Chapter Ninety-Six: Azure Wolf Cave

“Uncle Gray Wolf!”

Hearing that voice, Qingqing could not help but laugh with delight. She immediately took hold of Dragon Cloud’s arm and said, “Brother, Uncle Gray Wolf wants to see you. Come with me!”

Dragon Cloud frowned, unable to understand why the Gray Wolf King would want to see him. Could it be that he had taken an interest in the dragon blood flowing through his veins? But if he intended to seize that bloodline, then with only a slight display of supernatural power, Dragon Cloud would surely be powerless to resist. Why summon him here at all?

Puzzlement stirred in his heart, but since the Gray Wolf King had already spoken, Dragon Cloud could hardly disobey him. At once, he followed Qingqing out of the thatched hut.

Outside, the bear-demons and tiger-demons had already been talking among themselves, wondering why Dragon Cloud had gone in for so long while the hut remained utterly silent. Had the little princess not always enjoyed teasing them?

Yet the moment Qingqing emerged from the hut with Dragon Cloud’s arm linked in hers, every pair of eyes widened in stunned disbelief.

At that moment, Qingqing was like a little bird in flight, nestled against Dragon Cloud’s side, laughing brightly without pause. The beastfolk below stared in complete dumbfounded silence.

Damn it all! Since when had that little devil changed her nature?

Qingqing caught the confused looks they threw her way, glared fiercely at them, and even shook her adorable little fist as though issuing a warning.

The beastfolk all lowered their heads at once. This little fiend was the bane of their lives. Once she took a dislike to someone, there would likely never again be a peaceful day. No one dared lift their head to look at her.

Dragon Cloud inwardly chuckled and said to Qingqing, “They seem quite afraid of you.”

Qingqing’s delicate face flushed slightly, and she said, “Not really. Maybe they’re only a little afraid because of Uncle Gray Wolf. It has nothing to do with me!”

That explanation had more than a hint of guilty protest, and Dragon Cloud naturally understood that these beastfolk had suffered plenty at her hands in ordinary times. Still, he did not expose her.

The Gray Wolf Grotto was only a little over an hour’s walk from the hut. The two of them simply traveled on foot, moving at a leisurely pace, which gave them time to admire the distinctive scenery along the way.

Qingqing seemed in no hurry to fly by wind either. She led Dragon Cloud through groves fragrant with birdsong and blossoms until they reached a smooth stone cliff.

The cliff rose a hundred zhang high, like a mountain peak split cleanly in two, leaving only half of its mass behind. As for where the other half had gone, no one knew.

Qingqing stopped and pointed toward a huge cave opening in the middle of the cliff. “That’s the Gray Wolf Grotto. Uncle Gray Wolf lives there, and he never comes out in ordinary times.”

Dragon Cloud nodded. “Qingqing, I can’t use my true energy. Take me up there.”

Qingqing nodded and pointed her slender hand beneath Dragon Cloud’s feet. A bewitchingly red lotus of fire appeared at once under both their feet, carrying them toward the Gray Wolf Grotto.

“Uncle Gray Wolf, we’re here!” As soon as they entered the grotto, Qingqing called out loudly.

The stone cavern was more than ten zhang across, and the surrounding walls were exceedingly smooth. There were no signs of axe or chisel, yet it was clearly not the work of nature.

“Qingqing, bring the honored guest in!” The old voice came again, and Dragon Cloud’s doubts only deepened. He could not fathom what the Gray Wolf King was playing at, or why he would call him an honored guest.

Qingqing smiled at Dragon Cloud. “Uncle Gray Wolf hates humans very much. I heard that no human has ever managed to enter the Gray Wolf Grotto. I was the first, hehe. Brother, you can count as the second!”

Ever since leaving the hut, Qingqing had kept calling him brother, which somehow made the two of them feel closer. Dragon Cloud could also sense that she meant it sincerely, so he did not object.

Thus, when he heard her words, Dragon Cloud only smiled and said, “Then I’m truly honored. Lead the way, Qingqing. I’d like to meet the senior myself.”

Dragon Cloud had his own thoughts as well. Since the Gray Wolf King had asked to see him, he might not necessarily intend to kill him. After all, the Gray Wolf King was a figure even Dragon God Island praised highly.

With his experience, he would surely be able to see through the condition within Dragon Cloud’s body. If Dragon Cloud could obtain his guidance, he might quickly return from this dire and awkward state.

The Gray Wolf Grotto was complex in layout, with many branching paths leading in unknown directions. But with Qingqing guiding him, Dragon Cloud did not get lost. After the time it took to drink two cups of tea, they stopped before a stone chamber.

“This is where Uncle Gray Wolf lives, Brother. Once we go in, don’t speak carelessly. Uncle Gray Wolf is very fierce when he’s angry,” Qingqing whispered.

“Haha!”

A hearty laugh rang out, and Qingqing could only smile wryly and stick out her little tongue, evidently somewhat afraid of the Gray Wolf King.

“You little girl, do you have to slander your Uncle Gray Wolf so in front of outsiders?” came the Gray Wolf King’s voice. Then the stone door opened softly.

A gentle radiance spilled out from within, and Dragon Cloud felt his spirits lift as Qingqing tightened her grip on his arm and drew him inside.

“Uncle Gray Wolf, I’ve brought Brother. You’re not allowed to hurt him!” Qingqing said the moment she entered.

Dragon Cloud glanced around the chamber. It was not large, containing only a stone bed and a stone table, nothing else. Beside the bed stood two prayer mats, and on one of them sat an old man with white eyebrows.

The old man had kind eyes and a benevolent expression. If one had not already known his identity, no one would have believed that the notoriously bloodthirsty Gray Wolf King of the outside world could look like this.

Slowly, the old man opened his eyes. His gaze settled on Dragon Cloud immediately, sharp as a torch, as though he meant to see through every secret in him.

Under that stare, Dragon Cloud suddenly felt as if all his hidden truths had been laid bare before the man. In those eyes, he seemed stripped naked, utterly transparent.

Dragon Cloud gave a helpless smile and bowed respectfully. “This junior, Dragon Cloud, greets Senior Gray Wolf King.”

“So Brother is called Dragon Cloud. What a lovely name,” Qingqing muttered under her breath, causing Dragon Cloud to smile despite himself.

The Gray Wolf King slowly rose to his feet and looked at Dragon Cloud. “So it really is as I thought. So it really is! No wonder Qingqing acted that way. So that is the reason, ha ha!”

His words left Dragon Cloud somewhat bewildered. He asked, “What does senior mean by that?”

The Gray Wolf King smiled faintly. “There is no need to ask further. Dragon Cloud, it seems fate has guided you into this Gray Wolf Gorge, and perhaps he arranged it all in secret. Since that is so, I shall give you a chance of fortune.”

With that, his lips moved, and a string of obscure incantations flowed from his mouth into Dragon Cloud’s sea of consciousness like a wedge driven deep.

After careful discernment, Dragon Cloud realized that what the Gray Wolf King had transmitted to him was actually a cultivation manual called the Nine Heavens Demon Art. It was a beast-cultivation method, yet after a brief perusal, Dragon Cloud could not help but show a flash of shock in his eyes.

Beast-cultivators mainly tempered the body, refining it to the utmost. Since Dragon Cloud had fused with dragon bones and had further strengthened his flesh through the force of the Dragon Gate Pine, his own condition happened to align remarkably well with the methods of beast cultivation.

Thus, this Nine Heavens Demon Art would be of tremendous help to him. He looked toward the Gray Wolf King with gratitude.

“Uncle Gray Wolf is playing favorites. I begged you for so long, and you still refused to pass this technique on to me. Yet now that Brother has arrived, you hand it over right away. How biased of you!” Qingqing puffed up her little mouth and complained.

The Gray Wolf King could not help but laugh aloud. When he looked at Qingqing, his gaze was full of affection. “The Nine Revolutions Heavenly Fire in your body is not suited to this cultivation method. You have your own path to follow, and it would not be convenient for me to interfere.”

Qingqing only giggled and hopped over to his side, reaching behind him to tug at his white beard. In all the Dragon Realm, perhaps only this little devil would dare treat the Gray Wolf King in such a manner.

The Gray Wolf King laughed for a while longer, then turned his gaze back to Dragon Cloud, his expression growing somewhat grave.

“There seems to be something not quite right within your body. What exactly has happened?” he asked with a slight frown.

Dragon Cloud then gave a bitter smile and recounted everything about the Azure Sect, how he had taken the Heaven-Robbing Pill, and how his nine apertures had dissipated, one by one. Upon hearing this, even the Gray Wolf King’s normally placid face flickered with disbelief.