Dragon Blood Saint Emperor

It was just a single tap, without much force at all!

But this time, the conch didn’t remain completely silent like before!

DONG!

The conch let out a faint noise.

In that instant, the jaws of the crowd hit the floor. ‘That works too?’ they all thought, their faces darkening.

They had only been trying to blow it. Who would have thought that if you couldn’t make a sound by blowing, you could just hit it!

The inside of the conch is hollow. You could probably make a sound by tapping it even without much force. It was that simple!

“Are you fucking kidding me? That works too?!”

“How the hell did I not think of that?!”

Many people slapped their foreheads. They had overcomplicated such a simple matter, causing everyone to focus on their inability to produce a sound by blowing into it, rather than thinking to strike it.

But didn’t the Mermaid Elder say it had to be *blown*? ‘This shouldn’t count, right?’

All eyes were fixed on Ye Wushuang as a wave of discussion broke out.

The four figures in the firmament above also stared at Ye Wushuang’s back, their gazes flashing intently. They, too, had over-complicated things.

“Silence!”

Just as the crowd was buzzing with discussion, the Mermaid Elder’s expression turned stern and he let out a great shout.

BOOM!

Then, the Mermaid Elder took a large stride and appeared beside Ye Wushuang in an instant.

Ye Wushuang’s gaze sharpened, a glint of vigilance in his eyes.

“May I have the conch for a moment?”

the Mermaid Elder asked Ye Wushuang. His tone had changed drastically. After a moment’s thought, Ye Wushuang handed it back.

The Mermaid Elder took it and listened intently.

The crowd fell silent in an instant, all of them straining their ears to listen.

Suddenly, to their surprise, an incredibly beautiful melody reached their ears. It was like a heavenly sound from beyond the starry sky, utterly intoxicating!

They had never heard such a wondrous melody before, and many of them became completely lost in it.

“That’s it! That’s it! This is the sound!”

The Mermaid Elder was instantly overcome with ecstasy, unable to contain his excitement. His trembling hands cradled the conch as if it were an Unparalleled Divine Treasure!

Ye Wushuang’s brow furrowed as he stared intently at the conch.

He knew that melody hadn’t come from his tap. It had been caused by a sudden tremor in his own bloodline!

“The first trial… he passes!”

The Mermaid Elder announced joyfully after a long moment.

In an instant, all eyes converged on Ye Wushuang. They were utterly dumbfounded. After all their strenuous and countless attempts, he had succeeded with just a single, gentle tap!

And what’s more, that single tap had produced something truly extraordinary.

If they didn’t know for a fact that Ye Wushuang wasn’t of the Sea Race, they would have suspected he was in cahoots with the Mermaid Clan!

“Sir, you have passed the first trial. Please follow me for the second.”

The Mermaid Elder ignored the crowd and called out to Ye Wushuang.

“What’s the second trial?”

Ye Wushuang asked. Even he found the situation baffling.

The others were also curious. The first trial was already so bizarre; how much stranger could the second one be?

However, the Mermaid Elder didn’t satisfy their curiosity. Instead, he said, “I will not announce the second trial here. Follow me, and you will find out.”

Upon hearing this, Ye Wushuang thought for a moment and looked toward Dongfang Youdi and the others.

“Young Master Ye, don’t mind me,” Dongfang Youdi chimed in. “I’m staying right here to watch a certain little bastard kowtow. I wouldn’t want to miss the show.”

Dongfang Youdi chuckled, his peach blossom eyes fixed on the youth named Gouying, drawing everyone’s attention.

Instantly, Gouying’s face flushed with anger, his glare burning with a cold light. How could he have possibly imagined that someone would actually make the conch sound?

“He just got lucky with a trick! It doesn’t count!”

After a long pause, Gouying finally managed to force the words out.

“Hahaha!” Dongfang Youdi roared with laughter, clutching his stomach. “Young Master Ye was clever enough to find a solution, but your pig brain couldn’t, so now you’re saying it doesn’t count? Can I just say you’re a good-for-nothing piece of trash?”

Dark lines appeared on everyone’s faces. ‘This guy is just asking for trouble. Does he have a death wish?’

This jab left Gouying with no room to argue. However, kneeling would bring shame upon the Half-Demon Race, so it was something he would never do.

“Hey, hey! You made the vow yourself. Are you really going to back out now with just a few flimsy words?”

Dongfang Youdi crossed his arms, staring at Gouying.

SWISH!

Suddenly, a murderous beam of light flashed from the sky, instantly piercing Gouying between the eyes and obliterating him.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

All eyes snapped toward the sky. They saw the Demon Prince give Dongfang Youdi a cold glance before turning to leave.

“The Demon Prince killed Gouying!”

The crowd gasped in shock.

Lang Xiaotian, Ghost Army, and the other wielders of the Ancient Blood Physique remained expressionless. Gouying had shamed the Half-Demon Race; death was the only atonement.

They felt not a shred of pity for Gouying.

They simply shot Dongfang Youdi a cold, vicious glare, as if engraving his face into their minds.

Everyone knew that Dongfang Youdi had now thoroughly antagonized the Half-Demon Race.

“What’s there to be afraid of? With Young Master Ye here, I could take a nap and still be fine.”

To everyone’s dismay, the guy just snorted disdainfully, tossed out the shameless remark, and turned to give Ye Wushuang a sly grin.

Ye Wushuang turned his head away.

‘This guy is so shameless, you’d never find another one like him in the entire world. Even I, Lord Cat, can’t bear to watch anymore.’

Inside the Chaos Space, the Dragon Cat righteously denounced and fiercely condemned Dongfang Youdi.

The corner of Ye Wushuang’s eye twitched. He retorted with a sneer, ‘Can’t find a second one? Seems like you’re forgetting someone.’

‘Brat, that’s a bald-faced lie! I, Lord Cat, object! I am the most pure and noble Dragon Cat in the entire universe! You…!’

Before the Dragon Cat could finish its indignant rant, Ye Wushuang cut off their mental connection. That creature’s shamelessness truly reached new heights.

Ye Wushuang followed the Mermaid Elder into the territory of the Mermaid Clan, heading straight for a clear spring.

The spring’s vapor mingled with spiritual mist, creating a hazy, dreamlike scene. As Ye Wushuang and the Mermaid Elder stood beside it, the spring parted, forming a path down its center!

“Sir, the second trial is inside. Rest assured, there is no danger, and the test itself is very simple,” the Mermaid Elder said.

‘Kid, go in and check it out!’

the Dragon Cat urged. After a moment’s hesitation, Ye Wushuang stepped inside.

Walking along the path through the center of the spring, Ye Wushuang’s body was swallowed by darkness.

The scene then shifted, and he found himself in a crystalline underground cavern.

Beams of Divine Light of every color filled the cavern, casting an ethereal, magical glow upon the stone walls and stalactites.

Moreover, a beautiful melody echoed through the cavern—the very same one he had heard outside.

“Enter the Dream Cloud Realm!”

Suddenly, an ancient, hoarse voice sounded from behind Ye Wushuang.

Ye Wushuang’s heart leaped. He spun around, on high alert. He hadn’t sensed anyone behind him at all.

When he turned, he saw an old man sitting cross-legged at the base of a stone wall. Most of his hair was gone, with only a few gray strands left, giving him an ancient, wizened appearance.

His eyes were closed, and he exuded no aura whatsoever. He seemed less like a living person and more like a statue—or even a corpse.

Ye Wushuang studied him but could not detect the slightest trace of an aura or fluctuation of power.

‘Holy crap! To think a powerhouse like this exists in a backwater place like this… What the hell is going on?’

the Dragon Cat’s shocked voice rang out in his mind.

Ye Wushuang had never seen the creature react so strongly since they first met.

Seizing the opportunity, Ye Wushuang asked, ‘What realm is he at?’

‘I can’t say. Just do as you’re told for now and deal with the task at hand. Let me, Lord Cat, process this!’

The Dragon Cat fell silent after that, leaving Ye Wushuang with a great, unanswered question about the old man’s power.

Ye Wushuang’s brow furrowed deeply. ‘The Dragon Cat fears nothing and no one, yet it was stunned by this old man. His identity must be an incredible taboo!’

Since the creature wasn’t talking, Ye Wushuang turned his attention back to the scene. He saw that the old man was facing a colorful curtain of light. ‘That must be the Dream Cloud Realm!’

After a moment’s thought, Ye Wushuang walked up to it and reached out a hand, only to feel it press against something as hard as an iron wall.

CLANG!

Just then, the phantom of a Five-Clawed Golden Dragon manifested from Ye Wushuang’s body and plunged into the curtain of light.

Before Ye Wushuang could react, the scene around him shifted. He was now standing beside a Crystal Coffin.

An exquisite figure lay within the Crystal Coffin. As Ye Wushuang glanced over, the first thing he saw was a mermaid’s tail.

Its blue scales shimmered like translucent blue jade.

It was positioned elegantly, accentuating its slender form.

In that instant, the image of a “Sleeping Mermaid” surfaced in Ye Wushuang’s mind.

A moment later, Ye Wushuang quickly shifted his gaze to “her” face and was left utterly stunned.

The face was flawless, as if sculpted by the divine craftsmanship of the heavens themselves—exquisite, perfect, and unbelievably beautiful.

“It’s her!”

“How can it be her?!”

Ye Wushuang’s eyes narrowed. He was stunned, not because she was a peerlessly beautiful mermaid, but because he had seen this face before!

“Kiss her, and you will pass the trial.”

the hoarse, ancient voice resounded once more.