He brought the matter up with the Phoenix Queen, and she said, "Even if you hadn't mentioned it, I would have had the same thought. Before, we didn't know where our clansman was, but now that we do, we should naturally bring her back to the Phoenix Nest."
Yang Kai, surprised and grateful, quickly expressed his thanks.
He found the Dragon Clan increasingly unreasonable when compared to the Phoenix Clan. Look at them — Su Yan was still at the Phoenix Clan's ancestral grounds, and the Phoenix Queen was already planning to bring her back. And him? He had traveled all the way here, only to nearly get pummeled by a dragon outside Unreturning Pass. Absolutely disgraceful.
The Phoenix Queen smiled faintly but said nothing. What she had said was not a lie — her sincerity in wanting to bring that human with the Phoenix Clan's origin essence to the Phoenix Nest for cultivation was genuine. She truly hoped that the human could purify the bloodline and transform into a pure-blooded Phoenix. None of that was false.
However, there was one thing she did not mention: if that human could not transform into a pure-blooded Phoenix, she might very well be trapped in the Phoenix Nest for the rest of her life, until she died of old age.
The Phoenix Clan would never again allow their clan's origin essence to leak outward. This was one of the ways the Phoenix Clan reclaimed their origin power.
If Su Yan could become a pure-blooded Phoenix, then she would naturally be one of their own. If she could not, then when Su Yan eventually passed away, the origin power would remain within the Phoenix Nest, nurturing new clan members.
"The Dragon Pool will open within the next few days. When it does, there will inevitably be a struggle for you. Are you prepared?" The Phoenix Queen suddenly changed the topic, afraid that Yang Kai might dig too deeply into the Phoenix Clan's affairs.
Yang Kai was a bit stunned. "I need to fight to enter the Dragon Pool?"
The Phoenix Queen shook her head. "You don't need to fight to enter the Dragon Pool. But once inside, there will be fighting."
Yang Kai asked humbly, "Please enlighten me, Senior."
The Phoenix Queen hesitated slightly, as if debating whether she should share this. But thinking it over — even if she didn't tell him now, Yang Kai would find out once he entered the Dragon Pool — she spoke: "The Dragon Pool is the foundation of the Dragon Clan. Cultivating within it brings tremendous benefits, allowing one to rapidly purify Dragon Clan bloodline. Every time the Dragon Pool opens, the entire Dragon Clan flocks to it, fighting tooth and nail over just a few spots."
There was a limit on the number of spots available for the Dragon Pool — no one had mentioned this to Yang Kai, but he had guessed as much. Otherwise, Ji Laosan wouldn't have blocked his path outside Unreturning Pass.
According to Huang Siniang, Ji Laosan had been waiting for the Dragon Pool to open for many years. After finally getting his chance, Yang Kai had snatched away his opportunity. How could he not be furious?
"Generally speaking, each time the Dragon Pool opens, some of the young dragons enter, and some of the great dragons enter as well. As for the Ancient Dragons, their bloodline cultivation has already reached a level where entering the Dragon Pool offers little benefit, so they do not enter."
"As far as I know, this time the Dragon Pool will grant three spots to young dragons and ten to great dragons. Originally, Ji Laosan was one of those ten, but now you have taken his place." The Phoenix Queen gave Yang Kai a meaningful look, as if to say: now you know why he targeted you, don't you?
Yang Kai listened quietly.
"The Dragon Pool is not like our Phoenix Nest, which can be seen with the naked eye. It is a wondrous and elusive place. Since ancient times, only the Dragon Clan has been able to commune with it and open it. What exactly lies within the Dragon Pool — only those dragons who have entered it before know. Even our Phoenix Clan only has a partial understanding. However, it is said that the deeper you go into the Dragon Pool, the greater the benefits. So if you enter, you might want to venture deeper. Perhaps you'll find something different."
"Inside the Dragon Pool, fighting is not prohibited. The Dragon Clan is inherently a combative and competitive race, so once you enter, things may not go smoothly for you."
Yang Kai was unconcerned. "With no Ancient Dragons overseeing things, they're no match for me." He was a great dragon himself. With only young dragons and great dragons entering the Dragon Pool, who did he have to fear?
Once inside, if those dragons left him alone, that would be fine. But if they dared to cause trouble, they would only be humiliating themselves.
The Phoenix Queen seemed about to offer a word of caution, but reconsidered and nodded slightly. "That's true enough. That's all I know about the Dragon Pool."
Yang Kai bowed respectfully. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior."
The Phoenix Queen waved her hand. "Since the human side was willing to send you here, it means you have value. Though our Dragon and Phoenix clans are different from yours, when it comes to the Ink Battlefield, we are all on the same side. Even if I hadn't told you any of this, you would have learned it yourself once you entered the Dragon Pool."
"Regardless, being forewarned is better than having to react on the spot."
The Phoenix Queen smiled faintly. "I will let you know when the Dragon Pool opens."
Yang Kai understood. "Then this junior will not disturb you any further."
With that, he vanished in a flash and found a quiet corner within the Phoenix Nest, settling into a cross-legged position to rest and conserve his energy.
He no longer refined and absorbed the spatial dao marks here. First, he had already gained more than enough benefit from Su Yan's Phoenix Nest, and further refinement would be pointless. What he needed now was to properly digest and integrate what he had gained.
Second, the Phoenix Queen had graciously allowed him in to take shelter. To continue mining her reserves would be rather dishonorable.
Several days passed in the blink of an eye.
While Yang Kai was contemplating his own Dao of Space, the Phoenix Queen's voice reached his ears: "The Dragon Pool is about to open. Go."
As her words fell, ripples spread through the void before him, and a portal materialized.
Yang Kai stood and bowed toward the Phoenix Queen from afar, then stepped into the portal.
Watching the spot where Yang Kai had vanished, the Phoenix Queen stirred her will, and the portal closed.
This time, the Dragon Clan was going to take a bit of a loss. Ever since this human youth had arrived at Unreturning Pass, he had not let out even the slightest trace of Dragon Clan origin essence. So the Dragon Clan had no idea what kind of origin he had actually refined — they assumed it was an ordinary dragon origin. After all, quite a few Dragon Clan origins had been lost outside over the years, and many of them were origins born when creatures possessing Dragon Clan bloodline had purified their bloodline to its absolute limit, rather than origins nurtured within the Dragon Pool itself.