As soon as word spread that Long Chen would be personally training disciples, the Dragon Domain’s top experts surged out en masse.

Long Chen had not expected this Dragon Domain to possess such an immense foundation. Shockingly, they had tens of thousands of Sovereign sprouts.

However, Long Chen instantly saw through the truth—their Sovereign sprout flames were ignited using external power. If his guess was correct, the dragon race’s ancestors had left behind some latent energy, which allowed these disciples to awaken a faint trace of Sovereign qi.

But that qi had no spirit, only form. While it looked like Sovereign qi, it lacked the power it should have. These people carried the aura of Sovereign sprouts, but it would be difficult for them to produce genuine Sovereign qi. Unless…

A thought struck Long Chen. The only way to awaken their potential would be for these individuals to experience life-or-death trials. Only under the pressure of death would their instincts carve out their dormant strength.

In other words, the Dragon Domain had prepared for massive casualties among these tens of thousands in hopes that a few true Sovereign sprouts would emerge from the bloodshed.

Long Chen couldn’t help sighing inside. As mighty as the Dragon Domain was, they still had to rely on such cruel methods to cultivate their next generation. It spoke volumes about their desperate situation—otherwise, they wouldn’t have gone into hiding in such a remote place.

“Senior Long Chen, are you really going to personally teach us?” asked one of the female warriors of the dragon race excitedly.

She was quite renowned within the Dragon Domain. However, after challenging the Dragonblood warriors several times, she had been thoroughly crushed. Worse yet, the one to put her in her place wasn’t even a frontline fighter but a healing warrior. At the time, she had nearly gone mad.

But then, the consecutive defeats tempered her pride, forcing her to let go of her arrogance. That very healing warrior was impressed by her character and offered her a few pointers.

People often underestimated the healing warriors of the Dragonblood Legion. Though their primary role was support, they were anything but weak. On the contrary, their endurance outstripped even that of the frontline fighters.

Perhaps they wouldn’t be able to beat the frontline fighters directly, but with their immense endurance, if the frontline fighters couldn’t beat them within an incense stick’s time, then the frontline fighters would be the ones forced to concede.

While they might not match the explosive power of their comrades, that was only in comparison to other Dragonblood warriors. Against the outside world’s experts, they were still far superior. To these greenhouse flowers of the Dragon Domain, they were like gods of combat.

That healing warrior had once spoken of Long Chen with pride swelling in her voice, leaving the female warrior of the Dragon Domain awestruck. She couldn’t even imagine what kind of monster Long Chen must be to command such terrifying warriors.

She wasn’t alone. Every expert present was filled with anticipation. This was Long Chen—the Boss of the Dragonblood Legion.

“Don’t get too excited,” Long Chen said, pity flashing in his eyes. “I doubt you’ll be able to stay excited much longer.”

With a wave of his hand, the Seven Treasure Colored Glass Tree appeared, and the next instant, all the disciples were transported into a blood-soaked battlefield.

“AHHH!”

Their screams rang out as they were instantly slaughtered. Within moments, they were all wiped out. Pale-faced and trembling, some even lost control of their bladders. The shame of it nearly drove them to tears. To think that the dragon race’s greatest heavenly geniuses would be scared witless like this… they would rather die.

But no one laughed at them. Even those who hadn’t pissed themselves were shaking in terror.

“Senior Long Chen…” One of the embarrassed men stepped forward, clearly about to withdraw.

Long Chen interjected, “It’s not your fault. This is how the Dragon Domain raised you. To ignite your Sovereign flame, they carefully cultivated your sharpness and confidence. Even the Dragonblood Legion treated you gently, never exposing you to true death. But I don’t have that kind of patience. I won’t take it slow—and yes, that makes it hard for you to keep up when you’re suddenly thrown into a hellish trial.

“But don’t feel bad. A blade must be tempered on the grindstone. What you just experienced is something every member of the Dragonblood Legion had gone through. The only difference is, they followed me from the mortal world to the immortal world, slowly building up that experience.

“Unfortunately, you don’t have the luxury of taking it slowly. The best opportunity for your tribulation is upon you. Before that, you must feel the baptism of death. Your Sovereign sprout seeds must take root firmly in you. Inside the Seven Treasure Space, you won’t die for real. But you will feel the shadow of death, over and over again. If you want to become experts like the Dragonblood warriors, this is your only path.

“For the Dragon Domain—and for yourselves—go all out!”

At this moment, Long Chen didn’t seem like a lofty leader. He felt more like an older brother, earnestly guiding his younger siblings. There was no mockery in his voice, no scorn—only encouragement that made their hearts surge with strength. Even their fear of death faded somewhat.

“I want to become an expert like big brother Qin Feng! Even if I have to die, I won’t regret it!”

One of Qin Feng’s worshipers suddenly shouted and closed his eyes. Under the Seven Treasure Colored Glass Tree, just by closing their eyes and relaxing, they would be sucked into the Seven Treasure Space.

“I want to get stronger!”

“I’m going to become as strong as the Dragonblood warriors!”

“I’ll become a monster too!”

…

One after another, they overcame their hesitation and stepped forward. Courage flared in their hearts as they reentered the Seven Treasure Space.

Long Chen smiled faintly. Truthfully, that first step was the hardest. After tasting death, their fear was at its peak. So, stepping back into that hell required more than bravery—it needed an unwavering desire to grow stronger, no matter the cost.

Luckily, the dragon race was a proud race. Even their greenhouse flowers carried immense pride in their bones. Wetting themselves had been a bodily reflex, nothing to be mocked. But anyone who could conquer that fear and charge into the abyss head-on was a warrior worthy of respect.

The Dragon Domain’s disciples returned to the Seven Treasure Space, only to be mercilessly slaughtered once more. Of course, this was to be expected.

Their bodies froze the moment they entered that realm filled with killing intent. Their movements and instincts dulled. Forget counterattacking—they couldn’t even dodge properly.

This was part of the process. They had to conquer their fear. Still, Long Chen had to admit that they were truly courageous. In fact, they bordered on madness. Some of them even reminded him of Liu Qingyu, who only grew more fired up the more he died.

Long Chen didn’t give them any further advice. The hardest step had been taken, so they just had to keep going.

He sat cross-legged beneath the Seven Treasure Colored Glass Tree and closed his eyes, calming his mind and entering a meditative state.

While Long Chen meditated and the Dragon Domain’s warriors charged again and again into the Seven Treasure Space, five distant figures silently observed it all.