Immortality begins with meditation puppets

I am Jianglong, and I am 1,892 years old this year. I am in the prime of my life, so I can still play with dragons.

No, to be precise, I've only ever played with snakes in the past, which only had some dragon bloodline, but weren't pure dragons.

You can deceive others, but you can't deceive yourself. If you don't play it for real, my path to enlightenment will come to an abrupt end at the peak of the fourth tier, and I haven't made any progress since.

Others mocked me, saying that I was ambitious but incompetent, and that my goal of subduing dragons and attaining enlightenment was doomed from the start. Even my second brother, Fuhu, did not understand me. Five hundred years ago, he had given up hope on my future path in Taoism and only cared about arranging wives for me, wanting me to stay at home and continue the family line.

I have always ignored this and have not cared about it.

I'm waiting for an opportunity, not to prove how great I am, but simply to prove that the path I've chosen has never been wrong!

This opportunity came very quickly.

And I proved it very quickly.

The path I chose was wrong! Terribly wrong!

Choosing this path of subduing dragons back then was truly a fool's errand!

You don't know pain if you've never been beaten, and you don't know how terrifying a dragon is if you've never seen one.

To prepare for this dragon-slaying expedition, my second brother and I have prepared two supreme treasures: the Samsara Mirror and the pseudo-Styx Robe. In addition, we have carried many talismans, puppets, pills, and magical artifacts. To prepare all of this, I—no, I mean my second brother—gambled on all the connections and resources he had accumulated over the years. Before entering the Land of Despair, I also solemnly promised my second brother that I would definitely succeed in slaying the dragon and reach the fifth rank. He could then just wait to enjoy the good life!
Once inside the Land of Despair, with the help of the Reincarnation Mirror, our actions went extremely smoothly, and we quickly found the trail of the fifth-tier cloud dragon.

After the first cloud dragon was lured away and killed by Su Qing and his group.

We witnessed the terrifying scene of the second cloud dragon being devoured by the Azure Dragon King.

That was the first time I had ever seen a pure dragon.

Its lithe and powerful dragon body, winding and undulating like a mountain range, exudes an aura of domineering dragon might that makes one's legs tremble. With just one roar, the terrifying power emanating from it makes my protective energy buzz. The dominance of the overlord race is evident even from over a thousand miles away. It is the strongest existence I have ever seen in my life.

You thought I was talking about the Azure Dragon King?

No, I was referring to that fifth-tier cloud dragon that smuggled itself in from the outside world, was suppressed by its own realm, and was not known for its fighting prowess among the dragon race.

Oh, this fifth-tier cloud dragon only displayed its might for a moment or two before being slain and its body seized by the Azure Dragon King, who was many times stronger than it.

My second brother was so frightened by the sight of the two dragons fighting that his hair stood on end. Even so, he still believed in me. When he turned to me and asked if I could still do it,

Although I knew I couldn't do it, out of pride for my older brother, I nodded almost unconsciously.

Seeing his second brother wearing the Styx robes, fearlessly carrying out the pre-arranged tactic of luring the enemy, he was overjoyed.

I almost burst into tears.

Mustering all my courage, I chased after the Azure Dragon King. I wasn't thinking of messing with him; I really couldn't afford to. I just hoped that the Azure Dragon King would be magnanimous and stop chasing after my second brother.

I'm chasing, the Azure Dragon bites, and my second brother is yelling in front of me.

They kept biting until the fake Styx robe was completely devoured by the Azure Dragon King, and the second brother, who was about to suffer disaster without the robe to protect him from the calamity.

Suddenly, a huge change occurred.

This is a lifesaver!

The battlefield suddenly shifted.

This became a war in which Su Qing and his two brothers joined forces with the Azure Dragon King to fight against the ancient evil demons.

To be honest, in the past I was polite to Su Qing and other rogue cultivators, but in reality I didn't take them too seriously.

Although he rose to prominence quickly due to his background as a rogue cultivator, he lacked systematic cultivation education and thus knew nothing about profound cultivation principles such as the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, the Five Gods Facing the Sun, the Body as the Foundation of the God, and the Spirit as the Extension of the Flesh. His theoretical foundation was weak, and even though he became famous in one battle on Langya Immortal Island, his future achievements would likely be limited. His only notable achievement was his skill in crafting puppets, which might have made him humble himself and become a mere nominal brother.

Su Qing, whom he despised even the Dragon-Subduing Master who was determined to play with dragons, was even less worthy of his attention, let alone the likes of Gao Erqiang and Tong Chang.

Human cultivation is the coolest!

Even if the heavens and earth were blind to allow an evil spirit and a puppet to rise to the positions of execution god and contemporary celestial master, they would still be no match for the human cultivators who have passed down their teachings to this day!

However, all his past prejudices were shattered today. Just like when he made a great vow to subdue the dragon, but today he saw a real dragon and was terrified and dared not be its enemy, Su Qing, Gao Erqiang, and Tong Chang, the three brothers known as the Three Heroes of Yunshan in the Western Sea cultivation world, were far stronger than he had imagined.

Su Qing, wielding an axe, is a fourth-tier puppeteer who can rival fifth-tier body cultivators in bravery and dares to engage in hand-to-hand combat with high-ranking demons.

Erqiang gripped the bow, his archery skills comparable to a fifth-tier spirit archer. I was afraid that if he got carried away with his shooting, he might shoot a hole in the sun.

Tong Chang brought in reinforcements, and the Celestial Master possessed him. The Celestial Master could use all kinds of Taoist arts with ease. I really want to show those old-fashioned teachers in our country that this is the essence of Taoist arts in the human world. Taoist arts in his hands are simply art!
The three brothers, whom he looked down upon, actually killed a high-ranking demon.

As for Jianglong and his second brother, they could only grind small monsters to accumulate merit. This was only because Su Qing gave them face and agreed to let them sell out the interests of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom in exchange for merit. Otherwise, they wouldn't even have the chance to grind small monsters!
His ambitions remained unfulfilled, but he realized the gap between himself and the true geniuses of cultivation.

They saw Su Qing digesting the Azure Dragon Dao Pattern of the Four Imperial Dao Patterns.

I felt even more dejected and ashamed of myself, and even felt that I didn't deserve to be Su Qing's brother on the surface. I grabbed my second brother and wanted to leave.

Unexpectedly, when Su Qing finished absorbing the Azure Dragon Dao Pattern and became the most promising new star cultivator in the Tianyuan Realm, he still remembered his so-called brother and called out to me and my second brother.

My second brother, with his petty mind, mistakenly thought that Su Qing was afraid we would renege on our promise, and even promised that he would take care of the things he had promised after returning, so that Fellow Daoist Su wouldn't have to worry about it. But Su Qing just waved his hand and smiled, whether he was sure that we wouldn't dare to renege on our promise, or he really didn't care much about the huge profits from the operation of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom puppet, he didn't mention the matter at all, but instead threw out a huge temptation that made my second brother and me stare wide-eyed.

He actually has the ability to help people open up their inner space and help the peak of the fourth rank cross the threshold of the fifth rank. The only condition is that they turn their puppet management rights in the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom into puppet exclusive rights!

I have never seen such a shameless person!
Allowing its puppets to be sold in the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom has already touched upon the interests of all parties in the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom. Yet it is still not satisfied and wants to monopolize the puppet business of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom. If it succeeds, the price of Thousand Islands puppets will be raised or lowered at will. In the long run, the puppet lifeline of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom will be completely in its hands. Even if it is not a citizen of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom, it can still be considered one of the giants of the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom!

Is this even acceptable? Who do they think they are, subduing dragons and tigers? Are they really so willing to betray the interests of their own immortal kingdom?
Besides, if you advance to the fifth rank by relying on the power of others, how can you possibly achieve that fifth rank if your Dao heart is flawed?

The key issue is that it's not necessarily reliable. Throughout history, no one has ever been known to have such an ability to operate an axe inside someone's body. Who would have such a big heart? If you're not careful, you might die before you even have time to cry out for justice.

With a skeptical attitude, I decided to let Su Qing try it on my second brother first.

My second brother argued back. This kid is over a thousand years old, but he's still not past his rebellious phase. I used my authority as the eldest brother and slapped him a few times to subdue him and hand him over to Master Su.

I truly love my second brother. When Master Su was operating on him, I was so nervous that I didn't dare to blink. Fortunately, everything went smoothly and Master Su didn't mess things up. He used his divine sense to control the Xing Tian Blood Axe to fall into my second brother's body. A roaring sound came from my second brother's body. In just an instant, my second brother stepped into a new level of his dreams, the fifth level of fulfilling his dream.

He's so lucky to have me as his older brother! If it weren't for me, he would have missed out on this incredible opportunity!

Seeing my second brother successfully promoted, I had even more confidence in Master Su's skills and couldn't wait for Master Su to operate on me.

I think I've figured it out now.

With the Azure Dragon King as the leader of the dragon race in the Tianyuan Realm, I probably won't have the chance to play with dragons here. As for going to the outside world to hunt, I don't have the ability.

Although it's not a good thing to advance to the fifth rank by relying on someone else, it's still better than having no hope of advancement at all.

As for the conditions proposed by Su Qing, it doesn't really matter. After my second brother and I both advanced to the fifth rank, our influence in the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom will be incomparable. Those old fogies in the clan will not object to our proposal. The cultivators in the Immortal Kingdom already have many fathers, so adding another father, Su, should be enough for them to adapt.

Even after everything was settled, Master Su still didn't trust me and wanted my second brother and me to take out the Samsara Mirror as collateral.

The second brother is still too young. Relying on his recent advancement to the fifth rank, he wanted to test his skills against Master Su. As a result, Master Su only glanced at him, and his belly swelled up and became huge. According to Master Su, the second brother is pregnant!
It's not necessarily a bad thing!
My second brother has always been concerned about the continuation of our family line. Now that he can have his own child and raise it himself, not only will we save on the bride price, but we won't even have to worry about who the child belongs to!

Master Su showed off his skills, and the second brother of the Tiger-Taming Sect, who had advanced to the fifth rank, turned into a husky again. He didn't dare to negotiate with Master Su and obediently handed over the Samsara Mirror to Master Su.

My second brother's dawdling delayed my progress, but as the eldest brother, I didn't hold it against him. After Master Su demonstrated the power of Master Su's Xing Tian Blood Axe, I experienced its formidable strength.

As soon as the axe entered my body, I felt no abnormality. I only felt it lightly chop, and the barrier that I thought was thicker than the Earth Membrane and Heavenly Wall was easily broken through as if it were tofu.

From then on, the world was vast and boundless. I subdued the dragon, transformed from a human into a great immortal, and finally made a name for myself in this life.

Even after becoming the Dragon-Subduing Immortal, I didn't become as arrogant as my second brother. Mainly, I was afraid of suddenly getting pregnant, so I remained extremely respectful to Master Su.

After exchanging a few polite pleasantries and not-so-sincere invitations to Master Su to visit the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom sometime in the future, I thought it would be time for us to bid each other farewell and go our separate ways.

And yet, I never expected this.

A special forces puppet emerged from the seabed, with three cultivators attached to its body.

In my opinion, these three cultivators are unremarkable. One is an old Foundation Establishment cultivator with little lifespan left. Living would be a waste of spiritual energy, and dying would be no loss. The other two are relatively young, but they are only at the Foundation Establishment stage. They are insignificant juniors who would have to go through connections and pull strings to see me in the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom.

But for some reason, both Master Su and Master Tong were extremely enthusiastic towards these three people. I asked them out of curiosity and found out why.

These three are Helian Xian, Brother 260, and Brother 17, fellow Daoists who are close friends of Master Su. Master Su's main purpose in coming to the Land of Despair is to rescue these three.

Master Su is truly a righteous man!

Even after they become successful, they never forget their old brothers and are willing to risk their lives for them!

I have a much higher opinion of Su Zhenren's character.

During Master Su's reminiscing with the three, I discovered that the two young cultivators were truly ungrateful. When Master Su invited them to board the ship, they refused. Didn't they realize that with Master Su's abilities, he could hire any crew member he wanted? He was only inviting them because he saw their low cultivation level and wanted to help them out.

These two cultivators even shamelessly claimed that if they followed Master Su, they would bring him misfortune.
It's like an ant farting and fearing it will cause an elephant to collapse. I almost burst out laughing. With your abilities, what calamity could you possibly bring that would make Master Su suffer?

Master Su is truly good-tempered. Even though these two were so ungrateful, he didn't get angry. Instead, he asked me to take care of them and let my second brother and I take these two young Foundation Establishment cultivators to the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom.

Sigh, it was just to save face for these two brothers that he asked my second brother and me to look after them.

I certainly wouldn't refuse such a small favor.

Before they left, the way Master Su, Celestial Master Tong, and Gao Erqiang looked at my brother and me was quite inexplicable. My brother said it was out of pity, but that was utter nonsense. My brother and I had both advanced to the fifth rank, and our return to the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom was the perfect opportunity for the old fogies to step down and for us to take the top seats in the Immortal Kingdom. Who had the right to pity us? I felt that their eyes were blessings and full of awe for my brother and me!
In short, my second brother and I gained a lot from this trip to the Land of Despair, and our wishes were fulfilled. Although we gave up a lot of benefits to the Thousand Islands Immortal Kingdom, for the Immortal Kingdom, this benefit was worth it to have two fifth-level body cultivators, and the cultivators of the Immortal Kingdom did not dare to find fault with it.

Alas, I wonder how long a fifth-tier body cultivator can remain in such a glorious position.

The barrier of the Land of Despair was broken. Although several high-level demons were killed by Master Su, some mid-level demons escaped.

In addition, Yunlong perished in my Tianyuan Realm, and several disciples of the Lingbao Sect also suffered great losses in my realm. I estimate there will be more trouble in the future.

In these turbulent times, gods, immortals, demons, and monsters emerge in endless streams.

I, the Great Immortal Subduing Dragon, bear the well-being of the immortals on the shoulders of tens of thousands of islands in a country. I don't know if I can withstand it!
Oh, I forgot to ask when Master Su's second brother is due to give birth. We'll have to send out lots of wedding invitations and collect a flood of gifts. Giving birth costs money everywhere, and my younger brother, being young, hasn't considered it. As his older brother, I have to worry about him. I also can't let him get into any fights lately, lest it harm the baby! (End of Chapter)