Chapter 645 - 639: Failure

A vast, ocean-like Spiritual Thought swept over the Cyan Dragon Race, quickly locking onto a specific location. There, Shen Haoran sensed a strange aura—the very same one he had found in the Sea of Consciousness of those black-robed figures back in the Medicinal Garden.

Shen Haoran descended from mid-air and led Long Xiaotian and the others to the location he had sensed. However, when they arrived, they all froze in place. This was none other than the Cyan Dragon Race’s Sacred Land, the very cemetery where their ancestors rested.

"This... Nephew Shen, are you certain the Array Base for the Hundred-Refinement Soul-devouring Array is inside our Cyan Dragon Race’s cemetery?" Long Xiaotian asked gravely. This cemetery was the Cyan Dragon Race’s most important restricted area, the resting place of their ancestors. Normally, not even Long Xiaotian himself could enter as he pleased. For those black-robed figures to place the Array Base here was an unforgivable transgression against the Cyan Dragon Race.

"It must be in here," Shen Haoran said, his expression grave. "The Array Base for the Hundred-Refinement Soul-devouring Array is saturated with an extremely dense Yin Qi that can be sensed even from dozens of miles away. This cemetery is where the ancestors of the Cyan Dragon Race are buried, so the Dragon Qi is abundant. Those black-robed figures must be using this dense Dragon Qi to conceal the Yin Qi and prevent its discovery. I suspect the other three Array Bases are also located within the cemeteries of their respective clans!" ’These people are truly unscrupulous. To think they would even exploit the dead, who should be treated with the utmost respect.’

"Damn them! If I get my hands on them, I’ll give them death by a thousand cuts!" Long Xiaotian roared, enraged that those black-robed figures would dare desecrate his ancestors.

"Let’s go. We should destroy the Array Base first," Shen Haoran reminded him.

Hearing this, Long Xiaotian took a deep breath to suppress his anger. He tossed a token to Shen Haoran and said, "The Dragon Tomb is the resting place of our ancestors, who also act as its Guardians. Even members of the Cyan Dragon Race cannot enter freely. This token will prevent the ancestral souls from mistakenly attacking you!"

Shen Haoran glanced at the cyan token, nodded lightly, and put it away. Then, led by Long Xiaotian, he entered the Dragon Tomb.

HUMMM...

As the group entered the pitch-black depths, clusters of eerie, blue flames flickered to life, dispelling the surrounding darkness. Shen Haoran gazed at the boundless cemetery before him and could not help but gasp. The sheer scale of the Dragon Tomb far exceeded his expectations.

Before Shen Haoran lay a pale, cyan mist. Throughout the boundless cemetery stood stone statues of Flood Dragons. Though they were only statues, their expressions and postures were so lifelike that their majestic aura commanded Shen Haoran’s solemn respect.

Upon entering, Long Xiaotian and the others immediately knelt in reverence. These were their ancestors, and if not for the extraordinary circumstances, they would never have disturbed their eternal peace. Shen Haoran did not kneel, but he bowed his head slightly as a sign of respect.

"Nephew Shen, this is the Dragon Tomb of our Cyan Dragon Race. Please, find the Array Base for that Hundred-Refinement Soul-devouring Array and restore peace to our ancestors!" Long Xiaotian said gravely. He could tell the Dragon Qi within the ancestral Dragon Tomb was significantly weaker than before, no doubt because of that array’s influence.

At his words, Shen Haoran slowly stepped into the Dragon Tomb. His immense Spiritual Thought surged forth once more, blanketing the entire area. As it spread, waves of draconic roars began to echo throughout the tomb. Faint, draconic silhouettes materialized, gathering in the air above.

"Clan Leader, it seems the ancestral souls have grown volatile under the influence of the Hundred-Refinement Soul-devouring Array’s Yin Qi!" one of the Elders remarked gravely upon seeing the faint silhouettes.

"Yes, I know," Long Xiaotian nodded, his expression grim. His killing intent toward those black-robed figures deepened.

"Huh?" But just then, Long Xiaotian was stunned by the scene unfolding before him. The faint draconic silhouettes were slowly descending, circling and dancing around Shen Haoran with what looked like great affection. The violent aura they had exuded moments ago instantly vanished as they drew near him. It was as if Shen Haoran were their mother, and his presence alone was enough to soothe their spirits.

"Wh-what is going on?" Long Xiaotian and the others’ jaws dropped, unable to process what they were seeing. Just moments ago, they had been worried these volatile ancestral souls would attack Shen Haoran. After all, he was an outsider, and releasing one’s Spiritual Thought within the Dragon Tomb was a clear provocation. Yet now, not only were the draconic silhouettes not attacking him, they were actively helping him search the tomb. It seemed Shen Haoran was more welcome here than they, the actual members of the Cyan Dragon Race, were. Long Xiaotian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’These are our ancestors, but they’re ignoring their own descendants to get close to a stranger. If anyone else saw this, they’d think Shen Haoran was the true descendant!’

Shen Haoran, however, was not surprised in the slightest. ’I have a Dragon Pearl in my body and have absorbed a massive amount of Dragon Qi. These silhouettes are merely Flood Dragons. It’s only natural for them to act this way when faced with the aura of the true Dragon Race. After all, Flood Dragons are just a lesser branch with a trace of the Dragon Race’s bloodline. They have to show deference in the presence of a true dragon.’

However, Shen Haoran was in no mood to dwell on such things. With the help of the draconic silhouettes, he managed to map out the Array Base of the Hundred-Refinement Soul-devouring Array. But the moment he saw it, his heart sank. Layered on top of the Array Base was another array entirely: the Flame Burst Array. This, too, was an Earth Tier Level Array, and a long-lost Ancient Array at that. If it sustained even the slightest impact, it would detonate with enough force to likely level the entire Dragon Tomb.

When Shen Haoran told Long Xiaotian and the others about the Flame Burst Array, their expressions all darkened. In other words, to destroy this Array Base, they would have to destroy the Dragon Tomb first!

"Damn it, those bastards are so devious!" an Elder cursed under his breath. The Cyan Dragon Race would never destroy the Dragon Tomb—not even if every last one of them were to perish. Their ancestors were buried here. Who in their right mind would destroy their own ancestors’ resting place to save themselves?

"There’s nothing to be done, then," Shen Haoran said with a bitter smile. "It seems we’ll have to wait for them to show their faces at the Pill Emperor competition three days from now." He had thought destroying the Array Base would be simple enough. ’I never expected them to have planned for this. They’re thoroughly prepared.’