Patrol Captain

"Mr. Dong, I've succeeded!"

Old Dong, bursting out of the pass, let loose and laughed heartily.

Above his head, wisps of rosy light burst forth from his body, coalescing and taking shape. Five-colored auras converged, buzzing and humming, constructing the form of a massive furnace!

It was none other than the Dragon and Tiger Furnace!
This place harbors a secret realm of dragons and tigers!

Blue-gold dragon patterns roamed the surface of the furnace, and the dragon roared. Crimson divine chains crackled and sprang from the void, swirling and vibrating around the rapidly spinning dragon-tiger furnace.

At this moment, dark clouds loomed overhead, and the atmosphere between heaven and earth seemed to solidify into lead. Thunder roared and fire tore through the sky.

Above, the hole in the cloud pierced by the beam of light healed instantly and rapidly gave rise to spiral clouds, with lightning brewing.

"boom--"

Thunder roared, and lightning, as thick as a bucket, crashed down with lightning speed, casting a silver pillar across the sky, as if tearing the heavens and earth apart.

The moment the lightning struck the furnace, a humming sound rang out, and the cyan-gold dragon patterns on it suddenly lit up, its roar shaking the clouds and causing the void to tremble.

At the same time, the furnace body trembled, the lightning shattered, and turned into electric snakes and lightning flowers that sizzled and spread downwards, and with a hiss, directly hit Old Man Dong below.

In that instant, Old Man Dong, whose hair was already disheveled, had his hair stand on end like barbs from the electric shock. He let out a strange cry as the lightning bolts traveled over his body, jolting him awake from his smugness.

He raised his middle finger a bit too early; he still hadn't overcome his tribulation yet!

As the third bolt of lightning arrived, this time it was a different color, carrying a crimson flame, and was clearly more powerful than the previous one.

Old Dong let out a soft operatic cry, reached out with one hand from his waist, and then raised it above his head, causing a streak of earthy yellow light to burst forth.

Up, up, up!
A large, earthen-yellow gourd rose into the sky and flew above the Dragon-Tiger Furnace. Then, with a whooshing sound, dragon-binding locks bearing blood-red runes flew out of the gourd's mouth.

The chains of the Dragon-Binding Lock stretched across the sky, shooting towards the descending lightning tribulation. Dragon roars rose wildly, transforming into black dragons that simultaneously annihilated the lightning and fire.

"boom"

"boom"

"boom"

The dragon, trapped and locked in a battleground, shattered the lightning and fire inch by inch, roaring upwards into the sky. Its eyes glowed with bloodlust as it tore through the lightning, fire, and dark clouds, displaying a tyrannical dragon's might.

"Ha ha"

"Bomb it!"

"Trying to stop me? No way."

"…………"

Suddenly, thunder roared and wild laughter filled the air, causing the heavens and earth to howl in fury.

As this man was undergoing his tribulation and entering the Dragon-Tiger Realm, two figures stood thirty miles away outside this mountain forest.

One of them is the Dragon Girl of the North Sea!

One of them is Chen Yuan, who just returned from the market at Yunding Mountain!
Looking at the scene of lightning tribulation in the distance, Chen Yuan thought to himself, "I wonder what day this is. One after another, people are undergoing tribulations."

They all rushed to the same place, and I ended up running back and forth between events.

At this moment, in the center of the tribulation, black thunderclouds rolled, while where Chen Yuan stood, a patch of clear blue sky and white clouds separated them.

And it isolated the entire lightning tribulation into a separate world!
This was naturally his doing, to avoid any unexpected events that might cause panic among the people of Qingshan County and the surrounding mountain villages.

"That old man Dong!"

Watching Old Man Dong, who was undergoing his tribulation and getting all worked up, Chen Yuan couldn't help but laugh and cry.

The North Sea Dragon Girl stood to the side, arms crossed, her cool eyes watching Old Dong laughing heartily amidst the thunder and fire. A slight smile played on her lips, tinged with disdain, but she remained silent.

The two watched silently as Old Man Dong underwent the Dragon-Tiger Tribulation, without any concern.

With the strength that Old Man Dong has accumulated, barring any unforeseen circumstances, and with two other people supporting him on the sidelines...

Before long, the heavenly dragon and tiger lightning tribulation reached its climax, the lightning tree illuminated the sky, Dong Fu's dragon-trapping lock was breaking apart piece by piece with the heavenly lightning tribulation, and the yellow gourd, having absorbed enough lightning fire, was struck down from the mountain.

Forced by the old man, Dong revealed his true form as a dragon, transforming into a humanoid dragon. His ferocious aura shattered the thunder, his white hair turned into dragon whiskers, and he had blue eyes and golden pupils, exuding great power.

"Well done!"

With a roar, it slammed its fists into the lightning snakes descending from above, causing the furnace to spin rapidly and draw in all the incoming lightning and fire.

Thunder roared within the furnace, crimson flames licked its walls, and within it, divine chains of the laws governing the universe coalesced, constructing a secret realm unique to Old Man Dong. At times, it was torn apart by terrifying thunder and fire, only to be reconstituted by his spiritual power.

The dragon body it transformed into was struck by increasingly dazzling lightning and fire, its scales flying and its flesh mangled, but Old Man Dong's laughter grew louder and louder, filled with madness.

As the thunderclouds gathered in the sky, all the spreading thunder trees converged into a single branch, compressed to their limit, and a terrifying aura emanated from the heavens.

“kuala”

The sky was torn apart with a deafening roar.

A bolt of purple lightning descended.

It seemed as if only this pillar of light pierced through the universe remained in the world.

There was a bang.

It crashed down into the Dragon-Tiger Furnace with a resounding clang.

The furnace slammed into Dong Fu's shoulder, causing large pieces of his scales to fall off and his flesh to be smashed, and then pressed down on his massive dragon body, bending it downwards.

Old Man Dong laughed loudly, suddenly pressing his hand against the scorching hot furnace wall, his blood dripping down his palm and seeping into the furnace, while a deafening dragon roar came from his throat!

"yin!"

In an instant, a dazzling blue light suddenly burst forth from Old Man Dong's body.

As the azure light burst forth, this dragon's body underwent another transformation, unfolding into a fully formed, enormous azure dragon.

The Azure Dragon emerged from the light and soared into the sky. Thousands of dragon scales reflected the misty light, each one as if forged from cold iron, with edges gleaming with the cold light of ice quenching. Thunder patterns flowed where the scales overlapped, as if concealing a mighty power that could overturn rivers and seas.

Its rapidly rising body is like a mountain range stretching across the sky, with the bony spikes protruding from its back pointing straight to the heavens like a forest of swords, and the airflow it cuts through when it roars turns into a gale that sweeps across the world.

What's most intimidating are those vertical pupils, their golden light both ferocious and sacred.

Its mountain-like body charged fiercely into the black sea of ​​clouds. With a flick of its tail, it ripped the sky apart and tore the black clouds apart. Then, with a roar, its head flew up and its mouth opened wide, swallowing the gathering thunderclouds whole.

In that instant, the clouds surged and receded, the sky brightened, and in that azure sky, the majestic azure dragon, with a furnace in its mouth and its body covered in blood-stained azure scales, stood solemn and majestic, its four claws riding the clouds, and let out a roar that shattered mountains and rivers, completely breaking the thunderclouds for dozens of miles, and the world returned to clarity!

After doing all this, the Azure Dragon that Old Man Dong had transformed into glanced at the direction where Chen Yuan and the other man were, and then swooped down into the valley below, disappearing in the blink of an eye!

Thirty miles away, Chen Yuan saw this, moved his feet, and a gust of wind swept around him, carrying the North Sea Dragon Girl beside him towards the valley ahead.

Thirty miles was just a few steps away when Chen Yuan's vision blurred, and he appeared in a misty mountain stream.

A stream flows gently, and a silver tree stands tall within it. The lingering clouds around it gather around this tree.

It was the very essence of the Yinshan Sacred Tree! Beneath the tree, Old Man Dong of the Dragon-Hunting Clan sat cross-legged, his clothes tattered and stained with blood, yet his body shimmered with multicolored light. With his eyes closed, he appeared less like his usual madman and more solemn and sacred.

Chen Yuan and the Dragon Girl of the North Sea landed silently to one side, their feet touching the ground.

"If General Chen is willing to lend this sacred tree to Old Dong, then it's practically a done deal." The Dragon Maiden of the North Sea landed, her beautiful eyes sparkling as she looked up at the Yinshan Sacred Tree, its silver light shimmering and its essence sparkling like starlight, and spoke softly.

"I suppose Mr. Dong and the Dragon Girl's kindness to me is nothing more than a small favor. Mr. Dong is very capable, so I have no worries."

As he spoke, he couldn't help but remark with a touch of emotion,
"Some are happy, some are sad!"

He was referring to what happened at Yunding Mountain, the failure of General Qitian to break through the pass.

If both things can be accomplished, that would be perfect, and their strength would increase significantly.

Upon hearing this, the Dragon Girl of the North Sea glanced at Chen Yuan with her beautiful eyes, as if starlight were flowing through them, but she did not ask any questions. After a pause, she turned her gaze back.

Chen Yuan didn't notice. With a wave of his hand, starlight-like clouds swirled and flickered in his hand, like the birth and death of stars, quietly waiting for Old Man Dong to wake up.

The two remained silent for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, until it was already late afternoon.

Dong Fu, the Dragon-Hunting Clan member, opened his eyes from under the sacred tree of Yinshan Mountain. His body trembled, and the surrounding heaven and earth essence formed clouds and dragons, the might of dragons and tigers beginning to take shape. His divine light was then contained within his body.

Old Dong recovered from his meditation, his gaze fixed on Chen Yuan and the other man, his eyes gleaming. His first question was to Chen Yuan.
"Young Chen, look at how my breakthrough to the Dragon-Tiger Might compares to your Yinshan back then."

His face showed a mixture of pride and anticipation.

Upon hearing Old Dong's words, the North Sea Dragon Girl, who was standing next to Chen Yuan, unconsciously rubbed her forehead.

Chen Yuan hadn't expected the old man to ask such a question right after his breakthrough, leaving him completely stunned. After a moment,

"Mr. Dong, are you serious?"

“Of course!” Old Dong nodded. “Tell me quickly!”

They were still urging them on.

"Faced with the impending heavenly tribulation, Elder Dong remained unfazed, even laughing and cursing. This defiant spirit in the face of heavenly tribulation was truly extraordinary. In the end, he even transformed into a dragon, swallowing the heavenly lightning in one gulp, displaying unparalleled dominance."

Chen Yuan smiled and gave Old Dong a thumbs up, which made Old Dong's eyes crinkle with laughter and his beard split open.

"Yes, yes!"

As he spoke, he opened his eyes, seemed to remember something, raised his hand to form a hand seal, and sent out several beams of spiritual light in all directions, as if triggering some kind of array, and something flew towards them.

Chen Yuan's eyes flickered as he saw several beams of crystal light flying in from all directions.

When these crystalline lights flew to Old Man Dong's front, they revealed several stones that looked like crystals, with tiny electric wires converging in the middle of these crystal stones.

Old Dong brought over these crystals, then shone a beam of spiritual light into one of them. The lightning within the crystal immediately began to flow and display a series of images.

That was the scene when Old Man Dong was undergoing his tribulation!

Then, the other party activated the other stones, displaying images all at once, which made the person watching very excited.

It turns out that these things were the recording stones used by Old Man Dong to record his breakthrough of the Dragon-Tiger Tribulation, and they were from various "mechanism" positions.

Anyway, Old Man Dong seemed quite vain.

Chen Yuan's forehead was covered in black lines.

Their thought processes are completely different.

"Dragon Girl, I'm sorry to have troubled you. You've traveled all the way to Shu with this man, it must have been quite tiring for you."

Chen Yuan's face twitched slightly as he spoke these words to the North Sea Dragon Girl beside him, who was stroking her forehead and flipping her bangs.

The other person paused for a moment, then turned their head away.

………………

At this time, the sun was shining brightly on a section of the Nujiang River west of Qingshan County.

The warm afternoon sun in spring was like melting gold, splashing onto the rolling waves of the Nu River. The river, freed from the gloom of last year's heavy snow, surged with a wildness, the bluish-gray waves crashing against each other, the splashing water being gilded by the sunlight into fine gold foil, then falling back onto the surface, stirring up dazzling spots of light across the river.

A wooden boat was drifting down from upstream, its awning gleaming in the sunlight. The boatman stood barefoot at the stern, and with a push of his bamboo pole, the boat deftly avoided the waves, tracing an arc in the shimmering ripples.

The green mountains on both sides of the river have lost their former whiteness, and new green has spread from the foot of the mountains to the peaks, as if they have been dyed by the spring breeze with dew.

Various flowers have emerged on the mountain, blooming in full glory. Wild cherry blossoms bloom like clouds and rosy hues, azaleas adorn the rocks, and other unnamed wildflowers of various colors sway along the water plants on the shore. When the wind blows, the shadows of the flowers overlap and sway with the shadows of the river waves.

Besides the boatman at the stern, there were four other people on the awning boat.

Two people stood at the bow of the boat, one tall and one short. One was a young boy dressed in blue and white brocade clothes, with rosy cheeks, a slightly chubby face, and bright, piercing eyes. He had the youthful vigor of a boy, but his eyes still revealed a bit of a timid and unruly nature.

Beside the boy was a woman wearing a blue embroidered dress, with a blue floral scarf tied on her head and a wooden hairpin in her hair bun. Her temperament and appearance exuded a sense of simplicity.

The woman held the boy's hand tightly.

"Mother, Qingshan County is just ahead!"

"I saw!"

The boy excitedly pointed to the vast distance on the Nujiang River, saying that the boats there looked like a dock.

The woman, too, couldn't wait to stand on tiptoe and peer ahead, her face showing an expression of longing to return home.

Upon seeing this, the boatman at the stern said in a thick local accent:

"Little one, watch out, don't fall into the water, we'll be at Samohuang soon."

"You said you're going back to your hometown, which alley do you live in? Do you think I recognize you?"

"Jiazi Lane!" The young boy quickly turned his head, his eyes filled with excitement and a hint of confusion.
"Boatman, do you remember what happened in Jiazi Lane?"

The boatman chuckled and said, "Jiazi Alley, I know it. It's at the west end of the county town, an old alley."

"You're asking such strange questions, kid. I don't live there, what do you remember?" the boatman asked curiously.

The boy scratched his head, looking a little confused, then turned to look at his mother.
"Mother, I feel like I've forgotten something very important!"

Meanwhile, inside the cabin of the covered boat, two young men and women, dressed in close-fitting clothes, sat cross-legged, watching this scene. One of the young men, dressed in black, shook his head.

"My junior brother suddenly said half a month ago that he seemed to have forgotten something very important, and he was restless and insisted on going back to his hometown to visit.

"Master is really something. He agreed to let Junior Brother go home to visit his family without any basis, and made the two of us do hard labor to escort him all the way. This journey of thousands of miles has been incredibly arduous. What kind of world is this in Sichuan now? Everyone's afraid of offending someone on the road, and they might just wipe us out without a second thought."

The young man's voice carried a hint of complaint and frustration.

Across from them, a woman dressed in black, with a mole below her mouth and a touch of elegance, said, "Never mind, let's not let our junior brother hear this. He'll be heartbroken. Perhaps he's still young and wants to go home to visit his family."

“Master dotes on his junior brother, so let him be. Even if there is chaos in Shu now, it is in Chengdu. This place is in a remote part of Shu, so there should be no trouble.”

"Don't worry too much. I heard that Master traveled here and, seeing the beautiful scenery, took me in as his junior brother." (End of Chapter)