Chapter 1965 — 1965: Tear of the Azure Heavens

After Yuan offered the Immortal Monarch's blood for the Tear of the Azure Heavens, Jiao Zhenhai began to seriously contemplate his offer.

The Immortal Monarch's blood would not only help the Azure Dragon Clan recover their weakened bloodline but might even strengthen it past their original purity.

"H-How many drops of the Immortal Monarch's blood do you possess?" Jiao Zhenhai asked in a hesitant tone.

Yuan smiled and said, "Enough for you and all of your children."

"That much?!" Jiao Zhenhai almost couldn't believe his ears.

However, Jiao Zhenhai didn't immediately agree and pondered.

'The Tears of Azure Heavens has been with our family since ancient times, but if I'm being honest, we have no use for it. Hell, we don't even know what it does. However, if we have the Immortal Monarch's blood, it would solve our predicament and might even strengthen our bloodline.'

'But for him to offer something as valuable as the Immortal Monarch's blood, the Tears of Azure Heavens must be as valuable, if not even more valuable, than the Immortal Monarch's blood… Damn it! Do I take his offer or not?!'

Eventually, Jiao Zhenhai made up his mind and spoke, "I'm—"

However, Jiao Zhenhai's voice abruptly stopped, and his eyes widened with shock and disbelief when Yuan suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Both Jiao Zhenhai and Yuan simultaneously looked down, only to see a gleaming blue trident jutting clean through Yuan's chest, right where his heart was located.

The next moment, Yuan collapsed to the ground.

"W-What?!" Jiao Zhenhai exclaimed in bewilderment, mostly because he recognized the tridant.

He subconsciously turned to look at the entrance and saw a lone figure standing there.

"Second Elder?! How did you get in here?! No, more important, what do you think you're doing?!"

"What does it look like I am doing?" the Second Elder calmly responded.

"Don't tell me… you've betrayed the Azure Dragon Clan too?!" Jiao Zhenhai's voice trembled with disbelief as shock flooded his face.

After the First Elder and the Third Elder's sudden betrayal, they had tirelessly interrogated the Second Elder for the past four months to ensure that he wasn't working with them since the three of them were like peas in a pod. And after many hours of questioning, the Second Elder had been cleared of any suspicion.

But alas…

"Why did the three of you betray the Azure Dragon Clan?!" Jiao Zhenhai roared as his cultivation erupted furiously.

The Second Elder shrugged and said, "It's quite simple. The Azure Dragon Clan is no longer worth our protection and loyalty."

"There's no way you'd be stupid enough to betray us over such a reason!"

The Second Elder smiled and said, "You're right. We found a place that's worth our loyalty."

"Who?! Who are you working for?!" Jiao Zhenhai roared as he pounced at the Second Elder.

"Does it even matter? The Azure Dragon Clan will soon cease to exist, anyway."

The Second Elder calmly raised his hand and deflected Jiao Zhenhai's furious strike.

The clash sent shockwaves rippling through the treasury, but with both of them being at the fourth level of the God Ascension Realm, they stood locked in place, equally matched.

"I'll force everything out of you even if it's the last thing I do!" Jiao Zhenhai roared.

"I'd like to see you try!"

Jiao Zhenhai and the Second Elder clashed fiercely, their battle shaking the very foundation of the dimension. Blades of energy tore through the air, waves of Celestial Qi collided, and spatial distortions cracked around them like glass.

Yet, despite the overwhelming power of their techniques, not a single treasure in the room was disturbed. Every weapon, pill, and artifact remained untouched.

After nearly a thousand intense exchanges, the tide of battle began to shift, and the Second Elder's cultivation suddenly increased to the fifth level.

The Second Elder, though evenly matched at first, immediately started to gain the upper hand.

"Hahaha! How do you like this?! I, who have always been slightly behind you, am now stronger! This is the result of betraying the Azure Dragon Clan!"

"You despicable bastard!"

Eventually, the Second Elder overpowered Jiao Zhenhai and sent him flying across the treasury.

"Once I kill you, acquire the Tear of the Azure Heavens, and accomplish our goal, we'll receive even more benefit from the Mystic Sea Dragon Clan!"

Jiao Zhenhai trembled after hearing the name 'Mystic Sea Dragon Clan'.

"You were colluding with the Mystic Sea Dragon Clan this entire time?! You low-life bastards!" Jiao Zhenhai roared, his voice thunderous with fury.

The Second Elder covered his mouth with a hand and spoke in a teasing tone, "Oops. I wasn't supposed to reveal that. Well, it doesn't really matter since you're going to die so—"

In the midst of his sentence, the Second Elder suddenly stiffened, a sharp jolt of pain lancing through his back, like a blade piercing straight through him.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he slowly turned around… only to see Yuan standing mere inches behind him, a dagger firmly gripped in his hand.

"You—! How are you still alive?!" the Second Elder gasped, staggering slightly as a burning pain rippled throughout his body.

However, what stunned him even more than the fact that Yuan was still alive after taking a spear through the heart was how he had managed to slip behind him completely unnoticed.

"Just like the First Elder, you seem to like attacking people from the back, so I'm letting you experience it for yourself. How is it? Do you enjoy it?"

Snapping out of his daze, the Second Elder roared loudly and lashed out with a wild, powerful swing of his arm.

Splat!

Yuan's head was torn clean from his shoulders before it hurtled across the room, where it struck the wall with a sickening splatter of blood.

"That son of a bitch… I don't know how he survived being struck in the heart, but he's definitely dead now. No mortal can survive without their head!"

However, as the Second Elder turned away from the blood-smeared wall and back toward Yuan, his eyes widened in shock and his complexion paled instantly, almost as if he'd seen a ghost.

"Sup," Yuan said with a smile on his face.