Not a single sound left anyone''s throat this time.
Every figure stood rigid, staring at the pir that still shimmered.
The vast za grew so still a pin would have echoed.
All trace of ease vanished from Dominic''s face.
His brows locked tight while his gaze drilled into Jared''s back, a restless glint sliding across his eyes.
Vivian''s breath hitched for an instant.
She started a half step forward, checked herself, and the autumn-water eyes behind the veil now searched him even harder.
Jared drew his hand back again, as serene as ever.
He moved toward the third Trial Pir, the one that measured raw physical might.
"The third one..... the third one will stop him for sure!"
Someone finally managed a quavering shout, "Look at how skinny he is; there''s no way he has body strength!"
"Exactly! Strength isn''t talent—you have to grind for it!"
"Even Lord Wagner only hit seven and a half segments! He can''t possibly beat that!"
Dominic offered no agreement; he simply stared, unblinking, at Jared.
Jared halted in front of the third Trial Pir.
Instead of cing a palm on it, he tightened his right fist.
The very next heartbeat...
He punched.
He didn''t wind up, didn''t channel any internal energy-he simply drove one clean punch straight into the Trial Pir.
Bang!!!
A deep, rolling impact ripped through the square like a sky-splitting thunderp.
The pir rocked violently, light ring in the same breath-yet this time it was more than light alone.
Crack!
A sharp fissure spread outward from the very spot Jared''s fist hadnded.
Below the stage, every watcher''s pupils snapped tight.
"Cr-Cracked?!"
"The pir cracked?!"
"That''s body strength? He''s a demon beast, not a man!"
The radiance shot upward madly—one mark, two, three, four... seven, eight, nine, ten!
All ten slots burned at full brilliance.
The split ran from the pir''s base to its crown, nearly cleaving the whole Trial Pir in two.
Jared withdrew his fist, nced at the crack, and a barely noticeable furrow gathered between his brows.
In the same calm tone he said, "Used too much force."
Used too much force.
Those four words burst beside every ear like rolling thunder.
Bodies stood frozen, faces empty of response.
Dominic''splexion darkened to the shade of raw iron.
"What kind of physique is that?!"
Vivian''s fingers mped around her sleeve, and the light in her autumn-clear eyes zed.
She kept her stare nailed to Jared, as though intent on seeing through bone and marrow.
"One more pir." With that, Jared walked toward the fourth Trial Pir.
Bloodline-strength test.
The crowd finally shook off its stupor; a quavering voice rose:
"Bloodline! He''ll never pass bloodline!"
"Right! No matter how wild his celestial energy or body is, regr cultivators don''t carry special blood!"
"Lord Wagner has the Crimson Auric Bloodline! What can some nameless nobody have?"
Thement let a shade of ease creep back onto Dominic''s face.
He drew a long breath, straightened again, and pinned a brooding stare on Jared.
"Indeed."
His voice came out dry but steady. "Our friend''s celestial energy and physique are marvelous, yet bloodlinees from inheritance, not tramming. House Wagner''s line awakened only because an ancestor
reached Golden Immortal rank. May task which n you hail from,
friend?"
The courtesy couldn''t hide the thrust: with no heritage, you must fail here.
Jared offered no reply.
He stepped to the fourth Trial Pir, lifted his right hand, andid it gently on the stone.
And then-
ROAR!!!
A vast dragon''s cry flooded heaven and earth.
No human throat made that sound; it was the voice of a true dragon.
Ancient,manding, domineering—like a call torn from the primordial wilds.
The st churned every watcher''s life energy and blood; weaker cultivators wavered and staggered back.
A breathter, a golden phantom shot skyward behind Jared.
A Five-wed Golden Dragon, hundred-yard body gleaming, scales crisp, whiskers flowing, eyes zing like twin suns.
It coiled above him, radiating supreme dominion, as if ruling heaven and every beast below.
"Golden Dragon Bloodline!"
The silence that followed swallowed the entire square.
Then-
Crack! Crack! Crack!
Spider-web fractures crawled across the fourth Trial Pir.
BOOM!!!
With a deafening crack, the Trial Pir burst from within. Stone seams shot open,
and the whole column blew apart in the same heartbeat.
Countless shards fanned out in every direction while a column of golden light rocketed upward, painting the entire sky in a molten hue.
The Golden Dragon phantom threw back its head and let out a sky-splitting cry. That dragon''s roar made the walls and streets of
Cloudhaven City quiver as if the
ground itself were breathing.
Every spectator stood rooted to the spot, limbs locked, breaths half-drawn and
forgotten.
All color drained from Dominic''s face. He stared first at the fading dragon, then at
the pir reduced to rubble. His lips parted twice, yet no sound escaped.
What had he boasted only moments ago?
"Bloodline is a matter of inheritance. No amount of training can create it."
"May I ask which n you im?"
Jared had just answered him in the bluntest way possible.
Golden Dragon Bloodline.
A bloodline spoken of in legend, ranked higher than even the royal houses of the
celestials.
What could Dominic''s own Crimson Auric Bloodline amount to beside that?
Dust beneath a boot.
Dominic stayed where he was, cheeks prickling as though pped again and again before the entire crowd.
The pride he unted and the disdain he enjoyed a breath ago now looked like the punch line of a bad joke.
Vivian''s eyes seemed to catch every stray glint of light, brilliance gathering until they nearly glowed.
With a sudden motion she lifted her
veil, revealing features that could silence a hall. In those clear eyes, astonishment and keen interest mingled, a spark of heat flickering deep inside.
She fixed her gaze on Jared, then on the slowly vanishing dragon shadow behind
him. When she spoke, the edge of her voice trembled.
"Young master... may I know your honored name?"
Jared lowered his hand, outwardposure unchanged, as though he had merely
dusted off a table.
He nced at Vivian and said in an even tone,
"Just a wandering cultivator—Jared."
Wanted or not, he had given his name openly.
Now that the Golden Dragon Bloodline was out in the open, hiding a name felt
pointless.