The Dragon Island Vision and the Ancestral Dragon's Awakening

Winged dragons soared across the sky, their sacred dragon bodies gleaming with dazzling radiance as they streaked through the heavens like bolts of lightning—yet even those colossal forms seemed tiny against the vastness of the world.

Eight-Armed Malignant Dragons snarled ferociously, their brilliant dragon scales shimmering with flowing light. As their massive bodies moved, mountains trembled and the earth shook, as if the peaks themselves were quaking or great rivers were changing course.

Tyrant Dragons of the dragon royal lineage roared skyward, their expressions furious, as if interrogating the heavens. Their overwhelming dragon qi swept through the land, and an unmatched, domineering aura vibrated through the void, as if transmitting through the tableau all the way to the front of Lushan Waterfall.

In the distance stretched an endless sea of bones, a vast expanse of white. A colossal Heavenly Stele stood there, shrouded in drifting mist, with murderous aura piercing the heavens—a world of death…

That was… Dragon Island!

How could he forget?

How could he ever forget?

Xiao Chen had been trapped on that island for an entire year. He knew this wild, ancient island best. So many things had happened there; one could say that everything he had experienced in the World of Immortality had its seeds planted on Dragon Island.

“That is… what place?” Chen Fang and the others exclaimed.

“A world of illusion, an unreal place.” Tong Hu’s aged, hoarse voice echoed before Lushan Waterfall.

Xiao Chen felt his own body tremble slightly. He had lived in that space for eight full years. Many things were unforgettable. How many eight years does a lifetime have? The World of Immortality had left an indelible mark on his life.

Yizhen, Dugu Jianmo, Liu Mu, Niu Ren, Yan Qingcheng, Hai Yunxue, the White Tiger Saint Emperor… figures flashed through his heart—friends and enemies alike. Farewell… they might never meet again in this life.

He could not forget the Little Defiant Dragon. They had left Dragon Island together. That aloof, stubborn demeanor could never be erased from his heart.

He could not forget Keke either—those babbles, that adorable, innocent appearance. How could it fade from memory? The battle in the Southern Wastes had shaken Heavenly Emperor City and was forever frozen in his heart.

He could not forget Qingqing—her brows condensed with pure grace, her eyes like autumn waters pregnant with poetry, her spirit ethereal. When he fled in defeat to the western borderlands and healed in the Pure Land, the daily bowl of black sesame paste had dyed his hair black, but it was his cold, hardened heart that had been warmed.

Before the great spatial rift, had she been swept into the eye of the dimensional sea as well? Xiao Chen did not know.

The World of Immortality was filled with people and events that could not fade from his heart. How could he forget that world?

“That is Dragon Island of the World of Immortality.”

Xiao Chen stared fixedly at that space. He could even recognize the winged dragon soaring in the sky—the Sacred Light Dragon that had been forced onto Dragon Island by the Fallen Angel, whose child, a silver little dragon king, had been taken away by the spiritist Lan Yu of the World of Immortality.

And he was even more familiar with that Eight-Armed Malignant Dragon. He had once refined one of its dragon eggs; the other egg had hatched into a little dragon king taken away by the spellmaster Schrod.

“You know it…” Tong Hu, less than a meter tall, hunched over. His murky eyes flickered with faint light as he stared at Xiao Chen. “How could you know?”

“Because I once went there.”

Tong Hu showed a trace of surprise. “The Nine Provinces’ seal is still intact. You went there—how could you return?”

“I do not know either.”

Swish.

Xiao Chen waved the jade bracelet and gently drew it across the air. That world became even clearer, as if right before their eyes. They could clearly see the primeval strange beasts in the ancient mountains and even smell the refreshing fragrance of flowers and grass.

“Why do you say it is a world of illusion?” Xiao Chen asked. This was not the first time he had heard such words, and he was deeply puzzled.

Tong Hu stood on Lushan Waterfall like an ancient fossil and spoke slowly, “Because everything there will eventually shatter—a dream, a flower, an empty scene.”

“What are you saying?” Chen Fang asked, confused.

Tong Hu shook his head. “Those who know, know. Those who do not know—I would tell you, but you would not understand.”

Xiao Chen pondered silently for a moment, not wanting to dwell on the issue. He asked, “This jade bracelet seems able to cut through space. Why is that?”

“It is a key, able to break open many sealed places. Lushan connects to Dragon Island.”

No one could remain calm at such words. They stunned Xiao Chen and the others.

Chen Fang stammered, “Are you saying… we can enter the World of Immortality right now?”

“Correct. The Nine Provinces are sealed, and those capable of breaking the void are almost extinct. But with this key, you can enter that other world.”

“Can we return?” Xiao Chen asked.

“If you hold the key, yes. But I will not allow you to take the jade bracelet into the World of Immortality. The jade bracelet is one of the keys to breaking the Nine Provinces seal. It will be needed for greater purposes later.”

Chen Fang and Qingyun were so astonished they could not speak for a long time.

Xiao Chen fell silent for a long while, then gently traced the air with the jade bracelet. The scenery on Dragon Island shifted continuously until he finally found the Dragon Clan’s sacred mountain and saw the broken Divine Tree.

There…

Xiao Chen felt as if struck by lightning, frozen like a clay statue. On the massive, mountain-thick stump of the divine tree, he saw a speck of white light.

The little snow-white beast—Keke!

The stump of the Divine Tree was over a thousand meters tall, pitch black, standing like a huge piece of ink jade. It was where Keke had been born, its old home that it pined for…

Xiao Chen fiercely drew the jade bracelet, making that scene even clearer, drawing closer to the broken Divine Tree.

A little snow-white beast stood pitifully at the edge of the stump, gazing into the distant ancient mountains. Its large eyes were filled with confusion, and then it cried out in a mournful voice, “Ya-ya, ya-ya…”

It sobbed sadly, then walked back step by step to the center of the stump, curled up at the place of its birth like a little orphan, lying there as if deeply wounded.

A lost, injured little beast… It made Xiao Chen’s heart ache. How had Keke returned to Dragon Island?

When he had awakened from petrification, Keke was gone. What had happened that day? Had the little beast thought he was dead and so returned alone to Dragon Island?

The heart-wrenching little beast…

Xiao Chen drew the jade bracelet, bringing the image closer until he could almost touch the little beast.

Swish.

A flash of seven-colored light. The little beast looked warily into the void and shot out a seven-colored light screen.

Tong Hu said solemnly, “You are about to break the void and enter that world. Have you thought it through? Once you enter, it will be very hard to return. In a sense, you will have vanished from the mortal world.”

“I…”

Xiao Chen could not speak. He very much wanted to see the little beast, but… what about his parents in the mortal world?

He gently drew the jade bracelet, and the scene gradually receded. In a blur, he saw the little snow-white beast looking confusedly toward the void.

“I want to bring that little snow-white beast back.” Xiao Chen looked at Tong Hu with hope.

“Impossible. Only by carrying the jade bracelet can you freely pass in and out, but that would cause severe consequences. You… can go in, but you absolutely cannot take the jade bracelet.”

As he spoke, the old man’s momentum surged. Though his appearance did not change, he seemed like an unattainable giant, radiating an oppressive pressure.

Swish.

Xiao Chen shot into the sky and then brought the jade bracelet down, trying to force his way into the World of Immortality. But this time, no strange phenomenon appeared.

Tong Hu said coldly, “Only this waterfall connects to the World of Immortality. Do not waste your strength.”

Hearing this, Xiao Chen dove downward. His Eight-Aspect Worlds moved at incredible speed, but as he neared Lushan Waterfall, he was astonished to find the entire waterfall frozen, the water stopped as if encased in ice.

A strange power had sealed the waterfall.

“No one can cross this thunderous step. If you wish to go, set down the jade bracelet in your hand, and I will grant your wish. Otherwise, please retreat. If you do not, do not blame me for acting.”

Xiao Chen gave a cold snort. Thinking of that heart-wrenching little beast, he could not hold back. He wanted to bring it back to the mortal world.

He raised his Supreme Hand and struck Lushan Waterfall with all his might!

Boom!

An earth-shattering sound erupted. The entire Lushan seemed to shake.

Tong Hu flew down to face Xiao Chen. “Very good. Ancient martial arts reappear. If you can defeat me, I will let you pass. If you cannot, I ask you to turn back.”

“This is unfair! How long have you cultivated? Xiao Chen, how long has he cultivated?” Chen Fang shouted. Though he did not understand Xiao Chen’s insistence, as a friend he was unconditionally supportive.

“The Nine Provinces are sealed. There are no enemies or strong warriors who can shake heaven and earth. If he cannot defeat me, he is not qualified.” Tong Hu seemed unwilling to compromise on this point.

Xiao Chen said nothing. He charged straight forward, his palm blade chopping down.

Tong Hu moved before Lushan Waterfall like a shadow of an ancient dragon, also inconceivably fast, stirring up layer after layer of dragon shadows.

Before Lushan Waterfall, it was as if primeval mountains were colliding. Heaven and earth shook. Lushan Waterfall flowed backward. Waves of water swept in all directions, and violet radiance shot into the sky.

Xiao Chen flew backward, traces of blood seeping from his mouth and nose. Apart from his Supreme Hand, which remained unharmed, cracks seemed to appear all over his body.

Even his Martial Body could not withstand Tong Hu’s impact!

“Wait until your Martial Body is as strong as your hands before you try again. But that is assuming the Nine Provinces seal has not broken and I am still in this state.”

Tong Hu vanished. Then Lushan Waterfall flowed backward with heaven-shaking force, and a roar like an ancient dragon sounded. The entire mountain transformed—it turned into a giant dragon.

A giant stone dragon!

Lushan Waterfall now hung from the dragon’s mouth.

Xiao Chen floated in the void, regulating his breath in silence. It was a long while before he opened his eyes. This was the first time he had been wounded since returning to the mortal world and perfecting his Martial Body.

He had to admit that the Martial Body was incredibly formidable. In no time, he was fully healed.

“Xiao Chen, are you all right?” Chen Fang asked.

“I am fine.” Xiao Chen looked at the transformed Lushan. “Senior Tong Hu, is the Nine Provinces seal related to other realms? Is it true that many regions connect to other spaces?”

“Yes. The mortal world is more complex than you can imagine.”

Xiao Chen stood in silence for a long time. He knew he could not force his way through here. Glancing down at Chen Fang, he faced Lushan Waterfall again. “I wish to know about the person who entered the World of Immortality not long ago.”

“That person… looked very much like you. And there seemed to be a pair of eyes watching him from a distant place as he entered the World of Immortality. They seemed to be a woman’s eyes. I have never seen anyone with such fierce eyes, a hundred times sharper than a sword’s gleam. I estimate she was a hundred li away, yet I could still sense her.”

“This…”

Both Xiao Chen and Chen Fang were greatly startled.

“Though I did not see those eyes, if I were to reconstruct them from that fierce gaze, I would say they very much resemble the eyes of the woman in the portrait you showed me.”

“Whoosh!”

Xiao Chen instantly unfurled the portrait. “Senior, please look carefully.”

“That’s right. The man looks like you. The hidden eyes look like this woman’s.”

Leaving Lushan, Xiao Chen and Chen Fang’s hearts were troubled. They said little along the way.

Qingyun said, “We only came to find someone. Why has it become so complicated? It seems… the Nine Provinces seal is about to be broken. I once heard a sea-faring ancestor say, ‘Everything is an illusion, everything is a dream. When the gods awake from their dreams, the true battle will begin.’”

Xiao Chen was stunned. He murmured to himself, “Could it be that everything in the World of Immortality was an illusion? That I dreamed for eight years?” He kept questioning himself. “Could Qingqing be merely a spiritual imprint without a physical body in the mortal world? Otherwise… she entered the spatial eye with me, but why has she never manifested?”

“ROAR!”

An earth-shaking roar resounded, shaking heaven and earth. Xiao Chen, Chen Fang, and Qingyun involuntarily looked north. The sound came from that direction.

That roar was ancient and immense, as if it resounded in the depths of one’s soul.

Looking far into the distance, at the edge of heaven, a vast, yellow, shadowy dragon seemed to be churning!

“The Yellow River! That is the Yellow River!” Qingyun exclaimed.

Xiao Chen shot into the sky, ready to dash north.

From thousands of li away, they could hear the sound and see the vision. Something great must have happened to the Yellow River.

Qingyun also flew up. “Xiao Chen, take me along too. I want to see.”

Xiao Chen looked back. He unfolded his Eight-Aspect Worlds and moved like a shadow, swooping down to sweep up Chen Fang and Qingyun, then shot like a bolt of lightning toward the distant north.

On that day, every living being on the Nine Provinces heard the great dragon roar. It stirred the nine heavens above and shook the nine netherworlds below, as if it sounded within every soul.

Moreover, countless people saw a yellow, blurry silhouette churning at the edge of the sky in the north. From nobles to commoners, all were shaken.

Xiao Chen flew with the speed of his Eight-Aspect Worlds, covering a thousand li in an instant. He arrived at Ancestral Dragon Village in record time.

Fortunately, nothing had happened to the village.

But the Yellow River had truly undergone a great change.

Before Ancestral Dragon Village, cultivators had gathered in a sea of people. Mortal cultivators made up the majority; the rest were all cultivators from various schools. Everyone stood frozen, staring dumbfounded at the sky.

The Yellow River on the ground had run dry!

Its waters, which once surged and roared, were now flowing in the sky—charging toward the East Sea!

“The Ancestral Dragon is turning over! It is the Ancestral Dragon turning over, as the old legends say!” Some elders in Ancestral Dragon Village muttered to themselves.

Xiao Chen paid close attention and asked an old man, “What will happen when the Ancestral Dragon turns over?”

“Heaven will change. The Ancestral Dragon may come alive, may break through the void and leave…” The old man seemed filled with terror.

Just then, exclamations rang out.

From the direction of the East Sea, the Ancestral Dragon’s head seemed to be shaking particularly violently.

At that moment, a cultivator flew over on his flying sword and shouted, “Ancestors! Go to the East Sea quickly! The dragon’s head has taken form and emerged, and a colossal stele has materialized, piercing heaven and earth!”