Chapter 327: The Origin

In the hall, the Dragon Lady's usual sense of purity and dignity was replaced by a look of astonishment and shock. Although most of her emotional knots had been untied after Ji Yuan's spiritual guidance at her birthday banquet years ago, hearing news of her mother so suddenly still greatly excited her.

“Uncle Ji, where did you see him? Why didn't he come with you?”

The Dragon Lady's speaking speed was several times faster than usual.

Ji Yuan answered directly, without concealment.

“The other party is a giant whale, who calls himself General Giant Whale. He claims that this title was bestowed upon him by your mother, the Queen. He was waiting for Mo Rong along a stretch of the East Sea coast in Zuyue Land, apparently knowing that Mo Rong goes out to sea every year. I was able to find him because his appetite was too immense; he ate all the fish along the coast, and fishermen hired someone to drive away evil spirits…”

Ji Yuan recounted the events to the Dragon Lady in detail, finally saying:

“This whale is too massive to easily enter ordinary rivers, and he seems to only know Mo Rong. As for whether your mother sent him, I am not yet sure. The River Goddess will need to accompany me to find out more.”

“Mm!”

Clasping her hands together, the Dragon Lady paced a few steps from side to side, her long skirt swirling out in floral patterns.

At this moment, a Yaksha hurried over from behind. After glancing at the Dragon Lady, he looked at Ji Yuan, bowed, and said:

“River Goddess, Mr. Ji, the Dragon Lord is in a deep slumber and shows no sign of waking.”

“What? Uncle Ji came to summon him!”

The Dragon Lady gasped in astonishment.

The Yaksha carefully glanced at Ji Yuan, then clasped his hands and bowed his head to the Dragon Lady, saying:

“Begging your pardon, River Goddess, the Dragon Lord is indeed not awake, and this humble one dared not disturb him further!”

The Dragon Lady frowned. After looking at the Yaksha, she turned to Ji Yuan and said:

“Uncle Ji, please wait here. I’ll go wake my father!”

With that, the Dragon Lady strode away, leaving only Ji Yuan and the Yaksha present.

Ji Yuan smiled and nodded towards the Yaksha, who quickly returned the smile.

“Mr. Ji, I’ll prepare tea for you!”

“Excellent, thank you. Please bring hot tea.”

“Yes!”

The Yaksha left in haste, as if granted a great pardon. He felt that Mr. Ji and the Dragon Lord exerted two completely different types of 'pressure' – yes, pressure – and both made him feel extremely stressed. Especially in this situation, he clearly sensed that Mr. Ji had seen through his lie but had simply chosen not to expose him.

At this moment, the Dragon Lady hastened towards the depths of the palace's rear quarters, quickly arriving at the cavern entrance to the Dragon Pool. Two Yakshas reached out to stop her.

“River Goddess, the Dragon Lord is in slumber. It is not advisable to enter now.”

Without a word, the Dragon Lady merely glanced at them, and the two Yakshas exchanged glances before retracting their hands. She then stepped directly inside.

However, after only two steps, the Dragon Lady found herself unable to proceed. Reaching out, she touched the water ahead; the current was incredibly dense. As she extended her hand into the water, the resistance grew stronger with each inch, and she could not push further than half a palm's length.

‘A forbidden spell!’

“Father! Father, let me in! Uncle Ji is here to see you! Didn’t you complain last year that Uncle Ji had disappeared again? Weren't you curious after hearing about the Samadhi True Fire? Uncle Ji is here in person! Father––”

The Dragon Lady shouted loudly from outside. The two Yakshas beside her were in a difficult position and pleaded earnestly:

“River Goddess, please be quieter. The Dragon Lord is resting!”

“That's right, River Goddess, if you keep shouting like this, our lives will be in danger!”

Ying Ruoli frowned deeply. After a slight hesitation, she shouted again.

“Father, this time it might be about Mother…”

She stopped mid-sentence. Ying Ruoli turned her head and found a hand on her shoulder. Yakshas would never dare touch her. Turning around, she saw that it was indeed Ji Yuan.

“Uncle Ji…”

Ji Yuan shook his head and whispered in a voice only the Dragon Lady could hear:

“You cannot wake someone who pretends to be asleep—or rather, a dragon who pretends to be asleep. It will be just as effective if you and I go to see General Giant Whale together.”

With that, Ji Yuan retracted his hand and bowed towards the Dragon Pool.

“Ji Yuan bids farewell first. I shall not disturb Elder Ying's rest!”

After saying this, Ji Yuan glanced at the Dragon Lady, then turned and walked back the way he came. The Dragon Lady hesitated, looked at the Dragon Pool entrance again, and finally decided not to insist further, turning to follow Ji Yuan.

Before long, the two figures left the water mansion, ascending diagonally towards the surface. They finally emerged from the water in an uninhabited section of the river, then stepped onto clouds and ascended into the sky.

However, about fifteen minutes later, ripples stirred on another part of the Tongtian River. Small currents separated into two sides with splashing water, and a faint, invisible dragon-shaped aura ascended into the sky from within.

Another day and a half later, Ji Yuan and the Dragon Lady were approaching the coastal region of Zuyue Country. The Dragon Lady had been deep in thought throughout the journey, and now, having arrived, she felt a slight anxiety.

“Uncle Ji, where is that giant whale?”

The Dragon Lady carefully observed the sea below. Other than the surging waves, she could discern nothing. She even revealed her true form and entered the sea to search.

“Not entirely sure. He might be hiding, as he might not trust me…”

As Ji Yuan spoke, he smiled at the Dragon Lady.

“However, it doesn’t matter. Last time, I tampered with him a little, sending a wisp of sword energy into his spine. We won't have trouble finding him.”

“Buzz.”

No sooner had Ji Yuan's words fallen than the Azure Vine Sword behind him hummed faintly and flew to his front.

“Go, drive him out.”

“Buzz.”

After a soft hum, the Azure Vine Sword flashed and vanished. Almost at the same instant, a ten-foot-long trench opened up on the sea surface below. The Azure Vine Sword's form darted through it, and the surging seawater was sharply cut open by the immortal sword, leaving a brief, waterless trace in its wake.

“Let’s go, we’ll follow.”

Having said this, Ji Yuan and the Dragon Lady soared into the sky again, following far behind the Azure Vine Sword.

“Ugh, my father really is… why didn’t he come!”

Ying Ruoli was still a little vexed. As Ji Yuan flew, he glanced around the sky and the sea, his eyes shifting as he quietly said:

“He might not have failed to come.”

This was not because Ji Yuan truly sensed the old dragon's presence, but rather a psychological deduction. Putting himself in the old dragon's shoes, he thought that if it were him, he might quietly follow to observe.

In a distant cloud, a wisp of dragon mist cautiously retracted into the cloud formation.

‘Ji Yuan is too perceptive! I came here with a mirage-form avatar, and it seems he somehow sensed me too!?’

About fifteen minutes later, within Ji Yuan and Ying Ruoli's view, a "boom" suddenly echoed from the distant sea surface, and large waves exploded into the sky.

“Don’t kill me… Immortal Master, don’t kill me——”

A giant whale actually leaped directly out of the water, soaring dozens of feet into the air, before plummeting back down.

With a thunderous crash, the sea surface seemed to have been hit by a massive bomb.

A huge wave was stirred up, overturning outwards in all directions, and it was as if a heavy rain poured down nearby. The Azure Vine Sword flashed its light within this 'rain' and returned directly behind Ji Yuan.

“I told you to wait properly. Why did you hide?”

From the low-lying clouds, Ji Yuan calmly uttered, not wishing to hear the whale's explanation, and simply gestured to the person beside him.

“You should recognize this one, shouldn't you? As for Elder Ying, he is in a deep slumber and cannot be roused.”

Ji Yuan deliberately elongated the latter part of his sentence, his gaze casually sweeping around.

However, the giant whale clearly paid no attention to that. In fact, his focus was entirely on Ying Ruoli.

“You… you truly are Lady Ruoli. You resemble the Queen Mother so much…”

The giant whale seemed to possess some special method, for even at their first meeting, he immediately recognized her as the true Dragon Lady. His respect and sincerity surpassed that which he showed to Ji Yuan.

Ying Ruoli had by now resumed her usual appearance as a goddess, cool and sacred, and she spoke to the giant whale:

“You are General Giant Whale, appointed by my mother? Did my mother send you?”

The giant whale turned in a circle on the water, answering truthfully:

“The Queen Mother did not send me. How could she even mention this matter? I secretly came to find Master Mo myself. I dared not defy the Queen Mother’s command, nor did I intend to alarm the Dragon Lord and the two Highnesses. I just didn't expect Master Mo to…”

Ying Ruoli's eyes dimmed slightly. So, her mother hadn't sent him. Still, she pressed for more information:

“Then why did you come?”

The giant whale now concealed nothing.

“Beginning a century ago, aquatic monstrous creatures frequently came from beyond the desolate sea. About twenty or thirty years ago, a malevolent flood dragon with profound cultivation arrived and ceaselessly pestered the Queen Mother… The Queen Mother, overwhelmed by the annoyance, has avoided leaving Dragon Rock Island for over ten years. I felt truly aggrieved, so I wanted to seek Master Mo’s help to teach that fellow a lesson… The rest, this Immortal Master already knows!”

“What?! Such a thing! He has a death wish!”

Upon hearing this, Ying Ruoli could no longer restrain herself. As her brow furrowed in solemnity, her dragon might surged, causing her long hair to scatter and float, as if invisible currents were radiating outwards from her.