On the top of the southern tower of Kongming Academy stood the all-seeing mirror. As the moonlight struck its surface, it shone with a serene blue-black glow. A white-haired, white-robed elder walked to the surface of the mirror, holding a woman’s statue in his hands—none other than that of Empress Xue Tong.

“Your Highness, this is the all-seeing mirror,” the first elder introduced. “From here, your spirit will be able to enter the trial grounds directly.”

“In that case, let’s begin, First Elder.”

The first elder waved a hand at the all-seeing mirror, causing its surface to give off a bright, white glow. Then, he closed his eyes as blinding spiritual energy emerged from his forehead. At the same time, the forehead of the statue in his hands likewise lit up in white. The two spirits simultaneously flew into the all-seeing mirror.

Empress Xue Tong’s spirit followed the first elder into the series of oases, and the demonic dragon souls deep in the demonic dragon grotto sensed their presence almost immediately.

The visage of a humongous black dragon formed within the grotto, then rose up the oasis and roared out in the first elder and Empress Xue Tong’s direction.

“What a domineering cry,” Xue Tong’s voice came from the distance. “Is this how the demonic dragon clan greets its guests?”

Her spirit was dressed in a diaphanous silver dress. She followed the first elder to the demonic dragon grotto, stopping about a hundred feet from the oasis, where the demonic dragons met them.

“Empress Xue Tong, we have been looking forward to meeting you.” The gigantic black dragon’s head drew slightly closer to Xue Tong, and she immediately felt its powerful aura spread out. Amidst this domineering aura, her spiritual visage weakened and began to flicker.

The first elder frowned and clasped his hands behind his back, forming a barrier of spiritual energy around Empress Xue Tong. However, the empress was unruffled. She stood tall and proud, firm and unyielding, as though she had returned to being a jade statue once more.

“How pitiful, to be left with only a shred of a soul.” The demonic dragon reared its head back and ended its spiritual onslaught.

“The sorry fate of one woman can hardly be compared to the downfall of the demonic dragon clan,” Xue Tong began. “To think that the once-proud rulers of the Chenyuan continent would have ended up sealed within this deep pool…”

She infused spiritual energy into her voice, magnifying it so that it could be heard everywhere in the oasis. Her words were immediately met with cries from the gathered dragons—large and small, furious and mournful, low- and high-pitched. Suddenly, the serene oasis seemed to be filled with green and red dragon’s eyes wherever she looked.

Even the experienced first elder seemed to become rather nervous at the sight, but Empress Xue Tong seemed wholly unaffected. Her voice was clear and cold, inflectionless but somehow able to stir up one’s emotions.

“Given that you’ve been trapped here for millennia, don’t you wish to soar through the skies once more?”

The projection of the massive black dragon glanced at Xue Tong, its eyes narrowed. “Now that the bloodline of the demonic dragons has been revived once more, our days of being shackled are limited. We have no need for your concern, Empress.”

“Ha.” Empress Xue Tong laughed. “The demonic dragon bloodline has been passed down for millennia. Surely there have been at least ten generations of descendants since the demonic dragons’ downfall, Elder. If breaking the seal were as easy as finding a descendant, you would have long since escaped.”

Xue Tong’s eyes gleamed as she looked at the demonic dragon. Although it didn’t respond, its whiskers suddenly began to tremble in rage.

Xue Tong ignored its fury and continued, “As far as I’m aware, the demonic dragons’ seal can only be broken by a descendant who has reached the realm of a sword saint and can manifest her innate dragon soul. And even when these conditions are met, the process of breaking the seal is so dangerous that a failed attempt is likely to end in death.”

She paused momentarily. “Within the first two centuries of the seal, quite a few demonic dragon descendants tried to break the seal. None survived, and even those families possessing the demonic dragon’s bloodline eventually began to view breaking the seal as a hopeless endeavor. From then on, those descendants broke from custom, from the weight and responsibility of their bloodline. Not only did they cut off all communication with the demonic dragon clan, they hid their names and tried to lead normal lives within human society!”

Her eyes flashed. “After a few centuries of mingling with humans, their bloodline is so diluted that they might as well be humans themselves! To find a cultivator possessing a strong enough bloodline to form an innate dragon soul would be harder than finding a needle in a haystack! And yet…”

Her voice rose to a crescendo. “And yet, you succeeded, didn’t you? A few decades ago, you managed to find one such person, who managed to cultivate his dragon’s soul. Unfortunately, just like his ancestors before him, he refused to sacrifice himself for the greater good of the clan! So what if you find another person with the bloodline and the talent? Who would sacrifice themselves for strangers long before their time?”

“You do know a lot about us,” the demonic dragon finally replied, its tone no longer as bombastic as before. “In that case, do you mean to claim that you have some means of compelling this descendant to risk her life for us?”

“Of course!” Xue Tong replied without any hesitation. “I would not have accepted this meeting otherwise.”

“Oh? And the source of your confidence?” The demonic dragon’s whiskers began to tremble once more.

“Love. Have you never wondered why those bloodline descendants of yours would abandon their responsibilities?”

“They’re all cowards!” the black dragon seethed.

“Some, perhaps, but surely not all—no, most are weighed down by love. To risk it all and fail would mean an eternal parting from their relatives, their friends, their lovers. To risk it all and fail would be to leave the same burden to their children, their children’s children. Who would choose to assume the heavy mantle of the demonic dragon’s bloodline? Better to leave it all behind.”

“Even so…!”

“And yet, just as they choose to ignore this responsibility out of love, so too can they be induced to sacrifice themselves in the name of love,” Xue Tong interrupted. “It all depends on how this love is manipulated.”

“In that case, you must be confident that you’re able to control the current holder of the demonic dragon’s bloodline.” The demonic dragon suddenly closed in on Xue Tong.

“She’s about to become my daughter-in-law,” Xue Tong replied confidently. “Given her affection for my son, she will willingly take on this ordeal.”

“Good!” the demonic dragon boomed, its massive body circling above the oasis and splashing water all over. “In that case, Empress, make your demand.” 

Xue Tong met the demonic dragon’s blood-red eyes. “I expect you already understand my situation. My request is for you to exterminate the silver dragon clan after your revival, to exact revenge for my consort.”

“We demonic dragons have always had a blood feud with the silver dragons. Even without your request, we would do the same.”

“In that case, help me find my stolen body after you exterminate the silver dragons, and we have a deal.”

“We shall await our descendant’s arrival!” After speaking its last, the projection of the demonic dragon dove back into the demonic dragon grotto. The oasis turned serene and peaceful once more, as if nothing of import had taken place.

“Empress, let’s return,” the first elder advised.

Empress Xue Tong looked at the oasis, a brief smile gracing her cold features, before she acceded.

As Li Mo read a few documents in his study, Yun Ruoyan lay down on a nearby futon, her Scarlet Eye momentarily growing and shrinking in size. At its smallest, it was the size of her spiritsteel dagger, though far more potent. Her spiritsteel dagger could cut through steel as though it were mud, whereas the Scarlet Eye would melt through the steel and turn it into a puddle of mud.

If she could control its temperature, then she would even be able to roast meat on the blade itself… Yun Ruoyan laughed at herself when her thoughts drifted involuntarily to food.

“What’s the matter? You seem so happy.” Li Mo put down the sheaf of papers in his hand.

It had been about a week since the marriage proposal, and most of the preparations were complete by this point. All that was left was the marriage itself, and spring would come within five days. Very quickly, Yun Ruoyan would officially become Li Mo’s consort, royalty of the Li kingdom in her own right.

“Yan’er, stop tempting me so!” Li Mo sighed, extending a hand out to her. Yun Ruoyan sheathed the Scarlet Eye, then walked toward Li Mo and into his embrace.

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