KyokaSuigetsu
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Chapter 50: Taking Dragon Masters as Dogs
🕑 Added 2025-04-27 17:02:48 +0000 UTC[When that Pearlkeeper tried to snatch it back, he discovered the antidote was already gone.]
[Dragon Master Taoran swallowed the antidote, his unbearable itching symptoms instantly alleviated—only then did he realize something was wrong.]
["There are seven of us. Why did you only give us six antidotes?!" Dragon Master Taoran exclaimed in shock.]
[You looked at him with an amused smirk.]
["If I didn't let you witness firsthand what happens to those who don't take the antidote, how else would I make you obedient?"]
["You—!" Taoran pointed at you, his face twisted in disbelief.]
[You kicked him to the ground, pressing your foot against his chest as you gazed down at him coldly. "Also, your attitude displeases me. The next antidote will be delayed by a month."]
[The bootlicking Pearlkeeper panicked, grabbing Taoran's sleeve in desperation. "Elder, save me!"]
[Taoran could barely protect himself—how could he dare provoke you again for a subordinate? Gritting his teeth, he placed both hands on the man's shoulders and said with feigned sincerity, "You die for my sake. I will personally perform the secret art to ensure you retain your memories in your next life…"]
[Before Taoran could finish his empty promise, you kindly reminded him, "Ah, I forgot to mention earlier—even if you use the molting method to revert him to a Vidyadhara egg, it won't matter. This toxin clings like maggots to bone. He won't escape it in his next life either."]
[Your poison research had long targeted the Abundance Emanators and the Vidyadhara. You'd accounted for every species' strengths and weaknesses—how could you leave such an obvious loophole?]
[Taoran raised his head furiously, about to protest—but then he remembered the consequences of angering you before. Suppressing his rage, his eyes even cleared with forced calm.]
[Seeing his superior was useless, the Pearlkeeper dropped to his knees, begging you. But neither side paid him any further attention.]
["Enough. It's late, and I wish to rest." You waved your hand dismissively, as if shooing a fly.]
[Taoran could only choke down his fury and lead his subordinates away, dragging along that ill-timed sycophant.]
[Later, Taoran witnessed the unfortunate man's descent from unbearable itching to uncontrollable agony—until he finally scratched himself to death.]
[Staring at the mutilated corpse, Taoran trembled in horror. The poisoning process was a fate worse than death.]
[Yet he refused to give up. Secretly, he sought out Yunhua, the current Alchemy Commission's Preceptor, renowned as the most talented physician of her generation—especially in pill refinement.]
[But after analyzing Taoran's blood, she delivered a verdict that shattered his hope: the poison's design was too intricate. She couldn't cure it.]
[The thought of enduring a month of such torment—with the next antidote delayed—drove Taoran to a decision that defied his ancestors.]
[The next morning, he knelt outside your residence, pleading for mercy.]
[You remarked idly, "I reward merit and punish failure."]
[Taoran immediately understood. "This humble one will spare no effort to clear obstacles for you, aiding your control over all Luofu's Vidyadhara. I beg for the chance to atone."]
[Feigning curiosity, you asked, "How do you plan to do that?"]
[Taoran answered confidently, "By 'gifting' your medicine to every Dragon Master, of course."]
Reading this, Solon nearly laughed aloud.
These Dragon Masters truly only cared for themselves. Once suffering, they wished the same upon all their peers.
With such a traitor, controlling the Dragon Masters would be effortless.
[Taoran's first target was Yunhua.]
[Who told her she couldn't cure the poison yet learned the secret?]
[Yunhua, an idealist devoted to medicine, was easily tricked into consuming the toxin.]
[Emboldened by his first success, Taoran invited allied Dragon Masters to a private gathering.]
[By the meal's end, he had poisoned them all.]
[The remaining dissenters, wary of Taoran, were harder to trap—but as the minority, their fate was sealed.]
[During a meeting, Taoran laced the tea. Two dissenters sensed something amiss and refused to drink, only to be force-fed by the others.]
[Thus, to save himself, Taoran betrayed his kin, poisoning every Luofu Dragon Master without exception.]
[With minimal effort, you seized control of the Luofu Vidyadhara.]
[Yet you deemed this insufficient. Coercion alone risked reckless defiance. You needed a second chain: the promise of longevity.]
Do not assume Dragon Masters, with their memory-retention arts, had no interest in life extension.
The opposite was true.
As seen with Dan Heng, their reincarnation methods were flawed and risky—perhaps causing memory loss or split personalities.
In later events, Taoran himself admitted to becoming "neither human nor ghost" after rejuvenating, his forehead sprouting branches resembling the Ambrosial Arbor.
He'd rather collude with the Denizens of Abundance than rebirth.
Clearly, their secret arts carried grave defects.
Faced with a safe method to prolong life, their choice was obvious.
[As expected, once you revealed your longevity techniques, the Dragon Masters' resistance crumbled. They competed fiercely to please you.]
[Longevity was the carrot; poison, the stick. With these twin leashes, you collared them completely.]
[But you knew overt control wasn't enough. You needed shadow operatives.]
[Thus, you turned to the Denizens of Abundance.]
[Since the Aeon Yaoshi bestowed immortality, the Xianzhou and Abundance had been inextricably entwined.]
[You understood: unless the Xianzhou severed their blessing, Yaoshi's influence—and the Denizens—would never vanish.]
