"Um... Elders... Did you bring me here?" Shen Qing raised her hand and interrupted the quarrel among the four dragons.
The four dragons stopped talking the moment they heard Shen Qing's voice. They all lowered their heads and stared at her in surprise.
Flame Dragon: Oh no, we forgot about this girl. Our dignity is gone.
Azure Dragon: Heh, idiot. Who told you to argue with me?
Golden Dragon: Stop talking about him. You're both idiots.
White Dragon: Don't know what to say. Just roll my eyes.
The four dragons winked at each other without saying a word, but miraculously, Shen Qing understood what they meant.
Finally, the White Dragon spoke first, "Come on, let's not make fools of ourselves in front of the younger generation. Transform into human forms."
"Yes."
The four dragons responded respectfully. Apparently, the White Dragon had the highest status here.
Their originally gigantic forms gradually shrank and finally transformed into human figures, standing on the magic formation.
Shen Qing was shocked. These four elders didn't seem to be like this when she received the inheritance.
They were more like mascots in the inheritance land, responsible for guiding and instructing. Shen Qing never expected that they had such distinct personalities.
"Ah... It's been so long since I last transformed into a human form. I'm still not used to this body," said the Flame Dragon, stretching as he walked forward.
He walked up to Shen Qing, looked down at her, stroked his chin, and showed a little canine tooth with a smile. Then he concluded, "You look even smaller up close."
Shen Qing didn't know how many times her mouth had twitched. She looked utterly speechless.
After the Flame Dragon transformed into a human form, his black hair was streaked with a few strands of red. His hairstyle was unruly, casually scattered on his shoulders, giving an impression of exuberant vitality.
His skin was wheat-colored. His proud phoenix eyes held pupils like flaming glass. The patterns on his clothes were mostly flames, with red as the base color.
The Azure Dragon walked over and slapped the Flame Dragon on the head, saying, "Rude!"
Then he turned to Shen Qing and said, "Don't listen to his nonsense. You're... quite slender!"
Shen Qing tried hard to control the twitching of her mouth and pursed her lips, not knowing how to respond.
The Azure Dragon wore a jade crown with a blue gemstone in the middle. When he didn't smile, he looked like a gentle nobleman, but when he did, there was a hint of wickedness.
The Golden Dragon and the White Dragon walked side by side. The Golden Dragon gave the Flame Dragon and the Azure Dragon a disdainful look. "You two are no good. If you can't speak properly, just shut up."
The Golden Dragon had his hair tied up. He looked heroic, with sword-shaped eyebrows and a pair of bright, piercing eyes, giving an impression of reliability.
The White Dragon nodded slowly at Shen Qing, with a gentle smile on his lips.
His hair was completely loose but not messy. He was dressed in spotless white clothes. Every gesture exuded an otherworldly aura. He was like a noble tree, as lofty as a solitary cloud and as elegant as a pine or bamboo.
Shen Qing couldn't help but sigh. No wonder they were the elders of the dragon clan. Each of them seemed extremely powerful.
With their help, perhaps the disaster of Han Ze could be resolved.
With this thought in mind, Shen Qing became eager. She stared at them with burning eyes.
The Flame Dragon got goosebumps under Shen Qing's intense gaze. "Why are you looking at us like we're prey? What do you want?"
Shen Qing blinked innocently. "Shouldn't I be the one asking you this? It was you who brought me here."
Only then did the Flame Dragon remember that it was indeed they who had summoned Shen Qing's soul here.
The White Dragon coughed lightly and said, "We've been trapped in the stone statues for tens of thousands of years. If it weren't for you, those resentful spirits would have devoured us sooner or later, and we would have become fallen gods."
"Thank you, Shen Qing."
Shen Qing waved her hands hurriedly. "No, no, no. This is all thanks to my master, Yu Xuzi. If it weren't for him, I wouldn't have been able to do anything."
The White Dragon nodded. "That's true, but it's undeniable that you took out the Soul - Capturing Banner at just the right moment. We will repay your master's kindness, and we also want to give you a reward."
Shen Qing was flattered. Her mind was already thinking about what the reward would be.
A lost cultivation technique...
Or a powerful elixir...
Or a magical artifact that could destroy the world?
Shen Qing was extremely eager.
But under Shen Qing's expectant gaze, the four of them exchanged an awkward look.
The White Dragon said stiffly at the corner of his mouth, "The reward is a kiss from each of us."
Shen Qing:?
What kind of reward was this?
Seeing Shen Qing's shocked and disdainful look, the White Dragon felt so embarrassed that he could have dug out a three - bedroom apartment with his toes.
He quickly explained, "Han Ze stole our stone cores. Our cultivation dissipated with the loss of the stone cores. Now there's not a single bit of spiritual power in our bodies..."
"So... we can only..."
Shen Qing couldn't help it. Her mouth twitched again.
"What are the stone cores?"
Speaking of this, the White Dragon's expression returned to normal, and he began to explain.
They were originally the first batch of dragons born in the dragon clan. Guided by the Heavenly Dao, they ascended to godhood at the same time. Besides the four of them, there was also the Azure Dragon who was not present.
To protect the younger generations of the dragon clan, they guided the members of the dragon clan to build temples and countless stone statues. They sealed their cultivation in the stone cores so that the younger generations of the dragon clan could be protected by them.
If the stone cores were on the stone statues, they could use their cultivation normally.
But the stone cores were removed by Han Ze's order, which meant that although they were gods, they had no power at all.
Moreover, there were numerous gods in the sky. Even though the dragon clan was a legendary and extremely powerful existence on the Nine Desolate Continent, they were just minor dragon gods in the Nine Heavens.
Not to mention that they had been trapped in the stone statues by Han Ze's evil magic for tens of thousands of years. Now there was no longer a place for them in the Nine Heavens.
They never expected that the stone cores they left out of good intentions would be used by the younger generations of the dragon clan for improper purposes, causing chaos on the Nine Desolate Continent and almost getting them punished.
So as soon as Shen Qing helped them break the evil magic, they immediately appeared.
Shen Qing nodded thoughtfully. "So, Han Ze used your stone cores to summon your illusory forms."
"But how can I get your stone cores back?"
The Flame Dragon patted his chest and said, "Let us return to our positions on the Heavenly Pillar, and we can get the stone cores back."
Shen Qing tilted her head. "Just like that?"
The White Dragon: "Just like that."
The Merman Palace was right ahead. If the Heavenly Pillar was as Yu Xuzi said, it was just around the corner. Presumably, as long as one of them got the stone core back, Han Ze's power would be greatly weakened.
Shen Qing's hope was reignited. "That's great. We should act quickly. Let's set off now!"
The four of them also nodded, their eyes filled with determination.
This time! They would take back everything they had lost!!