Nine Star Hegemon Body Arts

Chapter 5461 Ashamed

“What are you talking about? You’ve claimed that the resonant dragon race is a traitor. We believe that much since we all dislike them. But the bone dragon race? They’re mortal enemies with the resonant dragon race, like fire and water. Both sides have suffered hideous casualties because of their conflicts. How could they be traitors too?” demanded Xie Qianzhong, his tone skeptical yet curious.

Amongst all of them, the one with the most explosive temper, Xie Qianzhong, actually seemed to respect Long Chen more. Perhaps it was the case of two evil people flocking together; Xie Qianzhong actually felt that Long Chen was quite pleasing. Compared to his usual demeanor, his tone toward Long Chen was almost... mild.

“I’ll let race leader Mo Ying explain it,” replied Long Chen.

Mo Ying nodded. “Long Chen is correct. I have personally observed him. Of course, I have also observed all of you...”

The room grew heavy as a wave of unease rippled through the gathered leaders.

“Relax,” Mo Ying said with a faint smile. “I did this for the sake of the Dragon Domain. I needed to know whether your loyalties lay with your personal ambition or with the Dragon Domain itself. I myself have no desire to be king. I’m not interested in that power, but I have to protect my people. Even if I die, my people must live. Our bloodline must continue. If the Dragon Domain’s chaos continued, I would have chosen the side who I felt lacked any selfish desires and helped them unify the Dragon Domain. To be honest, I was most recently leaning toward the scarlet dragon race.”

Mo Ying’s revelation startled everyone, especially Chi Yue, the scarlet dragon race leader.

Chi Yue was the first to speak. “What nonsense is this? Last time, you called me an arrogant fool.”

“That was a test,” Mo Ying replied, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. “If you couldn’t even endure a bit of verbal abuse, how could you possibly lead us? While your reaction was barely passable, I had no better candidates to choose from, so I had to settle for you.”

She shrugged lightly. “But I digress. Let’s return to the bone dragon race. I’ve been observing Gu Hongyao for a long time. Initially, I suspected nothing. But in the past three thousand years, he has secretly visited the resonant dragon race four times. Each time, he hid his aura and altered his appearance. If not for my black dragon race’s secret arts, he might have fooled even me.”

“What?!” gasped the assembled leaders, their expressions a mixture of disbelief and outrage.

“During those visits,” Mo Ying continued, “he went straight to the resonant dragon patriarch’s chambers. I didn’t dare to look inside that place for fear of being noticed, so I have no idea what they discussed. But for them to be conducting themselves in such secrecy, whatever they’re plotting, it’s nothing good. I believe Long Chen slapped him deliberately to drive him away.”

All eyes turned to Long Chen, who merely nodded in affirmation.

With a curious expression, Mo Ying asked, “I’ve observed Gu Hongyao for centuries to uncover his treachery. But you’ve never set foot in the Dragon Domain before today. How did you know there’s an issue with him?”

Long Chen solemnly answered, “I can see the future.”

Mo Ying’s expression darkened immediately. “Be serious!”

Long Chen chuckled. “It’s simple. He’s consumed medicinal pills. I happen to know a thing or two about alchemy.”

“What are you talking about? How could you possibly sense whether or not someone had consumed medicinal pills?” one of the race leaders asked skeptically, shaking his head.

Though there was doubt in their eyes, none dared to berate Long Chen openly. Despite his arrogance and sharp tongue, it was clear this young man was anything but ordinary.

“It is simple,” Long Chen replied, his tone casual yet assured. “The pills he consumed were crafted by the Brahma Pill Valley. Their medicinal pills are fundamentally different from the ones I refine. If you don’t believe me, see for yourselves.”

Long Chen took out two medicinal pills. They hovered in the air, radiating a faint glow as they rotated for all to examine.

They all knew about alchemy, but they had never consumed medicinal pills themselves. So, while they could sense the quality of pills to an extent, they couldn’t distinguish the subtle differences between the two pills.

As everyone examined them closely, it was Mo Ying who said, “One of them has faith energy. I see now.”

Mo Ying came to a sudden realization while the others were still lost. However, her statement allowed them to notice the difference between the two pills.

“What do you mean by that?” Xie Qianzhong asked, his brows furrowed in curiosity.

“No wonder I felt a bit weird when I sat beside him. I thought it was because there was a problem with him. But now I know it’s because he has consumed medicinal pills over a long period of time, resulting in faith energy accumulating in him. We are all children of the Primal Chaos Dragon Sovereign, our highest faith. To have the faith energy of others in our bodies is a blasphemy to the Dragon Sovereign. Though he must have used a secret art to suppress that aura, my black dragon race is particularly sensitive to such fluctuations. I sensed it instinctively, though I couldn’t pinpoint what it was until now,” said Mo Ying.

Her explanation made the others realized something, though the finer details were still beyond their comprehension. Regardless, the clarity in her tone and the logic behind her words left little room for argument.

“There’s another issue,” said Long Chen, his tone calm but pointed. “The dragon experts who accompanied my Dragonblood Legion here from outside the Endless Desolation have also consumed my medicinal pills. And they didn’t just take one or two. Did any of you notice anything unusual about them?”

All of them were baffled. When the dragon experts from outside arrived, the leaders had been so surprised that they personally inspected their bloodlines to ensure there were no abnormalities.

“That’s exactly it,” Long Chen continued. “Which means the problem isn’t with medicinal pills themselves—it’s with Pill Valley’s pills. Your decision to forbid disciples from consuming medicinal pills was a very wise move.”

This was the first time Long Chen had ever said something nice about them, so their expressions instantly improved.

“Are you saying the dragon race can consume medicinal pills?” asked Mo Ying.

“Yes, but it’s better not to,” replied Long Chen.

“Why not?”

In truth, the dragon race was very tempted by medicinal pills. However, ever since the resonant dragon race consumed medicinal pills, their auras changed, making the others feel uncomfortable around them. Over time, this led to a distaste for medicinal pills.

They had assumed that the dragon race was inherently incompatible with medicinal pills. Yet today, Long Chen was proving otherwise. The issue wasn’t with medicinal pills themselves but specifically with those from Brahma Pill Valley. If that were true, wouldn’t the dragon race also be able to use medicinal pills to advance rapidly?

“There are three reasons why I still advise against it,” said Long Chen, raising one finger. “First, even you struggle to discern faith energy within a pill. How would your disciples manage it? If Brahma Pill Valley wanted to exploit this, how would you stop them?”

Hearing that, everyone nodded. That was entirely correct.

Long Chen raised a second finger. “Second, you guys can’t refine medicinal pills on your own, which will force you to rely on the human race for collaboration. In the short term—one or two years, even a century or two—that’s fine. But what about after thousands or tens of thousands of years? Who can guarantee some humans won’t exploit your dependence? With medicinal pills as a crutch, the dragon race’s very survival could fall into their hands. Do you see how dangerous that would be?”

They couldn’t deny the risk, and a newfound respect for Long Chen grew in their hearts. He seemed genuinely concerned for the dragon race’s well-being.

After that, Long Chen raised his third finger solemnly.

“Third,” he said, his voice weighted with meaning. “You are descendants of the Primal Chaos Dragon Sovereign. Instead of fully embracing and cultivating the legacy left to you, you would take a shortcut by relying on medicinal pills? That would show a lack of trust in the Dragon Sovereign—a betrayal of your own heritage. It would be the greatest blasphemy to that old fellow.”

Mo Ying, Xie Qianzhong, Chi Mo Ying, Xie Qianzhong, Chi Yue, and the others were left stunned. Long Chen’s words struck deep, stirring a mixture of shame and reverence within them.