Zulong said with a hint of anger, "Fellow Daoist, you have gone too far. My Dragon Clan does not go looking for trouble, but neither are we afraid of it. I know that you possess boundless divine powers; with your Early Daluo cultivation, you managed to defeat my son Yinglong, who is at the Mid-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal cultivation. You certainly have some skills. My Dragon Clan is a renowned power in the Primordial World, and I, Zulong, am a renowned powerhouse of the Primordial World. When I addressed you respectfully as 'Fellow Daoist,' it was out of courtesy, but do not fail to appreciate what is good for you. Either hand over the Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure, or we will beat you up and take the Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure and that Heavenly Dao killing treasure, the Heaven-Burial Coffin lid, from you ourselves."
Yuanqing laughed heartily and said, "Hahaha, let's see if your Dragon Clan has the ability to take it from my hands."
Zulong said angrily, "So it seems we must fight after all."
Yuanqing said, "Then let us fight. I do not fear you."
With that, Zulong summoned the Zulong Bead and hurled it straight at Yuanqing.
As the patriarch of the Dragon Clan, Zulong possessed some extremely powerful treasures.
The Zulong Bead was one of Zulong's most famous treasures.
Containing immense power, it possessed miraculous abilities such as splitting the firmament, summoning clouds and thunder, calling the wind and summoning rain, and shrouding mountains and sun.
Yuanqing thought, "Could this be the Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure, the Zulong Bead? According to legends from my past life, the Zulong Bead might have been nurtured in Chaos, closely linked to Zulong's destiny, and even later reincarnated as Ying Zheng, the First Emperor of Qin. I wonder if that is true."
Following that, Yuanqing also summoned the Rivers and Mountains Land Map, expending nearly half of his own strength to block Zulong's attack.
*Sigh*, it seems there is still a huge gap between Early Daluo and Peak Daluo.
Even though Zulong had only just broken through to the Peak Daluo Golden Immortal, there was still a massive gap between him and someone like me at Early Daluo.
[System alert: Ding-dong~~ Detected that the host has reached the critical point of breaking through to the Mid-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal due to the pressure exerted by Dragon Clan patriarch Zulong. Would you like to break through now?]
System, my good system, if I break through right now, won't I get crushed by Zulong...?
System: "Don't worry, host. Break through right in the middle of battle; it's a better way to temper yourself. With this system here to guard your back, there's no need to rush."
After that, they fought dozens of rounds with Zulong.
Zulong thought with a mixture of shock and suspicion, "This kid is actually attempting a breakthrough right now—what a true prodigy. If he joins my Dragon Clan, my clan is bound to flourish greatly."
"Besides, he actually owns a Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure that looks like a scroll. It must be an extremely powerful Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure indeed."
"As for him holding onto a Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure, I won't hold it against him."
Suddenly, a flash of golden light illuminated the area.
Yuanqing laughed loudly, "Hahaha! I've finally broken through to the Mid-stage Da Luo Golden Immortal!"
Zulong said, "Fellow Daoist, what extraordinary boldness! To break through right in the middle of our fight—would you be interested in joining my Dragon Clan?"
Yuanqing never expected Zulong to be such an oddball. Just a moment ago they were fighting to the death, and now he was inviting him to join the Dragon Clan. Yuanqing then replied, "Fellow Daoist Zulong, I've grown used to wandering alone and living freely. Let's talk about this another time."
[Ding-dong~~ Detected that the host is facing a choice:
Option 1: Join the Dragon Clan. Reward: Top-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure, Northern Xuanyuan Water-Control Flag.
Option 2: Do not join the Dragon Clan. Reward: Top-Grade Acquired God-Beating Whip.]
System, I choose Option 2, the reward of the Top-Grade Acquired Spirit Treasure, the God-Beating Whip.
Zulong said, "I, Zulong, am the leader of one of the most prominent clans and factions in the Primordial World. We have power, wealth, beauties—everything you could ever want."
Yuanqing said, "Thank you for the repeated invitations, Fellow Daoist Zulong, but I will not be joining the Dragon Clan. Rest assured, however, that I won't be joining any other factions either."
Zulong said angrily, "Since Fellow Daoist is unwilling to join, we have no choice but to settle this with a fight."
Suddenly, a dragon who looked very much like Zulong rushed over and reported, "Brother, the Phoenix Clan is coming to attack us!"
Zulong exclaimed, "What? The Phoenix Clan is attacking at a time like this? They really know how to pick their moments. Yuanqing, fine, I'll remember you. Don't let me lay eyes on you again next time. Zhulong, take Yinglong and let's go!" With a final, ferocious glare back at Yuanqing...
Yuanqing thought to himself that the Phoenix Clan was certainly pulling their weight, and let out a sigh of relief.
This epic battle between Yinglong, Zulong, and me will probably spread across the entire Primordial World. *Sigh*, I really don't want to be famous.
Afterwards, Yuanqing found a secluded spot to consolidate his cultivation and recover from his injuries.
Finally, he took out the God-Beating Whip from the system space.
Upon inspecting the God-Beating Whip, Yuanqing saw that it was shaped like a wooden whip, three feet, six inches, and five fen long, with twenty-one sections. Each section bore four talisman seals, making a total of eighty-four seals.
Word had it that it was forged by Yuanshi Tianzun and handed over to Jiang Ziya to oversee the enshrinement of the gods.
Back then, Yuanshi Tianzun was a Sage, and Sages were the absolute pinnacle of existence in the Primordial World. Even those two debt-ridden Sages, Jieyin and Zhunti, were among the most powerful beings.
As the saying goes, "Beneath the Sages, all are mere ants." That statement was no empty boast.
Yuanqing sighed inwardly. With this God-Beating Whip in his possession, his scope for maneuver in the upcoming Investiture of the Gods war would be immense.
The God-Beating Whip was meant for striking the Eight Division orthodox deities—meaning it could only be used against individuals whose names were on the Investiture List. Jiang Ziya had repeatedly used the God-Beating Whip to attack enemy immortals.
As for its other powers, besides striking deities, the God-Beating Whip also possessed a certain level of deterrence and offensive capability, capable of dispelling evil Qi and warding off malevolent forces. In some battles, Jiang Ziya also used the God-Beating Whip as a weapon to attack enemies, though its power in those instances was relatively less pronounced than when it was specifically used against deities.
It had injured or crippled countless enemy soldiers and fighters.
Yuanqing thought to himself that while the God-Beating Whip was not a universal panacea—it could not strike immortals, ordinary mortals, or those whose names were absent from the Investiture List—and under certain special circumstances, if the opponent possessed unique defensive methods or magical treasures, the whip might fail to unleash its full power or even be snatched away. However, by the time the tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods arrived, his own cultivation would be at least that of a Sage, making it impossible for anyone to take it from him.