The group descended deeper into the ravine.
With every step, the surrounding air became heavier.
The sunlight from above had long since disappeared, replaced by endless darkness that seemed capable of swallowing both light and sound.
The disciples immediately activated Bright Light Talismans.
One after another, pale spheres of light floated into the air, illuminating the ancient passage.
What lay beneath was unlike anything they had imagined.
The walls were carved from black stone that seemed naturally formed, yet countless ancient marks could still be seen upon them. The deeper they walked, the denser the oppressive aura became.
Even breathing felt uncomfortable.
After descending for nearly half an hour, the group finally reached the very bottom.
The ground before them was astonishingly flat.
At its center lay what appeared to be an enormous circular stone door over thirty meters in diameter.
Unlike every other place within the secret realm...
Not a single formation rune could be seen upon its surface.
It appeared completely ordinary.
The young leader narrowed his eyes.
"...Interesting."
He slowly walked around the massive stone door.
Nothing.
No inscriptions.
No formations.
Nothing that suggested it had once belonged to one of the greatest formation sects of the ancient era.
He stopped.
"You two."
His gaze landed upon two disciples standing near the back.
"Open it."
The two immediately froze.
"...Senior Brother?"
The leader's expression remained indifferent.
"I said..."
"Open it."
Neither dared refuse.
With trembling hands, they slowly approached the stone door.
The instant their palms touched its surface—
The entire underground chamber violently trembled.
Buzz—
Ancient runes suddenly erupted across the seemingly blank stone.
Countless golden formation inscriptions illuminated the darkness.
The two disciples barely had time to react.
Their expressions instantly became horrified.
"My body—!"
Before anyone could move—
Their flesh rapidly withered.
Skin.
Muscles.
Blood.
Everything disappeared within a single breath.
Only two complete skeletons remained standing.
Then—
Even the bones crumbled into gray dust.
Silence.
The formation runes gradually dimmed once more before disappearing completely.
It was as though nothing had happened.
Only two small piles of ash remained.
The surrounding disciples instinctively retreated several steps.
Cold sweat poured down their faces.
Every one of them silently prayed they would not become the next person selected.
The young leader merely observed calmly.
"So..."
"So this is the Heaven Seal Gate's final safeguard."
A faint smile appeared upon his lips.
"Unfortunately..."
"It is rather laughable."
The remaining disciples stared at him in disbelief.
Laughable?
That so-called laughable formation had instantly reduced two Foundation Establishment cultivators to dust.
None of them found it amusing.
The leader ignored everyone's expressions.
He slowly removed his black cloak.
Then, reaching into his storage bag, he carefully retrieved a stone tablet.
The tablet was completely smooth.
No runes.
No inscriptions.
No symbols.
It resembled nothing more than an ordinary piece of polished stone.
Yet the moment it appeared—
The atmosphere changed.
The leader's eyes became incomparably excited.
He slowly walked toward the enormous stone door.
As the distance between the tablet and the door shortened—
The entire underground cavern suddenly shook violently.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The stone door began trembling.
Not from the outside...
But from within.
It was as though something imprisoned behind it had sensed the tablet's arrival.
Something...
Trying desperately to escape.
---
Far above the chamber—
Someone who absolutely should not have been there quietly observed everything.
Hidden behind a massive boulder stood Lin Jinxing.
His breathing had nearly stopped.
Beside him, the small turtle beast clung tightly to his shoulder.
Its body trembled uncontrollably.
The beast's Innate concealment ability spread over both master and servant, perfectly hiding their aura, scent, spiritual fluctuations and even their physical presence.
Lin Jinxing silently cursed his own luck.
Originally...
He had merely intended to use his beast's innate bloodline sensing ability to locate powerful Yao Beasts.
After improving the turtle's bloodline, its natural divination instincts had grown significantly stronger.
When he casually attempted to deduce the location of a great opportunity...
The result had led him here.
Who could have imagined...
That he would encounter this mysterious black-robed group?
Even from this distance, his scalp felt numb.
The terrifying aura leaking from beneath the stone door caused even his contracted pupils to tremble.
His turtle beast continuously transmitted instinctive fear through their spiritual connection.
Run.
Run immediately.
Whatever was imprisoned beneath...
It was not something they could approach.
Lin Jinxing carefully began retreating.
Each movement was slow.
Measured.
He dared not make the slightest noise.
---
Below—
The leader finally reached the stone door.
He slowly extended the smooth stone tablet forward.
The closer it came—
The stronger the vibrations became.
The hidden thing beyond the door seemed almost frantic.
The disciples exchanged frightened glances.
Meanwhile, the young leader's smile only widened.
"So..."
"It really is here."
At last—
The tablet touched the stone door.
The violent resistance between both objects instantly ceased.
Without any sound...
The smooth stone tablet slowly melted into the surface of the door.
As though returning to where it originally belonged.
Several minutes passed.
Then—
The countless ancient runes reappeared.
But this time...
Instead of activating...
Cracks rapidly spread across every single inscription.
One after another—
The runes shattered.
They dissolved into countless particles of light before scattering into the air.
The ancient sealing formation...
Had completely disappeared.
The leader's eyes flashed brightly.
Without hesitation, he threw a crimson talisman toward the stone door.
Boom!!
A deafening explosion echoed throughout the abyss.
The enormous circular door cracked apart before collapsing inward.
Smoke and shattered stone filled the chamber.
When the dust finally settled—
The disciples slowly looked inside.
The moment they did...
Every single person's breathing stopped.
The chamber beyond was unimaginably vast.
Ancient chains thicker than tree trunks stretched across every direction.
Thousands of them.
Every chain was covered in ancient sealing runes.
And every single one...
Was wrapped around a single creature.
Dark azure scales reflected the dim light.
Massive horns curved backward like blades.
Golden vertical pupils slowly opened.
Just one glance...
Was enough to make everyone's souls tremble.
An overwhelming dragon's might flooded the entire underground chamber.
The leader's breathing became ragged with excitement.
He slowly uttered four words.
"...A Flood Dragon."
The moment the words left the cloaked leader's mouth, Lin Jinxing froze where he was.
His pupils contracted violently.
A flood dragon...
An actual flood dragon...
His heartbeat accelerated.
Even maintaining his concealment technique almost became impossible as disbelief flooded his mind.
His beast companion trembled violently inside the spirit beast pouch, every instinct screaming at it to flee as far away as possible.
Lin Jinxing immediately calmed it through their spiritual connection.
His gaze never left the colossal creature bound within the cavern.
Even in its miserable state, the dragon radiated an indescribable majesty.
Its scales resembled dark jade forged over countless millennia.
Every individual scale was larger than a human head, faint dragon patterns flowing across them like living runes.
Its pair of crimson eyes remained half-open, yet merely looking into them caused Lin Jinxing's soul to tremble.
Its horns curved proudly toward the heavens despite the countless chains piercing its flesh.
Although its aura had weakened tremendously...
It still carried the dignity of a dragon.
Lin Jinxing swallowed hard.
"In the dragon bloodline..."
"The first true transformation..."
"...is becoming a Flood Dragon."
Every dragon-type yao beast dreamed of reaching this stage.
Only after surviving the terrifying Rank Four Heavenly Tribulation could an ordinary dragon-type beast shed its mortal bloodline and evolve into a true Flood Dragon.
That was the beginning.
Not the end.
According to the ancient records within the Lin Family...
Flood Dragons still weren't true dragons.
They merely possessed the qualifications to pursue that path.
To become a genuine dragon...
One had to leap through the legendary Dragon Gate.
Only then could their bloodline completely transform.
Such beings possessed strength comparable to Rank Seven existences.
They could overturn seas...
Split mountains...
Control storms...
Their names alone were enough to shake continents.
Lin Jinxing never imagined he would witness even a Flood Dragon in his lifetime.
Yet...
Something was wrong.
His brows slowly furrowed.
The dragon before him...
Looked far too weak.
The enormous chains penetrating its body weren't ordinary restraints.
Each chain contained countless ancient runes.
Those runes continuously pulsed with faint light as streams of crimson essence flowed through them.
They were draining it.
Not merely imprisoning it.
They were devouring its cultivation.
Its blood.
Its vitality.
Even its very origin.
Every passing second...
The dragon became slightly weaker.
The realization struck Lin Jinxing like lightning.
"This..."
"This Flood Dragon wasn't originally Rank Four..."
His breathing became heavier.
It had undoubtedly once possessed far greater cultivation.
Only after being imprisoned for countless years had it been weakened to its current state.
Even then...
The pressure it emitted remained terrifying.
If it were restored...
Lin Jinxing didn't dare continue imagining.
Meanwhile, the cloaked cultivators behind the leader were equally stunned.
"So..."
"It really exists..."
"I thought it was merely a legend..."
One whispered unconsciously.
Another stared blankly at the dragon.
"So the Heaven Seal Gate actually imprisoned a Flood Dragon..."
"Incredible..."
Even their usually emotionless faces could no longer remain calm.
Only the leader maintained his composure.
No...
His composure slowly transformed into excitement.
His eyes burned with undisguised greed.
"Hahaha..."
"So that's it..."
"So that's why our Palace spent thousands of years searching..."
After all there were no more true dragons in this current era, a living flood dragon would be among the peak of yao beasts in terms of bloodline.
He slowly walked toward the chained dragon.
The Flood Dragon's enormous eyes shifted slightly before settling upon him.
For a brief instant...
Lin Jinxing felt as though time itself had frozen.
The dragon merely looked.
Yet every person present felt an overwhelming pressure descend upon their souls.
Several cloaked cultivators instinctively took a step backward.
Only the leader continued smiling.
He looked almost intoxicated.
"What magnificent luck..."
"A Flood Dragon..."
"And not just any Flood Dragon..."
He circled around the enormous body while carefully observing every chain.
"So these chains have continuously extracted its cultivation..."
"No wonder..."
"No wonder its realm has fallen this far."
He nodded repeatedly.
The more he observed...
The brighter his smile became.
Within moments, his expression changed from excitement...
...to ambition.
A terrifying ambition.
"If this creature remains alive..."
"It still possesses dragon blood."
"Dragon essence."
"And perhaps..."
"...Dragon Soul."
His breathing gradually became heavier.
"So many uses..."
"So many possibilities..."
His mind rapidly calculated.
If he could bring this Flood Dragon back...
Even if only its corpse...
The rewards from the Seven Star Palace would be unimaginable.
If he could instead refine it...
Control it...
Or perhaps extract every remaining drop of its dragon blood...
The value would become beyond estimation.
His lips slowly curled upward.
"Heaven..."
"...has truly blessed us...no me"
The other cloaked cultivators finally understood.
Their eyes also gradually filled with greed.
Only Lin Jinxing, hidden behind the massive boulder, felt an indescribable chill run down his spine.
Whatever these people intended...
It definitely wasn't anything good.
And somehow...
He had a feeling...
The entire secret realm was about to descend into absolute chaos.