Chapter 8: The Mystery of the Ancestral Temple Baptism!

Chapter 8: The Mystery of the Ancestral Temple Baptism!

Linley asked himself about his own strength.

Looking at Baruch, Linley pondered for a moment before saying, "A mid-level god."

Baruch’s face showed a hint of surprise, then he praised, "Linley, a mid-level god like you effortlessly defeated that Asru. It’s simply unbelievable. How did you do it?"

Linley didn’t know how to answer for a moment.

There were many reasons why he, as a mid-level god, could be so strong.

"Oh." Baruch seemed to realize he shouldn’t have asked that question. He then smiled and said, "Let’s not talk about that. Since you’re already this powerful as a mid-level god, once you reach the high-level god level, you’ll definitely become a true powerhouse of our Azure Dragon clan. With that in mind, I’ll tell you some things in advance."

Linley listened attentively.

"These matters are generally not revealed to weaker members of our Azure Dragon clan," Baruch said with a sigh.

Linley couldn’t help but feel puzzled. "Weaker members? But the clan leader himself is only a mid-level god. How does he know?" In Linley’s view, Clan Leader Baruch was indeed considered weak among the Four Divine Beasts clan.

Baruch continued, "Linley, do you know about the past glory of our Four Divine Beasts clan?"

"Yes," Linley nodded. "I’ve read books introducing the Four Divine Beasts clan. In the past, the clan’s influence spanned the four supreme planes and several divine planes. But about ten thousand years ago, it seems our clan withdrew all its forces from other planes back to the Infernal Realm."

"That’s right."

Baruch sighed, "Our Four Divine Beasts clan’s influence indeed covered the four supreme planes. But do you know why our clan was so powerful?"

Linley shook his head.

This was something Linley was also puzzled about—why were they so strong?

"I’ll tell you. The reason our Four Divine Beasts clan was so powerful in the past is because..." Baruch’s eyes lit up, his breathing grew heavy, and his face flushed with excitement. "Our Four Divine Beasts clan’s ancestors were four Sovereigns!!!"

"What?" Linley felt his mind go blank.

"Clan Leader, did you just say Sovereigns? Did I hear that correctly?" Linley quickly asked.

Sovereigns were lofty beings who looked down upon all creation. Even the most fearsome Infernal Realm Asuras or Abyssal Overlords were mere ants before a Sovereign. A Sovereign could kill an Asura with just a thought.

His clan’s ancestors were Sovereigns?

The ancestors of the Four Divine Beasts clan were four Sovereigns?

"Yes, you heard correctly!" Baruch said solemnly. "The ancestors of our Four Divine Beasts clan were four Sovereigns. It was precisely because of the existence of these four Sovereigns—especially since they were very united—that they nurtured the clan’s descendants. Our Four Divine Beasts clan was already strong, and with the support of four ancestors, we dominated all planes, unmatched by anyone!"

Linley felt his mind in complete chaos.

Sovereigns? Four Sovereigns?

He knew that for the seven elements—earth, fire, water, wind, lightning, light, and darkness—each had only seven Sovereigns! Sovereigns were scattered across the divine planes and the four supreme planes. They were so proud that it was very difficult for them to unite without conflict.

If four Sovereigns were united, it was no wonder the Four Divine Beasts clan was so powerful!

Even other Sovereigns probably wouldn’t want to offend these four lightly.

"The ancestor of our Azure Dragon clan is the Water Sovereign. The ancestor of the White Tiger clan is the Wind Sovereign. The ancestor of the Vermilion Bird clan is the Fire Sovereign. And the ancestor of the Black Tortoise clan is the Earth Sovereign!" Baruch said seriously.

Linley’s mind was in turmoil.

Lofty Sovereigns! The Four Divine Beasts clan had four Sovereigns backing them!

It was impossible for the Four Divine Beasts clan not to be formidable.

"If things had continued like that, our Four Divine Beasts clan would have remained invincible across all planes! But everything changed about eleven thousand years ago, when an accident occurred!" Baruch said.

Linley knew that the Four Divine Beasts clan had encountered some accident about ten thousand years ago. What exactly happened that caused the clan to decline?

For a clan backed by four Sovereigns to decline, there was likely only one possibility—the clan’s pillars had fallen. Thinking of this possibility, Linley couldn’t believe it. "Four Sovereigns—who could defeat them? Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

Despite his thoughts, Linley still looked at Baruch, waiting for his answer!

"The four ancestors are all dead!" Baruch said in a deep voice.

Linley held his breath.

So that was it!

"Four Sovereigns, all dead? How is that possible?" Linley quickly asked. To kill a Sovereign, one would at least need to be at the Sovereign level. But the four ancestors of the Four Divine Beasts were four in number!

Four Sovereigns—who could kill them?

"They are indeed dead," Baruch said helplessly. "Although we don’t know the cause of their death, their deaths are certain! And because the four ancestors died, our Four Divine Beasts clan faced a crisis!"

"A crisis?" Linley frowned.

"Yes," Baruch said, his brows furrowed with worry. "The four ancestors had excellent relationships. Over the countless years of their existence, the Four Divine Beasts clan was extremely arrogant and proud."

Linley nodded inwardly. With four Sovereign ancestors, it was no wonder the Four Divine Beasts clan was arrogant!

"Where there are people, there are conflicts. Because of their arrogance and overwhelming strength, when the Four Divine Beasts clan fought with other families, they naturally acted domineeringly," Baruch said.

Linley understood.

In the past, the Four Divine Beasts clan was definitely domineering.

"Over countless years, killings and conflicts happened frequently. The Four Divine Beasts clan also made some enemies. But they didn’t care because they were strong and unafraid!"

Baruch shook his head. "But then the four ancestors died!"

Baruch looked at Linley. "Those who dared to fight the Four Divine Beasts clan, even if they weren’t as strong, weren’t far behind."

Linley nodded in agreement.

"Those families were very powerful in their respective planes, but compared to the Four Divine Beasts clan, they were still far behind, especially since the clan had four Sovereigns backing them. But when the four Sovereigns died..."

Baruch sighed and shook his head.

Linley began to understand.

"Those families had been bullied too much by the Four Divine Beasts clan in the past," Baruch said, shaking his head. "Once the four Sovereigns died, these families had no more concerns (gu lü) and launched a frenzied attack on the Four Divine Beasts clan!"

Linley gasped. He could fully imagine that scene.

"So, the Four Divine Beasts clan immediately withdrew all its forces. Descendants from all planes gathered in the Infernal Realm!" Baruch said solemnly. "Ten thousand years ago, during the retreat alone, the number of high-level gods who died was staggering. Even six-star demons and seven-star demons perished in large numbers."

Linley’s heart trembled.

"The Four Divine Beasts clan was very strong, extremely strong," Baruch said. "When the four ancestors were alive, they naturally nurtured the younger generations, leading to a large number of experts within the clan. There were powerhouses at the seven-star demon level, and even Asura-level experts."

Linley understood. With the four Sovereigns nurturing them for countless years, combined with the clan’s innate talents, their strength was natural.

If they weren’t strong, how could they dominate all planes?

To dominate all planes, the ancestors’ power was one factor, but the strength of the clan’s many descendants was another.

"They were strong, but they couldn’t withstand the numbers and strength of their enemies," Baruch sighed. "The worst part was that among the families with the deepest grudges against the Four Divine Beasts clan, eight major families even pursued them to the Infernal Realm!"

"Pursued them to the Infernal Realm?" Linley was stunned.

"Yes. Those families relocated their entire clans to the Infernal Realm to hunt down the Four Divine Beasts clan," Baruch said.

Linley was completely dumbfounded.

"Among them were the ‘Barbary Clan’ from the Water Divine Plane, the ‘Deen Clan’ from the Earth Divine Plane, the ‘Eddrick Clan’ from the Life Supreme Plane, the ‘Wenna Clan’ from the Wind Divine Plane, the ‘Ashcroft Clan’ from the Netherworld, the ‘Sainar Clan’ from the Fire Divine Plane, and the ‘Bolin Clan’ from the Celestial Realm!" Baruch said solemnly.

Linley was utterly shocked.

Teleportation between higher planes was extremely costly. Relocating an entire clan consumed an astronomical amount of wealth. That these families could do so showed their riches.

Moreover...

For them to relocate from other planes directly to the Infernal Realm showed just how deep the hatred was!

"These are seven families. Besides them, there was one family in the Infernal Realm itself that had a great enmity with our Four Divine Beasts clan—the ‘Relnas Clan,’" Baruch said.

Linley sighed inwardly.

Even the local realm had a major enemy.

"Any one of these eight families is no weaker than our Azure Dragon clan," Baruch said seriously.

Linley’s heart grew bitter.

Any one of them was no weaker than the Azure Dragon clan? Linley knew that the Four Divine Beasts clan was led by the Azure Dragon clan. If the four clans were roughly equal in strength, even united, they couldn’t match the eight families!

"With the eight families allied, can’t we resist?" Linley asked in confusion.

Any one of them was no weaker than the Azure Dragon clan. How could the Four Divine Beasts clan resist the eight families united?

"We can’t resist," Baruch said. "But we have the help of the Prefect of the Azure Prefecture."

"The Prefect of the Azure Prefecture?" Linley was surprised. A prefect was an Asura!

"The Prefect of the Azure Prefecture has four special envoys under him, each very powerful. He also commands a large army of prefecture soldiers," Baruch said. "The Prefect has decreed that the eight families are not allowed to attack the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range. If battles occur outside the mountain range, he won’t interfere."

Linley understood. If the other side agreed, the Four Divine Beasts clan at least wouldn’t be wiped out.

They just had to stay within the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range.

But the clan couldn’t stay in the mountains forever. Once they left, they might be attacked.

"And the eight families listen to the Prefect of the Azure Prefecture?" Linley asked in confusion.

Among these eight families, seven came from other planes, each very strong. Would they heed a prefect? Of course, the prefect had a large army behind him.

"The eight families listened," Baruch said with a smile. "Over the years, they’ve never attacked the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range."

Linley marveled inwardly at the influence of the Azure Prefecture’s Prefect.

"This Prefect of the Azure Prefecture is willing to help our Four Divine Beasts clan," Linley sighed.

"I don’t know the reason either. There might be deeper secrets," Baruch said. "Perhaps that’s why our Four Divine Beasts clan originally withdrew to the Azure Prefecture."

Linley nodded.

"But our clan can’t be trapped in these mountains forever," Baruch sighed. "So battles still happen frequently. And once a fight starts, it’s either life or death."

Linley clearly remembered the scene of the Bolin Clan’s massacre when he first arrived at the Azure Prefecture. Now he knew that the Bolin Clan was one of the eight families, originally from the Celestial Realm.

"Linley, you’re strong. Once you reach the high-level god level, you’ll definitely become a formidable warrior for our clan. So I’m warning you in advance—you need to train hard now," Baruch said.

"Understood," Linley nodded.

"I just worry that you might fall in those brutal battles... Haha, I’m overthinking," Baruch said, shaking his head with a smile. "You’re already this powerful without undergoing the Ancestral Temple Baptism. Once you do, you’ll be even stronger."

"Ancestral Temple Baptism?"

Linley was very curious about this. "Clan Leader, what exactly is the Ancestral Temple Baptism? What does it do?"

Baruch smiled and said, "The Ancestral Temple Baptism is meant to truly awaken the innate talents of our Azure Dragon clan. As members of the Azure Dragon clan, we should at least be able to perform the Azure Dragon Transformation. As a divine beast clan, we should at least master the ‘Innate Divine Ability,’ right?"

"Azure Dragon Transformation? Innate Divine Ability?" Linley was a bit dazed.

The Four Divine Beasts clan were all divine beasts, so naturally, they should have an ‘Innate Divine Ability.’

"However, although we call ourselves the Azure Dragon clan, only the ancestor can be considered a true ‘Azure Dragon.’ We descendants have impure bloodlines, so the Azure Dragon Transformation varies, and the Innate Divine Ability also differs in strength," Baruch said.

"Varies in strength?" Linley frowned.

"Yes. The more of the ancestor’s bloodline one carries, the purer it is, the stronger the Azure Dragon Transformation, and the more powerful the Innate Divine Ability," Baruch said. "Unfortunately, as generations pass, most descendants have very diluted bloodlines."