Chapter 25: Awakening: Heavenly Devouring Dragon Bloodline

  Everyone turned to stare at Su Tianhao with shock written across their faces, struggling to process what they had just witnessed.

  Yu Chen quickly scrambled to his feet and wiped the blood from his lips, his face burning with humiliation. "Young Master, I was careless! Please give me another chance to redeem myself!"

  "Yeah, he was just lucky!" someone called out from the crowd.

  "If Yu Chen hadn't been so careless, how could he have been defeated so easily?" another voice agreed.

  The watching disciples chattered animatedly, their speculation quickly turning the crowd’s shock back into familiar disdain. What they didn’t realize was that, even without any cultivation, Su?Tianhao had spent a year of brutal training forging his body. While a 3rd Level Martial Apprentice wields about 400?pounds of raw strength, Su?Tianhao’s physical conditioning has pushed his natural power to roughly 200?pounds—twice that of an ordinary human—despite his inability to temper his body with spiritual energy. Still, his victory was largely due to Yu?Chen’s arrogant carelessness. In a serious fight, the outcome would likely be different.

  "Please, Young Master, allow me to fight him again!" Yu Chen pleaded desperately, his face flushed red with embarrassment and rage.

  "Pathetic," Su Jian spat with disgust, his expression darkening.

  "Young Master, let us handle him!" the two other young men offered, eager to restore their group's reputation.

  "Young Master..." Xie Ling whispered with worry, clenching her fists but making no move to interfere or help Su Tianhao.

  "Hmph! I'll take care of this personally!" Su Jian snorted as he stepped forward.

  "Su Jian, aren't you being shameless?" Su Tianhao said with a deep frown. "Didn't you promise to let me go if I defeated one of your followers?"

  "Defeat?" Su Jian laughed coldly. "That was pure luck, nothing more!"

  Without warning, he launched a casual punch toward Su Tianhao's midsection.

  Though it appeared effortless, Su Jian was still a 4th Level Martial Disciple with 5,000 pounds of raw strength—power that the current Su Tianhao had no hope of resisting.

  Bam!

  The punch landed squarely on Su Tianhao's stomach before he could even attempt to dodge. The impact drove all air from his lungs and sent waves of agony through his entire body.

  "Aah!" Su Tianhao cried out involuntarily as he dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach while pain overwhelmed his senses. Blood gathered in his mouth, but he refused to spit it out, determined not to show additional weakness.

  He glared up at Su Jian with cold, defiant eyes. 'I will never show weakness before my enemies.'

  Su Jian laughed at his stubborn expression. "What's wrong? If you're angry, feel free to come fight me properly."

  "Haha! Young Master Jian is so ruthless!" voices called from the crowd.

  "Absolutely dominating!" others agreed.

  "That Su Tianhao should know his place! He thinks he's strong because he got lucky once!"

  "Tsk, tsk. Trash will always be trash!"

  The disciples discussed the scene with animated mockery, simultaneously disdaining Su Tianhao while praising Su Jian in hopes of currying favor with the rising star.

  "You hear that, bastard? Trash will always be trash!" Su Jian spat before turning to his companions. "Let's go."

  As he prepared to leave, he noticed Yu Chen attempting to follow them. "Get away from me!" Su Jian shouted harshly.

  Yu Chen lowered his head in shame, clenching his fists. 'Su Tianhao...'

  The other disciples looked at him strangely before beginning to disperse, their expressions filled with satisfaction as they hurried to report the exciting news to friends who hadn't witnessed the confrontation.

  After everyone had gone, Su Tianhao slowly rose to his feet and spat out the mouthful of blood he had deliberately concealed during the beating.

  He stared in the direction Su Jian had departed. "I have trained myself through torture and pain, yet I'm still too weak! I need strength—real strength!"

  Su Tianhao clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles began to bleed, his head hanging low in disappointment as he was once again reminded of his cruel fate.

  ---

  That night, in the humble courtyard of Fei Wu Quarter, the scene was peaceful and serene. A full moon illuminated the sky alongside countless glittering stars, while an eerie quiet settled over the abandoned area save for the gentle whispers of the night breeze.

  Su Tianhao sat cross-legged beneath the massive tree that had become his training partner over the past year. The ancient oak's bark still bore the deep dents and scars from months of his punishing practice sessions.

  Before him lay a small, worn booklet containing body tempering instructions for those below the Martial Disciple Realm. It was a low-grade Mortal rank technique that Su Yuan had secretly provided him—the "Basic Qi Tempering Method."

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  The Martial Apprentice Realm focused on tempering the physical body to improve raw strength through two possible approaches: absorbing spiritual energy from heaven and earth, or preparing expensive medicinal baths to aid cultivation. The latter was far more effective but required resources Su Tianhao simply didn't possess. The family would never waste valuable cultivation materials on someone deemed worthless.

  Su Tianhao sighed heavily as he opened the familiar manual. "Since this is the only path available to me, I have no choice but to make it work."

  He had long since mastered every detail of the cultivation technique and only brought it along for reference. With his intelligence, a low-grade Mortal rank method held no real complexity.

  Closing his eyes and breathing slowly, Su Tianhao positioned his body in the perfect lotus position as described in the manual. Following his deep understanding of the Basic Qi Tempering Method, he began attempting to guide the surrounding spiritual energy into his body.

  Wisps of spiritual energy slowly responded to his mental direction, his expression becoming completely focused and tranquil.

  Suddenly, his eyebrows tightened and his body began to tremble as his peaceful state was disrupted by something unexpected. Waves of spiritual energy began rushing into his body far faster than the technique should allow, being absorbed like water into a desperate sponge.

  'What's happening?' Su Tianhao thought with rising panic as his eyes snapped open.

  Suddenly, a swirling vortex formed within his body without warning. It began pulling spiritual energy into his dantian with unstoppable force, completely beyond his control.

  Whoosh!

  Spiritual energy from a fifteen-meter radius around him started rushing into his courtyard as if being pulled by an invisible vacuum. Fortunately, no one lived in the abandoned Fei Wu Quarter, or they would have been shocked by the supernatural phenomenon.

  The spiritual energy concentration became so intense that it created turbulent air currents and small chaotic tornadoes. The ancient tree rustled violently, its leaves falling like snow as branches shook with unnatural force.

  "What's happening to me?!" Su Tianhao shouted in panic, his eyes wide with fear as he lost all control of his body.

  Meanwhile, countless profound changes were already occurring throughout his entire body.

  Boom!

  He suddenly felt an explosive sensation in his dantian—like water bursting through a broken dam—as he underwent a breakthrough others had always thought impossible.

  "I-I actually broke through?" Su Tianhao exclaimed in utter shock as rejuvenating energy flooded every fiber of his being, strengthening his body in ways he had never imagined possible.

  But the transformation was far from over.

  Just as Su Tianhao was trying to comprehend what was happening to him, his body froze completely. His golden eyes began glowing with brilliant light, transforming into a pair of dazzling dragon eyes that seemed to pierce through reality itself.

  He felt a mysterious power surge through him, properly opening meridians that had remained sealed his entire life. As this strange force flooded through every part of his being, consciousness slipped away from him entirely.

  Even as he collapsed into unconsciousness, his body continued undergoing profound changes that defied all understanding. Strange golden symbols began appearing across his skin, glowing with dazzling light that illuminated the entire courtyard.

  It wasn't merely his physical form that was transforming—his dantian, meridians, organs, and even his very soul were being rebuilt from the ground up, restructured according to some ancient design that had been dormant within him since birth.

  The fallen genius was about to rise again—but this time, he would ascend to heights that no one could have possibly imagined!

  ---

  As his consciousness slowly faded away, Su Tianhao found himself standing on a towering mountain peak surrounded by countless other mountains that seemed to pierce straight through the heavens themselves.

  The sky above was dark and threatening, filled with the rumbling sounds of thunder and brilliant flashes of lightning that suggested some terrible disaster was about to fall upon the world. Fierce dark tornadoes and space storms raged in the surrounding area, striking fear into anyone who witnessed such destructive power.

  "W-Where am I?" Su Tianhao whispered, his heart trembling with shock and overwhelming fear.

  ROOOOOAR!

  He suddenly heard a deafening dragon roar that shook his very bones, causing him to fall to his knees involuntarily as his body refused to obey his commands.

  Raising his head toward the source of that terrifying sound, he saw something he would never forget for the rest of his life—a mighty dragon that gazed down upon the world with absolute dominance. The creature was gigantic, far larger than any of the surrounding mountain peaks. Its body was covered in black scales decorated with ancient golden symbols, while its eyes looked down on him like two blazing golden suns.

  Before this beast, he felt like nothing more than an insignificant ant.

  "Tunlong Shengzi!" the dragon called out to him in a voice so powerful it shook the entire world around them.

  "Tunlong Shengzi?" Su Tianhao was completely stunned. "Devouring Dragon Saint Child?"

  Before he could understand what was happening, the dragon began speaking in an ancient language he couldn't comprehend:

  "Shan'tar veleth mor draconis... Thul'vinan korveth astalar... Mey'thara vel'tar ancestor'thuven..."

  The words seemed to carry power that made the very air tremble around them.

  Suddenly, the dragon's massive mouth opened wide, revealing a giant black hole that appeared in the space between its jaws.

  Whoosh!

  A shocking scene unfolded before his eyes. The black hole began spinning rapidly, causing the surrounding space to become even more chaotic than before. The world around him started collapsing as everything—every single piece of matter—was slowly being devoured by the mighty dragon.

  "What's happening?!" Su Tianhao shouted in terror.

  Before he could understand what was occurring, even the mountain peak he stood on began crumbling into smaller pieces that were pulled into the dragon's hungry maw.

  Strangely, he didn't fall even after the mountain completely disappeared. He found himself floating in empty space while, within seconds, the entire world was completely consumed. The dragon also vanished from sight, leaving him alone in a pitch-black void.

  "Hah... hah..." Su Tianhao gasped heavily, his heart racing and his back soaked with cold sweat.

  At that moment, a bright golden light suddenly appeared where the mighty dragon had just disappeared. It started as a tiny dot before slowly growing larger and taking the shape of a handsome young man in his late twenties.

  The man was extraordinarily handsome, dressed in flowing golden robes embroidered with black dragons. His long black hair fell down his back like a waterfall, with tiny points of starlight woven throughout that pulsed as if alive. He had sword-like eyebrows, refined features, and a pair of striking golden dragon eyes that seemed to see through the very fabric of reality.

  The mysterious figure was surrounded by an otherworldly presence that seemed to command the very universe. In his presence, countless stars began lighting up in the pitch-black void, illuminating the darkness.

  "W-who are you?" Su Tianhao asked with a trembling voice, feeling completely overwhelmed just by being near this mysterious man, as if a mountain was pressing down on his chest.

  "I am Tunlong Chenyuan, the Devouring Dragon of Celestial Depths!" the mysterious man announced with a gentle smile.

  Thunder rumbled through the void as if the very heavens were acknowledging his name.

  Su Tianhao thought carefully about what he had just heard. "Does that mean you're the giant dragon I just saw?"

  "No," Chenyuan shook his head as he slowly descended from the sky. "What you witnessed was a vision of one of our ancestors in his prime, shown to you after your bloodline awakened."

  Su Tianhao's brows furrowed. "Our ancestor? Bloodline? What does any of that mean?"

  Chenyuan looked at Su Tianhao thoughtfully before explaining, "I... we... are dragons from one of the supreme dragon clans—the Heavenly Devouring Dragon Clan!"

  Su Tianhao frowned deeper. "I still don't understand. Who are you really?"

  Chenyuan smiled warmly. "I, Tunlong Chenyuan, am your father, and you, Tunlong Shengzi, are my son!"

  The words hit Su Tianhao like a physical blow, causing him to tremble uncontrollably. "Y-You're my father?" he stammered with suspicion, though he could feel a strange sense of connection with this man—one that seemed to come from his very soul.

  "Well, not exactly," Chenyuan clarified with the same gentle smile. "I am merely a fragment of soul left behind by your father before he departed this world. My purpose is to deliver this message to you when your bloodline finally awakened."

  Su Tianhao's expression darkened. "That means my father is dead?"

  Chenyuan shook his head. "When I say he left this world, I mean he transcended to a higher realm of existence—the Immortal Realm! The world you've been living in is just one of many worlds in the mortal realm."

  Su Tianhao's eyes widened with sudden understanding, his strategic mind quickly putting the pieces together. "You're saying my true name is Tunlong Shengzi, that I carry the bloodline of a supreme dragon—the Heavenly Devouring Dragon—and that I'm the son of Tunlong Chenyuan, the Devouring Dragon of Celestial Depths?"

  He paused, studying Chenyuan's expression carefully. "And this bloodline awakening is what caused the strange phenomenon that happened to me?"

  Chenyuan's eyes brightened with joy. "Exactly! You understand perfectly!"

  Su Tianhao's golden eyes narrowed dangerously. "And this father of mine is still alive and thriving somewhere in this Immortal Realm you mentioned?"

  "Yes," Chenyuan replied, though he suddenly felt a bad feeling about where this conversation was heading.

  "Then why did he abandon me?!" Su Tianhao shouted with explosive anger. "Why didn't he take me with him?!"

  All his life, he had believed himself to be an orphan who grew up in an institution. Because of the cruel house master, he had been forced to flee at age six, struggling alone on the streets without anyone to guide him until Su Huiqing saved him at nine years old. He had been adopted into the Su family, and just when he thought he would finally achieve greatness, fate struck him down with the revelation that he had zero cultivation talent. Now, after all this suffering and struggle, he was being told that his own father was a mighty being who had ascended to the Immortal Realm while abandoning his family?

  He felt pure hatred burning in his chest.

  He glared at Chenyuan and screamed, his frustration and pain pouring out in waves, his eyes red with fury: "Why did he abandon me?! Why?!"

  "This—" Chenyuan was completely stunned, his expression filled with anguish. Even though he was only a fragment of soul, he was still part of the true Tunlong Chenyuan. Watching his own blood break down like this tore at his very essence.

  He floated forward and placed a comforting hand on Su Tianhao's shoulder.

  Su Tianhao immediately felt a mysterious energy wash over him, calming his turbulent emotions and filling him with a kind of peace and tranquility he had never experienced before.

  Su Tianhao wiped his tearful eyes and turned to Chenyuan with surprise.

  Chenyuan looked at him with a warm, understanding smile on his handsome face. "Perhaps it's time you learned the true story of your existence, Tunlong Shengzi..."