You Have Science, I Have Martial Arts

"Brother White Flood Dragon obtained the Dragon Spirit from the forefather, Brother Black Flood Dragon the Dragon Marrow, Sister Red Flood Dragon the Dragon Heart, Brother Yellow Flood Dragon the Dragon Eye. As for me, I received the Dragon Pearl."

At this point, a hint of sorrow appeared on Yingyue's face: "We were ambitious, thinking that as long as we seized the Dragon Essence, we could transform into dragons, ascend to divinity, and enjoy great freedom between heaven and earth. Unfortunately, once greed begins, it can never stop."

"After refining the Dragon Spirit, Elder Brother's ambition began to inflate, to the point where he coveted the position of Star Monarch. So eventually he framed Third Sister, obtained the Dragon Heart. Then he colluded with outsiders, planned the murder of Fourth Brother, and seized the Dragon Eye. Our five siblings are now in constant conflict, unable to trust each other—this is retribution."

Ye Qingzhou chuckled upon hearing this, choosing not to fully believe in the version the Cyan Flood Dragon presented: "People always like to beautify their actions in hindsight; I didn't expect dragons to do the same. It seems self-deception is one of the instincts of intelligent beings."

Yingyue slightly furrowed her elegant brows, but still replied with a charming smile: "Young master, what do you mean by this?"

"Are you trying to say you regret it? So you brewed poisonous wine to harm yourself, painted a dead end to imprison yourself, trapping yourself in your mental imagery, all to atone for past mistakes?"

Ye Qingzhou was quite disdainful about this: "Since you know I have cultivated the Heart Sword, you should understand that in the face of the Flawless Sword Heart, no one can lie. That's why you went to great lengths to mislead my judgment."

The Cyan Flood Dragon Yingyue's chest heaved; indeed, she had been acting all along.

Because when Ye Qingzhou stepped into Bishui Pond and used the Heart Sword Secret Technique to break the illusion technique, she had already figured out Ye Qingzhou's identity.

In front of the Flawless Sword Heart, she couldn't lie, so she kept on acting, hiding falsehoods within the truth to make Ye Qingzhou feel she harbored regret.

Ye Qingzhou mercilessly uncovered it all: "I'm curious, what exactly are you afraid of?"

Upon hearing this, Yingyue's slender fist clenched; her amber-like golden and dazzling snake eyes revealed killing intent, yet she still chose not to act.

Because Ye Qingzhou's guess was correct.

She was indeed afraid.

"Let me guess, Kang Jinlong actually is still alive, right?"

Crunch~

Ye Qingzhou's light words directly broke through Yingyue's defenses; she clenched her hand, instantly crushing the jade cup she held, turning her face pale.

"How did you guess?"

Feigning composure, Yingyue's slightly trembling delicate figure still betrayed her true emotions at this moment.

Ye Qingzhou sighed: "Before I came to kill you, I visited Celestial Halberd Peak. At that time, Kang Jinlong shared the story of how the Five Flood Dragons conspired to betray him. No reaction from the Flawless Sword Heart indicates he was telling the truth."

"That's impossible!"

Yingyue's pale face had now turned ashen, unable to restrain the fear and panic manifesting on her exquisite visage.

"This would naturally be impossible if the White Flood Dragon were still alive, but what if even he didn't know that he was actually dead?"

Ye Qingzhou sighed: "No matter how elderly and weakened he may be, how could Kang Jinlong be conspired against by mere small pythons like you? I trained in Refining True Gold in Fire for just a few days and already know this cultivation technique has absurd defensive prowess. Given Kang Jinlong's cultivation, even if he stood still for you to gnaw on him, could you manage it?"

Yingyue's face turned ashen: "Laughable indeed, what you realized in moments took me two hundred years to comprehend. Foolish desires led to this, had we not been blinded by greed back then, would we now have to live in such constant dread?"

Undoubtedly, this was entirely a scheme orchestrated by Kang Jinlong from the very beginning.

Five pythons, all possessing Kang Jinlong's bloodline, selectively chosen and meticulously nurtured by him.

Was this for cultivating successors?

Naturally not, this was intentionally exposing a flaw, letting the Five Pythons devour his Dragon Essence, thereby rapidly shedding their snake forms and evolving into Flood Dragons.

And then inducing a self-destructive infight among the Five Flood Dragons using Gu cultivation to extract the essence from their bodies, ultimately nurturing a True Dragon with complete Five Qi Chaoyuan and Life Essence.

Yingyue had guessed Kang Jinlong's plan, so she hid in Bishui Pond, imprisoning herself in mental imagery, feigning regret, hoping for that exceedingly slim chance of survival.

Ye Qingzhou's arrival was the opportunity Yingyue had been waiting for.

If it weren't for this, she would've slapped Ye Qingzhou to death long ago, as Kang Jinlong had not sent people to kill her for the first time.

"How did it end up that the Divine Feather Sword Emperor is an old acquaintance with Kang Jinlong?"

"Yes."

With a favor to ask, Yingyue's stance was exceedingly low: "The forefather should still be in a dormant state; currently, it's still my brother White Flood Dragon who is alive, though his consciousness might have already been thoroughly corrupted by the Dragon Spirit."

"Hand over the Dragon Pearl yourself. In negotiations with Kang Jinlong, I will speak on your behalf as the Sword Emperor's disciple."

Ye Qingzhou still had the trump card given by Kang Jinlong, but when it comes to trump cards, it's best not to use them lightly, especially one-time-use items.

"Really?"

Upon hearing this, Yingyue's autumn-water-like bright eyes shimmered, begrudgingly; she didn't wish to die.

After obtaining Ye Qingzhou's promise, she hesitated not a moment and extracted the Dragon Pearl from her body, sacrificing all her Life Essence, leading to the fall from the Heaven-Ascending Seventh Layer realm, with her mental imagery fading away.

"I'll take my leave first."

With the Dragon Pearl in hand, Ye Qingzhou planned to first regroup with Xu Yuebing and others at the Divine Feather Sword Sect.

However, upon arrival, he encountered an unexpected person.

"Ye Qingzhou, it's dangerous, quickly leave!"

Xu Yuebing struggled to rise, surrounded by Leon, Zhu Jinfeng, and Miao Yi, all captured.

"Gu Guangqi?"

"Ye Qingzhou, you really made me wait for you a long time."

Gu Guangqi stood with hands behind his back, eyes revealing killing intent: "For you, I wasted a precious Golden Scale Emperor's Order this time, but it's worth it to eliminate such a threat like you."

Ye Qingzhou took out the Dragon Essence given by Kang Jinlong and clasped it in his palm, sighing softly: "To squander such a precious trump card on a useless fool like you, it pains me deeply."