The Corruption Dragon God: Lust System Chapter 516 Gold King (03)

The Gold King hesitated briefly, then erupted in hearty laughter, smacking his knee forcefully as he reclined in his seat.

"Take a seat and pick up a rod, hahaha..." He invited, motioning toward the vacant chair. "You realized that lock was a test, didn't you?"

"Yes." Qingyi nodded, settling beside the Gold King and grabbing the bamboo rod.

His gaze landed on a little bait container, where he plucked out one worm.

'Hmm... how many years has it been since I handled anything so grubby?' Qingyi pondered, threading the worm onto the hook and flinging his line into the lake.

"Excellent... that trial was crafted by a long-gone formation master from roughly three millennia back. I shelled out a massive sum to acquire it, and occasionally, I use it to challenge my visitors. Do you have any idea how few have succeeded?"

"No, father-in-law."

"Just four," the Gold King answered. "I claimed the first spot, the First Shadow took second, and then came the Emperor. Not one of us cracked it under ten minutes, except for that one case."

"Meilin." Qingyi cut in on his father-in-law, drawing a grin from the man.

"At only twelve years old, she breezed through that challenge in under five minutes—a feat that even an Astral Body Realm powerhouse like the Emperor couldn't match in speed."

The Gold King grinned, sensing a pull on his line.

In a swift yank, he hauled the fish from the depths: a blue-eyed spirit carp.

A compact blade materialized in his grip, slashing the fish's abdomen and

extracting its innards and scales in one fluid action. Another flick seasoned the fish with salt, sending it straight to the grill.

The whole process wrapped up in under three seconds.

"You're spot on about her ability to transform even an ant into a dragon... She pulled it off with the Burning Red Pavilion and every branch of my businesses she ever influenced."

The Gold King let out a sigh, pressing a hand to his chest. "I've fathered countless children across this realm, thousands in total. Nearly all perished, some crumbling under the endless grind of cultivation over millennia, others lacking the spark to even start their path."

A brief silence hung after those weighty statements.

"Meilin stands as my ultimate joy as a father." The Gold King's stare locked onto Qingyi. "So tell me, son-in-law, when did you embark on your cultivation path?"

"Around four years back. I stepped away from my master's shelter while still at the sixth stage of the Qi Refining Realm," Qingyi answered straightforwardly, eyeing the man with puzzlement.

What direction was this conversation heading?

"Four years... I've encountered types similar to you. Well, not exactly like you, but near enough. The First Imperial Prince was among them, forty thousand years in the past."

"He hit your current realm after a decade of cultivation, and by fifty years old, he rose to the Celestial Heaven.

The next was a Beast People young master, who attained your level in fourteen years of practice, and before turning a century, he ascended to the Celestial Heaven."

The Gold King's words trailed off momentarily, then he posed a query: "What drives every cultivator's deepest desire?"

"To dominate all beneath the skies." Qingyi responded without hesitation. That was no tricky riddle.

The Gold King tilted his head skyward. "I am Jin Hao, the King of Gold. Countless millions of foes have fallen to my weapons or my orders."

"Yet there remains one domain beyond my grasp: my own aptitude and that of my heirs. Speak to me, Long Qingyi, son-in-law—what steps will you take once your firstborn arrives?"

"What more could I do but shield them, cherish them, and guide their growth?" The striking youth averted his gaze, an odd feeling flickering in his eyes.

"And once you climb to the supreme realms and shoulder burdens too vast to nurture or instruct them personally?"

Qingyi stiffened at the question, struggling for a solid reply. Such thoughts had never crossed his mind.

Commanding all under the heavens inevitably demanded duties he'd have to bear to chase

his loftiest goals.

"What if I simply name a proxy to govern for me?" Qingyi suggested.

"Corruption will seep in," Jin Hao shot back. "It only requires a single flawed choice, one unfit soul in authority, one blade unsheathed, and one throat severed."

"That's enough to taint any order. Grasp this if you aim to command all and sundry. Your vision serves as divine verdict; should it falter, myriad innocents perish."

The Gold King rose, laying his rod down while observing Qingyi

reel in yet another carp.

With nimble precision, the youth eviscerated and descaled it, flipping it

onto the grill, where Jin Hao dusted it with salt.

"This one's done," the Gold King announced, lifting the earlier carp onto a dish at the tiny table right before the grill.

With an eager huff, he chomped into the fish, savoring the tender sweetness of its pale meat.

"Despite my vast might and sway," Jin Hao spat out a bone, "I don't command all under the heavens. Solely the Enlightened Emperor can proclaim that."

"Yet in our encounters, all bow low. All save myself."

Qingyi observed his father-in-law rising. The white marble underfoot shifted to a rich gold hue, as minuscule flecks, resembling molten gold, lifted skyward.

"Throughout my existence, son-in-law, no youth's talent has rivaled yours, and I doubt even the

Celestial Heaven will alter that."

The Gold King pressed on, his Qi descending on Qingyi while the surrounding gold specks sharpened into lethal edges.

Beneath the youth's soles, the gold surged upward, piercing into his flesh.

This marked the Gold King's domain, among the mightiest forces across reality.

"Prior to entrusting my daughter to you, I must confirm." Jin Hao advanced, seizing Qingyi's shoulders.

The full might of a Peak Ancestral Emperor crashed down on the youth.

"Are you the one destined to reign over all beneath the heavens, or the one who bows to none?"

The Gold King's declaration boomed across the chamber, chased by a fierce quake.

Qingyi's eyes blazed with fierce light.

"The one to reign over all beneath the heavens, or the one who bows to none?" Qingyi snarled, stirring his own Qi.

"Such drivel."

As his words resounded, the surrounding realm teetered on collapse. A dragon's thunderous bellow swallowed the royal capital whole, while a black-scaled creature materialized behind Qingyi.

"I shall conquer even the heavens above."