Chapter 135: Chapter 135: Strange Change in the Ancestral Mausoleum
King Zhenwu came to a sudden realization. "You are right, Old Ancestor! The Great Wu Dragon Vein must not fall into the hands of an outsider again."
"But, Old Ancestor, what do we do now?" King Zhenwu asked after a moment’s thought.
"There is no rush."
The withered old man replied coolly, saying nothing more as he looked down upon the scene on the back mountain of the Ancestral Mausoleum.
Just then, the Emperor of the Martial Kingdom appeared before them.
Seeing the Emperor, King Zhenwu was somewhat surprised. "Today is the blessing ceremony for the Ninth Princess and her Prince Consort. Why are you here with us instead of receiving them, Brother?"
"The Old Ancestor has been in seclusion for many years. Since he has made a rare appearance, I, having not seen him for so long, wished to come and reminisce."
The Emperor of the Martial Kingdom said coolly as he stepped forward.
"Hmph. You’re just afraid I’ll make a move on that brat, aren’t you?"
The withered old man snorted, making no attempt to hide his intentions. "Relax. I am not so without honor as to strike a junior!"
Then, his expression suddenly turned grim. "But this Shen Daoxing must die!"
The moment the withered old man finished speaking, an icy voice suddenly rang out from the summit:
"You undying old relic! If you dare lay a hand on my disciple, I’ll make you regret it!"
Then, with a flash of white light, a beam of Sword Qi, magnificent as a rainbow, shot toward them.
"Who’s there?"
With a light wave of his arm, the withered old man shattered the Sword Qi to dust.
"It’s me, you old bastard!"
A furious roar echoed, and then Bai Yi emerged, strolling out with a devil-may-care attitude in his straw sandals.
The withered old man was slightly surprised to see who it was. "So, it’s Xu Qian’s disciple. I didn’t expect you’d already broken through to the Earth Profound Realm. Out of respect for your master, Xu Qian, I’ll forgive your insolence this time. Scram, if you don’t want to die!"
"You’re the one who should scram, you old relic! Shen Daoxing is my disciple. If you dare touch him, this won’t end until one of us is dead!"
Bai Yi didn’t give him an ounce of respect.
"Hehehe... Bai Yi, do you really think that you, having just entered the Earth Profound Realm, are any match for me?"
The withered old man laughed in contempt.
"Hehehehe... You old relic, your life is almost over. How long can that worn-out body of yours hold on?"
Bai Yi stared at the withered old man, his gaze heavy with meaning.
"You want to test me?"
The withered old man’s eyes narrowed.
"Why not give it a try?"
Bai Yi took a step forward, completely unafraid.
Instantly, the air on the summit crackled with tension, a battle ready to erupt at any moment.
...
Shen Daoxing felt the world spin, and then everything went black. He didn’t know how much time had passed, but when his vision returned, he found himself in a massive, incredibly spacious cavern.
Shen Daoxing glanced around, unsure of his exact location. Teardrop-shaped stalactites hung from the ceiling, dripping water with a steady PLIP... PLIP... It looked like a natural cave.
Taking the Ninth Princess by the hand, Shen Daoxing cautiously ventured deeper into the cave. The sound of their footsteps echoed clearly in the vast space.
After walking for some time, they rounded a bend, and the space suddenly opened up before them.
Not far from them stood a huge stone chamber. Its four walls were smooth, clearly bearing the marks of artificial carving, and were adorned with ancient, primitive murals that looked to be of great age.
Within the chamber stood rows of tall, majestic stone statues. Dressed in magnificent ceremonial robes, some had kind faces, while others looked powerful and imposing. Each statue was unique, with its own distinct posture.
"These are all the ancestors of our Royal Family!"
The Ninth Princess recognized the statues.
As she spoke, the Ninth Princess clasped her hands and bowed before each statue, her expression devout. "Gu Yawei, a descendant of the thirty-seventh generation of the Martial Kingdom’s Royal Family, has come to pay her respects to the ancestors!"
Shen Daoxing, following behind her, did not neglect his own courtesies, bowing with a cupped-fist salute before each one in turn.
For a fleeting moment, Shen Daoxing felt as if countless pairs of eyes were watching them. Yet, when he looked up at the statues, he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
The Ninth Princess continued to lead the way, patiently bowing before every single statue. She showed no sign of impatience, her expression earnest and deeply respectful.
After quite some time, they finally paid their respects to the last statue.
They had now reached the very back of the stone chamber. Shen Daoxing peered deeper, but he saw only an ancient mural on the wall and nothing else.
And just then, a faint sound, like a whisper from ancient times, echoed throughout the entire stone chamber.
WHOOSH! WHOOSH!
Two dazzling golden beams of light suddenly shot down from the ceiling, enveloping them both.
In an instant, a sacred, immaculate aura began to emanate from the Ninth Princess.
Shen Daoxing turned to look and saw Gu Yawei floating within the golden beam. Her graceful hair lifted into the air and her skirt billowed around her, making her look like a celestial maiden descended from the heavens.
Then, the light around the Ninth Princess intensified, and a flawless radiance burst from her, illuminating the entire stone chamber.
The Blood Dragon’s voice rang in Shen Daoxing’s mind. ’This young lady is awakening her bloodline power with the help of the blessing.’
Shen Daoxing nodded in understanding.
’Gu Yawei had already completed the trial by reaching the summit in the Trial Land. She should have awakened her bloodline power with the help of the Dragon Vein then. But the unexpected intrusion of assassins from the Li Kingdom changed everything, and the Dragon Vein ended up inside me instead.’
’Now, she was finally awakening thanks to the power of her ancestors’ blessing.’
As this thought crossed his mind, Shen Daoxing glanced at the golden light shining on him. It felt completely ordinary, having no strange effect on him whatsoever.
As if sensing Shen Daoxing’s confusion, the Blood Dragon’s voice echoed in his mind again. ’The bloodline power of the Martial Kingdom’s Royal Family originates from the Dragon Vein Origin. Since you now *are* the Dragon Vein Origin, their blessing naturally has no effect on you.
’If anything, it should be you blessing them.’
Shen Daoxing’s eyes widened in realization.
BOOM!
Gu Yawei’s eyes snapped open, a white light flashing within them. In that instant, a tremendous surge of energy erupted from her body, spreading out in ripples and causing the entire stone chamber to tremble.
Gu Yawei had successfully awakened!
Shen Daoxing turned to look at her, and he could clearly sense that her aura was now vastly different from before.
In a daze, they both saw ethereal figures, identical in appearance to the statues, floating out from within them.
"Gu Yawei, a descendant of the Martial Kingdom’s Royal Family, thanks the ancestors for their blessing!"
The Ninth Princess bowed respectfully once more to the ethereal figures.
However, the illusory figures seemed to pay the Ninth Princess no mind. Instead, they slowly drifted over to Shen Daoxing and encircled him.
Shen Daoxing was startled by this intimidating formation, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.
’Have they figured out that I’m not a disciple of the Royal Family? Are they going to take the Dragon Vein from me?’
Seeing this, the Ninth Princess, who was standing to the side, felt her heart clench.
And just then...
THUD!
THUD!
THUD!
All of the ethereal figures knelt before Shen Daoxing, their expressions utterly devout, as if he were a supreme monarch.
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