Chapter 165

Chapter 165

Cong Zhuo's expression was resolute: "I am willing."

Having said that, and with the Dragon Vein in urgent need of rescue, Shen Wang did not try to dissuade him further. Instead, he said, "Although you are offering the true dragon's blood for the little flower, by saving the Dragon Vein, you're saving the nation."

"I will report this and ensure you are recognized as Huaxia's guardian beast, granting you the respect and recompense you deserve from Huaxia..."

Cong Zhuo, disinterested in becoming a guardian beast, grumbled, "I don't want to get involved with humans... If you really want to repay me, just brew me more elixirs in the future."

Saying this, Cong Zhuo licked his lips; the pills made by Shen Wang were not only rich in spiritual energy but also tasted good, perfect as a snack.

"Deal," Shen Wang smiled. "As long as I have the raw materials, I'll make sure you have enough elixirs."

Of course, that was only if the raw materials were sufficient.

Man and beast shared a knowing smile, each with their own cunning plans in mind.

With the true dragon's blood, Shen Wang no longer needed to exhaust himself searching for spiritual veins. He quickly reported this to the leadership of the special department, instructing them to prepare the necessary tools for processing the true dragon's blood.

Since the true dragon's blood was integrated into Cong Zhuo's meridians and marrow, forcibly extracting it would mean refining his entire being. But since Cong Zhuo was willingly sacrificing his blood, the difficulty of extraction was greatly reduced.

After several days of seclusion in a room protected by Shen Wang's defensive formation, while those outside waited anxiously, Cong Zhuo finally emerged from the formation.

Having lost the true dragon's blood, Cong Zhuo was fundamentally injured. He appeared extremely pale, holding a milky-white jade vial in his hand: "Only five drops."

"It's okay, it's enough," Shen Wang took the vial. "True dragon's bloodline is hard to inherit, and you having five drops in your body explains your survival through millennia in the formation."

Cong Zhuo ignored him and asked, "How's the little flower doing?"

Shen Wang carefully stored the true dragon's blood and casually brought out the little flower from his space, placing it in Cong Zhuo's arms, "Don't worry, it's doing well."

Cong Zhuo examined it carefully, seeing the little flower full of vitality, fresh in color, and brimming with life, a stark contrast to its wilted state upon arrival. Not a single leaf had fallen, and only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

Upon seeing Cong Zhuo, the little flower immediately used its branches and roots to climb onto his shoulder, its bud pressing tightly against his neck: "Cong Zhuo! Where have you been these past few days?"

The little flower appeared extremely aggrieved.

Cong Zhuo, at a loss for words, instinctively looked towards Shen Wang.

However, Shen Wang just shrugged his shoulders, holding the true dragon's blood and walking away without any intention of explaining for Cong Zhuo, "I've set up a Spirit Gathering Formation inside the protective formation. You're injured now, so you should recuperate there for a while."

Before Cong Zhuo could say anything, the little flower raised its bud in alarm, "Injured? Cong Zhuo, are you hurt? What happened? Who hurt you?"

Cong Zhuo: "...Little flower, don't worry, I'm fine..."

Shen Wang, hearing the conversation behind him, curled his lips in a slight smile: Watching others in love is quite interesting.

But... he was beginning to miss Gu Dongting.

His eyes softened a bit, and Shen Wang quickened his pace, planning to deal with the Dragon Vein swiftly and then go find Gu Dongting.

The true dragon's blood couldn't be directly used on the Dragon Vein; it needed to be processed first. Fortunately, Shen Wang now had the backing of the special department, and the required materials could be quickly assembled with just a word from him.

After spending a few more days, Shen Wang completely refined the true dragon's blood, infusing the golden-hued liquid into the Dragon Vein.

The golden blood quickly merged into the Dragon Vein's green spiritual energy. Minutes later, the Dragon Vein, which had been lying on the ground, slowly raised its head, and the dark miasma around its wound visibly lightened.

"The effect is quite good," Shen Wang nodded in satisfaction.

At this rate of recovery, it wouldn't take long for the Dragon Vein to regain most of its strength.

Finally resolving this matter, Shen Wang breathed a huge sigh of relief. Just as he was about to instruct the special department personnel responsible for guarding the Dragon Vein, the gigantic green dragon suddenly opened its mouth, emitting a clear and melodious dragon's roar.

This sound, unlike the deafening roar of a true dragon, was extremely gentle. The dragon exhaled a stream of green air, like a spring breeze, brushing over the trees and mountains below. Wherever the green air passed, all the plants shivered their branches and leaves, growing more upright.

Like a warm spring breeze melting snow, it dissolved the Yin energy that was devouring the world.

Seeing this, Shen Wang couldn't help but sigh, "Your most important task now is to heal yourself; there's no need to rush to protect other beings."

The Dragon Vein, unable to speak, gazed at Shen Wang with its deep green eyes. The chaotic spiritual energy on its body gradually became smooth, and its body, broken in two, started to show signs of merging.

After a while, it opened its mouth again, and a drop of greenish blood emerged, flying towards Shen Wang.

Shen Wang looked closely, "You actually saved a drop of true dragon's blood?"

It seems fitting for the Huaxia Dragon Vein, embedding frugality deep into its essence.

Seeing the Dragon Vein's insistence, Shen Wang carefully collected this transformed drop of true dragon's blood in a jade vial, "This was given to you by a Jiao. Since you've saved a drop, I'll return it to him. It won't disrupt his dream of becoming a dragon."

"Rest well. As long as you exist, Huaxia will never perish."

Having said that, Shen Wang waved at the Dragon Vein and turned to leave.

The Dragon Vein blinked its eyes. Being a manifestation of gathered spiritual energy, representing all beings of heaven and earth, it had little sentient intelligence, only possessing a bit of instinct inherent to the Dragon Vein.

In its eyes, all beings were indistinct, just clusters of various colored auras. Some were small and frail, representing the tenacious weeds at the foot of the mountains.

Some carried their own golden light, bursting with energy, which it particularly liked.

More commonly, there were numerous white light clusters, bright or dim, standing close together.

But the aura in front of it was unlike any other, a faint purple, evoking an unconscious closeness and trust in the Dragon Vein.

As the purple aura gradually moved away, the Dragon Vein lowered its head and closed its eyes.

With its breathing, the surrounding spiritual energy rippled, nourishing the earth beneath it.

When Shen Wang returned the green true dragon's blood to Cong Zhuo, he was both shocked and delighted, "Is this a celestial gift from the Dragon Vein?!"

"This teaches us that doing good deeds does bring rewards," Shen Wang said with a smiling nod.

Cong Zhuo was extremely pleased. While the true dragon's blood was precious, a Jiao transforming into a dragon would inevitably face a formidable thunder tribulation, and most Jiao perished at this hurdle.

With this celestial gift from the Dragon Vein, signifying its approval, facing the tribulation to become a dragon would undoubtedly be much easier.

On second thought, it seemed like a small gain.

While the Black Jiao was overjoyed, the little flower, transformed into a palm-sized figure, pulled Shen Wang outside the door.

Shen Wang was curious about what it wanted, only to see it holding several delicate lotus seeds: "Brother Shen, I have some lotus seeds. Can you help me make them into pills?"

Shen Wang was surprised: "You harvested your own seeds?"

As a Ninefold Lotus, the little flower's petals and leaves could be used in medicine. The leaves were expendable, akin to human hair and nails, and the petals, though more precious, were not vital.

But the seeds were the most precious part of the Ninefold Lotus.

Shen Wang had previously coveted the little flower's seeds but didn't dare to take them, only coaxing a few petals. Now, it voluntarily offered its seeds.

The little flower, looking dejected, said: "Congzhuo is injured..."

Shen Wang paused: "Don't you know why he's injured?"

The little flower shook its head, looking expectantly at Shen Wang: "Brother Shen, do you know who hurt him?"

Shen Wang was silent for a few seconds, then smiled: "I don't know either. Maybe Congzhuo will tell you himself in the future."

Before the little flower could say more, Shen Wang took the seeds from its hand: "Ninefold Lotus seeds are extremely precious. I’ll refine them carefully into medicine to help Congzhuo recover soon."

After coaxing and persuading the little flower back to its room, Shen Wang suddenly missed Gu Dongting immensely.

As Shen Wang longed for Gu Dongting, Gu Dongting was also thinking of Shen Wang.

Just moments ago, while pursuing evil spirits, he noticed a sudden clarity in the air. The dense and lingering aura of malevolence dissipated, as if blown away by the wind.

Others didn’t perceive this subtle change, but Gu Dongting understood immediately.

It was Shen Wang who had saved the dragon vein, and the dragon vein had begun to protect the land once again.

Gu Dongting couldn’t help feeling proud and joyful, even more so than when he became the righteous leader of the metaphysical world.

Swiftly dealing with the evil spirits, Gu Dongting sheathed his long sword: "The situation there has been resolved; we need to speed up our efforts here too."

The others responded in unison: "Yes, Master Gu!"

Gu Da, still standing aside, thought: "..." Since his nephew's return, his own status seemed to have plummeted, with no one listening to his commands anymore.

Everyone was listening to Gu Dongting now.

After finishing all their tasks, an exhausted Gu Da returned home with Gu Dongting.

Neither of them were talkative, and they traveled in silence.

It was only as they were nearing the Gu residence that Gu Dongting broke the silence: "Uncle, is there something you want to say to me?"

Gu Da had looked troubled throughout the journey, and Gu Dongting, having waited in vain for him to speak, finally took the initiative.

Gu Da’s expression became even more conflicted, and after a few seconds, as if having made a decision, he finally asked: "What is your relationship with Shen Wang?"

Gu Dongting seemed much changed upon his return this time.

He was no longer solely focused on slaying demons and eliminating evil spirits. His demeanor had become much colder, and he appeared more ruthless towards those in need of help, no longer indiscriminately protecting weaker cultivators.

Even his phone, which he seldom used before, was now always kept close to him. He would take it out and look at it during breaks in his tasks, his gaze unexpectedly tender.

Gu Da almost thought there was a beautiful and lovely girl on the other end, thinking that Gu Dongting had finally found romance.

But it turned out to be Shen Wang.

Gu Da kept a straight face but felt a sense of disappointment inside. When he mentioned this at home to his wife, the result was…

The stern and traditional Gu Da was forcibly introduced to a new world.

Gu Da didn’t quite believe his wife's speculations about the relationship between Gu Dongting and Shen Wang, but lately, he noticed their increasing frequency of contact. Even during meals, Gu Dongting was always holding his phone.

This unsettled him.

After much deliberation over several days, he finally mustered the courage to voice the question that had been bothering him.

Gu Dongting was silent for a few seconds, choosing his words carefully: "He is someone... I am pursuing."

Gu Da breathed a sigh of relief: "So it's just pursuit...??"

Mid-sentence, Gu Da's eyes suddenly widened in shock, losing all composure.

Gu Dongting smiled: "Uncle, I like him, but I haven’t won him over yet."

Gu Da: "..."

Gu Da was left speechless and choked up.

This answer was even more unsettling than if they were in a relationship.