An Understated Dominance Novel (Dahlia & Dustin) by Marina Vittori updated 2025-26 - An Understated Dominance Chapter 2709

Chapter 2709 

Immortal energy could cross a thousand miles in the blink of an eye.

In less than half a day, Logan had carried everyone across the endless sea and back to the Central Plains.

He didn’t stop in the coastal prefectures or counties. Instead, he headed straight for the heart of Dragonmarsh—Oakvale.

Beneath the drifting clouds, mountains and rivers swept past like fading ink. Towns and villages appeared below them like pieces on a giant chessboard. The familiar breath of everyday life rushed toward them, feeling like an entirely different world compared to the eerie, intertwined paradise-and-hell that was Fairyharbor Island.

Grace clutched the jade box containing the Immortal Essence Pill so tightly her fingertips had turned pale. Her heart was a tangled mix of excitement to return and crushing worry for her father’s failing health.

Logan had said the pill would extend life by ten years, but she wouldn’t rest until she saw her father recover with her own eyes.

The three princes remained silent, each steeped in their own thoughts.

Their gazes would occasionally flick toward the jade box in Grace’s hands, expressions shifting with complicated emotion.

Missing out on such a monumental feat—and a ten-year extension of life—was a bitter pill to swallow.

And now Grace, returning with the “elixir of immortality” and bearing “fate with the immortals,” would no doubt gain even greater favor in the Emperor’s heart—becoming an unexpected challenger in the fight for the throne.

…

The Hall of Mental Cultivation, Forbidden City.

Once solemn and majestic, the palace was now filled with the heavy stench of medicine and a suffocating gloom.

The palace servants moved quietly, barely daring to breathe, each one carrying visible worry on their faces.

The ruler of Dragonmarsh, Emperor Valon, had been bedridden for a long time. The Imperial Medical Academy was helpless—his life was held together only by a few skilled physicians using acupuncture and secret medicines.

On the dragon bed, Valon’s face was ashen, his eyes sunken, his breath shallow and quick—like a candle wavering in the breeze, ready to extinguish at any moment.

Several elderly doctors stood around him, brows knit tight, whispering among themselves before shaking their heads with despair.

“Father!”

A voice cracked through the suffocating silence.

Grace rushed in, ignoring all etiquette, nearly tripping over her skirt as she stumbled to the dragon bed. The moment she saw her father’s frail, barely-breathing form, her tears spilled uncontrollably.

Tristan, Matthias, and Nathaniel followed behind. When they saw their father’s condition, they too felt a surge of grief and knelt in respect.

Valon struggled to open his clouded eyes. When he recognized his beloved daughter returning, a faint flicker of light sparked in his dull gaze. His lips trembled, but no sound came out.

“Father, I found the medicine to save you! It will save your life!” Grace sobbed, opening the jade box with trembling hands.

A soft, refreshing fragrance instantly filled the hall, sweeping away the thick medicinal odor and invigorating everyone present.

The old physicians, who had been wearing grim expressions moments earlier, froze in shock at the scent. Their eyes widened as they stared at the milky-white, radiant pill resting inside the jade box.

“This… this is an Immortal Essence Pill? It carries such immense and pure vitality?” Elder Physician Wang exclaimed.

In a lifetime of practicing medicine and refining countless rare elixirs, he had never encountered such gentle, potent life force.

It felt almost otherworldly.

“This is the Immortal Essence Pill—Father Emperor’s illness can be cured,” Grace said quickly.

After receiving a faint nod from Valon, she gently placed the pill into his mouth.

It melted instantly. Instead of erupting with overwhelming power, it flowed like a warm spring, quietly nourishing Valon’s withered limbs and bones.

Wherever the pill’s energy passed, decades of accumulated ailments and depleted vital force began to heal—like parched land finally touched by rain.

Everyone held their breath, eyes locked on the emperor.

Valon’s sallow complexion slowly regained a healthy glow.

The sunken eye sockets filled out. The cloudiness in his gaze cleared.

His faint, uneven breaths grew steady and strong.

Even his temples—once streaked with gray—now showed a few strands of fresh, black hair. His wrinkles softened, his appearance subtly turning back the clock.

Before the time it took an incense stick to burn had passed, Valon was able to sit up with the support of the bed.

He felt a surge of vitality he hadn’t known in years. His eyes widened in disbelief and joy.

“I feel… restored. Better than I have in decades!”

His voice was still hoarse, but it carried strength—no longer frail, no longer fading.

“Your Majesty is blessed with divine fortune! This is truly a miracle!”
Overcome, Imperial Physician Wang and the others dropped to their knees, bowing repeatedly.

In all their years of medicine, they had never witnessed anything like this. It surpassed medicine—it was practically divine intervention.

“Father!” Grace cried, her voice choked with joy.

Every fear, every hardship, every sacrifice along the journey dissolved into pure, overwhelming relief.