In the silence that followed, one of the Great Dragons sighed. "Sixteenth, we have no choice either. The Dragon Pool power above has already dried up — there's no way to keep Cultivating."
Fu Sixteenth bellowed furiously, "So you came to steal mine?!"
Another Great Dragon spoke up. "Fighting over the Dragon Pool is a tradition passed down since ancient times. What are you complaining about?"
Fu Sixteenth shot the dragon a vicious glare. Being deprived of territory by his own clansmen — he really had no grounds to complain. If he was weaker, he could simply withdraw.
The real problem was, they had all charged over together to gang up on him — what kind of nonsense was that? Even the ancestors didn't have a rule like that.
But there was no point arguing about it now, because the Dragon Pool power in Fu Sixteenth's territory had also nearly dried up.
Suppressing his anger, Fu Sixteenth lowered his head and peered deeper into the Dragon Pool. "Is something wrong down below? Why is the Dragon Pool power so scarce this time?"
A Great Dragon replied, "If you sense carefully, there does seem to be a force down below devouring and pulling at the Dragon Pool power. That's why our positions are being affected. If I'm not mistaken, it's because of *that one*."
At these words, every Great Dragon perked up.
Another Great Dragon nodded. "Indeed. If it really is because of that one, it's only natural for the Dragon Pool to undergo these changes. After all, if he's breaking through, he'd need quite a bit of power."
"Then what do we do? If we wait for that one to break through, who knows how long that'll take. Are we supposed to just sit here?"
"Obviously we can't just wait. Since there's no Dragon Pool power up above, we go deeper. As long as we're careful and don't disturb him, it should be fine."
The Great Dragons all nodded in agreement.
The three Young Dragons listened in complete bewilderment.
Zhu Wuyou sidled up to Eldest Ji and whispered, "What are they talking about? Who's that one they keep mentioning?"
Eldest Ji snapped, "Don't ask me — how would I know?"
Zhu Wuyou stared at him in surprise. "Even *you* don't know?"
A nearby Great Dragon glanced over and snorted coldly. "Three little runts, quit being so nosy. When it's time for you to know, you'll know."
While they were talking, the Great Dragons had already begun descending deeper. The one who had spoken to Zhu Wuyou called out, "Keep up, all of you. This is a rare opportunity — normally, you little ones couldn't dream of reaching this depth."
Zhu Wuyou immediately flicked his tail and scampered after them, all excitement.
He hadn't expected things to develop like this. Initially, he'd gone looking for trouble with Fu Qian to steal his benefits. But after half a year, the group had grown to six or seven Great Dragons.
Never before had a Dragon Pool opening turned out like this.
What he was even more curious about was who exactly that one was. Unfortunately, the Great Dragons wouldn't explain, and he could only resign himself to it.
They pressed on in grand formation and encountered two more Great Dragons along the way. There was no fighting this time — those two had also sensed something amiss deeper in the Dragon Pool.
After being briefed on the situation, the group expanded further.
A total of three Young Dragons and ten Great Dragons had entered the Dragon Pool this time. Now, with the exception of the most powerful among them — Old Third Ji — all the Young Dragons and Great Dragons had gathered together.
Before long, the group arrived at Old Third Ji's territory.
The leading Great Dragon took one look from a distance and signaled the others to stop.
The other Great Dragons, puzzled, looked toward Old Third Ji's position — and vaguely sensed it too.
Only the three Young Dragons were completely in the dark, wondering why everyone had stopped. The Dragon Pool's isolating force was far too strong; they were too weak to pick up on what was happening at Old Third Ji's location.
Zhu Wuyou was the blunt, impulsive type who couldn't keep things to himself. Seeing this, he scurried over to one of the Great Dragons and whispered, "Uncle Sixteenth, what's happening over there?"
Fu Sixteenth glanced at him, tempted to ignore him. But knowing this one's temperament — if he was ignored, he'd just keep pestering — he explained, "He's about to break through over there."
Zhu Wuyou was stunned. "It's only been half a year since we entered the Dragon Pool, and Uncle Third is already about to break through?"
Fu Sixteenth said, "Your Uncle Third was already one step from becoming an Ancient Dragon, and his Origin isn't bad at all. Breaking through in half a year isn't strange at all. In fact... he's actually considered slow. We originally estimated he'd need at most about three months."
The reason he'd slowed down was because the Dragon Pool power had grown thin, forcing Old Third Ji to spend several extra months accumulating energy.
Among the younger generation, Eldest Ji looked worried. "Uncle Sixteenth, with the Dragon Pool power so thin now, will it affect Uncle Third?"
Fu Sixteenth replied, "If he hadn't accumulated enough, it would certainly be an issue. But his reserves are sufficient — his own bloodline is undergoing transformation now, and he doesn't need much external power. So whether the Dragon Pool power is thin or not, it won't interfere with his advancement."
Hearing this, Eldest Ji finally relaxed.
If he had failed at the critical moment of his breakthrough, that would have been disastrous. But since the Dragon Pool power wouldn't affect Old Third Ji, it meant his breakthrough was a foregone conclusion, and the Dragon Clan would soon gain another Ancient Dragon.
Precisely because they had detected that Old Third Ji was at a critical juncture in his breakthrough, the Dragon Clan's group had stopped — to avoid disturbing him.
Over at Old Third Ji's location, a breakthrough was imminent. Deeper still within the Dragon Pool, Yang Kai's expression brightened as well.
The pain hadn't been for nothing. He could feel his dragon vein undergoing a remarkable transformation — becoming more refined, more condensed.
He wasn't afraid of change. What he feared was that nothing would change at all, making all his effort go to waste.
The pain remained, and Yang Kai roared again and again, but mixed into those roars was the thrill of excitement.