!!!
That's not right! Something's off.
Since time immemorial, family comes first—and an uncle's protection is the strongest there is.
Under normal circumstances, as your maternal uncle, Yang Hong's overprotective stance made perfect sense. With both your parents gone, he was your only living blood relative left in the world.
But he seemed dead set on keeping you in the dark about what happened all those years ago—refusing to divulge even the tiniest detail about your parents.
Now that you were finally safe, why wouldn't he tell you the truth?
Could it be that there was more to the story than met the eye?!
What's more, he kept repeating the same line over and over: Just live. Living is the most important thing.
This string of oddities left your heart filled with questions. You were about to press him further, but Uncle Dog suddenly clamped down on the leg of your pants with his jaws and started dragging you toward the door.
「Alright, Young Master, Master's tired and needs his rest. Let's head out first. Don't bother him anymore. I'll show you to a place to rest.」
With the big yellow dog yanking at your pants, you had no choice but to follow him out, but you couldn't resist glancing back at your uncle Yang Hong every step of the way.
Thanks to Uncle Dog's little interruption, you finally noticed that your uncle's face looked unnaturally pale, lacking any trace of blood. His eyes were bloodshot, and there was a deep weariness etched into them...
Cough! Cough! Cough!
Yang Hong suddenly broke into a fit of coughing. Out of the corner of your eye, you caught a glimpse of a faint streak of blood staining the white handkerchief in his hand!
Hiss!
What on earth could have worn down the once-great Qianyuan God of War to such a state—leaving him haggard and even injured?!
After all, to earn the title of the strongest man in the Qianyuan Empire, Yang Hong's cultivation must have reached the Nine-Turn Heavenly Being Realm!
He was the undisputed strongest under the Land True Immortal Realm.
Your mind swirled with countless questions as Uncle Dog dragged you out the front gates of the City Lord's Mansion.
「Uncle Dog—was my uncle injured? I saw him coughing up blood. I happen to know a thing or two about talisman water healing techniques.」 You probed tentatively, hoping to get some answers out of the dog.
You could tell that your Uncle Dog was no ordinary creature—he was probably the second most powerful being in this hidden city, second only to Yang Hong himself.
「Huh? Master's injured? Did he?」 The yellow dog tilted his head to the side, looking utterly confused.
You froze for a split second, then whipped your head around to take another look—but what you saw made your blood run cold. Your uncle was still sitting on his throne, motionless, his face now flushed and looking perfectly normal, as if the paleness and bloodstained handkerchief from moments ago had all been nothing more than your imagination.
An inexplicable sense of dread washed over you. Something was definitely not right here.
But by then, you'd already been dragged outside.
No matter how hard you tried to pry information out of the dog for the rest of the day, you got nothing. Every time you brought up the topic, he'd play dumb and change the subject.
What a crafty old yellow dog! You should've known—dogs with this shade of dirty yellow fur always had the most tricks up their sleeves.
You realized that Uncle Dog probably knew the truth too, but he was in on the cover-up, refusing to tell you anything.
The yellow dog led you on a stroll around the city to familiarize you with your surroundings. Everywhere you went, you were met with stares of reverence—everyone greeted you with the utmost respect.
You tried talking to some of the townsfolk, but none of them would answer your questions. They'd just smile and shake their heads.
The only thing you managed to learn was that this place was called the Hidden Dragon Domain.
Everything that had happened so far left a knot tightening in your chest, a vague sense of foreboding lingering in your mind.
But now that you were here, you had no choice but to take things one step at a time.
You were given a spacious courtyard right next to the City Lord's Mansion, practically attached to Yang Hong's quarters. Having the Qianyuan God of War as your next-door neighbor instantly filled you with an overwhelming sense of security...
Seeing that you couldn't get any answers out of anyone, you decided to stop dwelling on the past and focus on your cultivation instead.
Since your uncle had said you could ask Uncle Dog for anything you needed, you weren't about to be polite.
You asked the yellow dog straight out for talisman manuals of Rank Five and above, along with new cultivation techniques, martial arts skills, and dao arts...
You'd been stuck at the Fifth-Rank Talisman Master threshold for ages, lacking access to higher-tier talismans. Your main cultivation technique, the Primordial Dragon Elephant Scripture, was also starting to feel lacking when facing off against such powerful enemies...
「Talisman techniques? Master did kill a few talisman masters back in the day. He's got quite a collection of their inheritances. As for cultivation techniques—he's got plenty of those too, looted from the people he defeated in battle...」
The yellow dog bobbed his head up and down, then led you straight to a hidden treasure vault in the heart of the city, telling you to take whatever you wanted.
「Young Master, these are all Master's personal treasures amassed over the years. Help yourself to anything that catches your eye.」
Gulp!
You swallowed hard, staring wide-eyed at the mountain of cultivation manuals and secret scriptures spread out before you, completely dumbfounded.
You'd always known your uncle was no ordinary man—but you'd never imagined he was this wealthy!
Eighth-Rank Talisman Illustrated Manual Blood Fiend Array Dao Analysis Azure Wood Longevity Art Undying Mystic Technique Netherworld Demon Canon....
Virtually every single technique here was a direct path to the Heavenly Being Realm, far more powerful than your current Primordial Dragon Elephant Scripture. One could only imagine how strong their previous owners must have been in life...
Yet in the end, they'd all fallen at your uncle's hands, their precious techniques now nothing more than trophies in his collection...
In the end, you picked out the Eighth-Rank Talisman Illustrated Manual, the life-force enhancing Azure Wood Longevity Art, a defensive Heavenly Being Treasure called the Netherworld Shield, and a mountain of cultivation resources....
The Azure Wood Longevity Art would grant you extra lifespan every time you broke through a major realm—perfect for offsetting the massive lifespan cost of the Nine Steps to Treading the Heavens...
You returned to your courtyard and immediately dove into cultivation. You discovered that taking cultivation pills significantly boosted your training speed, allowing you to pay off your Heaven-Earth Loan ahead of schedule....
You decided not to practice the Azure Wood Longevity Art just yet until you'd fully repaid the loan, focusing instead on mastering the talisman path first.
.....
In the blink of an eye, half a year passed.
Unlike your previous simulations, where you'd had to tread carefully and plan every step, life in Hidden Dragon City allowed you to cultivate without a care in the world, with unlimited access to resources and techniques at your disposal.
During this time, you tried several times to explore the surrounding areas, but that crafty yellow dog always managed to show up out of nowhere, shadowing your every move like a ghost—watching you like a hawk.
With him breathing down your neck, you eventually gave up on trying to snoop around...
Over the past six months, your cultivation realm hadn't advanced an inch, but your two-year Heaven-Earth Loan had been whittled down to just one year—cutting your repayment time in half.
At the same time, you'd mastered numerous Fifth-Rank talismans, filling the gap left by your reliance on just the Fire Dragon Talisman, and even began attempting to draw Sixth-Rank talismans...
You successfully crafted a Sixth-Rank Thunder Summoning Talisman.
You officially became a Sixth-Rank Talisman Master.