The Unruly Immortals

Li Huowang had always been indifferent to these matters in the past because everyone always seemed to have their own reasons, and they never aligned with what happened in reality.

But even a twisted truth is still a truth.

Everything else could wait, but since they were going up against Tianchen, the Dragon Vein was of utmost importance.

The Dragon Vein not only anchors the daily hours, but its Dragon Qi can also block other Fate Commander's influences, and even the Dragon Vein itself...

Ever since seeing the Golden Dragon of Tianchen Country, Li Huowang had been troubled by a question: what exactly was the Dragon Vein?

Instinctively or otherwise, Li Huowang felt that the Golden Dragon was definitely not that simple.

"Father, regarding the Dragon Vein, what you know, I should also know." Li Sui extended two tentacles to grab the teapot beside him, pouring a cup of hot tea for Li Huowang.

"Each Dragon Vein corresponds to an hour. The disappearance of each Dragon Vein leads to the disappearance of the corresponding hour."

"No, that's not what I want to know." Li Huowang said, putting down the tea cup he had just lifted. "I want to know why, where did the Dragon Vein come from? Why does it synchronize with the hours?"

"Other sects have far-fetched legends, even the long-lasting belief in Qingqiu's eternal heaven, so why wouldn't there be any for the Dragon Vein? It doesn't make sense."

Xuan Pin extended a tentacle to touch Li Huowang's head. "Father, indeed there are none, because the Dragon Vein is itself the hour. It has always been this way, how could there be hours without a corresponding Dragon Vein?"

"Just because it's always been this way, doesn't mean it's right. Besides, who says hours must be tied to the Dragon Vein? The hours should exist independently." Saying this, Li Huowang was suddenly taken aback.

"Father, what do you mean? Although ordinary people don't know the intricacies, you yourself have seen the death of the Dragon Vein, and the decrease of the hours, and besides—"

"Wait! Hold on!" Li Huowang ran his fingers through his hair, scratching his scalp anxiously. "Hold on, I seem to have remembered something."

Despite his best efforts, Li Huowang still couldn't recall the words that had just been at the tip of his tongue, even with Li Sui extending tentacles to help scratch didn't work.

"Damn it, what did I just remember? It should have been something important." Li Huowang slumped his hand down heavily.

"Father, aren't we getting off topic? Weren't we just talking about the Dragon Vein?"

"Yes, the Dragon Vein. Let's continue." Li Huowang sat up straight again.

"I mean, what exactly is the Dragon Vein. Dragon Vein, as the name suggests, shouldn't it be part of a dragon? Why must it be tied to humans?"

Li Sui then recounted the Golden Dragon they had seen in Tianchen Country.

"Touzi said that Golden Dragon might be Tianchen Country's Dragon Vein. I even suspicion that it might be connected to what they call the royal bloodline."

"I don't know how strong Tianchen Country is, but it's certain that if they can so easily manipulate the Heavenly Dao, they probably can just as easily manipulate the Dragon Vein's Dragon Qi. If either of these possibilities is true, it would be formidable."

"Father, really, I didn't lie to you, there's indeed no legend about the Dragon Vein, after all, speaking ill of the Emperor as a mere mortal can lead to execution."

"Hmm..." Li Huowang knitted his brows, crossed his arms, and leaned back. It wasn't easy to gather information about the enemy, yet there was nothing. This was difficult indeed.

Three days, he couldn't run off to Tianchen without knowing what their enemy was, right?

As Li Huowang was still pondering, Li Sui stood up and tugged on his sleeve, leading him outside.

Seeing Li Sui move, Li Huowang didn't ask, and just followed her forward.

Under Li Sui's guidance, Li Huowang wound his way back into the oppressive Imperial Palace, finally stopping before the bustling Imperial Temple.

Li Huowang had been here before, more than once, so he naturally knew what was inside.

"Father, if you really want to ask something, this is the only place to find answers."

"Then what are we waiting for, let's go." Li Huowang took Li Sui and walked into the Imperial Temple.

There were still people in the temple, mostly withered old eunuchs. Using the horsetail whisks in their hands, they swept nonexistent dust from the name tablets, guarding the tombs of past emperors with utmost diligence.

If nothing unexpected happened, their final home would also be here.

Li Huowang knew the outer area was just a facade, as he headed straight towards the bright, yellow silk hanging on the side wall.

As the yellow cloth was pulled, a majestic black stone door appeared before them, carved with nine ferocious giant dragons, that looked lifelike.

As the massive stone door swung open, a chilling air that made one's neck hair stand on end assaulted them.

Beyond the stone door, the area was noticeably funnel-shaped, high around the edges and low in the center, decorated with imperial opulence.

Everywhere gleamed with golden light, even the enormous house-sized coffin at the bottom was made of gold. Nine golden dragons, each with unique forms, were in chains, pulling the golden coffin in all directions.

And within that golden coffin lay Da Liang's most precious treasure, the Dragon Vein of Da Liang.

One Emperor of Da Liang lay upon another, and beneath each one was another, stacked layer upon layer endlessly.

The interior of the coffin seemed deep and dark, with successive Da Liang Emperors nailed firmly in mid-air by chains, neatly arranged into a vertical string of corpses.

As Li Huowang stared at them, the emperors in the string of corpses also reacted, their eyes turning towards him.

"Should I just ask them about the Golden Dragon?"

"No, they probably don't know either. We need to find the oldest ones." With that, Li Sui led Li Huowang to the edge of the coffin and jumped straight down.

The bottom of the coffin was dark, deep, and cramped, but fortunately, Li Huowang could partially embed his body into the wall, making it less cramped.

In the dimness, Li Huowang could barely make out the flickering traces of gilding in the darkness.

"Fire." Li Huowang raised a hand, and flames illuminated the bottom of the coffin.

However, the flames were not as strong as Li Huowang had thought, flickering in and out. The place where the Dragon Vein resided had already affected everything around.

"Kid, you're Li Huowang, aren't you? What do you want?" The old voice from above reached Li Huowang, who didn't even lift his head. "Not looking for you."

He crouched, bringing the fire in his hand closer to the emperor at the very bottom, and saw a half-human, half-dragon face. The golden dragon robe on him had fused completely with his flesh and blood.