Chapter 687: Steadiness

　　When the dragon race came, they brought water that filled the sky.

　　When the dragon race left, they packed up nearly a hundred dragon corpses. Like an old man at the end of his life, they sighed softly.

　　It was appropriate to compare the dragon race to the old.

　　The body and bones of the dragons were already old. Their essence, energy, and spirit were already deteriorating. However, they did not want to admit to being old. They wanted to be unrestrained and start jumping around when they had the chance.

　　They were really not afraid of falling apart and being buried in the Primordial World’s living beings.

　　Countless living beings had been buried in that cemetery.

　　Li Changshou sighed in his heart. Compared to the dragon race, the phoenix race was much more stable although they only had a few members.

　　Sister-in-law Kong Xuan was almost out of the Great Tribulation. She was an important member of Ren School and the existence that Daoist Wen Jing yearned for the most. She was happy and beautiful.

　　Although the two little phoenixes nurtured by the essence blood of the Primordial Phoenix did not appear in the Primordial World, they lived very healthy lives and secretly continued the bloodline of the phoenix race.

　　There was no need to mention the Golden Roc. Ever since it was slapped silly by the Moon Lord and fooled by him, it had become a super fighter of the Heavenly Courts.

　　From the South-Heaven Gate to the trichiliocosm, from the trichiliocosm to the Chaos Sea…

　　As long as his teacher did not break off from the Heavenly Dao, the Golden Roc could live very comfortably.

　　The dragon race…

　　Ao Yi’s shoulders were still like that of a child and he could not pull the half-buried ship.

　　Yet, there were so many fearless dragons who got drunk on the ship and sang in joy every night.

　　The dragon maidens did not know that it was difficult for their race to perish. They were still singing in the sea.

　　Yes, I still have to look for Ao Yi to give him psychological counseling later to prevent him from feeling depressed.

　　Whether the dragon race incurred losses or gains actually depended on how one understood it.

　　In terms of the current situation, they would sacrifice more than a hundred experts in exchange for the dragon race to avoid the calamity that would appear due to their own inflation in the future.

　　For a moment, he was humiliated.

　　The dragon race could survive from the end of the ancient times until today. They naturally had a “self-regulation mechanism”.

　　After the dragon race left, Li Changshou left the Heavenly Generals that Youqin Xuanya was in charge of, to clean up the mess and settle the mortals who had hidden on the mountain.

　　The matter of suppressing the dragon was progressing smoothly.

　　At that moment, Li Changshou was a little confused. Was he happy that Nezha did not have to commit suicide, or was he gratified that the dragon race had been successfully integrated into the Heavenly Dao system and buried a fire bolt in the future?

　　However, no matter what, he had already completed 98% of his plans regarding the dragon race and Nezha. He only had a little regret.

　　Li Changshou originally wanted to kill all the dragons who had chosen to “give the human race an unforgettable lesson”. However, most of the dragons hid at the back during the battle just now.

　　He could only rely on the Dragon King to adjust himself when he returned.

　　Li Changshou’s main body did not leave directly. He first bowed to the immortals of Chan School and flew in front of Zhao Gongming and the other immortals of Jie School.

　　The living beings present were silent. They pretended that they did not see anything.

　　Li Changshou still looked like an old immortal. It was not convenient for him to change his appearance in front of everyone. When he arrived, he persuaded earnestly,

　　“Yun, this item is for your protection. Don’t release it often. If your enemies are wary in the future, the effect will be greatly reduced.”

　　Yun Xiao nodded with a smile and retracted the jade statue. She stared at Li Changshou’s face.

　　Li Changshou blinked. She retracted her gaze and blushed. However, in the blink of an eye, she was still cold and stood quietly on the cloud.

　　Qiong Xiao gave him a thumbs-up and smiled. “Brother-in-law, you’re heroic.”

　　“Third Sister, you flatter me.” Li Changshou cupped his hands and openly agreed to the address.

　　Yun Xiao was the Second Sister.

　　The Goddess of Golden Spirit asked, “You clearly restrained the dragon race just now. Why didn’t you kill all their experts or make them swear a Heavenly Dao oath? Why did you let them go so easily?”

　　Li Changshou hummed softly and sent a voice transmission. “There are some schemes here. The dragon race has never done anything wrong. Today, killing dozens of dragon race members is enough to manifest the might of the heavens. The Great Tribulation is in operation. It is a good thing that there are fewer unstable factors. These dragon experts can be considered to have filled the Tribulation Cloud.”

　　The Goddess of Golden Spirit looked as if she had known that would happen and did not ask further.

　　Zhao Gongming smiled and said, “This Li Jing is not bad. He’s a man. Bring him here often in the future.”

　　“My godson is also muddle-headed.” Li Changshou sighed and said, “I originally thought that it was a joke from the elders of the Immortal Du Sect. I didn’t expect it to really be true.”

　　The Goddess of Golden Spirit said, “It’s just that her cultivation level is a little weak. This time, she even lost her Dao.”

　　“Ah, you can’t say that,” Zhao Gongming said. “I see that Li Jing has great luck. He will definitely be able to advance. He’s probably a child of the Great Tribulation.”

　　Li Changshou nodded slowly and did not expose that matter. He only said,

　　“Later, I will give him a few treasures. As long as he can cultivate to the Golden Immortal realm, everything else is not a big deal.”

　　The Goddess of Golden Spirit wanted to say something but hesitated. She looked at the immortals of Chan School who were surrounding the Li Residence and snorted softly.

　　Li Changshou smiled and said, “Senior Sister, don’t worry. Although Li Jing’s sons are disciples of Chan School, they will not affect my position in the Great Tribulation.

　　I have always been on the side of the Heavenly Courts, Ren School, and the Dao Sect.”

　　“Alright, it’s hard on you.” The Goddess of Golden Spirit shook her head. “Don’t be mistaken because we have no qualms about attacking the Western Sect. If we really fight Chan School one day, it will be a little difficult to attack.”

　　“Let’s take it one step at a time.”

　　Zhao Gongming placed his hands behind his back and sighed. “We haven’t gotten into a conflict with that side yet. It’s a good thing if we can delay the calamity.”

　　“I’m afraid the Heavenly Dao will not allow it,” Yun Xiao said softly. The few mighty figures were silent.

　　“Let’s go back first,” Qiong Xiao said. “There’s nothing else here. Let’s continue drinking tea on the island. Brother-in-law, are you coming?”

　　“I still have a lot of work to do. I won’t go over.”

　　Li Changshou bowed and smiled. “Thank you for coming to help. However, self-preservation is the most important in the Great Tribulation. It’s indeed a little dangerous to go out like this. It’s better to be safe in the future.”

　　“Yes,” Yun Xiao replied gently.

　　The two of them looked at each other and seemed to be talking to each other.

　　Yun Xiao nodded slightly and casually summoned a cloud to cover the four of them. They turned into clouds and dissipated together…

　　He had long learned this escape technique.

　　Li Changshou stood quietly with his hands behind his back. He lowered his head and saw Youqin Xuanya standing quietly on the mountain and looking at the situation.

　　As if seeing Li Changshou lower his head, Youqin Xuanya immediately turned around and walked towards the mortals beside her. She began to get busy.

　　Not long after, the immortals of Chan School returned to Kunlun Mountain. The water of Chentang Pass was sent back to the East Ocean.

　　Li Changshou specially ordered Youqin Xuanya to be in charge of the subsequent repairs. His main body returned to the Heavenly Courts first and shifted his attention to the paper effigy.

　　Today, suppressing the dragon was actually a form of deterrence for the other factions.

　　For example, Maitreya.

　　Li Changshou thought about it carefully. He would probably become a demon in the hearts of many dragons today. There would naturally be dragons who would hate him.

　　However, that did not affect his thousand-year plan. It was not something worth paying attention to.

　　I should think about… Child Bi Yun who’s under the Goddess of Stone.

　　The boy’s life is more important than Maitreya’s.

　　Li Changshou vaguely felt that Maitreya would definitely appear again and extend his chubby claws at Nezha.

　　Now, he was the sharp sword on the surface of the Heavenly Dao. Maitreya had become the poisonous blade in the dark of the Heavenly Dao.

　　What was even more amazing was that the two of them were already directly opposing each other. As long as there was a chance to get rid of each other, they would definitely not show mercy.

　　The Heavenly Dao, to be precise, the Dao Ancestor, was naturally happy to see Maitreya restrain him.

　　The act of the Human Emperor attacking the heavens had definitely affected the will of the Heavenly Dao.

　　The Heavenly Dao could not directly interfere with the Great Tribulation and affect the minds of living beings. That was the bottom line of living beings.

　　Even if they were affected by the Great Tribulation, the two were essentially the same and in different forms. The living beings could barely accept it.

　　Senior Suiren naturally would not turn into ashes for nothing, but everything had to be slowly realized.

　　Fifty percent confidence is like the Heavenly Dao revealing their cards. Isn’t that the same as taking Senior Lang’s old path? Is it any different from courting death?

　　It’s really difficult to fight the heavens.

　　Li Changshou’s main body transformed into a stream of light and escaped into the East Heavenly Gate. He looked for the Jade Emperor to report what had happened. The Heavenly Soldiers and Heavenly Generals quickly returned to their positions.

　　All over the Heavenly Courts, the living beings were privately discussing the average combat strength of the Heavenly Courts officials.

　　Then, most Heavenly Soldiers realized that from the results of the battle, the average combat power of the civil officials was definitely higher than that of the generals.

　　They didn’t have a bright future.

　　At Chentang Pass, the two batches of paper Daoists that Li Changshou had secretly arranged escaped into the depths of the earth again.

　　The skin of “Wang Chang’an” had been following beside Lady Yin. When the water retreated, he immediately brought her back to the Li Residence to meet Li Jing and his son, who were already sleeping on the bed.

　　Li Changshou saw with his immortal senses…

　　Nezha returned to his child-like appearance. He was twice as old as before. There was a snot bubble at the tip of his nose. He slept without a care in the world.

　　Li Jing was originally meditating. However, after consuming the pill that nourished his essence soul, he could not help but lower his head and fall asleep.

　　Sleeping was also the most effective way for Qi Refinement cultivators to recover their mental strength.

　　Li Jing had exhausted too much of the power of his essence soul this time. It had already affected his cultivation and made the Dao Realm, which was not high, worse.

　　He could only continue working hard.

　　Perfected Taiyi was severely injured, but he was very energetic at that moment.

　　He sat at the stone table outside the house with a pale face and smiled rather happily. His fingers kept tapping his thigh, almost singing and embarrassing himself.

　　Nezha completely controlled the baneful aura. He merged his previous life and current life. In the future, he would be both Nezha and Ling Zhuzi.

　　That was indeed worthy of Perfected Taiyi’s silly laughter.

　　When Li Changshou’s paper effigy brought Lady Yin over, Perfected Taiyi stood up and greeted Li Changshou, “Changgeng! Thank you! Hahahaha!”

　　Li Changshou was rendered speechless.

　　It was very sudden.

　　His incarnation had no intention of announcing it to the outside world. Later, he could only imitate the Jade Emperor and change his identity and view the world from a different perspective.

　　Perfected Taiyi was too careless.

　　Two young men ran out of the pavilion. One of them looked older, while the other looked like a young man. They were naturally Jinzha and Muzha.

　　Jinzha was the first to shout, “Greetings, Uncle-Master Changgeng.”

　　Muzha hurriedly ran to Lady Yin’s side and supported her. “Mother, are you injured?”

　　“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Lady Yin, who was still young, patted the back of Muzha’s hand. She could not be bothered to bow to Perfected Taiyi and Yu Ding. She hurriedly rushed into the house to see Li Jing and Nezha.

　　Li Changshou nodded at Jinzha. The latter lowered his head and took his leave. They went to a family reunion in the house.

　　Perfected Yu Ding, Perfected Taiyi, and Li Changshou looked at each other and laughed heartily.

　　Taiyi said, “In terms of devising schemes and plotting against others, no one can defeat you.”

　　“Senior Brother, you can praise me more sincerely,” Li Changshou said. “You can just express it with your body.”

　　Perfected Yu Ding asked, “Changgeng, are you injured?”

　　“It’s just some internal injuries. It’s fine.”

　　Li Changshou grinned and took a deep breath. He changed to a voice transmission. “The Dragon King’s cultivation level is really impressive. I only exchanged a few moves with him. I’m almost unable to take them.

　　It’s still because the old Dragon King deliberately chose to lose today. Otherwise, it would probably be difficult to clean up the mess today.”

　　Perfected Yu Ding nodded slowly and sent a voice transmission. “The foundation of the dragon race is indeed terrifying. This is still the ancient dragon race guarding the Sea Eye. We are indeed in danger this time.”

　　Li Changshou smiled and sent a voice transmission.

　　“Actually, there’s no danger. Chan School, the Dragon King, the human race, and the Heavenly Courts are just taking what we need. As the chief and king of the East Ocean, the Dragon King seems to have the authority to kill, but he cannot act arbitrarily. He has to consolidate his authority before he can use it. Otherwise, he will suffer the backlash of power. The old Dragon King understands this logic better than anyone else. Therefore, he chose to use the opportunity to suppress the restless dragons in the dragon race. I’m just bearing the infamy. After all, he’s the oldest king of the Primordial World. He’s definitely not simple.”

　　Perfected Taiyi pursed his lips. “Now that you mention it, I really don’t feel good. I want to go to the Dragon Palace again.”

　　Perfected Yu Ding silently took out a familiar Dharma treasure pearl.

　　Li Changshou moved his feet slightly and sealed the path of retreat that Perfected Taiyi could take.

　　“This matter has come to an end. The dragon race no longer needs to enter the calamity.”

　　Perfected Taiyi smiled and shook his head without saying anything.

　　…

　　“Ah…”

　　The East Ocean, Crystal Palace.

　　The seawater seemed to have become a little turbid. The atmosphere inside and outside the Crystal Palace was extremely oppressive.

　　The Dragon Kings of the other three seas did not say anything. After returning to the Crystal Palace, they brought the elders back to their respective homes.

　　They had lost.

　　He had lost his dignity and most of his pride. It was as if the dragon race could only work for the Heavenly Courts in the future and “enjoy their later years” in the four seas.

　　The East Ocean Dragon King held the handle of the chair and slowly sat back on his throne. The broken horns on his head slowly regrew.

　　He waved his hand, and the dragon elders below bowed and retreated.

　　A few old dragons wanted to stop and stay, but the old Dragon King waved his hand again. The old dragons lowered their heads and left.

　　With a creak, the stone door of the hall slowly closed. The old Dragon King squinted his eyes. It was unknown what he was thinking about.

　　He should have thought of the situation when the Heavenly Courts had just risen. Although the dragon race had experienced the calamity of the Sea Eye being broken, they had hope and a future.

　　The pool of stagnant water had vitality again. This made him, the Clan Leader, happier than obtaining more stagnant water.

　　He recalled that day. Ao Yi rushed back with a grim expression. He knelt in front of the hall and whispered.

　　Bleeding.

　　At that time, the Great Tribulation was about to strike. The dragon race did not enter the tribulation, but the disciples of the dragon race who had become the Water Gods of various lands had committed one despicable act after another.

　　He had no choice but to kill one to warn the others. He could temporarily suppress the arrogance in the clan.

　　However, before the dragon race could take a few steps on that seemingly bright path, they had already begun to deviate…

　　As the Clan Leader, he was actually helpless about it. That was because it was a pride that had been rooted in the dragon race for countless years.

　　They wouldn’t commit evil acts, but they would not deliberately seek a good reputation.

　　They were originally free to roam the world, but they could not withstand the word calamity.

　　As the leader, he represented the will of his clansmen. When his clansmen walked on another path, he could only walk ahead of them and use that to suppress their anxious steps.

　　What happened today…

　　Ah, what happened today…

　　The old Dragon King took out a jade token from his sleeve. His dragon hand trembled slightly as he recalled the situation that day.

　　“Father, this is a letter from Brother Sect Master. The jade token seems to have more than one layer of restrictions. I have never opened it.”

　　The first time he saw the jade token, the old Dragon King was also touched by the contents.

　　At a glance, the outermost layer of the jade token was a series of flaws and detailed solutions to the dragon race.

　　It was so detailed that he had set every step and some key lines.

　　When the Dragon King opened the second seal and read the contents, he fell into hesitation.

　　There were five terms in it. Since Taibai Jinxing had announced today that he would remove the dragon race’s authority, subdue the dragon race, and put on the Heavenly Dao restrictions on them…

　　That was to put a shackle on the dragon race.

　　The Dragon King did not want to agree at first, but his explanation made the Dragon King hesitate.

　　“The calamity of the dragon race does not originate from the dragon race’s reluctance to part with the position of the main character of the world. It also does not originate from the fact that the dragon race’s thoughts are too old. It is indeed the Dao of changing living beings. The Heavenly Dao follows the logic.”

　　“The dragon race seemed to be stable after returning to Heaven. However, their selfish desires were inflated, and they would gradually cause trouble for the dragon race.”

　　“The order established by the Heavenly Courts cannot be trampled on by any living beings. Otherwise, the Heavenly Might would be gone. The dragon race is the most prone to overstepping boundaries in the system of the Heavenly Courts and also the easiest to catch.”

　　“The Heavenly Dao’s restrictions on the dragon race are tighter. The lower the dragon race’s morale, the more stable their situation would be. If they bled appropriately, it could delay the fate of the dragon race in the future.”

　　“Dragon King, if you want to be strong, the dragon race would be in danger. Dragon King, please reconsider.”

　　Actually, the Dragon King understood these principles very well. They were all common topics.

　　What really made the old Dragon King make up his mind to choose today’s path was to observe the third restriction that he had activated on his own after the 36th time.

　　It was a dense line of small words. After they appeared, they quickly disappeared. However, the Dragon King saw them and remembered them clearly.

　　How could he forget?

　　How could he forget what was said inside?

　　“Why did the four seas not have Sea Eyes in ancient times? The sea of blood was extremely prosperous. It gathered the Yin Qi and baneful aura of the world. When did the Nine Polluted Springs rise?”

　　“If the Sea Eye is the leakage of the Nine Polluted Springs, why can it be completely blocked by the merit of the Heavenly Dao? If the Heavenly Dao has such power, why is the Primordial World still in danger of the Nine Polluted Spring?”

　　“The Ancestral Dragon Primordial Phoenix was originally the right-hand man of the Pangu God. Why did he not hesitate to destroy the Primordial World in ancient times and fight endlessly?”

　　“Senior, you have been cultivating since ancient times. The answer is in your heart. There’s no need to answer me. There would still be a calamity after the Great Tribulation. The choice of the dragon race at that time is crucial to living beings. Senior, if you believe in life, please follow the arrangements of the first level. If you are lucky enough to survive, the dragon race will not be destroyed after the calamity. If you are defeated, the dragon race can rely on bowing down to the Heavenly Courts and remaining in the Primordial World. The dragon race does not need to help in times of need. In addition, Ao Yi treats me like his brother, I don’t want him to be involved. Disciple of the Grand Pure One, Li Changshou.”

　　“Ah…”

　　The jade token in the old Dragon King’s hand turned into fragments that scattered gently. Ao Yi’s report that day still echoed in his ears.

　　“Father, this is the only opportunity for the dragon race that the Sect Master has seen.”

　　The only chance…

　　There would be a calamity after the tribulation…

　　“The younger generation will surpass us. Tsk, the younger generation will surpass us.”

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