Chapter 113
Translator: penny
Chapter: 113
Chapter Title: Second True Name Dharma Treasure (4)
A massive orange dragon.
More precisely, an enlightenment taking the form of a dragon. The thing I'd named Anti-Dragon Five Escapes mercilessly devoured my new True Name Dharma Treasure. Seeing that, I jolted in shock and checked the state of the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe.
If a True Name Dharma Treasure is damaged, its owner suffers as well. Their cultivation level might drop, or their Dao Heart could shatter. These treasures were dual-natured items—main weapons to wield in battle, yet so precious they had to be cherished like priceless heirlooms.
And now... it was being devoured, devoured, devoured and melted down by Anti-Dragon Five Escapes!!
"Hey!!!"
A shout burst from my mouth, so loud it surprised even me.
"If you eat that! How am I supposed to—?!"
I yelled in panic, trying to stop Anti-Dragon Five Escapes, but it ignored me completely. It finished consuming the entire Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe, then curled up right there.
"......Ah."
At first, I had no idea what it was doing, but soon I realized the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe inside it was undergoing further refinement.
'This is... the Triple Life Single Origin Art?'
The insights from the Triple Life Single Origin Art that I'd infused when crafting the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe were now exerting their power.
The water essence nurtured wood, wood essence fueled fire—and in the end, the crimson dragon transformed into one that embraced my Single Origin Spiritual Power. Fire essence nurtured earth, earth essence nurtured metal—and in the end, the steel-gray dragon became one that harbored golden Single Origin Spiritual Power.
Thus, step by step, the dragons interconnected through the Triple Life Single Origin Art, elevating one another until they all became dragons bearing Single Origin Spiritual Power. Their forms were gradually changing as well.
The Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe had been forged from the offspring of a Dragon King, so its dragons resembled sleek flood dragons—serpentine, without legs, whiskers, or horns.
But now horns, whiskers, and legs had sprouted. Flames like clouds even coiled around its legs, giving it the dignified form of a true dragon.
'The stars inside have grown a bit larger too.'
The stars nestled within the dragons had swelled somewhat. The central axis that once pierced through the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe had lost its physical form, now resembling a nebula.
More precisely, nebulae scattered around the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe converged into a single point, piercing its central axis, emerging on the other side, and enveloping its exterior once more.
Star and dragon. The two core essences of the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe stood out far more prominently now.
But above all, its power.
The power inherent to it as a dharma treasure had fundamentally changed.
Just moments ago, it had been a half-baked product of my flawed refinement—far from perfect, given I wasn't a proper Qi Refiner yet. But now, it was utterly complete, without the slightest flaw.
'I can tell at a glance. As a dharma treasure, it's on another level. At least three times stronger than what I made.'
On top of that, several unintended functions had been added. It hadn't originally absorbed famed treasures, but now it could absorb the five elements' essences.
'Regeneration and the other functions have been revived too?'
The changes had happened so suddenly that even sweeping it with my Divine Sense didn't reveal everything. Still, one thing nagged at me above all else.
'This is......'
The reborn Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe wasn't just enhanced in performance as a dharma treasure. Something had seeped into the incantations composing the transformed robe.
'Anti-Dragon Five Escapes?'
If I contemplated the dharma treasure, I felt I might gain some insight. Had Anti-Dragon Five Escapes deliberately interfered with it to teach me something?
As I pondered and quietly gazed at the dharma treasure—
Kuuuung!!!
A massive vibration shook the entire space.
"......"
Regrettably, this wasn't the time for quiet contemplation. With the refinement complete, it was time to leave the Star Formation Secret Realm.
Harboring that thought, I reached to retrieve the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe—then paused, eyes drawn to the spherical flames blazing like a sun. Silently, I extended the hovering treasure in my hand.
"Devour it."
At my command, one of the dragons composing the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe—the fire dragon—unfurled and swelled enormously, becoming a single colossal dragon that coiled several times around the cavern where I stood.
Obeying my order, the fire dragon opened its maw and began sucking in the flames.
The flames it inhaled were absorbed straight into the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe, converging into the star of fire floating within.
The fire star, now engorged with the flames, began shining larger and brighter than before. I watched silently until the fire dragon had absorbed every last wisp.
'It can absorb the five elements' essences, but to grow stronger as a dharma treasure, it seems it needs something special among them.'
At first, the fire dragon struggled to draw in the flames, but it soon grew accustomed. By the end, it was sucking them in so fiercely the sun's form distorted.
A dragon devouring the sun. It reminded me of Anti-Dragon Five Escapes gulping down the sun in one bite.
"Ah... cold."
As I stared at the dragon consuming the sun, the temperature inside the secret realm plummeted with every shrinking of the solar mass.
'Could those flames have been supplying heat to the entire secret realm? What is that thing, exactly?'
After the fire dragon fully absorbed the sun, I stored it back into the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe and unleashed the Water Escape Art.
Using the pit Saran had blocked off, I skirted far around the commotion caused by the cultivators. Emerging, I felt the secret realm's air—chilling my heart with its frigid bite.
'No residual heat left at all?'
Frost began forming inside the secret realm. Moisture in the air solidified into snow, drifting down.
'Wonder how it'll look when it reopens in three hundred years.'
Deciding to visit the Star Formation Secret Realm again then, I signaled Saran to prepare our exit.
As my dharma treasure, Saran was linked to me, so I could issue commands flawlessly even from great distances.
After ordering Saran, I spread my Divine Sense to check for threats nearby.
A few presences that seemed Nascent Soul Realm caught in my scan, but deeming them no great danger, I headed for the prearranged underground exit. Moments later, the translucent Saran rocketed over at tremendous speed, halting beside me.
"Master."
"Good work. You bought us plenty of time."
"Not at all. It was a productive time. Still, facing three Soul Transformation Realm experts was tough."
"......"
That meant she'd held off three Soul Transformation Realm foes plus dozens of Nascent Souls? Like with the Enlightened Six Paths Flood Dragon, I was reminded once more that famed treasures were no joke.
"So, they're chasing us now?"
"Yes. By the way, Master, why did the secret realm's temperature drop so suddenly?"
Saran had seen the sun-like flames too, so she assumed I was behind the anomaly.
"Ah... um."
I started to explain but glanced in the direction she'd come from. Cultivators with faces twisted like wrathful demons were flying straight toward us.
"Hand over the Star Flame Core!!"
Star Flame Core? What the hell was that?
"They seem to call that sun-like fire the Star Flame Core."
"Got it. I took it. Let's run."
"Understood."
Saran didn't pry further. I stored her in my soul space and bolted from the underground layer.
Racing madly through the passages, several powerful divine abilities shot after me from behind.
"Stop! Halt!"
But the attacks from those Nascent Soul cultivators were blocked by a man in yellow robes—I pegged him as a Soul Transformation Realm expert.
"Flinging divine abilities around in this unstable spatial passage! Have you lost your minds? Want to get bounced out into the void?!"
At the Soul Transformation cultivator's bellow, the frenzied Nascent Souls finally quieted. Watching, I gauged the slowly closing distance to the Soul Transformation expert and pondered escape routes.
'Even with the Fusion Art, Water Escape alone won't shake a Soul Transformation Realm. In that case......'
After a moment's thought, I poured Divine Sense into the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe in my hand, probing functions I hadn't fully examined.
'The Enlightened Six Paths Flood Dragon had flight dharma treasure powers too. If the discarded functions are revived in the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe...'
As expected, the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe now had barriers, flight functions, and more—all restored.
I immediately infused it with spiritual power, summoning the massive fire dragon once more and mounting it.
"I sense the Star Flame Core's aura from that dragon."
Ignoring the yellow-robed cultivator's mutter, I gripped the fire dragon tight and casually tossed the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe aside.
Though flung haphazardly, it trailed me like an invisible tether. Confirming that, I invoked the Fusion Art to empower the dharma treasure.
Empowered, the fire dragon began accelerating. Its speed now rivaled my Water Escape Art.
Then I invoked Fusion Art again to unleash Water Escape. As I did, the flame-like clouds adorning the fire dragon's legs unfurled dramatically, boosting its speed over tenfold.
Fwoooosh!!
Flames roared fiercely as the fire dragon hurtled forward on its blazing clouds at terrifying velocity.
Riding Little Red with Water Escape had been fast, but nothing like this. Thanks to Anti-Dragon Five Escapes' refinement, the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe synergized perfectly with Water Escape.
"......What is that?!"
"Its speed...! Elder Park! It's pulling away!"
The cultivators' screams faded in an instant. I burst from the underground passage in one go, heading for the nearest Star Formation Secret Realm exit.
"Saran, that's the one, right?"
"Yes, Master! But what is this dharma treasure? It exceeds my expectations... and even the functions we removed are intact."
"I'll explain later!"
Controlling the fire dragon's blistering speed wasn't easy.
I reached the exit and pulled out a Moonstone to activate it—
Kwajik!
The Moonstone in my hand shattered, pierced by a thin beam of light.
"Damn it!"
"Think you can escape?!"
The yellow-robed cultivator had caught up and destroyed my Moonstone. He began forming hand seals to deploy a formation as I veered toward another exit.
But before I could move, the fire dragon's speed plummeted sharply.
"What?!"
"Master! He's sealed the space with a formation!"
"A seal...? He's blocked escape arts?!"
"Sealing flight outright is hard, so he's selectively blocked just escape arts."
"......No escape, then."
Water Escape on the fire dragon was how I'd pulled ahead, but with it sealed, outrunning a Soul Transformation cultivator was impossible.
"Saran."
"Yes, Master."
I summoned her out again.
"I'll support you. Can you kill all three of them?"
Hearing that, Saran smiled beautifully.
"Of course. I didn't want to run either."
"Good. Perfect."
I infused power, and the other four dragons dormant in the Coiling Dragon Sigh Robe erupted forth, coiling around Saran and me as they bared fangs at the enemies.
Time to properly test this new dharma treasure's power.