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ArabicA Rich Second-generation Villain Can’t Just Enjoy Life — Chapter 466
Chapter 466: The Dowry and the Dragon’s Desire
Before Shen Anyu could ask, Ye Liyou spoke, her clear, cold Phoenix eyes showing a hint of joy: “Senior, this Seven-Foot Sword was originally the personal sword of the Sword Palace Lord, symbolizing her status. Since its disappearance five hundred years ago with Ancestral Master Lin Xuanyan, that generation’s Sword Palace Master, subsequent Sect Leaders of the Sword Palace have not been called Palace Lords. Even Senior Sister Fairy Pei is only the Sect Leader.”
Her voice, usually a blade of ice, now held a tremor of reverence, a warmth reserved only for him. “This Seven-Foot Sword is rumored to have been forged by the Sword Palace’s founding Ancestral Master, using strange meteor iron from beyond the heavens, and crafted by a renowned artisan. It has extremely strong conductivity for a Martial Artist’s True Essence and True Qi.” She paused, her gaze fixed on the blade as if seeing centuries of history reflected in its polish. “With the Seven-Foot Sword in hand, a strong Sword Dao practitioner can double their strength.”
It was a known truth in the martial world. While the most powerful individuals could weaponize anything—plucked flowers, fallen leaves, even the air itself—a worthy weapon was more than just a tool; it was an extension of the soul. An ordinary blade would buckle and shatter under the strain of a master’s True Essence, a crude vessel leaking more power than it channeled. Ten parts of energy poured in might only yield three, or perhaps five, parts of destructive force, making it less effective than a master’s bare hands.
But a divine weapon, a sharp and peerless blade like the Seven-Foot Sword, was different. It was a perfect conduit. It could channel one hundred percent of a martial artist’s power, perhaps even amplify it. For a swordsman, possessing such a blade was like a tiger growing wings—a transformation that elevated them to an entirely new level of lethality.
Ye Liyou’s delicate jade-like lips parted gently as she finished her explanation. With a grace that belied her assassin’s past, she presented the ancient sword to Shen Anyu, her hands steady, her offering absolute. The sword hilt was wrapped in what looked like aged, dark green sharkskin, offering a surprisingly firm grip. The guard was simple, unadorned, showing its focus on function over form. But the blade itself… it seemed to drink the light in the room, possessing a deep, star-dusted luster that was unlike any earthly metal.
“Isn’t this the personal sword of the Sword Palace’s Lord?” Shen Anyu raised an eyebrow, a slow, amused smile playing on his lips as he accepted the weapon. It was heavier than it looked, perfectly balanced. “You’re just giving it to me?”
Ye Liyou’s own smile was a soft, breathtaking thing, a rare bloom in a winter frost. She looked up at him, her red lips parting slightly as she spoke, her voice laced with an irresistible mix of devotion and playful strategy.
“The Sword Palace has an ancestral instruction,” she revealed, her eyes sparkling. “If a disciple retrieves the Seven-Foot Sword, they can directly assume the position of Sword Palace Lord. Senior… you are my man, Ye Liyou’s man. You are no outsider. If you hold this sword, then you can certainly become the Sword Palace Lord.”
A cunning, intelligent light danced in the depths of her Phoenix eyes, a flicker of the brilliant strategist that lay beneath the cold assassin. She leaned in just a fraction, her scent a subtle mix of night-blooming flowers and cold steel. “This could also be considered Liyou’s dowry, Senior. I hope you don’t mind that I’m presenting the Buddha with a borrowed flower.”
[Akarin’s Note: “Presenting the Buddha with a borrowed flower” (借花献佛 – jiè huā xiàn fó) is a Chinese idiom for making a gift of something that isn’t technically yours to give. Here, Ye Liyou is cheekily offering the Lordship of her sect as a dowry.]
Shen Anyu’s mind reeled for a moment, the implications crashing down on him with hilarious force.
*’Huh?’*
*’Just like that, I’m the Sword Palace Lord?’*
A series of absurd scenarios flashed through his mind. How was he supposed to break the news to the current Sect Leader, the famously icy and beautiful Fairy Pei? Should he walk into her chambers, lean against the doorframe with a cocky grin and say, “You wouldn’t want the Sword Palace to be destroyed, now would you?”
*’No, that’s not right. The Sword Palace Lord is me now.’*
His internal script immediately changed. Perhaps a more direct approach was in order. He could summon her, tap his finger on the armrest of the lord’s throne, and declare, “Little Pei, come to my chambers. Let me… inspect your cultivation progress.” The thought alone was enough to make him chuckle.
Shaking his head to clear the amusing images, Shen Anyu refocused his attention on the blade in his hands. He carefully examined the Seven-Foot Sword, tracing the faint, almost invisible lines that patterned its surface like captured starlight. He channeled a mere wisp of his Martial Dao True Essence into the hilt.
The reaction was instantaneous and explosive. The sword didn’t just accept his energy; it *devoured* it. A low, resonant hum vibrated up his arm, and the entire blade began to thrum with a life of its own. A terrifyingly sharp Sword Qi surged forth, condensing around the edge until the air itself seemed to warp and shimmer. The pressure was immense, a silent promise of annihilation.
“It truly is a treasure sword,” he murmured, his appreciation genuine.
For his current martial strength, the Seven-Foot Sword offered a considerable boost. But that wasn’t the full picture. Shen Anyu was no longer just a martial artist; he was an immortal cultivator. His path had diverged.
Curiosity piqued, he casually infused a sliver of his Qi Refinement Stage magical power into the sword. He expected resistance, or at least a sluggish response. Instead, the sword drank his spiritual energy just as greedily as it had his True Essence. He pulled the power back instantly, but the feedback was obvious. A subtle change crossed his features, his amusement deepening into genuine interest.
*’Interesting.’*
Shen Anyu scrutinized the blade again, his gaze now analytical. He could tell the forging craftsmanship was masterful, the work of a true grandmaster artisan. Yet, there were no visible arrays, no spiritual circuits etched into the metal that would explain this dual compatibility. The secret couldn’t be in the technique.
*’It must be the material… “Forged from strange meteor iron from beyond the heavens.” This meteor iron is far more extraordinary than I thought.’*
A wide smile spread across his face, his valuation of the Seven-Foot Sword skyrocketing. This wasn’t just a powerful martial weapon; it was a potential magical artifact. An unexpected, and very welcome, surprise.
Seeing the genuine pleasure on his handsome face, Ye Liyou felt a wave of happiness wash over her. Her gift had been a success. “It’s good that Senior likes it.”
“It’s Liyou’s dowry,” Shen Anyu said, his voice a low, leisurely drawl as his eyes met hers. “Of course I like it.”
A delicate pink immediately dusted Ye Liyou’s small face, spreading from her cheeks to the tips of her ears. The cold and alluring Blood Shadow Rose, a woman whose name struck fear into the hearts of the global underworld, had blushed more times in Shen Anyu’s presence than she had in her entire life combined. If Ash, Vulture, or any of the other dark world titans could see her now, they would be utterly stupefied. Even her own sect sisters, like the stern Liu Ruyan or the innocent Zhong Lingyin, would surely find the sight impossible to believe.
“Let’s see what’s in the last treasure box,” Shen Anyu prompted, his tone light.
Ye Liyou took a gentle, steadying breath, her own curiosity piqued. Her gaze shifted to the final, unopened jade box. The first two had yielded legendary treasures: the lost legacy of the Sword Palace’s Ancestral Master, the Sky Sword Nine Styles, and the very symbol of the Palace Lord’s authority, the Seven-Foot Sword. The anticipation for what the last box held was a heavy weight.
*’What could possibly be inside?’*
She felt a thrill of eagerness, a desire to uncover the final secret.
Shen Anyu, however, already knew. His Void Breaking Divine Eye had pierced through the jade casing moments ago, revealing the contents within. A meaningful, almost wicked, curve formed at the corner of his mouth.
“Liyou,” he said, his voice smooth as silk. “Why don’t you open it?”
“Mm, alright, Senior.”
Ye Liyou was not one for timid hesitation. With decisive movements, she unlatched the final jade box and lifted the lid.
Resting on a bed of faded red silk was a crimson sphere, roughly the size of a man’s fist. It pulsed with a faint, internal light, its surface smooth and almost fleshy in appearance.
“Eh? What is this?” Ye Liyou murmured, her brow furrowed in confusion.
Driven by curiosity, she reached out and touched it. The sphere’s surface was soft and yielded slightly under her finger, like warm, living tissue. It wasn’t hard like a jewel or a stone.
Shen Anyu watched her, a look of profound interest in his eyes. He let the silence hang for a moment before speaking, his voice slow and deliberate.
“A snake becomes a ‘hui’ after a hundred years. A ‘hui’ becomes a Flood Dragon after five hundred. This red sphere… is the inner gall of a five-hundred-year-old Flood Dragon.”
“A Flood Dragon’s inner gall?” Ye Liyou’s eyes widened, a mixture of shock and curiosity coloring her voice. She withdrew her hand as if burned. “Senior, what is it used for?”
Having absorbed the legacies of two Children of Destiny—the divine doctor Xia Liu and the immortal physician Lu Ran—Shen Anyu’s knowledge of medicinal herbs, exotic materials, and potent poisons was encyclopedic. He knew exactly what this treasure was capable of.
He chuckled, a low, rumbling sound. His gaze turned fervent, locking onto Ye Liyou’s cold and beautiful face. He watched, captivated, as the pink blush from before returned with a vengeance, painting her fair earlobes a deep crimson under his intense stare. Only then did he finally explain.
“Snakes are creatures of immense primal desire,” he began, his voice dropping to an intimate whisper. “And that nature is only magnified a thousandfold when one transforms into a Flood Dragon after five centuries of absorbing worldly essence. This inner gall is the very core of that power, that vitality… and that lust.”
He let the implication sink in, his eyes never leaving hers. “Its properties are far beyond anything mere goji berries or deer antler could ever hope to achieve. After consuming it, a martial artist’s cultivation will skyrocket. But…” He leaned closer, the heat of his body reaching her. “It will also ignite those desires to an uncontrollable degree.”
“Even a Heavenly Human realm powerhouse would likely be dragged down into the mortal coil, unable to master themselves for a time.”
A spark of ancestral cunning lit within him, as if the strategizing Han Tianzun, the fiery Emperor Xiao Yan—countless seniors from tales of old—were lending their spirits, their souls resonating with his.
Shen Anyu gave a slight shake of his head, a wry smile on his lips. He didn’t need such tricks. He and Ye Liyou had already explored the depths of their connection, unlocking every secret together.
His gaze softened, filled with a heat that had nothing to do with power and everything to do with her. “Liyou… let us refine this Flood Dragon’s inner gall. Together.”
Meeting his searing gaze, Ye Liyou felt her heart hammer against her ribs. The air grew thick, heavy. She lowered her head, her raven-black hair cascading forward to hide her burning cheeks, and gave a barely audible hum of affirmation.
She was more than willing.
Her voice was a breathy whisper, a plea and a promise all in one.
“Senior… please be gentle.”
With a single, sweeping motion of his large hand, Shen Anyu brought his palm down over the jade box. The red sphere, the Flood Dragon’s inner gall, instantly shattered. It didn’t explode into gore, but dissolved into a thick, pink mist that billowed out with astonishing speed, immediately enveloping the two of them in a sweet, intoxicating fog.
The scent was overwhelming, a heady mix of ancient earth, wild blossoms, and raw, untamed life force. It clung to their skin, seeped into their pores, and bypassed their lungs to sink directly into their meridians. An explosive wave of heat erupted from within their bodies, a raging furnace of pure, primal energy. For a day and two nights, the world outside ceased to exist.
“The hibiscus tent was warm… details forgotten… ending blurred… in short, it was very comfortable.”
Young Master Shen stretched leisurely, a look of sublime satisfaction on his face. The dual cultivation had been a resounding success. His own power had leaped forward: his Martial Dao cultivation surged from the early stage of the Heavenly Human realm to the middle stage, and his Immortal Dao cultivation broke through its bottleneck, advancing from the seventh layer of the Qi Refining Stage to the eighth layer.
The effects of the Flood Dragon’s inner gall were truly extraordinary, showing its true nature as one of the protagonist Ye Linyuan’s greatest destined Opportunities. It was a genuine Heaven and Earth Treasure, its potency no less than that of a miraculous Spirit Pill forged by an alchemical grandmaster.
Beside him, Ye Liyou let out a soft moan as she stirred, her long lashes fluttering open. Her jade-like countenance was flushed with a rosy glow that made her look even more stunning, and tears of overwhelming sensation still glistened at the corners of her eyes. She shot Shen Anyu a playful glare, a silent accusation against his affectionate excesses, but the deep, soul-deep joy radiating from her was impossible to hide.
“Senior,” she breathed, her voice husky and filled with disbelief. “Liyou… I’ve broken through to Great Grandmaster!”
She was utterly overjoyed. She had originally projected that reaching this milestone would take several more years of arduous training. But now, she had not only shattered the peak Grandmaster barrier, but she had soared directly into the middle stage of the Great Grandmaster realm in a single, explosive leap.
If Shen Anyu hadn’t feared that she couldn’t withstand the violent influx of power, that breaking through too rapidly would destabilize her foundation, he wouldn’t have deliberately absorbed the vast majority of the Flood Dragon gall’s medicinal potency himself. Had he not, Ye Liyou might have shot straight to the peak of the Great Grandmaster realm, or even spontaneously combusted from the sheer energy overload. This was the inner core of a five-hundred-year-old Flood Dragon, after all, containing an ocean of energy that far surpassed that of a Heavenly Human practitioner, though its quality was still a step below that of a true Land Immortal.