"Th... thank you, master," one of the dragons shuddered and quickly took a pill. It swallowed it at once, then prostrated on the ground, trembling as it voiced its gratitude.
The others didn't dare to hesitate. No matter what scheme he was cooking up, it couldn't be worse than the soul-crushing torment of the Limitless Agony Soul Mark.
Once the dragons swallowed the pills, they all sensed a strange yet overwhelming power rushing through their bodies. The energy was incredibly dense, carrying a force that could shake the heavens, yet it flowed with an odd gentleness, as if afraid to harm them.
Suppressing their shock, the dragons closed their eyes one after another, focusing entirely on refining the mysterious power.
Yun Wuji turned his attention to the Dragon Emperor and said calmly, "These pills are useless to you."
As a 10th level Divine Master, the Dragon Emperor had already reached the peak of what the pills could offer. No matter how many he consumed, they wouldn't move him an inch forward.
"I am grateful for your consideration, Master..." the Dragon Emperor replied, shaking its massive head.
"However, back then I promised to give you a drop of Dragon God blood," Yun Wuji interrupted its insincere gratitude. He raised a finger, and from it, a drop of silver blood shot out, hitting the Dragon Emperor directly on the forehead.
The Dragon Emperor didn't resist, nor did it dare to. It allowed the drop of blood to enter its body without a word.
Just like the other dragons, it forced down the storm of shock in its heart and shut its eyes, beginning to refine the Divine Blood.
Yun Wuji's blood was over sixty percent Dragon God blood, thanks to the Dragon God Marrow and the twelfth-layer Dragon God Morph.
Giving away a single drop, one that would regenerate in no time, meant nothing to him.
"You want one too?" Yun Wuji turned to Qianye Ying'er, who was staring at the dragons with wide eyes. There were more than 14 dragons at the 9th level Divine Master Realm, and 5 were at the peak of the 9th level. If Yun Wuji's words were true, then after they refined the pills, these dragons would all have the strength of a 10th level Divine Master! That was the ultimate realm in this world without gods!
"Yes." Qianye Ying'er had long thrown away her stupid pride and dignity. What kind of pride could a slave even have? She discarded all of that the moment she offered herself to him.
Yun Wuji stepped forward and stretched out his hand, gently caressing her flawless face. Qianye Ying'er didn't flinch, she looked straight at him. He had done this many times before, always stopping just short, always pulling back at the last moment. But this time was different. Yun Wuji leaned in, and soon, his lips pressed against hers in a kiss.
The kiss wasn't intense or deep, he just brushed his lips against hers briefly before pulling back with a chuckle. "You must've been wondering why I still haven't laid a hand on you, right?"
"Well, that's because I don't like forcing women," Yun Wuji said, eyeing her still-shocked expression from the sudden kiss. "I'll only do it when you're willing."
Yun Wuji tossed a pill to her. "Here, take it."
"...Willingly do it? Hmph. Wishful thinking!" Qianye Ying'er caught the pill and snorted with disdain.
He turned and walked back to Mu Xuanyin, who waited not far away. After a few steps, he glanced back with an evil grin. "From now on, until I say otherwise, you're to wear vibrators on your clit and nipples."
Ignoring her face twisting with rage and disgust, he left.
"Damn it! Sick pervert!" she spat after him.
...
A few days passed quickly, and soon the dragons woke up. They stared at each other in disbelief and shock. Just as Yun Wuji promised, each of them had leveled up by one stage. Fourteen reached the 10th level Divine Master, while sixteen advanced to the 9th level Divine Master.
Their Dragon Emperor finished refining the Dragon God blood and woke up much faster than the others. His cultivation level remained the same, but his aura grew far more powerful. Though still weaker than the Dragon Monarch, he was confident that against the strongest of the Nine Dragon Gods, the Crimson Destruction Dragon God, he wouldn't lose.
"Everyone, I hope you all are satisfied with my gift," Yun Wuji gathered them once more, speaking with the same warm smile. However, the effect of this smile was different from before. If before, the dragons felt it was the most evil smile in the world, now they sensed it was the kindest smile in existence.
"This... this lowly dragon is forever grateful for your grace, Master." The Dragon Emperor and the others lowered their heads, expressing sincere gratitude. It was as if they had forgotten the hell he had put them through before.
This was the effect of the carrot and the stick. With only fear, rebellion was bound to happen. And if it were only rewards, no one would work for him faithfully.
The most important reason, though, was that he wanted to raise their strength to help him in future battles.
"You don't have to," Yun Wuji shook his head and spoke solemnly, "This is what I promised you. I know each of you feels indignant about losing your freedom. I understand, no one wants to become someone else's servant or slave."
"So today, I promise you all, after 10 years I will grant you your freedom, as long as you execute my orders diligently."
The dragons stared at him in shock once again. Did they hear that right? This evil human actually promised to release them after just 10 years?! Ten short years? For dragons with lifespans of hundreds of thousands of years, 10 years was barely the time of a nap!
"Is this true?" one of the dragons couldn't help but ask.
"Of course, my words are worth more than gold. I have no reason to lie to you," Yun Wuji repeated. "In ten years, my plan will be complete, and I won't need your help anymore. I will grant you all your freedom."
To them, ten years was a blink of an eye. But to Yun Wuji, it was more than enough, he only needed a little over half a year to achieve his goals.
...
Blue Pole Star, Yun Palace.
Night had fallen. Everyone was either asleep or cultivating. In Xiao Lingxi's private courtyard, she lay on her bed, clutching a long pillow tightly, the pillow printed with the face of an extremely handsome man.
It was a Dakimakura with Yun Wuji's picture on it, the woman was clenching the pillow tightly, her frown frowning tightly, and her forehead covered in sweat, she kept muttering, "Wuji... don't... no... Wuji..."
"Wuji!!!" Suddenly, Xiao Lingxi woke up with a cry. Her towering chest heaved as she breathed heavily. She looked around frantically, searching for his shadow, then glanced down at her sweat-drenched body.
Usually, cultivators at her level don't need sleep, but recently, whenever she returned to her room, she would fall asleep, and each time she would dream a nightmare.
In that dream, she saw Yun Wuji fighting a group of extremely powerful people, then his body suddenly exploded into a shower of red fire, turning to ashes.
The dream felt so real, so vivid, as if it had actually happened.
She hadn't told anyone about it, not even when she chatted with Yun Wuji over the Soul Transmission crystal, because she didn't want to worry them.
"It's just a dream... It's just a dream," Xiao Lingxi whispered, staring at Yun Wuji's handsome face on her dakimakura. She buried her face in the pillow, murmuring, "Wuji, please be safe."
...
Time continued to pass, and soon five months slipped by.
Five figures flew out of the Eternal Heaven Realm, leaving behind long trails of light in the grey sky of the realm.
Leading them was Xing Juekong, the Star God Emperor. By his side stood an old man, his teacher, Tumi.
Following them were three other Star Gods.
The Star God Emperor's countenance radiated might even though he was not angry. Yet, at the same time, he did not emit an overly oppressive aura. This was especially true regarding his eyes, which, although they were like radiant pools of still water, contained a sharpness that could pierce a person's heart and soul with a glance.
"Contributing to the peace of the Eastern Divine Region, huh?" He smiled coldly. "They want us to hand over all the Divine Jades and Spatial Crystals we've collected over the years. That old man from Eternal Heaven must be out of his mind."
He and the other three God Emperors had gathered in the Eternal Heaven Realm to discuss the crimson crack in the wall of Primal Chaos. After the discussion, the Eternal Heaven God Emperor urged them to invest more resources to try to repair the crack.
But everyone knew it was a futile attempt; how could mere mortals affect the Wall of Primal Chaos when not even True Gods from ancient times could? Still, despite knowing this, they had to try.
"The Eternal Heaven God Emperor is a man who strives for the peace of the Eastern Divine Region. He has contributed the most out of all four king realms, but that can't be said for the Brahma Monarch and Moon God Realms," Tumi narrowed his eyes and spoke slowly. "The Moon God Emperor will use anything to disgust us, and Qianye Fantian is a scheming man; he wants nothing more than to see us biting each other."
The three other Star Gods, Heavenly Strength Star God, Heavenly Poison Star God, and Heavenly Demon Star God, followed silently, acting as guards without a word.
Whenever a God Emperor left their realm, they always had guards with them; in this case, it was the Star Gods.
"Indeed, Brahma Monarch God Realm..." the Star God Emperor nodded, then let out a heavy sigh. "If it weren't for that poisonous woman Qianye Ying'er causing Xisu's death, we could've resumed the ritual." When he mentioned his son's name, a flash of pain crossed his eyes but vanished quickly.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, alarm bells rang in the Star God Emperor's mind! Before he could react, before he could even grasp what was happening, a figure appeared like a ghost. A thin red line streaked through the air behind her… and that red line pierced straight through the Star God Emperor's body!
...
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