Chapter 18: Encountering a Flood Dragon
Deep within the Nine Nethers Secret Realm.
There was a sinkhole roughly seven or eight meters in diameter.
Though the opening was not large, what lay below was an entirely different world — a hidden realm unto itself.
At the bottom of the sinkhole grew all manner of rare plants and spirit herbs, and at the center was a natural spring that ceaselessly bubbled forth with water.
The spring had formed a vast, deep pool.
At the center of the pool stood a stone pillar, over ten meters tall.
A faint light filtered down from the opening above, lending this small world an air of mystery.
By all rights, such a fine environment should have been a paradise for animals.
Yet strangely, not a single creature could be found within the sinkhole.
There was only one explanation for this.
The sinkhole was the territory of some powerful exotic beast.
No matter how ideal the environment, no other creature dared enter.
At that moment, the pool's surface began to ripple gently.
A head slowly rose from the water.
It resembled the head of an ice boa — serpentine in shape — but this one was silver-white, and from its crown sprouted two small silver horns, each a few centimeters long.
As the head cleared the water, the body followed, coiling itself around the stone pillar and slowly ascending, until the entire long form was wrapped around it.
Looking closely, one could see it was a Flood Dragon that had already completed its transformation.
The Flood Dragon coiled around the pillar, its head tilted upward, seemingly absorbing the light that cascaded down from the opening above.
…………
Time passed — how much, it was impossible to say.
Lin Feng sensed a faint glimmer of light ahead.
Then the current swept his body out of the subterranean passage.
A figure suddenly burst forth from the deep pool at the bottom of the sinkhole.
It was Lin Feng, freshly expelled from the underground river.
Finding himself in an unfamiliar environment, Lin Feng began to survey his surroundings.
When his gaze landed on the silver-white Flood Dragon coiled around the stone pillar, his mouth fell open involuntarily.
What a gorgeous serpent!
Its entire body was silver-white, and its scales shimmered with a reflective gleam.
This creature was far more beautiful than the ice boa he had encountered earlier.
Its strength was probably considerably greater as well.
It shouldn't still be a snake — it must have already become a Flood Dragon, right?
Was it absorbing the essence of the sun and moon to cultivate?
Lin Feng speculated.
Having stumbled upon a Flood Dragon favored by the heavens in the midst of absorbing celestial essence, he had no intention of disturbing it.
For a serpent to transform into a Flood Dragon was no simple evolution — it required enduring the baptism of heavenly tribulation.
The success rate was extremely low, likely less than one in ten.
The vast majority were reduced to ash beneath the tribulation's might.
Encountering a Flood Dragon was therefore no easy feat.
Since Lin Feng had appeared without a sound, the Flood Dragon had not yet noticed his presence and continued absorbing the light pouring down from above.
Having lived here for countless ages without any creature daring to disturb it, the dragon had naturally grown somewhat complacent.
It was also a matter of confidence in its own power.
Not just in the vicinity — even throughout the entire Nine Nethers Secret Realm, there were precious few exotic beasts that could match a Flood Dragon in strength.
It was a dominant overlord-class existence.
A few minutes later, Lin Feng began to feel a little bored.
He waded to the edge of the pool, stepped onto solid ground, and dispersed the sword energy he had been maintaining around his body.
When he looked up at the Flood Dragon again, the creature had already lowered its head and was staring directly at him.
Man and beast locked eyes.
Having been tempered by heavenly tribulation, the Flood Dragon's intelligence was on an entirely different level from that of the spider exotic beast or the ice boa.
Even if it still fell short of a human's, the gap was not great.
It could never have imagined this.
How could a human suddenly appear inside its home?
In the Flood Dragon's long life, it had encountered no small number of humans. After all, the Nine Nethers Secret Realm opened once every one hundred years, and each time tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of people entered. Some always wandered near the sinkhole and discovered its existence.
Of course, every single one of those people had been eaten by the Flood Dragon as food, without exception.
It had to be said — humans, as the most spiritually gifted of all living things, tasted quite good.
"Hey there… Brother Flood Dragon, my apologies! I stumbled in here by accident. I had no idea this was your territory. If you'd rather I leave, I'll go right now," Lin Feng called out.
He figured that a high-level exotic beast like a Flood Dragon should be able to understand what he was saying.
The more powerful an exotic beast, the higher its intelligence.
When powerful enough, it could even rival a human's intellect.
It wasn't that Lin Feng was afraid of it.
It was simply that a serpent's transformation into a Flood Dragon was no easy thing.
Having succeeded meant it was favored by heaven and earth.
With no grievance between them, there was no need to create needless bloodshed.
He had barely taken two steps when he suddenly froze in place.
This environment, combined with the protection of such a powerful Flood Dragon — wasn't this exactly the kind of blessed land he had been searching for, one suited to the growth of Bianhua Flowers?
Whether or not the flowers were actually here, this was the most promising location he had come across. He couldn't just leave like this.
Lin Feng looked up at the Flood Dragon again.
The creature's gaze had never left him.
Perhaps it had finally collected itself.
The Flood Dragon felt its dignity had been gravely challenged.
A mere human had dared to trespass into its domain.
What did he want?
To steal its treasures?
Or to do it harm?
Either way, the intruder deserved to die.
"Roaaaar…"
The Flood Dragon threw its head back and let out a cry — something between a dragon's roar and something lesser.
After all, it was not a true dragon.
It could not yet produce a true dragon's roar.
But it was still far more powerful than any serpent's hiss.
When a serpent successfully transformed into a Flood Dragon, its vocal cords underwent a tremendous change as well.
As the cry rang out, the Flood Dragon's aura surged forth.
Lin Feng felt a wave of crushing pressure wash over him. Several waterspouts erupted, drawing the water of the deep pool upward in a spectacular display.
Seeing the Flood Dragon act so domineeringly, Lin Feng grew angry.
Goodness!!!
He had already apologized first, and yet this serpent still refused to give him any face — did it really think he had no temper?
Now that he had realized this place was very likely home to Bianhua Flowers, Lin Feng had been looking for an excuse to make a move anyway!
Well, this was perfect.
The other party had struck first — he couldn't be blamed for what came next.
The Flood Dragon's roar continued, its aura climbing without pause.
It seemed to be proclaiming its dominion to the exotic beasts of the surrounding area, displaying its might.
Lin Feng reached into his Qiankun Pouch and drew out the Haoran Sword.
The moment the Haoran Sword was in his hand, his entire being underwent a heaven-and-earth transformation.
His hidden strength erupted in full.
His Peak Mastery Sword Intent was unleashed.
Lin Feng had always kept himself deliberately mediocre, unwilling to draw attention.
Lone Existence Peak might have only him on it, but it was still part of the Shenxiao Sword Sect's grounds — too much commotion would easily attract notice.
Not to mention there was an old monster in seclusion within the Shenxiao Sword Sect's forbidden grounds. But here in the Nine Nethers Secret Realm, things were different.
There was no need to hold back. No one here knew his identity, and even if he were spotted, no one would connect him to the Trash Senior Brother of the Shenxiao Sword Sect.
He could bring out his full strength and see exactly where his limits lay.
And now the Flood Dragon had conveniently delivered itself to his door.
Since that was the case — let them fight with everything they had!
Yet just as Lin Feng unleashed his full hidden power, the sky above suddenly darkened with roiling clouds, lightning flashing and thunder crashing.
"Rumble… Rumble…"
It was as though even heaven and earth had been shaken.
Deep within the Nine Nethers Secret Realm, there stood a magnificent, resplendent palace.
Above its great doors, three characters were inscribed:
"Nine Nethers Palace."
Inside the Nine Nethers Palace, a spectral silhouette appeared.
It tilted its head upward toward the sky and murmured softly: "After so many years… someone has finally stirred the heavens and earth of this place. Good — the wait was not in vain after all."