Hearing Raiden Ei's acknowledgment, Keqing and Xiangling were taken aback.
Even Raiden Ei now considered Ye Xi a God!
And Raiden Ei was the Electro Archon, no less!
In truth, Raiden Ei hadn't said this lightly.
An Archon of the Seven such as herself didn't truly count as a God in the fullest sense.
What she commanded was merely the Authority over lightning and thunder.
A God in the truest sense commanded Authority of an altogether extraordinary order.
Ye Xi now commanded the Time Authority, as well as the Authority over celestial phenomena—this was already a power of a rank higher than the Seven Archons!
So to call Ye Xi a God in the truest sense was no exaggeration at all.
The only thing she couldn't understand was why Ye Xi, an ordinary human, would possess such tremendous power.
Just as she was musing on this, a fresh development unfolded within the screen.
At this moment, Apep, too, suddenly came to a realization.
"You actually possess the Authority to control celestial phenomena!"
"It seems I misjudged you—you are no ordinary human!"
"Could it be that you, too, are one of those Gods up in the heavens?"
Seeing that Ye Xi gave no answer, Apep let out a cold snort: "So what! Do you think rain can deal with me?"
"Do you truly believe rainwater can defeat a Dragonlord?!"
Ye Xi suddenly asked, "If rain won't do, then what about ice?"
"What?!"
Before Apep could even be shocked, Ye Xi abruptly unleashed an immense surge of Cryo Elemental Power.
[Freeze]
In an instant, the raindrops falling from the sky turned into ice crystals.
The icy rain struck the sand, and the ground was at once blanketed in thick, solid ice.
It was a most bizarre sight—solid ice forming over the sand.
Yet it was not only the sand that froze.
Those translucent, bluish ice crystals also crept over Apep's colossal body.
As the icy rain kept falling, the solid ice upon Apep thickened at a visible rate.
Roar——!
Apep roared in fury, twisting its body with all its might, and under its tremendous strength the layer of ice actually began to crack and shatter.
But no sooner had it shattered than it was baptized once more by the icy rain, the thick ice mending every gap.
Before long, this Dendro Dragonlord of the ancient era was utterly sealed within the ice, unable to move.
Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata's eyes were filled with astonishment.
They had imagined many ways Ye Xi might defeat the Dendro Dragonlord, but never had they expected it to be so crudely simple and brute-force!
"Cryo Elemental Power on such a scale—I'm afraid only the God of Snezhnaya could rival it...."
Nahida couldn't help but marvel.
Beside her, Greater Lord Rukkhadevata nodded: "He even possesses the Authority over ice—truly astonishing."
"Should I say he's worthy of being a future new Throne?"
"Ah-choo——"
As she spoke, Nahida gave a shiver.
At this point, Ye Xi dispersed the dark clouds.
With that, dazzling sunlight poured down, and the sandstorm in the air vanished as well.
The sky was utterly clear, and the air was exceptionally fresh.
Ye Xi alighted on the solid ice and returned to the side of his wives.
"This should do it."
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata hastily nodded: "Wonderful—now Apep can't escape even if it wants to."
"Next, we just need to find a way to enter the world within its body, and then light up the [Heart of the Oasis]."
Just then, Apep spoke furiously from within the ice: "I don't need your help!"
"And don't think you can enter my world, either!"
Nahida sighed: "I never imagined Apep would be so stubborn—this makes things difficult."
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata, too, fell into deep thought.
To enter Apep's world, one naturally had to comply with Apep, its master.
If Apep refused, then no one could get in.
Ye Xi, however, was in no hurry. He patted Nahida's head and asked, "The reason Apep ended up like this is because of the contamination of Forbidden Knowledge, isn't it?"
"That's right. It swallowed the Red King, who had been contaminated by Forbidden Knowledge a thousand years ago."
"The Forbidden Knowledge within the Red King took root and sprouted inside its body, leading to...."
As she spoke, Nahida suddenly froze.
Ye Xi looked at her with a smile and asked, "Have you forgotten my methods?"
At these words, both Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata abruptly remembered.
"That's right! Ye Xi, you can absorb Forbidden Knowledge!"
Greater Lord Rukkhadevata sighed: "Buer and I kept thinking about how to use the Everflame Seed to light up Apep's [Heart of the Oasis], and completely forgot about your ability!"
"Ye Xi, now it's all up to you!"
Ye Xi nodded: "Just leave it to me."
In fact, he had already noticed earlier that Apep was utterly steeped in the power of Forbidden Knowledge.
To the Dendro Dragonlord, these things were like deadly cancer cells, causing it untold agony.
But to Ye Xi, they were simply the finest tonic!
As it happened, the power of his [Abyss Core] had been running a little low these past couple of days—so let the Forbidden Knowledge on Apep recharge it!
With that thought, Ye Xi strode straight toward Apep, and the solid ice before him parted to open a path.
"What are you trying to do?!"
Apep strained to coil up its body, but alas, it was locked in the solid ice and could not move at all.
It couldn't fathom what the human before it intended to do.
Ye Xi came before Apep and reached out to touch its dragon scales.
Immediately after, the system emitted its ethereal voice.
[Ding!]
[A vast amount of Forbidden Knowledge detected. Absorb it?]
Ye Xi directly activated the [Drain] ability.
In an instant, the gray mist suffusing Apep's body visibly began to condense, gathering toward Ye Xi.
The mist grew thicker and thicker, reverting to its original black.
As though possessed of consciousness, it sought to seize the chance to invade Ye Xi's body and destroy his life force.
Unfortunately for it, the more eagerly it gathered in, the more it was like fat meat hurling itself into a leopard's maw—instantly broken down by Ye Xi.
Apep was stunned.
"Th-this is impossible!"
"A human comes into contact with Forbidden Knowledge, yet there's no agonized wailing!"
"What on earth is going on?!"
Ye Xi said nothing, but behind him there emerged a black cube that endlessly shifted its form.
As the black mist surged in, it was in an instant transformed into pure Abyss Power, flowing into the [Abyss Core].
[Ding!]
[Forbidden Knowledge detected. Conversion in progress!]
The system whirred away at high speed.
Ye Xi was like a funnel: Forbidden Knowledge was sucked in, converted into Abyss Power, and stored away.
At the sight of the [Abyss Core], Apep blanched in horror.
"That is the power of the Abyss!"
"You are no human! You are an Outsider!"
"Could it be—you mean to become the new Heavenly Principles!"
As an ancient Dragonlord who had seen many an Outsider, Apep found in Ye Xi a familiar feeling!
So many abilities beyond all reason, this Authority that towered above elemental power!
These were the marks of a Throne!
Ye Xi was mightier than any Outsider it had ever seen—he was destined to become the new king of Celestia!
Hearing Apep's exclamation, Ye Xi was slightly taken aback.
"That's not a bad suggestion of yours."
All along, Ye Xi had thought to steer clear of the Heavenly Principles and live out his peaceful days.
But running away forever simply wouldn't do.
The Heavenly Principles were like a time bomb—if one day they suddenly came to raid his home, he himself might survive, but what about his wives?
That being the case, why not take the fight to the Heavenly Principles himself?
Take out the Heavenly Principles, become the new Heavenly Principles himself—wouldn't that make him safe?
It seemed this matter would require careful preparation.
Just as Ye Xi was deep in thought, Apep's body gradually shifted from gray back to a vibrant, lively green.
A true Dendro elemental giant dragon revealed its original visage.
At the same time, a vast quantity of Forbidden Knowledge was turned into Abyss Power and stored away by Ye Xi.
This power was enough for him to build an aircraft carrier just for fun.
To put it plainly, Ye Xi even owed this Dendro Dragonlord his thanks.
What he had to do next was use the [Taming] skill to tame the Dendro Dragonlord.
The problem was, how could he get this Dendro Dragonlord to willingly sign a contract?
Just then, Arlecchino—who had been fast asleep, snoring away in Nahida's arms—stretched lazily.
Ever since she'd been turned into a cat, she'd felt herself growing lazier.
Every day it was eat then sleep, sleep then eat.
She drowsily opened her eyes, only to suddenly find a colossal Dragonlord before her, so startled that her fur stood on end on the spot.
"...Meow——!!!"
This single cat's cry suddenly brought Ye Xi to a realization.
Of course.
Wouldn't the method he'd used to tame Arlecchino back then work just as well?
No sooner said than done.
Ye Xi used the [Transformation] skill.
Apep's body suddenly began to shrink.
"Wh-what's happening?!"
"What have you done to me?!"
Apep's face was full of panic and alarm.
At this point, Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata were dumbfounded as well.
Under everyone's gaze, the awe-inspiring Dendro Dragonlord actually turned into a palm-sized caterpillar!
More precisely, it looked like a little snake freshly hatched from its shell.
Back in the Serenitea Pot, Raiden Ei and the others were all dumbstruck.
"Ehh——!? That enormous Dragonlord actually turned into this?!"
"What's going on here? Could it be...."
Keqing suddenly remembered—she herself had once been turned into a cat-eared girl by Ye Xi; it must be that very ability!
Out in the desert.
Ye Xi held Apep's serpent head, and the solid ice now shattered to pieces as well.
Apep felt a wave of panic.
Earlier, when it was still a Dragonlord, both Ye Xi and Nahida had seemed so tiny.
But now, the tiny one was itself.
And what was more, its very life was now pinched in Ye Xi's hand.
This filled it with terror.
If Ye Xi so wished, this Dragonlord that had lived for so long would truly die!
"Apep, since you won't willingly submit to me, then I have no choice but to do this by force."
With that, Ye Xi used the [Taming] skill.
In the palm of his hand, a glowing magic circle appeared.
At the same moment, the very same radiance lit up within Apep's serpentine pupils.
The contract was formed.
At this moment, the Dendro Dragonlord Apep had become his pet.
Unlike Arlecchino—Arlecchino was human, so if she were turned from a cat back into a human, the contract would temporarily lapse.
Apep was different.
It was a Dragonlord by its very nature.
Now that the contract was signed, even if it were returned to its original form, it still could not escape the contract's binding.
Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata both leaned in close.
"Ye Xi, Apep, it..."
"It's already our family's pet now."
Ye Xi said with a smile: "How about it? Shall we take it home to guard the house and watch over the courtyard?"
"Uh...."
Nahida and Greater Lord Rukkhadevata were instantly speechless.
This was a Dragonlord from the ancient era!
And he'd just take it home to be a watchdog?!
Wasn't that going a bit too far?!
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