Chapter 40: I Am the Dragon Palace’s Second Prince

　　Two days passed by slowly…

　　Li Changshou unlocked another skill during the boring music-and-dance showcase.

　　As he cast the Wind Speech Incantation to survey the surroundings, he slowly flipped through the pages of the book he had borrowed from the Dao Sutra Outer Hall.

　　He was slightly bored.

　　The most exciting parts of this Demon-Sweeping Meet were most likely the Dragon Palace treasure-giving segment and the segment where disciples from various sects came together to exchange pointers. Both would be happening later in the day.

　　Li Changshou was completely disinterested in the Dragon Palace’s treasures.

　　No one would mind possessing more Dharma treasures. However, there were too many people coveting for too little treasures this time. His Second Stage Void Return Realm cultivation was not enough for him to compete for the treasures.

　　Additionally, he predicted that a great calamity would befall upon the Dragon Palace from today onwards. It was best that he was not involved with any related karma.

　　If he did become involved, then it would be Jiu Wu’s fault.

　　Based on the position of the sun in the sky, it seemed the Demon-Sweeping Meet was about to officially start.

　　Li Changshou looked at the platform floating in the air. After a two-day conference, the Heaven Immortals from the various sects should have finished discussing the matters of the East Ocean’s border and more.

　　Yet, all these had nothing to do with him.

　　Nearby, Jiu Jiu was still trying to figure out how to solve the six-colored Rubik’s cube, thus proving that one’s cultivation realm and intelligence were not correlated. At least, she successfully spent two mundane days without alcohol.

　　Youqin Xuanya seemed to have come to some form of realization the last time Li Changshou accidentally rejected her. She would look back at him every one hour but make no move to approach him.

　　Thus, two days passed by quite peacefully.

　　Li Changshou was lazily reading the sutra when he suddenly felt piercing, a hostile gaze landing on him.

　　Calmly, Li Changshou lifted the bamboo slip he was holding and focused on analyzing the information the Wind Speech Incantation provided. He discovered the blurry figure of a young man in the direction of the gaze.

　　‘Oh? An enemy of mine? How can that be?’

　　Li Changshou lifted his head and saw that that person was standing at the edge of the venue, 1,000 feet away from where the various Immortal Sects were seated.

　　More accurately, it was not a human for short anther-like dragon horns were growing from the forehead.

　　A young dragon of the dragon race?

　　It should be a young dragon about to participate in the fight between the various sects happening soon.

　　Li Changshou was very confused as he realized that that dragon had been staring intensely at him without looking away.

　　He silently leaned back, and the dragon’s gaze followed his movement. It was staring at him without a doubt.

　　Upon closer examination, there was a streak of pale-blue light in the dragon’s eyes.

　　Did that dragon see through his concealed cultivation?

　　It should not be possible. The technique Li Changshou was using to conceal his cultivation level was one of a kind, for it was derived through the detailed analysis of the Dharma spells people around him used.

　　‘Could it be because I have the lowest cultivation among the people from the Immortal Du Sect here? That’s why he targeted me?’

　　Li Changshou started hypothesizing. Just then, through the Wind Speech Incantation, he captured that the edges of the young man’s lips twitched and formed a small, confident smile.

　　‘Perhaps, this young dragon is not confident but was asked to win against someone later on. Therefore, it seeks out the weakest individual of a major sect? This method is so uncultivated…’

　　Li Changshou glanced at the dragon and stared into its sapphire eyes calmly. The blue streak of light in its eyes gradually receded as it silently locked eyes with Li Changshou, who was several thousand feet away.

　　According to the 10-second eye contact rule[1], the two of them should be…

　　Their eye contact was interrupted by a red body. A Turtle Immortal stood before the young man.

　　“Why are you here, Your Highness? It is your turn soon!”

　　Prince? The Dragon King’s son?

　　There was nothing good about being targeted by someone like that.

　　Li Changshou could not comprehend how and why the Dragon King’s son could find him, a disciple of the Immortal Du Sect, among the crowd present.

　　Was his appearance attractive to male dragons?

　　Li Changshou contemplated, analyzing the whole incident in detail and thinking if he should immediately find an excuse to leave the venue.

　　Presently, the dragon race was actually in a very awkward position.

　　They possessed many experts from the ancient times and countless treasures. Yet, they were rejected by Heaven and Earth after destroying the Primordial World in the Ancient War.

　　There might be many experts in the dragon race, and hence, it seemed strong. In fact, however, its strength could not keep up with the improvement and development of the human race.

　　In addition, the dragon race mainly relied on bloodlines to gain strength. Following the death of the strongest Ancestral Dragon during the Ancient War, no dragon stronger than the Ancestral Dragon had been born from then on.

　　After the six Saints ascended the throne during the Primordial Times, the dragon race had to become cautious in fear of invoking the wrath of the Saints and resulting in the eradication of the dragon race. However, the dragon race was still living in a dream where dragons were overlords.

　　A few years ago, the East Ocean Dragon Palace had purposely sent out a batch of newly-trained soldiers to create trouble at the Coast of the East Ocean. The Immortal Du Sect had sent out disciples to kill demons in the East Ocean and protect the human race. This had served as a warning and humiliation for the Dragon Palace.

　　However, the Dragon Palace had not dared to retaliate, for the Immortal Du Sect possessed the Dao heritage of the Three Schools, which was also why the Demon-Sweeping Meet was held. The dragon race wished to seize this opportunity to showcase its prowess and negotiate with the cultivators of the human race to equally split the East Ocean borders.

　　After that, the Dragon Palace had sent a wretched dragon to deliver the invitation card to the Immortal Du Sect. However, that wretched dragon had been sent flying by Exalted Wang Qing with one move. This was another slap to the face, and it was even worse this time round.

　　Yet, the Dragon Palace still had not dared to do anything to the Immortal Du Sect. As a result, dragons in power of the Dragon Palace had set up this little trap with the intention to use this opportunity to take a bit of revenge.

　　While it was childish, it also showed how helpless the dragon race was and how awkward of a situation they were in.

　　In Li Changshou’s opinion, the dragon race was strong in appearance but weak in reality. Old habits would die hard. The whole dragon race had become twisted in its own way.

　　‘Is this dragon eyeing me because of these reasons?’

　　Li Changshou fell silent for a few beats, before making a swift decision to sit on the fence and observe the situation.

　　It was safer for him to stay by his own sect than take off on his own in such a place where the strong converged. If there was an expert from the Dragon Palace, who wanted to release their anger on a weakling like him, it would truly be deleterious for him.

　　Li Changshou decided to admit defeat immediately using his weak cultivation as an excuse, should that dragon choose him to exchange pointers with later.

　　The performers left the stage, and a Turtle Immortal with white eyebrows stepped onto the stage with a golden shell beneath his feet. Then, he started to slowly narrate the past glory of the dragon race, which Li Changshou could not be bothered to listen to.

　　He sensed that gaze again. Hence, he chose to stop the Wind Speech Incantation, looked over, and saw that the person about to step onto the stage was the young man from the dragon race.

　　…

　　‘I, the Second Prince of the East Ocean Dragon Palace, must do something big today.’

　　Ao Yi stood behind a few flood dragon troops calmly. He only stepped forward when the Turtle Minister introduced him.

　　The immortal armor vest he wore shone faintly, making his young face gentle-looking.

　　Ao Yi was well-aware that he could be considered somewhat of a star in today’s Demon-Sweeping Meet.

　　This was his 10-years-old birthday celebration.

　　Don’t misunderstand, however, for this was, in fact, the 10th hour since he had broken out from his shell. More than 230 years ago, Ao Yi had already gained consciousness in the dragon egg and could move about in the egg for six hours every day.

　　That phenomenon was known as Egg Shift, a specialized term used by the dragon race.

　　From then on, various ‘teachers’ would utilize these six hours to continuously teach him etiquette, the arts, music, immortal techniques, and so on.

　　The reason? Because he was the second son of the current East Ocean Dragon King, and his inherited bloodline was even purer than his elder brother’s. In the future, he would most likely be able to attain the Zenith Heaven Realm and become a pillar of support for the dragon race.

　　In the first few decades, what Ao Yi had learned made him feel that the dragon race was the strongest race in the entire universe. They were natural-born experts and the Primordial World’s true owner.

　　Yet, he remembered vividly an incident that had happened one morning 163 years ago. At that point in time, he could already remain awake in the dragon egg for 10 hours at a time.

　　A music teacher seemed to be drunk during the lesson, as he narrated to Ao Yi many facts about the dragon race’s current deplorable circumstances.

　　The dragon race was not the strongest. There were the Saints living in the sky and humans living on the land…

　　During the Ancient War, the dragon, phoenix, and qilin race had destroyed the boundless Primordial World, resulting in the deaths of countless living beings. From then on, the dragon race had been deemed responsible, carrying a sin forever unabsolvable. Heaven and Earth rejected them, and the Heavenly Dao sealed their luck.

　　Consequently, they could only stay within the Four Seas and continuously use the bodies of the dragon race’s experts to repair the unstable Ocean Eye of the Four Seas. This way, they could slowly wash off their sins.

　　What was the Ocean Eye?

　　That was the Heaven Earth polluted spring, the most dangerous purgatory!

　　Upon learning that, Ao Yi started to worry as he began to muse about the matter every day.

　　As the Dragon King’s son and the successor to the Ancestral Dragon’s bloodline, what should and could he do for the dragon race?

　　Gradually, he discovered a pitiful truth. The majority of the dragon race still believed that they were the strongest race. Many even attributed the punishment of guarding the Four Sea passed down from the Heavenly Dao as the best proof of their character and willingness to benefit all living beings!

　　Even more, individuals made a ruckus about how the dragon race was once an overlord of this universe and how it was an ancient race far superior to the weak human race!

　　Today, the phoenix and qilin races were almost extinct, and mages and demons became insignificant. The very fact that the prosperity of the dragon race in the ancient times was still being revered by the human race was the evidence that the dragon race was the strongest…

　　How pitiful!

　　How laughable!

　　The comfort enjoyed by the dragon race today was obtained through sacrificing countless dragons to repair the Ocean Eye!

　　There were Saints living in the sky who could exterminate the dragon race with one finger!

　　There were humans living on the land, successfully developing into a powerful force the dragon race could no longer hinder!

　　Despite that, many individuals of the dragon race were still daydreaming about the past glory and were unwilling to wake up from it. Therefore, the dragon race persisted in declaring battles against the human race, although it did not dare to really go into war with the human race.

　　A few days ago, Ao Yi’s elder brother, the Crown Prince of the Dragon Palace, had sent people to create trouble for the Immortal Du Sect. Yet he hadn’t dared to personally send a declaration of war to the Immortal Du Sect!

　　‘This is the dragon race! This is the ancient overlord that has been rotten to its core and became twisted! What can I, a 10-years-old young dragon, do?’

　　Ao Yi looked towards the suspended platform, as though he could see his father, the Zenith Heaven King.

　　Golden Immortals could only be destroyed by tribulations. Furthermore, even if the king was to retire from the throne, it would be his uncles to succeed the throne and not Ao Yi. As a result, he would not be able to use the authority as a king to change the dragon race’s situation.

　　Ao Yi scoffed. ‘To put it bluntly, I’m simply a vessel and pretty puppet for the dragon race to fight for and gain some pride back.’

　　That was all he was worth.

　　‘Son, in today’s Demon-Sweeping Meet, you must choose a disciple from the Immortal Du Sect to exchange pointers with. Remember, win, and let your father become happy.’

　　This was the instruction his mother gave him.

　　‘Your Highness, please show some mercy and not hurt anyone. Otherwise, the consequence will be quite dire.’

　　This was the instruction a minister working under his father gave him.

　　Yet all of them had no idea what he wanted to do.

　　“Let’s welcome our birthday prince, the Second Prince of the East Ocean Dragon Palace, to the stage!” shouted the Turtle Minister.

　　Ao Yi calmly stepped onto the stage. All eyes landed on him, but he did not bother to look at the non-dragon beings.

　　The Turtle Minster was still narrating the script he had memorized. Soon, Ao Yi would need to personally choose an opponent to exchange pointers with. This was a freestyle performance before the official start of the Demon-Sweeping Meet.

　　He had to exact small revenge on the lowly Immortal Du Sect in front of everyone.

　　Naturally, Ao Yi was aware of his true strength, due to what he had learned when in the dragon egg, his bloodline, and his innate mystical abilities. He had hatched from the dragon egg merely 10 years ago, but the dragons that had just attained Immortal Ascension were no longer his match.

　　Today, however, the surrounding Immortal Sects of the East Ocean had gathered here!

　　He, the 10-years-old Second Prince of the East Ocean Dragon Palace, was going to do something big!

　　Just now, he was observing the strength of the Immortal Du Sect’s disciples and had set his sights on the weakest of them all.

　　Perhaps the regal dragon race felt that the two slaps to the face the Immortal Du Sect had given were insufficient.

　　Was that still unable to wake them up from the daydream?

　　Alright!

　　Today, he, the Dragon King’s second son, would lose to the weakest person of the Immortal Du Sect fairly and squarely!

　　Would this slap to the face be sufficient?

　　‘Wake up, dragon race!

　　‘Wake up, my fellow dragons who are slumbering in the ancient dreams!

　　‘It’s still not too late. We, as the dragon race, need to let go of our arrogance. We need to seek a true path, by letting the talented dragon descendants enter the various sects and cultivate their arts and Dao, just like any other human disciples!’

　　One Turtle Minister smiled and said, “Today, our birthday prince will be the one to find a talent from an Immortal Sect to exchange blows and pointers…”

　　‘Here it goes.’ Ao Yi breathed in cautiously, stepped up, and looked in the direction of the Immortal Du Sect.

　　Everyone in the venue followed his gaze.

　　“You.”

　　Ao Yi lifted his right hand and pointed at the weakest individual from the Immortal Du Sect, whom he had already selected. Then, he announced with his childish voice, “Exchange pointers with me.”

　　[1] When a male and a female maintain eye contact for 10 seconds, it may be seen as a sign of romantic interest.