Heaven, Earth, Me

Chapter 1146 - 1146. Old Man's Plea.

Yasenia sized up the old man in front of her, finding some incongruities compared to a normal human elder. He was full of dignity and had a hint of arrogance that was deeply imprinted in his bones. Moreover, the noble aura around him far surpassed the average human she had encountered. 'Even when humans will have their bloodlines awakened during the sixth realm, I still can't really relate him with them. A human's aura is always vast but mysterious as if it is an ancient well of knowledge. Beast humans are like a tall mountain peak, imposing and steady. A spirit's aura is like a mystical cloud, ethereal and volatile. However, this man's aura...'

She compared him with all the races she had met in her almost one hundred years of life, and a deep frown appeared on her face before she knew it. The old man smiled faintly and asked. "Are you trying to see what group I belong to?"

Yasenia didn't hide it. "Indeed. I can't see through you. It has been too long since the last time I couldn't see through the race of an individual..."

The old man was slightly amused. He didn't show much and commented. "Isn't it normal to not know all races? Within the vastness between Heaven and Earth, there are myriads of creatures. You not knowing one is much more likely to happen than the opposite."

Yasenia shook her head. "I know that I can't know the specific race or bloodline. However, I should be able to differentiate your group. Still, I can't seem to classify you in any of the groups I've met in the past."

This time, the old man was slightly surprised. "How is that possible? You can't tell if I am a beast, human, or ghost? You should be able to discern it very easily with the aura I am emanating."

Even if he said that, it was no use. Yasenia couldn't detect it, so she just sighed and gave up. "It seems that I can't see through."

The old man glanced into Yasenia's eyes, trying to see if she was messing around. Still, he could see a clear but slightly disappointed gaze staring back at him. Her words had no hint of lies. The old man pondered for a second and smiled. "If you join our Pavilion, you will be able to know my race and, naturally, our backer. Our Long Golden Pavilion is not an independent group. We were created by the Long family and sent here to spread and take root in this city..." The old man sighed and shook his head. "Sadly, our Long family met disaster back in our home world, and only the descendants that came down into this city remained."

A woman by the old man's side had her face show a hint of shock and panic. "A-Ancestor! How can you reveal such a thing so easily to a stranger!? What if she has evil intentions?"

Yasenia didn't answer and glanced at the old man. That woman was absolutely right. They just met, so revealing such a big truth bomb that seemed to be a secret was placing too much trust in her persona.

To their surprise, the old man shook his head. "Little Yasenia might be our last opportunity to fulfill our dreams. We've been buried here for far too long, and while our foundation is not bad, it is incomparable to before. If we continue the downward trend we are experiencing, what will happen when I die? Sigh.... You, children, need to grow faster, but our lack of resources is stunting your progress despite your talents not being worse off compared to those core disciples of the four ancient families and various sects."

The woman spoke again, her tone clearly dissatisfied. "Regardless, that has nothing to do with an outsider!" Her voice was mature and imposing, and her body was highly voluptuous. The curves were a few notches below Yasenia, but not by much. Her deep black shoulder-length hair was lustrous, and her eyes seemed to be flickering in color between brown and blue because of her emotions.

Yasenia couldn't help but be slightly surprised because she noticed a strange detail as the eyes flickered. 'The pupils.... Are they changing as well?'

Noticing the gaze of the dragoness, the woman's face tensed for a microsecond before returning to a calm facade. The old man glanced at her and sighed. "Little Qi, are you confident?"

The woman called Xiao Qi paused, and an unwilling look appeared on her face. However, she soon covered her clear doubts with a determined gaze. "Even if I am not confident, I am prepared to die to fight for it! I don't trust an outsider like her!"

At this moment, Yasenia finally connected all the clues. She spoke aloud, her tone light but clear. "You are dragons."

The group of people sitting in front of them turned to look at her without any surprise in their faces. If Yasenia hadn't guessed it from all the little clues, forget about cooperating with her, they would've probably kicked her out of the pavilion by the butt. The woman who was protesting snorted and said proudly, the arrogant nature of the dragons coming out from deep within her bones. "Indeed. However, unlike a beast-human like you, we are pure dragons."

Yasenia raised her eyebrow, but she didn't deny her words. "If you don't accept half-dragons, why did you try to contact a person you thought was one?" Her question was an answer to the woman, but her eyes were fixed on the old man.

This old man was one of the oldest dragons she had ever seen. Only Tian Long and Andrea's second companion, Vairon, were close to him. This time, the old man's people also turned to look at Yasenia. He smiled faintly and shook his head. "You are not a beast human. I was speaking as such outside and even until recently because I was activating the formation. Thankfully, I did so before you started speaking. Otherwise, we would be in some trouble."

Yasenia was interested in his words and asked him. "Are dragons hunted in this city?"

The old man laughed and shook his head. "Dragons are hunted everywhere. This city is naturally not different. The only problem is that Dragons are too strong, and when they form clans, even if people want to harvest our bodies, they need to evaluate if they have a stomach strong enough to digest the gains. Once a clan obtains the remnants of a group of powerful dragons, everyone becomes greedy. Hence, you need to have enough strength to suppress the dragon group and everyone that's arriving after that to steal your treasures." The old man smiled wryly. "Ironically, the greed toward Dragons is what protects groups of dragons."

Yasenia listened quietly and nodded. Meanwhile, the woman by the old man's side was looking at Yasenia with a frown. "You... Are you trying to deceive our ancestor? How could you be a pure dragon when you have a dragon tail, even in your human form?"

Yasenia smiled but didn't answer. She had no obligation to explain her peculiarities to these people. Instead, she finally looked at the old man and started a serious negotiation. "You need my strength and my appearance as a half-dragon to participate in some kind of treasure hunting, am I right? The fact that no one from the younger generation can win means that this treasure is coveted by the superpowers of the city: the Six Sects, Four Ancient Families, and Two Academies. Once I accept your conditions, I will not only be putting myself in danger of offending these super groups, but also my companions won't have an easy time."

Yasenia added. "In case of winning, I become a wanted person by the superpowers. In case of losing, I become a wanted person for offending and trying to face the superpowers. While you said that you won't force me to stay and that you won't limit my freedom, participating in whatever you want me to do is already a way to shackle me with your power."

When Yasenia finished speaking, her eyes flashed coldly as she glanced at the stunned people. "I don't like having my intelligence challenged or questioned. Hence, explain everything clearly and don't let things out. What I am putting on the line is not less than what all of you are risking, so the compensation must be as large." Finally, she left them a way out. "If you feel that you have no confidence or that you don't want to share whatever you are asking me to get, I won't listen to anything else. I want you to tell me clearly that I am not suitable, and, henceforth, we will have nothing to do with each other. Our meeting today will also be as if it never occurred."

When Yasenia finished speaking, the other side was speechless. They never imagined that from the few snippets she had heard since she entered until now, she could easily decode everything and understand the very essence of what was happening. Some of the people doubting Yasenia's worth were instantly convinced, but they still didn't say anything, looking at their ancestor.

The old man looked at Yasenia with a complicated expression, and eventually, he sighed. "You are exceptional. You were not greedy when I mentioned the treasure, and you maintained a rational mind. You also didn't jump to either reject or accept and left me with a way out in case I felt that you were too clever..."

After saying that, his eyes shone with determination and he quickly became serious. "Little Yasenia, I will be honest. The thing that I want you to participate in is the one every ten years treasure hunt that occurs in one of the Secret Realms connected to this city. As a palace where many powerhouses lay, the number of Secret Realms opening in the area are not few. However, there are five main Secret Realms that have created a miniature world inside and give birth to many treasures. The one that's opening in two years is called [Dragon Lair Secret Realm], and as you might guess, it is a Secret Realm of our Long family. The Patriarch managed to create it before succumbing to his wounds as a way of leaving his clan a way to live."

Yasenia heard that and quickly understood. "... Once you arrived in this city, you were too weak, and some people had greedy desires. Facing imminent destruction, your injured Patriarch of the time decided to use himself as a chin and create a Secret Realm with everything he owned in exchange for protection... Am I right?"

The old man was not surprised that she could guess and nodded. "Indeed. The best treasures are locked inside a few inheritance trials that only Dragons can pass. Sadly, our generations have always been suppressed inside the Secret Realm and never managed to get much." The old man sighed and shook his head. "We've failed too many times, and with our resources dwindling, we are in constant decline. The dream of a revival of our clan is also getting further and further away."

Bowing slightly, he asked solemnly. "Yasenia, please help us."