Chapter 5: The Essence of the Dragon (Seeking Recommendation Tickets and Bookmarks)

  Xiao Yi's eyes flashed cold, he could clearly feel that although the middle-aged man in green was speaking calmly, the aloofness emanating from his temperament couldn't be concealed no matter what. To the four of them, Xiao Yi was just an ordinary person, a microbe that wouldn't even register on their radar if not for the light screen in front of him. What's more, Xu Nuo had promised many benefits, although Xiao Yi wasn't clear about what "Opening Heaven Realm" or "Unified Army" represented, he knew it wasn't trivial. But what did any of this have to do with him? What did Xiao Yi want? He didn't want anything, all he wanted was to go home!

  As Xiao Yi's gaze changed, the four middle-aged men in green clothes all showed a look of shock and anger in their eyes. They were the Human Kings, and the power of the Human Kings was not to be trifled with. A single drop of royal blood could bring about the downfall of countless people, ruling over the world. How could a mere mortal dare to look at them with such eyes? If it weren't for the divine barrier separating them, and the distance between them, a mortal would not have been able to survive, and would have been crushed into dust immediately.

  At this moment, Xiao Yi could clearly see that the golden red light curtain was slightly rippling, apparently affected by the four people's aura, if he were outside the light curtain, he would probably be at the mercy of life and death.

  But at this time, Xiao Yi was completely indifferent. Even if the four of them could really control his life and death, he was a lone wolf with no family to speak of, and dying would be nothing more than kicking one's legs out. In the past, when he was in another vast world, he had found it difficult to stick to his principles, always looking over his shoulder because he had family members, and impulsive actions required him to pay a price.

  The unintentional gaze of the four middle-aged men in green robes, however, left an indelible mark on Xiao Yi's memory, a recollection that remained etched in his heart even after traversing time and space.

  "Can the four of you grasp time and space?"

  The youth in the snow shirt's eyes moved, and a streak of silver light disappeared. He exclaimed in surprise: "You actually know about time and space! It seems you're not an ordinary traveler. But I'm very curious - how did you avoid our perception and enter this Dragon Cave?"

  Xiao Yi didn't respond, just looking at him with an unwavering gaze. The Snow Shirt youth was taken aback for a moment before shaking his head and saying: "You're too naive, even the Human Emperor can't control time and space. Humans have their lifespan, and emperors are no exception. If one could control time and space, they would grasp eternal life and never perish."

  Can't it? Originally, there was only a glimmer of luck, but after getting the real answer, Xiao Yi couldn't help but sigh, and in the end, there was still no way. He didn't have time to waste here, even if he could afford to, his family couldn't. And being in different times and spaces, perhaps countless years later, among the many fossils unearthed on Earth, one would belong to him.

  "You go." Xiao Yi shook his head and turned to walk into the cave. His heart was as cold as ash, and he didn't want to say anything more to the four of them.

  "Despicable!" Tianfu Wang coldly shouted, his eyes flashing with icy electricity. However, he was unable to do anything to Xiao Yi as his entire body's energy was blocked by the divine seal.

  Midnight, moon cold and stars sparse.

  In the Dragon Cave, a thick white mist filled the air, and piles of milky white stones illuminated the cave like daylight. The mysterious aura emanating from them kept Xiao Yi's spirits high, making him almost forget his hunger. At one point, he walked to the entrance of the cave, where the cool moonlight was like water, and the huge moon shone brighter than any he had ever seen before, round and clear as silk, pouring down like water. Meanwhile, the four Heavenly Axe Kings sat cross-legged at the entrance, seemingly determined to guard it until Xiao Yi came out.

  Dawn is coming.

  A golden sun burst out of the horizon, its golden light shooting out in billions of strands. In the ancient dragon cave, Xiao Yi's gaze recovered a hint of consciousness. He sat stupidly for one night, and at this moment, he slowly raised his head to look at that piece of chaotic rock with the dragon egg fossil, shining with a golden jade-like luster, auspicious energy rising, obviously having regained its vitality once again. The next moment, a determined color flashed across Xiao Yi's eyes.

  The dragon egg was not large, only about half a meter high, but its weight was not light. Xiao Yi had difficulty pulling it out from the pile of rocks, and estimated that it weighed nearly two hundred pounds. He tapped his hand on the shell, producing a metallic sound, then punched down with one fist. The shell remained intact, but his fist hurt for a long time.

  It's indeed not a place for humans to stay, and I couldn't even deal with an egg. Xiao Yi gritted his teeth and found a broken black iron spear in the blood-stained corridor, of normal size, seven feet long, with the spearhead broken off by about an inch.

  The broken spear was stained with blood, and it felt like a needle prick in his hand. It was difficult to grasp tightly, and it took great effort to lift it up. The broken spear wasn't light either, weighing around 40 kilograms. However, among the many military blades on the Yunding Road, this one was already considered the lightest. Some of the remaining soldiers were not too large in size, but they emitted a strong aura. Whenever Xiao Yi approached them, his entire body felt like it had been struck by lightning, and he experienced extreme pain.

  After pushing for half a column of incense time, the dragon egg finally rolled to a place not far from the entrance of the cave. Xiao Yi held his gun and leaned on the ground, panting heavily, looking out of the cave.

  Outside the golden light screen, the four Tianxia Wang suddenly stood up, their eyes gleaming with electricity, staring at the half-meter-high dragon egg. Despite being rolled for a distance, it didn't get stained with even a speck of dust or blood, shining brightly like gold and jade, full of vitality, exuding an air of nobility and ancient aura.

  "Hey kid, what are you going to do?!"

  The Blue Robed Sword King said coldly, the four of them had been cultivating until now, experiencing wind and rain, various tribulations, their eyes were incredibly sharp, with just one glance, they could see that Xiao Yi was not planning to hand over the dragon egg to them. Originally, as the Human Kings, no matter what, they couldn't bring themselves to compete with a mortal, but unfortunately, the Archaic Dragon's bloodline was extraordinary in significance, for the four of them, it was almost a blessing from heaven, and they couldn't help but take it seriously.

  "Little one, don't deceive yourself!" Tianfu Wang said in a deep voice.

  The youth in the snow-white shirt had a profound gaze, his black hair was like ink, and he seemed to have sensed something, his pupils contracted, two divine lights shot out like knives, and ripples spread out on the golden red light screen.

  It seemed to confirm the Snow Shirt Boy's premonition, and in the next moment, Xiao Yi's broken gun was raised, its black body icy cold, with a metallic luster flashing, and it suddenly pierced into that dragon egg. The tip of the gun was slightly hindered before piercing through.

  "Damn it! Do you know what you've done?!" Heaven Axe Wang roared, his anger so great that even as the Human King, he couldn't help but have a fit of rage. The Dragon Egg was shattered, its vitality severed, and the young dragon would never be able to take shape again.

  Xiao Yi's eyebrows rose as he heard the words, and he coldly stared at Tian Fu Wang, sneering: "You can't satisfy me, I also can't satisfy you, aren't there still four of them?"

  Now Xiao Yi is unbridled, in this space-time there are no worries, no restraints, and the boundless red dust cannot confuse his heart. Being able to live one more day is one more day, even if he dies with a kick of his leg, what's there to fear?

  Rumble!

  Outside the Dragon Cave, the earth cracked and split, tens of miles away, a hundred-zhang-high mountain peak collapsed, exploded, and shattered. In the sky above, clouds dispersed in all directions within dozens of miles, four stocks of King's aura shattered the layered clouds, sweeping across the four sides, shocking heaven and earth.

  Unable to withstand the anger of the four heavenly kings, he was a complete scoundrel, neither soft nor hard, with words that were not modest. The king's heart was also furious, and as he watched Xiao Yi pull out his broken spear, the dragon egg's vital energy dissipated, and their last hope was completely shattered.

  "Huh?"

  Xiao Yi let out a soft cry, and as he pulled out the broken spear, a golden liquid flowed out of the egg-sized hole, like jade-like egg whites. The auspicious air rose, and the fragrance wafted everywhere. After a day without drinking water, Xiao Yi couldn't help but swallow his saliva, and without caring whether it was poisonous or not, he directly leaned in and gulped it down.

  Gurgling, gurgling, the refreshing egg white slid down his throat, sweet and unparalleled. Xiao Yi was completely unaware of it, but the four Heavenly Axe Kings outside Long Dong's cave had expressions that became extremely strange. Finally, the young man in white clothes let out a light sigh and turned to leave directly.

  Descendants of the Seven Stars Desolate Dragon, even if they cannot be nurtured into shape, the essence of the dragon egg is not something that ordinary human clans can absorb. It contains the strongest bloodline of the Desolate Dragon clan, and even the Human King cannot absorb it all at once, requiring gradual refinement. Those below the Human King, even those with one or two percent of its power, must be extremely cautious. It is difficult to subdue easily, and requires a life-or-death crisis.

  Boom!

  Just as Xiao Yi swallowed the last mouthful of egg white, a fiery air current erupted from his chest and abdomen like a volcano. In an instant, Xiao Yi felt short of breath, his vision blurred, unable to react or make any reaction. At this moment, his body completely lost its senses, with a feeling of his soul leaving his body.

  Outside the Dragon Cave, Qingyi Sword King's eyes were cold and indifferent as he looked at Xiao Yi inside the cave, whose body was overflowing with auspicious aura. However, his mortal flesh was unable to contain the dragon egg's essence, and in the next moment, the powerful and majestic Wild Dragon bloodline would burst him apart.

  Nothing can be done, nothing can be retrieved. The present is a mess, and the fleeting moment has no thoughts. I'm going to die, perhaps this is the ending I wanted. Just like that, death will come, and there will be no more thinking, and this one death will be eternal.

  Not bad, life cannot be eternal, but death can be eternal. A faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and outside Longdong, Qingyi Sword King and three others were stunned. They saw that smile, eternal and free, with no worries or regrets. At this moment, it seemed as if something in their hearts had been touched.

  "Enough!" Tianfu Wang sighed, sat down. The heavenly horse let out a long whinny, six pairs of heavenly wings flapped, mountains and rivers, sun and moon flowed backward under its hooves, and in the blink of an eye, it disappeared into the distance.

  "Long life is hard to attain, even emperors can't live beyond a century, only death is eternal."

  "My sword, can it live forever."

  The two turned around, and in the Dragon Cave, a flash of golden light burst out, auspicious energy shot out in all directions. The golden red light curtain did not block it, and the auspicious clouds fell to the ground, seeping into the soil, disappearing silently in an instant.

  The stars have shifted in the dipper.

  Inside the Dragon Cave, a tranquil atmosphere prevails. Before the golden red light curtain, there is nothing but emptiness. The blood-stained path, the broken giant spear, and the shattered iron shield are all that remain. The soft glow of the white stones, piled up in heaps, is gentle. Two days later, the golden red light curtain gradually disappears, and the wind and sand rise, slowly burying the Dragon Cave, which was once as majestic as a mountain.

  "The heavens will collapse and the earth will shatter. People will not be wronged, even if it means sacrificing life. Sacrificing life does not mean betraying one's kin. The soul returns..."