Otherworldly Affairs Office

Chapter 1202: Ninefold Dragon Phoenix Pendant

"Mr. Pei Yan responded quite quickly, it’s that Jade Pendant!" Long Jin smiled and lightly nodded in acknowledgment."Is it a Divine Artifact?"

"That’s right!"

Having spoken for so long, Pei Yan, whose body had just recovered from the swelling that hadn’t completely subsided, felt somewhat tired and walked over to sit by a corridor pillar. Hu Jiu obediently lay down at his feet, while Pei Yan rubbed Hu Jiu’s furry head resting on his leg, he looked at Long Jin in confusion and said, "I don’t quite understand why you went to such lengths to use one Divine Artifact to exchange for another. Is Bai Ze’s Divine Artifact really that strong?"

"It’s not just about strength; the main issue is that this artifact is deeply tied to our clan, and we cannot allow it to fall into the hands of outsiders." Long Jin sat down beside Pei Yan, gently combing his hair while gazing at his clan members who were still repairing the wreckage in the distance, speaking thoughtfully.

"I noticed it! That day, Bai Ze pulled out that thing, what’s it called, Nine-Turn Dragon Phoenix Pendant? I think that’s the name? After your father shouted out the name, his expression looked like he wanted to devour Bai Ze alive. Can you tell me about its origins?" Pei Yan recalled the circumstances of that day and asked curiously.

Long Jin withdrew his gaze and glanced at Pei Yan. Seemingly knowing that this question was forthcoming, he didn’t answer but instead asked, "Mr. Pei, you have interacted with our Dragon Realm before. Surely you are quite familiar with the origins of our great clan?"

Pei Yan nodded. He had heard this story a long time ago when he learned about the Spirit Monster Plane, so he casually replied, "Yes! Your two great clans were originally creatures from the Daoist Plane and Magic Plane, and then ascended together to the current plane. Because of different origins, disagreements and conflicts arose between you. Does this Divine Artifact have anything to do with that?"

"There’s a bit of a connection, but it has nothing to do with the clan from the Magic Plane. This is our clan’s private affair! Mr. Pei just mentioned ascension, haha." Long Jin paused and self-deprecatingly said, "When ancestors spoke to their descendants back then, they phrased it nicely as ascension. But given the circumstances at the time, the word ’escape’ was more apt. Despite the current imposing presence of our two clans jointly ruling the Dragon Realm and having a decent status among the major planes, before arriving in the Dragon Realm and belonging to the two major planes, we were merely targets for hunting, used as mounts or gatekeepers by sects for Alchemy and Artifact Refining, with equally miserable circumstances!"

"That can’t be right! I’ve seen your strength; in terms of overall power, you are not inferior to other planes. Without supreme experts intervening, your army can overwhelm the Blood Demon Army. Your combat capability is at least a notch stronger than the Demon Race’s army I’ve seen." Although Pei Yan had heard of this matter, hearing it directly from the descendants still made it hard to believe, and he expressed his confusion.

"What good is individual strength? You’ve seen our situation; the higher the level and stronger the mythical beasts, the less they like living in groups. Furthermore, due to the difficulty of breeding mythical beasts, their numbers have always been a weakness for us. At that time, the Dragon Race had not yet emerged as the preeminent clan. The clans only had loose alliances, making it easy for large sects to divide and surround them, defeating them piecemeal. Another major reason we were suppressed was that the Lord of the Plane at the time did not care about our existence, or perhaps favored the sects and organizations established by humans, and took a laissez-faire approach towards their hunting of mythical beasts."

As Long Jin spoke, he looked at Pei Yan and said emotionally, "Now you understand why the Ancestral God has such a high reputation in the Dragon Realm. It’s precisely because in such an environment, the Ancestral God didn’t choose to let this world evolve its own creatures but instead chose to open the Plane Barrier to shelter us refugees. They assisted us in transforming our bodies so we could adapt to the elemental energy here, living and reproducing through generations. You must know that, at the time, the Ancestral God’s actions caused great dissatisfaction among the Masters of Origin of the two major planes, yet my teacher still accomplished it despite enormous pressure."

No matter what he thought inside, these beast tribes indeed counted as one of the plane’s vital forces. Pei Yan could entirely imagine the displeasure of Lin Ruxue and the Magic Realm’s Venerable at having their minions commandeered. He did not interrupt, waiting for Long Jin to continue her story.

"We’re talking too far! Let’s bring it back to the Nine-Turn Dragon Phoenix Pendant! Its origin traces back to the lengthy era before our clan arrived at the Dragon Realm, during the time spent in the Daoist Plane. As you know, during that period, various sects took pride in capturing preeminent members of our clan to use as guardian mythical beasts. Some sects even made beast-taming Magic their foundation. The holder of this Jade Pendant was one such sect, the predecessor of the Immortal Palace, which has now become a target of suppression and may no longer exist in the Underworld’s Eighteen Courts, particularly the Dragon Breeding Institute."

"The Underworld’s Eighteen Courts?" Upon hearing this, Pei Yan could no longer restrain himself and stood up. He only learned about this organization when he first arrived in the Daoist Realm. It’s the predecessor of the Immortal Palace, established during the first invasion of the foundational plane by the four major planes. It caused the collapse of the Plane Barrier, almost triggering a chain reaction. Afterward, Lin Ruxue passed the blame, abolishing her subordinate sects. Those sects transformed underground into the Underworld organization, secretly opposing Lin Ruxue’s newly established Immortal Palace. They had already established connections with the Blood Demon Army, and Li Songtao belonged to these sects.

"Exactly them, just back then they had not yet been purged by Lin Ruxue. They were at the height of controlling the Daoist Plane." Long Jin gestured for Pei Yan to sit back down before continuing, "The Dragon Breeding Institute, as its name suggests, not only could command beast herds with Magic for their purposes but was also capable of commanding dragons and capturing phoenixes, making them obey. During that time, Spirit Lord Lin’s means of transport were all drawn by Yinglong leading the way, and it was the Dragon Breeding Institute that controlled these noble dragon races. This custom gradually faded after our clan ascended to the Dragon Realm, as Spirit Lord Lin sought alliance with the Ancestral God and with the Dragon Breeding Institute’s downfall."

"Oh, so there’s actually this hidden story. I never would have imagined that my Sister Lin, who seems so down-to-earth, used to be quite extravagant in that way." Imagining Lin Ruxue sitting in a dragon-drawn carriage like an Empress surveying her domain, Pei Yan couldn’t help but chuckle and tease.

"Indeed! The Dragon Breeding Institute brought such grandeur and honor to Spirit Lord Lin, but in return, she indulged her own sect. Although Spirit Lord Lin did not intervene much in the sects capturing beasts, she still maintained certain rules to avoid going overboard, such as banning the capture of mythical beasts that reached a certain strength, or prohibiting capturing those that were too young, or species in the process of reproduction. These restrictions could not be said to be perfectly adhered to by the sects, but they did impose some constraints, preventing excessive recklessness. However, however, the Dragon Breeding Institute...!"