Chapter 550: Chapter 559 5-Clawed Golden Dragon
In front of the thatched cottage nestled in the folds of Three Principles Mountain, Wang Yan, Beiming Heng, and Wu Xie stood there.
Gazing at the cottage before him, Wang Yan couldn’t help but feel a sense of wistful longing.
This cottage was where he grew up, and it wasn’t until he turned 18 that he left.
Thus, Wang Yan was intimately familiar with every blade of grass and tree in the cottage, and he held deep feelings for every brick and tile.
Beiming Heng said to Wang Yan, “After inquiring from Beiming Xue last time, I learned about your origins, so I came here specifically to see. I discovered an artifact within it. This artifact will provide you with unimaginable benefits. Brother Yan, you can go in by yourself. Wu Xie and I will guard outside for you.”
Wang Yan nodded and walked into the cottage.
Seeing the simplicity of the cottage, Wu Xie asked curiously, “Old Man Heng, you aren’t deceiving Wang Yan, right? I see this cottage doesn’t even have a guard, could it really hold a treasure that can shake the heavens?”
Beiming Heng replied with a serious tone, “How could I deceive Brother Yan? There’s indeed a treasure inside this house. As for the lack of a guard, why would this treasure need one?”
Wu Xie asked strangely, “What do you mean? Is it that the treasure isn’t afraid of being stolen?”
Beiming Heng smiled slightly and said, “It’s not about not fearing theft, but rather that no one could take it.”
Upon hearing this, Wu Xie’s eyes widened in surprise and he exclaimed, “What kind of treasure is this, defying heaven so much that nobody dares to steal it?”
Beiming Heng paused for a moment before speaking in a low voice that only the two of them could hear, “Dragon Scale, a true Dragon Scale.”
Hearing this, Wu Xie was left stunned, his lips trembled for a while before he exclaimed, “Wang… Wang Yan’s master, what kind of god-like existence is he?”
…
Wang Yan stepped into the cottage and found everything as it was, except for a slight layer of dust, just like when he had left.
He walked over to the wooden table and slowly let his palm glide over the tabletop.
Scenes from his childhood immediately surfaced in Wang Yan’s mind.
A middle-aged man lifted his hand, grasped the trunk of a towering tree, and effortlessly uprooted it.
A five- or six-year-old Wang Yan stood nearby and clapped his hands excitedly, exclaiming, “Master, you’re amazing, truly amazing.”
The middle-aged man turned his head with a smile, looking at Wang Yan kindly, and asked, “Do you want to be as powerful as your master?”
Young Wang Yan nodded vigorously.
The middle-aged man said, “Alright, I will make a table from this tree for you. From now on, you must study diligently at this table. Understand?”
Young Wang Yan showed firmness on his face and gave a determined nod.
From then on, the sounds of Wang Yan’s earnest reading and the middle-aged man’s strict teachings often emerged from the cottage.
Only occasionally, when Wang Yan successfully recited a passage of antiquated text, would the middle-aged man allow him to leave the cottage to climb trees and play outside.
Though the time for play was brief and merely swaying between the branches, those moments were the happiest for Wang Yan.
…
Standing in front of the wooden table, Wang Yan was completely immersed in deep memories, recalling childhood times and long days without seeing his master, his reflections stirred, his heart filled with both sweet and bittersweet emotions.
“Master—” Wang Yan murmured to himself.
At that moment, Wang Yan suddenly sensed someone behind him, although he couldn’t see the person, he felt an extremely familiar presence.
“Master—” Wang Yan quickly turned around, an excited expression on his face.
Sure enough, standing behind Wang Yan was a middle-aged man, smiling at him.
The middle-aged man’s eyes were filled with a benevolent glow, the very master whom Wang Yan thought of day and night.
“Master—” Wang Yan cried out and suddenly rushed forward, kneeling with a “thud” before the middle-aged man and looking up at him eagerly, asking, “Master, where did you go? Why have I not seen you for so long? How can I stand at the world’s peak? Master, who is my father truly?”
Wang Yan rapidly asked a flurry of questions, while expectantly looking at the middle-aged man, awaiting answers.
However, the middle-aged man merely smiled at Wang Yan, with gentle gleams in his eyes, not answering his queries.
“Master? Master?” Wang Yan called hesitantly, then lifted his hands, trying to embrace the middle-aged man’s legs.
But just as Wang Yan reached forward, he unexpectedly grasped the air, and the middle-aged man slowly vanished before his eyes.
Wang Yan hurriedly blinked, indeed finding before him was truly no one.
By now, Wang Yan, with broad experience, recognized that what he saw was likely an illusion, feelings of disappointment washed over him, and he slowly sat down on the ground.
At this moment, Wang Yan inadvertently glanced at the ground and saw something unexpectedly resting there, radiating endless brilliance.
Wang Yan focused intently on the object, realizing it was a palm-sized, round, thin piece, golden in color, seemingly carrying a faint aura reminiscent of his master’s presence.
Wang Yan raised his hand, took the thin piece into his hand.
As soon as the piece entered his hand, Wang Yan immediately felt a powerful aura surge into his mind.
In an instant, Wang Yan’s surroundings vanished, replaced by a dim gray expanse, as if he were standing in a boundless space.
Suddenly, before him appeared a person, dressed in a long robe, standing with hands behind.
“Master—” Wang Yan called out excitedly.
The middle-aged man with hands behind nodded slightly and said, “Yan’er, today, Master will impart a new skill to you, watch carefully.”
“A skill? Master wants to teach me a skill?”
Wang Yan, puzzled, was questioning when suddenly the middle-aged man’s silhouette shook and golden light arose from his form.
This golden light shot skyward, radiating boundless brilliance that painted the entire space gold.
Within the golden light, there seemed an aura of unapproachable majesty.
The intense golden light prevented Wang Yan from opening his eyes, so he squinted, shielding his face with his palm, trying hard to look ahead. Yet the light was so dazzling that despite his efforts, he could only see floods of golden light.
Before too long, the golden light dimmed slightly, allowing Wang Yan to finally see the scene before him clearly.
But upon seeing what lay ahead, Wang Yan was instantly startled.
A huge Golden Dragon floated there, its body adorned with gleaming scales, bearing five dragon claws, sprawling and immense.
The Golden Dragon’s eyes were like lightning, horns on its forehead, whiskers floating on each side, surrounded by ethereal clouds that hid much of its form.