Chapter 123: Morning Revelations—The Terrifying Bloodline
Morning broke gently over Fei Wu Quarter.
Golden sunlight spilled across the stone paths, washing away the remnants of night. Dew clung to the leaves, shimmering like tiny jewels, and the breeze carried the soft scent of damp earth and wild grass. The chaos of the previous night had faded—replaced by the quiet calm of a new dawn.
But within one secluded courtyard, the air still felt different. Heavy. Charged.
Su Tianhao lay motionless on the ground, robes stained with dirt, sweat, and impurities. The oak tree rustled faintly in the morning breeze, leaves spiraling lazily through the air above him.
As the sun climbed higher, he slowly stirred. His golden eyes squinted against the bright light as he raised a hand to shield his face.
Aaah~
A tired yawn. He lay there for a moment, letting the weariness of the previous night's mental exhaustion lift gradually.
Then the memories returned.
'Blood Grin. The fight. Killing him.'
His brows tightened.
'The dragon awakening. Devouring his essence.'
His heart followed suit.
'It wasn't a dream. I really devoured a person's essence.'
Guilt and something colder than fear settled over him simultaneously. No matter what Blood Grin had done, he was still human. Devouring his essence—erasing his body from existence entirely—was a weight that couldn't simply be reasoned away.
'My devouring ability... it's more dangerous than I thought.'
He sat with that thought for a moment.
'I was completely out of control.'
"Terrifying," he murmured.
Su Tianhao rose slowly, his eyes drifting to the spot where Blood Grin's corpse had been. Nothing. Not even a stain.
'What happened last night isn't as simple as resentment from my Heart Demon.' His gaze narrowed. 'There are ancient secrets and risks to my abilities that I must uncover.'
The events of the previous night had fundamentally changed his perception of his own power.
'I can't just keep growing stronger. I need to seek knowledge—or else I might lose my humanity without even realizing it.'
His fist clenched with quiet resolve.
Only then did he notice the state of his own hands—impurities covering every surface of his skin. He looked himself over and exhaled.
"Right." His expression shifted slightly. "I broke through to the Martial Adept Realm. Reached Perfection in the Supreme Dragon Essence Refinement Art."
The implications settled in one by one.
"The Untainted Body... I've achieved it."
A small smile crossed his lips despite the heaviness still in his chest. He couldn't help it.
"And Killing Sword Sense has been comprehended. Great Success in Shadow-Splitting Flash is within reach. The Shrouded Dragon Veil is also showing signs of advancement..."
He shook his head quietly, overwhelmed by how much had shifted in a single night. Every aspect of his being—cultivation, sword dao, concealment technique—had undergone tremendous change simultaneously.
As the saying goes: even the darkest tribulations leave behind a glimmer of fortune—if one dares endure.
He had endured. And the fortune was far beyond what he could have imagined.
'First, a bath. Then answers.'
---
After a long hour, Su Tianhao stepped out of the bath, still dripping, dark hair falling down his back like a waterfall.
He dried off slowly as he made his way to his room.
Creak.
The door opened. He stepped inside—and froze.
Staring back at him from the cracked mirror beside his wardrobe was his reflection.
Handsome face. Golden eyes. Long dark hair. Refined features. Tall, muscular frame. Everything the same—except his skin. It gleamed like polished jade, white as snow, smooth and elegant as that of a young woman from a prestigious family.
"What the hell!" Su Tianhao cried, his towel falling from his hand as he leaned closer.
"I look like some pretty boy from the imperial court," he muttered, reaching up to touch his own cheek. Smooth. Soft. Yet firm and resilient beneath the surface.
'Could this be because of the Untainted Body?'
The more he stared, the deeper his frown became.
'I can't go out looking like this.'
If a woman had undergone such a transformation, she would likely be celebrating. But he was a man—and this was a problem.
"No one said anything about becoming beautiful after achieving the Untainted Body," he muttered, sounding thoroughly displeased.
Though he was genuinely handsome and had been content with his appearance, he wasn't truly angry—just caught off guard. What was a change in appearance compared to what the Untainted Body actually meant? The difference was like heaven and earth. Many cultivators could only dream of such a physique, and he had achieved it before reaching adulthood.
He was grateful. He just didn't have to be happy about the side effects.
"What's done is done," he muttered, as if consoling himself. "More time in the sun. More harsh training. It won't be long before my skin loses this... affliction."
With that settled, he turned away from the mirror and changed into fresh azure robes that complemented his new appearance far too well for his liking.
Then he sat on the edge of his bed, legs folding into a perfect lotus position.
It was time to seek answers.
He closed his eyes, shutting off his senses and sinking deep into his inherited memories.
His heart shook at the changes within—like a vast sea once still, now stirred by hidden currents revealing forgotten depths. If before he had possessed an island of knowledge with every technique and insight clearly mapped, now he had a map that revealed hidden roads and uncharted territories he hadn't known existed.
"The third layer has been unlocked," he murmured, eyes snapping open briefly before closing again.
He wasn't entirely surprised. He had just broken through to the Martial Adept Realm—such major realm progress often triggered deeper awakenings within inherited memories. The third layer was only natural.
'Now that it's open, finding the truth about my bloodline should be easier.'
He sank deeper into his sea of consciousness. Everything felt more vivid now—more integrated, as if the knowledge was beginning to fuse with his own soul and wisdom rather than sitting apart from it.
He didn't need to search long.
A memory surfaced—his father in his early cultivation years, sitting alone in a grand ancient library, leafing through a thick weathered tome. The surroundings were blurred and indistinct, but the knowledge within the book burned with crystalline clarity.
Although the third layer had unlocked, there were still limits. He could access the essence of their wisdom—the knowledge, the insights—but not their vivid memories. Not their routines, expressions, or lives in motion.
Not yet.
Su Tianhao took a slow breath and let his consciousness flow into the pages.
The Devourer's Codex.
The title surfaced in his mind like long-forgotten truth—ancient, heavy, carrying unseen weight.
The contents unfolded within his inherited memories one line at a time, each word seared into his mind with solemn clarity. Written in a language older than any human tongue, yet to him the words flowed like living script.
---
The Heavenly Devouring Dragon is not a creature of balance—but of consequence.
Among the Nine Supreme Dragon Clans, the Devouring Dragon is feared above all—not because it is the strongest, but because it feasts upon essence, law, and soul alike. It does not just kill—it erases.
Unlike other supreme dragons with divine physiques that harmonize with heaven and earth, the Heavenly Devouring Dragon is born in defiance of it. Its very existence seeks balance through consumption. The more chaos, hatred, or violence surrounds those who possess its bloodline, the easier it is for the bloodline to awaken on its own—especially when the dragon's heart resonates with strong negative emotions.
---
'I see... so that's what happened.'
Though he had awakened his physique and gained some control over it, he still lacked mastery over its core instinct—the will to consume and purify all threats through annihilation. When he killed Blood Grin—whose body was steeped in evil deeds, resentment, and lingering hatred—the physique saw not just an opportunity, but a need to consume. And because the Heart Demon had not yet fully resolved, the devouring process resonated with the suppressed malice and fury within him. Bloodline and emotion aligned—and the Devouring Instinct spiraled out of his control.
Only when the resentment faded and the bloodline's hunger was sated did the process stop.
"This—" Su Tianhao drew a sharp breath.
'Does that mean the Heavenly Devouring Dragon possesses a will of its own?'
He dismissed the thought before it could take root. 'It isn't sentience. It's the Devouring Instinct within the bloodline—an instinct I have yet to control.'
He hadn't even known such an instinct existed until now. How could he have controlled something he didn't know was there?
He steadied himself and dove back into the tome.
The pages unraveled, passing over unnecessary detail and settling into deeper truth:
---
It is said that the Heavenly Devouring Dragon does not serve the Heavens—but walks its own path. Those who inherit its power must either master it.
Or be consumed by it.
---
Su Tianhao's eyes snapped open.
The words echoed in his soul like a warning carved into stone—ancient, absolute, and sending a chill down his spine that had nothing to do with the morning air.
His lips parted for a single word.
"Terrifying."