Chapter 24: The Four-Clawed Poison Dragon

Chapter 24: The Four-Clawed Poison Dragon

"It is an expert of the Void Spirit Realm!"

The living beings of Moonfall Mountain trembled in terror at this moment. Even the great demons of the Divine Void Realm hid obediently within their caves, not daring to even peek. Within the entire You Prefecture, a Void Spirit Realm expert was a legend.

"After enduring countless hardships, I have finally broken through to the Void Spirit Realm and can at last take on a human form..."

In the void, a woman clad in a seven-colored dress gently brushed a strand of dark hair from her forehead and let out a long sigh. She was breathtakingly beautiful, like an immortal who had stepped out of a painting, her every movement exuding an ethereal, dreamlike quality.

"For so many years, I have not been able to find him, which means he is no longer here. Once my cultivation stabilizes, I will leave this barren wilderness and head into the vast world beyond to search for him..."

The beauty in the seven-colored dress murmured to herself, her eyes filled with confidence. Glancing at the quivering creatures in the distance, she whispered to herself in a voice only she could hear: "Only after my bloodline awakened did I realize that the aura he possessed was the breath of the Eternal. He is protected by the Coffin of Longevity; he will never die..."

With those words, the beauty vanished from the spot. No one knew where she had gone.

A few breaths later, on a mountain peak in a certain direction of Moonfall Mountain, a massive, dark green dragon that had been coiled up suddenly stirred. It was several dozen yards long, its dark green scales shrouded in a faint, toxic mist. As it stretched its dragon head, gazing in the direction where the beauty had disappeared, its eyes revealed a look of intense, lecherous desire.

"Heh heh, what a beautiful Ghost Butterfly. It is said to be one of the Ten Great Poison Insects of the Profound Heaven Realm, and her status is not low. She would be a perfect match for our dragon kin..." The dark green dragon whispered, its tone filled with powerful confidence. "It is a pity that my cultivation is only at the peak of the tenth level of the Divine Void Realm, and I lack the strength to pursue her..."

The dragon lowered its head, its eyes turning toward the depths of Moonfall Mountain. "Now, only Mother can help me." With a slight tremor of its massive body, it disappeared.

An incense stick of time later, it appeared at the edge of an abyss deep within Moonfall Mountain. Even in the daylight, the abyss was bottomless. Faint green smoke drifted from it constantly, and the vegetation surrounding the chasm was lush and thriving.

"Mother, I have arrived," the dragon called out. Its tone was naive and simple, as if it had reverted to a child in need of maternal protection.

"My child, it has been a long time since you came to visit."

From the depths of the abyss came a woman’s soft voice. Then, the faint green mist surged, creating a vacuum, and the dragon wiggled its tail and flew inside.

If any human cultivator were here, they would surely recognize this abyss as one of the four forbidden zones of the thirteen wild provinces: the Abyss of Deathly Poison. This abyss contained unimaginable toxins; any cultivator who inhaled that faint green mist would immediately be poisoned to death. Even an expert of the Divine Void Realm could not last long in such toxic fog. The Five Poisons Divine Sect, the most powerful sect in the You Prefecture, was famous for its mastery of toxins, yet they had once suffered heavy casualties in this very abyss before being forced to retreat.

The dragon flew to the very bottom of the abyss. There, the air was clear of mist. It suddenly shrank, transforming into a miniature form about a meter in size, and scurried into an ancient palace.

"Mother, I have collected quite a few cultivation resources this time. See if you can make use of them..."

Once inside, the little dragon spat out a storage ring. The void rippled and folded, and a woman in green robes with a veil over her face stepped out.

"It has been hard on you all these years," the woman sighed. Her jade-like hand touched the storage ring, her eyes reflecting complex emotions.

"Mother, when I entered Moonfall Mountain just now, I took a liking to a woman," the little dragon said naively.

"A Ghost Butterfly, I presume?" the woman chuckled. The commotion of the tribulation just moments ago could not have been hidden from an expert like her.

"Yes, Mother! The Ghost Butterfly is one of the Ten Great Poison Insects. It is a match made in heaven for me, a Four-Clawed Poison Dragon." The dragon gave a bashful grin and bowed its claw. "I beg you, Mother, help me break through to the Void Spirit Realm. Only then will I be able to win her over as your daughter-in-law."

"Very well." The woman agreed after a moment of thought. Her foster son had provided her with many resources over the years; if he could take a Ghost Butterfly as his companion, the two of them working together would surely provide even more for her.

"Follow me."

The woman turned and walked into the layered spatial portal. The dragon followed closely. Inside was a small space, not very large, containing only a table, a painting, and a meditation cushion. The woman first offered a stick of incense to the painting, then instructed the dragon to prostrate itself and kowtow three times.

"Mother, who is this man?" the dragon asked, filled with curiosity as it gazed at the portrait. It had been here once before and had kowtowed to the man in the painting, but it had not been qualified to offer incense back then.

"He is my benefactor. Without him, I would have died long ago." The woman’s gaze was dim as she looked at the man in the portrait, tears shimmering in her eyes as if recalling many memories of the past.

"Then I shall kowtow to the benefactor a few more times." The dragon was remarkably obedient, banging its head against the floor repeatedly.

The woman took a jade box from the table and said softly, "I have long prepared this pill. It contains a trace of my Nether-Blood Green Wood Dragon essence, which will certainly help you break through to the Void Spirit Realm with ease."

"Thank you, Mother!" The dragon was overjoyed and snatched the box with its mouth.

After swallowing the box, the dragon looked at the portrait with a sense of longing. "Mother, your cultivation is already so profound. What realm has this benefactor of yours reached now?"

"My benefactor? He is merely a mortal," the woman said with a faint smile.

A mortal? The dragon was shocked. How could an ordinary mortal have saved its foster mother? It knew that its mother was composed entirely of poison; a single breath from her could kill millions of mortals.

"He is no ordinary mortal. Even the people from the Palace of Longevity are extremely courteous when they see him..." the woman said softly. Back then, if not for a single word from this mortal, how could she have escaped the grasp of the experts from the Palace of Longevity?

"Mother, what is the Palace of Longevity? Why have I never heard of it?" the dragon asked curiously.

"It is best that you do not know. If you ever find out, your life will be in danger!" the woman said with a stern expression.

The dragon was terrified, breaking out in a cold sweat. It lowered its head and dared not speak another word.