Chapter 1953 — 1953: Azure Dragon Clan's Predicament

Yuan continued, his voice steady and firm, "You may not know much about Dragon Goddess Yeyou—but surely, you should be aware that among the Three Dragons of Origin, she stands as the strongest. Whatever the Great One can offer, there's little—if anything—that Dragon Goddess Yeyou cannot match or surpass."

Jiao Zhenhai fell silent to ponder Yuan's words, and the rest of the Azure Dragon Clan began exchanging glances with each other.

Eventually, Jiao Zhenhai spoke, "I am willing to negotiate, but I will only continue speaking if you, Dragon Goddess Yeyou's Envoy, are alone. That means the rest of the Holy Dragon Clan must leave."

"That's unreasonable!"

"There's no way we could leave Senior Envoy alone with you bastards!"

The Dragon Emperor then spoke, his tone calm yet resolute, "I must agree with the others—he holds as much importance to us as Dragon Goddess Yeyou herself. We cannot, in good conscience, allow him to be left in the hands of your Azure Dragon Clan, especially after the aggression you've already shown."

"This matter pertains to information meant solely for the Azure Dragon Clan," Jiao Zhenhai said firmly. "It is not something to be shared with outsiders, especially the Holy Dragon Clan."

Holy Dragon Emperor pondered for a brief moment before responding, "In that case, I alone will stay here with him. I may be with the Holy Dragon Clan, but I have my own reputation to uphold as a Dragon Emperor. I can even make an oath if you're not satisfied."

Jiao Zhenhai nodded and said, "If it's just you, and you're willing to swear an oath you will keep it to yourself, I am willing to let you stay."

The Dragon Emperor turned to glance at the members of the Holy Dragon Clan behind him. Without a single word exchanged, they quietly took their leave, offering no complaints or objections. With the Dragon Emperor present, the strongest among them, they had no reason to doubt Yuan's safety.

Once the Holy Dragon Clan left, the Dragon Emperor solemnly swore an oath, binding himself to secrecy until death regarding anything discussed in the conversation that followed.

Only after the oath was spoken did Jiao Zhenhai finally open his mouth to speak.

"I'll get straight to the point," Jiao Zhenhai said, his expression turning grave.

"Our clan's bloodline is cursed. With each passing generation, its purity diminishes. If this continues, the Azure Dragon Clan will eventually fall beneath the threshold required to be recognized as a royal bloodline. To stop this decline... we need the assistance of the Great One. However, to even get his attention, we need something he's interested in, and that's the Dragon Spiral Mountain."

"How can you be so sure it's a curse that's causing your bloodline to decline?" Dragon Emperor asked with a doubtful look on his face.

"Because that's what the bastard who did it to us said!" Jiao Zhenhai shouted angrily as he slammed the desk.

"That bastard?" Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know who or what he truly is," Jiao Zhenhai said, his voice low with lingering unease. "He simply appeared before our headquarters one day and demanded our family heirloom. When we refused and attempted to drive him off, he warned us... that he would curse our bloodline. That was many thousands of years ago. Since then, our lineage has steadily declined. At first, the changes were subtle—barely noticeable. But now... It's growing worse with each generation."

"I see. So this curse is the source of your problem, and if I get rid of it, you'll lend me the key?" Yuan said.

"If you can solve our predicament, let alone lend you the key, we'll give it to you!"

Yuan smiled and said, "That's a promise. As for your curse, I have a simple solution that doesn't even require Dragon Goddess Yeyou's involvement."

"What?"

In response to the Azure Dragon Clan's puzzled expressions, Yuan retrieved the Sacred Chalice of Purification and explained, "If you pour a few drops of your blood into this chalice, it'll get rid of your curse."

"Th-That…? What kind of treasure is that?" Jiao Zhenhai asked, swallowing nervously as he felt the profound and unfamiliar aura radiating from the chalice.

Even the Dragon Emperor's eyes narrowed with intrigue. The aura it emitted was unlike anything he had ever sensed—ancient, otherworldly, and utterly unique. No one present could recall encountering anything quite like it before.

"It belongs to Dragon Goddess Yeyou," Yuan explained briefly. "Are you worried it might do something to you?"

Jiao Zhenhai hesitated, then shifted his gaze to the Dragon Emperor, seeking silent reassurance, as if needing his approval before proceeding.

"If anything happens to you, I'll offer you my life." The Dragon Emperor spoke without an ounce of hesitation in his voice.

Jiao Zhenhai nodded and fed several drops of his blood to the chalice.

Yuan and everyone in the room waited in tense silence, a mix of anticipation and unease hanging heavily in the air.

However, nothing happened even after many moments, causing Yuan to raise an eyebrow.

"What's wrong?" Jiao Zhenhai could no longer keep silent and questioned.

Yuan inspected the chalice to ensure nothing was wrong with it before looking at Jiao Zhenhai and speaking with a serious face, "You're not cursed."

"What?! How is that possible?!" Jiao Zhenhai exclaimed in disbelief. "You must be messing with me!"

"What would I gain from lying to you?" Yuan shook his head. "This is a profound treasure that can remove even the strongest curses out there. The fact that it's not responding to your blood is simply because you are not cursed!"

"Then how do you explain what's been happening to my clan's bloodline?!" Jiao Zhenhai roared, his voice trembling with frustration. "Are you telling me my entire family has been wrong all this time?!"

He refused to believe it was all just a misunderstanding—there had to be more behind the slow collapse of his lineage.

Yuan shrugged and said, "I have no way of knowing that unless I take a closer look for myself. How about I come to your place and investigate it further?"