Chapter 816: River Destiny's Dragon Immortal

Driving the horse carriage, Chen Changsheng listened to their conversation in silence.

Lihua's ears were sharp, so it naturally heard them as well. It asked Chen Changsheng, "Was it wrong for Sister Yun to do that?"

Chen Changsheng paused, but he didn't say whether it was right or wrong.

He looked at Lihua and said, "This is Yu Hongjin's Cultivation."

Lihua didn't understand. "Cultivation?"

Chen Changsheng nodded. "To understand a certain truth."

Lihua nodded, half-understanding, though it still had no idea what that actually meant.

As it was now, Lihua didn't need that kind of Cultivation.

Even now, many such truths simply went in one of its ears and out the other. Fortunately, it was innocent enough to get away with it.

As they were heading south, a great river blocked their path.

The horse carriage rolled to a halt.

Chen Changsheng looked at the river in mild surprise. "This Chen remembers there being no such great river here."

Yunxiang followed his gaze. "This is the Grand Canal. It connects the north and the south."

Chen Changsheng recovered from his surprise and looked at her.

Yunxiang explained, "Back then, to resolve the divide between the north and south, His Majesty shifted the nation's focus to the north. However, the southern lands weren't abandoned. Once the new merchant policies were enacted, commerce in the south developed rapidly. To solve the issue of transporting goods, the Grand Canal was excavated. This great river spans nine hundred li, linking the north to the south."

Chen Changsheng gazed at the Grand Canal in a slight daze. "When was it built?"

Yunxiang thought for a moment. "Over ten years ago. Mister likely wasn't in the Mortal World at the time."

Chen Changsheng opened his mouth, perhaps failing to process this for a moment.

It was truly astonishing.

To him, it felt as though this great river had appeared completely out of nowhere. The shock of it went far deeper than words could describe.

Chen Changsheng paused. "Then what about this Grand Canal now..."

Yunxiang said, "Now it can only be used for local transport. If someone tried to travel from Yan Land to Jindi, they would be captured before they even reached The Pass."

In other words, the Grand Canal had lost its original purpose.

Yu Hongjin stood on the bank, watching the surging waters. She looked left and right, finding the sight fascinating.

Lihua licked its paws in sheer boredom. Seeing her expression, it asked, "Do you want to go down to the river to play?"

Yu Hongjin repeatedly shook her head. "No, no. The water is too muddy."

It was a great river artificially excavated by human hands, after all, meaning a lot of mud and sand mixed into the current. Not to mention it was the rainy season, making the waters inevitably murky.

"But how do we cross?" Lihua asked.

Looking across, there appeared to have been a bridge over the river once. Pilings were still driven into the banks, but the deck was gone, seemingly dismantled.

They could easily cross themselves, but the horse and horse carriage couldn't.

Yunxiang said, "A travel bulletin from the trading firm once mentioned that there was a bridge here before, but it was washed away by a flood last year. If we want to cross now, we'll have to take a detour."

"How much of a detour?" Yu Hongjin asked.

"Over a hundred li."

"That far!"

Yu Hongjin gaped in shock.

Chen Changsheng stared at the river, sensing something was off.

The river looked ordinary on the surface, but a faint trace of qi destiny flowed alongside its waters. This qi destiny felt incredibly familiar, though Chen Changsheng couldn't immediately place it.

"This river is far from simple," Chen Changsheng muttered.

Yunxiang caught his whisper. She stepped forward and glanced at the great river.

A golden light flashed in Chen Changsheng's eyes. He saw a streak of dragon qi flowing through the great river, and within that dragon qi ran a dense power of incense, streaming quietly along.

Yunxiang seemed to notice something as well. "This is..."

"This river is actually the anchor for a snake demon's qi destiny!"

Chen Changsheng nodded. "More than that, I'm afraid. It's using the river to steal the destiny of the waters. It intends to ride the waters and undergo Dragon Transformation!"

Yunxiang stared blankly, genuinely stunned.

"Not only did it borrow the destiny of the waters," Chen Changsheng said, "it even borrowed the power of incense from the Mortal World to achieve twice the result with half the effort. With the accumulated destiny of the waters and the qi destiny of incense, its Dragon Transformation is not far away."

"And..."

Chen Changsheng paused. "Seeing how turbulent the qi destiny is within the river, the time seems to be upon it. It will likely happen within the next few days."

This suddenly sparked Chen Changsheng's memory.

"It's her..."

It could only be her.

Back in Shangjing City, Chen Changsheng had met the so-called Dragon Immortal, Long Rong. No wonder the qi destiny of incense was mixed in. It had to be her.

"Does Mister know who it is?" Yunxiang asked.

"I met this demon in Shangjing previously. At the time, she was still lacking a stroke of providence. I didn't expect her to find the opportunity for Dragon Transformation in the blink of an eye."

It went to show that the path Long Rong walked was a sound one. The path of incense and her position as a celestial official had made up for her many shortcomings. Her path had been smooth and unimpeded, bringing the chance for Dragon Transformation right to her doorstep.

Yunxiang pondered this. "Speaking of which, across my past life and my present one, I have never seen a flood dragon riding the waters to transform. Does Mister have any interest in watching?"

"This Chen doesn't mind either way," Chen Changsheng replied.

Yunxiang nodded. Truth be told, she was very curious about such an event—it was Yunxiang who was curious, not Zhu Qi.

Therefore, she wanted to stay here and see it for herself.

Mister had said it would only take a day or two anyway. It was barely the blink of an eye.

"What do you mean, riding the waters?" Yu Hongjin leaned closer.

Chen Changsheng said, "Dragon Transformation requires enduring a Heavenly Tribulation. They must marshal the momentum of the waters and ride them straight into the Desolate Sea. In truth, this process relies on the qi destiny of the mortal dynasties to propel the Dragon Transformation. The more prosperous the Mortal World's qi destiny, the smoother the journey through the waters. Given the current fractured state of the world, this isn't a good time."

"Can it be delayed?" Yunxiang asked.

"From what this Chen can see of this qi destiny," Chen Changsheng said, "she must have already delayed it for quite some time. It can't be held back much longer. It's like a dam on the verge of collapsing."

Yu Hongjin didn't understand that either. She blinked, her eyes brimming with curiosity.

Chen Changsheng explained, "Mo Yuan once endured five Heavenly Tribulations, riding the Tongtian River into the Desolate Sea to complete his Dragon Transformation!"

Yu Hongjin's eyes lit up. "So that's how it works."

Although she still didn't entirely understand Dragon Transformation, the mention of Mo Yuan gave her a sense of familiarity.

Yu Hongjin paused. "Is it difficult to do?"

Chen Changsheng said, "The Heavenly Tribulation is arduous, and riding the waters is no easier. Mo Yuan barely survived it by the skin of his teeth."

"I think I heard about that."

Yu Hongjin blinked. "Mo Yuan said he almost died back then. If not for Mister's Dragon Scripture, he reckons he'd be nothing more than a wisp of a soul by now."

Chen Changsheng laughed. "That might be what he says, but he had his own providence as well. Even if this Chen hadn't intervened, it doesn't mean he would have failed to pass that trial."

Yu Hongjin blinked, struggling to grasp the nuances.