The little dragon head swayed. Although it had no expression, its demeanor revealed an indescribable disdain.
Everyone burst into laughter, and Xiao Wenbing's heart stirred. He took out a peach and said, "Little fellow, I have some here..."
Before he finished speaking, the peach in his hand had already disappeared.
The laughter abruptly ceased. This time, everyone watched intently, yet they still couldn't catch a glimpse of the small snake; its speed was truly unbelievable. Perhaps only Feng Baiyi's Heavenly Thunder and the Roc's ultimate speed could rival it.
“Good heavens, this little thing is definitely no ordinary item,” Xiao Wenbing asserted.
Several divine thoughts swept over the little dragon at the same time. Although the little dragon's aura was not strong, its amazing speed alone was enough to foresee its future power.
"Brother Xiao, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Oh, I'm so sorry." A gentle breeze blew by, and Long Shi had returned.
"It's alright, we're family, no need for formalities." Xiao Wenbing lightly punched his shoulder and asked, "Are you taking us to see the Dragon King?"
Long Shi smiled bitterly and said, "The Dragon King, he..." He stammered for a long time before turning his gaze away and inadvertently seeing the little dragon holding two peaches.
He gaped in surprise, rubbed his eyes, and suddenly exclaimed, "Your Majesty the Dragon King, what are you doing here?"
Dragon King?
Xiao Wenbing and the others stared intently at the small snake with a crest on its head and legs on its belly, and countless absurd thoughts flashed through their minds.
"Who...who is this?"
"This is the great Dragon King," Long Shi said respectfully. "Your Majesty, Lord Xiao and the others have arrived."
Xiao Wenbing and the others exchanged bewildered glances, their expressions as strange as could be.
Long Shi was extremely anxious and gently nudged Xiao Wenbing. Only then did the latter realize what was happening and, not daring to be negligent, quickly bowed and said, "Junior Xiao Wenbing greets Your Majesty the Dragon King."
Although I don't care much for dragons, I still have to be polite, even just for Long Shi's sake.
"No need, alas, it has been millions of years since I last saw a god." A long, drawn-out sigh came softly from the mouth of the small snake, which was about a foot long.
Looking at the small snake and the intensity of its energy, no one would associate it with the King of Dragons. Yet, the fact that it uttered such arrogant words only made it more suspicious.
Their gazes swept over the tiny snake, no thicker than a baby's hand and barely a foot long, then turned to the majestic, winding mountain in the distance. A wave of emotion washed over them; they didn't know how to describe it…
"You are His Majesty the Dragon King! You are truly... truly, so... so majestic and dignified."
I had originally intended to offer some compliments, but faced with this little snake, words like "majestic" and "imposing" seemed inadequate. After much thought, I could only offer this awkward and inappropriate description: "solemn and dignified."
"Haha." Upon hearing this, the Dragon King burst into laughter. Although its body was small, the volume of its laughter far exceeded everyone's expectations.
After a while, a golden light rose from the Dragon King's body. He transformed into a pale-faced scholar. With a slight shake, the two peaches in his hand disappeared instantly. At the same time, he laughed and said, "This little friend is really interesting. I haven't been this happy in a long time."
"Of course, of course. May I ask what brings you here?" Xiao Wenbing said flatteringly.
"I dare not give orders, but I have a favor to ask of you, little friend."
"Please speak, senior."
"Little friend, do you know where this place is?"
Xiao Wenbing pondered for a moment and said, "It should be the fifth level of the underworld."
“That’s right. The fifth level of the Underworld has mountains, seas, flowers, and trees. The spiritual energy here far surpasses that of the first four levels.” The Dragon King sighed softly and said, “However, this fifth level is also a place full of dangers.”
"Danger and opportunity coexist, is that right?" Xiao Wenbing asked with a slight smile.
The Dragon King was taken aback. He suddenly burst into laughter again, saying, "Little friend, you're quite amusing. That's right, in the fifth level of the Underworld, although the speed of cultivation far surpasses that of other places, even compared to your God Realm, it's in no way inferior. However, correspondingly, the danger is also greatly increased. Let alone a little dragon like Long Shi who has just qualified to come to the Underworld, even I, the Dragon King, wouldn't dare to recklessly trespass."
Xiao Wenbing was slightly taken aback. Through sensing the aura, he could already determine that the Dragon King's strength was indeed unfathomable. Even with the help of five thousand divine swords, he might not be able to defeat him.
However, the fact that he was so honest with himself at this moment meant that there was at least one, or even several, outstanding figures in the fifth level of the underworld whose cultivation was absolutely no less than his.
With so many terrifying beings existing, it's no wonder that the gods in the divine realm, even knowing that the fifth level of the underworld is a good place, dare not come to plunder it.
"Senior Dragon King, what should I be careful about when walking on the fifth floor?" Xiao Wenbing asked.
A hint of appreciation flashed in the Dragon King's eyes as he said, "In the sea, there are our dragon clan and the sea clan. On the road, there are the phoenix clan, the roc clan, and the divine beasts of the Three Mountains and Five Peaks. As long as you don't deliberately provoke them, you can at least live in peace with each other."
Xiao Wenbing nodded and wrote down the Dragon King's words one by one.
"Besides, those Dark Gods trapped in the fifth layer of the Underworld are all real..."
If a child encounters a powerful individual, it's advisable to avoid them for the time being.
Xiao Wenbing raised his eyebrows and asked, "Are those Dark Gods really that powerful?"
The Dragon King smiled and offered no explanation, saying, "Besides these races, there are three forbidden areas on the fifth level of the Underworld. These places are extremely dangerous, and those who enter never return. Furthermore, there are wondrous objects protecting those forbidden areas, so children shouldn't explore them."
Xiao Wenbing smiled slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with the Dragon King's advice.
He came to the underworld specifically for the divine artifact, so why would he pass by without entering?
Thinking of this, Xiao Wenbing memorized the names, locations, and characteristics of the three forbidden areas, and suddenly a thought struck him. He unexpectedly discovered that the place where the Food King had gone when he rescued it was, according to the Dragon King's account, one of the three forbidden areas.
"I will always remember your wise words, senior." Xiao Wenbing bowed deeply and said, "If you have any instructions, senior, and they are within my ability, then I will certainly not refuse."
"Good!" The Dragon King laughed loudly. "I heard that you, little friend, have subdued a Sea King's Favor."
"It's not so much that we subdued it, it just took a liking to us and followed us all the way." Xiao Wenbing lied through his teeth. Although Zhang Yaqi used the water spirit to firmly attract the giant seashell, when they first met, the giant seashell had no intention of wandering the world with Xiao Wenbing.
"Whether you take a liking to them or subdue them, the favor of the Sea God is in your hands." A hint of surprise flashed in the Dragon King's eyes, then he looked at the majestic and proud Roc and said, "This divine bird must also belong to you, little one."
"That's right. Dapeng has been with us for a long time and we're like family."
The Dragon King sighed deeply and said, "Before you ascended to the Immortal Realm, you had already formed a bond with the Dragon and Phoenix clans, obtaining the Dragon King's Reverse Scale and the Phoenix Lord's Top Feather. Now you have also adopted the rare and precious Earth Profound Gold Roc and the favor of the Sea God. Alas, I never imagined that the four most powerful creatures of the Underworld would all be so destined to be with you."
Xiao Wenbing was incredibly intelligent, and upon hearing this, he immediately understood about 70-80% of the meaning. He asked, "Senior Dragon King, could it be that there is some conflict among the four races of the Underworld?"
"There can't be any major conflict," the Dragon King said with a wry smile. "However, in the last thousand years, the suppressed Dark Gods in the fifth level of the Underworld have been restless, while the four races we are responsible for guarding have been busy tending to their own affairs, rarely helping each other. If this continues, I'm afraid..."
Xiao Wenbing raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Dark God? Senior Dragon King, how could the Dark God be on the fifth level of the Underworld?"
The Dragon King chuckled and said, "You are also one of the gods. Let me ask you, Great Immortal, what are your chances of success in overcoming your tribulation?"
Xiao Wenbing pondered for a moment and said, "Perfect."
"...?"
"You jest, child," the Dragon King said unhappily. "As far as I know, among the great immortals who undergo tribulation, only one in a thousand can successfully become gods, while those who cultivate into dark gods are more than three times that number."
Xiao Wenbing nodded to himself. He hadn't been joking just now, because with the help of the Godhood Circle and the Roc, he could indeed achieve a 100% success rate in becoming a god.
But this is an exception after all; without that series of coincidences, such a miracle would never have been possible.
Most immortals who undergo tribulation will perish because they cannot comprehend the power of the gods. Even those who do comprehend the power of the gods will explode and die because they cannot condense a divine core.
Even those who manage to survive these two trials are far fewer in number, as they remain sane under the onslaught of inner demons. The Dragon King's statement that the number of powerful immortals who become dark gods is more than three times that of normal gods is a very accurate assessment.
Seeing that Xiao Wenbing did not refute, the Dragon King asked, "Then do you know where those Dark Gods have gone?"
Xiao Wenbing's heart skipped a beat. He pointed to the ground and said, "Could it be that they've all made it to the fifth level of the Underworld?"
“Otherwise, once a dark god is formed, it will be automatically absorbed into the third layer of the underworld. Our four races will send people to seal these dark gods.”
Xiao Wenbing nodded secretly, thinking of Long Ming and the sea monsters they encountered along the way, and immediately believed this statement. It was probably only these great masters, comparable to gods, who could seal the Dark God.
"You seniors have worked hard and made great contributions; your merits are immeasurable. But why did you do this?"
The Dragon King shook his head slightly and sighed, "What we are doing is actually just an order left by the first generation of gods before they left."
Xiao Wenbing and the others exchanged glances and suddenly realized that although the first generation of gods had grown tired of this world and left, they had still left behind a powerful protective force for it.
The Dark God is a monster without consciousness, only knowing how to kill. If left unchecked, no matter how vast the world is, it will eventually perish.
With the dragon, phoenix, roc, and sea creatures joining forces, their strength is likely no less than that of the gods in the divine realm.
Only the immense power of the underworld can suppress these unkillable dark gods.
However, judging from the Dragon King's tone at this moment, the situation seems to be getting worse.
"Senior Dragon King, could it be that those Dark Gods have already broken free from the control of the four races?"
"Not yet." The Dragon King shook his head slightly and said, "But if this situation continues, it will be hard to say what will happen in another hundred million years."
Xiao Wenbing frowned slightly and said, "Although the number of Dark Gods is constantly increasing, your four clans will not stand still, will they?"
The Dragon King sighed helplessly, saying, "Although the strength of our four races has increased dramatically compared to trillions of years ago, it still cannot match the growth rate of the Dark God. What's even more worrying is that after such a long period of time, there has been considerable friction among the younger generation of our four races. If something were to happen..."
The Dragon King fell silent, and Xiao Wenbing and the others did not look pleased.
If these four tribes were to turn on each other first and utterly defeat each other, then the world would truly be in chaos.
The Dragon King stared intently at Xiao Wenbing and said in a deep voice, "Young friend, your presence here today is due to your connection with our four clans. As the saying goes, you are destined by Heaven. Whether you can resolve the countless grievances between our four clans that have lasted for billions of years depends on your decision."
Volume 23, Chapter 24: Phoenix Nest
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The long cry carried far and wide as the roc stretched out its two long steel feathers, casting a large black shadow on its face.
Guided by the Dragon King, they finally arrived on a continent.
In the underworld, which is surrounded by water, it is not easy to find a dry place to settle down, especially in the middle of the sea, where the possibility of finding land is even smaller.
Although Xiao Wenbing and the others were all gods and not afraid of drowning, they were not aquatic creatures. Apart from the giant snake, they had long been tired of staying in the water.
So upon seeing the land, even Zhang Yaqi couldn't help but show a happy smile.
"Long Shi, have you been here before?" Xiao Wenbing asked.
The biggest gain after meeting the Dragon King was bringing along his old friend Long Shi. Nominally, he was to act as a liaison between the Dragon Clan and Xiao Wenbing, but in reality, the Dragon King gave Xiao Wenbing face by allowing Long Shi to leave the Dragon Clan and travel the world with Xiao Wenbing.
"No." Long Shi sighed and said, "My cultivation is insufficient. After arriving at the fifth level of the Underworld, I dare not go out except for the Dragon King's Palace."
Indeed, in this environment, there are countless creatures stronger than him. Even the Food King, who has already become a god, was in a sorry state under the attack of those super death bees, let alone Long Shi, who is only at the level of an ordinary fusion realm immortal at this moment.
"Old Long, don't worry, you won't suffer if you follow Brother Xiao." Food King patted Long Shi on the shoulder and said with great pride.
Xiao Wenbing glared at him, annoyed. How could he be so generous with other people's money and say it so smoothly?
This old man-eating flower is truly beyond redemption.
However, when Xiao Wenbing saw the hopeful look in Long Shi's eyes, he immediately surrendered and said, "Old Long, after I finish my business, I will definitely help you think of a way to improve your strength, and I guarantee that you will be no worse than your old friend."
"Alright, thank you very much then." Long Shi said with a beaming smile. Just by looking at the fates of the Food King and Shabir, Long Shi was filled with confidence in his own future.