Daoist Master of Qing Xuan

When all the lights went out, Shen Lian had suddenly left the hustle and bustle of the mortal world. There were no starlights nor any sentient beings. It was just nothingness.

Fortunately, it was only a brief moment of nothingness. Shen Lian lowered his head and saw the Dragon Pond.

Shen Lian once heard of an idiom that goes ‘a dragon’s pond and a tiger’s cave’ and it was used to describe a very dangerous place. He was not intimidated by a tiger’s cave. After all, he kept a pretty ferocious black tiger as a pet.

The dragon pond was indeed scary. The divine dragon was nowhere to be seen and it was a deep pond that was pitch black as far as the eye can see. The misty fog emitted from the pond, too, gave off a dangerous feeling.

After destroying the formation, Shen Lian traced the spiritual vigor of the formation and entered an unknown place. That was the only way for him to find out who was the invitee.

Shen Lian had a chance to break free but he chose to enter deeper.

He was not being conceited nor did he have the thought that nothing in Diqiu could stop him. It was his innermost instinct that could help him escape from extreme situations, just like Guan Longzi’s sincere approach that helped him dodged danger.

But that did not mean that no other trials could destroy him. Just like ordinary people, if he was caught in a dangerous situation such as an earthquake or volcano eruption, he would also not be able to escape in time. All he could do was to use some means to hide. Would he end up alive? It all depends on God’s will.

The dragon pond was very dark and the waters run deep. There were no lights in this space, it was Shen Lian’s gaze that pierced through the misty fog and saw a huge black figure that was gradually rising.

There was a bulge in the black figure which was a human figure. Gradually, a pure green ghost fire came to light and dispelled the misty fog. Shen Lian managed to take a good look at the appearance of the human.

Shen Lian noticed the dragon scales of the huge black figure under the refraction of the light. It was a Black Dragon, ancient and strong. But its scales seemed to be real yet dreamy. Shen Lian’s gaze pierced through the Black Dragon to reveal a strong endless spirit rather than dirty blood.

The Black Dragon was not a living being. It had been dead and what Shen Lian saw was the manifestation of its magnificent spirits.

But what really surprised Shen Lian was the breath of the Black Dragon. It reminded him of the incident where he discovered the Black Water Residence in the eye of the sea back then in the world where Qing Xuan existed. There were weird characters recorded at the residence and Shen Lian even translated an article about a cultivation method. Although there were lots of potential behind the method, it was incomplete as some key points were missing. Shen Lian did not further cultivate that method.

The breath of the Black Dragon reminded him of the Black Water Residences as if the Black Dragon once resided there.

Shen Lian wondered if the world where Qing Xuan existed was connected to the Netherworld. Could this be the crucial point that would lead him back to Qing Xuan? It was still too early for him to tell.

“It seems that you are interested in it.” The man on the head of the Black Dragon finally initiated the conversation. He had a bronze mask on his face and a slender figure. His hands were extremely pale and clean, just like carved jade.

Shen Lian could sense an odd power from this person. It was somewhat similar to the wizard he killed at the city of Xiliang. But this person’s breath was many times stronger than that wizard.

If that wizard was an ant, the man in the bronze mask would be a mammoth.

Shen Lian replied with a light voice, “If I am not wrong, you are the High Priest of the Xia Kingdom.”

“It’s hard to hide small things like this from you. I have always wanted to meet you. But I don’t understand why are you interested in it? It has lived a longer life than me and technically, you shouldn’t have encountered it,” the High Priest said as he fixed his gaze on Shen Lian.

The Black Dragon too stared at Shen Lian and was not even bothered by the pegasus that had a hint of dragon blood on it. The dragon’s eyes were large just like two lanterns lit up with ghost fire.

The green flames were exceptionally creepy bearing a hint of loneliness.

Dragons, especially real dragons stood highly above the masses and were second only to deities and Buddha. In fact, the stronger dragons could match or even be more powerful than deities and Buddha.

In front of the prestigious dragon, the pegasus was about to foam in the mouth. Shen Lian consoled it gently and comb its hair to calm it down.

With an extremely calm voice, Shen Lian said, “I once went to a very deep into the eye of the sea and saw a Water Residence and it had a similar breath to the breath that I remembered lingering around the residence.”

The High Priest said, “Could that be your former residence?”

He lowered his body to ask the Black Dragon but the Black Dragon gave no reaction.

The High Priest then said, “I have forgotten that it has drunk the Soup of Forgetfulness and has erased of all of its memories. Currently, it is living in this world that was founded by Wenming in order to protect its own existence.”

Shen Lian was surprised and said, “Were you talking about Wenming who was the monarch and founder of the kingdom of Xia? I have heard of him but I did not know that he was capable of opening up a world. The Dragon Pond had strong vitality. But what really amazed me is that this world is as stable as the State’s Academy. Man-made would never be as good as nature’s creation. Looks like Wenming was a lot stronger than what I imagined him to be.”

Wenming’s full name was Si Wenming. He was the monarch and founder of the Xia Kingdom and was also recognized as the strongest powerhouse of the Xia family. He led the ancestors and sorted out the overflowing Netherworld. He had fought with all types of ghosts and gods to form the Kingdom of Xia.

Coincidentally, Si Wenming was the name of Yu the Great. He was a legendary ruler from the world of Shen Lian’s previous life who founded a kingdom known as Xia.

Shen Lian was very surprised when the thought crossed his mind.

Fortunately, although no connections were found between them, Shen Lian could still calmly accept all this.

The High Priest said, “He was beyond powerful. Did you know that he once had the chance to become the master of the Netherworld but he refused? I do not know where he left to but I know that he would be guarding the Xia family and the Kingdom of Xia. He would eventually return.”

Shen Lian curiously asked, “Could it be that you belonged to the same era as him?”

The High Priest responded, “I do not only belong to the same era as him, do you know why I was able to live for so long?”

Shen Lian said, “Although it was said that there was no end to the lifespan of walking celestials of the earth, it still does not make sense to live beyond thousands or millions of years. There is a great chance of getting killed in various disasters and there would always be the risk of succumbing to calamities. Considering that you have lived such a long life and it has nothing to do with the realm, I am guessing that it is the curse in you that is either helping you or harming you.”

The High Priest had a mask on his face and thus his expression was hidden. But his body quivered in the most noticeable manner and yet, Shen Lian was able to sense it.

“You are smarter than I imagined and are indeed the Man of Destiny. Wenming told me that he refused to be the master of the Netherworld because the real master has long been destined. I did not believe that there would be someone else better than him but now I have my doubts.”