Chapter 116: Golden Dragon-Locking Ring (Part 4): Then Am I Not Human?

The world never lacked rare and powerful demon races, but dragons were creatures that mostly lived only in ancient stories and legends, making them utterly unique.

To this day, no matter whether in writing or other forms, there were no clear records of contact with the dragon clan. If someone claimed to have seen one with their own eyes, that was definitely false. But at last year’s assembly in the Tianyu Sect’s Assembly Hall, everyone had seen that black dragon from the prophecy—the one that would destroy heaven and earth. So it wasn’t entirely accurate to say no one had ever seen one.

Fu Li said, “The legendary great demon dragon clan—as long as you sacrifice one, you can make a wish to the heavens. You should have heard of that, right?”

No matter from what angle one looked at it, sacrifice was absolutely classified as an evil art. Shang Shan, who had only supplemented her knowledge from books and never heard wild rumors, said, “Nope.”

“Then you know now.” Fu Li looked toward the mural. “This grand altar has several stone walls marked with carvings that look quite ancient. Magical artifacts passed down from the ancestors must hide secrets, especially something as massive as this altar. My family spent a long time deciphering it and compiling it into a book. One part of its contents is about sacrificing great demons. Do you know what that means?”

Mu Qian Tan thought to herself: It means the altar that will reverse the female protagonist’s fate is right here.

The two girls opposite her didn’t speak, but their expressions showed they understood. The hardest condition in that rumor had always been the dragon clan itself, and that prophecy foretold and confirmed the existence of dragons in the world. The most difficult “ingredient” to find had just appeared.

Moreover, such a special great demon as a dragon surely couldn’t be sacrificed on just any altar. Yet the one behind the Radiant Palace of the Fu Clan in the source mist could do it. This meant the Fu Clan had a high chance of gaining the opportunity to wish to the heavens. The Fu Clan already controlled mines; if they succeeded, even the First Immortal Gate would have to yield its position!

Shang Shan recalled the scene from that day when she knelt in the center of the Assembly Hall and saw the massive, dangerous black dragon that blotted out the sky and devastated the earth. She asked curiously, “That black dragon flew around in the sky, destroying everything everywhere. It was so powerful it became a scourge. It wouldn’t be easy to catch her, right?”

Fu Li said, “Once that evil dragon emerges and cultivates to godhood, it definitely won’t be easy. But no matter how strong that dragon is, she wasn’t born powerful. Now the whole world knows about the Black Dragon Heaven-Splitting prophecy, and everyone in the world is searching. If you find her right after she hatches, wouldn’t it be easy as pie?”

Shang Shan said, “That’s true, but if someone else finds her first, they definitely won’t give her to your family. They’ll use her quietly themselves.”

“Then she’d better keep the news under wraps, but that’s impossible. Leaving aside the requirements for the altar, the sacrifice itself is extremely complex. It’s not as simple as just tossing something into a formation. If you can’t do it or make even one mistake, it all fails completely.”

Fu Li snorted, looking utterly confident. “Just like the shrine maiden I mentioned earlier—that’s indispensable. There are only a handful of shrine maidens in the Immortal Realm with top-notch abilities, and my mother knows them all. The news can’t be hidden. Without the conditions to hold the sacrifice ceremony, that dragon clan member in their hands is just a rare demon. There are plenty of things money can’t buy. If you can’t buy it, steal it. There’s always a way to get it.”

Shang Shan poked her two contemptuous eyes out from Qin He’s shoulder. “You’re such a bad person.”

Fu Li said, “Who could resist this temptation? There will definitely be a bloodbath of competition. Plenty of people have ideas like mine; I’m just not shy about saying it outright. Besides, don’t you want it?”

“I don’t like it. To put it bluntly, sacrifice is just killing.” Shang Shan shook her head. “If I want something, I’ll work hard for it myself. I don’t have any wish that requires sacrificing another life to achieve.”

Fu Li said, “You’re the foolish one. Attaining the true fruit is hard to cultivate. Without the great dao, there’s no longevity. You’ll live and then die—how regrettable. There’s another path to the heavens right in front of you. Not seizing it is wasting an opportunity.”

She glanced intentionally or otherwise at Jiang Zhouyao, then continued, “Once our Fu Clan gets that black dragon, no immortal sect in the world will be able to rival us. The altar is ours, and the black dragon will be too sooner or later. I believe this is heaven’s will—heaven wants to help us, hahaha!”

Even as a villain’s daughter, that was too villainous. Her goal was obvious: she was trying to make Jiang Zhouyao admire their family, maybe even stay. But that was impossible.

Mu Qian Tan was a bit speechless. She glanced and saw Qin He had kept her head lowered the whole time, lost in thought.

After a moment, Qin He slowly raised her eyes and asked, “Can any wish come true? Including… bringing a dead person back to life?”

The instant she heard those words, a stabbing pain suddenly gripped Mu Qian Tan’s heart. Her whole body went weak, cold sweat instantly beading on her forehead. She bent over, her breathing breaking into gasps, her vision going black in waves. She nearly couldn’t stand.

Jiang Zhouyao, closest to her, noticed first and came over to ask what was wrong. In Mu Qian Tan’s peripheral vision, she saw Jiang Zhouyao’s lips moving, seemingly asking what happened, but she had no strength to reply. Then Shang Shan, whose head faced their way, twitched her ears, whipped her head around, saw the situation, and pounced over. “Master!”

Mu Qian Tan barely avoided being knocked over by her. Once the pain quickly receded and she regained some strength, she pushed the clinging Shang Shan off, straightened up, and said weakly, “Not dead. Scram.”

“Why did your face suddenly go pale?” Shang Shan looked her up and down worriedly, her hand reaching out then pulling back. “Are you unwell somewhere?”

Her heart had been quiet for over a year, yet it suddenly acted up now. Mu Qian Tan looked at her palm, deep in thought.

Her first reaction was that Li Biyuan was up to no good again, but that fool had no reason to do something that would 100% enrage her at such a bland, uneventful time. So the other cause—one that had happened before—the original host’s lingering body reaction.

Recalling what had just happened, the culprit behind the pain was Qin He’s words—wanting to bring a dead person back to life. Who did she want to revive? The answer was obvious: her own sister, Qin Shuang. Was this association making the original host sad again?

Or did the original host want to do that too?

Wait…

Mu Qian Tan suddenly remembered: the original host’s remnant soul attached to the rusty sword had told her she never wanted to become a god and had shown world-weariness multiple times. Someone who didn’t care about her own life couldn’t possibly be interested in cultivation.

So was her choice to sacrifice the female protagonist really for the so-called “great dao” as stated in the original book?

Mu Qian Tan now had another, more likely guess in her heart: the original host actually wanted to revive Qin Shuang and was using the female protagonist to sacrifice to the heavens!

If that was true, the original host had wasted the opportunity too much.

What kind of nonsense was in that brain? Using the chance to change fate on someone essentially unrelated to her, becoming a villain in the book, hated by the female protagonist, and dying in such a cruel and undignified way.

How unlucky, how absurd.

But from this, it was clear that even if the outcome in the book was the same, the details differed greatly.

After a while, the pain vanished. Mu Qian Tan came back to herself and noticed everyone’s gazes on her. She casually made up an excuse. “Don’t mind it. Stomachache’s an old problem. Much better now.”

Shang Shan wore an “I knew it” expression. “It really is a stomachache! Let me take you back. Don’t wander around outside anymore; it’ll get worse.”

Mu Qian Tan pushed her head away. “I’m not that delicate…”

“Really?” Shang Shan looked utterly unconvinced. She seemed to make some association, looking even more worried. “If you’re not feeling well, say so. Don’t hold it in or pretend nothing’s wrong. I’ll take care of you.”

Being told this in public in front of everyone made Mu Qian Tan extremely uncomfortable, like she was being seen through. She reached out, pinched the girl’s ear, and lifted. “My hand’s a bit itchy right now. Use your ear to scratch it.”

Shang Shan tilted her head to one side. “Will that make you feel better?”

Mu Qian Tan tugged that soft flesh to turn her. “Go on. You all chat about what you were chatting about. Fu Li, little Fu Clan Head, what were you saying earlier? Continue.”

Seeing her color return to normal, it probably wasn’t a big deal. Fu Li smiled and pointed at Shang Shan’s wide-brimmed hat. “Looks like I was pretty captivating. Even your little snake was listening.”

Shang Shan started, then took off the hat. She saw the red satin coiled around the hat’s crown, treating itself as decoration on the brim. Its head and a small section of body reared high, staring intently at the grand altar on the mural.

After over a year of feeding, she had grown to finger-thickness. The three plum blossom petals on her forehead stood out even more.

Shang Shan had never seen the red satin interested in anything in all this time, so she found it novel and asked, “You like that altar?”

The red satin flicked out her tongue, shook it, sucked it back, lowered her body, coiled back onto the hat crown, and closed her eyes as if asleep.

Since she’d never heard her speak, Shang Shan naturally assumed she still couldn’t talk. Without waiting for an answer, she put the hat back on. “You can’t like a place like that, okay.”

Mu Qian Tan thought to herself: She’s not liking it. She’s found a way to escape.

And in the original book, that very night, she would tell the original host’s disciple that she was of the dragon clan. That would arouse the original host’s greed toward the female protagonist and ultimately trigger the plot where the female protagonist fell into the Magma Sea.

That snake had just been scheming.

Snake and flood dragon demons were innately suppressed by dragon clan bloodline. The strong might resist, but the red satin lacked strength. Freshly born and captured, in front of the dragon below her, she could only be toyed with at will—no defiance allowed, not even lifting her head.

This red satin had once been on Sweet Spring Mountain, where she could grow into a mountain overlord, untamed and lawless, with great potential to become a great demon. Now she was tied in the hair all day like a hair ribbon. Though well-fed and content, a sliver of pride remained, urging her to break free.

For a red snake who couldn’t even speak a word, could only submit without resistance, the only way to escape was to bring down Shang Shan. She had no ability for that herself, but Yao’e Immortal certainly did. And the talk of sacrifice had just presented the method on a platter.

The immortal seemed to dislike her; from daily interactions, it even bordered on hatred. So she naturally wouldn’t spare the disciple. If the immortal learned her disliked disciple was a dragon that could bring huge benefits…

In the red satin’s little head, she fantasized thus:

Being bathed in dragon clan radiance wasn’t entirely bad; it had benefits, like faster cultivation speed—much more efficient than alone.

So after telling the immortal Shang Shan’s true identity, the immortal wouldn’t miss the opportunity that fell into her lap and would need time to prepare. During that prep time, she could maximize the radiance effect for one last cultivation burst. When the immortal was ready to sacrifice, she’d surely discard this burden. Then she’d have cultivation and freedom—a win-win!

She mulled over this idiotic plan contentedly. Mu Qian Tan was slightly puzzled. This snake could talk to the immortal as a tattletale, so why not just ask the immortal directly to toss her far away?

Or sneak off at night while Shang Shan slept—could that stupid dragon really keep her wrapped up and refusing to let go?

In the end, she still wanted the conveniences around the stupid dragon but couldn’t let go of her pride, so she twisted herself into knots.

For this behavior, label her Braindead No. 5.

Over there, Qin He’s bit of world-weariness seemed washed away by this news. Still thinking about it, she muttered to herself, “Where is that black dragon now?”

That tone suggested she had designs on sacrifice too. Mu Qian Tan was slightly surprised; she’d thought Qin He would reject such inhumane methods like Shang Shan. Now it seemed her desire to revive her sister was stronger.

And in her view, demons were demons, not on the same level as humans. Oddballs like Shang Shan who placed all lives on equal footing were rare.

Fu Li said, “No idea, but keep searching and we’ll find her.”

Qin He asked again, “Can dragons shapeshift? If she turns human and hides in the crowd, wouldn’t it be impossible to find her?”

That thought alone gave a headache. Fu Li guessed, “Even if she turns human, there should be flaws… like horns? Dragon whiskers? A tail?”

Shang Shan straightened a bit. “But lots of people have tails and horns, right.”

Fu Li said, “Those that can cultivate into human form can do it, but they don’t make up the majority. Even we humans find cultivation difficult; it’s even harder for demons.”

Shang Shan said, “If it’s not a demon, just a human, will it still grow?”

Qin He tilted her head and chuckled lightly. “Humans won’t grow them.”

Shang Shan blinked a few times and pressed her hat down firmly. “But didn’t they say that if you don’t listen, you’ll grow horns and a tail?”

“Pfft.” Fu Li couldn’t help but burst into laughter. “What? You actually believed that? Are you a stupid pig? That’s obviously just something elders say to scare kids into behaving.”

It was obvious who had said that to scare her. Qin He patiently explained, “Mortals cultivating only strengthens the body; it can’t change one’s race, so it’s not real. No need to be afraid.”

Shang Shan pressed her hat down, scratched at her clothes hem, glanced back at a certain lying “elder who coaxes kids,” then pattered quickly to the woman’s side and asked softly, “Master, then am I not human?”