Chapter 82 - 81: Azure-Scaled
Huge. Massive. Colossal. Humongous. Gargantuan.
It was hard to describe how it felt in words, and those words barely clarified or demonstrated as to what Wei Wuyin was currently witnessing and the thoughts that rang within his mind.
An eye. It was an eye. A sea of golden was its sclera, as expansive as an entire world. And situated in this world was an iris with lines that denoted a level of intensity that could shake the heart, rumble the mind, and terrify the soul. Those lines led to a sharp pupil, black as the darkest night that led to what felt like purgatory.
Intense.
Shoo!
The gigantic pupil and iris of this eye moved. Wei Wuyin stepped back instinctively. He didn’t feel fear. In his life, fear was facing the unknown, not the known. This eye belonged to a living existence that was larger than his current conceivable belief, but merely that. Only interest entered his heart, nothing more.
His silver eyes calmed, as did his expanding and contracting lungs, and mind. With his sense of self restored after that brief momentary loss, he lifted the ball of fire qi higher as it illuminated more.
An azure color caught his attention. His eyes narrowed to catch a glimpse, ignoring the intense stare of the eye. "What are you?" He murmured to himself.
"You...are odd." A voice entered his mind, transmitted directly to it via mental energies. Wei Wuyin was startled for a moment.
"You can transmit messages directly to my mind?" How powerful and mystical this existence must be. While he could communicate with Bai Lin, that was using his spirit which harnessed mental energies, funneled through its spiritual strength, and even then, it was vague and unclear.
However, this was a complete sentence that he completely understood and in a language he was incomparably familiar with. A beast can do this? His horizon had expanded this moment, including the breadth of his belief. While he had met that Blacl Skeleton, knew about the secrets of the Heavenly Daos, his understanding of the actual world was still lacking.
"I can, odd human."
Wei Wuyin fully registered every syllable and could even recognize that it belonged to a male.
Wei Wuyin lifted the fireball closer to the eye. It had to be at least three hundred meters and that was merely the eye. He had never seen an eye that large before, and the way its lines were vivid and its shape was so sharp, he felt intrigued and invested into knowing its species.
"Why did you call me down here?" Wei Wuyin wasn’t idle. He approached the azure color highlighted by the light. Without an ounce of apprehension, he rubbed his palm on its surface.
"A scale?" He recognized the texture. It reminded him of the scales of lizards, hard yet flexible. There was a reason he didn’t feel fear towards this gigantic creature beyond his comprehension. Firstly, if it wanted to, he felt that a creature of this size could instantly kill him. Secondly, it had cautiously used its mysterious powers to beg him to descend.
It needed him for something.
"Odd human! I ask for your help," the creature spoke. Its powerful mind-transmitted messages made Wei Wuyin dizzy, a little unaccustomed to this means of communication.
After a shake or two of his head, Wei Wuyin calmly responded, "with what?"
"Life!" Was its only word.
Wei Wuyin frowned. Without any hesitation, he kicked off what he could only believe was the creature’s body and blaze upwards. His movements were beyond swift and decisive.
"!" A tremor nearly tossed Wei Wuyin’s consciousness into the dark depths when a vast strength impacted his entirety. This strength was ancient, mighty, and monstrous. It erupted in his mind and soul as it gripped his sea of consciousness in a paralyzed state.
Wei Wuyin’s two Spirits of Qi that resided in his dantian reacted, as if responding to a massive threat. From his pores, a vast amount of elemental and saber qi exited, shrouding his body protectively in a ward, yet his body was still frozen.
He didn’t simply freeze in body and soul, but while in mid-air, his body lingered there as if in a stasis state of time. This strength was imperious and horrific, seizing his sense of control.
He quietly descended without his own power, unable to move even a finger. This creature’s strength exceeded his mental limits, but he didn’t feel a sense of deadly crisis, simply restrained. This confirmed his theory.
In truth, he had merely leapt to see if this creature had powers still remaining. If not, perhaps he could move to kill it. While it seemed selfish, whatever this creature needed him for might not be worth the risk, so dealing with it might be a better alternative than falling into some ungodly trap. However, experiencing this unrivaled power, he could only calm down his thoughts and focus on other things.
"Human! I-" the creature spoke once more, but a waning feeling was accompanied by this voice, as if it was weakening.
Boom!
Wei Wuyin felt his mind experience an explosive eruption originating from his Alchemic Heart of Eden Qi. The Alchemic Heart of Eden Qi’s cyclone that spiraled endlessly within his sea of consciousness started to glow and flick scintillating seven-colored light. Its form started to rapidly change. It became a tree!
This tree was the exact shape of the Tree of Eden that housed the Eden Earth Sect. Its roots buried itself within his sea of consciousness, embedding itself into his motor controls and even connecting with his intangible soul.
The Tree of Eden started to explode with light, its body and self majestic and infinite. It was as if the light was a decree of territory, making its invincible domain. It was as if all foreign influences were no longer allowed. How fearsome!
"What?" Wei Wuyin felt his bodily and spiritual controls return. A wave of disbelief surged inside his heart as he moved while the strength of the creature still imposed its restrictive will.
However, that wasn’t all. Element! A saber emerged in his sea of consciousness as if it had exited from his soul and entered his mind. It brandished its sharp edge and struck ruthlessly at the restrictive will. Before a moment passed, the will was obliterated by an imposing, deadly slash.
The gigantic eye’s pupils constricted. A soft groan that caused the world to tremble resounded. Wei Wuyin could tell that it was in pain, likely the rebound of the Tree of Eden and Element’s joint counterattack.
Wei Wuyin never expected his spirits and Nascent Saber Soul to run to his defense without his will. His eyebrows furrowed deeply as he returned to his previous position.
"You..." The creature’s pained voice was suffused with shock and disbelief. It obviously didn’t think that Wei Wuyin could remove and even destroy his restrictive powers.
Wei Wuyin relaxed. "Don’t think i’m an easy target or fool. What are you and what do you want? If you don’t wish to be clear, I’ll leave."
The eye that had constricted started to shiver slightly as a large layer of flesh started to descend. Wei Wuyin was taken aback, only to realize that it was the eyelids of the creature. In seconds, it closed, sealing off the eye and revealing an azure color.
"Human," the voice sounded again, but this time it was softer and wasn’t mental. His eyes turned to the darkness where the voice originated from. He spotted an azure shadow glowing softly with azure light, its shape and form was indistinct. It was dozens of meters away and seemed to be shimmering into existence like a mirage in the desert.
Sending his spiritual sense to inspect, his eyes flashed with comprehension. "An avatar? But this one lacks physical substance. A spiritual avatar?" He was quite familiar with avatar arts, having created his own, and could instantly recognize it.
He walked forward until the distance shrunk and the figure became clearer. When it did, fully forming, Wei Wuyin’s heart raced with excitement and shock.
"A dragon!"
It had the head of a lizard, with nostrils flared, five claws on its fore-legs and hind-legs supported by powerful muscles. Azure scales covered the entirety of its body, and with the glowing light, it looked beautiful as if it came from the Immortal World. Its wings were folded, but they seemed meaty and powerful.
At the top of its elongated snout, a single curved horn rested. It was thicker than Wei Wuyin’s arm, but the entire beast was dozens of meters high. He couldn’t even tell how long it was, with spikes protruding down its back till the end of its tail.
Dragons were considered legendary creatures in the Myriad Yore Continent. They were creatures of myths that could never be substantiated, but always mentioned in literature and ancient records. In these records, there was a time that dragons ruled all creation, soaring through the starry skies to other worlds, and dominating every species.
The humans, demons, elvens, and more worshipped them religiously. However, weren’t those just stories told to embolden the desire for adventure in children?
In his lifetime, he had never believed he would see one.
When the avatar fully formed, likely representing the larger dragon that was currently shrouded by darkness, it spoke. "I am Anu, a grand creature of this world. Human, I need lifeforce. I’m willing to bestow upon you great fortune in exchange."
Its voice was alluring but Wei Wuyin pouted, seemingly unaffected. Fortune? Great fortune?
He asked in a deadpan manner, "Can you bestow to me the cultivation of the Realm of Sages?"
Anu halted, its eyes flashed with clear confusion. Realm of Sages? Was that a location? No, he said cultivation...
Seeing the creature’s spiritual avatar stumped, Wei Wuyin’s eyes rolled in its sockets. "Damn, and here I thought I was saved."