Yefutidaolu

Chapter 374 Another Kind of Demonic Energy

Takashi was caught in an unprecedentedly difficult struggle.

The icy seawater enveloped him, yet it could not extinguish the burning fire within him, fueled by shock and pressure. Each breath carried the salty tang of the sea and the scorching heat of his own life force.

He truly felt the despair-inducing terror of a pure-blooded dragon!
Invalid! Invalid! Still invalid!

He moved with lightning speed, weaving and maneuvering among the raging undercurrents and broken reefs.

Fists, palms, fingers, and legs—the combined power of the Seven Realms—were unleashed in a barrage of energy, transforming into streaks of light that tore through the water curtain. With the transformation of the 'One Yuan,' they slammed fiercely into the massive body of the Azure Scale True Dragon!

However, the result chilled him to the bone.

The dragon's body, covered in jade-like scales, now shimmered with a strange, almost transparent light, rippling like water. Gao Jian's attacks, striking it, no longer produced the previous clang of metal on metal or tearing flesh, but rather a dull, muffled "plop" sound, like a heavy object being thrown into a deep pool!

All the power, all the destructive energy, upon contact with that luster, seemed to be swallowed, analyzed, and neutralized by billions of tiny, constantly adjusting forces!
The impact force was dispersed and guided into the vast seawater, and the penetrating force was dissolved by the special energy structure. Everything seemed to be assimilated and immune by the "adaptability" belonging to the bloodline of the true dragon!
Unscathed!

No matter from which angle Gao Jian attacks, no matter how tricky his power-generating techniques are, no matter how much power he concentrates, the result will be the same!
The mockery and ridicule in the cold vertical pupils of the Azure Scaled Dragon grew stronger. It was too lazy to even deliberately dodge those attacks that were destined to be ineffective. Its massive body pressed and squeezed Gao Jian's space of movement in a crushing manner!
"Roar!"

The dragon claw tore through the seawater, slamming down with the power to shatter space! Gao Jian narrowly avoided it, but the terrifying water pressure generated by the claw's force still caused his internal organs to tremble and his blood to churn!

The dragon's tail swept across like a whip reaching the sky! Gao Jian could only withstand the force and was once again violently knocked away. His body surface flashed intensely as it repaired his almost broken body!
Dragon breath spewed forth! Dragon lightning flashed! Gao Jian dodged in a sorry state, a portion of his flesh instantly vaporized by the aftershocks, and a burning pain shot through his skin!

Consumption! Huge consumption!
Gao Jian's temples were bulging with veins, and sweat mixed with blood seeped from his pores, only to be instantly washed away by the seawater.

His stamina was rapidly depleting, and his vital energy was pouring out like a flood, used to maintain high-speed movement, strong defense, and those futile attacks, and... most importantly, his body that was constantly being severely injured and forcibly regenerated!
Every reorganization means a massive depletion of vital energy! Every blow means getting one step closer to exhaustion!
In contrast, the Azure Scaled Dragon was like an inexhaustible furnace of energy!

The spiritual energy of the deep sea surged into his body and transformed into immense dragon power.

His immense physical strength was on full display at this moment. His previous injuries had long since healed, and his aura had not weakened. On the contrary, as he continued to "adapt" to Gao Jian's attacks, the immune luster on his body became more solid and dazzling, faintly revealing a sense of "perfect defense"!

This is an absolutely hopeless asymmetrical battle! One side is giving it their all but is like an ant trying to shake a tree, while the other side is strolling around leisurely but has already secured victory.

The Gou family! Those powerful families of Yuezhou! How did they fight against this monster back then?!

A thought flashed through Gao Jian's mind.

Relying on constantly developing new tricks? How long can any "new trick" last against the terrifying "adaptive immunity" of a true dragon? Unless it's a force fundamentally different and surpasses its adaptive limits! Or... to overwhelm the true dragon with sheer numbers and sacrifices before it fully adapts? But what a terrible price that would require!

He felt a profound sense of powerlessness. The power of his physical body seemed so pale and powerless in the face of the dragon's almost otherworldly racial talent.

"Give up, human!" The Azure Scale True Dragon's icy voice was like a death knell. "Your power has been memorized, analyzed, and rendered immune by my bloodline! All your struggles are nothing but futile attempts to hasten your death! Your arrogance just now was nothing but a joke to me."

His enormous dragon mouth opened, revealing its menacing teeth, ready to deliver the final blow!
Gao Jian's pupils contracted to their limit; the shadow of death had never been so clear! His physical strength and energy were nearing their limits, his physical recovery was slowing down significantly, and his consciousness was beginning to blur.

The physical body... is failing...

So……

Should we use that? The power of the divine gate.

And, demonic energy.

But there is a problem.

Demonic energy is useful, and after he opens the Divine Gate, he can unleash the power of a Grandmaster of two levels, but all of this... is actually kept secret.

He did this on the Liangzhou battlefield under a pretext given to Li Zoufang, and this was also the explanation Yuan Lü was presented with.

But can they fool the Dragon King of the East Sea?
Can you fool a celestial being?

In this situation, doing so would mean facing extremely terrible consequences.

A wise insight lies in careful consideration.

But the true dragon frowned: "Hmm? You're still so calm? You have a backup plan?"

Upon realizing this, Zhenlong stopped his final strike, seemingly wanting Gaojian to use his 'backup plan'.

Now he is absolutely confident that he can withstand all of Gao Jian's attacks without taking any damage.

Let him despair.

Right now, as you are carefully considering your insights.

“Buzz——!!!”

The entire raging, shattered deep-sea battlefield, brimming with destructive energy, froze at that moment!

A vast, majestic, and indescribably ancient will, like a slumbering ancient deity, descended instantly!

This will was not directed at Gao Jian, nor at the Azure Scaled True Dragon, but rather... it enveloped the entire area!

The raging seawater calmed down instantly, as if it had been smoothed out by an invisible giant hand.

The Azure Scaled Dragon, which was opening its massive maw to devour Gao Jian, suddenly froze! The ferocious killing intent and arrogant confidence in its eyes were instantly replaced by awe and obedience!

His head suddenly turned in a certain direction, then lowered.

A grand, calm, yet undeniably authoritative voice resounded directly in the depths of their minds, crystal clear, like a divine decree: "Enough."

Just two words.

There was no anger, no rebuke.

Yet it possesses absolute authority that controls everything!

The battle was forcibly ended.

"Bring your men here."

“Yes, Your Majesty,” the Yuan family’s true dragon immediately replied.

He turned around and looked at Gao Jian with a slightly contemptuous look in his eyes: "Go on, lucky kid. Next time you see me, you better not talk big. By the way, I was the one who orchestrated the Jinglong City incident. You can't stand things in the East China Sea, so let me tell you, you can only be indignant."

He let out a low, malicious sneer: "In the East China Sea, your 'disagreement' is utterly useless!"

“My will… is the natural disaster of the East Sea. You are nothing but an ant trying to shake a tree! The East Sea will always remain the same.”

Having said that, he no longer paid attention to Gao Jian's opinions, and with his enormous dragon body stirring up the water, he was about to swim forward.

That attitude was utter contempt, the victor's final humiliation of the vanquished, certain that the other side could only swallow their pride and obediently follow in the face of the Dragon King's decree and absolute power.

However, just as he turned around, exposing his largest yet most "unconcerned" side and rear to Takami's view—

"Qiang——!"

A clear, resonant sound, as if capable of severing a soul, suddenly erupted in the deathly silence of the deep sea!
There was no roar, no warning!
Only one line, so fast it seemed to tear the dark, deep sea apart—

That's the flash of a knife!
The brilliant idea has been revealed!
Just as the Dragon King ordered a ceasefire and the other side turned to humiliate him, he launched a sudden... sneak attack!
The Azure Scaled Dragon in front paused very slightly the instant the sword rang out.

Deep within his cold, vertical pupils, instead of shock and anger, a cruel, triumphant satisfaction at the success of his scheme flashed across his face!

He realized that he had not been ambushed.

He had even been waiting for this moment!
In his eyes, Gao Jian's sneak attack was utterly foolish! This was exactly what he wanted!
His previous taunts were deliberately designed to provoke this foolish human! The Dragon King had just ordered a ceasefire, and the other side dared to draw his sword and launch a sneak attack? This was simply courting death!

He was confident that his dragon body, which had perfectly "adapted" to the opponent's power, was enough to be immune to this futile sneak attack! And after this sneak attack, he would have the perfect reason—to defend himself and fight back! With the Dragon King's tacit approval, or even approval, he would completely crush this insect.

He didn't even bother to adopt a defensive stance; the "adaptive immunity" against Takami's power within his body was already complete and covered all the scales on his body.

He waited for the blade, destined to be ineffective, to touch his body, and waited for the next moment when he would turn around and smash his opponent into a bloody pulp with a single claw!
however--

“Sizzle——!!!”

A pain he had never imagined, a pain that went deep into his bones and tore at his soul, suddenly erupted from his lower back!
No clanging of metal
That was the sound of flesh being forcibly torn apart! That was the sound of scales being mercilessly pierced!
The rusty, unremarkable blade now revealed its five-inch edge, cutting through his prized, shimmering jade dragon scales with ease, like a hot knife through butter!
It sank deep into his dragon body, which was as tough as divine iron! A huge wound, hundreds of feet long, appeared on his massive body almost instantly! Dark golden dragon blood, radiating boundless vitality, gushed out like a flood bursting its banks, instantly staining a large area of ​​the sea red!

"Roar--!!!!"

A dragon's roar, filled with unbelievable pain, horror, and rage, shattered the seawater within a radius of dozens of miles!

The Azure Scaled Dragon's massive body arched violently, as if it had been branded with a red-hot iron! Its vertical pupils instantly contracted to their maximum size, filled with extreme pain and a chilling fear originating from the depths of its soul!

It's breached?!
How could it possibly break through the defenses?!
And it was... such a complete breach of defense!

This is not the scariest!

The instant the blade pierced his body, he felt an indescribable, bone-chilling "death intent" that seemed capable of severing the very source of all existence!
This deathly intent did not affect his physical body, but rather... like a maggot clinging to his bone, it followed the wound, ignoring his powerful vitality and his strong soul defense, and directly invaded his life essence!
He felt as if his very existence had been slashed! A sense of weakness, as if his life was about to end, instantly coiled around his soul like a cold, venomous snake!
"Don't think about it!"

Extreme fear instantly transformed into a mad rage capable of destroying everything! Under the intense pain and threat of death, the Azure Scaled Dragon unleashed unprecedented power!
The enormous dragon tail, carrying the power to shatter the void and overturn the sea, was like a whip of divine punishment, enveloping all his rage and fear, as it swept fiercely towards the tiny figure behind him! This attack held nothing back, no longer any thought of "adapting," only the purest killing intent! He was going to kill Gao Jian!
“Rumble——!!!”

The entire sea area seemed to have been bombarded with billions of depth charges! A terrifying tsunami instantly formed, no longer the aftershocks of the previous battle, but the world-destroying power unleashed by the true dragon at full force, enough to instantly destroy a continental shelf! Countless enormous, tearing waterspouts appeared out of thin air, frantically ripping apart everything around them!
In the center of this cataclysmic scene, Gao Jian's figure was like a leaf falling in a storm, struck hard by the dragon's tail containing absolute power! His body shattered like paper, and he was sent flying backward like a cannonball, spitting out blood, the sound of bones breaking clearly audible!

However, just as he was thrown back, his body tumbling in the seawater, almost losing consciousness, he forcibly steadied himself, abruptly raising his head and wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. His eyes, sharp as knives, pierced through the raging water and destructive energy, fixed intently on the enormous dragon shadow twisted in agony and rage!

Takami was enraged! The dragon's words truly enraged Takami, to the point that he drew his sword without hesitation!

His voice wasn't loud, yet it pierced through the roar of the tsunami and clearly reached the ears of the true dragon:

"To manipulate the ocean and cause tsunamis, and then call it a 'natural disaster'?"

"Let me tell you, only those things beyond human control are natural disasters!"

"I am a human being, therefore—wherever my power is, there will be no natural disasters! I have come here to take you all!"

The moment the words fell, the earth-shattering tsunami wave paused for an extremely brief moment, as if time had stood still!
The raging deep-sea battlefield fell into a deathly stillness.

Only the dark golden dragon blood spread out in the murky seawater like splashed ink.

The enormous wound on the Azure Scaled Dragon was shocking. His cold, vertical pupils stared intently at the figure in the distance who, though disheveled, still stood tall. For the first time, his gaze contained not only rage and killing intent, but also a hint of fear and bewilderment that he himself had not yet noticed.

And... what's with that deathly aura?

That looks like... demonic energy?
Impossible! Where would demonic energy come from in this world?!

(End of this chapter)