Sage Monarch (Sage Emperor)

With his Myriad Worlds Greater Teleportation and Tribulation Wings, Yang Qi’s flight speed was mind-boggling. Even experts of a higher level than him would never be able to catch him, and he was actually capable of speeds that could surpass many teleportation portals.

It was similar to how, in years past, he could use the Myriad Worlds Monarch Chart to teleport to any location he desired.

And thanks to the God Legion Seal, he could easily replenish any energy he lost due to his efforts.

At first, Patriarch Deva had mostly been shocked by Yang Qi’s speed, but then he became even more shocked by his endurance. Patriarch Deva knew that, in ancient times, there were many techniques of flight, many of which were based on the use of quintessence-blood, lifespan, or the like.

In other words, they couldn’t be used for extended periods of time.

But Yang Qi could fly along without ever stopping. It seemed almost impossible, yet his energy continued flowing without cease. It was something that not even Paramount Gods should be capable of.

“You....”

“What, surprised that I can go on for so long without resting? That’s just how I operate. Remember it. With the God Legion Seal, my godhood can never be drained or destroyed. What do you think? I'm so fast that you couldn’t catch me, let alone keep up with me.”

Patriarch Deva didn’t know how to respond.

Yang Qi was able to move so fast he could hardly track his movements; if he used that level of speed in a fight, it would be almost impossible to deal with him.

“We should arrive at the Myriad Dragons Lair in about two hours,” Patriarch Deva said. “Look around, the vital energy is already showing signs that it’ll dragonize you.”

“Hmm?” Yang Qi stopped for a moment and looked around very seriously. He could see that the spatial tempests were weakening, but there was something acrid and magical about the spatial nodes.

He made a grasping motion, and the surrounding space-time compacted into a crystallized form, within which was some sort of demon energy that resembled flowing scales. In fact, they were dragon scales. Some such dragon scales had already infected Yang Qi’s vital energy, crystallizing it and slowly transforming it, altering his very genes and substructure.

It was obvious that the power of the Myriad Dragons Lair had seeped into space-time itself, creating a demonic energy that could transform anyone it touched into a dragon.

Strictly speaking, dragons actually weren’t living beings, but rather a manifestation of energy.

That was why, in the impure lands, dragons were sometimes referred to simply as dragon energy or dragon lodes. They could even be born directly out of the vital energy of heaven and earth, and as such, they represented power, majesty, terror, destruction, and eminence.

Yang Qi waved his hand, unleashing the power of King Heaven-Devourer’s talismans. Instantly, the dragon energy rumbled toward him and was converted into Heaven-Devouring True Energy. Obviously, King Heaven-Devourer’s talismans could handle the energy of the Dragonfolk. That said, it was hard to say what things would be like in the depths of the Myriad Dragons Lair. The dragon energy there would definitely be much, much stronger.

Yang Qi proceeded onward.

About two hours later, things suddenly changed without warning.

Thrummmm!

Dramatic transformations occurred in heaven and earth, as the entire area was filled with a complex, destructive energy. Dragon scales whipped about like flurries in a snowstorm, creating draconic tornadoes, some of which were millions upon millions of kilometers in diameter. They were almost like worlds of wind.

‘Such a strong dragon aura,’ Yang Qi thought. ‘Just what I would expect of a place called the Myriad Dragons Lair. Supposedly, anyone that comes here will be dragonized.’ As a test, he tossed out a magical treasure that had been created by an ordinary Paramount God, a golden disc that shone with dazzling light.

As soon as it was swept up by one of the windstorms, it collapsed, then reformed into the shape of a golden dragon. Baring its fangs and claws, it flew off into the distance.

‘Wow, it can even dragonize that. Amazing.’

RUMBLE!

A massive tempest swept forth, filled with draconic lightning formed by the clash of vital energies. Thousands upon thousands of lightning bolts slashed toward Yang Qi, blasting into his defensive empyrean energy in the hopes of converting him to a dragon.

However, using King Heaven-Devourer’s talismans, he simply devoured the draconic lightning.

He still hadn’t drawn directly on the power of the God Legion Seal, because considering how they were already in the vicinity of the Myriad Dragons Lair, it would be sure to beat the grass to startle the snake. The last thing he wanted to do was attract the attention of Buddha First-King and whatever other patriarchs of the Dragonfolk might be lurking about here.

After all, he was here to subjugate Buddha First-King, not pick a fight with the Dragonfolk in general.

“Draconic Transformation!”

Yang Qi suddenly vanished, leaving behind only his monarch godhood, which he surrounded with King Heaven-Devourer’s talismans in a shape that was vaguely draconic and vaguely snake-like.

Obviously, he couldn’t enter the Myriad Dragons Lair as a human, lest he be instantly identified and besieged from all sides. It would be darkly humorous if he ended up killed in the Myriad Dragons Lair before he even found Buddha First-King.

It wasn’t very difficult for Yang Qi to do something like this. Considering his deep understanding of the Cruiser of Civilization, he had long since come to understand his genes and life force. He could transform himself even on a genetic level, making it possible for him to become a real Dragonfolk in just about every sense of the word.

He waved his finger, and the dragonization technique was unleashed on Patriarch Deva, causing dragon scales to ripple out across him. As he howled, he transformed first into an enormous dragon, then into a strange half-dragon half-person hybrid. Now it wouldn’t be any problem at all for him to enter the Myriad Dragons Lair.

“Let’s go!”

After making all of the proper preparations, he proceeded onward with only the Myriad Worlds Greater Teleportation technique. He chose not to use the Tribulation Wings, as they were too mighty and would provoke a power of tribulations that would attract far too much attention.

In contrast, the Myriad Worlds Greater Teleportation was much quieter, making it perfect for both assassinations and heists.

Piercing through the tempests and roiling dragon energy, he used King Heaven-Devourer’s talisman to devour everything that came his way, even the powerful dragon vitality that had been created by Paramount Gods. By feeding the resulting Heaven-Devouring True Energy into his sage monarch magistrates, he enabled them to improve on a genetic level, becoming even more perfect.

‘Incredible. Dragons are paragonic entities. In the ancient era, the Sovereign Lord subjugated the Dragonfolk and turned them into thrall troops. He was also the one that split them into eight tribes. However, his efforts were ultimately defeated for unknown reasons. The genes of the Dragonfolk remained unique, and now that I have access to the dragon vitality in the Myriad Dragons Lair, I’ll benefit to no end.’

RUMBLE!

After piercing through numerous tempests within the Myriad Dragons Lair, Yang Qi encountered a powerful greyspace. Up ahead was a conglomeration of flesh and blood that seemed to stretch without end. And it wriggled as scales flowed across its surface.

It was an entire world made of nothing but flesh and blood. Furthermore, the dragon aura was so intense that not even Paramount Gods could possibly stand up to it.

“This is the greyspace of the Myriad Dragons Lair,” Patriarch Deva said. “At this point, I would be completely rebuffed. Inside, Buddha First-King will be ten times more powerful than normal. In other words, even if I was ten times stronger than I am, I wouldn’t be able to handle him. Thankfully, you’ve imparted to me a method to transform my genes and life force into that of the Dragonfolk. Now I'm confident that I can actually fight him.”

“We’re not here to fight him,” Yang Qi reminded Patriarch Deva, “we're here to subjugate him. I want to strike like lightning. Find his location, crush him, and avoid stirring up attention. Let’s go.”

With that, they pierced into the greyspace of flesh and blood, and moments later, found themselves in a grand world of the Dragonfolk.