"Lord Feng."
Seeing Liu Nanfeng seemingly lost in thought, the Old Dragon King called out again.
Su Jinxiu handed Gu Gu to Su Huamei and walked over, just in time to hear this. She covered her mouth and chuckled, "Old Dragon King, my husband trusts Liu, not Feng."
"Look at me, I forgot again. Yes, it's Lord Liu." The Old Dragon King said kindly.
Su Jinxiu sat down next to Liu Nanfeng.
Liu Nanfeng had also snapped back to attention and asked the Old Dragon King, "May I ask the reason for your visit, Dragon King?"
He then glanced at the others, his meaning clear: if you're coming, fine, but bringing the whole family feels a bit strange.
"Lord Feng... Lord Liu, have you seen this beast?"
As the Old Dragon King spoke, he tapped the table. The originally brown tabletop instantly transformed into a water mirror, showing the scene at Dragon Gate yesterday.
"Archaic Beast?"
Liu Nanfeng recognized the monster, shaped like a roc with the claws of a mantis, at a glance.
"Indeed, Lord Liu knows of it."
The Old Dragon King smiled as if to say, 'As I suspected.'
Su Jinxiu had heard Liu Nanfeng mention archaic beasts before, so while she was a bit surprised that an archaic beast had already appeared in this world, she wasn't particularly bewildered.
It was Ao Haichao and the others who looked completely bewildered.
"Father, what are archaic beasts?" Ao Haiping was the first to ask.
"I brought you here today, partly to confirm with Lord Liu, and partly to tell you some things." The Old Dragon King sighed deeply after speaking.
Then he turned to Liu Nanfeng and said, "Since Lord Liu knows this beast, could you explain it to them?"
Liu Nanfeng was frowning, looking at the scene in the water mirror of the archaic beast emerging from Dragon Gate.
It was as he had guessed.
Hearing the Old Dragon King's words, he didn't refuse. He looked up and asked, "You should be familiar with the Tide Society, right?"
Ao Haichao and the others nodded. They had had some interactions with the Tide Society over the years, and they knew that the laboratory they had destroyed last time belonged to the Tide Society.
"The Tide Society believes that the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is like the ebb and flow of cosmic tides, constantly changing. When the tide is high, all things revive; when the tide recedes, spiritual energy is depleted, marking the era of the end of magic..."
Ao Haichao and the others also knew what Liu Nanfeng was saying, and they didn't interrupt him, waiting for him to continue.
"You live in the deep sea, so you should also know that when waves crash on the shore, they bring not only seawater but also the creatures swimming in the sea onto the land."
Upon hearing this, everyone began to vaguely guess.
"And archaic beasts are creatures that come with the tides of spiritual energy. Because they are born within spiritual energy, they are innately powerful."
As Liu Nanfeng spoke, the Old Dragon King picked up the conversation, "Actually, 'archaic beast' is a very ancient term. We usually call them Spirit Devouring Beasts, because they are born in spiritual energy, they are naturally drawn to it, and wherever they pass, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is completely devoured."
"This is the third time." The Old Dragon King looked out the window with a worried expression.
"Father, what do you mean? Has this happened twice before?" Ao Haichao asked, surprised.
The Old Dragon King nodded, then said, "It is said that humans originally lived in the Heavenly Palace. But due to the rampant destruction by archaic beasts, countless races were exterminated. In order to preserve the human lineage, they migrated to this world. However, humans are naturally frail, so a venerable being in the Heavenly Palace asked the dragon clan to also migrate to this world to protect the reproduction and prosperity of humankind."
"But even so, during the two high tides, humanity still suffered great calamities, with less than one in ten surviving. I was born during the second high tide. At that time, our dragon clan was incredibly powerful, with many experts. But in the face of the archaic beast invasion, they all fell one by one, with less than one in ten surviving."
The Old Dragon King's tone was very calm, but everyone could still hear the sadness and loss in his voice.
"I never expected to experience this a second time." The Old Dragon King finished speaking and looked at his children.
If the archaic beasts launched a full-scale invasion, how many of his children would ultimately survive?
"Father, you worry too much. I saw that archaic beast wasn't that powerful; Xiao Yue easily killed one." Ao Haiping tried to comfort the Old Dragon King, seeing his distressed expression.
However, the Old Dragon King didn't speak. Instead, he looked at Liu Nanfeng, implying he wanted him to answer.
"If archaic beasts are like fish, then spiritual energy is the water. But now this world's spiritual energy is depleted, so when archaic beasts come to this world, they are like fish out of water; their strength is naturally less than one in ten..." Liu Nanfeng stated his guess.
But the Old Dragon King nodded, indicating that Liu Nanfeng was correct.
He said with a wry smile, "During the second high tide, archaic beasts invaded. That war lasted for a long time. The reason we won was not because we were so powerful, but because as the tide receded, the spiritual energy gradually diminished. The archaic beasts either fled with the tide or weakened due to lack of spiritual energy, and were eventually slaughtered."
Hearing this, Liu Nanfeng suddenly realized that this might also be the reason for the Old Dragon King's current lack of power.
Because the loss of spiritual energy not only affected the archaic beasts but also people and demons who had achieved cultivation. Furthermore, the higher the cultivation, the greater the impact. This completely explained it.
"Father, is it that serious? Don't the people in the Heavenly Palace care?"
"Care? How can they care? The Heavenly Palace is at the forefront and is already struggling to cope. The archaic beasts that can reach this world are considered to have slipped through the net."
After speaking, the Old Dragon King turned to Liu Nanfeng and asked, "Dragon Gate is actually a portal for my dragon clan to the Dragon Transformation Pool in the Heavenly Palace. Lord Feng took the Dragon Gate back then, probably out of concern that archaic beasts would descend to the mortal world through it, right?"
Liu Nanfeng responded vaguely.
"Lord Feng's righteousness is admirable." The Old Dragon King praised.
"Father, then we just need to not open the Dragon Gate, right?" Ao Jiangyue said from the side.
"It's not that simple. Dragon Gate is not the only passage to the Heavenly Palace in this world."
Everyone remembered that the entrance to the Heavenly Palace had also been hidden by Feng Zhirun.
"Moreover, this world and the Heavenly Palace have intricate connections. Some powerful archaic beasts can descend to the mortal world directly through these connections."
After hearing this, everyone's expression became extremely serious.
Because if this were true, it seemed the destruction of this world was inevitable.
"However, there should still be some time. Since I've confirmed with Lord Liu, I also need to find someone to discuss this matter with. Our dragon clan alone is probably not enough." The Old Dragon King stood up with a wry smile.
"Old Dragon King, if you need anything, please let me know. Although my strength is not great, I can still help out a bit." Su Jinxiu also stood up, her face serious.
"Lady Liu, your righteousness is truly humbling. You are too modest. Lady Liu has extraordinary talent; your strength will surely increase greatly when the spiritual energy tide rises," the Old Dragon King said with a smile.
Just then, the bell on the cafe door rang.
Everyone looked towards the sound and saw Nan Cai City walk in from outside, holding a scroll.