Chief, don't hit me in the face

Chapter 14: The Dragon-Taming “Return” Formula

“Little brother!” Xia Lingyue, her soul filled with terror, lunged forward, trying to knock the Sovereign Stone Tablet from his hand, but before she could make contact, a colossal force surged out like a tsunami, scattering in all directions. Boom! Xia Lingyue was sent flying, crashing into the side of the large bed, the pain nearly causing her to pass out. The stone slab had become terrifyingly hot, and a flood of light spilled out, shooting into Xia Ye’s left eye with a series of whooshing sounds. Even as he raised his hand to shield his eye, he couldn’t block a single ray. Suddenly! Boom! As if a volcano had erupted, a rainbow of light burst forth from his left eye—dazzling, ever-changing, and otherworldly. “What is this…” Xia Lingyue stared in utter astonishment. That radiance, like a mirage, constantly shifted and transformed—vast, boundless wastelands where colossal beasts galloped; an endless ocean with rippling emerald waves where furious whales leaped; birds soaring overhead; monkeys scaling mountains; and even the fleeting footprints of humans… The torch of history has been lit! The path of pioneering is strewn with blood and bones; the harvest season is filled with laughter and joy; and the winter of death echoes with the tolling of celebratory bells and prayers for blessings! The bugle call of war resounds, again and again! The heroes’ footsteps march forward, ever forward! Blood-stained battle flags—conquer! And conquer again! I don’t know how long it had been—it felt like a fleeting moment, a dream as ephemeral as a yellow millet dream, yet it also seemed like an eternity, with no sense of the passing seasons. Finally, the mirage faded, and all illusions returned to nothingness! Thud! Xia Ye collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath, his entire body drenched in sweat. “Little brother!” Xia Lingyue rushed over, disregarding the danger. Seeing that he was unharmed, she still didn’t dare let her guard down: “What’s wrong with you?” “I don’t know!” Xia Ye’s voice was weak; he was utterly exhausted. The impact of those visions had been too severe—it was as if a flood of information had been crammed into his mind in an instant, nearly causing it to burst. “What about your eyes? Can you still see?” Xia Lingyue was deeply concerned and tried to help Xia Ye onto the bed. “I can see!” Xia Ye blinked: “I don’t feel any discomfort at all—and I can see even more clearly now!” The whole world seemed a little brighter! “That’s great!” Just as Xia Lingyue let out a sigh of relief, she heard Xia Ye exclaim, “Huh?” —a sound that made every muscle in her body tense up. “There used to be nine orbs of light, but now there are only eight left!” Xia Ye’s face lit up with delight as she reached for the Dominator Tablet, but the moment her fingers touched it— Crack! The slab seemed to have crumbled away, shattering directly into powder. “Uh!” Xia Ye was speechless. This was the Dominator Core, worth over a thousand Dao Coins—how could it have just crumbled to dust? “Could it be that your left eye absorbed the energy it contained?” Xia Lingyue analyzed. “It’s possible!” Xia Ye looked left and right but didn’t notice anything unusual. It wasn’t until he focused his attention and stared intently at Sister Wufu that he sighed. Feeling frustrated, he picked up the turtle shell and examined it casually. Sure enough, he found nothing out of the ordinary, so he shook off his listless expression and gazed at it intently. A few minutes later, some strange patterns began to emerge on the turtle shell—crooked and wiggling like earthworms. “What the hell is the point of this? It’s like taking a Picasso oil painting and turning it into a cubist piece—it’s still just as incomprehensible!” Xia Ye was speechless and felt like cursing. After staring for a few minutes, his eyes began to feel dry and slightly sore. Xia Ye was about to give up when the patterns suddenly began to move slowly and rearrange themselves. “Tame! Beast! Return! Character! Incantation!” After the five large characters appeared, a series of illustrations followed—all depicting a muscular man performing various actions. Strung together, they looked just like a comic strip! Xia Ye focused his mind even more intently, devoting all his energy to memorizing and understanding those movements. He hadn’t even begun practicing yet, but just by watching, a surge of heat began to build within him—a discovery that filled him with delight. “This seems to be a powerful form of witchcraft?” Any method of cultivation or combat that harnesses Primordial Energy is collectively referred to as witchcraft. Xia Ye wanted to press on, but his vision suddenly went black, and the pain caused him to convulse as he collapsed to the ground. It took him a good ten or so minutes to recover. “As expected, I can’t use it for too long!” Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead and making sure his eyes were fine, Xia Ye felt relieved but didn’t dare to push it any further. After steadying his breathing, he walked out. “Huh?” Xia Lingyue saw her younger brother come out and was a bit puzzled. Just as she was about to ask him what was going on, she noticed he was deep in thought, making all sorts of strange hand gestures. So she stopped sharpening her arrowheads, worried she might disturb him. One by one, Xia Ye demonstrated the poses. Although he’d only seen them once, his memory was exceptional, and his ability to mimic movements was outstanding—he made almost no mistakes. Snap! As he moved, his joints occasionally gave off a cracking sound, as if his tendons and bones were being loosened and realigned, and he felt pain radiating from all over his body. Ouch! Xia Ye gritted his teeth, sucked in a sharp breath, and forced himself to endure it until he had completed all nine patterns he had been shown. By then, his entire body was shaking like a sieve, and he was soaked through with sweat. However, once the pain subsided, an unprecedented sense of relief washed over him from every fiber of his being—it felt as though he’d just received the finest massage, leaving his entire body feeling utterly at ease. So Xia Ye went through the routine again. “Am I a masochist?” Feeling the pain and savoring the relief that followed, Xia Ye found himself getting a bit hooked—it felt like a rusty engine that had finally been well-oiled. Over and over again, until he was too exhausted to move a single finger and collapsed completely onto the floor—only then did Xia Ye stop. “What are you doing?” Xia Lingyue crouched beside him and poked his cheek with her index finger. Seeing that no one was around, Xia Ye lowered his voice: “The ancient turtle shell I snagged at a bargain today contains a top-tier sorcery technique!” What Xia Ye didn’t know was that the “Dragon-Taming Return” incantation wasn’t just top-tier—it was a god-tier sorcery. It was the ancient emperors’ method for taming dragons; when cultivated to its peak, one could transform into a true dragon, drive a long chariot, rule over all the people, command all beasts, and subdue the barbarians across eight thousand li! “What I just performed must have been part of the first level!” Since he’d only read through the *Dragon-Taming Return Character Formula* once, Xia Ye only had a general understanding of it. In fact, the first level consisted of thirty-two diagrams—that is, thirty-two forms. As his proficiency grew, Xia Ye’s body began to absorb primordial energy, using it to purify his physique. It could be said that every time he performed the moves, it was an accumulation of primordial energy and a tempering of his flesh and blood meridians! “Is it really that powerful?” Xia Lingyue held the tortoise shell for quite a while, but nothing happened. Of course—if anyone could see it, it wouldn’t have ended up in her younger brother’s hands. “Follow my lead!” The patterns were too complex, and the muscular figures depicted were in motion; each form could be broken down into at least seven distinct movements. Never mind that she couldn’t draw them—even if she could, she wouldn’t capture that essence—so Xia Ye had Xia Lingyue follow along and mimic his movements. “I’m a complete novice!” Xia Lingyue sighed. Unable to sense spiritual energy, she couldn’t practice martial arts or cast spells—she was doomed to spend her entire life as a lowly commoner. “It’s still good for building a strong body!” Xia Ye insisted. Xia Lingyue couldn’t outargue her younger brother, so she followed his lead. But after just three repetitions, her whole body ached and felt weak, and she collapsed to the ground. “Sis!” Xia Ye was startled. “I’m fine!” The girl in the hemp robe was panting heavily, a hint of joy flickering at the corners of her eyes. As the pain faded, so did the fatigue that had built up over the past few days: “This really is a top-tier cultivation technique. You must practice diligently!” “Mm-hmm!” Xia Ye clenched his fists, preparing to break through to the third stage of the Body Tempering Realm—a breakthrough that would greatly benefit his journey to the Fengjing Ruins.