather dragon veins and harness the True Dragon Lord's strength from Dragon Herder Lord. Besides, these flood dragons are hungry, and I need to refine elixirs to feed them. If you unseal me, will I really run away? Even if I tried to run, could I escape your grasp, Grandpa Blind? Isn't sealing me just a flick of your finger for you?"

The Blind Man raised an eyebrow, then reached out and tapped Qin Mu's glabella. Qin Mu's heart swelled with joy. With a rumble, his Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure opened, but his Five Elements and other divine treasures remained sealed.

"The vital qi from your Spirit Embryo Divine Treasure is sufficient for you to learn," the Blind Man calmly stated.

Qin Mu praised him, giving a thumbs up. "As expected of the old master who raised me, you're always so careful!"

The Blind Man was overjoyed. He chuckled, "Enough flattery! Go on, hurry up!"

Ling Yuxiu and Si Yunxiang exchanged glances. The herd boy's upbringing seemed quite different from others, almost as if he were being led astray.

Qin Mu refined elixirs and fed them to the group of dragons. Dragon Qilin also ate a few bites, feeling the taste was off. He secretly peeled open a Red Fire Elixir and his face darkened. Inside, he found a Fire Divine Core Elixir; no wonder it tasted a bit spicy!

"Cult Master, this elixir isn't right!" Dragon Qilin exclaimed. He then peeled open a few more elixirs, throwing the Fire Divine Core Elixirs into the river and only eating the outer shells.

Qin Mu blew his golden flute, controlling a green flood dragon to give Dragon Qilin a beating. Dragon Qilin howled miserably and never dared to be picky again.

As Dragon Herder Lord swam towards the Great Ruins, he taught Qin Mu the deeper levels of the Dragon Control Art. The Dragon Herding Scripture he had given Qin Mu earlier had held back many crucial details. Qin Mu studied diligently, without any tricks.

After a short while, he had mastered the Dragon Control Art. He then asked how to harness the power of the True Dragon Lord. Dragon Herder Lord explained, "The True Dragon Lord was refined into a treasure by someone unknown; it has become a treasure of fortune and can no longer become a true dragon. However, placing this treasure into the True Dragon Nest allows the True Dragon Lord to absorb the dragon qi from the nest. Combined with a unique cultivation method, it can extract the True Dragon Lord's fortune. The cultivation of whoever wears the True Dragon Lord will advance by leaps and bounds, progressing a thousand miles in a single day! However, I haven't learned this particular cultivation method. I assume the entity who acquired the True Dragon Lord would have imprinted this method within it. After seizing its fortune, you will become the True Dragon Lord!"

"A unique cultivation method?" Qin Mu paused, then quickly described the Nine Dragon Imperial Cultivation Method he had learned from Emperor Yanfeng. "Is this a fortune-seizing cultivation method?" he asked.

Dragon Herder Lord pondered for a moment, then shook his head. "This method is merely a qi-absorbing method, using dragon qi for cultivation, not a fortune-seizing method. Our dragon race is born of heaven and earth, naturally inheriting the universe's energy information and transforming it into a language called Dragon Script. Every dragon, upon birth, naturally masters Dragon Script without needing to learn it. The symbols and characters on the True Dragon Lord and the Dragon Nest are our dragon race's writing. I've only seen the characters on the True Dragon Nest, not on the True Dragon Lord itself. However, judging from the characters on the True Dragon Nest, it indeed contains a fortune-seizing cultivation method, but it's incomplete."

Qin Mu's heart stirred. The complete fortune-seizing cultivation method could likely only be learned by combining the Imperial Disc and the True Dragon Nest. Legend had it that a god had bestowed the Imperial Disc upon the Ling family's ancestor, symbolizing imperial authority. The Ling family's Nine Dragon Imperial Cultivation Method was derived from this Imperial Disc, a method comprehended from within it.

Emperor Yanfeng, a genius of his era, had perfected the Nine Dragon Imperial Cultivation Method, elevating it to a level capable of rivaling the Great Enlightenment Demonic Scripture and the Tathagata Mahayana Sutra! One could only imagine how astonishing the cultivation method would be if the Imperial Disc and the True Dragon Nest, these twin treasures, were combined.

"Dragon Lord, teach me Dragon Script!" Qin Mu suddenly requested.

Dragon Herder Lord imparted what he knew of Dragon Script to him, saying, "Our dragon race's Dragon Script is hidden within our bloodline. The purer the bloodline, the more Dragon Script one understands. I am not a true dragon, so there are some Dragon Script terms whose meanings I don't know."

Qin Mu jotted down the Dragon Script syllables and writing, his head feeling swollen. The strokes of Dragon Script were peculiar, resembling individual dragons, with almost no discernible pattern. Without a pattern, it was impossible to deduce the meanings of other unfamiliar characters.

Furthermore, the pronunciation of the dragon language differed from human speech, possessing a peculiar rhythm. Some syllables were impossible for a human throat to produce, making it nearly impossible to converse with dragons using Dragon Script.

Qin Mu recorded the Dragon Script taught by Dragon Herder Lord, then took out the Imperial Disc from his chest. This time, looking at the Imperial Disc, he was immediately able to understand the meaning of some characters, symbols, and patterns. However, since Dragon Herder Lord's knowledge of Dragon Script was incomplete, Qin Mu couldn't fully recognize all the characters on the Imperial Disc.

The Dragon Script on the Imperial Disc constantly shifted, making him dizzy.

Qin Mu closed his eyes, shook his head, and murmured, "Only a true dragon can recognize all the dragon characters. Where can I find a true dragon to teach me the complete Dragon Script?"

"There's a true dragon in the Great Ruins," Dragon Herder Lord whispered.

Qin Mu's spirits lifted. He suddenly looked up and saw Mistscreen Pass ahead. Dragon Herder Lord's speed was truly astonishing; in just half a day, he had brought them to the Great Ruins.

Mistscreen Pass had been fortified and blockaded by the Yan Kang army. If Dragon Herder Lord wanted to pass, he would have to destroy this large city. Qin Mu immediately told Dragon Herder Lord to stop. Everyone dismounted from the dragon's back and entered Mistscreen Pass.

Feng Xiuyun led her subordinates to greet them, bowing and saying, "Greetings, Cult Master!"

Qin Mu smiled, "No need for formalities. It's getting late. Let's rest here for the night and enter the Great Ruins tomorrow. Fragrance Master Feng, please arrange the guest rooms."

The Blind Man grinned, "That girl isn't bad-looking... Prepare a feast. Tonight, your Cult Master will have his second wedding ceremony."