Chapter 102: The Old Man and the Dragon (Start of Book 2)
At the Dragon Fishing Pool on Solitude Peak...
Old Man Sikong was staring at the silvery water of the lake with a deep gaze while his aged hands gripped his fishing rod tightly.
The fishing rod had been shaking more and more frequently ever since the group of people from Silver Sword Peak visited him. Initially, it would only shake once in a long while, but at present, it would shake again after just a short time.
Old Man Sikong's eyes had not seen any ripples in the surface of the lake for over a hundred years, but they were now shining brightly.
Calm returned to the lake for a moment. Then the fishing rod suddenly shook yet again. This time, it stretched the golden fishing line so taut that it became a perfectly straight line! A massive vortex radiating silver light began to form in the Dragon Fishing Pool.
As the water spun, the weather suddenly changed. The skies turned gray, and dark clouds gathered!
Old Man Sikong felt a wave of power flood out from the direction of the vortex. He pulled his elbows back to maintain a better grip on the fishing rod as his torso trembled uncontrollably.
The vortex was growing increasingly larger, but nothing had emerged from it.
Sensing that the wave of power was waning, Old Man Sikong gritted his teeth and bit the tip of his tongue, causing it to bleed. He then spat a mouthful of blood onto the golden fishing rod and pointed at the rod with his right hand.
Whoosh—
Golden flames burst from his palm and ran up the rod, engulfing it. The fire then blazed down the golden fishing line, extending into the deep unknown of the vortex.
Old Man Sikong knew that he wasn't in opposition to whatever was at the end of the fishing line. Instead, they were working together to resist a vast and obscure set of rules!
Boom—
As the golden flames reached the end of the fishing line, the wave of power flooding out from the vortex surged explosively.
Old Man Sikong raised his aging body to his feet with the selfless bravery of a man in his twilight years. A golden radiance erupted all around him as if he were a deity.
Rumble—
A thunderous rumble—much like that of a massive city wall collapsing—rang out from the vortex whirling upward into the sky. The source of this content nov(el)bi((n))
The rumbling continued, and an enormous head emerged from the vortex with the end of the blazing fishing line. This head alone was taller than Old Man Sikong. It had towering horns, shiny scales, and a pair of eyes with golden flames burning in its irises.
This creature seemed to have charged through a route filled with thistles and thorns to get here. Its ancient scales were broken and covered in cracks as well as bloodstains. It was as if the creature had experienced a great battle against deities and demons.
Astonishingly, this creature was a dragon.
"It has been over a hundred years..." Old Man Sikong said with a trembling voice.
After the dragon head appeared, the weather suddenly changed again... Golden scale-shaped clouds covered the sky within a hundred-li perimeter, accompanied by the crackling sound of rolling thunder.
"Do you know... how perverted that young lord is? And do you know the story about the father and son of the House of the Mountain-Subjugating Marquess that must be told?
"Do you know... the story behind how I bound the young lord in public?
"Was it due to a distortion in human nature or the loss of morality...?
"Do you know?"
This series of rhetorical questions instantly made Zhang Xiaohan's eyes light up.
She knew that since her curiosity had been piqued, the readers of The Seven Stars Gazette would undoubtedly be interested in these sensational questions too.
So, Zhang Xiaohan urged Chu Liang, "Tell me in detail."
"There's no need to rush," Chu Liang replied with a wave of his hand.
Listen to me slowly weave a sensational tale for you...
There was no other way to resolve this. It was useless to try and suppress a sensational story. The best way to divert attention away from it was to throw out an even more sensational tale. This was how trending topics kept changing.
In order to prevent Zhang Xiaohan from focusing on him and Xue Lingxue, Chu Liang could only throw out something more controversial.
However... I'll have to add to the young lord's grievances again. But he probably won't mind a bit more, right?
Just as he was about to speak, Chu Liang suddenly felt his heart palpitate. It was as if something terrifying had placed its gaze on him.
Chu Liang raised his gaze and found that Jiang Yuebai's expression was just as tense as his. She had sensed it too.
Right after that, the weather changed. Rolling thunder filled the sky, accompanied by the astonishing roar of a dragon!
The Mount Shu Sect disciples on Heaven-Reaching Peak rushed out to look. They gazed up at the clouds and saw a shocking scene that made them marvel in awe. A white dragon that had been flying majestically in the sky was stopped by a hand so gigantic that it seemed to cover the sky itself.
Chu Liang and the others cut their conversation short and flew out to see what was happening.
When Zhang Xiaohan saw the enormous dragon, she became extremely exhilarated! Her trip to Mount Shu had coincided with a major event in the mortal realm!
"It is said that many years ago, there was a great upheaval in the mortal realm. The True Dragon Clan left the ancient dragon nest and went to the legendary Abyss of the Hidden Dragons. Since then, there have been no True Dragons in the mortal realm.
"Only a great fate can draw a True Dragon out from the Abyss of the Hidden Dragons.
"Presently, there are only two True Dragons in this world that suppress fate: the Azure Dragon of Penglai Supreme Sect and the Golden Dragon of the Yu Dynasty. Even if other dragons exist, they would be fate-driven Flood Dragons at most, not True Dragons.
"Yet, today, the Mount Shu Sect has drawn over a True Dragon to suppress fate... Major changes may occur within the structure of the mortal world!"