Chapter 64: Heart Lake 1
Chapter 64: Heart Lake 1
Translator: 549690339 |
Without a doubt, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch, who held the Rain Calling Divine Ability, definitely had the capacity to defeat the multitude of strong enemies who tried to ambush him.
The Rain Calling Divine Ability induced the Waters of Heavenly River to pour down, its rain cutting off Spirit Energy and life, transforming thousands of miles of fertile land into a wetland.
This was a heavenly force surpassing the limits of a cultivator, a height that individual power could hardly reach.
But utilizing this power of heaven and earth would inevitably affect the countless denizens in the territory of the lake, and under its might which not even a True Dragon could resist, no one could hope to survive.
However, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch chose to protect the multitude, forfeiting the last opportunity to defeat his strong enemies and reclaim control of the lake territory.
The words of the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch may seem light, but Shen Yuan could imagine the difficult decision made by the Dragon Monarch thousands of years ago, to give up the chance to utilize the Rain Calling Divine Ability.
In the struggle against the divine beings of the Aquatic Tribe, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch may have been a hopeless failure, with all his subordinates betraying him and the dragon offspring all slaughtered.
But for the residents within his lake territory, he was a Dragon Monarch truly worthy of their worship.
Shen Yuan finally understood why, even after the collapse of the Yunmeng Dragon Palace thousands of years ago, people still offer sacrifices to this Dragon Monarch.
After all, not every god is the same.
Shen Yuan slowly lifted the teacup in his hand and with a solemn expression said:
“To the Dragon Monarch!”
With his words falling, Shen Yuan drank up the tea in place of wine.
The Yunmeng Dragon Monarch willingly accepted Shen Yuan’s tribute.
After such outpouring, a bond subtly formed between the human and the dragon.
The flatboat was still drifting over the flooded land, but as the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch revealed the truth, the cadavers and debris had all disappeared and even the murky and surging floodwaters had become peaceful and clear, like the surface of a tranquil lake.
The heart of the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch, like the floodwaters, had completely calmed down, with gradually rising clouds enveloping the distant scenery, making the two of them seem to be wandering in a foggy aquatic world.
As the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch revealed the truth from ten thousand years ago, Shen Yuan became more and more curious about this piece of history.
With the Dragon Monarch right in front of his eyes, Shen Yuan naturally wanted to inquire more. Thus, he took the initiative to bring up the topic and opened his mouth to say:
“There is one thing I still don’t understand, could the Dragon Monarch resolve my doubts?”
“Is Taoist referring to Yunmeng Village and the Dragon Sovereign Temple there?” asked the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch with a faint smile.
Shen Yuan nodded his head.
If he hadn’t entered the Dragon Sovereign Temple in Yunmeng Village, he would not have been able to touch the remnants of the dream left by the Dragon Monarch ten thousand years ago. Therefore, he was quite curious about the secrets of Yunmeng Village and the Dragon Sovereign Temple.
A look of reminiscence appeared in the Dragon Monarch’s eyes.
“This matter should start with River Ji devouring the lake territory.”
“Ten thousand years ago, River Ji Dragon Palace vied for my lake territory. I was lucky to escape and hid in the Yunmeng Swampland. The several Water Gods sent by the River Ji Dragon Palace to guard the water area were all killed by me.
At that time, the signs of the Spirit Energy depletion era began to show, and the River Ji Dragon Palace was in turmoil, so they couldn’t assemble a large army to destroy me. Therefore, River Ji was forced to devour the lake territory.
The Yunmeng Swampland started to dry up, causing the original water area to dry up and turn into land.
But the engulfment by River Ji didn’t last long, as the Spirit Energy depletion period had arrived.”
“With the arrival of the Spirit Energy depletion period and the various Dragon Sovereigns leading their respective water tribes to hide in the grotto heavens, the entire Primal Chaos Realm became chaotic.
The demons who knew their end was near came into the world, trying to make a final frenzy before their death.
Things like Blood Sacrifice, city slaughters, and soul extracting alchemy became commonplace.”
“I also knew that even if I concealed myself within the Yunmeng Swampland, I couldn’t make it through the thousand-year Spirit Energy depletion period. So, I chose to traverse the lake territory, exterminating demons and evil-doers with the remnants of my divine power and sheltering the people of the lake territory.
A hundred years later, all demons perished, and I was on the verge of exhaustion. So, I decided to find a place to past on, and the place I finally chose for this was right here.”
The Dragon Monarch paused for a moment, a smile appeared on his face, but he did not continue. Instead, he turned to Shen Yuan and asked:
“Do you know, Taoist, why Yunmeng Village is so named?”
Shen Yuan raised his eyebrows slightly, “Isn’t it because Yunmeng Village is located in the middle of Yunmeng Swampland?”
The Yunmeng Taoist Doyen gently stroked his beard and said:
“Taoist, your explanation is not exactly wrong, but it’s not entirely correct either. The village of Yunmeng actually took its name from the once-presence of Yunmeng Dragon Palace.
The Yunmeng Dragon Palace was destroyed by the River Ji Dragon Sovereign, and large tracts of the swampland dried up, revealing the ruins of the Dragon Palace hiding within.
I provided sanctuary to the villagers amidst the era of Spirit Energy depletion over hundreds of years. Appreciating my protection, they built the Dragon Sovereign Temple at the site of the Dragon Palace ruins.
Thousands of years later, I had already fallen, and the Dragon Sovereign Temple underwent several transformations. It was even forcibly torn down by the returning members of the River Ji Dragon Palace amidst the Spirit Energy tidal surge.
However, when the Spirit Energy depletion period arrived again, the future generations rebuilt it and gradually evolved the village of Yunmeng around the Dragon Sovereign Temple.”
Yunmeng Village is the remains of the Yunmeng Dragon Palace!
A sudden realization struck him, and his previous line of reasoning became incredibly clear.
The extraordinary concentration of Spirit Energy, the villagers who transformed into fishmen at night, and the Dragon Sovereign Temple that has managed to stand tall for thousands of years – if these occurrences were all related to the ruins of the Yunmeng Dragon Palace, everything seemed to make sense.
After all, these are the ruins of the Yunmeng Dragon Palace that once stood side by side with the Four Waterways.
“So the remarkably high concentration of Spirit Energy in Yunmeng Village is due to the Yunmeng Dragon Palace?”
Shen Yuan hurriedly asked.
Upon reaching this point, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch could not help but express a tinge of regret:
“It was a result of my attempt to open a blessed land, unfortunately, I only just failed. It merely formed a special field of Spirit Energy within the range of the Dragon Palace ruins, unable to truly self-evolve Spirit Energy.
If I had succeeded, those fools wouldn’t have turned to the River Ji Dragon Palace.”
“Then why do the villagers turn into fishmen at night?”
When this question was raised, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch did not continue his explanation but instead gave Shen Yuan a meaningful look.
“Taoist, it seems you have many questions.”
Shen Yuan also realized his misstep, and swiftly composed himself.
Seeing this, the Dragon Monarch shook his head and said:
“It’s not that this question is confidential, but it involves some causal implications and I cannot tell the Taoist at the moment.”
Then, with a sudden change in tone, the Dragon Monarch beamed:
“However, I do have a way, which depends solely on whether the Taoist is willing.”
“What method?”
The Yunmeng Dragon Monarch flicked his sleeve, and two fishing rods, one green and one purple, suddenly appeared on the boat.
Pointing to the mist-enshrouded lake before them, the Yunmeng Dragon Monarch leisurely said:
“The waters before us is my Heart Lake, which contains all that I possess.
Divine Skills, cultivation techniques, secrets, Aquatic Tribe Divine Edict, even the understanding of the incomplete Heavenly General Great Divine Power, all lie within this Heart Lake.
This lake has been silent for ten thousand years, so silent that even I cannot fathom its depths.”
“You and I will fish in Heart Lake to see who can catch a more valuable treasure.
If I lose, you can make any request, and take with you whatever you fish from the Heart Lake.
But if you lose, I would ask you to agree to one condition. What do you think, Taoist?”