Chapter 382: Hungry Dragon Vein
At this moment on the Dũng River, besides their ship, there were also fishing boats, treasure ships carrying ore, black gold, black iron, and black copper, merchant ships transporting goods back and forth, and passenger boats ferrying travelers.
The Dũng River had abundant water power, and the fish were fat and delicious, so there were many boats on the river, and quite a few docks and harbors along the banks.
But now, the mountains on both sides gradually disappeared beneath the river's surface, and only the boats remained floating on the water. Many vessels came to a stop, and countless people stuck their heads out over the gunwales to look around, wondering what was happening.
Some cultivators flew up from their ships, looking confusedly at the Dũng River.
The Dũng River was floating in mid-air. The river, tens of thousands of miles long, had not broken apart—it continued to flow through the sky, illuminated by the early morning sun, shimmering with multicolored light.
Splash—
A merchant ship carrying goods failed to stay steady, shot off the river's surface, and plunged downward through the air. The ship fell helplessly toward the mountains below, growing smaller and smaller. After a moment, the merchant ship crashed into a forested area, and another moment later, the sound of its impact reached the ears of those on the river—a dull, faint thud.
The ship's owner had leaped out just as it fell, and many cultivators helped rescue the others on board. There were few casualties.
Some official cargo ships carried officials of the Diên Khang Kingdom, who immediately ordered cultivators to rescue people, bringing civilians from other boats down to solid ground below. Some soldiers flew out from the Dũng River, heading toward the cities below to seek help, requesting tower ships to come rescue people from the river.
"It's not my doing. Don't look at me. I didn't do this."
Tần Mục and the others looked at the Blind Man. He shook his head, his expression grave: "To make the Dũng River float in the air requires far more power than I possess. Someone with such immense cultivation—this is the first time I've seen the like... Look below!"
Tần Mục and the others immediately looked down.
The Dũng River had been lifted up, flying through the air. The water below had separated from the earth. Originally, the current was somewhat murky, and one couldn't see the riverbed, but now all the silt and sand in the river had vanished—as if the Dũng River had risen into the sky, carrying only the water without the sediment. The river had become crystal clear, and one could see through the water to the land below.
They immediately saw large fish swimming in the river, clearly visible—quite a wondrous sight.
Because the Dũng River originated from the Great Ruins, it was full of monsters—all kinds of fish demons and water demons lurking deep at the riverbed, with bizarre appearances. Tần Mục had grown up by the river and had seen many such creatures, but now he spotted many fish demons and water demons he had never encountered before. Presumably, they had always lurked deep in the riverbed, rarely surfacing, which was why they were so seldom seen.
But now, he could see everything in the river with perfect clarity.
Just then, everyone's hair stood on end. An enormously long, slimy body slithered past beneath their ship, its massive form moving with the current, winding its way westward.
Huge scales scraped against the ship's bottom, causing the small vessel to lurch once before steadying again.
The massive body moved without raising a single wave. The scales rubbing against the hull didn't damage the ship either—just a bit of rocking, as if it were merely the current surging against the bottom.
It was a sapphire-blue flood dragon, impossibly massive.
On the ship, the little flood dragons grew excited. Some climbed onto Tần Mục's neck, others poked their heads under his armpits, craning to look.
"Maha! Maha!" A dozen flood dragons called out toward the river.
Splash.
A colossal head rose from the water, curiously examining them, then plunged back beneath the surface and swam off into the distance. As it passed, the monsters of the Dũng River scattered in retreat.
Some large fish, terrified, fled too quickly and shot out of the river, then flapped their fins as they tumbled through the air. A rain of fish began to fall from the sky. Presumably, this fish rain would give the people below something to talk about for a dozen days or more.
But what would truly set tongues wagging was the Dũng River flying through the sky!
"That flood dragon is enormous..."
Tần Mục's heart pounded. This sapphire-blue water flood dragon was far larger than his own flood dragons even in their full forms—more than ten times bigger!
The strength of this sapphire-blue flood dragon was likely even greater than that of Hoạn Long Quân. Was it raised by him, or summoned from somewhere else?
"This is a water flood dragon that has cultivated to the divine realm. Its water control abilities are incredibly strong—frighteningly strong."
The Blind Man's expression was grim, his face turned westward, his voice hoarse: "I see a person covered in scales, strange-looking, commanding this flood dragon king god, lifting the Dũng River into the air."
Tần Mục was taken aback, then said: "Could it be Hoạn Long Quân from the Upper Heavens, come to subdue the dragon vein? I once saw him use his technique of moving rivers."
The Blind Man gripped his bamboo staff tightly, his expression tense: "Such immense cultivation—truly formidable. This fellow must be using the flood dragon king god's power to amplify his own to the utmost... No, those flood dragons alone couldn't lift the Dũng River. He's also drawing on the river's own power!"
Tần Mục activated the Nine Heavens Eye-Opening Technique and looked upstream. His technique could only reach the Đan Tiêu Heaven Eye level, so he couldn't see the middle section of the Dũng River.
Hoạn Long Quân was probably in the middle section. To lift the river, the middle was the best place to apply force.
From Tần Mục's understanding of Hoạn Long Quân, he didn't have the power to lift the Dũng River on his own—he must be borrowing the flood dragon king god's strength.
He had likely summoned the flood dragon king god at the river's mouth to lift the river, while placing other flood dragons at various points, stirring up waves to lift section after section.
Hoạn Long Quân was a master of dragon vein arts, skilled at mobilizing the power of dragon veins. Besides summoning the flood dragon king god, he had brought other flood dragons. Most crucially, he had probably also mobilized the power of the dragon vein itself, using the Dũng River's own strength to lift this great river spanning tens of thousands of miles into the sky.
The Dũng River was ancient—it had been a dragon vein since the Khai Hoàng era, hiding many secrets. This great river's dragon vein was likely close to maturing and transforming into a dragon.
The power of the Dũng River's dragon vein was immense. If Hoạn Long Quân could mobilize it, he might indeed be able to lift the entire vein!
"Could he be planning to take the Dũng River's dragon vein?" Tần Mục murmured.
The Blind Man shook his head: "No. He intends to alter the dragon vein's course, turning it into a hungry dragon vein, thereby changing the fate and fortune of the entire Diên Khang Kingdom."
Tần Mục was startled. He quickly took out the Hoạn Long Scripture and opened a page to read carefully.
This page discussed various dragon veins, and one passage described altering a dragon vein's course to change destiny and fortune. But what it described was changing the fate of an entire dynasty, an entire continent!
"He's planning to bring the Great Ruins to Diên Khang!" Tần Mục exclaimed.
According to the Hoạn Long Scripture, the consequences of Hoạn Long Quân's actions were no small matter. By merely changing the Dũng River's course, he could use the river's flow to channel the Great Ruins' great evil into Diên Khang!
If he succeeded, Diên Khang would gradually become like the Great Ruins—when night fell, darkness would invade!
"Quite an impressive fellow."
The Blind Man's eyes were hollow, without eyeballs, yet he seemed to see exactly where Hoạn Long Quân was. He gripped his bamboo staff and tapped it lightly on the river's surface, saying: "A thousand-mile dike can collapse from an ant hole. He only needs to slightly alter the dragon vein's course, and by using the hungry dragon vein, he can draw in the dark power of the Great Ruins and completely corrupt Diên Khang's fortune. This man's understanding of dragons is profound—his mastery is astonishing."
His bamboo staff gently swept across the river's surface, and the boat beneath their feet shot forward like an arrow from a bow, racing toward the middle reaches of the Dũng River. The speed was so great that the ship groaned and creaked, straining under the burden, on the verge of breaking apart at any moment.
Crack—
The ship finally came apart, wooden fragments flying in all directions. Tần Mục, Linh Dục Tú, and the others were about to activate their own power to run across the water, when suddenly the river beneath their feet churned. Angry dragons roared—massive water dragons surged up from the river's surface, catching them, carrying them across the water at breakneck speed, rushing forward with a howl!
The Blind Man gripped his bamboo staff, standing atop a dragon's head. Tần Mục, Ty Vân Hương, and the others looked nervously to either side, seeing ten thousand dragons galloping alongside them, racing forward at incredible speed!
"This Dũng River is this old blind man's territory!"
The river beneath them raced along, the Blind Man's robes fluttering, killing intent radiating from him: "Moving the Dũng River—did you ask this Dragon King's permission?"
The water dragons raced on, rolling westward. After traveling who knew how many miles, the Blind Man suddenly raised his bamboo staff and brought it down with tremendous force. Several hundred miles of river trembled violently. The Dũng River, like a wounded dragon struck in the back, involuntarily began to sink toward the ground!
Down at the riverbed below, Hoạn Long Quân moved with a dragon's gait, winding sinuously, both hands raised high, wild power surging forth as he held up section after section of the Dũng River.
At the same time, a massive stone beast dozens of feet tall flew up from the riverbed, caught by his power and hurled aside into the mountain foothills.
The Dragon-Chasing Technique from the Hoạn Long Scripture.
He was working his way upstream from the lower reaches. Along the way, he had seen many stone beasts sunk at the bottom of the Dũng River—river-suppressing beasts, crafted by Diên Khang officials, inscribed with various runes and seals to suppress the dragon vein and prevent it from causing floods.
Diên Khang had no shortage of extraordinary individuals who could identify dragon veins and command skilled craftsmen to forge river-suppressing beasts to hold the vein in check.
On ordinary days, these river-suppressing beasts kept the Dũng River's dragon vein docile and obedient. But now, as he pulled them out one by one, he could fully unleash the dragon vein's power.
Besides the river-suppressing beasts, there were all sorts of strange things in the Dũng River that had been carried downstream by the current—very eerie objects. Hoạn Long Quân did his best to avoid them, not wanting to invite unnecessary trouble.
And the closer he got to the Great Ruins, the more of these eerie things there were. The Dũng River in the Great Ruins even had stone statues suppressing it—those he absolutely could not lift.
His goal wasn't to take the entire Dũng River anyway. He didn't need to lift the whole thing—he only needed to change the dragon vein's course, turning it into a hungry dragon vein.
Just then, the Dũng River in mid-air suddenly pressed down.
Hoạn Long Quân's heart jolted. He raised both hands to push upward, but suddenly the water above him condensed into a colossal pillar and smashed down!