Chapter 212: The Momentum of Growing Stronger in Battle!

Though Yingyuan hadn’t yet faced his heavenly tribulation to become a dragon, his Dragon’s Might was not weak at all, even comparable to Moyuan after he had completed his tribulation.

Chen Changsheng didn’t use any Daoist Arts. He merely drew a wisp of Golden Light Magical Power to protect his hands.

The two tangled in battle within the Long Pavilion.

“Big trouble, big trouble!”

Seeing the situation turning bad, the Turtle Prime Minister immediately rushed to find the Dragon Lord.

But just as he entered the river, a hand pressed him down.

“What’s all this frantic running about?”

Hearing that voice, the Turtle Prime Minister froze for a moment, then turned to see the Dragon Lord.

“Dragon Lord!”

“The Second Prince, he he he…”

The Turtle Prime Minister was too flustered to say anything coherent.

The Old Dragon King Ying Zheng simply said calmly, “No need for panic. I am right here.”

The Turtle Prime Minister hesitated for a second before blurting out nervously, “Mr. Chen and the Second Prince are fighting!”

Ying Zheng just smiled and said, “Mr. Chen won’t go too hard on him. Relax and watch.”

The Turtle Prime Minister opened his mouth but found himself at a loss.

Why had Mr. Chen stolen from the Dragon Palace treasury? Why was the Dragon Lord here? Why wasn’t he doing anything even as the Second Prince fought Mr. Chen?

What… what was going on?

The Old Dragon King Ying Zheng gazed through the water’s surface towards the Long Pavilion, his eyes seeming filled with a touch of curiosity.

Claw winds stirred his robes, making clanging sounds.

A dragon claw aimed for Chen Changsheng’s shoulder.

Yet the gentleman swiftly reached up, grabbing Yingyuan’s shoulder instead. With a twist and a push, he completely dissolved the claw winds.

“Bang!”

Yingyuan took this palm strike, stumbling back two steps.

He looked down at his chest, thinking, ‘What kind of Divine Ability is this…’

It had not only nullified his force completely but also used it against him.

Chen Changsheng looked at him and smiled. “With the initial courage waning after repeated efforts, the third leaves only exhaustion. Second Prince, instead of a momentum that grows stronger in battle, you only face mounting losses.”

Yingyuan glared at him with cold eyes, snorting dismissively.

“Nonsense!”

Yingyuan circled his hands before him, golden light shining in his eyes.

“Tongtian River’s power, answer my command!”

As he spoke, he sought to harness the power of the Tongtian River’s currents.

Chen Changsheng simply watched calmly.

Yingyuan, however, found he couldn’t move the river’s power at all. He frowned in confusion, murmuring, “Why is this…”

Chen Changsheng said, “Is the Golden Spear Halberd and the power of the river currents all you rely on, Second Prince? If so, you might as well be a small river imp.”

“Such insolence!”

Yingyuan was infuriated upon hearing this.

“Dragon’s Might converge!” He stepped forward, intending to summon forth his Dragon’s Might.

Seeing this, Chen Changsheng spoke another Divine Decree.

“My word be: Pacify your Dragon’s Might. It shall not cling to you.”

As the decree fell, the Dragon’s Might surrounding the Second Prince faded. No matter how he tried to summon it, ripples refused to appear.

“Why!?”

Seeing the Dragon’s Might dissipate entirely under a single word, Yingyuan’s eyes widened in shock. “What evil sorcery is this!?”

Chen Changsheng didn’t respond. Instead, he continued, “And now, without the Dragon’s Might?”

Yingyuan’s lips parted slightly, but he took no action.

Chen Changsheng said, “Without your weapon, without the river’s power, without your Dragon’s Might, does the Second Prince dare not strike now?”

Yingyuan hesitated for a moment, but then his eyes suddenly grew resolute.

“Outsiders are unnecessary!”

“This prince has strength left! Even bare-handed, I can fight!”

Yingyuan’s gaze burned fiercely, his aura surging a few degrees higher.

“Now that resembles the Dragon Palace’s Second Prince more.”

Chen Changsheng smiled warmly and beckoned him forward.

Yingyuan was now left with only his physical strength, yet he still dared to charge forward and fight fiercely.

Chen Changsheng started with the Taiji posture, repeatedly dissolving Yingyuan’s force with flowing motions.

One, a Cultivator versed in Daoist Arts; the other, a Dragon Palace Second Prince. Yet now they grappled hand-to-hand within the Long Pavilion.

“Break!”

Chen Changsheng sent out a palm strike. Yingyuan was thrown back five steps.

The Second Prince staggered but managed to steady himself, his aura dimming somewhat.

Unwilling to concede, he launched another attack.

But fighting purely with strength now, how could he ever prevail within the refined structure of the Taiji techniques?

All of this was seen clearly by the Old Dragon King beneath the river’s surface.

Ying Zheng shook his head and sighed softly. “A single palm deflated twenty percent of his spirit. Strength without courage… hard to achieve greatness.”

Inside the Long Pavilion, Yingyuan was thwarted again and again as his powerful blows were dissolved. Each time Chen Changsheng struck back, the prince stumbled further: five steps back, then six, then eight, then ten… until he was forced all the way into the corner of the pavilion.

Just as Chen Changsheng had said: initial courage waning, then exhausted. The momentum that had been rising in Yingyuan utterly dispersed at this moment.

Now, with his spirit shattered, Yingyuan faltered in facing Chen Changsheng.

His arms trembled. Within his heart, thoughts of retreat began to sprout.

Yingyuan stood silent. He looked down at his dragon claw, hesitating repeatedly, unable to strike again.

Chen Changsheng observed this and asked, “I told you earlier, Second Prince, that you lack the momentum to grow stronger in battle. You will only suffer greater loss.”

Yingyuan looked up, wanting to retort, but only snorted coldly and said nothing.

Chen Changsheng continued, “Heaven bestowed upon you True Dragon blood and a status higher than any common monster. The Golden Spear Halberd, command of river and sea currents, Dragon’s Might… which of these did you earn yourself?”

Yingyuan listened, clenching his fists, jaw tightly shut, remaining silent.

Chen Changsheng spoke on. “Without these external things, a few punches or palm strikes are enough to shatter your spirit. When your spirit is broken, total defeat is inevitable.”

“Moreover, do you understand what the Second Prince of the Dragon Palace will face in the future?”

“Without ascending to a True Dragon, you’ll find no foothold. Do you truly believe the Old Dragon King can shield you forever?”

“Think further: What if today wasn’t my punches and palm strikes you faced, but the Dragon Ascension Heavenly Tribulation instead?”

“The Black Flood Dragon of Bibo Lake cultivated for a thousand years, failing his tribulation, yet his spirit never broke. Defeated once, he tried again. After enduring five heavenly trials, he finally earned his chance for Water Crossing and stood as a True Dragon.”

“If it were you, Second Prince, facing that kind of defeat in the heavenly tribulation, time and time again… how many times could you endure it?”

Facing Chen Changsheng’s steady barrage of words…

The normally fiery-tempered Yingyuan couldn’t manage a single rebuttal.

Chen Changsheng’s gaze turned severe, his voice ringing clear as he commanded, “Raise your head!”

Yingyuan trembled, the sense of unwillingness growing sharper within him.

“If your heart still speaks of retreat at this moment, the final outcome can only be death beneath the Heavenly Tribulation. Without this momentum that grows stronger the fiercer the battle… renounce also any thought of becoming a so-called True Dragon. It is destined to remain forever beyond your reach!”

Yingyuan’s fist clenched tightly inside his sleeve.

In that instant, a searing unwillingness flared within his heart.

If things were truly as this man said… then the chance to become a true dragon… was it truly slipping away from him?!

When he raised his head again, battle fury surged within Yingyuan.

“I am…”

“The Second Prince of the Dragon Palace!!!

His roar shook the air, matching the sudden surge of his spirit.

“Why fear the Heavenly Tribulation!?”

“You say this prince lacks the momentum to grow stronger in battle? Then I will show it to you!”

Yingyuan’s gaze was iron-willed. The Dragon’s Might surged forth from him once again.

“Whether I become a True Dragon or not!”

“Is only for me to decide!!!”

Chen Changsheng watched this display, a glimpse of relief finally appearing in his eyes.

The courage had arrived. Hope for Dragon Ascension was kindled.

Chen Changsheng lifted his hand.

“Halberd! Come!”

Chen Changsheng threw the Golden Spear Halberd back to Yingyuan.

Yingyuan caught it. His eyes now held a potent mix of fury and raw courage.

Chen Changsheng raised his hand in another gesture of summoning. The Rain-Listening Sword flew into his grasp.

“Come!”

His sharp command seemed echoed by a thunderclap high in the heavens.

Their energies swelled, mountainous and vast. Dragon’s Might quivered the very air!