Chapter 364 - 257: Danger, Omen of Shattering (Part 2)

Chapter 364: Chapter 257: Danger, Omen of Shattering (Part 2)

BANG!

But behind the crack, some kind of creature seemed to be ramming against the mysterious spatial barrier. The entire sky echoed with a shuddering, concussive sound.

The Sky-Splitting Instant Butterfly that flew into the crack was instantly torn to shreds by a burst of Power.

"A Monarch Level Soul Beast, killed in an instant..."

He tried to get a clear look at the creature behind the crack.

[???]

But the panel only showed three question marks.

"Fall back. Whatever’s here is not something we can handle."

Han Ning’s face was pale. He saw that Yin Yi had already used her vines to retrieve the insect swarms from the low altitudes ahead and hurriedly signaled for everyone to retreat.

Egg Pancake had just flown a few kilometers away.

The next second, the entire void trembled violently.

The sky was plunged into darkness.

The light Gray Mist clouds peeled away layer by layer like mottled paint, as if an orange were being stripped of its peel to reveal what was inside.

All around them, the world strangely transformed into an oil painting, like Van Gogh’s Starry Night.

"Don’t look back... Egg Pancake, get us out of here!" Han Ning squeezed his eyes shut, his forehead already beaded with sweat.

"RAAWR!!" Qingyao’s gaze was focused. Lush, green trees materialized around it, enveloping Egg Pancake and the other Soul Beasts as they flew toward the academy.

"Wooo~"

From behind them, a vast and desolate draconic roar echoed, striking terror into the hearts of all living things.

Han Ning, his eyes still closed, felt an unstoppable Power envelop him, and his body was flung backward.

’This is bad...’

Even with his eyes shut, a hazy, illusory dragon shadow strangely appeared in his mind.

An unknown Spiritual Power suddenly entered his mind: "Look at me... Beast Master of this continent."

Though he was extremely reluctant, an inexplicable force still compelled Han Ning to open his eyes and look forward.

Within the void, which was frozen like a starry oil painting, floated a blurry dragon shadow sketched entirely from gray, ethereal lines.

It had the overall appearance of an Eastern dragon.

Its boundless scales, made of gray lines, faded in and out of Nothingness, at times appearing and at others vanishing, covering the entire visible sky.

It had ink-like markings on its face. Its antlers were like a deer’s, head like a camel’s, eyes like a rabbit’s, neck like a snake’s, belly like a clam’s, scales like a fish’s, claws like an eagle’s, paws like a tiger’s, and ears like an ox’s—a perfect match for the description of a True Dragon in the books.

A look of wisdom flowed within its faintly glowing Dragon Eyes.

"A True Dragon?" Han Ning asked cautiously, facing such a powerful existence.

The True Dragon turned its illusory pupils and, with a single glance, saw the tiny human and the other Soul Beasts floating before it.

"Little one, what is the name of this continent?"

As a True Dragon, it used its Mind Communication ability, and Han Ning understood its meaning without any difficulty.

"The Insect Continent... Its full name... It seems to be located within a violent Subspace storm," Han Ning answered honestly.

The True Dragon fell silent for a few seconds upon hearing this, then continued to ask, "Never heard of it. Are there any other well-known Races? Continents?"

"The Witch Spirits? Alatak? Do you know of them?"

"Never heard of them."

"The Purple Crystal... What about the Purple Crystal Race?" Han Ning remembered the mysterious Race that Hom had once mentioned.

"Purple Crystal... I see. To think I’ve traveled all the way here." The True Dragon’s pupils flickered slightly. "Thank you. I am merely a passing traveler. I apologize for disturbing you. I will let you go now."

Seeing that the True Dragon held no hostility, Han Ning opened his mouth and said, "I wish you a safe journey."

"Bwooo. I’ll take you up on that good wish."

The True Dragon made no move, but a light flashed in its eyes.

In an instant, a gray crystalline mass, larger than Han Ning’s entire body, slowly floated before him.

"This is my payment for the directions, young Beast Master and little descendants. We will meet again if fate allows!"

Suddenly, the True Dragon thrashed its body. The gray light in its deep eyes flared, and blazing Spatial Energy spread out rapidly.

In an instant, everything in mid-air, including the True Dragon and the spatial rift behind it, was engulfed in a dense gray radiance.

Before Han Ning and Qingyao’s astonished eyes, the dim light enveloped the True Dragon and the spatial rift, and then, it erupted in a brilliant glow!

"Before I leave, a friendly reminder: your home is about to be devoured by a spatial storm. The reason I arrived here is that the spatial fluctuations were abnormal, affecting my voyage."

"Your Excellency, True Dragon, how much longer until this place is destroyed?" Han Ning asked, seizing the opportunity.

"According to the flow of time and space in this vicinity... less than two years..." The dragon’s roar became faint and indistinct, gradually fading away.

The light illuminated Han Ning’s pupils, making him instinctively close his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again,

everything was calm and peaceful. The sky was azure blue, and the ever-present Gray Mist had actually, for a brief moment, vanished.

The insect swarms on the ground nearby lay quietly... There was no trace of the True Dragon anywhere.

If not for the gray crystalline mass floating before him, Han Ning would have thought the entire encounter was just a sudden dream.

"Raaawr~" Qingyao stared at the sky, its eyes filled with worship and longing as the Gray Mist rushed back in from all directions.

After the True Dragon disappeared, the gray crystalline mass it left behind rapidly shrank, splitting in the blink of an eye into three palm-sized, diamond-shaped Crystal Stones that flew into Han Ning’s palm.

[

Item Name: True Dragon Mark

Rarity: ???

Introduction: A mark of Power left behind by a True Dragon during its spatial travels. For Beast Master use only. Upon absorption, the Beast Master will gain increased affinity with Dragon Species, an understanding of the Dragon Language, and an increase in Spiritual Power.

]

The other two displayed as:

[

Item Name: True Dragon Mark

Rarity: ???

Introduction: A mark of Power left behind by a True Dragon during its spatial travels. For use by Dragon Type Bloodline Soul Beasts only. Upon absorption, a Dragon Race Soul Beast with less than A Talent will have its Talent increased by a Half-Tier and will acquire a Basic Level spatial-related Talent.

]

"Sniff sniff~ Sniff sniff~"

Egg Pancake tilted its head back, trying to get a clear look at the crystals. But since it was currently underneath Han Ning, it couldn’t turn its head very far and began to chirp anxiously:

"Chirp, chirpy-chirp!"

And Qingyao, who was usually gentle and calm, lost its former composure. It stared fanatically at the Crystal Stones in Han Ning’s palm, looking like it was about to pounce.

"There’s one for each of you. His Excellency, the True Dragon, clearly thought of you both."

Han Ning smiled faintly and, without any hesitation, placed a gray True Dragon Mark into each of Qingyao’s and Egg Pancake’s claws.

"RAAWR!" "CHIRP-WOO!"

The two members of the Dragon Race tossed the crystals into their mouths and swallowed them in one gulp, not even taking a moment to savor them.

"Look how impatient you two are." Han Ning chuckled and, following their example, ate the crystal that belonged to him.

As the crystals entered their stomachs, a strange fluctuation erupted from the bodies of the human and his two dragons.

A mysterious aura enveloped the area around them.

First was Han Ning. He felt an icy sensation rush straight to his brain.

His Spiritual Power, which had just entered Tier Three with a Cultivation Progress of about 15%, actually shot up to 86%.

As for Egg Pancake beside him, not only did its strength increase by a Small Tier, but it also awakened a new Talent.

[Space Skin]: Blessed by the True Dragon, the scales of the Red Lotus Lizard Dragon will automatically absorb a certain amount of Spatial Energy, gradually modifying its skin and granting it the ability to survive and navigate in different Subspaces.

When the fluctuations subsided, the two members of the Dragon Race opened their eyes one after another and let out joyous draconic roars.

"Raaawr~ (A happy cry.)"

"Chirpy-chirp~ (So comfortable~)"

’Huh? Is this the effect of understanding the Dragon Language? I can actually understand the meaning behind Qingyao’s and Egg Pancake’s roars now. This is amazing...’ Listening to the draconic cries he was long used to, Han Ning suddenly noticed a distinct difference.

"Chirpy-chirp~ (Egg Pancake is a big dummy.)" he chirped, imitating Egg Pancake’s cry.

"Chirp? Chirpy-chirp! (How does Master know Egg Pancake’s language? Egg Pancake isn’t a dummy, Egg Pancake is very smart!)" Hearing Han Ning’s cry, Egg Pancake trembled, a dazed look on its face.

"Raaawr~ (Hello, Qingyao.)" Han Ning changed his vocalization again.

"Raaawr~ (Hello~)" Qingyao tilted its head, looking at Han Ning as if he were one of its own kind.