461. The Inner Struggle of the Azure Dragon

Ye Feng’s question slightly calmed Long Xiaotian’s excited spirit. After a moment of thought, he slowly said, “You should know that we, the Sky Dragons, are a rather unique species in the universe, right?”

“I’m not quite sure what you mean by unique. How exactly are you special?” Ye Feng asked.

“Our clan’s inner core, the ‘core elixir,’ is something only the highest-level beings in the entire universe possess. However, our bodies and the way we harness energy are still characteristic of mid-level beings. Because of this, our core elixir has always been a coveted treasure for those mid-to-high level creatures,” Long Xiaotian explained.

“Isn’t that a good thing? You’ll gradually evolve into the top-tier species,” Ye Feng said.

“You’re mistaken. For hundreds of millions of years, we’ve remained the same with no evolution. Except for one ancestor of mine, no other Sky Dragon has ever evolved. That’s why our clan has been trying to find another Sky Dragon who has developed a core elixir for thorough study. After all these years, now you represent our hope!” Long Xiaotian declared.

“Fine, your clan wants to study me, but at least I want to live. If this keeps up, we’ll all die on Earth, killed by the Chi Dragons. When that happens, forget about studying me — my core elixir will likely be stolen by the Chi Fire to extend its life,” Ye Feng said disdainfully.

“I will do everything in my power to cover your escape!” Long Xiaotian said excitedly.

“I won’t survive alone! My woman, my child—they all need me! Unless we can leave together, I’d rather die on Earth,” Ye Feng said decisively.

“There are still so many things waiting for you to accomplish. How can you die on Earth?” Long Xiaotian urged anxiously.

“What I want most now is to protect my family, my people! If your Sky Dragon race is nearing extinction, would you leave alone?” Ye Feng retorted coldly.

Long Xiaotian was left speechless by Ye Feng’s counter-question. No one could watch their own race perish unless they no longer considered themselves part of it.

“Maybe you’re right,” Long Xiaotian admitted, no longer as agitated as before. If this were happening to him, he wouldn’t leave either.

“How long does it take to travel from Sky Dragon Star to Earth?” Ye Feng asked.

“About three months,” Long Xiaotian replied after thinking for a moment.

“I hope they arrive in time. Let’s try sparring again; I want to sense if there’s any difference in the core elixir,” Ye Feng said as he headed toward the martial arts hall.

Long Xiaotian followed, and the two fought fiercely, thoroughly enjoying the match.

...

During Ye Feng’s recovery, Angus’s internal fire energy was finally depleted, and he managed to pull through. Though he survived, a deep sense of unfairness gnawed at him. He had trained diligently and cautiously for hundreds of years to reach level ten, only to be treated like a subordinate since the arrival of the Chi Dragons. Ye Feng, who had only trained for a few days, was already capable of killing Elder Chi Fire. It was simply unjust—why?

Angus dared not vent his anger at Chi Fire, so he unleashed his frustration on his closest subordinates, berating several of them harshly. Afterward, regret took root in his heart. Had he known Ye Feng would become such a threat, he would never have kept him alive. Without Ye Feng, the previous Dragon Seven would still be terrorizing Huaxia, and the cursed Chi Dragons would never have been drawn here. Without Ye Feng, his plans would never have been disrupted, and the world would have been unified by now. Without Ye Feng... everything was because of Ye Feng!

Angus had never hated anyone so intensely; his hatred for Ye Feng far surpassed that for his former teacher. Yet, for the first time, he felt powerless. He was no longer able to handle Ye Feng alone. His only hope was to rely on Chi Fire. But after repeated setbacks, Angus felt as if Ye Feng was divinely protected. He feared Chi Fire would ultimately fail and Ye Feng would save Earth. If that happened, Angus’s fate would be miserable, with no good ending. So, he made up his mind to help Chi Fire kill Ye Feng—there was no turning back now.

Chi Fire was equally frustrated. Since losing an elder in their last battle, he had refrained from launching major offensives. Partly because of his cautious nature—he dared not act rashly without fully understanding Ye Feng’s strength—and partly because the death of the Chi Dragon elder had a significant impact on the factions within the clan.

Although the Chi Dragons were relatively united, everyone coveted leadership. Chi Fire had a rival faction led by Chi Yan, who had long sought to seize Chi Fire’s position.

Originally, both Chi Yan and Chi Fire were candidates for chief, but with the help of Chi Fire’s father, he secured the leadership, while Chi Yan was left only with an elder’s rank.

Including Chi Yan, the Chi Dragon clan had sixteen elders. Eight supported Chi Fire, and eight—including Chi Yan himself—supported him. The recently deceased elder was one of Chi Fire’s supporters, so the previously unbalanced factions were now evenly matched. Naturally, Chi Yan saw this as an opportunity to stir trouble, inadvertently giving Ye Feng some extra time to prepare.

As Chi Fire had anticipated, Chi Yan soon caused a commotion. The moment they met, tension filled the air.

“You’ve been chief for so many years! It’s time for you to step down!” Chi Yan said arrogantly. His power slightly surpassed Chi Fire’s; if not for the presence of another elder restraining him, he would have rebelled long ago.

“My position as chief was chosen by everyone! Are you planning a rebellion?” Chi Fire responded coldly.

“A rebellion? Don’t pretend you’ve forgotten how you got this chief position,” Chi Yan sneered. If it weren’t for Chi Fire’s father abusing his authority to remove two elders, Chi Yan would have been the chief.

“Don’t think I’m afraid of you just because Elder Bing died! Bring it on. You couldn’t be chief then, and you still can’t be now!” Chi Fire scoffed.

“We’ll see about that. Let’s see how long you can still be so smug,” Chi Yan laughed as he left Chi Fire’s room.

After Chi Yan left, Chi Fire was furious, shattering glass all over the floor. Just then, Angus arrived and whispered a few words into Chi Fire’s ear. Instantly, Chi Fire’s anger subsided. After some quick plotting, Angus hurried off to carry out a new mission.

Meanwhile, Ye Feng and Long Xiaotian’s sparring had concluded. After testing, Ye Feng’s strength had increased once again—not by a large margin, but far faster than ordinary people. This trait was similar to Long Xiaotian’s ancestor. Long Xiaotian wanted once again to suggest Ye Feng leave alone, but seeing Ye Feng’s dark expression, he gave up.

[End of chapter]