Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Lysander's gaze trembled.

If Pyrothos heavily injured Veridia, and she came back soon afterward relatively healed, then he might very well take it as another insult.

Setting aside whether he even could heal his wife, should he?

Ryu had obviously come to understand this, which was why he asked first. Standing there, looking at Lysander, it didn't seem like there was a gap between their stations at all. It even felt like he wasn't the son-in-law in this situation at all, but rather the father-in-law.

"I..."

"Husband, please heal my mother..." Selheira said between sobs.

Ryu didn't respond, his gaze still on Lysander. Selheira had no idea whether he could heal her mother or not, but she seemed to want to believe in him, having lost faith in her father.

Lysander sighed. "It must be done with propriety in mind. He-"

"Meaning you want her to keep these scars." Ryu summarized what would have likely been a long diatribe.

Lysander didn't respond. Even now, saying yes left a bad taste. But Ryu was clearly correct. Even if they healed Veridia, if they didn't at least leave the scars, it would only cause more problems in the future.

If Veridia was heavily injured now, if she suddenly reappeared like she was just fine, the next clash might end with her death. At that point, the Dragon Race would be finished... because there was no way he would stand down after his wife died.

"I see..." Ryu said lightly.

At that moment, a single drop of Embryonic Qi appeared on Ryu's finger and he flicked it out. It soared through the air and past Lysander's head.

The speed was extraordinarily slow in the eyes of a Dao God. No amount of trickery or suddenness could get it past Lysander if he wanted to stop it. And considering those truths, Lysander also had more than enough time to understand just what that drop was and what it meant.

The slit pupils of the Crystal Dragon shrunk and his large body quaked, but in the end a rumbling sigh shook the earth.

If Ryu was an example of someone whose path was too taboo for Embryonic Qi to work as it should, a beast like Veridia was the exact opposite. She was so in tune with the Heavens that the moment a single drop of Embryonic Qi fell onto her, it was like Heaven's Gates had opened wide.

Her injuries healed so quickly that it almost looked as though they had been pulled out of her body. A new wing tore out from her shoulder blade, a new pair of eyes popped into being, and the scar across her face sealed up in an instant.

Selheira was shocked and then pleasantly surprised. Her tears seemed to dry up and she looked at her mother with an overflowing happiness. She wrapped her arms and wings around her snout, practically clinging to her mother like a koala bear.

A gentle smile spread across Ryu's lips.

Lysander's answer never really mattered to him, he just wanted to hear it. He also knew that even if Lysander's answer had been an all-out no, he would never stop Ryu from doing what he didn't dare to.

As far as he was concerned, Selheira's tears were more than enough for him to take action.

"Embryonic Qi..." Lysander's voice rumbled. He seemed to say it as a way of making sure that he wasn't dreaming.

Ryu had, indeed, become too used to taking Embryonic Qi casually, but it was the root of creation. It was capable of healing even the highest levels of Sky Gods in an instant with just a single drop. It could completely reform one's talent and perfect it... so long as it was perfectly in line with the Heavens, that is.

A few drops of this Embryonic Qi could probably make a middling Fire Dragon into an Emperor given enough time.

Ryu was complaining about his Beyond Perfect Extreme not actually doing anything, but it had already done a great deal. He could only blame himself for practicing Taboo techniques... well, that and having so many Bloodlines within his body that even his Embryonic Qi couldn't resolve it with a few drops.

It could be said that if Ryu still had his Beast Companions by his side, they would all be little monsters. There was also a reason Little Silk was growing so fast... aside from his mother's help, that is. The little girl was already on the verge of becoming a Dao Lord and had long since reached the standard of the Ninth Heaven.

The only shame was that because she was evolving so often, Little Silk spent 90% of the time stuck in a cocoon.

Ryu shook his head. It was his fault for choosing a butterfly as his main companion. The funniest part was that he didn't really choose her, it just happened because she dared to attack him on a whim back then.

'Hm... maybe I should think about taking beast taming more seriously again... I don't really want to replace Little Gem, Little Rock and Nemesis, but...'

Ryu shook his head again.

They were across Existence, likely dancing back and forth across the same line of life and death that Ailsa was. If he let sentiment dictate his action, then he would actually end up harming them more.

'Maybe...' Ryu thought.

Things weren't so simple. He could trust Little Silk after she had been by his side for so long, but if he suddenly made a random beast so powerful, how long would it take before they turned on him? It wasn't like he could suppress them with his soul after they grew so strong.

This was the main reason he had never thought about doing this seriously, but who knew...

'Innovation, huh... maybe... It's an interesting thought.'

"I know you might not want to listen to me, Ryu, but if I may... I believe you should spend more time understanding what each Sky God Realm actually means. Right now, this is your greatest weakness."

"Alright," Ryu said casually.

In truth, he already planned to do this.