A quarter of an hour later, Zhu Lie lay sprawled on the ground, bruised and swollen, clothes in disarray, panting heavily — looking for all the world like a helpless maiden who had been ravaged by a hundred rough men.
His eyes were puffed shut to near-invisibility, and his once handsome face had been battered beyond recognition, almost deformed.
"If you ever dare disrespect me or Qing'er again, you'll get the same treatment," Yang Kai said, looking down at him from above.
Zhu Lie turned his head to the side and refused to respond, secretly resolving that as long as the mountains remained, there would never be a shortage of firewood — wasn't there a human saying about a wise man not fighting against insurmountable odds? A moment's endurance now was merely for a greater eruption later. One day, you'll see just how formidable this dragon truly is.
Yang Kai retracted his Dragon Transformation Art and reverted to his original form.
"Palace Master... Palace Master Yang!" Li Jiao's timid voice came from nearby. "Help me!"
Yang Kai turned to look and had to suppress a laugh.
The little black puppy had, at some point, wandered over to Li Jiao and was sniffing him with great interest, its eyes brimming with bewilderment and curiosity, occasionally extending its tongue to lick Li Jiao's exposed skin.
Li Jiao had been tainted by demonic energy and was giving off an odor somewhat similar to that of the Demon Race — that was probably what had attracted the little puppy's attention.
The scene of it swallowing a Blood Demon king whole was still fresh in Li Jiao's memory, and he was thoroughly wary of this small beast. On top of that, it was Yang Kai's pet, so he didn't dare make any rash moves, only crying out to Yang Kai for help.
"A-Wang, that's not food!" Yang Kai called out.
The little black puppy cast one reluctant glance at Li Jiao, then obediently trotted back and leapt into Zhu Qing's arms.
"Perverted dog!" Yang Kai regarded it with disdain. Truth be told, the little black puppy used to be close only with him, but ever since it had met Zhu Qing, it had refused to leave her side.
Zhu Qing said, "What nonsense — she's a female!"
Yang Kai's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"
He had genuinely never paid attention to the little puppy's gender. He walked over, grabbed the puppy's tail, and was about to lift it for a closer look, but Zhu Qing swatted his hand away.
"What's the big deal about just taking a look..." Yang Kai muttered, but didn't press the matter further. He glanced at Li Jiao and Zhu Lie over to the side. "Now that we've found everyone, let's set off for Yin Wind Mountain."
Li Jiao asked, "What kind of place is Yin Wind Mountain?"
Yang Kai replied, "If you want to leave this world, it's the only exit."
Li Jiao's spirits immediately surged, and he scrambled to his feet. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go right now!"
Among everyone present, his cultivation wasn't the lowest — after all, Yang Kai was still at the bottom — but if it came to actual combat strength, he was undoubtedly the weakest. On top of that, the demonic energy corrupting his body left him thoroughly uncomfortable. He couldn't wait to leave this wretched place as soon as possible.
"Let's go," Yang Kai said, already summoning his Flowing Cloud Shuttle.
Zhu Qing climbed into the shuttle with the little black puppy in her arms, and Li Jiao followed with an obsequious grin.
Yang Kai turned to look nearby. "Want to come in or not?"
"Hmph!" Zhu Lie let out a cold snort, his expression making it abundantly clear he wanted nothing to do with Yang Kai. Anyone who had just been pummeled wouldn't be in a good mood, let alone a member of the Dragon Clan.
"Suit yourself!" Yang Kai shrugged. He'd made the offer, so if Zhu Lie didn't want to take it, that was hardly his fault. If Zhu Lie refused to acknowledge him as brother-in-law, there was no reason for Yang Kai to keep pressing his face against the other's cold backside.
He stepped into the shuttle, oriented himself, channeled his Emperor Essence, and steered the Flowing Cloud Shuttle toward Yin Wind Mountain.
The speed of the Emperor-grade treasure was extraordinary — the shuttle transformed into a streak of light and vanished in an instant.
Li Jiao, ever self-aware, found a corner, sat cross-legged in meditation, and began circulating his power to resist the demonic energy's corruption. A restless impulse stirred within him, growing ever stronger. Yang Kai's earlier suggestion that he go to Zhu Lie and obtain some dragon blood to suppress and purge the demonic energy from his body hadn't sounded particularly realistic, but he had taken it completely to heart.
The more he thought about it, the better the idea seemed. Dragon blood contained divine properties and could absolutely suppress demonic energy. For a flood dragon like himself, dragon blood served an even more important purpose — it could purify one's bloodline.
His cultivation had already reached its ceiling. There was no further hope for advancement in this lifetime. If he wanted to increase his strength, the only path was through his bloodline.
Back then, he had nearly lost his life bringing a Dragon Blood Flower back from the Frozen Wasteland, spending three hundred years nourishing it with his own blood until it finally ripened — only for Yang Kai to reap the rewards. Every time he thought about it, his heart ached. And the one who had taken it from him was Zhu Qing, a member of the Dragon Clan at that, which meant he hadn't even dared harbor thoughts of retaliation.
But compared to genuine, pure dragon blood, the Dragon Blood Flower was practically worthless.
A single drop of true dragon blood would benefit him more than over a hundred Dragon Blood Flowers combined.
The more he thought about it, the harder it became to restrain himself. He certainly couldn't beat Zhu Lie in a fight, but maybe he should just go talk to him — who knew, he might actually agree to part with a drop of blood.
His mind buzzed with wild thoughts, and the demonic energy on his body churned restlessly. The little black puppy raised its head from Zhu Qing's arms and fixed Li Jiao with a burning gaze.
On the other side, Yang Kai chuckled softly and reassured her, "Don't worry. He's following us."
Zhu Qing sighed. "Don't bully him like that anymore. Most dragons have that kind of temper — he didn't mean anything by it."
Yang Kai smiled. "You don't seem to be like that at all."