Xu Mu held the dragon egg and placed it beneath the thickest root of the Other Shore flower.
*Chak!*
The demonic sword sliced a deep gash into the root. Turbid, gray water flowed out, containing the most primal Dao of Death.
This water was the blood of the Other Shore flower.
The blood was noble enough that the dragon egg seemed to enjoy drinking it.
"You want to raise one too? Do you think dragon eggs are like cabbage, available on demand?"
Xu Mu glared at Qiong Qi, annoyed.
This dragon egg was left by Fuxi's mount. Qiong Qi actually wanted a second one.
In the domain of the Gloomy Night, it would be difficult for him to find a second cabbage, let alone a dragon egg.
Qiong Qi licked his claws sheepishly. He had only spoken casually.
Dragons were something he couldn't afford to raise.
*Drip... drip...*
The blood of the Other Shore flower dripped from the root onto the golden surface of the egg, which was immediately absorbed.
But soon, it was no longer satisfied with this slow method of absorption.
*Boom!*
The dragon egg leaped up and directly attached itself to the wound on the root.
It was like a newborn infant, mesmerized, absorbing the mother's milk, consuming it voraciously like a whale swallowing shrimp.
The blood within the Other Shore flower rapidly decreased. A layer of dark mist, clearly manifested by the power of the Dao of Death, covered the brilliant, noble golden eggshell.
Seeing this, Xu Mu frowned:
"The blood of the Other Shore flower is imprinted with the Dao of Death. Although it's a dragon, it's still just an egg. If it absorbs too much, will there be problems?"
Hearing this, Qiong Qi turned his head with an expression as if looking at an idiot and said:
"My good sir, you underestimate the dragon race."
"It was born from the primordial chaos, innately carrying the laws of the Great Dao. The probability of something going wrong from drinking this blood is about the same as you drowning from drinking water."
"Oh."
Xu Mu nodded. This egg was given to him by that golden dragon, who had even roared at him and threatened him.
If he killed it, he wouldn't have a good outcome.
*Hiss...*
A buzzing sound arose. The massive body of the Other Shore flower withered at a visible rate.
Its huge petals shriveled, and its green leaves gradually turned yellow.
Even the stamen, which had killed hundreds of great demons, now shrank like a sponge to its previous size.
"This blood isn't enough. You need to find more."
Seeing the Other Shore flower shrinking, Qiong Qi couldn't help but shake his head.
This dragon egg was too absorbent. The Other Shore flower had shrunk several sizes, but the egg itself hadn't changed much, except that the tree patterns on its surface had become brighter. He didn't know what use they were.
Hearing this, Xu Mu nodded.
He held his sword and walked towards the corpses of the great demons around them.
"The demons who died here, more or less, possessed some divine beast bloodline. Even if you don't like drinking it, you can at least absorb some, right?"
Xu Mu thought this, and then dug out the demon cores from the bodies of those great demons one by one.
Demon cores were equivalent to human Golden Cores.
They contained the most pure demonic energy and vital blood of the great demons.
A moment later, Xu Mu wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.
Before him lay more than forty demon cores, of various sizes and colors, each with a different aura.
"This is all there is. The rest were either frozen and destroyed or absorbed by the stamen of the Other Shore flower, rendering them meaningless."
Xu Mu said, moving the demon cores to the side of the dragon egg. He picked them up one by one and placed them against its shell, where they instantly dimmed.
The dragon egg absorbed, and Xu Mu fed it. As a result, the vine-like patterns on its surface became brighter, and the matte shell became thinner.
The tremors from within the dragon egg grew stronger, as if it were about to hatch successfully.
But at this moment, the Other Shore flower's corpse dried up, its death energy completely absorbed, turning into the most ordinary plant.
It had completely become a corpse, and the demon cores Xu Mu had painstakingly retrieved were all consumed.
"It's gone."
Xu Mu was dumbfounded. He had gone to great lengths to obtain so many demon cores, and the dragon egg had accepted them all, yet it still hadn't hatched.
Could it be that the divine beast bloodline of these demonic beasts was too dilute?
His eyes darted. If he could find a true divine beast, even just feeding it blood would be a hundred times more effective than these ordinary great demons.
But where could he find a divine beast?
Far away, yet close at hand.
Xu Mu pretended to ponder, then casually shifted his gaze to Qiong Qi.
The latter met Xu Mu's gaze, then suddenly took two steps back, exclaiming in alarm:
"The blood is gone. Why are you looking at me!"
"Heh heh..." Xu Mu smiled broadly, rubbing his hands together and approaching Qiong Qi. "Good brother, there's no need for such formality. This dragon egg is a great treasure, and it's about to hatch. You have plenty of blood, so just help out. Once we get out, I'll give you whatever you want."
"All sorts of delicacies, rare treasures, anything that is within my capabilities, I will go through fire and water for you, brother!"
Hearing this, Qiong Qi quickly shook his head and retreated two steps further, his voice fierce:
"Impossible!"
"I am Qiong Qi, a divine beast. What can be more precious than my blood? You are dreaming!"
Xu Mu continued to smile ingratiatingly, pressing forward:
"Don't be like this, little Qiong Qi. Although this is my egg, if you participate in its hatching, this dragon will have a significant bond with you in the future. Why not?"
Hearing this, Qiong Qi thought carefully, appearing hesitant.
But in the end, he bared his fangs:
"Don't even think about it!"
"As the divine beast Qiong Qi, how could I possibly do such a thing!"
"I would rather die here in this mine than shed a single drop of blood for this dragon egg!"
Xu Mu's smile froze on his face.
Qiong Qi's reaction was so strong, it seemed he truly wouldn't agree.
But besides Qiong Qi, where else could he find a divine beast?
Deep in the western mountains, there did seem to be other remnants of ancient clans, but he had no dealings with them. Rashly taking the dragon egg and demanding blood from them would be no different from seeking death.
Xu Mu scratched his head in frustration, then, unwilling to give up, spoke again:
"How about... I let this dragon recognize you as its elder brother after it's born?"
"Really?"
Hearing this, Qiong Qi instantly retracted his fangs.
He trotted eagerly towards Xu Mu, leaving the latter wide-eyed:
"You agree?"
Xu Mu was astonished. He hadn't expected that Qiong Qi, who had been vehemently declaring he'd rather die moments before, would now yield for a vague title.
"My word is my bond. This dragon's elder brother, I, Qiong Qi, will be!"
Little Qiong Qi earnestly promised, while in his mind, a terrifying beastly image involuntarily appeared.
It was his second uncle, who was always fierce and liked to spank his bottom.
"With a dragon as my subordinate, let's see who dares to bully me in the future!"
Qiong Qi gritted his teeth, then, without hesitation, raised his claw and tore open a wound on his forelimb.
*Roar!*
His surging hot blood sprayed out from the wound.
The surface of the dragon egg turned slightly red, as if scalded.
After absorbing Qiong Qi's blood, the dragon egg began to tremble violently. The tree patterns on its surface started to twist, as if coming to life.
Sounds echoed from within the dragon egg, as if the life inside was forcefully striking the shell.
But after a moment, the shell still hadn't broken.
It was always just a little bit short.
"I can't anymore!"
After a great loss of blood, Qiong Qi grunted and quickly stopped the bleeding.
He retreated several steps, curled up beside Xu Mu's leg, and then slowly and weakly licked the wound on his forelimb.
"Something's strange."
Qiong Qi's weak voice carried a hint of confusion.
He had just poured out at least twenty percent of his blood, including his most precious vital blood, where one drop was worth ten thousand drops of ordinary blood, yet the dragon egg still hadn't hatched.
Or rather, it was perpetually on the verge of hatching.
"Halfway through feeding the blood, I felt something was wrong. According to the original progress, it should have hatched successfully long ago, but the progress suddenly stalled. No matter how much blood I fed, it was useless, as if something was missing."
Qiong Qi said.
He hadn't originally intended to shed so much blood, but the dragon egg consistently gave him the illusion that "just a little more effort, and it will hatch."
Xu Mu stroked Qiong Qi's fur, his eyes flickering.
Something was missing.
Could it be his blood?
So he asked:
"When you were just born, what human rank was your strength equivalent to?"
Qiong Qi knew Xu Mu wanted to ask about the dragon's strength.
He pondered for a moment and replied:
"For me, it should be equivalent to your human second rank."
"But if it's a dragon, it's very likely to be born with third or even fourth rank strength, and its initial innate divine abilities might even be higher."
Hearing this, Xu Mu nodded thoughtfully:
"Then, if it hatches successfully, it will be of great help to us now, won't it?"
Qiong Qi grunted:
"Naturally."
"In this space, with my bloodline, as long as I don't provoke beings above the fifth realm, I can practically walk sideways in various ruins and battlefields. No demon will proactively attack me, even if they are domain lords."
"And if it's a dragon, its prestige will be even greater, and there's an indescribable connection between dragons and humans. The bloodline pressure can sometimes be even stronger on humans."
Xu Mu closed his eyes in thought.
What he lacked now was a helper who could contend with domain lords. This place was full of hidden dangers, and he could encounter fatal threats at any moment. Qiong Qi was only at the fourth stage, and couldn't always protect him.
Although Yao Huo and that Taoist priest were willing to protect him, he couldn't always entrust his life to people he had just met.
Humans were really not very trustworthy.
"It's impossible that all the opponents we encounter in the future will be like Fang Jia."
Xu Mu's expression was grave. He hadn't forgotten what happened in the first layer. The Old Ancestor of the Wang family had definitely been coveting him for a long time, wanting to fight to the death as soon as they met.
Gan Jiang Sword also harbored resentment towards him, and the Demon God and Vilitan might also act opportunistically.
He couldn't defeat any of these opponents.
Therefore, he desperately needed this dragon.
Even if this dragon was just born, even if its cultivation realm might not be high, it was still a dragon.
It possessed supreme prestige and powerful innate divine abilities.
And most importantly, this dragon could be trusted. After all, he had hatched it himself. Not to mention making it call him father, it would at least be several times closer to him than others.
With this thought, Xu Mu walked to the dragon egg and gently sliced his wrist.
*Drip!*
Blood like seven-colored glazed glass dripped down.
Instantly, a white mist rose from the surface of the dragon egg.
The little life inside the dragon egg absorbed this blood, then trembled with immense excitement, frantically striking the shell, as if impatient to come out and taste this blood.
The dragon egg trembled violently, and countless cracks appeared on its surface.
Qiong Qi opened his eyes upon hearing the commotion and was then shocked by what he saw.
Xu Mu's wrist had been cut very deeply, and drops of blood with a deadly fragrance flowed out, forming streams. After the dragon egg absorbed it, it became frantic, more so than when it absorbed his, a divine beast's blood.
Qiong Qi was thus astonished. Xu Mu's blood was even more appealing to the dragon egg than his?
What was this kid's background?
Coupled with the sense of fear Xu Mu had given him before, Qiong Qi increasingly felt that his origins were extraordinary, and he began to look at Xu Mu with a trace of inexplicable reverence.
But then, Qiong Qi noticed something.
It seemed Xu Mu's blood was flowing a bit too much.
*Hiss...*
Seeing cracks appear on the dragon egg's surface, as if it were about to hatch, Xu Mu hardened his resolve. He used two fingers as a sword and widened the cut on his wrist.
This cut caused blood to gush out.
The dragon egg continued to be nourished, the cracks widened further, and the glazed blood was poured continuously.
But the dragon egg still did not hatch.
Qiong Qi's eyes were solemn. He had been in the same situation earlier. He felt it was just a little bit short, but no matter how hard he tried to fill it, he couldn't bridge that gap!
Just as he was about to cry out to stop Xu Mu, he realized the latter had already become somewhat frenzied.
"Damn it!"
Xu Mu's face was pale, but his eyes were bloodshot.
"Hatch! Hatch! Why aren't you coming out yet!"
He continuously cut the wound on his wrist, the wound growing larger, the blood flowing more, even to the point of spraying out in the end.
*Rumble!*
The dragon egg trembled violently, more and more cracks appearing, like a shattered mirror, yet never truly breaking.
"Just a little bit more, just a little bit more!"
Xu Mu's steps were unsteady. He lowered his head, roaring in his heart as if possessed. He fiercely continued his actions, eventually slashing his artery.
Blood spurted out like a breached dam, drenching and submerging the dragon egg.
Instantly, Xu Mu fainted from excessive blood loss.
Where he fell and was supported, was precisely the dragon egg.
"Not good!"
Qiong Qi's pupils contracted sharply. He hadn't forgotten what the dragon egg had done to the Other Shore flower earlier.
If Xu Mu were to be sucked dry like that, he wouldn't last three seconds before dying of exsanguination!
*Crack!*
Just as Qiong Qi had predicted, the dragon egg sensed Xu Mu's proximity and began to suck, or rather, draw out the holy glazed blood from the youth's body.
*Buzz buzz buzz...*
It was like a ravenous wolf, more ferocious than when it had absorbed the Other Shore flower.
*Crack!*
The dragon egg split open, revealing a true crack.
At the same time, Xu Mu's body instantly shriveled.
A trace of pain involuntarily appeared on his pale, tightly shut face.
"Xu Mu!!!"
Qiong Qi lunged towards Xu Mu, trying to pry him off the dragon egg. But the moment he approached, a suffocating roar suddenly came from within the dragon egg.
"GONG!"
Qiong Qi didn't know what language that was, but he sensed an boundless oppressive force from it, causing even the Samadhi True Fire in his eyes to tremble.
Thus, he involuntarily stopped his advance.
The next second, with a *crack*, the dragon egg shattered.
A horn shaped like a deer's was the first to break free from the shell.
Then, a noble camel-like head emerged.
It was a creature Qiong Qi had never seen. His eyes were solemn as he saw flowing whiskers on both sides, a bright pearl beneath its chin radiating light, its powerful forelimbs clenched with two nine-clawed fists, its body winding and elegant, exceptionally beautiful.
Its scales radiated golden light, resplendent and brilliant, like the great sun.
Sensing the supreme pressure emanating from it, Qiong Qi involuntarily lowered his head.
He was shocked in his heart, so this was a dragon.
And this thing that made him lower his head was dragon might!
...